Rediscovering Joy | The Book Of Philippians Week 5

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- Life is like a never ending pursuit of happiness.

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We're always looking for something

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better than what we have.

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But problems, trouble, pain, life, death all get in the way.

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Just when we think we're almost there,

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we get knocked back down.

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But what if joy didn't mean what you thought it meant?

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What if you could have joy

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no matter what circumstances you're facing or will face?

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In this series of videos,

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we're exploring five keys to Chasing Joy.

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And today we're actually going to

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relearn how to be joyful.

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- Every amusement park has that one ride,

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that one ride that's so intense, it'll make you black out.

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It's so intense it puts your stomach into your shoes.

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Now, a few years ago,

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I was at this park on that ride with a friend,

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and I was looking over and like, what's the big deal?

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This seems pretty lame.

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In about 0.2 seconds later, the bottom dropped out

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and we started plummeting towards the earth

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at like a billion miles an hour.

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And man, that's how life is sometimes,

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it feels like it's straight and level

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and then the bottom drops out.

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And what's scary is when you don't know where you are

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on the roller coaster or in life.

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Today, we're going to be talking about

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how we can experience more joy by understanding

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where we are on the roller coaster of life.

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But before we do that, I want us to hear from some joy experts.

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Who are the joy experts in your life?

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Well, they're kids.

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I want us to hear from some kids about joy right now.

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- You know what? Jayce said the same thing.

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That just means giving this, that's all.

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So you can, like, flip your hair, boom, like famous.

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Oh, yes.

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You want to say action? - Action. - Good job.

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What brings the biggest smile to your face?

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- My friends, my family.

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- Sometimes play basketball.

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- Sloths.

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- Sloths. Okay. How slow do sloths move?

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What makes you the happiest?

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- Food. - What kind of food?

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- Skyline.

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- Tortellini.

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- Ice cream. - Oh, my gosh.

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What makes you laugh the hardest?

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- Frankie dancing with me. - Your dog?

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- Put him on his back legs and he's like [vocalizing].

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- Tell me about one of the happiest days of your life.

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- A new family, I got adopted. - Yeah.

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- How much money do you think you need to make you happy?

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- Maybe 20 - 50 hundred dollars.

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- That's a good amount. What are you going to buy?

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- A huge pony.

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- Not much. - Zero.

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- None, I guess.

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- None. You can't buy happiness.

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- Some people need love to be happy.

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- If you're a rich person, you could just use money too but...

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- They could also maybe buy love.

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Is that what you're saying? - Yeah.

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- But if you aren't rich, where do you get the love from?

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- Jesus. - That's a good answer.

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How do you keep being happy? - By dancing.

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Let me see some of your best moves.

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- That's so good.

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- What cheers you up? - Getting hugs.

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- You like hugs?

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So some folks who are watching this,

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they might not know where to start.

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They don't know how to be happy.

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What would you tell them?

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- Just let your inspiration go wild.

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- That's good advice.

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- Man, I love that picture of childlike joy.

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Hey, for the last four weeks,

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we've been in the book of Philippians.

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Philippians has a lot to say about joy.

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Joy in Jesus, joy in humility,

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joy in the process, joy in suffering, all kinds of joy.

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Now, let me show you something really cool

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about Philippians.

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Even the structure of the book

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tells us something about it.

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You see, Philippians isn't just a single theme.

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It's actually a series of vignettes

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that refer back to a central idea

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right in the middle of the book, in the form of a poem.

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Philippians shows how living as a Christian

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means seeing your own story

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as a lived expression of Jesus's story.

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Now, did you catch that?

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Let me say it again, because this is important.

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Philippians shows that living as a Christian

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means seeing your own story

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as a lived expression of Jesus's story.

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And if you're wondering,

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what does any of this have to do with joy?

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Well, I'm getting to that.

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Now I'd propose to you that

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one of the biggest reasons you and I

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don't experience more childlike joy in our lives

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is that we don't understand where we are

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in the narrative arc of God's story.

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It's like we expect things to be straight

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and level all the time, but that's not how life

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or a good roller coaster work.

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And if we don't know where we are,

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straight and level, headed up the hill,

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or flying face first towards the ground,

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placing ourselves in the story as

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a lived expression of Jesus's is really challenging.

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But I'm getting ahead of myself.

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Before I explain a framework for relearning joy,

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let me describe the current situation

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where most of us find ourselves.

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Now, a few decades ago,

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NASA was looking for a way to quantify creativity,

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and they started with kids.

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Now, the children of the study were first tested

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at 5, then again at 10 and 15 years old.

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At age 5, like my daughter, Mariah,

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98% of children tested as creative geniuses.

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By the age of 10, only 30%.

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And by 15, only 12% were still genius level creatives.

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Now, a fourth test was administered as adults

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and it was only 2% retain that creative

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and problem solving genius.

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And I just propose, hasn't our child-like ability

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to experience joy suffered a similar fate?

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Man, who's the joy expert in your life? Kids, right?

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They throw tantrums, but they're also capable

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of a level of sheer delight

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that aren't we all envious of?

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I mean, come on.

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Like my daughter Mariah is more joyful

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with an ice cream cone and a balloon

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than I am with a beach vacation.

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Like, she -- and it doesn't matter.

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Like, she could have a balloon and ice cream cone

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in the middle of a hurricane

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and she would be loving life.

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She has a joy that is just incredible.

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But somewhere along the line,

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life conspires against us so that we unlearn joy.

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Trauma, disappointment, misplaced expectations,

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pain, brokenness, suffering, and a whole lot more

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chip away at our ability to experience joy

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until it feels like a distant memory.

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You might remember when it happened to you,

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when that disappointment or hurt or pain

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changed something in you, or you might not.

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Now everyone has a story, and mine is just that.

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It's my own.

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It's my own story of experiencing God.

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And our stories have a profound role

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in shaping who we are.

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And mine has been one of relearning joy.

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And that's what I want for you too.

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- Hey, I'm Hannah, and this is Andy.

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And you already know him because he is crushing it

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doing an awesome job teaching us about relearning joy.

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I know. I'm enjoying it, and I hope that you are too.

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Now's the time in our service

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where we get to engage in giving,

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which is an area that I've relearned joy in my own life.

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And if you want to partner with us to change the world,

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not just the world, but also your own community,

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you can go to Crossroads.net/give right now.

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- Hey, we have something really important

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coming up and it's called The Journey.

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And if you wonder what's a journey

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and why should I do it, I want you to check out

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this video that it answers both those questions right now.

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- This year's journey is called Grow

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because God wants more for our lives

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and to find that we must grow.

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The Journey is five weeks long, starting September 18th.

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There are three parts to the journey.

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Step one: Attend the weekend

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and receive weekly teaching at a site or online.

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Get inspired with the good news.

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Step two: Do your guide work.

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You get your very own printed guide.

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It'll help you create a plan of action to grow deeper.

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And step three: meet with your group.

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During the Journey we meet in groups

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to talk about what we're learning, grow deeper together.

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You might even make a new friend.

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And if you don't have a group, that's okay.

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We'll help you find one.

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Recap: Attend the weekend,

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do your guide work, and get in a group.

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Go here for more.

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Come Grow.

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- My own personal journey with joy has many chapters,

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but one of the most important happened years ago

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at what was the darkest point in my entire life.

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I grew up as the youngest of five kids

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and I was pretty good, like, I rarely did anything

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that I couldn't "I'm sorry" my way out of, right?

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And I was generally rewarded for it.

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This all worked pretty well until my early twenties,

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until it didn't.

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My life wasn't perfect, but in general,

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the do good things equals get good things equation

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was working pretty well for me.

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Now, there was a season when all that changed,

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when I had six people in my family die in two years,

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culminated when my mom's cancer came out of remission.

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I moved home to take care of her.

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And in spite of chemotherapy, radiation,

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and all kinds of prayers, she died.

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Months later, my sister got a disease that was so rare

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that our doctors were literally calling people in China

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to find a similar case.

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By the end, she was 90 pounds, lost her right eye,

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and was in so much pain that it was unimaginable.

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And just when her health began to improve, she died.

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I was done. I was broken.

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It was like the wheels had come off of my life.

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I quit my job where I was working at a church

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singing about how great God was.

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I left home.

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I bought a motorcycle and I just hit the road.

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I wasn't sure where I was going.

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I wasn't really even sure what I was doing.

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All I really knew was

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that I needed everything to change.

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I was the picture of freedom,

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but also the picture of what it is to be lost.

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I was running away, running away from a life

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and frankly, a faith that wasn't working.

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I felt like God hadn't held up His end of the bargain

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and I was pissed.

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You know what happened? I just kept moving.

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What ended up being an emotional and physical journey

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of almost a year, crossed 36,000 miles

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across deserts, jungles, 16 countries

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and everything in between.

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It literally took me from the Arctic Circle

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to the bottom of Argentina.

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It was an adventure, that's for sure.

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If you want to hear stories, hey, buy me a beer.

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Let's talk. Let's talk about it.

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But I remember one day, one day that

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I will remember for the rest of my life.

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I was in Central America.

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I was riding my motorcycle

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down a beautiful mountain overlooking the Atlantic.

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The weather was like this.

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It was perfect, but I could barely see it.

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Tears just clouded my eyes, and I was so angry

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that I was shouting at God in my helmet.

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I was so angry, I just kept rolling on the throttle,

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accelerating down this mountainside

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where there just been a rockslide.

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Boulders were over here.

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There was a cliff face over here.

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And I was just daring the bike to hit something.

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I don't know how long I went on this way,

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but I was just pushing harder and going faster.

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Man, I don't know if I wanted to die,

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but I know that I didn't care if I lived.

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When I reached the bottom of the mountain,

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I pulled over and just laid there

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on the side of the road, utterly exhausted.

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And I just remember saying the God out loud,

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"God, I can't do this anymore.

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You don't owe me anything.

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I'll follow You no matter what."

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In that moment of exhausted grief and tears,

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like, something change, it clicked.

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It was as if I knew that I wasn't at the end

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of the story, I was in the middle.

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The middle where my misplaced expectation of God

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were dying, where my good Christian behavior

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was exposed for what it was,

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an attempt to control God

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so that I could get what I wanted.

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The story didn't end with my pain, but instead

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ended with God bringing me through to something better.

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And that's what I want for you,

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so that you can experience more joy,

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more hope, more freedom, and more wholeness.

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This is a process that I've experienced

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in big and in small ways,

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in my career, in my ambitions, in my plans,

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in my relationships, in my identity,

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and all the things that I try and make

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the bedrock of my life other than God.

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These are all opportunities for us to do that thing

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from Philippians 2 which is remembered,

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it's showing us how we can see our own lives

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as a lived expression of Jesus story.

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But if we learn to handle life struggles with Jesus,

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there's a framework for handling those struggles

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that won't rob us of happiness,

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but instead will enable you and I to relearn joy.

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If we don't realize that life is like a roller coaster,

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that there are highs and that there are lows,

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we don't know what to do with them when they come.

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So here's a framework

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that's going to go before, on and after

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for noticing where you are

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and embracing your place in life.

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In our own ways, Jesus lived this out.

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In Philippians 2 He created this model

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that you and I get to follow.

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Philippians 2:6-11 says this:

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This is the before.

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This is God recognizing an opportunity

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to take a humble place to serve.

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And that's what you and I have.

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This goes and leads us to being on the Cross.

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Continuing with our passage from Philippians 2, it says,

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rather, Jesus made Himself nothing

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by taking the very nature of a servant,

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being made in human likeness

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and being found in appearance as a man,

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He humbled himself by becoming obedient to death,

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even death on a cross.

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But the story doesn't end there.

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There's an after, after the Cross.

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Before the cross, on the Cross, and after the Cross

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that you and I are invited into.

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In Philippians 2:6-11, it says this:

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Man, we have an opportunity to allow God

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to bring us through a healing and growing process

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before the Cross, on the Cross, and after the Cross,

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letting the imperfect parts of our character,

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of our personality, of our history

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to be remade, reshaped and renewed

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more in the image and story of Jesus.

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So, if things are challenging for you right now,

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if you feel like the wheels are coming off,

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hey, the story isn't over.

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You're still in the middle where God is reshaping

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and renewing and reforming

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important parts of who you are.

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And He cares enough to grow you

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in the midst of that space

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and to take that place of brokenness

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and make it a source of strength,

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to take that place of pain and make it a source of joy.

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When we understand where we are

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in the framework of God's story

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and see our lives as a lived expression of His story

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before the Cross, on the Cross, and after the Cross,

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man, then we're not surprised when difficulty comes.

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We're not expecting everything to be straight and level.

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That's not true of life.

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It's not true of a good roller coaster.

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Life has an ebb and a flow,

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it has highs and it has lows,

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it has twists and it has turns.

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And all through every bit of it

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God's working out His goodness in you and for you.

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Now in just a moment, we're going to take communion.

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We take communion, it's a recognition.

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It's a recognition of God's ability

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to redeem and to restore every part of us,

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to breathe new life into the pain,

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to breathe new life into the brokenness,

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make old things new and broken things whole.

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So, if you would, I'm going to use wine and bread,

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grab whatever you have at home.

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Thank you.

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And Jesus gathered his friends,

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his community around Him.

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He said, "This is my body broken for you. Take and eat."

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And He said, "This is my blood shed for you.

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Do this in remembrance of me.

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Take and drink."

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These practical, tactile examples

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of God's love for you and for me.

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If you believe in Jesus,

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you understand Him as your Savior

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and as your source of redemption,

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take that bread and eat it

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and take that wine or whatever you're using at home

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and drink that now.

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Now, let me leave you guys with a passage.

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Hebrews 12:2 says:

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Let us fix our eyes on Jesus,

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the author and perfecter of our faith.

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Who for the joy set before him endured the cross,

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scorning its shame, and sat down

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at the right hand of the throne of God.

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That's a beautiful articulation

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of the journey towards joy

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that God is inviting you and me into.

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So, become an active participant

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in your own growth and healing by allowing God

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to take you on a journey, like you did with me,

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from before the Cross to on the Cross to after the Cross.

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Man, this has been my story in areas of pride,

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selfishness, ambition, my career, my identity,

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my family, and a whole host of other things

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in big and small ways.

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This is an opportunity to remind ourselves

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that if the story isn't good, then the story isn't over.

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Jesus isn't done with you.

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He wants to bring you more healing,

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wholeness and joy than you can imagine.

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And while it's not easy, it's worth it.

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Now, one more note from my story.

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Remember that road in Central America

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where my grief almost overwhelmed me?

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A few years ago, I had the chance

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to revisit some of those same roads,

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except I wasn't alone and I wasn't grieving.

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I had a wife and three kids with me.

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I wasn't grieving. I was healed.

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I wasn't alone. I had been restored to a family.

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In big and small ways God can bring wholeness to you.

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So lean in, be bold, and see how your own life

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can echo Jesus's story of resurrection,

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then you'll experience more of what it means to relearn joy.

00:22:00

- Hey, thank you guys so much for joining us today.

00:22:02

It is our sincere hope and prayer that you

00:22:05

learned how to experience more joy in your life.

00:22:08

Now, as we mentioned,

00:22:10

we have a really important thing coming up, The Journey.

00:22:12

I really think it could be an inflection point

00:22:15

to change the spiritual trajectory of your life.

00:22:18

And that doesn't happen just by watching something

00:22:20

or reading something.

00:22:21

It happens in the context of community,

00:22:24

growing with other people.

00:22:26

Man, join a group. Start a group.

00:22:28

Head to Crossroads.net/Journey

00:22:30

for more info on how to do that.

00:22:31

- And if you want one of these awesome guides

00:22:33

that Andy and I have,

00:22:34

more information of how to get that,

00:22:36

and you need to get it soon, by the way,

00:22:38

is at Crossroads.net/Journey.

00:22:40

Now I'm going to stop talking

00:22:41

because we have something very special,

00:22:43

something that you want to stick around for.

00:22:45

It is a sneak peek into the Grow Journey.

00:22:48

We'll see you next time on Crossroads.

00:22:50

- You can grow beyond where you are right now.

00:22:54

Everyone likes the idea of spirituality,

00:22:57

but, like, no one actually knows

00:22:59

you can actually grow spiritually.

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