James Diliberto - Worship God - Let Your Lifesong Sing - Session 3 - All to the Glory of God

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

1. 0:00

   And I think it's going to be a really, really good session for us. It's actually not the session that was up there. They did, well, you know, so what's happened is I took the third class and I smashed it into class two and this class. So anyway, that's what happened. But that's why we're not doing that one.

2. 0:16

   We're not doing that one. We are doing that. Hold on. The one that was up there before. Yes. All right. We are doing all to the glory of God, creating systematic devotion. And it would have sort of flown on from looking at when God becomes yours, my Lord, my God, and have an intimate fellowship.

3. 0:37

   And I think we've already gotten there. So I think we're there. We understand that. We know that that's important. We know that that's what God wants. We know that that's what God wants. But how do we do that? What do we do to get there? Like, how do I get there? That's the pull side.

4. 0:51

   How do I actually approach that? And I think the first thing that we need to be willing to do is it needs to cost something. Now, we finished our last one with the ultimate cost from Abraham. He was willing to pay to worship God the ultimate cost. God doesn't always ask for costs that big, that costly to honor him, to serve him, to worship him.

5. 1:16

   Like, that's the ultimate Christ example of that. And obviously, Abraham rejoiced to see Christ today and was glad when he saw it. But not all the costs are quite like that. But cost worship does. Turn to 1 Chronicles chapter 21 and look at verses 21 and 24. Because we cannot look at worship without looking at David.

6. 1:41

   Okay, so 1 Chronicles 21 and let's look at verses 22 and 24. Now, this may be a familiar passage to some of you. And maybe for some of you, this might be the first time that you've seen it. So, let's just look at it. We're only going to look at a couple verses here.

7. 1:58

   But I'll try to give you some context. So, 1 Chronicles 21 and we're going to look at verses 22 and 24. So, David makes a mistake. David makes a mistake. And this mistake is something that rippled through Israel. And there was going to be a cost that he was going to have to pay for his mistake.

8. 2:20

   And James 3 verse 1 says, Be not many masters, for you know you will receive the greater condemnation or the harsher judgment. So, the first thing to say is if anyone is a position of leadership or a worship leader, that is a serious responsibility. And the impact that it has when you make mistakes can impact an entire nation, entire generation.

9. 2:42

   And so, let's not ever make that same mistake that David did. Notwithstanding, David knew how serious that was and he wanted to make repentance. He wanted to make an offering to God for his transgression. If you just look at it, this is the threshing floor of Ornan, the Jezusite. David came to Ornan.

10. 3:01

    And Ornan looked and saw David and went from the threshing floor and paid homage to David with his face to the ground. Basically, worships David out of honor for him. And David said to Ornan, give me the site of the threshing floor that I might build on it an altar to the Lord.

11. 3:19

    Just like the patriarchs we looked at in our last session. That I might build an altar unto the Lord. And he says, give it to me for full price. This is the heart of David. Give it to me for full price that the plague may be a burden from the people. Then Ornan said, take it.

12. 3:39

    Let my Lord the King do whatever seems good to him. See, I give oxen for burnt offerings, threshing floorings, the sledges of wood, and wheat for the grain offering. I give it all to you. Seems like a pretty good deal. Everything's provided. Here you go. I got the wood. I got the offering.

13. 3:59

    You build the altar. Seems like a good deal. I'm from New York, so you make deals, right? That's a good deal. I'll do the altar. You do the stuff. We call it even. But that is not okay for David. The king said, no, but I will buy them for full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours, nor burnt offerings that cost me nothing.

14. 4:29

    God is not interested in cheap worship on other people's accounts. Full price, no discounts. Now, Giddy tried to sell me one of these. He successfully sold me two. And he said to me, when they first came out, I said, oh, I want to support NCYC. Give me one of these. And he goes, I'll send you a discount.

15. 4:53

    And I'm like, I want to pay full price. And Giddy's like, what? And I'm like, I'm paying full price. He's like, I don't get it. I'm like, I'll explain it at Novi 2025. So, Giddy, here's your explanation. So, I paid full price for this. And I bought two. And I wanted to. Because I love NCYC.

16. 5:11

    I love NCYC. And I wanted it to cost me something. In fact, in many of the elements of that for me, like, if I had been given it for free, like, I've just chucked it over there. Like, I wouldn't have maybe even valued it. And so, for David, in order to offer something to God, he didn't want to take stuff that cost for somebody else.

17. 5:31

    He didn't want a free ride. That's not worship. That's not an offering. Stuff that's free. Stuff that's cheap. That's not David. So, this beautiful heart of David saying, I will not offer unto Yahweh that which costs me nothing.

18. 5:52

    Are you willing? Are you willing to give God the cheap stuff? The extras? The stuff that's easy? Or the stuff that's riding on the coattails of other people doing the work? And you just want to kind of be part of it? Yeah, yeah, I'll offer that. I didn't do anything for it. But, you know, I'll take it.

19. 6:10

    That is not the heart of David. And that's actually not the heart of the patriarchs. Remember, Abraham did the same thing with his wife Sarah. Remember? That I want to buy. I want to buy this plot. Because it doesn't mean anything if it doesn't cost me something. And that's the beauty of offerings to God.

20. 6:28

    When we offer them to God, they're infused with meaning because they're from our hearts. We give until it hurts. And that's the kind of giving. That's the kind of offering that God is looking for. And David would not accept anything else. So full price, no discounts. If that's the kind of Christianity you're looking for, that's not the kind that God wants.

21. 6:50

    And that's certainly not the spirit of what we see in the Bible from his people. And ultimately, it won't mean much to you. And many people that take it easy and have it don't do the work, don't put the time in. It's easy to walk away. You know why? No. Because it costs you nothing.

22. 7:08

    So it's easy. You have no skin in the game. So you guys got to get involved. You got to put something of your own in. You got to invest. You got to, I don't care what it is. Like give financially time, your thought, your care, join committees. Like this community doesn't run on other people's work.

23. 7:29

    But like in reality, a lot of the time, 80% of the work is done by 20% of the people. Right? That's not how it ought to be. Let's not offer to God something and try to ride on the coast of other people. So first of all, awesome point. I just feel like David sets the bar.

24. 7:49

    And I'm inspired by that. I don't always do that. But I'm like, that's the bullseye. I want that spirit in me. And I hope that you can kind of pick up a little bit of that from David. All right. Another one. Look, by the way, it's just like so hot up here and I don't have water.

25. 8:05

    Can I just get a drink? Oh, Elliot, thank you. God, I'm so thirsty right now. Lord, I just want to thank you for Elliot. In my life, Elliot has been a blessing. He went through a lot of effort to get me this drink of water. But as much as I would have liked to have it on myself, Lord, I would like to just give it to you as an offering.

26. 8:36

    I'm grateful and I pour this out unto you. Amen. Turn over to 2 Samuel chapter 23. And Elliot, you can fill that water up so I can actually have some beer. There you go, Elliot. It costs you nothing.

27. 9:09

    All right. 2 Samuel 23, verses 13 to 17. Now, because I am a third at the moment. Does anyone else want to read this? Anyone want to read for me? Nice and loud? Volunteer?

28. 9:26

    Elliot's like ready to go. Anyone want to read it for me? Go ahead. Go first. Go first. 2 Samuel 23, verse 13. And three of the thirty chief men went down and came about to harvest time to David, at the hava of Adolam. When a band of Philistines was a camp in the valley of Rephan, David was there, was then in the stronghold of the garrison of the Philistines, was then a veteran.

29. 9:58

    And David said, O that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethan, that is by the gate. Then three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethan, that was by the gate, and carried it and brought it to David.

30. 10:16

    But he would not drink of it. He poured it out to the Lord and said, Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink of the blood of the men who went at risk of their lives? Therefore he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did.

31. 10:35

    First of all, that will be dry in about five seconds or so on here. But that is exactly what David did. What made? The water was worth nothing. It was worth zero. It's just a cup of water. What made that cup worth something to David? There's a few reasons in the text. What made it valuable?

32. 11:04

    Effort. Yes, one, it's effort. And what kind of effort? Look at what these mighty men did. Risking their lives. It cost them. Yeah, like it wasn't just like it took effort. They had to like walk up the street. They literally risked their lives for getting this water. What else made it special? To David particularly.

33. 11:24

    Like that it wouldn't be special in the same way if it was given to me. What made it special? From the well-fetched plant. That's right. It was like home turf water. Now, if you ever have water from New York, it's not really that good. But bagels made in New York water is great.

34. 11:38

    So I'm telling you, I have these bagels here in Australia. And I'm just like, oh, man. So I can just have a bagel from New York. And I've had friends like come on the plane. Like you're not even supposed to take food into the country. And they like wrap this bagel. Like, hey, I brought this all the way from New York to like give to you.

35. 11:52

    It's like super stale. And I was like, oh, this is great. I'm going to throw it in the garbage onto the Lord for you. But like it meant something that they took that price, that amount that, first of all, it meant something to me. So it was in my direction, not just something that they thought.

36. 12:06

    And two, it took a lot of effort. So that little bit of water, he pours it out onto the Lord. Like what is that pour it onto the Lord? There's no law about that. But it's like a sign for what all devotional life looks like. If there's something valuable in your life, you can either take it on yourself or you can actually spend it on others.

37. 12:26

    And even if not others, just unto God. So how would you feel if you were those guys that brought the water? How would you feel if you're the ones that brought the water? How might you feel? Confused. They're confused? Like, okay. What else? Cheesed off. Cheesed off. It's a real Australian term. Okay.

38. 12:49

    Cheesed off. I'm assuming that's angry. Okay. What else? Used. Yeah, like maybe used up. All those things. But I think those mighty men, because their heart beats with the heart of David, they would have gone awesome. Honor that to the Lord. I'm not getting you a second one, but that's fine. So what made that valuable for David is the fact that it cost.

39. 13:10

    It meant something to him. It was in his direction. And so he poured that out as an offering unto the Lord. Now, I was at a camp one time, and I asked my wife. I said, man, I really could use a real coffee. They had only the bag kind of coffee. And I said, look, can you just go get me a coffee?

40. 13:29

    I would really appreciate that. And she came back and said, look, it was a bit of an ordeal. I had to go to three different places. It was all closed. It was a long weekend. It wasn't that easy. I had to push the stroller with the kid, like, you know, uphill both ways.

41. 13:41

    But I got this, like, hot coffee for you. So I just poured it out unto the Lord. No, just kidding. I didn't do that. I didn't do that. That would be a first-class invitation to the doghouse. But, like, it would have meant, it would have been, like, meaningful had I. Now, it takes a serious level of spirituality.

42. 14:01

    That's just not some silly thing. But I think there's some beautiful things that we can learn from that. What can you do in your life to glorify God? What can you do to glorify him? Well, here's the most important element. Just quality time. You guys thought I was making it up before about quality time?

43. 14:24

    Actually, have you ever thought about the fact that Sabbath, even just giving some time away for God, why was the Sabbath there? Literally, the Sabbath is equal to quality time with God, not distracted by anything else, devoting an entire period of time to him. Now, Israel was in big trouble at the exile.

44. 14:45

    At the time that Babylon was coming down, Nebuchadnezzar's plans were in place. He looked at the meat or whatever that thing was, and he was like, all right, it's over, I'm going to Jerusalem, it's all over. And Jeremiah 17 has a little perspective on what it would take to turn an entire nation around.

45. 15:03

    And what that is, is systematic devotion. Turn to Jeremiah 17. Let's just have a look at God's advice through the prophet Jeremiah. So when I say systematic devotion, I mean ad hoc is great, on the fly is great, pouring out water like randomly, like that's great. But God also wants us to have a systematic, regular approach.

46. 15:36

    I'm not saying booked in quality time, but you guys know how it is. If you don't make time for it, if you're not disciplined about that devotion, it can just slip and slip and slip. And that was the wisdom of the Sabbath. So have a look at Jeremiah 17, verses 19 to 25.

47. 15:58

    Does anyone else want to read? This is like late session. I'm trying to get more people involved. So who wants to read? And this time, I will provide reward. Who wants to read this one for me? Yep. Jeremiah 17, verses 19 to 25. Thus says Yahweh unto me, Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem.

48. 16:26

    And say unto them, Hear ye the word of Yahweh, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem that enter in by these gates. Thus says Yahweh, Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. Neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the Sabbath day as I commanded your fathers.

49. 16:55

    But they obeyed not, neither inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, nor receive instruction. And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto me, says Yahweh, to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but hallow the Sabbath day, to do no work therein.

50. 17:17

    Then shall there enter into the gates of the city kings and princes, sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on quarters. They and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and this city shall remain forever. Wow. God is saying, you give me the Sabbath, Jerusalem won't get destroyed, there will be kings that will stay on the throne forever.

51. 17:43

    All I need from you is the Sabbath, and I can take everything else from there. Because if God was given the Sabbath, then he could work on their hearts, then he could recapture their adoration, then he could help them with their relationships. All he needs was time. And all he was asking them for at that time was time.

52. 18:02

    He's not even saying, like, get rid of all your idols, and you have to have everything perfect. Just give me the Sabbath. And you give me that good quality time, then I will not destroy this city, and there will be kings on your throne. Now, of course, that didn't happen. They profaned the Sabbath, and it all went to pot.

53. 18:20

    But this is a really important lesson for us when we think about what time do we give. Now, for us, that is the memorial meeting. Now, I just want to be really practical here. When we have a memorial meeting Sunday, just some tips. And I'd love to hear your thoughts on it, too, if you're willing to share.

54. 18:41

    Just some practical tips. Broken my thing here. All right. First of all, how often do you go into a Sunday morning and literally pray that God would give you a good and honest heart? If you're anything like me, you'd probably just show up. Now, especially once you have kids. You've barely made it out the door.

55. 19:01

    You're fighting in the car. You're tripping out. You're having, like, breakfast in the car. Spilling coffee on you. You're just like, you barely made it. But even before that, even before all of that distraction, I could have prayed. Do you pray before meeting on a Sunday? How about a warm-up with the Word?

56. 19:21

    Remember I told you guys earlier, have a coffee with God when things are going bad? Have a coffee with God on a Sunday morning. Just say, I'm having some quiet time with God. It doesn't have to be long. Five minutes. Spend a little devotional time with God.

57. 19:34

    Purify your mind. I know we're, like, addicted to our phones and it's all just right in front of us all the time. Maybe just, like, put away. Have it, have, literally, like, have a Sabbath from social media or whatever it is that's on your phone. Just, like, put it away on Sunday morning.

58. 19:48

    Because if you rock up Sunday morning, you've got all this stuff swirling in your head. And then you want to have an effective worship service. You want to be super connected with all those deep thoughts that we talked about earlier today. You're going to show up when you've got YouTube running and the latest TikTok.

59. 20:01

    And it just can get very distracting. I mean, some of you probably saw that I recently got rid of the social media apps on my phone. I just found it too problematic. Like, even at my age, all the stuff that I got going on, it was still there. It's still frustrating. And, yeah, I just had to sort of put it aside.

60. 20:18

    So now I have to be really deliberate about going to check it out. Maybe you guys might want to do that as a tip all the time. Just so, so convenient. But especially on a Sunday morning, it's just really distracting. Another one. Like, trust in the truth that you already have. Like, go in with a mind ready to challenge what you hear.

61. 20:37

    Trust in the truth that you already have. Don't always be looking for something else. Listen. Trust in the truth that you know. Get a good rest on Saturday night so you can be alert. So you can not be a leech and a waste. You can contribute something. Add something. Make a comment. You know, not like dragging yourself in there.

62. 20:57

    And also, your Sunday school teachers will be much happier having you there. I teach your age and I love them. I just, like, man, you guys got to go to sleep earlier.

63. 21:08

    Walk in on Sunday morning without grumbling and criticism. It's so easy just to be frustrated. Something's not your way. Something's not done the way you like. Just, like, put that aside. Just go, I'm here for God. Not for people. Not for an experience. I'm here for God. So show up ready to worship.

64. 21:27

    Have a heart that's meek and teachable. Be still and focus your mind and heart's affection on God. All that stuff that we talked about this morning. And think earnestly about what is sung, prayed, and preached.

65. 21:43

    Lastly, desire the truth more than you desire richest food. It's really difficult on a Sunday morning, especially if things go on. Especially, like, right now. You're in between a meal. And you're thinking about food. Like, get a good breakfast so you can be focused and distracted. If you've got emails, like, work, emails coming up on your phone.

66. 22:06

    Or even use your phone. Like, just put it away. That doesn't matter. Whom have I in heaven but you? There is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. You are everything that I need. And sometimes we go in with feelings like we have other earthly needs. Whom have I on? There is no one in heaven that I desire besides you.

67. 22:24

    And nothing on earth that I desire besides you. So those are just some tips for me to have a really effective Sabbath in our world.

68. 22:34

    Alright. Here's another one. When things are going bad. When the waves of life are crashing on you. Remember that God hasn't changed. He hasn't moved. And he is still worthy.

69. 23:01

    So worship through your worry. Why is worship good for worry? Everything that you know. Why would worship be a good antidote for worry? We haven't had a component. Why turn to worship? Because a lot of times when you're going through a difficult time, that's the last thing that you want to do. Why is it a good thing to do?

70. 23:33

    Perspective. Times to focus out with a white community. What is it? Times to focus out with a white community. That was really close to your head, but I may hear. Yes. Because, guys, praise brings perspective. And perspective brings power. God is still on the throne. He still is. Great is the reasons why you worship Him.

71. 24:00

    As all power and authorities we give to Him. All the nations are completely under the control of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is totally providentially looking forward to everything. Romans 8.28 is still a thing. All things are working together for good. Because we love God and we're called according to His omnipotent purpose.

72. 24:18

    And when you praise or when you listen to praise, it brings perspective. It turns your eyes upwards. Turn your eyes upwards. Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face as the Him is. And the things of earth will become strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. Turn your eyes upon Jesus.

73. 24:45

    Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will become strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. Praise brings perspective. And there are so many beautiful songs that are like that. For example, the song, the old hymn, It Is Well With My Soul. Anybody know it? When peace like a river attendeth my way.

74. 25:17

    When sorrows like sea billows roll. Anybody know the rest? Come on, where's my old hymn people? No? You guys don't see it? Anyway. The point is that this has been, people have been writing songs like this for years. It Is Well With My Soul. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus. Passing Crowns wrote this awesome song.

75. 25:43

    Praise you in this storm. From the same album that Life Song comes from. We also have Matt Redman's song, Blessed Be Your Name, that I hope we get to sing later. Um, Hard Fault Hallelujah has just come out recently by, you guys, anyone raise your hand if you know it? Okay. Hard Fault Hallelujah.

76. 25:59

    Um, Praise You Anywhere by Brandon Lake. Um, Sovereign Over Us by Aaron Keyes, which was actually the thing last night, which I was like, oh, that's pretty cool. It's kind of a throwback to the first though, because that's when we did that song last. But there are praise songs for times of pain that are specifically there to help you rise up and triumph over your challenges with praise.

77. 26:21

    So, when you think about the weapon of praise, when you're going to battle for a perspective, praise is a weapon. Pick it up. Now, what do you do when you don't have the words? If you don't know what to say? I highly recommend that you pray the psalms. Pray them. Because if you don't have the vocabulary and you don't know what to say, turn up some of these psalms and pray the psalms until your spirit comes into sync with God's spirit and you can start praying in your own words.

78. 26:57

    I highly recommend thinking about psalms as a way to get through challenging times. Spurgeon put it this way, my dear friend, when grief pushes you to the dust, worship there.

79. 27:15

    A hint from the song in the previous slide. Who is the best example that you can think of in the Old Testament for praising when they hit rock bottom? Who praised when they hit the bottom? Joseph. Joseph. Who said Joseph?

80. 27:44

    Yeah. Wait. When he gets trapped in prison. Oh, okay. Yeah. I'm assuming that's what he did. That makes sense. Maybe like a Paul and Silas kind of thing. They're singing hymns. They're in prison. They sing hymns. The shackles come off. Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance. So good. Anyway.

81. 28:02

    Sorry. That's what I'm saying. This is my daughter. She's like, you can't do that. Come on. But I can't. All right. Somebody else said it over here. Who was it? Joe. That's right. So let's look at Joe. Blessed be your name. That's why I wanted to sing this song. And if we can do blessed be your name later, that would be so amazing if we could just sing that together.

82. 28:22

    Because blessed be your name is all about praising and still saying, blessed be your name. God hasn't changed. He hasn't moved. He still has all the reasons why he's worthy. Has not changed at all. And look what Joe does at the bottom. It's just so wonderful. And it's worth checking out. So Job 1-1, obviously we know.

83. 28:45

    Job, he's blameless. Look at this guy's life of worship. He's blameless and upright. He feared God and he turned away from evil. So this is a brother who is the real deal. Job is legit. He's like Cornelius, like of the Old Testament. Right? This is like before the law. There's no law at this time where Job is.

84. 29:04

    So it's like he found a way to praise and to pray and have a relationship with God even when he is outside of what appears to be the law arrangements. So we get that about Job. Then you get down to verse 5. What happens to Job? He loses all of these things. And the accusation against Job is that if he loses the comfortabilities of life, he'll stop worshiping.

85. 29:35

    He'll stop praising. Right? It may be that my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts and thus he did continually. He's making offerings for his family. But the thought was, well, maybe this Satan character in the story is saying, well, if you stretch out your hand like Job, against Job, he will curse you.

86. 29:58

    And unfortunately, somebody in his family comes along and recommends that Job do exactly that. That happens in chapter 2. So just two more things. Verses 20 and 21. So Job loses everything. You know the story. But what does he do? He fell on the ground and worshipped. So he loses everything. And while he's on the bottom, he falls down physically on the ground and worshipped.

87. 30:25

    And he says, naked have I come from my mother's womb. Naked have I returned. But look at how he ascribes the authority to God. He says, the Lord gave total sovereignty. The Lord has taken away total sovereignty. Blessed be the name of the Lord. And in all this, Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.

88. 30:50

    Even though he didn't understand. He's in this battle to try to understand why. But he never blames it on God. He never turns away from God. He still blesses God. And he's still, in all this loss, he is still making offerings for his family. Now skip over to chapter 2 and look at verses 9 and 10.

89. 31:13

    Then his wife said to him, do you hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die. He said to her, you speak as one of the foolish women speak. Shall we receive good from God and not receive evil? And again, in all of this, Job did not sin with his lips. Flip over to Habakkuk chapter 3.

90. 31:34

    I know this is a hint. It's actually one. I really like the new version of this that we have in our green book. It doesn't get sung that often. It's one of the old anthems. Although the fig tree shall not blossom. It's a really, really good one. It has these two really good movements.

91. 31:46

    And we don't really sing it that much. So we used to sing it around the campfire. Like, kind of like swung. And kind of like a waltz style. Anyway, it's a good way to do it. I think I want some of them to try. All right. Habakkuk 3, verses 17 to 19. Thank you.

92. 32:00

    All right. Life is not good. In this time, he's struggling. He's troubled. Literally, he's troubled in the previous verse. And verse 17. Here is the perspective of a worshiper.

93. 32:27

    Although the fig tree shall not blossom. Nor fruit be on the vines. The produce of the olive fail. The fields yield no food. The flock be cut off from the fold. And there be no herd in the stalls. Yet. Yet will I rejoice in the Lord. I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

94. 32:56

    God the Lord is my strength. And he makes my feet like the deer's. He makes me tread on high places. To the choir master on stringed instruments. It's a song.

95. 33:09

    And the song is just like all those other songs. It's a song about praise, bringing perspective. Although I should lose everything. Yet will I. Psalm 116. I'm going to raise up the cup of salvation. Because I'm still saved. What can mortal man do to me? I'm still saved. I'm still in the bundle of life.

96. 33:29

    He is still God on the throne. And I will rejoice in that. Because it's the God of my salvation. And in that the Lord will give me strength. That's how to get out of a funnel. That's how to get out when you're struggling on the ground. You need perspective. Because most of the time.

97. 33:45

    The time that we're struggling. Unless we're literally physically hurt. Is because we have lost our perspective. Of the sovereignty of God. So that is. That is my very strong recommendation to you. And my prayer is that you do that. The way you do that. Is in private. I think it's difficult to praise in your pain.

98. 34:07

    When you're with other people. Songs are helpful. But when you need to do business with God. You might need to wrestle with God. I'll tell you. I'll tell you a brief story about myself. During that time. When my parents were in the middle of. I didn't know what way it was going to go.

99. 34:22

    I didn't know if they were going to be getting divorced. I was so mad at God. For not redeeming my family. I was angry. I didn't understand. And I used to go outside. And I used to literally shake my fist at this guy. And ask why. A lot of times I was crying.

100. 34:34

     And kind of wrestling with God. In that kind of prayer. And I don't think I ever ascribed evil to God. But kind of like Job. I'm like. What's going on here? Why not? And I was just wrestling with God. And a lot of times I did do things. Like the Psalms. And the Psalms are filled with people said.

101. 34:51

     How long oh Lord. How long until you're going to figure this out. Like that's an okay perspective to have. But you need to do it in your version of the tent of meeting. You know when we have a corporate situation in worship. Many people don't realize this. That the intimacy that Moses had.

102. 35:09

     That time when he was going through a difficult time carrying Israel. It says that in addition to the tabernacle. It says that he used to pitch a tent. Outside of the tabernacle. And outside of the camp. And he used to go there. And meet with God. Now it's a really cool thing to see that.

103. 35:29

     That's the beginning of Joshua's ministry. Was actually this intimacy with God. And Moses in this tent. And the most wonderful thing about this story. Is that it says. When he went into this. You know what all the other people did. It says they stood. At their own tent entrances. And worshipped. Worship in intimacy.

104. 35:56

     When you are having your own time with God. And people see that that's how you're doing it. That could inspire other people. And Moses inspired a whole nation. To go whoa. He is going in to actually meet. With God. He's going to meet with the almighty. And they would likewise fall down. At the entrances of their tents.

105. 36:16

     And similarly worship. And it basically says. That they bow down on their face. Now getting down like this. In terms of posture. Getting down on your face. Is probably a good way. When especially in a Mediterranean culture. Of which I impart. So hello to the Greeks in the back. And the Italians at the front.

106. 36:37

     We are very expressive people. As you have worked out. And in Mediterranean culture. At least at that time. Mediterranean culture. They literally expressed. When they were grieving. You saw it. When they were sad. They put sackcloth and ashes on. Wailers came. And like they were not afraid to feel. They were not nonchalant.

107. 36:57

     They felt all of their emotions. And one of those things. That is just consistent. In all of these people. Abraham. Moses. David. Aaron. Ezekiel. Daniel. Daniel. At the transfiguration. With the disciples. And the 24 elders in Revelation. They are all face down. Now I don't know about you. But this is a very very rare occurrence for me.

108. 37:23

     But the time that it happens most. Is when things are difficult. And sometimes getting your body. Into a posture. That helps your mind. And your mentality. It is the same thing about perspective. You need to get yourself down low. Associate yourself with the ground. Elevate God. This is why David. When he was sad.

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     After the loss of the baby. From the sin with Bathsheba. It says that he prostrated himself. Literally on the ground. Face down. All night. And so maybe in your prayer. Just in maybe some of your practical devotion. Maybe you can try to change your posture. In your prayer life. Obviously we bow our heads.

110. 38:05

     This is probably the most common one. Standing. We do this fairly commonly. Kneeling. Pretty rare. But it's really powerful. And we have it when our kids. You know. We have our kids kneel by the side of their bed. Like I don't do that. I don't know. Does anyone actually do that? Have their kids kneel by the side of their bed?

111. 38:21

     I don't know. My parents never did it. We never did it. But I can tell you. When I'm really wrestling with God. In prayer and something. Or whether I'm really grateful for something. If I get down on my knees like I did before. It really changes how I pray. It changes my mentality.

112. 38:36

     Obviously faces to the ground. You've seen some examples. There's plenty of that. Lying on the ground. The one I mentioned with David. Eyes raised up. Here's another one. Maybe sometimes. Especially when you're out in creation. Pray. But don't close your eyes. Leave them open. See what's around you. There's actually a little subtle thing.

113. 38:54

     I've kind of felt like. Sometimes when we only ever close our eyes. When we pray. It's like we're kind of putting God in a compartment. Like I'm never picturing God anyway. I don't know what that looks like. And sometimes I feel like it takes me out of the present. But if I pray when I'm walking.

114. 39:12

     Or pray while I'm driving. Practicing the presence of God. Just day to day. Or even just praying with your eyes open. Closing your eyes. It's something that we do culturally. But maybe raise your eyes up to the sky. And pray that way. Here's one that some of us do occasionally. It's one that we don't do a lot of.

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     But you've seen a lot of pictures of in my slides. This is a super, super Old Testament and New Testament way to pray. My uncle John Warner in California. He had a. His systematic devotion. He always prayed with his hands up. Always. I can't remember a time that he didn't pray that way.

116. 39:51

     At home. In the meeting. Anytime. Ever. And for the times. If anyone has ever tried to do that. Maybe tonight is a good time for you to try that. What does it do when you open up your hands like this? It opens up physically. You're opening up your spirit. And look. There are a few different ways that you can do this.

117. 40:11

     But the point is that if you try to, with your knees or with your body or with your hands or your eyes, open up to God instead of being kind of like physically closed. That might help you in your worship. Another way is when you're praying, even by yourself, pray out loud. Think about this.

118. 40:33

     When Hannah prayed, her mouth was moving. I couldn't really tell what was happening. She was praying out loud. I often don't do that. I pray in my head. But you can get lost in your thoughts. Anybody do that? When you pray, you're lost in your thoughts? I guess I'm the only one. All right, well, anyway, praying in my head sometimes I get lost in my thoughts.

119. 40:54

     And sometimes if you just pray out loud, even for your own self, it just helps you speak. And obviously, God doesn't mind pauses at all. And then lastly, there are some awesome examples of prayer in corporate worship. And I just hope maybe that's something that you all can adopt. I like to quote something else that we're just going to have to sort of wrap up now.

120. 41:17

     So I want to just maybe close with a couple more things. One is a quote from Matt Jacoby. Just back to praying the Psalms. What does a healthy relationship with God look like? This is like a systematic devotion relationship. It looks like honest communication. It even looks like constructive conflict. We must take the idealistic boundaries out of our communication with God and allow for a range of expression that is congruent with the complexities of life.

121. 41:50

     I'll let you sit on that for a second. Our formulaic prayers, very formal, especially in a congregational zone, often just don't hit what life really looks like. There's another reason why I really like a lot of songs. A lot of songs that are more devotional and meditational kind of songs. And we've had a few of those this weekend.

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     They're really good because that's when you can kind of get things a little bit more folky, a little bit more in line with the complexities of life. But what does he say? He says, what does it look like? It looks like the Psalms. This is because we come to the text with our ideals.

123. 42:23

     We analyze the Psalms with such questions as, can you say that to God? Are you allowed to pray that sort of thing? The Psalms were written not to dictate religious habits or to achieve certain engines. They are expressions of the heart written to cultivate us in the very heart that they themselves express.

124. 42:41

     They are given to us to shape our innermost desires and therefore open up our capacity to live in relationship with God. Those are the deeper places that hope that your systematic devotion will drive you to. All right, I'm going to finish with this one.

125. 43:01

     Can you imagine getting to the kingdom? I told you before, like, could you imagine the kingdom without God or Jesus? Well, the good news is that that's not going to happen. The bad news is one of the scariest verses in the Bible may be true for you or me. And it's this one right here.

126. 43:24

     On that day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not, insert thing, do many mighty works in your name? Then I will say, I never knew you. Depart from me.

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     Can you imagine if we get to the kingdom and we have never cultivated a systematic devotion, a literal relationship with God? Not corporate, not here as the experience, but your relationship with God. And Christ says, I never knew you. Like, I don't know who you are.

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     Very, very scary. And it should be something that arrests our attention. It would be such a shame to gain the whole world and lose our own soul. All because we did not end up having a relationship with our Lord Jesus and our Heavenly Father through it. So I'm hoping that tomorrow, what we're going to, well, I know what we're going to do tomorrow.

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     What we're going to do tomorrow is we're going to look at the exaltation, the relationship with Jesus, and what people did. One, looking at him as literally the illustration of worship, and two, how people built a relationship of worship with the Lord Jesus himself. So I hope that we will enjoy our praise night tonight, applying what we're going to do today.

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     Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.