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TEEN PATHWAYS

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Hi!

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I was just doing some Bible
study,

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and I came across this one text
that I think is incredible,

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and it says, it's in Matthew 10,
and it says:

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"Stand up for Me against the
world's opinion,

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and I'll stand up for you before
the Father in heaven.

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If you turn tail and run,
do you think I'll cover for you?

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Don't think I've come to make
life cosy,

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I've come to cut, to make a sharp
knife cut between son and father,

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daughter and mother, bride and
mother-in-law.

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Cut through these cosy domestic
arrangements

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and free you for God. Well maybe
your family memebers

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can be your worst ennemies,
if you prefer father or mother,

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over Me, you don't deserve Me.
If you prefer son or daughter,

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over Me, you don't deserve Me.
If you don't go all the way with

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Me, through thick and thin,
you don't deserve Me.

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If your first concern is to look
after yourself,

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you'll never find yourself.
But if you forget about yourself,

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and look to Me, you'll find both
yourself and Me. "

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And I thought that was
incredible, because when I first

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came into the church, for one
I didn't know who I was,

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I didn't know who God was,
and I looked around,

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Well, before I looked around,
I first thought of the churchlady

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from Saturday night so I knew
that I didn't want to be.

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And I was so afraid of that
but I looked around

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and I just kind of imitated
people around me.

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And so today we are going to
cover: "Who are you in Christ?"

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And can you stand up? Like it
says in here: "Stand up for Me

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against the world's opinion. "
And so we're going to cover that,

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but before we do, I want
to introduce everybody.

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So, can we start here?

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Ok. My name is Sarah Yates,
and I'm from St. Louis, Missouri,

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And I've lived there all my life.

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Hi! My name is Bronson Anderson,
I'm also from St. Louis,

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Missouri, but I'm originally
from Virginia.

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Hi! My name is Nicki, I'm from
St. Louis and I've lived there

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my entire life.

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Hi! I'm Amy Oster, I'm currently
in St Louis, but I've lived all

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over and hopefully I'll be
staying in St Louis.

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Hi! My name is Dominik, and
right now I live in Idaho,

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but I was born in Sacramento,
California.

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My name is A. J. Grant, I'm a
pastor here in True Steps,

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and originally from Vancoover,
British Columbia,

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Canada, but now I live in
Hermiston, Oregon.

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Ok. Welcome! So standing up,
against the public opinion

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of the world, I think that's an
incredible intense saying,

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it's like as Christians, who are
we as Christians,

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and why are we as Christians
and all that kind of stuff,

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so today we're going to cover
some of those things

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and our belief about who we are.
Does it make a difference?

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What are we thinking of God?
What are we thinking of my will

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in God?And like I said at the
beginning of the show

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that I didn't want to be the
churchlady,

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I did not want to be
the churchlady,

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but I was. All the sudden I came
in style of clothes,

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that time was this high lace
dresses like platter

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a pasy kind of flowery thing,
that had this higher lace,

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and I came from kind of a hip
style to all the sudden that,

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and it killed me, for one it
itches, it's really

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uncomfortable, and it itches,
but for the next 5 to 7 years

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I was that, because I just was
afraid that if I was myself,

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that maybe God wouldn't like
that.

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and so what do you think of that?
Of who you are in Christ?

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For me, growing up in an
adventist home,

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my parents told me things and
I followed them

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and I'm glad that they taught me
those things,

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but as I've grown older and I've
had Adventist friends,

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and I've had to witness to them,
tell them about my religion,

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it's made me go back and examine
what I believe in.

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And from that I've got my own
point of view,

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and, what my parents told me,
it's like a stepping stone,

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that after I witness to my
friends,

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it's like I have my own point
of view. I can go back and I

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get to know God and I learned
what I stand up for in my

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religion. I understand why I
believe in things now.

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It's interesting because I've
had an opportunity where somebody

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said: "Cheri, what do you think
about this?"

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And I gave him the pastor's
answer and say something

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like: where is that? And I don't
have clue.

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I'm thinking: "Oh, I don't know,
I don't know.

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And you have to go back and
open the Bible

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and say: ok, it's right here.
And now do I believe it?

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And so I agree with what you
said, is you have to explore

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for yourself.

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My friends would ask me questions
and we're like:I don't know that

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that And if I'm going to call
myself Adventist, I should be

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able to know that. And so it
makes me to go back and realize

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myself that I need to have a
better relationship with God.

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That I would get to know Him and
then I can go and tell other

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other people about it. And

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stand up for what I believe in.

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As far as the aspect of clothing
and what you wear

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and what you should do in church,
I'm a person that

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started in the Adventist church,
I guess 14 years old,

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I was already a teenager,
I was pretty much on my own

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as far as what I thought and what
I wore.

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And I didn't have much to wear,
I wasn't like I had a big

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wardrobe.

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Why didn't you have much to
wear?

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We weren't that well off.

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So I was thinking: is either
that? Or they stood in the

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laundry a lot?

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That would be nice, but
yeah.

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To see you well of it's something
you didn't have a choice

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on how to dress or what to dress.

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But I did have a choice of
whether I wanted to wear

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suit and tie, I had one suit,
but I could wear that

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and be just like everybody
else,

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like everybody else wanted to be
in the church,

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or I could do what I wanted to
do and wear any clothes that

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I wanted, I mean I want to be
respectful

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to God, it's His house,
but on the other hand I wanted

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to be comfortable worshipping
Him, I wanted to be comfortable

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there and the clothes that I
wear,

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I don't make Him disrespectful,
they're not a tie,

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if I'm going to wear a tie, I
think I can wear a tie, and I

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would, but normally, I like, I'd
rather be comfortable,

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it's the views that other people
have in the church,

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like I was wearing a tie,

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that's where I have a problem
sometimes.

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So yours was a little bit
different, because mine was

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my own view, I had this picture
of the churchlady,

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the picture of this Christian,
so you're saying that the views

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of other people,what they fit
in those views?

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That would affect my
understanding and the views

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in the church as what the other
people in the congregation

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And so then that afffects

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on how you act.

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I think that when you go to
church, you shouldn't go to

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church to like to dress to
please other people,

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you go to church to worship
God. and God looks not at what

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you're wearing, but what's inside
in your heart.

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That was part of a, a lot
complaints I heard at college

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from my friends who weren't
spiritually committed

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what's the point of going to
church?

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It's one big fashion show.
People aren't concerned about

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God,that's very well true.
I still remember this day,

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when a prominent speaker came to
our campus and

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and the place was just packed
and there were some of my friends

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who came just after the sermon
started, sitting at the back

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and just looking at the girl
But the issue behind dress

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for some of us, is the same
principle as when you have your

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first day. When you have your
first day and you go to an

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adventist academy, at the
banquet, you get all dressed up,

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because you are meeting somebody
special, it's a special occasion,

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and therefore you put on
something that reflects

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how important the occasion
or the person is.

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Every week at the church we're
worshipping God.

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And part of who we are,
is his child.

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And so sometimes out of respect,
most of it because He looks

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at the heart, you dress the same.
This is a special occasion,

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I respect You God. You're not
only just my best friend,

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You are my Father
and this is your House.

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So I want to respect You by
bringing my best foot forward

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so to speak.

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Do you think sometimes it's
drawn into you to walk in

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a certain way into church,

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to wear a suit and tie,
for instance, you have to wear

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a suit and tie. That drawn into
being so susceptible,

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that every little element in
life, as a teenager,

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you think that drawn into your
mind, that's what I think.

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I think, drawn into the church,
from 14,

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and then going to...

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I kind of hear what you're
saying, but when I was

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a teenager, I really looked at
parents and authority figures

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as like: Why don't you guys
as get together?

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especially parents. If you would
only understand me,

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and now as I've gotten a bit
older,

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and I'm looking back, when you're
a teenager, your parents really

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seem crazy. But as you get older
and you start thinking about

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I'm going to raise the child,
you're like: wow!

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It's not like like we
come out of the womb with

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the a manuel. And so back to
the dress thing,

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is somehow I've got to teach
this child

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how to respect God. And teach
him principles from an age,

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where they were developped.
So you've got to start

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somewhere. So part of drilling,
this is the best I can do,

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right now as a parent. I don't
know any other way.

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You didn't come out with
a manual,

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maybe this is the way how we
were taught,

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kind of so it worked for me,
I'm going to do it again.

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But really and it's primarily for
me for the parents,

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what they're trying to teach
is, and have this hard

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appreciation with God, and for
God that reflects how you dress.

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Let me say one thing and tell
me what you think.

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So for, and I think, for several
years I stayed on the dress

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issue. And it looks like it's
the dress issue, that outward

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appearance, is where we stay
for a while. and finally, I think

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God said: Cheri! I love you!
What about yourself?

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What about inside? What about
who you are?

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And I'm thinking: wait! What
about how I look?

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And so I think that what I'd
like to go for now,

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is ok, that for one, for most of
us,when we come into the church

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come and sit down and worship,
when we think about ourselves

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as Christians, we think about
the outward appearance.

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What I'd like to cover today,
is who am I inside?

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Who watches God? How does God
and I relate and who am I

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Does it make a difference in the
world around me?

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Because I see who I am inside
and not what I wear.

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What do you think?

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I think sometimes you,
people want to me like

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a good person, but with other
people sometimes it's hard

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to witness to other people,
but you just have to pray God

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and ask Him to lead you and
just speak to you and everything

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will be ok.

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So in that sense, before you
even set out to witnessing,

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is it important for me to
understand my relationship

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to God and who I am in God.
Now using an example,

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is that I looked at the coolest
person I knew in the church,

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it was somebody that could
tell you exactly what scripture

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was where and all that kind of
stuff and I can't do that.

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And somebody could tell me,
what the word says in John 3:16,

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I could tell you what that says,
but for a long time, for 10 years

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I could remember John 3:16,
and just where it was.

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But I try to be that person.
And I think what God said,

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is can you just be yourself?

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And so today can we talk about
who are you in God?

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This is what Jesus says as far
as who we are in Matthew:

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"Then the 11 deciples
went to Galilee

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to the mountain where Jesustold
them to go. When they saw Him,

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they worshipped Him. But some
of them doubted.

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Then Jesus came to them and said:
All authority in heaven and earth

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has been given to Me. Therefore
go and make disciples of all

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nations, baptising them in the
name of the Father,

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and of the Son and of the
Holly Spirit.

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And teaching them to obey
everything I've commanded

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you. And surely I'm with you
always, even untill the very

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end of the age. "

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So what is important about that
text, is, remember when Jesus

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says that there is no new
testimony,

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00:13:11,892 --> 00:13:15,191
at that moment. There's not
really anything, called

233
00:13:15,226 --> 00:13:17,295
the Church. Everything was under
the Jewish synagogue rule system.

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From those 11 people,
we have our Churches today.

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Because those 11 went, preached
and teached and made

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00:13:28,023 --> 00:13:31,870
preached and taught and made
disciples and from those

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00:13:31,905 --> 00:13:35,718
disciples they made disciples.
So, part of who we are,

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point blank is we're disciples
of Jesus Christ.

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00:13:39,905 --> 00:13:43,604
In this day and age it's kind
of hard to worship

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worship with people and trying to
be disciples.

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00:13:47,304 --> 00:13:53,852
It's harder now, than it was back
then, I mean, going door to door,

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00:13:53,887 --> 00:14:00,456
it's kind of hard, they open
a door and we don't want

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00:14:00,491 --> 00:14:03,515
any girls or cookies. And that's
not what you're there for,

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00:14:03,550 --> 00:14:06,506
but people don't want you
to preach to them.

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00:14:06,541 --> 00:14:12,208
On the other hand, being a
teenager,people look at that,

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00:14:12,243 --> 00:14:17,875
and say: "maybe we need to listen
to this teenager. "

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He or she is the future of our
country.

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00:14:22,738 --> 00:14:28,519
What's really interesting to me,
is that I think that one of the

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00:14:28,554 --> 00:14:29,976
first things that I did, I took
witnessing class,

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00:14:30,011 --> 00:14:32,816
because I wasn't raised in any
church,

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00:14:32,851 --> 00:14:35,957
so I took a witnesing class and
I people were talking about

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00:14:35,992 --> 00:14:40,106
how to witness, how to do the
disciples and how to be

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00:14:40,141 --> 00:14:42,900
a disciple and what hit me the
hardest, I actually started

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00:14:42,935 --> 00:14:44,706
crying and I kind of disrupted
with the class,

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00:14:44,741 --> 00:14:48,388
I sort of cried because I
thought: now that everybody

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00:14:48,423 --> 00:14:49,881
had a checklist of what to do,
but nobody ever talked about

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00:14:49,916 --> 00:14:52,876
liking the person that you're
talking to.

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00:14:52,911 --> 00:14:57,280
Or what their comission was,
or why they would do it,

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00:14:57,315 --> 00:14:58,702
and it was more just doing
this checklist,

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00:14:58,737 --> 00:15:00,883
going to the door and sayimg:
do you know Christ?

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00:15:00,918 --> 00:15:04,407
Rather than having a love,
or relationship

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00:15:04,442 --> 00:15:06,637
with people.

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00:15:06,672 --> 00:15:10,396
I think there's a fineline
between reaching to someone,

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00:15:10,431 --> 00:15:14,085
and sharing your religion with
them, because when I started

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00:15:14,120 --> 00:15:15,997
to speak with someone, I didn't
want to sit there and giving them

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00:15:16,032 --> 00:15:19,623
a sermon and saying: you did
this wrong, I did it right,

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00:15:19,658 --> 00:15:22,649
you should be like me. I want
to be enthousiastic about my

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00:15:22,684 --> 00:15:26,191
religion, I want to be happy
about it. Because if someone

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00:15:26,226 --> 00:15:29,699
sees that I'm happy, they're
going to want to try and figure

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00:15:29,734 --> 00:15:32,265
out why I'm happy like that.
Or why am I happy

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00:15:32,300 --> 00:15:34,762
about this and why I believe in
that. So if you're

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00:15:34,797 --> 00:15:38,065
enthousiastic in what you believe
in, they're going to be

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00:15:38,100 --> 00:15:40,360
interested, you can't sit there
and just preach and point out the

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00:15:40,395 --> 00:15:42,734
differences, the rights and
the wrongs, you have to be

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00:15:42,769 --> 00:15:44,295
happy about what you believe in.

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00:15:44,330 --> 00:15:45,176
Incredible point!

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00:15:45,211 --> 00:15:48,933
How about if nobody can speak
and nobody can speak,

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00:15:48,968 --> 00:15:51,631
we all of a sudden became
nonverbal,

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00:15:51,666 --> 00:15:54,259
our gift of speech was removed
from us.

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00:15:54,294 --> 00:15:56,726
Would I be able to tell you that
I'm a Christian?

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00:15:56,761 --> 00:15:59,159
Look at the big smile on my
face! I'm happy inside.

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00:15:59,194 --> 00:16:04,552
Just from your actions, without
words,

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00:16:04,587 --> 00:16:08,263
I mean, so much without words,
by the way people act towards

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00:16:08,298 --> 00:16:11,749
you, act towards other people,
you could have an ennemy

285
00:16:11,784 --> 00:16:15,201
without talking, but you could
still show love for them,

286
00:16:15,236 --> 00:16:18,882
and that would show that you're
a Christian,

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00:16:18,917 --> 00:16:20,955
in all your reactions.

288
00:16:20,990 --> 00:16:24,363
So you're witnessing sometimes
not so much going door to door,

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00:16:24,398 --> 00:16:25,098
but it's who you are.

290
00:16:25,133 --> 00:16:27,947
Because you never know who's
watching you,

291
00:16:27,982 --> 00:16:30,727
what you're seeing or who's
seeing you.

292
00:16:30,762 --> 00:16:35,431
So it's not just witnessing
in front of people,

293
00:16:35,466 --> 00:16:36,752
that people notice you're
a Christian.

294
00:16:36,787 --> 00:16:39,914
It's the little things that make
it up for.

295
00:16:39,949 --> 00:16:43,006
Because people will continue
to watch you,

296
00:16:43,041 --> 00:16:45,547
like mine I know, say you
do these little things,

297
00:16:45,582 --> 00:16:48,053
a nice act of kindness,
someone on the street can be

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00:16:48,088 --> 00:16:50,240
watching them and throughout
their whole life,

299
00:16:50,275 --> 00:16:53,303
they'll remember that person,
you were a good example,

300
00:16:53,338 --> 00:16:56,546
and their whole life has changed
because of that small action.

301
00:16:56,581 --> 00:16:59,672
It's pretty powerful.
It's pretty amazing.

302
00:16:59,707 --> 00:17:01,440
Do you see yourself as
a disciple?

303
00:17:01,475 --> 00:17:04,079
When you think that the disciples
have walked with Christ,

304
00:17:04,114 --> 00:17:06,227
do you see yourself as that?

305
00:17:06,262 --> 00:17:09,664
What you don't realize, is that
the smallest things can make

306
00:17:09,699 --> 00:17:13,066
the biggest difference in people.
When you show kindness,

307
00:17:13,101 --> 00:17:14,144
to someone who is not of your
religion,

308
00:17:14,179 --> 00:17:17,322
then they'll remember that one
little act of kindness you

309
00:17:17,357 --> 00:17:21,097
showed to them and will think:
her religion must be really

310
00:17:21,132 --> 00:17:24,230
great, she's happy with her
religion, she must be in a good

311
00:17:24,265 --> 00:17:26,679
religion. And they'll remember
that and it'll make a big

312
00:17:26,714 --> 00:17:29,093
difference that will make an
impression on their life.

313
00:17:29,128 --> 00:17:34,204
Show them that you believe in
what you believe,

314
00:17:34,239 --> 00:17:37,689
actually, you actually practised
what you believe in.

315
00:17:37,724 --> 00:17:41,250
It's not just lips service.
I'm not just saying, I actually

316
00:17:41,285 --> 00:17:42,558
believe this.

317
00:17:42,593 --> 00:17:43,941
You're making a difference
in their life with what you

318
00:17:43,976 --> 00:17:46,458
believe. You show kindness.

319
00:17:46,493 --> 00:17:50,835
You have to know. Before you
can go on witnessing,

320
00:17:50,870 --> 00:17:53,590
you have to be right in your
heart with God and know what

321
00:17:53,625 --> 00:17:55,496
you're witnessing about.
Otherwise there's no point.

322
00:17:55,531 --> 00:17:59,076
You know what I love about that?
Because I think God taught me

323
00:17:59,111 --> 00:18:02,044
that and especially in the way
I think about a biblical

324
00:18:02,079 --> 00:18:04,978
character, one of the desciples,
Peter, when Peter was like

325
00:18:05,013 --> 00:18:07,700
even before Christ, he said:
I'll never leave you.

326
00:18:07,735 --> 00:18:10,388
And Christ says: you don't even
know your heart yet.

327
00:18:10,423 --> 00:18:13,001
And so it's like given even
for him,

328
00:18:13,036 --> 00:18:16,448
he had to understand his heart
and his dependency on God

329
00:18:16,483 --> 00:18:19,832
before he could even be used as
a disciple and I think for

330
00:18:19,867 --> 00:18:23,504
myself, is that I am at a place
in my life that I want to

331
00:18:23,539 --> 00:18:27,141
understand my heart, who I am,
and I want to step out.

332
00:18:27,176 --> 00:18:28,868
I want to step out and say
God use me!

333
00:18:28,903 --> 00:18:31,707
Help me to make a difference
in someone's life,

334
00:18:31,742 --> 00:18:34,642
because I love you and I depend
on You.

335
00:18:34,677 --> 00:18:37,508
I think in my own personal
experience,

336
00:18:37,543 --> 00:18:44,410
I ask God every night, or I try
to, to give me the strength

337
00:18:44,445 --> 00:18:48,427
the wisdom, or just put the
person in my way,

338
00:18:48,462 --> 00:18:52,631
so I can witness to that person.
I have a story about a friend

339
00:18:52,666 --> 00:18:56,040
of mine and me, going to pick
wild mushroom.

340
00:18:56,075 --> 00:19:01,019
I don't really like mushrooms
that much, but he asked me to,

341
00:19:01,054 --> 00:19:04,276
so I said: ok, and we were in a
part of the woods

342
00:19:04,311 --> 00:19:10,603
said no trespass, but we went
in anyway.

343
00:19:10,638 --> 00:19:15,006
When beholding God, the owner
of the land came out and started

344
00:19:15,041 --> 00:19:17,005
talking to us and asked: what are
you guys doing?

345
00:19:17,040 --> 00:19:22,129
And I was like: we're picking
mushrooms, I had a few in my

346
00:19:22,164 --> 00:19:24,798
hand,he had a few and he goes:
oh, ok,

347
00:19:24,833 --> 00:19:27,256
I like those. I forgot the name
of the mushroom.

348
00:19:27,291 --> 00:19:33,367
But he said something that stuck
me, he said: you guys can do

349
00:19:33,402 --> 00:19:38,624
that, because you guys look like
you're good Christian men.

350
00:19:38,659 --> 00:19:44,623
And I was so shocked of that,
because I didn't even say

351
00:19:44,658 --> 00:19:49,337
anything to him, to even lead
myself into that, to even him

352
00:19:49,372 --> 00:19:54,017
that I was A Christian. I was
just like, we were picking

353
00:19:53,982 --> 00:19:53,982
mushrooms.

354
00:19:54,017 --> 00:19:57,399
And I was kind of scared
because it had no trespassing,

355
00:19:57,434 --> 00:20:00,746
and he said: you guys can come
here any time you want.

356
00:20:00,781 --> 00:20:05,421
And pick mushrooms, because you
guys look like you're Christian

357
00:20:05,456 --> 00:20:10,062
men. And after that we came back
to his house, he invited us

358
00:20:10,097 --> 00:20:15,809
we had drinks, and we talked
about the Bible, he opened

359
00:20:15,844 --> 00:20:19,300
up the Bible with us, and come
to find out he was a Christian

360
00:20:19,335 --> 00:20:22,734
looking for God. He had been a
Christian for 5 years,

361
00:20:22,769 --> 00:20:26,451
and he was really struggling in
his life.

362
00:20:26,486 --> 00:20:32,346
And I got to witness, I don't
know that much about

363
00:20:32,381 --> 00:20:35,781
the Bible which I should, I
should open it up

364
00:20:35,816 --> 00:20:39,941
and study it, but it really
helped me out spiritually,

365
00:20:39,976 --> 00:20:45,057
and I know it helped him out.
And I think God put that person

366
00:20:45,092 --> 00:20:50,138
in my life so I can witness
and gain a better understanding

367
00:20:50,173 --> 00:20:50,587
of God.

368
00:20:50,622 --> 00:20:52,220
And who you are.

369
00:20:52,255 --> 00:20:53,784
And me and help him.

370
00:20:53,819 --> 00:20:57,519
And I love what you said,
is that you said that I didn't

371
00:20:57,554 --> 00:21:00,756
know a lot, but the Bible promice
that you just read in Matthew,

372
00:21:00,791 --> 00:21:03,958
said: "know that I'm with you
all the time. " so when you don't

373
00:21:03,993 --> 00:21:06,509
know something, and I'm here
prompting you and giving you

374
00:21:06,544 --> 00:21:09,198
information and encourage to step
out in faith.

375
00:21:09,233 --> 00:21:14,066
So what you found out then,
is that it wasn't about what you

376
00:21:14,101 --> 00:21:17,256
wore, what you knew, it was
about just who you were,

377
00:21:17,291 --> 00:21:20,406
because somehow He saw Christ
in you.

378
00:21:20,441 --> 00:21:27,128
I guess it was my parents,
it might have been, God opened up

379
00:21:27,163 --> 00:21:32,931
His heart as A. J. says, his
right mind, but to me, I was

380
00:21:32,966 --> 00:21:38,700
able to just look deeper than
the outside appearance.

381
00:21:38,735 --> 00:21:40,427
Because we were in trespassing.

382
00:21:40,462 --> 00:21:44,412
The Bible says that we are the
light of the world.

383
00:21:44,447 --> 00:21:48,327
We emane God colours in the
world. We are that.

384
00:21:48,362 --> 00:21:52,077
And just by walking in a room,
if there's a number of

385
00:21:52,112 --> 00:21:53,782
nonchristians, I don't have to
just say a thing,

386
00:21:53,817 --> 00:21:55,418
if I am in the right relationship
with Christ,

387
00:21:55,453 --> 00:21:58,308
I walk in a room, and the room
because of the Holly Spirit

388
00:21:58,343 --> 00:22:01,163
Christ lights up, because we're
the light of the world.

389
00:22:01,198 --> 00:22:06,831
That happens,
because it's not just that you're

390
00:22:06,866 --> 00:22:08,880
helping someone, but you feel
good while you're helping them.

391
00:22:08,915 --> 00:22:12,189
I mean you know that you're doing
something for somebody else,

392
00:22:12,224 --> 00:22:15,417
I mean it's like giving a gift.
When you get a gift, it's nice,

393
00:22:15,452 --> 00:22:18,610
but you always have this special
feeling when you give someone

394
00:22:18,645 --> 00:22:21,486
a gift and they like it.
It's very nice.

395
00:22:21,521 --> 00:22:23,998
It's nice to be able to spread
the Word of Christ.

396
00:22:24,033 --> 00:22:25,148
Incredible feeling.

397
00:22:25,183 --> 00:22:27,329
It's not only that you're
bringing someone to Christ,

398
00:22:27,364 --> 00:22:29,130
it's also that you're getting
a reward yourself.

399
00:22:29,165 --> 00:22:31,172
Because you feel good inside.

400
00:22:31,207 --> 00:22:33,145
So it's good all the way round.

401
00:22:33,180 --> 00:22:35,756
Doesn't it make God seem more
real?

402
00:22:35,791 --> 00:22:39,582
Yeah, it does, because it's
like people see God in you.

403
00:22:39,617 --> 00:22:42,759
Showing people God,
going back to the seeing is

404
00:22:42,794 --> 00:22:45,901
believing, people say: I have to
see God's will.

405
00:22:45,936 --> 00:22:47,630
Well, you can show God by how
you act.

406
00:22:47,665 --> 00:22:52,042
You can show them. So well,
see God in me, I'm showing you.

407
00:22:52,077 --> 00:22:56,781
It's exactly what the Bible says,
I like the way the message puts

408
00:22:56,816 --> 00:23:01,586
this particular passage, talking
about gifts. Because God has

409
00:23:01,621 --> 00:23:05,981
given us all a gift. Listen what
it says: "What I want to talk

410
00:23:06,016 --> 00:23:09,884
about now, is the various ways
God's spirit, that spirit gets

411
00:23:09,919 --> 00:23:13,752
worth into our lives. This is a
complex and optimist understood

412
00:23:13,787 --> 00:23:16,701
but I want you to be informed and
knowlegeable.

413
00:23:16,736 --> 00:23:19,581
Remember how you were when you
didn't know God?

414
00:23:19,616 --> 00:23:21,964
Led from one phony god to
another, never knowing what

415
00:23:21,999 --> 00:23:24,277
you were doing, just doing it,
because everybody else

416
00:23:24,312 --> 00:23:28,201
did it? It's different in this
life. God wants us to use our

417
00:23:28,236 --> 00:23:32,689
intelligence to seek and to
understand as well as we can. "

418
00:23:32,724 --> 00:23:36,838
And then he goes on to say:
"God's various gifts are handed

419
00:23:36,873 --> 00:23:40,506
out everywhere. But they all
originate in God's Spirit.

420
00:23:40,541 --> 00:23:44,139
God's various ministries are
carried out everywhere.

421
00:23:44,174 --> 00:23:46,898
But they all originate in God's
Spirit.

422
00:23:46,933 --> 00:23:50,541
God's various expressions of
power are in action everywhere,

423
00:23:50,576 --> 00:23:54,149
but God Himself is behind it
all. " And this is the part

424
00:23:54,184 --> 00:23:57,744
that's underlined: "Each person
is given something to do

425
00:23:57,779 --> 00:24:02,230
that shows who God is. " I just
love that.

426
00:24:02,265 --> 00:24:07,338
You see what this text is
saying, is that life, each one

427
00:24:07,373 --> 00:24:12,411
of our lives, is like puzzled
piece. And God is holding the

428
00:24:12,446 --> 00:24:16,698
cover of the box. And your
life as a disciple

429
00:24:16,733 --> 00:24:19,260
is an intricate piece to God's
big picture of helping somebody

430
00:24:19,295 --> 00:24:21,684
else in being a disciple.

431
00:24:21,719 --> 00:24:24,551
That's incredible! That is an
incredible life! It makes me

432
00:24:24,586 --> 00:24:27,271
think of a time, when I was
trying to figure out who I was

433
00:24:27,306 --> 00:24:30,538
in Christ and will I fit in
all those kinds of things,

434
00:24:30,573 --> 00:24:33,770
I thought it was a behavioral
thing. I really focused on

435
00:24:33,805 --> 00:24:34,966
will I dress and look right
holding my Bible

436
00:24:35,001 --> 00:24:38,298
and all those kind of things
and I remember going

437
00:24:38,333 --> 00:24:42,314
in the church one time and it
was a sermon that really hit

438
00:24:42,349 --> 00:24:44,459
me hard that I wasn't doing
enough right.

439
00:24:44,494 --> 00:24:48,278
I just wasn't doing enough and I
got home and I remember sitting

440
00:24:48,313 --> 00:24:50,897
there in prayer and this is kind
of embarassing,

441
00:24:50,932 --> 00:24:54,759
but I sat there in prayer
and I literally started sobbing.

442
00:24:54,794 --> 00:24:58,339
In a kind of crying or sobbing,
we're not just flips down.

443
00:24:58,374 --> 00:25:01,884
It was not kind of really cool
looking face, I'm like sobbing,

444
00:25:01,919 --> 00:25:05,026
and I'm thinking, God, maybe
I'm just crazy,

445
00:25:05,061 --> 00:25:08,321
maybe I don't fit in, maybe you
could never love me,

446
00:25:08,356 --> 00:25:11,546
maybe You could never use me,
and God gave me a visual

447
00:25:11,581 --> 00:25:15,145
something that happened years
ago, and years ago when I was

448
00:25:15,180 --> 00:25:19,729
on the streets and addicted to
heroin, I was at the drughouse,

449
00:25:19,764 --> 00:25:23,325
I was overdosed and like died.
In the visionthat God gave me in

450
00:25:23,360 --> 00:25:26,851
prayer, I was looking at it, from
an outside point of view,

451
00:25:26,886 --> 00:25:29,746
and I saw all these other people
in the room, trying to revive me

452
00:25:29,781 --> 00:25:32,384
they were trying to do the CPR
and it was kind of ridiculous,

453
00:25:32,419 --> 00:25:34,987
because a bunch of addicts doing
CPR. Kind of ridiculous thing.

454
00:25:35,022 --> 00:25:37,484
And they were trying to do CPR
and trying to revive me,

455
00:25:37,519 --> 00:25:40,880
and when you die, you throw up
and you loose belly and

456
00:25:40,915 --> 00:25:41,462
blood controll,

457
00:25:41,497 --> 00:25:44,300
so it wasn't a pretty picture
and in my prayer I'm saying all

458
00:25:44,335 --> 00:25:47,214
these kind of stuff, and they put
me in the shower and trying

459
00:25:47,249 --> 00:25:49,691
to revive me, and they were
putting icecubes on me

460
00:25:49,726 --> 00:25:52,099
and cold water on me and I
finally came back to life,

461
00:25:52,134 --> 00:25:56,032
and as I came out of that visual
and I'm back in my prayer,

462
00:25:56,067 --> 00:25:59,896
I'm almost a little angry of God
thinking: well I don't feel

463
00:25:59,931 --> 00:26:03,285
better, that didn't help me. And
what God said to me, made me just

464
00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:06,222
really fall in love with Him,
is He said to me: you know, what

465
00:26:06,257 --> 00:26:09,125
Cheri, I loved you as much when
you were laying on the floor,

466
00:26:09,160 --> 00:26:11,656
overdosed on heroine, as I love
you right now,

467
00:26:11,691 --> 00:26:14,118
when you try to figure out
how to be a Christian

468
00:26:14,153 --> 00:26:16,902
and where you fit in and what
your ministries are going to

469
00:26:16,937 --> 00:26:20,519
look like, so please don't
make this a behavioral thing.

470
00:26:20,554 --> 00:26:24,072
And it seemed to me about that,
is that the reality is,

471
00:26:24,107 --> 00:26:28,168
is that God loves me. Every day
I'm going to have to look

472
00:26:28,203 --> 00:26:31,730
at issues, issues about my
personal life and what I think

473
00:26:31,765 --> 00:26:35,553
about God and what my response
to His love is going to be,

474
00:26:35,588 --> 00:26:39,218
and every day I'm going to be
going back and forth with that,

475
00:26:39,253 --> 00:26:42,848
but it's never about His love,
it's always about my place

476
00:26:42,883 --> 00:26:45,279
in that bigger picture, my place
in that puzzle.

477
00:26:45,314 --> 00:26:47,640
And can I understand my place
in that puzzle,

478
00:26:47,675 --> 00:26:50,953
from God's point of view, so that
when step into a field,

479
00:26:50,988 --> 00:26:54,269
trust God and that people
look at me and say:

480
00:26:54,304 --> 00:26:57,114
you know what? What I see,
is a Christian.

481
00:26:57,149 --> 00:26:59,889
What I see is somebody that
believes in God,

482
00:26:59,924 --> 00:27:04,084
loves God and has committed her
life to the Lord.

483
00:27:04,119 --> 00:27:07,411
And is now discipling, is out
there working for God.

484
00:27:07,446 --> 00:27:10,669
There's a lot of places in the
Bible that God took me

485
00:27:10,704 --> 00:27:15,827
after that. But one of the
things that I prayed for a lot,

486
00:27:15,862 --> 00:27:20,915
is God, make me normal, let me
be normal for 15 minutes,

487
00:27:20,950 --> 00:27:25,157
make me perfect, make me so that
I can step out and be a desciple

488
00:27:25,192 --> 00:27:27,896
and be perfect. And God even
said: Cheri, you'll be perfect

489
00:27:27,931 --> 00:27:30,417
when I come back. When I come
back and I'm ready to take you

490
00:27:30,452 --> 00:27:32,904
to heaven, when I'm standing
in front of you, you're going

491
00:27:32,939 --> 00:27:36,236
to be perfect. And till then
just trust Me!

492
00:27:36,271 --> 00:27:38,195
Untill then I want you to look
at Me,

493
00:27:38,230 --> 00:27:42,673
turn your life over Me,
and daily I will work out my

494
00:27:42,708 --> 00:27:45,089
plan in your life. And so
just trust that.

495
00:27:45,124 --> 00:27:47,470
Open your Bible and see who you
are in Christ!

496
00:27:47,505 --> 00:27:49,965
Thanks a lot. See you next
time!