Embracing Turning Points: Trusting God Through Challenges

Devotional

Day 1: Critical Decisions Shape Our Spiritual Journey

Our lives are filled with turning points—moments that can dramatically alter our life's trajectory. These turning points often come down to critical decisions that either draw us closer to God or lead us away from Him. These decisions can be influenced by experiences, people, or circumstances, but ultimately, they shape our spiritual journey and our alignment with God's will. It is essential to seek God's guidance in these moments, ensuring that our choices reflect His purposes for our lives. By doing so, we can navigate life's challenges with a sense of divine direction and purpose. [43:41]

Deuteronomy 30:19-20 (ESV): "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them."

Reflection: Think about a recent decision you made. Did you seek God's guidance in making that choice? How can you ensure that your future decisions align more closely with His will?

Day 2: Protecting and Preparing Children for Life's Challenges

Parenting in today's world comes with unique challenges. Just as parents must protect young children from harsh realities initially, they must also prepare them for the difficulties and dangers of life. This mirrors God's approach to us as His children. He nurtures and protects us but also prepares us for the realities of a world filled with evil and challenges. By understanding this dual role, parents can better equip their children to face life's adversities with faith and resilience. [46:27]

Proverbs 22:6 (ESV): "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it."

Reflection: How are you currently preparing the young people in your life for the challenges they will face? What steps can you take to better equip them spiritually and emotionally?

Day 3: Trusting God in the Face of Challenges

The story of the Israelites' journey to the Promised Land teaches us the importance of trusting God, even when faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges. Despite God's miraculous interventions, the Israelites' fear and lack of trust led them to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. This story serves as a powerful lesson on the consequences of not trusting in God's promises. Trusting God requires faith, especially when the path ahead is unclear or daunting. [55:37]

Numbers 14:8-9 (ESV): "If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them."

Reflection: What is a current challenge you are facing that requires you to trust God more fully? How can you actively choose to trust Him in this situation?

Day 4: Embracing the Reality of Evil and Spiritual Warfare

Life is inherently difficult due to the presence of evil both in the world and within ourselves. These difficulties are opportunities for growth, as God uses them to build traits like trustworthiness, resilience, and courage in us. We are called to be warriors, engaging in spiritual warfare both externally and internally. This means challenging false ideologies and battling our own sinful tendencies. By embracing these challenges, we can grow stronger in our faith and character. [01:07:24]

Ephesians 6:12-13 (ESV): "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm."

Reflection: Identify an area in your life where you are facing spiritual warfare. What steps can you take to equip yourself with the armor of God to stand firm in this battle?

Day 5: Living Out God's Purposes as His Co-Workers

God's purposes for us involve being His co-workers and warriors in this world. This requires us to engage in spiritual warfare, challenging false ideologies and battling our own sinful tendencies. By embracing these challenges, we can avoid the regret of "if only" and live out our God-given potential. We are called to be active participants in God's mission, using our gifts and talents to further His kingdom on earth. [01:12:25]

2 Corinthians 6:1 (ESV): "Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain."

Reflection: How are you currently living out your role as God's co-worker? What specific actions can you take this week to further His kingdom and fulfill His purposes for your life?

Sermon Summary

### Summary

Today, we explored the concept of "Turning Points" in our lives—those pivotal moments that can dramatically alter our life's trajectory. These turning points can be triggered by various factors such as experiences, people, or decisions. We delved into the importance of making decisions that align with God's will, as these choices can lead us closer to Him and His purposes for our lives.

We discussed the book "The Collapse of Parenting," which, although not explicitly Christian, offers valuable insights into the unique challenges of modern parenting. The book emphasizes the need to protect young children from harsh realities initially but eventually prepare them for the difficulties and dangers of life. This mirrors God's approach to us as His children. He nurtures and protects us but also prepares us for the realities of a world filled with evil and challenges.

We then examined a significant turning point in the history of Israel, focusing on their journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. Despite God's miraculous interventions, the Israelites' fear and lack of trust led them to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. This story serves as a powerful lesson on the importance of trusting God, even when faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges.

The sermon emphasized that life is inherently difficult due to the presence of evil both in the world and within ourselves. However, these difficulties are also opportunities for growth and development. God uses these challenges to build traits like trustworthiness, resilience, and courage in us. We are called to be warriors, not just in the external world but also in our internal battles against sin and evil.

Finally, we were reminded that God’s purposes for us involve being His co-workers and warriors in this world. This requires us to engage in spiritual warfare, both externally by challenging false ideologies and internally by battling our own sinful tendencies. By embracing these challenges, we can avoid the regret of "if only" and live out our God-given potential.

###

Key Takeaways

1. workers and warriors in this world. This requires us to engage in spiritual warfare, challenging false ideologies and battling our own sinful tendencies. By embracing these challenges, we can avoid the regret of "if only" and live out our God-given potential. [01:12:25]
### [72:25]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[43:41] - Introduction to Turning Points
[44:46] - The Collapse of Parenting
[46:27] - Protecting and Preparing Children
[47:29] - God's Role as Our Father
[49:57] - Israel's Journey to the Promised Land
[52:08] - The Spies' Report
[54:55] - Fear and Rebellion
[55:37] - Consequences of Distrust
[56:18] - Living with Regret
[58:25] - The Need for Warfare
[61:03] - The Presence of Evil
[63:02] - Knowing We Are Children of God
[67:24] - Engaging in Spiritual Warfare
[72:25] - God's Purposes for Us
[76:33] - How to Wage War
[79:18] - Internal Warfare
[84:37] - Call to Action
[86:00] - Closing Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Observation Questions

What was the Israelites' reaction to the report from the spies about the Promised Land? ([54:08])
According to 1 John 5:19, who is in control of the world, and how does this affect our daily lives?
In Ephesians 6:10-12, what kind of struggle are believers called to engage in, and who are the adversaries in this struggle?

Interpretation Questions

Why did the Israelites' fear lead them to wander in the wilderness for 40 years instead of entering the Promised Land? ([55:37])
How does the presence of evil in the world and within ourselves create challenges in our spiritual journey? ([01:01:43])
What does it mean to put on the "full armor of God," and how does this prepare us for spiritual warfare? ([01:12:25])

Application Questions

Reflect on a turning point in your life. How did the decisions you made during that time draw you closer to or further from God? ([43:41])
In what ways can you protect and prepare your children (or those you mentor) for the realities of life, similar to how God nurtures and prepares us? ([46:27])
Think of a current challenge you are facing. How can you trust God more in this situation, similar to how Joshua and Caleb trusted God to lead them into the Promised Land? ([54:55])
Identify an area in your life where you feel unequipped or overwhelmed. How can you rely on God's strength to face this challenge? ([59:52])
What are some practical steps you can take to engage in spiritual warfare, both externally by challenging false ideologies and internally by battling your own sinful tendencies? ([01:12:25])
How can you avoid living with the regret of "if only" by embracing the challenges God places before you? ([56:18])
Consider the traits of trustworthiness, resilience, and courage. What specific actions can you take this week to develop these traits in your life? ([01:08:47])

Sermon Clips

### Quotes for Outreach

1. "Turning Points are those periods in our life where something occurs, and the trajectory of our life starts to veer off in a different direction, sometimes positive, sometimes not. Usually, the causation, it could be something that occurs, and it starts moving us in a certain direction. It might be a person, a new person comes into our life, and their influence is so powerful, it starts to change the trajectory of our life." [43:41] (22 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

2. "God is a father, the scripture says, above all things. And he wants to take those that will trust in him and to nurture us and develop us and prepare us for reality." [47:29] (11 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

3. "He works the same way with us. So, the question becomes this. Why does it have to be so hard? Well, it has to be so hard because of the presence of evil. The Israelites lived in a world where evil was present. We live in a world, we are born into a world where evil is present. And where evil is present, life cannot be, will not be easy. It will be difficult and it will be dangerous. That's reality." [01:01:03] (28 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

4. "If you'll trust me, I'll give you the life that you always were meant to have and I'll give you eternal life as well in my kingdom. So, the people that John was writing to, listen carefully, were people that had made a decision to put their trust in Christ and become His follower. And the Bible says when we put our trust in Christ and become His follower, we are born into the family of God. We are children of God." [01:03:02] (25 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

5. "God wants his people to grow up. He does everything for them. He does everything for us in the start. Then he wants to do everything through us. He wants us to be his coworkers. He wants us to be his warriors. Now warriors in the right way, of course." [01:08:06] (12 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

### Quotes for Members

1. "One of the main roles of parents is that we at first, at the early stages of a child's life, we are, if we're a good parent, we should do all that we can to protect a child from reality. When they are little bitty kids, they need to be protected from reality. But we know this, that initially, even though our role is to protect them from reality, eventually, eventually, we must prepare them for reality." [46:27] (29 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

2. "They missed the opportunity of a life. They could have been in that place where they could discover their true identity. Their God-given identity. They could have the peace and the joy and the sense of mission and purpose that God intended them to have. Do some of you hear me? Do you have the sense of mission and purpose and identity and security and significance and satisfaction that God wants you to have?" [56:18] (20 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

3. "Has God ever asked you to do something that you never felt equipped to do? Has He ever asked you to do something that you felt was impossible at that season in your life to do? Because He often does that. He asks us to do things we can't do so that we will learn to rely on Him and then discover that when we are united with Him, His will, His word, His ways, a new power starts to function within us, a new motivation." [01:00:32] (26 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

4. "The present reality of evil necessitates the personal reality of warfare. God was taking the Israelites from a place to treating them like children, doing everything for them, protecting them from reality. Now 15, 16 months, he's preparing them for reality. And reality is evil is out there in the world. Evil was in there in themselves. Their evil was expressing itself in distrusting God and feeding their own fears." [01:07:24] (24 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

5. "Might there be something that the lord is calling you to go to war with today the israelites they were they were at this pivotal moment it was the opportunity to to have this this life that god intended life with with significance and security and satisfaction the promised land but they missed they almost they almost had it all but they didn't so is there is there something today that's robbing you of the birthright the heritage the divine development the divine peace and joy and love that god wants all those people to have even in this world that's permeated with evil." [01:24:37] (35 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

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