{"id":1455,"date":"2026-03-22T21:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/goodchristadelphiantalks.com\/index.php\/podcast\/392-jeff-gelineau-outside-the-box\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T00:50:53","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T00:50:53","slug":"392-jeff-gelineau-outside-the-box","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/goodchristadelphiantalks.com\/index.php\/podcast\/392-jeff-gelineau-outside-the-box\/","title":{"rendered":"392: Jeff Gelineau – Outside the Box"},"content":{"rendered":"

This week’s talk is from a series by Brother Jeff Gelineau titled “Beyond the Book,” given earlier last year at the 2025 Great Lakes Christadelphian Bible School. This is class 3, “Outside the Box.”<\/p>\n

Be sure to subscribe to the GCT Extended podcast<\/a> to hear the other classes in this series!<\/p>\n

We hope this strengthens your Faith and brightens your day!<\/p>\n

Thank you for listening, God bless, and talk to you next week.<\/p>\n

Send talk suggestions or comments to:\u00a0\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060GoodChristadelphianTalks@gmail.com\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060<\/a><\/p>\n

For Show Notes, visit our website:\u00a0\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060GoodChristadelphianTalks.com\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060\u2060<\/a><\/p>\n

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1
\n00:00:03,960 –> 00:00:05,440
\nWelcome to Good Christophian
\nTalks. <\/p>\n

2
\n00:00:05,920 –> 00:00:08,600
\nThank you for joining us this
\nweek on this podcast. <\/p>\n

3
\n00:00:08,600 –> 00:00:11,920
\nWe select one talk a week to
\nhelp us get the Bible in our <\/p>\n

4
\n00:00:11,920 –> 00:00:16,000
\nDaily News feed.
\nEach week we post a talk that we<\/p>\n

5
\n00:00:16,000 –> 00:00:19,000
\npreviewed from suggestions sent
\nin by listeners from around the <\/p>\n

6
\n00:00:19,000 –> 00:00:21,560
\nworld.
\nThen we record a short intro <\/p>\n

7
\n00:00:21,560 –> 00:00:25,040
\nbeforehand as a personalized
\nrecommendation to you on why we <\/p>\n

8
\n00:00:25,040 –> 00:00:28,000
\nare sharing the talk.
\nAnd now let’s talk more about <\/p>\n

9
\n00:00:28,000 –> 00:00:33,880
\nthis week’s talk.
\nHowdy. <\/p>\n

10
\n00:00:34,680 –> 00:00:38,840
\nThis week’s class is entitled
\nOutside the Box, given by <\/p>\n

11
\n00:00:38,840 –> 00:00:43,400
\nbrother Jeff Gillenaux from his
\nseries Beyond the Book given at <\/p>\n

12
\n00:00:43,400 –> 00:00:46,640
\nthe 2025 Great Lakes
\nChristadelphian Bible School. <\/p>\n

13
\n00:00:47,960 –> 00:00:52,440
\nOne word to describe this class
\nand the series as a whole is <\/p>\n

14
\n00:00:52,520 –> 00:00:56,920
\nreverent.
\nThis is a very reverent class <\/p>\n

15
\n00:00:57,160 –> 00:01:02,040
\ntowards our God.
\nIt’s not a talk where you’ll <\/p>\n

16
\n00:01:02,040 –> 00:01:05,960
\nlearn the most or you’ll put
\nlots of notes in your margin. <\/p>\n

17
\n00:01:06,760 –> 00:01:10,160
\nIt’s a talk that pushes the
\nboundary of your thinking, <\/p>\n

18
\n00:01:10,760 –> 00:01:13,840
\npushes you outside the box a
\nlittle. <\/p>\n

19
\n00:01:14,840 –> 00:01:20,240
\nNow, the term outside the box is
\nnot used in the context to <\/p>\n

20
\n00:01:20,240 –> 00:01:24,040
\nsuggest that we need anything
\nmore or less than the Bible. <\/p>\n

21
\n00:01:24,760 –> 00:01:26,400
\nBut.
\nWhat Brother Jeff goes on to <\/p>\n

22
\n00:01:26,400 –> 00:01:31,440
\nsuggest is that given the nature
\nof our community, where we hold <\/p>\n

23
\n00:01:31,440 –> 00:01:34,960
\nGod’s one and only truth, where
\nwe read at least three times a <\/p>\n

24
\n00:01:34,960 –> 00:01:40,160
\nday and we study and mark God’s
\nWord constantly, the thought may<\/p>\n

25
\n00:01:40,160 –> 00:01:44,920
\narise that we possess the owner
\nmanual to God. <\/p>\n

26
\n00:01:45,920 –> 00:01:51,160
\nThat we can be so dogmatic in
\nwhat we academically know about <\/p>\n

27
\n00:01:51,160 –> 00:01:55,680
\nour Father that it causes
\ndifficulties when he works <\/p>\n

28
\n00:01:55,760 –> 00:01:59,000
\noutside how we initially thought
\nhe worked. <\/p>\n

29
\n00:02:00,360 –> 00:02:04,320
\nBrother Jeff’s main exhortation
\nis that when we enter those <\/p>\n

30
\n00:02:04,320 –> 00:02:09,720
\nrough waters, it’s a loving
\ntrust in God that will get us <\/p>\n

31
\n00:02:09,720 –> 00:02:12,960
\nthrough the storm.
\nAnd towards the end, there’s a <\/p>\n

32
\n00:02:12,960 –> 00:02:17,520
\nbig call to action to really
\nexpand our circle of compassion <\/p>\n

33
\n00:02:17,920 –> 00:02:20,360
\nbeyond our immediate friends and
\nfamily. <\/p>\n

34
\n00:02:21,880 –> 00:02:24,600
\nI found that this class makes
\nfor a really good discussion <\/p>\n

35
\n00:02:24,600 –> 00:02:27,280
\nwith others.
\nIf there’s someone you know who <\/p>\n

36
\n00:02:27,280 –> 00:02:31,680
\nalso listens to the podcast,
\ngive them a call or text and ask<\/p>\n

37
\n00:02:31,680 –> 00:02:33,160
\nthem what they thought about
\nthis class. <\/p>\n

38
\n00:02:34,360 –> 00:02:38,680
\nWith that, here is brother Jeff
\nJelineau outside the box. <\/p>\n

39
\n00:02:39,440 –> 00:02:44,760
\nThank you to the 18 people who
\nresponded yesterday to my <\/p>\n

40
\n00:02:44,760 –> 00:02:47,880
\nquestions and comments.
\nI appreciate the all the input. <\/p>\n

41
\n00:02:47,880 –> 00:02:50,440
\nHad a had a aha moment on my
\nown. <\/p>\n

42
\n00:02:50,640 –> 00:02:55,280
\nI’ll share with you.
\nJohn came over to defend his <\/p>\n

43
\n00:02:55,280 –> 00:02:59,720
\nfellow college students and and
\nsaid that, you know, it’s not <\/p>\n

44
\n00:02:59,880 –> 00:03:02,760
\nnecessarily higher education
\nthat takes you away from God, <\/p>\n

45
\n00:03:02,760 –> 00:03:06,640
\nbut it’s the pride that often
\nfollows knowledge that that <\/p>\n

46
\n00:03:06,640 –> 00:03:08,120
\nmakes it hard.
\nSo that was an interesting <\/p>\n

47
\n00:03:08,120 –> 00:03:10,000
\npoint.
\nWe kind of enjoyed that comment.<\/p>\n

48
\n00:03:10,200 –> 00:03:15,400
\nAnd then someone else came up
\nand said that doubt and humility<\/p>\n

49
\n00:03:15,640 –> 00:03:19,520
\nare connected.
\nAnd I and I, I put those two <\/p>\n

50
\n00:03:19,520 –> 00:03:21,920
\ncomments together and I have to
\nexplore this a little bit <\/p>\n

51
\n00:03:21,920 –> 00:03:23,400
\nfurther.
\nBut there’s definitely a <\/p>\n

52
\n00:03:23,400 –> 00:03:27,960
\nconnection between certainty and
\npride and doubt and humility. <\/p>\n

53
\n00:03:28,040 –> 00:03:31,120
\nAnd I think that’s something for
\nus to spend a little time <\/p>\n

54
\n00:03:31,120 –> 00:03:32,560
\nthinking about.
\nBut not today. <\/p>\n

55
\n00:03:32,560 –> 00:03:35,360
\nToday we’re going to head down a
\ndifferent path. <\/p>\n

56
\n00:03:35,360 –> 00:03:38,120
\nWe’re going to talk about
\noutside the box. <\/p>\n

57
\n00:03:38,120 –> 00:03:42,600
\nNow, Certainly outside the box
\nis a metaphor, unless your name <\/p>\n

58
\n00:03:42,600 –> 00:03:46,880
\nis Jack.
\nAnd and we’re going to apply <\/p>\n

59
\n00:03:46,880 –> 00:03:49,120
\nthat in in a couple of different
\nways. <\/p>\n

60
\n00:03:49,120 –> 00:03:50,880
\nSo you’re going to get a little
\nconfused. <\/p>\n

61
\n00:03:51,320 –> 00:03:53,600
\nIt’s not that I’m I’m getting
\nconfused, just that you’re <\/p>\n

62
\n00:03:53,600 –> 00:03:56,880
\ngetting a little confused.
\nWe’re going to talk not just <\/p>\n

63
\n00:03:56,880 –> 00:03:59,760
\nabout thinking outside the box,
\nbut about about seeing outside <\/p>\n

64
\n00:03:59,760 –> 00:04:03,280
\nthe box and about living outside
\nthe box. <\/p>\n

65
\n00:04:04,440 –> 00:04:07,920
\nAnd I want to start by looking
\nback to the good old days when <\/p>\n

66
\n00:04:07,920 –> 00:04:11,000
\nwe were young.
\nSo for 17 of you doesn’t really <\/p>\n

67
\n00:04:11,000 –> 00:04:14,600
\napply, but for the rest of us
\nthat applies. <\/p>\n

68
\n00:04:15,360 –> 00:04:17,680
\nMight I say, I’ll go ahead and
\nsay it. <\/p>\n

69
\n00:04:19,040 –> 00:04:22,280
\nI feel like Ken Somerville when
\nI say this, but young, dumb and <\/p>\n

70
\n00:04:22,280 –> 00:04:24,440
\nhappy, That’s what Ken used to
\nsay all the time. <\/p>\n

71
\n00:04:25,920 –> 00:04:29,880
\nYou, you may start out happy,
\nbut the fact that we want to <\/p>\n

72
\n00:04:29,880 –> 00:04:34,400
\ntalk about is the more you
\nbecome aware of life’s <\/p>\n

73
\n00:04:34,400 –> 00:04:38,640
\ncomplexities and life’s
\ninjustices and life’s <\/p>\n

74
\n00:04:38,640 –> 00:04:43,040
\nuncertainties and and hardships,
\nthe harder it is to be happy as <\/p>\n

75
\n00:04:43,040 –> 00:04:45,920
\nyou get older.
\nThat’s why we tend to look back <\/p>\n

76
\n00:04:45,920 –> 00:04:52,920
\non our youth with such fondness.
\nThe 21 year old Jeff didn’t know<\/p>\n

77
\n00:04:53,320 –> 00:04:58,320
\nas many things that I know about
\nnow that haunt my brain when I <\/p>\n

78
\n00:04:58,320 –> 00:05:01,880
\ncan’t sleep at night.
\nThings were easier when you were<\/p>\n

79
\n00:05:01,880 –> 00:05:04,880
\nyoung in so many ways, they were
\neasier when you were young. <\/p>\n

80
\n00:05:05,120 –> 00:05:06,680
\nThings were more black and
\nwhite. <\/p>\n

81
\n00:05:09,240 –> 00:05:13,000
\nYou weren’t tormented by all the
\nsubtle nuances of life. <\/p>\n

82
\n00:05:13,800 –> 00:05:15,720
\nMaybe as you looked at a
\nsituation, looked at a problem, <\/p>\n

83
\n00:05:15,720 –> 00:05:18,440
\nlooked at at something, you just
\nsay, well, yeah, this is the <\/p>\n

84
\n00:05:18,440 –> 00:05:21,040
\nanswer.
\nYou didn’t say, well, yeah, but <\/p>\n

85
\n00:05:21,040 –> 00:05:24,440
\nthere’s this and there’s this
\nand and you know, all those, all<\/p>\n

86
\n00:05:24,440 –> 00:05:28,240
\nthose things that make it hard.
\nSo in that sense, I think young <\/p>\n

87
\n00:05:28,240 –> 00:05:30,320
\npeople are dumb.
\nThey’re not, they’re not yet <\/p>\n

88
\n00:05:30,320 –> 00:05:34,320
\naware of, of life’s
\ncomplications, of all the, all <\/p>\n

89
\n00:05:34,320 –> 00:05:40,240
\nthe particles that make up the
\nwhole, they, they think inside <\/p>\n

90
\n00:05:40,240 –> 00:05:43,080
\nthe box everything is very
\nclear. <\/p>\n

91
\n00:05:43,080 –> 00:05:50,920
\nThere’s right and there’s wrong.
\nAnd it’s always clear which one <\/p>\n

92
\n00:05:50,920 –> 00:05:56,640
\nis which, or more importantly,
\nwho was right, who was wrong. <\/p>\n

93
\n00:05:57,080 –> 00:05:59,240
\nAs you get older, you start to
\nbe able to think a little bit <\/p>\n

94
\n00:05:59,240 –> 00:06:03,760
\noutside that box and that’s
\ngood, that’s healthy. <\/p>\n

95
\n00:06:03,960 –> 00:06:05,880
\nI think it’s very important that
\nwe we do that. <\/p>\n

96
\n00:06:05,880 –> 00:06:07,760
\nWe have to mature to get to that
\npoint. <\/p>\n

97
\n00:06:08,080 –> 00:06:11,120
\nThe part they don’t tell you
\nthough, is that it’s going to <\/p>\n

98
\n00:06:11,360 –> 00:06:14,120
\nreally ruin your day.
\nYou know, it’s really going to <\/p>\n

99
\n00:06:14,120 –> 00:06:16,880
\nwhen you start to, when you
\nstart to see outside the box as <\/p>\n

100
\n00:06:16,880 –> 00:06:22,960
\nwell, you’re no longer entirely
\nconsumed with your own being and<\/p>\n

101
\n00:06:22,960 –> 00:06:27,600
\nyou start to look at those
\naround you and you start to be <\/p>\n

102
\n00:06:27,600 –> 00:06:32,120
\nconcerned for those around you.
\nYou start to worry for those <\/p>\n

103
\n00:06:32,120 –> 00:06:34,360
\naround you.
\nThe the welfare of others <\/p>\n

104
\n00:06:34,840 –> 00:06:38,600
\nbecomes your concern.
\nI just love how Paul describes <\/p>\n

105
\n00:06:38,600 –> 00:06:42,000
\nhis life.
\nHe says, oh that’s what we’re <\/p>\n

106
\n00:06:42,000 –> 00:06:44,320
\ntalking about today.
\nNext slide, Paul describes his <\/p>\n

107
\n00:06:44,320 –> 00:06:48,320
\nlife.
\nFive times I received at the <\/p>\n

108
\n00:06:48,320 –> 00:06:53,960
\nhands of the Jews.
\nThe 40 lashes less, 1\/3 times I <\/p>\n

109
\n00:06:53,960 –> 00:06:57,040
\nwas beaten with rods.
\nOnce I was stoned. <\/p>\n

110
\n00:06:57,760 –> 00:07:02,800
\nThree times I was shipwrecked a
\nday and a night I was adrift at <\/p>\n

111
\n00:07:02,800 –> 00:07:06,320
\nsea on frequent journeys and
\ndangers from rivers, Dangers <\/p>\n

112
\n00:07:06,320 –> 00:07:09,960
\nfrom robbers, danger from my own
\npeople, danger from gentiles, <\/p>\n

113
\n00:07:09,960 –> 00:07:13,200
\ndanger in the city, danger in
\nthe wilderness, danger at sea, <\/p>\n

114
\n00:07:13,200 –> 00:07:17,320
\ndanger from false brothers, and
\ntoil and hardship through many a<\/p>\n

115
\n00:07:17,320 –> 00:07:21,080
\nsleepless nights, and hunger and
\nthirst, often without food and <\/p>\n

116
\n00:07:21,080 –> 00:07:30,840
\ncold and exposure.
\nI, I, I can’t think of 1 of <\/p>\n

117
\n00:07:30,840 –> 00:07:35,520
\nthose things that have happened
\nto me and he and he’s had, you <\/p>\n

118
\n00:07:35,680 –> 00:07:39,960
\nknow, all of them.
\nIt sounds like it’s always makes<\/p>\n

119
\n00:07:39,960 –> 00:07:42,480
\nme laugh when I read that
\nbecause it makes me think of one<\/p>\n

120
\n00:07:42,480 –> 00:07:46,040
\nof those terrible Bible mission
\npresentations at Bible school, <\/p>\n

121
\n00:07:46,440 –> 00:07:48,920
\nyou know, become a Bible
\nmissionary. <\/p>\n

122
\n00:07:49,000 –> 00:07:51,920
\nHave terrible, uncomfortable
\nthings happen to you in faraway <\/p>\n

123
\n00:07:51,920 –> 00:07:53,840
\ncountries.
\nYou know, if they they come back<\/p>\n

124
\n00:07:53,840 –> 00:07:55,720
\nlike, you know, I was AI was a
\nBible mission. <\/p>\n

125
\n00:07:55,720 –> 00:07:58,560
\nAnd this is, you know, I got
\nsome dysentery, you know, and <\/p>\n

126
\n00:07:58,560 –> 00:08:00,280
\nit’s like, I don’t really want
\nto hear about this. <\/p>\n

127
\n00:08:02,120 –> 00:08:04,800
\nBut the point I’m making,
\nthough, is Paul thought all of <\/p>\n

128
\n00:08:04,800 –> 00:08:09,600
\nthat was nothing compared to
\nthat. <\/p>\n

129
\n00:08:11,120 –> 00:08:15,080
\nApart from all these other
\nthings, there’s the daily <\/p>\n

130
\n00:08:15,080 –> 00:08:18,840
\npressure on me of my anxiety for
\nall the churches. <\/p>\n

131
\n00:08:19,840 –> 00:08:24,200
\nWhipped five times, beaten 3
\ntimes, stoned once, shipwrecked <\/p>\n

132
\n00:08:24,280 –> 00:08:27,240
\nnot once, not twice, three
\ntimes. <\/p>\n

133
\n00:08:27,400 –> 00:08:32,400
\nHe needs a new travel agent, you
\nknow, 24 hours adrift at the <\/p>\n

134
\n00:08:32,400 –> 00:08:36,320
\nsea, dangers everywhere he went
\nin the city, in the country, <\/p>\n

135
\n00:08:36,559 –> 00:08:43,200
\nenemies, friends, sleepless
\nnights, hunger, thirst, exposed <\/p>\n

136
\n00:08:43,200 –> 00:08:48,120
\nto the cold.
\nBut worse and all those things <\/p>\n

137
\n00:08:48,120 –> 00:08:51,840
\nis the daily burden of my
\nconcern for the ecclesias. <\/p>\n

138
\n00:08:52,560 –> 00:08:54,320
\nThe 21 year old Jeff had none of
\nthat. <\/p>\n

139
\n00:08:57,280 –> 00:09:01,640
\nThe 61 year old Jeff lays awake
\nat night thinking about that <\/p>\n

140
\n00:09:01,640 –> 00:09:06,440
\nsister and what we can do to fix
\nthat, help that solve that. <\/p>\n

141
\n00:09:09,600 –> 00:09:12,280
\nWhen you really become aware of
\neveryone around you, you start <\/p>\n

142
\n00:09:12,280 –> 00:09:15,640
\nto see the pain.
\nEverybody hurts. <\/p>\n

143
\n00:09:16,320 –> 00:09:20,560
\nIt’s this, it’s this thing that
\nKelly and I say all the time and<\/p>\n

144
\n00:09:21,960 –> 00:09:24,840
\nand it’s just so true.
\nLike, you know, and you didn’t <\/p>\n

145
\n00:09:24,840 –> 00:09:27,640
\nknow it, you didn’t know it.
\nEverything was going really <\/p>\n

146
\n00:09:27,640 –> 00:09:30,600
\ngood.
\nAnd then the police arrest him <\/p>\n

147
\n00:09:30,880 –> 00:09:34,520
\nand put him in jail.
\nAnd she tells you, yeah, it’s <\/p>\n

148
\n00:09:34,520 –> 00:09:38,400
\nbeen going on for three years.
\nAnd it I didn’t he, you know, <\/p>\n

149
\n00:09:38,440 –> 00:09:40,480
\nhe, he told me if I told
\nanybody, he would beat me. <\/p>\n

150
\n00:09:40,480 –> 00:09:44,320
\nAnd and I haven’t told anybody.
\nAnd and you just didn’t know the<\/p>\n

151
\n00:09:44,320 –> 00:09:51,760
\npain that she was in.
\nEveryone is struggling with <\/p>\n

152
\n00:09:51,760 –> 00:09:58,080
\nsomething.
\nThose who are not aware of what <\/p>\n

153
\n00:09:58,080 –> 00:10:01,480
\nothers are carrying don’t feel
\nthat same burden. <\/p>\n

154
\n00:10:02,320 –> 00:10:04,960
\nYou show up at church,
\neveryone’s dressed real nice. <\/p>\n

155
\n00:10:05,640 –> 00:10:07,800
\nEveryone smiles.
\nYou have a couple of nice <\/p>\n

156
\n00:10:07,800 –> 00:10:09,400
\nvisits.
\nYou talk about the score of the <\/p>\n

157
\n00:10:09,400 –> 00:10:12,040
\ngame last night, you hear a good
\ntalk. <\/p>\n

158
\n00:10:12,280 –> 00:10:14,560
\nYou go home.
\nYou mow the lawn, you play some <\/p>\n

159
\n00:10:14,560 –> 00:10:16,840
\npickleball.
\nYou enjoy another episode of <\/p>\n

160
\n00:10:16,840 –> 00:10:20,400
\nLongmire and you crawl into bed
\nand it’s just lather, rinse, <\/p>\n

161
\n00:10:20,400 –> 00:10:27,080
\nrepeat.
\nIt’s it’s the same way for <\/p>\n

162
\n00:10:27,080 –> 00:10:31,080
\nsomeone who’s ignorant or or
\nmakes the deliberate choice to <\/p>\n

163
\n00:10:31,400 –> 00:10:34,720
\noverlook certain truths, certain
\nrealities. <\/p>\n

164
\n00:10:35,280 –> 00:10:39,160
\nBut life is not simple.
\nLife is complicated and and it’s<\/p>\n

165
\n00:10:39,160 –> 00:10:42,600
\nnuanced.
\nThings are never nice and clean.<\/p>\n

166
\n00:10:42,600 –> 00:10:48,840
\nIt’s not about right and wrong.
\nWhen you open your eyes a bit <\/p>\n

167
\n00:10:48,840 –> 00:10:52,120
\nand you start looking outside
\nthe box, you’re able to see <\/p>\n

168
\n00:10:52,120 –> 00:10:54,520
\nthings so differently.
\nAnd there’s a tension, I think, <\/p>\n

169
\n00:10:54,520 –> 00:10:57,600
\nthat naturally exists in our
\nwalk in Christ. <\/p>\n

170
\n00:10:57,600 –> 00:11:01,880
\nThis tension exists because
\nhuman beings are complex and <\/p>\n

171
\n00:11:01,880 –> 00:11:03,640
\nthings are hardly ever black and
\nwhite. <\/p>\n

172
\n00:11:04,000 –> 00:11:08,680
\nBut we want to see things in
\nterms of either walking with God<\/p>\n

173
\n00:11:09,160 –> 00:11:13,760
\nor not walking with God.
\nAnd the reality of the situation<\/p>\n

174
\n00:11:13,760 –> 00:11:16,960
\nis much more confusing.
\nThere are people in the world <\/p>\n

175
\n00:11:16,960 –> 00:11:22,120
\nwho have chosen not to walk with
\nGod and yet do good things. <\/p>\n

176
\n00:11:23,240 –> 00:11:27,400
\nAnd likewise, we’re probably all
\ntoo familiar with people like <\/p>\n

177
\n00:11:27,680 –> 00:11:31,280
\nourselves who choosing to live a
\nlife of service to God and yet <\/p>\n

178
\n00:11:31,280 –> 00:11:35,240
\noccasionally find ourselves not
\neven coming close to living up <\/p>\n

179
\n00:11:35,240 –> 00:11:40,280
\nto that column.
\nI was getting the mail once and <\/p>\n

180
\n00:11:40,440 –> 00:11:43,400
\nwe have a community mailbox.
\nSo I walk up the street and I <\/p>\n

181
\n00:11:43,400 –> 00:11:47,440
\nget the mail and outcomes a
\nneighbor who I know to be <\/p>\n

182
\n00:11:47,640 –> 00:11:51,000
\nChristian.
\nAnd she just says a few things <\/p>\n

183
\n00:11:51,000 –> 00:11:58,440
\nto me and I pick up my mail and
\nI walk home thinking she’s such <\/p>\n

184
\n00:11:58,440 –> 00:12:04,360
\na better Christian than I am.
\nAnd that’s, that’s so it’s so <\/p>\n

185
\n00:12:04,360 –> 00:12:08,120
\ndisheartening and and troubling
\nand confusing when you’re <\/p>\n

186
\n00:12:08,120 –> 00:12:10,360
\nbrought up Christian elephant
\nand you know you have the truth <\/p>\n

187
\n00:12:10,360 –> 00:12:13,200
\nand she doesn’t.
\nI have the truth. <\/p>\n

188
\n00:12:13,200 –> 00:12:16,760
\nI was brought up in the truth.
\nThe truth will make you free. <\/p>\n

189
\n00:12:17,840 –> 00:12:23,400
\nAnd and she talks about these
\nthings that are so far above my <\/p>\n

190
\n00:12:23,400 –> 00:12:31,480
\nmind.
\nAnd I think there’s a there’s a <\/p>\n

191
\n00:12:31,480 –> 00:12:33,480
\nlaw that exists in our bodies,
\nright? <\/p>\n

192
\n00:12:33,640 –> 00:12:36,800
\nWe commit our lives to serve the
\nLord in our minds, but our <\/p>\n

193
\n00:12:36,800 –> 00:12:40,520
\nbodies are prone to sin.
\nWe dedicate our lives to walk <\/p>\n

194
\n00:12:40,520 –> 00:12:45,040
\nwith God, yet sometimes our
\nbodies don’t walk with us, even <\/p>\n

195
\n00:12:45,040 –> 00:12:48,720
\nthough our inward man and our
\nour fleshly members do not <\/p>\n

196
\n00:12:48,720 –> 00:12:50,240
\nalways walk in the same
\ndirection. <\/p>\n

197
\n00:12:50,240 –> 00:12:54,480
\nThat doesn’t mean you have to
\nabandon your calling to serve <\/p>\n

198
\n00:12:54,480 –> 00:12:58,000
\nthe Lord.
\nEven though you feel like you’re<\/p>\n

199
\n00:12:58,000 –> 00:13:02,120
\nnot living up to what you should
\nbe living up to, or that others <\/p>\n

200
\n00:13:02,120 –> 00:13:07,240
\nare doing a better job than you,
\nit doesn’t mean you should give <\/p>\n

201
\n00:13:07,240 –> 00:13:10,760
\nup.
\nIt’s easy to see this principle <\/p>\n

202
\n00:13:10,760 –> 00:13:13,760
\nworking in your life, but it’s
\nit’s harder to extend that same <\/p>\n

203
\n00:13:13,760 –> 00:13:17,560
\nunderstanding to those around
\nyou because you fully understand<\/p>\n

204
\n00:13:17,560 –> 00:13:21,920
\nthe complexities that go into
\neach of your decisions. <\/p>\n

205
\n00:13:22,560 –> 00:13:26,120
\nBut we’re often not able to
\nextend that same kind of grace <\/p>\n

206
\n00:13:26,400 –> 00:13:30,320
\nto other people’s conclusions.
\nNone of us really knows what’s <\/p>\n

207
\n00:13:30,320 –> 00:13:32,320
\ngoing on in the lives of those
\naround us. <\/p>\n

208
\n00:13:33,840 –> 00:13:40,360
\nWhen you see them walking in the
\nmeeting 11 minutes late and you <\/p>\n

209
\n00:13:40,360 –> 00:13:46,600
\nthink, oh man, you think you
\nknow what’s going on. <\/p>\n

210
\n00:13:47,800 –> 00:13:51,640
\nAnd that’s the problem.
\nWe think we’re really good at <\/p>\n

211
\n00:13:51,640 –> 00:13:55,640
\nreading people.
\nWe look at a a few external <\/p>\n

212
\n00:13:55,640 –> 00:13:59,800
\nindicators and we think we have
\nthem all figured out, but we’re <\/p>\n

213
\n00:13:59,800 –> 00:14:08,720
\nwrong every time.
\nI want to consider a letter that<\/p>\n

214
\n00:14:08,720 –> 00:14:13,320
\nI have read from a brother, and
\nI want to see how well you are <\/p>\n

215
\n00:14:13,560 –> 00:14:16,680
\nat judging his heart.
\nYou’ve never met him, You’ve <\/p>\n

216
\n00:14:16,680 –> 00:14:20,640
\nnever seen him, but this is a
\nletter he wrote pouring, pouring<\/p>\n

217
\n00:14:20,640 –> 00:14:23,240
\nhis heart out.
\nAnd let’s see how well you are <\/p>\n

218
\n00:14:23,240 –> 00:14:28,680
\nat judging his heart.
\nGod, you’re my last chance. <\/p>\n

219
\n00:14:29,920 –> 00:14:31,920
\nI spent the night on my knees
\nbefore you. <\/p>\n

220
\n00:14:32,600 –> 00:14:36,560
\nI’ve had my fill of trouble.
\nI’m written off as a lost cause.<\/p>\n

221
\n00:14:36,560 –> 00:14:38,680
\nOne more statistic, A hopeless
\ncase. <\/p>\n

222
\n00:14:39,160 –> 00:14:43,160
\nAbandoned is already dead.
\nOne more body in a stack of <\/p>\n

223
\n00:14:43,160 –> 00:14:46,160
\ncorpses, but not so much as a
\ngravestone. <\/p>\n

224
\n00:14:47,280 –> 00:14:49,240
\nYou’ve dropped me into a
\nbottomless pit. <\/p>\n

225
\n00:14:49,440 –> 00:14:53,560
\nI’m battered senseless by your
\nrage, relentlessly pounded by <\/p>\n

226
\n00:14:53,560 –> 00:14:57,120
\nyour waves of anger.
\nYou turn my friends against me. <\/p>\n

227
\n00:14:57,320 –> 00:14:59,720
\nI’m caught in a maze, and I
\ncan’t find my way out. <\/p>\n

228
\n00:14:59,720 –> 00:15:03,520
\nBlinded by tears of pain and
\nfrustration, I plead for help. <\/p>\n

229
\n00:15:04,160 –> 00:15:06,920
\nAre the dead Alive audience for
\nyour miracles? <\/p>\n

230
\n00:15:07,040 –> 00:15:09,320
\nDo ghosts ever join the choirs
\nthat praise you? <\/p>\n

231
\n00:15:09,560 –> 00:15:12,080
\nDoes your love make any
\ndifference in a graveyard? <\/p>\n

232
\n00:15:12,560 –> 00:15:15,080
\nIs your faithful presence
\nnoticed in the corridors of <\/p>\n

233
\n00:15:15,080 –> 00:15:17,040
\nhell?
\nAre your marvelous wonders ever <\/p>\n

234
\n00:15:17,040 –> 00:15:19,960
\nseen in the dark?
\nI’m standing my ground, God <\/p>\n

235
\n00:15:19,960 –> 00:15:22,520
\nshouting for help.
\nWhy, God, do you turn a deaf, <\/p>\n

236
\n00:15:22,640 –> 00:15:25,840
\ndeaf ear?
\nWhy do you make yourself scarce?<\/p>\n

237
\n00:15:26,560 –> 00:15:28,600
\nFor as long as I can remember,
\nI’ve been hurting. <\/p>\n

238
\n00:15:29,040 –> 00:15:31,800
\nI’ve taken the worst you can
\nhand out, and I’ve had it. <\/p>\n

239
\n00:15:32,560 –> 00:15:35,440
\nYour wildfire fire has blazed
\nthrough my life. <\/p>\n

240
\n00:15:35,680 –> 00:15:38,720
\nI’m bleeding black and blue.
\nYou’ve attacked me from every <\/p>\n

241
\n00:15:38,720 –> 00:15:41,560
\nside, raining down blows on me
\nuntil I’m nearly dead. <\/p>\n

242
\n00:15:42,280 –> 00:15:45,760
\nThe only friend I have left is
\nDarkness. <\/p>\n

243
\n00:15:48,760 –> 00:15:51,800
\nThe only friend I have left is
\nDarkness. <\/p>\n

244
\n00:15:54,480 –> 00:16:02,080
\nI lied to you.
\nYou know this, brother, That’s <\/p>\n

245
\n00:16:02,080 –> 00:16:08,760
\nPsalm 88.
\nNow, if I were to write a letter<\/p>\n

246
\n00:16:08,760 –> 00:16:12,480
\nlike this to you, I don’t think
\nyou would have asked me to come <\/p>\n

247
\n00:16:12,480 –> 00:16:18,920
\nspeak at your Bible school.
\nI imagined you would think I’m <\/p>\n

248
\n00:16:18,920 –> 00:16:25,200
\nhaving a crisis of my faith.
\nIf I gave an excitation like <\/p>\n

249
\n00:16:25,200 –> 00:16:28,400
\nthis, I’d be the subject of an
\nannouncement in the next <\/p>\n

250
\n00:16:28,480 –> 00:16:31,640
\nnewsletter.
\nPlease pray for Brother Jeff as <\/p>\n

251
\n00:16:31,640 –> 00:16:36,760
\nhe struggles.
\nDavid was honestly struggling <\/p>\n

252
\n00:16:36,760 –> 00:16:42,120
\nwith his feelings about God.
\nIt’s not wrong and it’s not <\/p>\n

253
\n00:16:42,120 –> 00:16:45,680
\nunique to David.
\nIt’s not unique in the life of a<\/p>\n

254
\n00:16:45,680 –> 00:16:49,040
\nbeliever.
\nNow would you? <\/p>\n

255
\n00:16:49,240 –> 00:16:51,280
\nNext time you see David, are you
\ngoing to tell him he needs to <\/p>\n

256
\n00:16:51,280 –> 00:16:53,400
\nstudy the Bible more so he can
\nget over this? <\/p>\n

257
\n00:16:53,880 –> 00:16:56,040
\nHe needs to do the readings more
\nregularly. <\/p>\n

258
\n00:16:56,440 –> 00:17:01,560
\nGo to a class, maybe listen to
\nsome podcasts you can recommend.<\/p>\n

259
\n00:17:03,200 –> 00:17:06,560
\nWould you really want him
\nteaching your Sunday school? <\/p>\n

260
\n00:17:08,200 –> 00:17:10,839
\nWould you really want him
\ntalking to the kids in your CYC?<\/p>\n

261
\n00:17:10,880 –> 00:17:19,480
\nYou see, feeling like God is far
\naway or or disinterested in you <\/p>\n

262
\n00:17:19,839 –> 00:17:23,960
\nis part of our Bible.
\nNo matter how offensive it may <\/p>\n

263
\n00:17:23,960 –> 00:17:28,280
\nseem, it’s never been shamed or
\nor criticized by God. <\/p>\n

264
\n00:17:30,440 –> 00:17:34,560
\nActing unjustly towards others
\nor worshipping other gods? <\/p>\n

265
\n00:17:34,560 –> 00:17:39,680
\nThat gets criticized in almost
\nevery chapter, but not honest. <\/p>\n

266
\n00:17:39,680 –> 00:17:42,800
\nTalk about feeling abandoned by
\nGod. <\/p>\n

267
\n00:17:43,320 –> 00:17:46,880
\nThese expressions of abandonment
\naren’t evidence that something’s<\/p>\n

268
\n00:17:46,880 –> 00:17:50,360
\nwrong and needs to be fixed.
\nThey signal not only what can <\/p>\n

269
\n00:17:50,360 –> 00:17:54,360
\nhappen in a life of faith, but
\nwhat does happen, frankly, what <\/p>\n

270
\n00:17:54,360 –> 00:17:59,720
\nwe should expect to happen, what
\nwe should be looking for and <\/p>\n

271
\n00:17:59,720 –> 00:18:04,720
\nexpecting and not not deluding
\nourselves into thinking that <\/p>\n

272
\n00:18:04,720 –> 00:18:08,680
\neverything’s fine.
\nIn my ecclesia in New England, <\/p>\n

273
\n00:18:09,000 –> 00:18:10,960
\nthat was the one word I hated
\nthe most. <\/p>\n

274
\n00:18:11,720 –> 00:18:16,680
\nFine because in New England they
\ngive you one word answers. <\/p>\n

275
\n00:18:17,400 –> 00:18:20,560
\nHow are you fine?
\nHow are things going? <\/p>\n

276
\n00:18:20,840 –> 00:18:23,080
\nFine.
\nHow’s the family? <\/p>\n

277
\n00:18:23,440 –> 00:18:26,960
\nFine, then why does your
\ndaughter have black and Blues on<\/p>\n

278
\n00:18:27,360 –> 00:18:36,160
\nher left eye?
\nPsalm 88 just leaves you there <\/p>\n

279
\n00:18:36,160 –> 00:18:39,960
\nat the end.
\nYou notice that only friend I <\/p>\n

280
\n00:18:39,960 –> 00:18:47,120
\nhave left is darkness.
\nHave you ever felt that your <\/p>\n

281
\n00:18:47,120 –> 00:18:53,200
\nlife is just a deep pit of blah
\nwhere you’re all alone? <\/p>\n

282
\n00:18:53,200 –> 00:18:54,600
\nThat’s what that’s how David
\nfelt. <\/p>\n

283
\n00:18:55,160 –> 00:19:01,400
\nThose times where you thought
\nyou knew what what you thought <\/p>\n

284
\n00:19:01,400 –> 00:19:04,760
\nyou could be certain of and
\ncount on turns out to be not so <\/p>\n

285
\n00:19:04,760 –> 00:19:08,280
\ncertain at all.
\nWe have to learn to embrace the <\/p>\n

286
\n00:19:08,280 –> 00:19:11,120
\nfact that faith looks like this
\nsometimes. <\/p>\n

287
\n00:19:11,800 –> 00:19:15,240
\nAnd you’re not alone.
\nYou’ve got David in your camp. <\/p>\n

288
\n00:19:16,360 –> 00:19:19,400
\nWe all have thoughts like that.
\nThat’s why that’s why Psalm 88 <\/p>\n

289
\n00:19:19,400 –> 00:19:22,400
\nis included in the Bible.
\nAnd just wait till you get to <\/p>\n

290
\n00:19:22,400 –> 00:19:27,960
\nPsalm 89.
\nNo matter how well we think we <\/p>\n

291
\n00:19:27,960 –> 00:19:31,640
\nknow what God’s next move is
\ngoing to be, things often don’t <\/p>\n

292
\n00:19:31,640 –> 00:19:36,000
\nturn out that way.
\nDavid thought he felt certain <\/p>\n

293
\n00:19:36,000 –> 00:19:39,560
\nabout what God’s plan was, and
\nyet things turned out quite <\/p>\n

294
\n00:19:39,560 –> 00:19:43,720
\ndifferently for him.
\nWith his own son trying to kill <\/p>\n

295
\n00:19:43,720 –> 00:19:47,160
\nhim.
\nWe shouldn’t be surprised when <\/p>\n

296
\n00:19:47,160 –> 00:19:49,080
\nwe find ourselves in a similar
\nspot. <\/p>\n

297
\n00:19:49,320 –> 00:19:53,760
\nIn fact, I’m starting to believe
\nthat God doesn’t do anything the<\/p>\n

298
\n00:19:53,760 –> 00:19:56,120
\nway that I think it should be
\ndone. <\/p>\n

299
\n00:19:57,440 –> 00:20:00,320
\nAs I read through the the Bible,
\nespecially the Old Testament, <\/p>\n

300
\n00:20:00,440 –> 00:20:03,200
\nnot one of those stories is the
\nway I would have written it. <\/p>\n

301
\n00:20:05,960 –> 00:20:10,400
\nThat’s part of the idea.
\nGod isn’t beholden to to our <\/p>\n

302
\n00:20:10,400 –> 00:20:13,200
\nthinking.
\nGod doesn’t act according to our<\/p>\n

303
\n00:20:13,200 –> 00:20:16,280
\ncertainty even if we have a
\nBible verse to back it up. <\/p>\n

304
\n00:20:18,280 –> 00:20:21,320
\nIt’s not about God acting in in
\nour time frame. <\/p>\n

305
\n00:20:21,400 –> 00:20:25,640
\nWe don’t control God even if we
\nread verses that make us think <\/p>\n

306
\n00:20:25,640 –> 00:20:28,240
\nthat God has to do things in a
\ncertain way. <\/p>\n

307
\n00:20:28,480 –> 00:20:32,480
\nGod controls God.
\nYou don’t control God. <\/p>\n

308
\n00:20:33,200 –> 00:20:36,720
\nYou have to trust God.
\nAnd David learned that trust <\/p>\n

309
\n00:20:36,720 –> 00:20:39,280
\ngrows best when things are
\nfalling apart. <\/p>\n

310
\n00:20:39,400 –> 00:20:41,080
\nHe’s not the only one who got
\nthat memo. <\/p>\n

311
\n00:20:41,600 –> 00:20:44,680
\nMuscles grow when they’re being
\nstressed. <\/p>\n

312
\n00:20:45,600 –> 00:20:48,240
\nMuscles don’t grow on the bark
\nlounger. <\/p>\n

313
\n00:20:49,160 –> 00:20:51,760
\nThey don’t grow on the come in
\nthe comfortable seats. <\/p>\n

314
\n00:20:52,560 –> 00:20:57,480
\nThey grow when pain and soreness
\nhappens. <\/p>\n

315
\n00:21:00,160 –> 00:21:04,000
\nTrust God in the same way trust
\nin God. <\/p>\n

316
\n00:21:04,000 –> 00:21:07,920
\nIt is the same way it it grows
\nin times of stress. <\/p>\n

317
\n00:21:09,160 –> 00:21:13,280
\nYour faith grows because it’s
\nstretched, because it’s worked, <\/p>\n

318
\n00:21:13,440 –> 00:21:17,880
\nbecause it’s pushed, because
\nit’s bent and and torn, and it <\/p>\n

319
\n00:21:17,880 –> 00:21:20,040
\nbuilds itself back together
\nstronger. <\/p>\n

320
\n00:21:22,840 –> 00:21:27,880
\nIf your faith in God makes zero
\nsense to you, and your reasons <\/p>\n

321
\n00:21:27,880 –> 00:21:31,960
\nfor trusting God have fallen off
\na Cliff, you’ve got a friend and<\/p>\n

322
\n00:21:31,960 –> 00:21:36,160
\nEcclesiastes.
\nEcclesiastes looks at life <\/p>\n

323
\n00:21:36,160 –> 00:21:39,880
\nthrough the eyes of humans, not
\nthe godly perspective, and life <\/p>\n

324
\n00:21:39,880 –> 00:21:42,760
\nplays out as one cruel joke
\nafter another. <\/p>\n

325
\n00:21:43,320 –> 00:21:48,080
\nAnd then you die.
\nIt’s an unhappy business that <\/p>\n

326
\n00:21:48,080 –> 00:21:50,440
\nGod has given to the children of
\nmen to be busy with. <\/p>\n

327
\n00:21:51,160 –> 00:21:54,240
\nI’ve seen everything that’s done
\nunder the sun and behold, <\/p>\n

328
\n00:21:54,640 –> 00:21:57,960
\neverything is vanity and a
\nstriving after wind. <\/p>\n

329
\n00:21:58,320 –> 00:22:01,840
\nFrom a human standpoint, our
\nlives are full of unhappy <\/p>\n

330
\n00:22:01,840 –> 00:22:06,480
\nbusiness that God has given us,
\nand that is depressing. <\/p>\n

331
\n00:22:08,120 –> 00:22:12,240
\nIt’s a faith crisis at its best.
\nEverything is youth useless. <\/p>\n

332
\n00:22:12,240 –> 00:22:14,240
\nIt’s all it’s just a bunch of
\nnothing. <\/p>\n

333
\n00:22:16,160 –> 00:22:18,840
\nThe thing that drives the
\npreacher crazy is that you can <\/p>\n

334
\n00:22:18,840 –> 00:22:21,680
\nspend years of your life
\naccomplishing great things, and <\/p>\n

335
\n00:22:22,120 –> 00:22:24,520
\nwhen you die, it’s all
\nworthless. <\/p>\n

336
\n00:22:26,240 –> 00:22:29,640
\nThere’s no remembrance of former
\nthings, nor would be any <\/p>\n

337
\n00:22:29,640 –> 00:22:33,120
\nremnants of later things yet to
\nbe among those who come after. <\/p>\n

338
\n00:22:34,120 –> 00:22:41,680
\nI had a good friend who ran a a
\nhuge nonprofit and, you know, <\/p>\n

339
\n00:22:41,720 –> 00:22:47,200
\nthese staff were bending down
\nand helping the the poorest in <\/p>\n

340
\n00:22:47,200 –> 00:22:50,360
\nthe, you know, be trod in the
\nthe deaf, the blind. <\/p>\n

341
\n00:22:50,360 –> 00:22:51,960
\nThey were, they were doing great
\nwork. <\/p>\n

342
\n00:22:52,400 –> 00:22:56,160
\nAnd if you ask someone to donate
\nto pay their salary, it’d be <\/p>\n

343
\n00:22:56,160 –> 00:23:01,080
\nlike, but if you ask someone to
\ndonate to buy a new building <\/p>\n

344
\n00:23:01,160 –> 00:23:05,320
\nwhere we can put your name on
\nthe wall, you’d get millions of <\/p>\n

345
\n00:23:05,320 –> 00:23:10,600
\ndollars because you know, we
\nwant our name to, to continue, <\/p>\n

346
\n00:23:11,520 –> 00:23:14,120
\nright?
\nWe don’t want all this work I’ve<\/p>\n

347
\n00:23:14,120 –> 00:23:17,680
\ndone to be useless.
\nWe want all that money I’ve <\/p>\n

348
\n00:23:17,680 –> 00:23:19,800
\ngenerated to to have some
\nmeaning. <\/p>\n

349
\n00:23:20,840 –> 00:23:24,000
\nAnd the preacher goes on for 12
\nchapters looking at the <\/p>\n

350
\n00:23:24,000 –> 00:23:27,080
\nuselessness of her existence
\nthrough a human perspective. <\/p>\n

351
\n00:23:27,160 –> 00:23:30,760
\nAnd when it comes to the end, he
\nisn’t criticized by God for his <\/p>\n

352
\n00:23:30,760 –> 00:23:33,880
\nhonesty.
\nHe’s actually commended for <\/p>\n

353
\n00:23:33,880 –> 00:23:35,880
\ntalking about things that are
\nhard to hear. <\/p>\n

354
\n00:23:36,800 –> 00:23:39,000
\nIn the end, it says, the
\npreacher sought to find words of<\/p>\n

355
\n00:23:39,000 –> 00:23:41,440
\ndelight, and uprightly he wrote
\nwords of truth. <\/p>\n

356
\n00:23:42,560 –> 00:23:46,920
\nThe words of the wise are like
\ngoads and like nails firmly <\/p>\n

357
\n00:23:46,920 –> 00:23:49,440
\nfixed.
\nOther collected sayings they’re <\/p>\n

358
\n00:23:49,440 –> 00:23:54,360
\ngiven by the shepherd.
\nWhat I should have here is a <\/p>\n

359
\n00:23:54,360 –> 00:23:58,240
\ngnarly, nasty slide of some
\ngoads. <\/p>\n

360
\n00:23:58,720 –> 00:24:01,880
\nYou know that’s a weird word we
\ndon’t connect with, but it’s not<\/p>\n

361
\n00:24:01,880 –> 00:24:07,240
\npretty and it’s painful.
\nNails can come a little closer <\/p>\n

362
\n00:24:07,240 –> 00:24:10,040
\nto to our minds, right?
\nNails firmly fixed. <\/p>\n

363
\n00:24:12,360 –> 00:24:14,720
\nHe tried to say nice things, he
\nwanted to say nice things, but <\/p>\n

364
\n00:24:14,720 –> 00:24:17,760
\nin the end he just had to speak
\nthe truth and his words hurt. <\/p>\n

365
\n00:24:17,760 –> 00:24:20,360
\nAnd they’re supposed to.
\nAnd I love the conclusion <\/p>\n

366
\n00:24:20,360 –> 00:24:22,440
\nthough, right?
\nOf making many books. <\/p>\n

367
\n00:24:22,440 –> 00:24:26,000
\nThere is no end and much study
\nis awareness of the flesh. <\/p>\n

368
\n00:24:26,920 –> 00:24:28,600
\nThe end of the matter.
\nAll has been heard. <\/p>\n

369
\n00:24:28,600 –> 00:24:30,640
\nFear God and keep his
\ncommandments. <\/p>\n

370
\n00:24:31,160 –> 00:24:33,840
\nThis is the whole duty of man.
\nHe isn’t saying to stop reading <\/p>\n

371
\n00:24:33,840 –> 00:24:36,160
\nbooks.
\nI think that what he is saying <\/p>\n

372
\n00:24:36,160 –> 00:24:39,720
\nthough is to stop obsessing on
\nstudying and trying to work it <\/p>\n

373
\n00:24:39,720 –> 00:24:42,040
\nall out in your head and have it
\nall make sense to you. <\/p>\n

374
\n00:24:42,560 –> 00:24:46,120
\nIt’s spiritually and emotionally
\nexhausting to try to understand <\/p>\n

375
\n00:24:46,120 –> 00:24:49,320
\nenough for it to make sense,
\nbecause it doesn’t. <\/p>\n

376
\n00:24:50,960 –> 00:24:54,800
\nIt’s all nothing.
\nIt’s all vanity. <\/p>\n

377
\n00:24:57,520 –> 00:25:00,520
\nJust trust.
\nJust trust in God. <\/p>\n

378
\n00:25:00,760 –> 00:25:03,520
\nBelieve that God is good and he
\nhas your best in mind. <\/p>\n

379
\n00:25:04,040 –> 00:25:05,840
\nFear God and keep his
\ncommandments. <\/p>\n

380
\n00:25:06,280 –> 00:25:09,680
\nEcclesiastes doesn’t try to hide
\nthe human point of view of the <\/p>\n

381
\n00:25:09,680 –> 00:25:13,840
\nreality of it that life is.
\nIt doesn’t. <\/p>\n

382
\n00:25:14,680 –> 00:25:17,360
\nBut it doesn’t let that that
\nhuman reality have the final <\/p>\n

383
\n00:25:17,360 –> 00:25:19,520
\nword, right?
\nYes, you’re right. <\/p>\n

384
\n00:25:19,600 –> 00:25:21,680
\nLife doesn’t make any sense.
\nIt really is vanity. <\/p>\n

385
\n00:25:21,680 –> 00:25:24,720
\nLife really is useless.
\nBut fear God anyway. <\/p>\n

386
\n00:25:26,280 –> 00:25:33,520
\nBut obey God anyway.
\nBut trust God anyway, we tend to<\/p>\n

387
\n00:25:33,520 –> 00:25:35,800
\nwant to, I think we want to look
\nat in a scientific manner and <\/p>\n

388
\n00:25:35,800 –> 00:25:39,760
\nsay, well, you know, I’ve been
\nobserving life, God’s creation <\/p>\n

389
\n00:25:39,760 –> 00:25:43,840
\nand it doesn’t make any sense.
\nTherefore, and that’s not the <\/p>\n

390
\n00:25:43,840 –> 00:25:47,560
\nconnection we’re to make.
\nYes, this doesn’t make sense and<\/p>\n

391
\n00:25:47,560 –> 00:25:50,080
\nGod has something better planned
\nfor us. <\/p>\n

392
\n00:25:52,120 –> 00:25:55,760
\nAnd I realize that’s, that’s
\nhard, hard to do. <\/p>\n

393
\n00:25:55,760 –> 00:25:58,800
\nIt’s hard to keep trusting in
\nGod when you see no possible <\/p>\n

394
\n00:25:58,800 –> 00:26:02,320
\nreason to around you.
\nThat’s what faith is, though. <\/p>\n

395
\n00:26:03,000 –> 00:26:07,840
\nFaith is continuing on.
\nWhen you don’t see why you can’t<\/p>\n

396
\n00:26:07,840 –> 00:26:11,240
\nunderstand the reason, no matter
\nhow deep your disillusion is. <\/p>\n

397
\n00:26:12,600 –> 00:26:15,760
\nMove toward God instead of away
\nfrom God. <\/p>\n

398
\n00:26:17,400 –> 00:26:20,400
\nWhen we reach that point where
\nthings simply make no sense. <\/p>\n

399
\n00:26:20,640 –> 00:26:23,680
\nWhen our thinking about God and
\nlife no longer line up. <\/p>\n

400
\n00:26:24,000 –> 00:26:25,800
\nWhen any sense of certainty is
\ngone. <\/p>\n

401
\n00:26:25,840 –> 00:26:29,840
\nWhen we can find no reason to
\ntrust God but we still do. <\/p>\n

402
\n00:26:31,680 –> 00:26:36,760
\nThat’s what trust is.
\nEcclesiastes isn’t a story of a <\/p>\n

403
\n00:26:36,760 –> 00:26:39,880
\nman who loses his faith.
\nEcclesiastes is a story of what <\/p>\n

404
\n00:26:39,880 –> 00:26:42,680
\nfaith looks like when all you
\nthought you knew about God and <\/p>\n

405
\n00:26:42,680 –> 00:26:47,640
\nhow the world works is ripped
\napart, when certainty just <\/p>\n

406
\n00:26:47,640 –> 00:26:51,800
\nvanishes like a vapor and you
\nstill trust God. <\/p>\n

407
\n00:26:53,920 –> 00:26:57,000
\nEcclesiastes never says you
\ndon’t have to know what to <\/p>\n

408
\n00:26:57,000 –> 00:27:02,160
\nbelieve, but it says trust God
\neven when you don’t know what to<\/p>\n

409
\n00:27:02,160 –> 00:27:07,280
\nbelieve.
\nAnd then there’s Job. <\/p>\n

410
\n00:27:10,760 –> 00:27:14,840
\nJob’s a great example of God not
\nacting like you would expect him<\/p>\n

411
\n00:27:14,840 –> 00:27:19,160
\nto.
\nNow, it’s a basic biblical <\/p>\n

412
\n00:27:19,160 –> 00:27:22,120
\nconcept, right?
\nActions have consequences. <\/p>\n

413
\n00:27:22,720 –> 00:27:24,480
\nIt’s all through the the Old
\nTestament. <\/p>\n

414
\n00:27:24,600 –> 00:27:28,400
\nProverbs 3 is a great example.
\nThe Lord Lord’s curse is on the <\/p>\n

415
\n00:27:28,400 –> 00:27:30,360
\nHouse of the wicked.
\nHe blesses the dwelling of the <\/p>\n

416
\n00:27:30,360 –> 00:27:37,240
\nrighteous.
\nSo if you didn’t read the first <\/p>\n

417
\n00:27:37,240 –> 00:27:42,920
\nchapter of Job, then your
\nresponses to Job would be the <\/p>\n

418
\n00:27:42,920 –> 00:27:48,320
\nexact same as his friends did.
\nIt’s perfectly normal biblical <\/p>\n

419
\n00:27:48,320 –> 00:27:50,120
\nidea.
\nActions have consequences, and <\/p>\n

420
\n00:27:50,120 –> 00:27:53,720
\nbased on the consequences you’re
\ncurrently facing, must be you’ve<\/p>\n

421
\n00:27:53,720 –> 00:27:55,440
\ndone some pretty terrible
\nactions. <\/p>\n

422
\n00:27:57,200 –> 00:28:02,000
\nSomething very wrong.
\nBy the looks, by the external <\/p>\n

423
\n00:28:02,120 –> 00:28:05,280
\nlook of what’s going on in your
\nlife, I can tell that <\/p>\n

424
\n00:28:05,280 –> 00:28:06,920
\nsomething’s very wrong with your
\nlife. <\/p>\n

425
\n00:28:06,920 –> 00:28:08,800
\nYou’re obviously doing something
\nvery wrong. <\/p>\n

426
\n00:28:10,640 –> 00:28:13,040
\nGod wouldn’t just punish you for
\nno reason. <\/p>\n

427
\n00:28:13,640 –> 00:28:18,920
\nAnd it goes on and on and on for
\n34 chapters. <\/p>\n

428
\n00:28:20,200 –> 00:28:24,280
\nWhy so much on that subject?
\nWhy so many friends? <\/p>\n

429
\n00:28:24,280 –> 00:28:30,560
\nWith so many opinions and so
\nmuch to say, I think God really <\/p>\n

430
\n00:28:30,560 –> 00:28:33,240
\nwants to drill into our heads
\nand make us come to grips with a<\/p>\n

431
\n00:28:33,240 –> 00:28:37,200
\nvery real idea.
\nWhat we think we know about God <\/p>\n

432
\n00:28:37,840 –> 00:28:42,720
\nmight not be so certain.
\nNo matter how certain we think <\/p>\n

433
\n00:28:42,720 –> 00:28:45,600
\nwe are, we might not have it
\nright. <\/p>\n

434
\n00:28:47,360 –> 00:28:50,440
\nOne of my favorite phrases I’ve
\njust learned recently is the <\/p>\n

435
\n00:28:50,440 –> 00:28:53,800
\nBible isn’t an owner’s manual to
\nGod. <\/p>\n

436
\n00:28:55,960 –> 00:28:57,960
\nIt’s not intended to be
\nsomething you can just open up <\/p>\n

437
\n00:28:57,960 –> 00:28:59,960
\nand read and figure out.
\nOh yeah, that’s what God is. <\/p>\n

438
\n00:29:01,320 –> 00:29:07,720
\nGod is beyond our mental reach,
\nand that’s what Job is told by <\/p>\n

439
\n00:29:07,720 –> 00:29:09,520
\nGod.
\nIn the last four or five <\/p>\n

440
\n00:29:09,520 –> 00:29:12,240
\nchapters.
\nGod makes it clear that he and <\/p>\n

441
\n00:29:12,240 –> 00:29:16,720
\nonly he is the Creator and he,
\nand we’re in no position to <\/p>\n

442
\n00:29:16,720 –> 00:29:20,440
\nquestion him.
\nWhere were you when I laid the <\/p>\n

443
\n00:29:20,440 –> 00:29:26,760
\nfoundations of the earth?
\nIs it by your understanding that<\/p>\n

444
\n00:29:26,760 –> 00:29:31,000
\nthe hawk soars through the sky?
\nAnd then Job says his last <\/p>\n

445
\n00:29:31,000 –> 00:29:33,560
\nwords.
\nI know that you can do all <\/p>\n

446
\n00:29:33,560 –> 00:29:36,120
\nthings and that no purpose of
\nyours can be thwarted. <\/p>\n

447
\n00:29:36,720 –> 00:29:40,680
\nTherefore I despise myself and I
\nrepent in dust and ashes. <\/p>\n

448
\n00:29:41,560 –> 00:29:46,320
\nIt’s after this that God says
\nhis final words as well and it’s<\/p>\n

449
\n00:29:46,320 –> 00:29:48,240
\na bit of surprise.
\nIt was to me, right? <\/p>\n

450
\n00:29:48,480 –> 00:29:51,880
\nDon’t forget God has done that
\nwhole 5 chapter long section <\/p>\n

451
\n00:29:51,880 –> 00:29:57,000
\nabout don’t question me because
\nI’m God and now he says and Lord<\/p>\n

452
\n00:29:57,000 –> 00:30:00,240
\nhas spoken these words to Job.
\nThe Lord said to LF as the team <\/p>\n

453
\n00:30:00,360 –> 00:30:03,600
\nteam and I my anger burns
\nagainst you and against your two<\/p>\n

454
\n00:30:03,600 –> 00:30:05,040
\nfriends for you have not spoken
\nto me. <\/p>\n

455
\n00:30:05,040 –> 00:30:10,840
\nWhat is right as my servant Job
\nhas Job is right, his friends <\/p>\n

456
\n00:30:10,840 –> 00:30:15,560
\nare wrong.
\nI forget the percentage John <\/p>\n

457
\n00:30:15,560 –> 00:30:18,640
\nLaunchbury said it, but it’s
\nkind of like high eighties. 89% <\/p>\n

458
\n00:30:18,640 –> 00:30:22,560
\nof Job is wrong.
\nYeah, if you say, well, it’s in <\/p>\n

459
\n00:30:22,560 –> 00:30:27,840
\nthe Bible, it must be right, you
\nknow, No, it’s not 89% of the of<\/p>\n

460
\n00:30:27,840 –> 00:30:31,560
\nthe what’s recorded and and Job
\nis guys who got it wrong. <\/p>\n

461
\n00:30:34,800 –> 00:30:37,480
\nHis friends are wrong.
\nJob’s friends were technically <\/p>\n

462
\n00:30:37,480 –> 00:30:40,040
\nright if you’re going by the
\nbook. <\/p>\n

463
\n00:30:41,200 –> 00:30:44,400
\nBut when you get beyond the
\nbook, when you step outside the <\/p>\n

464
\n00:30:44,400 –> 00:30:47,520
\nbox and stop thinking inside the
\nbox the way that everyone else <\/p>\n

465
\n00:30:47,520 –> 00:30:51,760
\nwould would think, you realize
\nthey’re wrong. <\/p>\n

466
\n00:30:52,960 –> 00:30:55,680
\nThey had every reason to feel
\ncertain about what they were <\/p>\n

467
\n00:30:55,680 –> 00:30:57,480
\nsaying.
\nThey weren’t punking him. <\/p>\n

468
\n00:30:57,480 –> 00:31:00,160
\nThey weren’t being mean.
\nThey didn’t say, hey, Job’s <\/p>\n

469
\n00:31:00,160 –> 00:31:02,000
\nhaving a bad week, let’s go bash
\non him. <\/p>\n

470
\n00:31:02,120 –> 00:31:05,920
\nNo, they these were these were
\nbetter friends than you’ve ever <\/p>\n

471
\n00:31:05,920 –> 00:31:09,960
\nhad.
\nThey sat with him seven days. <\/p>\n

472
\n00:31:10,680 –> 00:31:20,760
\nJust sat there for seven days.
\nBut they’re wrong. <\/p>\n

473
\n00:31:21,960 –> 00:31:24,000
\nJob and his friends were all
\noperating under the same <\/p>\n

474
\n00:31:24,000 –> 00:31:27,720
\nassumption that God wants all
\nhumans to know what God expects <\/p>\n

475
\n00:31:27,720 –> 00:31:30,440
\nfrom us and the basic rules of
\nliving right. <\/p>\n

476
\n00:31:30,720 –> 00:31:32,320
\nAnd we should be able to
\nunderstand this. <\/p>\n

477
\n00:31:32,800 –> 00:31:36,640
\nYou know you’ve got bad sores.
\nMust be you said something <\/p>\n

478
\n00:31:36,640 –> 00:31:41,000
\nwrong.
\nJob doesn’t deny this way of <\/p>\n

479
\n00:31:41,000 –> 00:31:42,800
\nthinking.
\nThat’s why Job is in such <\/p>\n

480
\n00:31:42,800 –> 00:31:47,320
\ndistress because he can’t square
\nhis suffering with his biblical <\/p>\n

481
\n00:31:47,320 –> 00:31:51,760
\nview of how God works.
\nThis is this is my my paradigm. <\/p>\n

482
\n00:31:51,760 –> 00:31:53,960
\nThis is my understanding of how
\nGod works. <\/p>\n

483
\n00:31:53,960 –> 00:31:56,480
\nAnd yet I know I didn’t do
\nanything and yet this has <\/p>\n

484
\n00:31:56,480 –> 00:32:02,960
\nhappened to me.
\nSo I think the message from Job <\/p>\n

485
\n00:32:02,960 –> 00:32:07,920
\nthat I want to get is let go of
\nthis whole need to know <\/p>\n

486
\n00:32:08,240 –> 00:32:12,840
\nmentality, let go of this whole
\nI need to figure this out kind <\/p>\n

487
\n00:32:12,840 –> 00:32:18,400
\nof thinking and just trust in
\nGod. <\/p>\n

488
\n00:32:21,400 –> 00:32:25,320
\nI’m going to go so far as to say
\nlet go of the expectation that <\/p>\n

489
\n00:32:25,320 –> 00:32:29,120
\nyou can’t.
\nYou can even know the workings <\/p>\n

490
\n00:32:29,120 –> 00:32:32,800
\nof God.
\nNo matter how much we think we <\/p>\n

491
\n00:32:32,800 –> 00:32:36,200
\nunderstand God, I don’t think we
\ndo. <\/p>\n

492
\n00:32:38,720 –> 00:32:42,400
\nWhen we find ourselves in Job
\nlike moments, the way forward <\/p>\n

493
\n00:32:42,560 –> 00:32:45,520
\nisn’t to expect God to give us
\nsome additional information to <\/p>\n

494
\n00:32:45,520 –> 00:32:48,200
\nmake everything all click and
\nfall into place. <\/p>\n

495
\n00:32:48,880 –> 00:32:50,880
\nThe way forward is just to trust
\nin God. <\/p>\n

496
\n00:32:52,800 –> 00:32:56,200
\nGod exposes the limitations of
\nour thinking and job and and in <\/p>\n

497
\n00:32:56,200 –> 00:33:00,200
\nEcclesiastes and that should
\nhelp us to see the need for us <\/p>\n

498
\n00:33:00,200 –> 00:33:04,680
\nto just let go of this need to
\nknow and just trust in God <\/p>\n

499
\n00:33:04,680 –> 00:33:09,680
\nanyways.
\nTrusting in God is often <\/p>\n

500
\n00:33:10,360 –> 00:33:14,640
\nillogical.
\nNow for those logical people out<\/p>\n

501
\n00:33:14,640 –> 00:33:16,920
\nthere, going to hurt to say
\nthat, but I think trusting in <\/p>\n

502
\n00:33:16,920 –> 00:33:19,360
\nGod is sometimes against all
\nreason. <\/p>\n

503
\n00:33:20,400 –> 00:33:22,160
\nIt doesn’t make sense.
\nAnd when you explained it to us,<\/p>\n

504
\n00:33:22,360 –> 00:33:25,600
\nyou know your buddy at work or
\nyour golf buddy and they say <\/p>\n

505
\n00:33:25,800 –> 00:33:27,400
\nthat’s just crazy, what are you
\nthinking? <\/p>\n

506
\n00:33:28,360 –> 00:33:30,000
\nI think that’s precisely the
\npoint though. <\/p>\n

507
\n00:33:30,200 –> 00:33:33,840
\nTrust doesn’t work because we
\nfigured it all out in our mind. <\/p>\n

508
\n00:33:35,640 –> 00:33:38,640
\nTrust works because at the end
\nof the day, we literally can’t <\/p>\n

509
\n00:33:38,640 –> 00:33:42,480
\nfigure it out.
\nOur little minds can’t grasp <\/p>\n

510
\n00:33:42,640 –> 00:33:45,400
\nwhat’s going on.
\nWe have to get outside of the <\/p>\n

511
\n00:33:45,400 –> 00:33:47,560
\nbox.
\nWe have to look at things the <\/p>\n

512
\n00:33:47,560 –> 00:33:51,840
\nway God looks at things.
\nNow, this life outside the box <\/p>\n

513
\n00:33:52,160 –> 00:33:55,760
\nis very different than when you
\nremain cocooned in this warm, <\/p>\n

514
\n00:33:55,760 –> 00:33:59,520
\nsafe place, right?
\nIt’s not neat and tidy outside <\/p>\n

515
\n00:33:59,520 –> 00:34:01,920
\nthe box.
\nSo if you haven’t got outside <\/p>\n

516
\n00:34:01,920 –> 00:34:05,000
\nthe box yet, I’m going to warn
\nyou, you know, put your galoshes<\/p>\n

517
\n00:34:05,000 –> 00:34:10,560
\non before you get out, OK?
\nIt’s often not very comfortable <\/p>\n

518
\n00:34:10,760 –> 00:34:14,639
\noutside the box.
\nYou bump into reality and you <\/p>\n

519
\n00:34:14,639 –> 00:34:17,120
\nget it all over your nice clean
\ndress. <\/p>\n

520
\n00:34:20,000 –> 00:34:22,760
\nBut I would contend if you
\nreally want to grow spiritually,<\/p>\n

521
\n00:34:23,000 –> 00:34:25,719
\nyou have to be prepared to step
\noutside that box. <\/p>\n

522
\n00:34:25,719 –> 00:34:29,120
\nYou have to be willing to get
\noutside of your comfort zone. <\/p>\n

523
\n00:34:29,120 –> 00:34:36,000
\nDo you know how to enlarge your
\ncomfort zone? <\/p>\n

524
\n00:34:39,960 –> 00:34:45,360
\nYou stand at the edge.
\nIf you stand at the in the <\/p>\n

525
\n00:34:45,360 –> 00:34:48,320
\ncenter of your comfort zone is
\nnever going to grow. <\/p>\n

526
\n00:34:49,159 –> 00:34:53,600
\nYou’ve got to be willing to
\nstand at the edge to reach out <\/p>\n

527
\n00:34:53,800 –> 00:34:58,920
\nto people and the circumstances
\nand things that are beyond, just<\/p>\n

528
\n00:34:58,920 –> 00:35:02,800
\nbeyond, and bring them in.
\nAnd now your comfort zone <\/p>\n

529
\n00:35:02,800 –> 00:35:06,280
\nenlarges, and you can again
\nstand at the edge. <\/p>\n

530
\n00:35:08,400 –> 00:35:13,280
\nIf you stay stay safely inside
\nyour comfort zone, you’re not <\/p>\n

531
\n00:35:13,280 –> 00:35:15,280
\ngoing to grow, and your comfort
\nzone is not going to grow. <\/p>\n

532
\n00:35:16,880 –> 00:35:21,200
\nGod is much, much larger than
\nany picture of him you’ve ever <\/p>\n

533
\n00:35:21,200 –> 00:35:27,360
\nvisualized.
\nThe God you worship is much, <\/p>\n

534
\n00:35:27,520 –> 00:35:30,440
\nmuch larger than the God that
\nyou think you do. <\/p>\n

535
\n00:35:36,120 –> 00:35:40,240
\nGod loves you more than you can
\nunderstand. <\/p>\n

536
\n00:35:43,800 –> 00:35:48,280
\nGod wants more joy for you than
\nyou’ve ever imagined. <\/p>\n

537
\n00:35:49,840 –> 00:35:51,880
\nAnd God wants you to be like
\nHim. <\/p>\n

538
\n00:35:52,600 –> 00:35:57,840
\nHe wants you to be that way, to
\nbe welcoming, to be open, to be <\/p>\n

539
\n00:35:57,840 –> 00:36:01,520
\ninviting, to be caring, to be
\naccepting, to be loving. <\/p>\n

540
\n00:36:02,760 –> 00:36:10,840
\nThat’s all that He wants.
\nGod doesn’t even know what <\/p>\n

541
\n00:36:10,840 –> 00:36:14,200
\nyou’re talking about.
\nWhen you focus on restricting. <\/p>\n

542
\n00:36:17,280 –> 00:36:21,440
\nGod’s not restricting God is
\nliberating. <\/p>\n

543
\n00:36:22,120 –> 00:36:24,080
\nGod’s not trying to keep people
\nin a box. <\/p>\n

544
\n00:36:24,240 –> 00:36:28,120
\nGod wants to set them free.
\nWhy am I trying to put everybody<\/p>\n

545
\n00:36:28,120 –> 00:36:30,720
\nin a box?
\nWhy am I trying to classify the <\/p>\n

546
\n00:36:30,720 –> 00:36:33,520
\nnerds and the geeks and the
\nweirdos and, and put everybody <\/p>\n

547
\n00:36:33,520 –> 00:36:36,320
\nin these in these boxes and say,
\nyou know, he’s a Shiite <\/p>\n

548
\n00:36:36,320 –> 00:36:38,920
\nChristadelphian and this guy
\nover here is, you know, too <\/p>\n

549
\n00:36:38,920 –> 00:36:41,040
\nliberal.
\nAnd this one here does this. <\/p>\n

550
\n00:36:42,960 –> 00:36:47,240
\nGod doesn’t do that.
\nGet outside that box. <\/p>\n

551
\n00:36:47,240 –> 00:36:54,320
\nThink outside that box.
\nIn the Bible, a Sinner is often <\/p>\n

552
\n00:36:54,320 –> 00:37:00,720
\ncast in the role of an outcast.
\nThese were groups of people that<\/p>\n

553
\n00:37:00,720 –> 00:37:04,240
\nfelt unacceptable.
\nThey weren’t part of the crowd. <\/p>\n

554
\n00:37:04,240 –> 00:37:07,800
\nThey didn’t feel comfortable
\naround you. <\/p>\n

555
\n00:37:08,640 –> 00:37:11,160
\nThey were disgraceful and
\nshameful. <\/p>\n

556
\n00:37:12,400 –> 00:37:24,480
\nAnd Jesus strategy was simple.
\nHe sat beside him, he hugged <\/p>\n

557
\n00:37:24,480 –> 00:37:29,840
\nhim, he laughed with him, and he
\nliterally broke bread with them.<\/p>\n

558
\n00:37:32,800 –> 00:37:35,800
\nOver and over in the New
\nTestament, a simple statement <\/p>\n

559
\n00:37:35,800 –> 00:37:37,640
\nabout Jesus keeps coming up and
\nup and up. <\/p>\n

560
\n00:37:39,720 –> 00:37:45,040
\nHe had compassion on them.
\nCompassion isn’t just about <\/p>\n

561
\n00:37:45,040 –> 00:37:48,480
\nfeeling the pain of others, It’s
\nabout bringing them toward <\/p>\n

562
\n00:37:48,480 –> 00:37:51,160
\nyourself.
\nIt’s about drawing close to <\/p>\n

563
\n00:37:51,160 –> 00:37:56,040
\nthem, befriending them, hugging
\nthem, eating with them, sharing <\/p>\n

564
\n00:37:56,040 –> 00:38:01,080
\nwith them.
\nIt’s not easy. <\/p>\n

565
\n00:38:03,240 –> 00:38:05,120
\nDoes that sound comfortable to
\nyou? <\/p>\n

566
\n00:38:05,400 –> 00:38:07,520
\nIs that inside your comfort
\ncomfort zone? <\/p>\n

567
\n00:38:08,520 –> 00:38:10,920
\nYou see, society has cast them
\nout for a reason. <\/p>\n

568
\n00:38:11,960 –> 00:38:14,360
\nPeople aren’t just randomly
\nselected to be rejected. <\/p>\n

569
\n00:38:15,480 –> 00:38:18,120
\nSomething about them makes them
\nhard to be around. <\/p>\n

570
\n00:38:20,080 –> 00:38:23,760
\nYou know, they, they got some
\nweird thing or they smell, you <\/p>\n

571
\n00:38:23,760 –> 00:38:26,840
\nknow, or they got that stupid
\nthing they’re always saying, you<\/p>\n

572
\n00:38:26,840 –> 00:38:29,400
\nknow, or, or they got this hobby
\nhorse they want to talk about <\/p>\n

573
\n00:38:29,400 –> 00:38:34,320
\nall the time.
\nThey’re briskly, they’re hard, <\/p>\n

574
\n00:38:34,560 –> 00:38:36,480
\nthey’re noisy, they’re
\nuncomfortable. <\/p>\n

575
\n00:38:38,400 –> 00:38:40,880
\nAnd if you’re thinking like
\neveryone else thinks in the box,<\/p>\n

576
\n00:38:41,640 –> 00:38:43,480
\nyou don’t want to spend any time
\nwith them. <\/p>\n

577
\n00:38:47,320 –> 00:38:49,120
\nAnd eventually they’ll probably
\njust stop coming to meeting <\/p>\n

578
\n00:38:49,120 –> 00:38:50,640
\nafter all, so you won’t have to
\nspend time with them. <\/p>\n

579
\n00:38:56,200 –> 00:38:58,680
\nYou have to think outside the
\nbox to be loving to those <\/p>\n

580
\n00:38:58,680 –> 00:39:04,000
\noutside.
\nIf we love what God loves, then <\/p>\n

581
\n00:39:04,000 –> 00:39:08,000
\nin compassion we’re going to
\nlower, enlarge our borders and <\/p>\n

582
\n00:39:08,000 –> 00:39:11,320
\nlove more people.
\nMargins get erased. <\/p>\n

583
\n00:39:12,120 –> 00:39:17,640
\nOur circle grows.
\nI got some questions for you <\/p>\n

584
\n00:39:17,640 –> 00:39:19,520
\nsome.
\nI’d love to hear some of your <\/p>\n

585
\n00:39:19,520 –> 00:39:23,480
\nthoughts.
\nIt’s been super helpful for me <\/p>\n

586
\n00:39:23,480 –> 00:39:28,680
\nand will be will continue to be.
\nSo here’s five other questions <\/p>\n

587
\n00:39:28,680 –> 00:39:35,520
\nfor you to think about.
\nI’ll read it tonight in bed. <\/p>\n

588
\n00:39:36,160 –> 00:39:38,200
\nAnd last night I had a little
\ncry and fell asleep. <\/p>\n

589
\n00:39:40,200 –> 00:39:51,320
\nIt was nice.
\nKelly and I love to visit <\/p>\n

590
\n00:39:51,320 –> 00:39:58,520
\nFrance.
\nWe’ve been several times and <\/p>\n

591
\n00:39:58,520 –> 00:40:02,600
\nwhen I tell that to Americans, a
\nlot of them will tell me that <\/p>\n

592
\n00:40:02,760 –> 00:40:07,360
\nthey visit France and they found
\nthe French very rude and off <\/p>\n

593
\n00:40:07,360 –> 00:40:13,240
\nputting.
\nFor those of you who’ve been to <\/p>\n

594
\n00:40:13,240 –> 00:40:18,080
\nFrance and been sitting in a
\nbeautiful cafe having some foie <\/p>\n

595
\n00:40:18,080 –> 00:40:21,680
\ngras, oh gosh, no.
\nHaving, you know, just some <\/p>\n

596
\n00:40:21,760 –> 00:40:30,680
\nlemonade, read that wine, right?
\nHave you ever seen an American <\/p>\n

597
\n00:40:30,960 –> 00:40:34,160
\nin France?
\nI mean, even I don’t like them, <\/p>\n

598
\n00:40:36,280 –> 00:40:40,760
\nand I’m one of them.
\nIf you think that nothing is as <\/p>\n

599
\n00:40:40,760 –> 00:40:44,760
\ngood as it is in America, the
\nFrench people are going to be <\/p>\n

600
\n00:40:44,760 –> 00:40:52,160
\nrude.
\nBut if you love France and you <\/p>\n

601
\n00:40:52,160 –> 00:40:58,240
\nfind their culture so developed
\nand and intelligent and cultural<\/p>\n

602
\n00:40:58,240 –> 00:41:04,520
\nand refined and better than
\nyours, and you look forward to <\/p>\n

603
\n00:41:04,520 –> 00:41:08,160
\ntalking to the people, you’re
\ngoing to find them very <\/p>\n

604
\n00:41:08,160 –> 00:41:11,680
\nfriendly.
\nIsn’t that strange? <\/p>\n

605
\n00:41:17,320 –> 00:41:23,080
\nMeeting the world with love in
\nyour heart will determine what <\/p>\n

606
\n00:41:23,080 –> 00:41:31,120
\nyou find in the world.
\nI knew a brother who worked 40 <\/p>\n

607
\n00:41:31,120 –> 00:41:36,880
\nyears and never had anyone nice
\nthat he worked with. <\/p>\n

608
\n00:41:37,880 –> 00:41:41,400
\nEverybody was terrible.
\nHe didn’t like them all and none<\/p>\n

609
\n00:41:41,400 –> 00:41:44,880
\nof them liked him.
\nAnd I knew a brother who worked <\/p>\n

610
\n00:41:44,880 –> 00:41:49,400
\n40 years and had the best people
\nhe’d ever worked with, and they <\/p>\n

611
\n00:41:49,400 –> 00:41:51,480
\nwere all nice and they all liked
\nhim. <\/p>\n

612
\n00:41:53,600 –> 00:42:00,760
\nThey worked at the same place.
\nLes Miserables says it the best <\/p>\n

613
\n00:42:01,360 –> 00:42:04,760
\nto love another person is to see
\nthe face of God. <\/p>\n

614
\n00:42:05,760 –> 00:42:08,600
\nWe all have a circle.
\nWe all have this circle of <\/p>\n

615
\n00:42:08,600 –> 00:42:11,880
\ncompassion.
\nHow far does your circle extend?<\/p>\n

616
\n00:42:13,000 –> 00:42:17,520
\nTerrible people find only
\nthemselves inside that circle. <\/p>\n

617
\n00:42:19,000 –> 00:42:22,760
\nMany people find maybe their
\nimmediate family members are in <\/p>\n

618
\n00:42:22,760 –> 00:42:26,560
\nthe circle.
\nA few have added some trusted <\/p>\n

619
\n00:42:26,560 –> 00:42:31,520
\nlongtime friends, but how
\nblessed we are to have members <\/p>\n

620
\n00:42:31,520 –> 00:42:34,520
\nof our Clesia we can add to our
\ncircle of compassion. <\/p>\n

621
\n00:42:35,440 –> 00:42:39,120
\nThat’s great.
\nHow much further can you extend <\/p>\n

622
\n00:42:39,120 –> 00:42:41,720
\nit?
\nHow much further beyond that? <\/p>\n

623
\n00:42:42,640 –> 00:42:44,360
\nIt’s not going to feel
\ncomfortable. <\/p>\n

624
\n00:42:45,480 –> 00:42:51,120
\nIt’s going to be darn right
\nscary and the committee in the <\/p>\n

625
\n00:42:51,120 –> 00:43:00,240
\ncenter is not going to like it.
\nCan you bring in even more? <\/p>\n

626
\n00:43:02,240 –> 00:43:06,400
\nGo out to the highways and the
\nhedges and compel people to come<\/p>\n

627
\n00:43:06,400 –> 00:43:11,040
\nin that my house may be filled?
\nSure, it’s easy to include your <\/p>\n

628
\n00:43:11,040 –> 00:43:13,880
\nfamily, your friends, and even
\nsome members of your ecclesia. <\/p>\n

629
\n00:43:13,880 –> 00:43:16,720
\nBut look what Jesus says.
\nWhen you give a dinner or a <\/p>\n

630
\n00:43:16,720 –> 00:43:20,600
\nbanquet, don’t invite your
\nfriends or your brothers or your<\/p>\n

631
\n00:43:20,600 –> 00:43:24,320
\nrelatives or your rich
\nneighbors, lest they also invite<\/p>\n

632
\n00:43:24,320 –> 00:43:30,400
\nyou in return and you be repaid.
\nFor many years, my brother and I<\/p>\n

633
\n00:43:30,640 –> 00:43:34,840
\nwould send each other Christmas
\ncards every year, and he would <\/p>\n

634
\n00:43:34,840 –> 00:43:38,400
\ninclude $100 check in his and I
\nwould include $100 check in <\/p>\n

635
\n00:43:38,400 –> 00:43:43,320
\nmine.
\nAnd one year I called him and <\/p>\n

636
\n00:43:43,320 –> 00:43:46,720
\nsaid, hey Mick, let’s do
\n$1,000,000 checks this year. <\/p>\n

637
\n00:43:49,320 –> 00:43:52,880
\nAnd we realized how stupid it
\nwas that we were doing. <\/p>\n

638
\n00:43:53,480 –> 00:43:56,120
\nI was inviting him to my house
\nfor dinner, and he was inviting <\/p>\n

639
\n00:43:56,120 –> 00:43:58,080
\nme to his house for dinner.
\nI was inviting him to my house <\/p>\n

640
\n00:43:58,080 –> 00:43:59,800
\nfor dinner.
\nHe was inviting me to his house <\/p>\n

641
\n00:43:59,800 –> 00:44:07,160
\nfor dinner.
\nPretty boring, pretty boring. <\/p>\n

642
\n00:44:09,720 –> 00:44:15,800
\nBut when you give a feast,
\ninvite the poor, the crippled, <\/p>\n

643
\n00:44:16,120 –> 00:44:20,280
\nthe lame, the blind, and you
\nwill be blessed because they <\/p>\n

644
\n00:44:20,280 –> 00:44:25,600
\ncannot repay you, for you will
\nbe repaid at the resurrection of<\/p>\n

645
\n00:44:25,600 –> 00:44:29,280
\nthe just.
\nHow about the ones that are on <\/p>\n

646
\n00:44:29,280 –> 00:44:32,560
\nthe margins?
\nHow about the outcast, the ones <\/p>\n

647
\n00:44:32,560 –> 00:44:36,000
\nyou don’t feel connected to?
\nReach outside the box. <\/p>\n

648
\n00:44:36,320 –> 00:44:40,160
\nGo outside your comfort zone.
\nBring in that person who isn’t <\/p>\n

649
\n00:44:40,160 –> 00:44:43,280
\nfeeling their worth and make
\nthem feel wanted. <\/p>\n

650
\n00:44:43,280 –> 00:44:45,840
\nMake them feel loved.
\nMake them feel needed. <\/p>\n

651
\n00:44:45,960 –> 00:44:48,080
\nMake them feel like they’re a
\npart of something. <\/p>\n

652
\n00:44:49,280 –> 00:44:57,560
\nMake them feel God’s love.
\nI know it’s hard, but it’s <\/p>\n

653
\n00:44:57,560 –> 00:45:02,800
\nright, and you know it’s right.
\nI also know that you’re going to<\/p>\n

654
\n00:45:02,800 –> 00:45:05,360
\nsucceed sometimes and you’re
\ngoing to fail sometimes. <\/p>\n

655
\n00:45:05,840 –> 00:45:09,240
\nThat’s life.
\nIt’s just the way things are. <\/p>\n

656
\n00:45:09,240 –> 00:45:13,360
\nThere’s UPS and there’s downs
\nand there’s hills and there’s <\/p>\n

657
\n00:45:13,360 –> 00:45:15,400
\nvalleys and that’s tomorrow’s
\nclass. <\/p>\n

658
\n00:45:31,480 –> 00:45:33,560
\nThank you for listening to the
\nGood Christadelphian Talks <\/p>\n

659
\n00:45:33,560 –> 00:45:36,160
\npodcast.
\nWe hope this talk helped you in <\/p>\n

660
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\nweek.\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This week’s talk is from a series by Brother Jeff Gelineau titled “Beyond the Book,” given…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/anchor.fm\/s\/6d15708\/podcast\/play\/117249064\/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-2-20%2Fb274ec35-46b8-7a09-d67a-5ff281d65c01.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:46:38","filesize":"32.02M","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"tags":[],"series":[25],"class_list":["post-1455","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","series-gct"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t