Embracing Change: Trusting God's Guidance Through Transitions

"Change is going to happen. Doors in your life are going to close. But, you know, we serve a God that is very faithful to open other doors when he closes some. He's in front of us." [00:26:10] (12 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


"opens the new ones say hello to new seasons new seasons are good do you like new seasons i love this time of year when you know the the clock's back and and it gets dark at 5 30 jan and i comment to each other and i guess we'll quit here pretty soon man it seems so late you know and it's only 7 30 i'm yawning on the couch just because it's dark outside but i love the the fall season but even in the middle of changes we can maintain our joy and we can maintain our peace and continue to allow god to grow us and to stretch our faith but we have to trust him we have to trust him that that when he brings change however difficult it may be the change that god is going to bring is always good always good turn to your neighbor and say god's change is always good" [00:26:22] (59 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


"if ever there was a group of people that had continual change it was the 12 disciples you know from the moment they call they were called to follow jesus they continually went through changes and changes and changes and changes and changes and changes and changes in their life they changed from being employed to being unemployed matthew changed from being a tax collector to being despised by jews he was very educated and rich he was a guy matthew who knew how to throw a party and he went from that to being a convincing voice for jesus to prostitutes and other sinners that's matthew james and john they were fishermen right and they went from being men to a being a fisher of men so they took their or they left their employment and they got unemployed but jesus employed him in another way peter you know he's a guy who always had his foot in the mouth and he would say the wrong thing at the wrong time but turns out he was the guy that jesus said hey peter i'm going to build a church on you those are the kind of changes that god makes in people's lives simon went on from being a militant politician to being a radical witness for jesus all these men went from a stable home environment to being homeless from anonymity to public ridicule they found themselves in places that they never thought they'd be they found themselves seeing things that they never thought in the world i would ever see that was the disciples always going through change but change is inevitable" [00:27:55] (104 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


"Now, back to the Sea of Galilee, Jesus told his disciples, hey, let's go to the other side, which, by the way, again, it could have been at least four miles, maybe even seven miles, depending on where they cross. So verse 37, skip down when they got about halfway. And, you know, this story, a furious squall came up and the waves broke over the boat so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus. Jesus was in the stern sleeping on a cushion. What's the stern? Is that the front? That's the front. And the back is the the bow. OK, so Jesus is up front, you know, taking a nap." [00:37:16] (39 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


"But let me tell you when you're crossing your own Sea of Galilee and you're struggling to keep your boat afloat. Do you ever feel like Jesus is asleep? And maybe He doesn't really care what you're going through? If you do raise your hand. Thank you. That's just about everybody. You've been there." [00:38:47] (23 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


"And if you're here today and and god's told you to go over to the other side then you're going over to the other side did you know that lack of money is not going to stop you a storm is not going to stop you feelings of inadequate inadequacy are not going to stop you you know why because if god says you're going you're going you're going and any change any change that god brings in your life will follow you and you're going to be able to do the right thing to your life is going to be good may not feel like it at first but when you get to the other side you'll be able to agree with isaiah when he said this in in 55 11 he said my word that goes out from my mouth this is god speaking it will not return to me empty but will accomplish what i desire and achieve the purpose for which i sent it in other words god's word will never come back void when god speaks his word it will always bring back what he wanted it to bring back to us and in chapter 43 19 he says this see i am doing a new thing god says now it springs up do you not perceive it i am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland do you need a way in the wilderness this morning do you need some streams in a wasteland i could use some too" [00:41:10] (88 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)