POPULARITY
2 episodes with i90
3 episodes with i90
2 episodes with i90
3 episodes with i90
The Brunson Burner was hot. The Bridge was lit up. the D(OG) was lose. The KAT was growling. And the Knicks are up 3-1 going back to Boston. Full team effort, and now we gotta take it up I90 to take care of business. Can they do it again? Was this us at our best? Are Kendall and Kylie welcome at future games? Let's talk about it.
News Roundup - Chris Sullivan on I90 construction, Jake's salmon story, cities resisting the construction of homeless shelters, Gen Z's preference for sad songs.//The saddest songs that soundtracked our youth, with Lisa Brooks & Matt Butler.//Little League World Series.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Marmen Energy's presence just to the north of I90 near the Brandon exit is hard to ignore - where ginormous wind towers are carefully and expertly constructed. Yannick Laroche, one of the original Marmen leaders assigned to constructing and getting the Brandon location up and running, continues to call the Sioux Metro his home, noting he found love here. Join Yannick, Miranda, and Ryan in this episode of Growing Places for a bit of Marmen Energy history, education, and vision casting.Follow Marmen on Social Media for event information!Workforce developmentPlus! Check out Yannick's hidden gems for lunch!TailgatorsBottoms upThe Gruff
Matthew Gardner, Windermere Chief Economist, with the Jan housing numbers // Chris Sullivan's Chokepoint -- ramp meters between I90 and I5 // Matt Markovich on drug possession legislation in Olympia // Dose of Kindness -- ice cream "chain of giving" // David Fahrenthold live on the State of the Union // Richard Haass on the war in UkraineSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the podcast, I discuss people getting fired about the Badgers, the pile-up on I90 and my slight disdain of the Philadelphia Eagles. Enjoy!
Hanna Scott with the latest news on Tuesday's primaries. // Your Daily Dose of Kindness: A school janitor belted out a stunning rendition of Don't Stop Believin' at the school's talent show. // Gee Scott on the suspension of the most controversial player in the NFL. // An interview with Kelly Sampson of Brady United about the NRA's campaign to defund the ATF. // Chokepoint: The Blue Angels have moved to keep I90 open during their shows, and Revive I-5 is leaving the left lanes open during Seafair.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
UW to prioritize covid testing, Oregon officials want to cancel extra curricular activities and sports at schools, Idaho man trying to get off death row because he has cancer, radioactive waste clean up in Boise nearly finished, I90 reopened after 18 hour closure, Cosmopolis volunteer fire department resigns. #washingtonnews #oregonnews #idahonews #hradlines #headlinenews #breakingnews #news #podcast #conservativepodcast #behindtheline #pacificnoethwest --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/behindtheline/support
MumbleBee returns! Episode 67 Starlight Thursdays. Get ready to hear deep and synth driven beats that beatyin peaks with some melodic techno and fades back down to a diesel engine chug. This Mix is titled Trippin//Return to I90 I spent most of June and July living out of my car. I've been driving all around Montana as well as cross country, visiting friends and spinning fire at gigs. I spent a lot of time on I90, which adopted a surreal quality the longer I drove across it. I hope this mix captures the feeling of pistons pumping tirelessly, chain smoking Cigarettes, white knuckles on a steering wheel, and an endless roadway under a blistering blue sky. -MumbleBee- You can catch me at the next Tickle My Fancy and also at Forest Creatures IV Check Out More at https://soundcloud.com/mumble_b33 https://www.facebook.com/Mumbl3B33
What's going on with the state roads and highways around Rochester. Conversation includes driverless busses, Hiway 52, 63/I90, taking turns, people!, and why MnDOT starts projects in the middle of summer.
The dynamic duo is back talking about Cannon Hill, the area they chose to move their family a few years back. Why? Lifestyle and walkability! The Cannon Hill addition features mature trees, grocery stores, walking trails, cafes, parks, including proximity to downtown and the I90. Spokane history is back and it's all about the bricks. Spokane becomes a boomtown for brick making but not without the fallout from decomposition and abandoned excavation sites. Matt finishes up with tips on getting crafty with owner-occupied real estate investing and mortgage myths debunked, is it wise to wait for a big down payment? Follow us on the socials by searching the tag @EvoReal or visit us online at www.EvoReal.com
[[:encoded, "Interview with Matt Grandos – Author of Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation nnOver the last decade, Matt Grandos has tested, developed and helped thousands of others implement an effective and easy to duplicate system that will help you build an unbreakable foundation for your life as well as motivate even the most unmotivated individuals in your life.nThese techniques have been taught and implemented in organizations of all industries and sizes. From Google Headquarters and Twitter to the United States Airforce and professional organizations all around the world. n Using these concepts Matt has been able to do the following:n•tBuild his first $1,000,000 business by the age of 25n•tTravel all over the world teaching top executives how to build an unbreakable foundation and sustainably motivate others. n•tSee continued success for thousands of individuals who have applied these systems to their lives and businesses.nnMatt is also the author of, Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation. He has a new book coming out in a few months called, The Intentional Week.n nHere are some questions I asked Matt that you will benefit from by listening to his answers:n1.tHow does someone motivate themselves when they really don't feel motivated?n2.tCan you motivate team members? How do you motivate others?n3.tWho was the Hardest person you ever had to motivate?n4.tWhat are a few things individuals can implement right now to help motivate others?n5.tIf you are saying motivation should be like turning a switch on and off, if it is this easy why are people unmotivated? n6.tWhat is the “Two-Minute Drill”?n7.tHow do you motivate the unmotivated?nnWhat is the best way for you to obtain a copy of Matt's book, Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation? On Amazon.nnResources Matt Shared:n-Free Motivation Catlyst Assessment: www.lifepulseinc.com/MCA n-PodGift for Listeners (mention that you were referred by Anne Bachrach): www.lifepulseinc.com/PODGIFTn-See how Matt's organization can help you: www.lifepulseinc.com/letushelpn-90-Day Challenge: www.lifepulseinc.com/I90nnIf you are getting value from any of Podcasts, please take a minute to leave me a short rating and review. I would really appreciate it, and love to hear from you and requests for topics you would find of value.nnAim for what you want each and every day! nAnne BachrachnThe Accountability Coach™nThe Results Accelerator™ nnTo help you stay focused and on track to achieving your goals, check out these other high-value resources.n- Subscribe to my YouTube channel with business success principles (https://www.youtube.com/annebachrach)n- Subscribe to my high-value short business tips Blog (https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/blog/) n- Connect with me on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TheAccountabilityCoach)n- Connect with me on Linked-in (https://www.linkedin.com/in/annebachrach)n- Connect with me on Pinterest (https://pinterest.com/resultsrule/)n- Connect with me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/annebachrach/)nnTake advantage of all the complimentary business tips and tools by joining the Free Silver Membership on https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/coaching-store/inner-circle-store/. nnCheck out all the great free high-content training web classes, by going to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/free-articles/free-webinars/.nnGo to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com to check out for yourself how I, as your Accountability Coach™, can help you get and stay focused on you highest payoff activities that put you in the highest probability position to achieve your professional and personal goals, so you can enjoy the kind of business and life you truly want and deserve. nnAs an experienced accountability coach anSupport the show
[[:encoded, "Interview with Matt Grandos – Author of Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation nnOver the last decade, Matt Grandos has tested, developed and helped thousands of others implement an effective and easy to duplicate system that will help you build an unbreakable foundation for your life as well as motivate even the most unmotivated individuals in your life.nThese techniques have been taught and implemented in organizations of all industries and sizes. From Google Headquarters and Twitter to the United States Airforce and professional organizations all around the world. n Using these concepts Matt has been able to do the following:n•tBuild his first $1,000,000 business by the age of 25n•tTravel all over the world teaching top executives how to build an unbreakable foundation and sustainably motivate others. n•tSee continued success for thousands of individuals who have applied these systems to their lives and businesses.nnMatt is also the author of, Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation. He has a new book coming out in a few months called, The Intentional Week.n nHere are some questions I asked Matt that you will benefit from by listening to his answers:n1.tHow does someone motivate themselves when they really don't feel motivated?n2.tCan you motivate team members? How do you motivate others?n3.tWho was the Hardest person you ever had to motivate?n4.tWhat are a few things individuals can implement right now to help motivate others?n5.tIf you are saying motivation should be like turning a switch on and off, if it is this easy why are people unmotivated? n6.tWhat is the “Two-Minute Drill”?n7.tHow do you motivate the unmotivated?nnWhat is the best way for you to obtain a copy of Matt's book, Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation? On Amazon.nnResources Matt Shared:n-Free Motivation Catlyst Assessment: www.lifepulseinc.com/MCA n-PodGift for Listeners (mention that you were referred by Anne Bachrach): www.lifepulseinc.com/PODGIFTn-See how Matt's organization can help you: www.lifepulseinc.com/letushelpn-90-Day Challenge: www.lifepulseinc.com/I90nnIf you are getting value from any of Podcasts, please take a minute to leave me a short rating and review. I would really appreciate it, and love to hear from you and requests for topics you would find of value.nnAim for what you want each and every day! nAnne BachrachnThe Accountability Coach™nThe Results Accelerator™ nnTo help you stay focused and on track to achieving your goals, check out these other high-value resources.n- Subscribe to my YouTube channel with business success principles (https://www.youtube.com/annebachrach)n- Subscribe to my high-value short business tips Blog (https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/blog/) n- Connect with me on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TheAccountabilityCoach)n- Connect with me on Linked-in (https://www.linkedin.com/in/annebachrach)n- Connect with me on Pinterest (https://pinterest.com/resultsrule/)n- Connect with me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/annebachrach/)nnTake advantage of all the complimentary business tips and tools by joining the Free Silver Membership on https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/coaching-store/inner-circle-store/. nnCheck out all the great free high-content training web classes, by going to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/free-articles/free-webinars/.nnGo to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com to check out for yourself how I, as your Accountability Coach™, can help you get and stay focused on you highest payoff activities that put you in the highest probability position to achieve your professional and personal goals, so you can enjoy the kind of business and life you truly want and deserve. nnAs an experienced accountability coach anSupport the show
Work Life Balance Podcast: Business | Productivity | Results
[[:encoded, "Interview with Matt Grandos – Author of Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation nnOver the last decade, Matt Grandos has tested, developed and helped thousands of others implement an effective and easy to duplicate system that will help you build an unbreakable foundation for your life as well as motivate even the most unmotivated individuals in your life.nThese techniques have been taught and implemented in organizations of all industries and sizes. From Google Headquarters and Twitter to the United States Airforce and professional organizations all around the world. n Using these concepts Matt has been able to do the following:n•tBuild his first $1,000,000 business by the age of 25n•tTravel all over the world teaching top executives how to build an unbreakable foundation and sustainably motivate others. n•tSee continued success for thousands of individuals who have applied these systems to their lives and businesses.nnMatt is also the author of, Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation. He has a new book coming out in a few months called, The Intentional Week.n nHere are some questions I asked Matt that you will benefit from by listening to his answers:n1.tHow does someone motivate themselves when they really don't feel motivated?n2.tCan you motivate team members? How do you motivate others?n3.tWho was the Hardest person you ever had to motivate?n4.tWhat are a few things individuals can implement right now to help motivate others?n5.tIf you are saying motivation should be like turning a switch on and off, if it is this easy why are people unmotivated? n6.tWhat is the “Two-Minute Drill”?n7.tHow do you motivate the unmotivated?nnWhat is the best way for you to obtain a copy of Matt's book, Motivate the Unmotivated: A Proven System for Sustainable Motivation? On Amazon.nnResources Matt Shared:n-Free Motivation Catlyst Assessment: www.lifepulseinc.com/MCA n-PodGift for Listeners (mention that you were referred by Anne Bachrach): www.lifepulseinc.com/PODGIFTn-See how Matt's organization can help you: www.lifepulseinc.com/letushelpn-90-Day Challenge: www.lifepulseinc.com/I90nnIf you are getting value from any of Podcasts, please take a minute to leave me a short rating and review. I would really appreciate it, and love to hear from you and requests for topics you would find of value.nnAim for what you want each and every day! nAnne BachrachnThe Accountability Coach™nThe Results Accelerator™ nnTo help you stay focused and on track to achieving your goals, check out these other high-value resources.n- Subscribe to my YouTube channel with business success principles (https://www.youtube.com/annebachrach)n- Subscribe to my high-value short business tips Blog (https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/blog/) n- Connect with me on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TheAccountabilityCoach)n- Connect with me on Linked-in (https://www.linkedin.com/in/annebachrach)n- Connect with me on Pinterest (https://pinterest.com/resultsrule/)n- Connect with me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/annebachrach/)nnTake advantage of all the complimentary business tips and tools by joining the Free Silver Membership on https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/coaching-store/inner-circle-store/. nnCheck out all the great free high-content training web classes, by going to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/free-articles/free-webinars/.nnGo to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com to check out for yourself how I, as your Accountability Coach™, can help you get and stay focused on you highest payoff activities that put you in the highest probability position to achieve your professional and personal goals, so you can enjoy the kind of business and life you truly want and deserve. nnAs an experienced accountability coach anSupport the show
On Today's Trivia Podcast Episode No matter what is happening in 2020, we have 20 new trivia questions. Can you answer the following questions: What candies take their name from the compnay's cofounders, Forrest Mars and Bruce Murrie? Who won the Nobel prize for mathematics last year? In Texas hold' em, what is the name for the first three community cards, which are turned faceup simultaneously? Ben Stein, known for playing the teacher in Ferris Bueller's day off, was also a speech writer for which president? The longest interstate highway in the US is I90, which spans 3020 miles from Boston to what Pacific Northwest City? "Jeremiah was a bullfrog" is the opening lyric to "Joy to the World," first sung by which musical group? Which soccer player has won an English Premier League title with Arsenal, a Champions League title with Barcelona, and a World Cup title with France? Music Hot Swing, Fast Talkin, Bass Walker, Dances and Dames, Ambush by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Don't forget to follow us on social media for more trivia at home: Patreon - patreon.com/quizbang - Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Check out our fun extras for patrons and help us keep this podcast going. We appreciate any level of support! Website - quizbangpod.com Check out our website, it will have all the links for social media that you need and while you're there, why not go to the contact us page and submit a question! Facebook - @quizbangpodcast - we post episode links and silly lego pictures to go with our trivia questions. Enjoy the silly picture and give your best guess, we will respond to your answer the next day to give everyone a chance to guess. Instagram - Quiz Quiz Bang Bang (quizquizbangbang), we post silly lego pictures to go with our trivia questions. Enjoy the silly picture and give your best guess, we will respond to your answer the next day to give everyone a chance to guess. Twitter - @quizbangpod We want to start a fun community for our fellow trivia lovers. If you hear/think of a fun or challenging trivia question, post it to our twitter feed and we will repost it so everyone can take a stab it. Come for the trivia - stay for the trivia. Ko-Fi - ko-fi.com/quizbangpod - Keep that sweet caffeine running through our body with a Ko-Fi, power us through a late night of fact checking and editing!
443 Social Club and Lounge on Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/443SocialClub/ Shop at the all-new Disruption Network Store- http://seasonalsports1983.com/the-disruption-network-store/The D on Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/DisruptionnetworkThe D on Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/disruptionnetwork/The D on Twitter - https://twitter.com/the_D_networkThe D on YouTube- https://www.youtube.com/disruptionnetworkThe D on Twitch- https://www.twitch.tv/disruptionnetworkThe D on Periscope- https://www.pscp.tv/DisruptionNetwork Jim and Julie talk about all the struggles they have faced throughout this pandemic owning a live music venue, establishing Let the Music Play organization, rules they have to go by nowadays, working with other venue owners and more
Set aside a few minutes to listen to a couple of stories on hunting ruffed grouse and fall turkey in Iowa. One hunt I call my gunny sack day with my first dog, Pitch and another hunting dogless. You'll find a few opinions sprinkled in on the relationship of turkey and ruffed grouse and northwoods grouse hunting compared to grouse hunting south of I90. Watch for upcoming episodes on sharptail grouse hunting in Nebraska and South Dakota, then sharptails & pheasants in South Dakota and ruffed grouse & woodcock in Minnesota.
Bold Sports Episode 96 Orpheus Roye, Kendrick Clancy, Brentson Buckner, “Mike Vrabel” All time, Cortez Kennedy. 11 years in Seattle DB, 7 time pro bowl, 1992 defensive player of the year, HOF 2012. Thomas Holmstrom NHL, 96-12 Red Wings, 4 Cups 1 gold medal Sweden 06. Riverhounds- last Saturday at Highmark the Hounds finished with a 0-0 draw with Louisville City. The State lines are pretty evenly matched and just looked to be a good defensive game. The Hounds are in 5th currently and are within 3 point of 3rd, and 1 point of 6th. Based on the points it looks as they hounds cant finish lower than 6th baring a complete collapse the hounds have 8 games left in the season, 3 of which are home including this week with the Charleston Battery. A few of the remaining matches are with teams ahead of the Hounds in points. International Soccer- Matt WPIAL- 6A- Pine Richland, NA, Central Catholic 5A- Penn Trafford, Peters, Gateway 4A- TJ, South Fayetteville, Belle Vernon 3A- Quippa, NC, Central Valley 2A- Washington, Burgettstown, Avonworth 1A- Laurel, Jeannette, Clairton CL- Dice, U Prep, House State- 6A- #2PR. #5NA 5A- #2PT. #3 Peters 4A- #2 TJ 3A- #1 Quip, #3NC 2A- #2 Washington 1A- #3 Jeannette PGA Tour- the First Tournament of the 2019-2020 PGA Season after a two week off season starts this weekend in West Virginia at the Greenbrier Classic at the Old White TPC Course. There will be a handful of big names but no Rory, Phill, tiger, Ricky and the likes of those guys. Though, John Daly will be there. Pirates- well the Bucs now have a official losing season with the loss last night to the Giants in San Francisco the Bucs are currently playin the giants, have a get away game tomorrow afternoon then head to Chicago for 3 games This weekend. In related news, Kyle Crick and Vazquez had clubhouse altercation, fined an undisclosed amount by the team and Crick is out for the season due to surgery on a tendon in his throwing hand after throwing punches. Still undisclosed what the altercation was over. MLB- Christian Yelich is out the remainder of the season with a Broken KneeCap. One year after winning the Series Dave Dombrowski Pres of Ops/GM Red Sox Fired, Check Standings. NCAA- A Big Fuck You to ESPN And Comcast !!! It’s Penn State Week!!! 100th meeting of the two schools PSU most faced opponent all time, first meeting was 11/6/1893, PSU Leads 52-43-4, longest win streak Pitt, 14 1922-1938, this game has had several implications in rankings and bowls over the years 1981 for instance. Again in 1982, stoped in the 92 due to conference affiliation, back on late 97-01, then not again till 2106. 2026 would be the next chance we have. Pitt- the Panthers won 20-10 over Ohio U. Kenny Picket 26/37 321yds 1td 0int, Maurice Ffrench 10rec, 138yds, 1 TD , AJ Davis 13car, 89yds, Vincent Davis 12 car, 50yds, 1TD and Kessman 2/3FG, 41 long, 2xpt . PSU- after a huge blow out of Idaho, PSU had Buffalo come to happy Valley and took care of them 45-13. Sean Clifford went 16/22 279yds, 4 TD 0int. PSU Spread the ball around the backfield so no significant one player, Jahan Dotson and Pat Preiermuth both over 100yds and 2 TD. WVU- the Eeers went to Missouri last week and took a big L 38-7. Austin Kendall went 15/25 137yds 1 TD 2 int. All other skilled offensive position players were held under 60 yds or less 10 total RB/WR Next week NC State heads to Morgantown. ND- The Irish had an early Buy Week and have New Mexico coming into South Bend this Saturday. Top 25 Rundown. NFL- Sad News, Chris Smith DE Browns, Girlfriend passed today after being struck by a vehicle on I90 after their vehicle had a blown tire. They had a daughter 3 weeks ago. Also, Sad News that former Steeler Sam Davis died at 75. He was a 4 time SB Champ, Davis suffered from Dementia and he has gone blind over the years. Davis stayed in the area since retiring in 1982 and has owned and operated several business in the area. AB- this Mother Fucker right here. And GO!!!! Other games in the NFL, Steelers- the game this past Sunday against the Pats didn’t go as planned. I expected a loss, but i didn’t expect a no show.. Donte Moncreif with a finger injury apparently was 3 for 7 on receptions. Ben went 27/47 276yds 0 TD 1 int Endzone. No one player over 100 yds. Defense was broken down.. injury’s twords the end, Pouncy, Watt, Hayden, This week the Steelers traded Josh Dobbs to Jax for a 5th rd pick, they bring LB Jayrone Elliott up from practice Squad, Devin Hodges was added to practice squad after Dobbs trade. The Seahawks come into Heinz field this Sunday after coming off a come from behind win over the bungles.
Bold Sports Episode 96 Orpheus Roye, Kendrick Clancy, Brentson Buckner, “Mike Vrabel” All time, Cortez Kennedy. 11 years in Seattle DB, 7 time pro bowl, 1992 defensive player of the year, HOF 2012. Thomas Holmstrom NHL, 96-12 Red Wings, 4 Cups 1 gold medal Sweden 06. Riverhounds- last Saturday at Highmark the Hounds finished with a 0-0 draw with Louisville City. The State lines are pretty evenly matched and just looked to be a good defensive game. The Hounds are in 5th currently and are within 3 point of 3rd, and 1 point of 6th. Based on the points it looks as they hounds cant finish lower than 6th baring a complete collapse the hounds have 8 games left in the season, 3 of which are home including this week with the Charleston Battery. A few of the remaining matches are with teams ahead of the Hounds in points. International Soccer- Matt WPIAL- 6A- Pine Richland, NA, Central Catholic 5A- Penn Trafford, Peters, Gateway 4A- TJ, South Fayetteville, Belle Vernon 3A- Quippa, NC, Central Valley 2A- Washington, Burgettstown, Avonworth 1A- Laurel, Jeannette, Clairton CL- Dice, U Prep, House State- 6A- #2PR. #5NA 5A- #2PT. #3 Peters 4A- #2 TJ 3A- #1 Quip, #3NC 2A- #2 Washington 1A- #3 Jeannette PGA Tour- the First Tournament of the 2019-2020 PGA Season after a two week off season starts this weekend in West Virginia at the Greenbrier Classic at the Old White TPC Course. There will be a handful of big names but no Rory, Phill, tiger, Ricky and the likes of those guys. Though, John Daly will be there. Pirates- well the Bucs now have a official losing season with the loss last night to the Giants in San Francisco the Bucs are currently playin the giants, have a get away game tomorrow afternoon then head to Chicago for 3 games This weekend. In related news, Kyle Crick and Vazquez had clubhouse altercation, fined an undisclosed amount by the team and Crick is out for the season due to surgery on a tendon in his throwing hand after throwing punches. Still undisclosed what the altercation was over. MLB- Christian Yelich is out the remainder of the season with a Broken KneeCap. One year after winning the Series Dave Dombrowski Pres of Ops/GM Red Sox Fired, Check Standings. NCAA- A Big Fuck You to ESPN And Comcast !!! It’s Penn State Week!!! 100th meeting of the two schools PSU most faced opponent all time, first meeting was 11/6/1893, PSU Leads 52-43-4, longest win streak Pitt, 14 1922-1938, this game has had several implications in rankings and bowls over the years 1981 for instance. Again in 1982, stoped in the 92 due to conference affiliation, back on late 97-01, then not again till 2106. 2026 would be the next chance we have. Pitt- the Panthers won 20-10 over Ohio U. Kenny Picket 26/37 321yds 1td 0int, Maurice Ffrench 10rec, 138yds, 1 TD , AJ Davis 13car, 89yds, Vincent Davis 12 car, 50yds, 1TD and Kessman 2/3FG, 41 long, 2xpt . PSU- after a huge blow out of Idaho, PSU had Buffalo come to happy Valley and took care of them 45-13. Sean Clifford went 16/22 279yds, 4 TD 0int. PSU Spread the ball around the backfield so no significant one player, Jahan Dotson and Pat Preiermuth both over 100yds and 2 TD. WVU- the Eeers went to Missouri last week and took a big L 38-7. Austin Kendall went 15/25 137yds 1 TD 2 int. All other skilled offensive position players were held under 60 yds or less 10 total RB/WR Next week NC State heads to Morgantown. ND- The Irish had an early Buy Week and have New Mexico coming into South Bend this Saturday. Top 25 Rundown. NFL- Sad News, Chris Smith DE Browns, Girlfriend passed today after being struck by a vehicle on I90 after their vehicle had a blown tire. They had a daughter 3 weeks ago. Also, Sad News that former Steeler Sam Davis died at 75. He was a 4 time SB Champ, Davis suffered from Dementia and he has gone blind over the years. Davis stayed in the area since retiring in 1982 and has owned and operated several business in the area. AB- this Mother Fucker right here. And GO!!!! Other games in the NFL, Steelers- the game this past Sunday against the Pats didn’t go as planned. I expected a loss, but i didn’t expect a no show.. Donte Moncreif with a finger injury apparently was 3 for 7 on receptions. Ben went 27/47 276yds 0 TD 1 int Endzone. No one player over 100 yds. Defense was broken down.. injury’s twords the end, Pouncy, Watt, Hayden, This week the Steelers traded Josh Dobbs to Jax for a 5th rd pick, they bring LB Jayrone Elliott up from practice Squad, Devin Hodges was added to practice squad after Dobbs trade. The Seahawks come into Heinz field this Sunday after coming off a come from behind win over the bungles.
For upcoming events and reviews, check out Empire Plate's website https://www.empireplate.com/ The boys from Empire Plate is on EC radio. Discussion includes all the restaurants they've done, 5 years of The Empire Plate, Fantasy Baseball, Houston Astros, Bill meeting Nolan Ryan, music and so much more
More info- www.uticasummerfest.com www.eventco.co All the details you need to know about Summer Fest is in this podcast
Our daily newscast from Marcia Campbell’s "All Nighter" on WSM 650 AM, "The Legend," a clear-channel station out of Nashville, TN.
Is it a case of drunk college kids acting dumb or an organized group of serial killers? This week Tim and Zach get their feet wet and wade into the darkest, and possibly most frightening conspiracy theory they've seen yet. Find out if this one will sink or swim. Follow us on Twitter @crackpotpodcast and Like us on FaceBook Shoot us a note at CrackpotPodcast@gmail.com or call us at 612-888-3090, and we may play it on air! Artwork by www.jakeluck.com
Preview of next week's episode. Follow us on Twitter @crackpotpodcast and Like us on FaceBook Shoot us a note at CrackpotPodcast@gmail.com or call us at 612-888-3090, and we may play it on air! Artwork by www.jakeluck.com
This week, Gary and Gary discuss some listener feedback, and upcoming events: the Northwest Jeepcast Wheeling Bootcamp (thanks to our sponsors Northridge4x4 and Discount Tire), and their Thanksgiv-a-way (listen for details). They get into details of the starter trails in Washington. They discuss many of the forest roads in the area: *Tinkham Rd off I90 exits 42 or 47 (47.390267, -121.510256) *S Fork NE, North Bend (47.574261, -121.736019) *Tonga Ridge, Skykomish (47.671640, -121.291177) *Pyramid Pass, NF-70 of WA-410 (47.112476, -121.458524) *Table Mountain/Liberty (47.160265, -120.612928) *Bald Mountain/Barber Springs (46.970584, -120.902512) *Quartz Mountain (47.075320, -121.082929) *Ahtanum (46.670655, -121.085811) *Colville Forest --And a couple easy 4WD trails: *Tahuya *Fortune Creek --Maps of the NW trails: nwjeepn.com | TrailsOffroad-- --Links discussed on the show-- Washington Discovery Pass | Northwest Forest Pass | Washington Backroads Discovery Route | Video on Metal Cloak coils | Motor Vehicle Use Map --Products discussed on this episode-- SuperFlow MV-50 entry level air compressor | --Visit Northridge4x4.com for all your jeep needs and listen for a special coupon code. Start your Amazon shopping experience at http://nwjeepcast.com/amazon to help support this show. And follow us @nwjeepcast on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
Pastor Sean Christensen: August 21, 2011 Weeding Your Spiritual Garden, Part III, “Pride and Insecurity.” I'd like to invite you to turn to John 13. We've been in a series called “Weeding Your Spiritual Garden.” Today, we're going to talk about weeding out “Pride and Insecurity.” At first it may seem a little strange that we would be weeding out pride and insecurity; those two things seem like polar opposites. What we're actually going to see is they are the same thing. Pride and insecurity may look different, but they come from the same root. We're going to see how Jesus had neither. He didn't have pride, and He didn't have insecurity. We're about to see why He didn't. In John 13, Jesus is giving His final lesson on church leadership. These were His Disciples, and they were soon to become the Apostles of the church. They would be the very first ones to preach the Gospel, to lead the church, to guide the church, to expand the church throughout the Roman Empire and beyond. These were the ones He was investing in; these were the ones who knew Him. It was vital that these guys would get leadership right, and thus far they hadn't. Their mentality was the same as everyone else's mentality-that position and power was what counted. They lived in a society that was a very hierarchical society where everyone had their level, their social strata, that existed. We have it a little bit in the United States, but not much. In that culture, the whole society was held together by the hierarchy that existed, so everybody knew how to treat those above them and how to treat those below them. That is exactly how it is in Haiti as well (Pastor Sean and his family are missionaries in Haiti). The Haitian system is very, very similar as to how you fit in. You have children, unskilled workers, skilled laborers, businessmen, clergy, and then your politicians and people of power on top. Jesus' Disciples that were rabbi or Disciples of a rabbi had status, had position, authority, and standing in that culture; and that is exactly the way it is in Haiti. We're going to see how Jesus handles that and teaches them-not man's way, but God's way. Let's look in John 13:1 (page 1066 of pew Bibles). “It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for Him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved His own who were in the world, He now showed them the full extent of His love. “The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power, and that He had come from God and was returning to God; so He got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash His Disciple's feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him. “He came to Simon Peter, who said to Him, ‘Lord, are you going to wash my feet?' “Jesus replied, ‘You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand' “‘No,' said Peter, ‘You shall never wash my feet.' “Jesus answered, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no part with Me.' “‘Then, Lord,' Simon Peter replied, ‘not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!' “Jesus answered, ‘A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.' For He knew who was going to betray Him, and that was why He said not everyone was clean. “When He had finished washing their feet, He put on His clothes and returned to His place. ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?' He asked them. ‘You call Me “Teacher” and “Lord,” and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” Jesus offers us a blessing of washing feet. That's really symbolic of a loving act of humble service in everyday life. That's what He did-washing feet was an everyday life kind-of-thing. It wasn't special; it wasn't unique; it wasn't ceremonial. It wasn't heroic; it was a very menial task, but it was a loving task of humble service in everyday life that Jesus did. We talked about Jesus in that role as rabbi. Rabbis did not wash people's feet. You see, washing feet was considered a very humiliating task. In the social strata of first century Israel, a rabbi would never do something like that-neither would the husband of a home where you were invited to attend a meal. The husband, or the man of the house, would not do that, and neither would the wife. If they had a maid who helped with the cooking or cleaning, she would not do that. She was too high in the status to wash feet. Neither would the gardener who helped with the outside work. If they had a Hebrew slave, a Jewish slave who had special civil rights, he had the right to refuse to wash feet. He had to do everything else his master told him to do; but for washing feet, he had the civil right in Jewish law to refuse to do that because it was so low, so disgusting, and so dirty. “No, I won't do that.” So who had to wash feet? The lowest on the totem pole washed the feet-maybe a kid or the lowest slave in a household. That is who washed feet. That, of course, is what Jesus chose to do-the very lowest thing. In our culture, because we're not a hierarchical culture, this is hard for us to really grasp. We can kind of get the idea, the concept, but for it to really affect us emotionally, it's really hard for us because we don't relate like that. We don't understand, so let me try to put this in an illustration that makes sense to us. Let's imagine that Muammar Gaddafi, the president of Libya, happens to be in Janesville this weekend. You hear about it, and you make arrangements to have him over to your home for supper-not to poison him, but to show him hospitality as a good Christian (congregation laughing). Muammar Gaddafi accepts, and he comes over to your home. Let's also imagine that in your home you have an elderly infirm grandfather lying on a hospital bed in his room, and he soils his garments right at the time that the meal is about to be served. Muammar Gaddafi called himself the king of kings when he was introduced to the United Nations a few years ago and addressed the entire UN counsel and assembly. He was introduced as, “The King of Kings, Muammar Gaddafi.” He doesn't have a real inferiority complex, I don't think [sarcastically-speaking]. The king of kings hears that this person needs his Depends changed. He says, “Oh, I'll do it. Don't bother yourself. You're working on the meal. I'll take care of it for you. I'd be glad to.” Would that happen? No. That would not even be a spark of a thought in his head, and neither would this be for any other rabbi in first century Israel. Only Jesus had this idea, and that is what it was like. That's why Peter freaked out about it and said, “What?!? You want to wash my feet?” Jesus answered, “You don't understand!” “No, You can't! This disrupts the whole system! We have this hierarchy you see, and this is how our whole social fabric fits together and works! That's weird! That's wrong! No, You can't!” Jesus said, “No, I have to change your diaper!” In fact, He has changed each of our diapers-the filth of our sin, of our idolatry, of our putting anything before God in our hearts' priorities, motivations, and desires-which everyone of us here has done; I have as well-even though God has made us for Himself, created us to know, love, worship Him, and have Him be the motivation-His glory, His honor-love for Him and others [we all still have had idolatry to something other than Him]. Anyone here have that motivation every time? Any of us have that motivation ever? Perfectly. This is why we need a Savior, and that's exactly what Jesus did. He died for our idolatry, our lack of faith, our lack of love, our lack of loyalty to our God. This King of kings did the lowest of the low. My question is how did He do it because He tells us to do the same thing. I ask myself, “How can I do that? I can try to beat myself into the discipline of going around doing really humiliating things.” In the history of the church, there is a lot of that where people would humble themselves by wearing sackcloth and ugly clothing and whipping themselves as though that's what Jesus is talking about here. Is that doing anybody any good? Is that really humility? The fact is you can look like a pauper and be very proud about it because you're doing something “sacrificial for God. Aren't I awesome?” That's not humility. You're still fully focused on you, so that is the exact opposite of humility. For people who feel very, very low and “oh, I'm not worthy. Nobody likes me,” is that humility? What's that person consumed with? Himself or herself. That isn't humility either. That's why I say insecurity and pride look different, but it is still an orientation of the heart that is fully consumed with “me.” Jesus wasn't like that. How do we do loving acts of humble service in everyday life? We learn from Him. Let's take a look at Verse 3. The Apostle John, one of the closest Disciples of Jesus, had keen insight into who Jesus was and what He was like, and he shared a little psychological background that we wouldn't know otherwise. He clues us into the secret of how Jesus could do this and how we can too. Jesus knew who He was. Do you know who you are? Let's see what Jesus knew about Himself. John 13:3 (page 1066) says, “Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power…” That's pretty heavy right there. Every sun, star, moon, galaxy, supernova; every angel and demon; every king, every kingdom; every nation, every river, every mountain; every society, every thing and the eternal destiny of every human was under His power. He would have every reason to have an ego trip on that, you know? It doesn't get higher than that, and He knew it. In fact, the Greek here talks about a continuation of knowledge of Jesus knowing that all things were under His power. Jesus knew that He came from God. Talk about a noble birth! He didn't just have an ancestor that was a King somewhere. No, He came from God-the King-and He was returning to God. It wasn't like He was exiled, banished, or wasn't good enough for Heaven; therefore He was sent down. No, He was on a Heavenly mission. He was soon to return, and He knew it. He knew He was going to return to a major parade when He got back. So if this were you and I, we would begin Verse 4 with-despite this understanding, despite this self-awareness, “Jesus then disrobed, wrapped a towel around His waist, and began to do the most humble thing you could do in that society-wash feet.” We would put it this way, “…even though Jesus knew all things were under His power, nevertheless, He washed His Disciples' feet.” But, of course, that's not at all what the Scriptures say. The Scriptures do not show these two realities in contrast to one another. It actually says, “…knowing this, therefore, He did the humblest thing He could.” This tells me that that is how Jesus could do it. He was not consumed with the enslaving fear that His Disciples would reject Him if He did something so humiliating-that they would somehow think less of Him, look down upon Him, and not follow Him anymore because He would do something so low and so odd. Here He was up here, and they wanted to be up there with Him; yet He did the lowest thing. “No, we don't want to follow that kind of rabbi.” Jesus could have been thinking, “What if they think that? What if after all this time I just lose everything right before I'm about to be done with my ministry? What if it all crashes because I would do something so humiliating?” Do you think that was in His head at all? Verse 3 tells us it wasn't. What was in His head was who He was. That's what He was thinking. That's what He was focused on-what His identity was in relationship to His father, to God. My dear friends, that's the ticket for us as well. If our identity is wrapped up not in our occupation, not in our neighbor, the size of our house, how many boats we have, what our hobbies are-if our identities are consumed with God, with our Father in Heaven whom Jesus consistently refers to, “Your Father in Heaven, Your Father in Heaven, Your Father in Heaven,” I think He's trying to communicate something here. This is exactly what John is telling us about Jesus. Because Jesus was so consumed with the love of God that He knew who He was, He knew He had the approval of God-the favor of God, the accolades of God, that God was with Him, behind Him, for Him, loving Him-He could do anything no matter how humiliating or no matter how courageous. He could do it because He did not live out of emptiness, trying to get other people to fill Him up. He lived out of fullness, and you and I can too. The Scriptures say that we “have been given fullness in Christ.” Do you know who you are? Do you know your identity as a follower of Jesus Christ who has put your trust in Him for your salvation? The Scriptures says that you are “redeemed.” That means that you were bought back to Him so that legally God owns you. You belong to Him. You don't belong to Him only as a slave, only as a possession, because the Scriptures say that God actually cares about the relationship you have with Him. The Bible calls that reconciliation-that God made peace with you-even though He didn't do anything wrong; we did. He took the initiative to reconcile that relationship and make it okay again. If that weren't enough, He then adopted us as His very own sons and daughters in Christ. Jesus is the true Son; we're not. We're the prodigals. He took us and said, “No, I consider you just like My son, just like My daughter. You are Mine completely.” Therefore we belong, we are accepted, and we are loved because of the cross of Christ, because of Jesus. That's our past, but our present is the same thing. Did anybody get short with your children this morning on the way to church because they weren't brushing their teeth fast enough and getting their clothes on [quickly enough]? I don't know if that happens to the rest of you, but that's Sunday morning for the Christensen family. Sometimes it's me not getting ready on time, but this happens. God looks at us with our impatience, our ugliness, and our self-focused nature, and what does He think of you? Oh, yeah, we know we're saved, forgiven, and going to Heaven, but “what does God really think of me? I know God loves me because He loved me on the cross, but does He like me?” Do you know what the Bible says? He adores you. He is head over heels delighted in you, and it's not because you are delightful-and I'm not either-but it's because we have glued ourselves by faith to Jesus, the delightful One, the acceptable One. Therefore, we are accepted because of Christ. That's living in fullness. That's exactly what Paul is talking about when he said, “You have been given fullness in Christ. You are so loved, so delighted in. God enjoys you, takes pleasure in you.” In fact, Zephaniah 3-and this blows my brain every time I think about it-says that God dances over us with delight. Now if I didn't know better, I would say He would have some kind of psychological problem; but in Christ, I can see Him dancing with delight over Jesus. Because we're glued to Jesus, we're in. We get the same benefit. Our destiny-Jesus' destiny that He was returning to the Father, that's it. That's our glorious destiny as well and then we will receive the commendation, the judgment, the opinion that matters because it's of the One. It's God Himself who will give His assessment. We live for His praise; we live for His commendation-not other people's. You see, insecurity destroys your relationships because everything you do, you are doing to try to get something. You're trying to get love, trying to get acceptance, trying to get praise and affirmation. How many people have quit ministries that they were in because they didn't feel appreciated? If you lived out of the fullness of God's love, it wouldn't matter; and it didn't matter for Jesus-not because people didn't matter, but because He was so full of God's love that He could just overflow God's love. How many people have left their spouses because that spouse just wasn't fulfilling them? Gosh, get your fulfillment from God, and you will persevere in your vows. You are unstoppable and unconquerable when your life is consumed with the love of God that He has for you in Christ. May we by God's grace live a life of loving acts of humble service in everyday life because we can. Jesus says we should, but He also shows us that we can. It is through the glory of the Gospel in our lives that we are loved by Him-our past, present, and future consumed with the love of God. Thank you and God bless. [Pastor Jeff:] That was good, wasn't it? I was on the interstate and on I90, they have some construction going on, and it divides up. You have to pick which side you're going to go on-left of right. There are barrels there that are dividing the two, so once you make your decision, you can't cross back to the other side. There was an annoying driver next to me trying to pass me. He was tailgating everybody-cars, trucks-and I'd been watching this guy now for miles. I was irritated by him. He was riding my bumper and wanted to get around me. Around me was simply two semi trucks, and there was no place for him to go once he got around me anyway. I was like, “Go ahead.” I got out of his way and let him go ahead. He was moving back and forth between the trucks trying to get around them. Finally we got to that crossroad where you could go to the right where it said, “Slower traffic keep right.” I was thinking, “That's me. I like to go really slow around these big barrels. The lane is getting narrow. I want to take my time,” so I was going slow. Of course, he wanted to be in the fast lane, so he took to the left and took off. This went on for miles with these barrels. I finally met up with him because very few people took the slow road. Life in the fast lane, “I want to get there quick.” Everybody went over to the left to the point where that became a traffic jam, and I had open road [on my side of the barrels] (congregation laughing). It was like maybe three miles down the road [in front of me that] there was a truck, but I could go as fast or slow as I wanted. It was like I drove by the guy and wanted to go “Bye!!!!” He was stuck, and I was free. There is a freedom when we do things God's way. When we pursue what the world says, and the world says, “Put yourself first. Pride, life in the fast lane. Go get it! It belongs to you!” That's self-centered. we take that lowly way; we take the slow way. We have to humble ourselves a little bit, do things God's way. There is an incredible freedom that comes in that. I thought Sean did an excellent job bringing that Truth home to us this morning. I get to hear it one more time. I'm almost to the point now where I could preach it-almost.
Were going to do something a little different this morning. Normally while were studying James and we go to James, we pretty much park there. We spend about 100 percent of our time in that Book talking about that specific passage. Just for myself today, my sanity, sometimes when Ive been doing the same thing for a while, I need to change it up; so what were going to do is introduce the topic in James, but then were going to broaden it and bring other passages in to play in the message. Well read James. Well identify the subject matter. Well refer back to James, but were going to be developing those points in other parts of the Bible; so well be on the same topic, the gist of the message, but well be exploring other passages. Were talking this morning about favoritism-someone favoring one over another. While were talking about favoritism, were also talking about prejudice and discrimination. If youre a favorite, that means somebody else has been prejudiced against or oppressed in some way. The chances are probable that some of you have received favoritism in your lives. How many of you were accused of being Moms favorite? Has anybody here ever been accused of that-the baby of the family? I was. I milked that thing for everything it was worth. My siblings hated me for it, but I knew I was Mamas boy. I was the caboose born 14 years after the other two. Maybe along the line youve been a teachers pet. Certainly in the course of kindergarten through high school, some teacher had to like you. Has anybody here ever been a teachers pet before? The mother lode for me was second grade. In second grade, I was the apple of Mrs. Clowhites eye. I could do no wrong. I think Mrs. Clowhite was my first crush. I was six years old, and I just thought she was beautiful. She thought I was a pretty honest, good kid. I remember she would leave the classroom-she trusted me so much, she would come in and there would be horseplay going on, and shed say, What happened? Then shed say, Now, what really happened, Jeff? Id say, Well, heres what really happened, Mrs. Clowhite. So basically she turned me into a nark in second grade, but she would reward me so I liked that. But Ive also been the recipient. Maybe youve been a teachers pet or a coachs favorite on a sports team. I dont know if Id ever been that. Ive had coaches that liked me, but I have also seen when a coach has shown favoritism; and I didnt like it. I remember our senior year of high school. We had a very competitive basketball team. Our high school was 3,000 plus kids, and there was a lot of competition to make the team. There were only so many spots on varsity, and the coach said, Okay, you guys are getting here late. Im going to lock the doors when its time to start. If youre not there, no matter who you are, youre not getting in. If you dont show up on time, youre not going to play ball, so we were nervous. We got there early that day, and a kid Id never seen before came and knocked on the door. The coach looked at his watch, shook his head and said, Youre late. Go away. About five minutes later, one of his favorites knocked on the door. He said, Youre late. He opened the door and said, Come on in. Dont let it happen again. Oh, okay, we see how the world works, right? I didnt like that. I thought, Well, what if that had been me? What if that had been somebody else? Would that [person] still have gotten in? If you are the recipient of favoritism, sometimes its okay with you because life is good for you; but if you are the victim of it, you recognize how unfair it is. You become angry, and you say, This is not just. This is not right because you recognize that you have worth too and that you have value. If you receive the treatment of a second class citizen long enough-if youre the victim of discrimination and prejudice long enough-pretty soon you start to believe it. We were all touched by the story of the little girl that we ministered to in the Dominican Republic. In the Dominican, if you are Haitian, you are the victim of prejudice because of the color of your skin and where you are from. We tried to minister to this little girl. What was her name, Sheila? Do you remember? No, that doesnt sound like its it. Anyway, yeah-Katiya. We told her how beautiful she was, and she said, Oh, no! She corrected us. She said, Im not beautiful. Im black. She just said it matter-of-factly, No, youre mistaken. We were taken back by this. God made all people. God made all colors. God made us all the same. He loves us all the same. We are no better than you. They began to explain to Katiya the Gospel, and as they did it, she started to laugh. She started to giggle, and she was saying, Me? Me? She was realizing all these things about herself. Were crying, and shes laughing. She found out the message that God shows no partiality. Christ died for all of us. God loves us all, and so that is the message of James today. Lets turn in our Bibles to James 2 and read the passage together. Just to keep you on your toes in Verse 3, the Verses are in quotes. You are going to read those verses. Ill read James passages, and you read the narration (page 1196 of pew Bibles). My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, dont show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, Heres a good seat for you, but say to the poor man, You stand there or Sit on the floor by my feet, have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him? But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are slandering the noble name of Him to whom you belong? If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, Love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. Verse 12, Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment! That is the story of the Gospel-that mercy triumphs over judgment. Youd think Christians would know better. Youd think because of the model that Christ set that we would not be included in those who show favoritism or those who show discrimination. When I mention that I dont mean simply the rich and the poor, and that still goes on today. The poor are still exploited today. All kinds of favoritism [occurs]. You might receive favoritism because of the way you look, because of whom you are. Certainly if you were a movie star, youd receive a whole lot more attention than you do now, right-if you are a famous athlete? If youre somebody with great political power, maybe you would, or [you have] a certain family name and a certain prestige, [you might receive favoritism]. Its not just children that practice this. In high school, there are the cool kids and the geeks or the nerds. You could be in the cafeteria hanging out with a nerd or a geek, and a cool kid walks in. What happens? You pull back because you dont want to be seen with a nerd because then youll be identified as a nerd. Maybe when youre in high school when the cool kids would walk in the room, somebody would leave you because they didnt want to be seen by you. Oh, how that hurt. Well, the same kinds of cliques that can form in high school and junior high school, that certainly cant happen in adulthood, right? That certainly cant happen in the office place. Certainly you cant practice favoritism there. Im sure you dont dissociate yourself from somebody because theyre seen as a troublemaker or as somebody you dont want to necessarily impress or be around because youre trying to impress the boss. Maybe you treat the boss better because you want advancement. You want a raise. We can be guilty of these same things. You treat somebody one way, but then you find out they know somebody thats important. Maybe you find out they are somebody important or you perceive them to be important, and you treat them differently. Thats wrong. There was a banquet a few years ago at our church, a potluck. Banquet is probably too fancy of a name. It was just a potluck. My wife was talking and fellowshipping, and a woman who didnt know her came up to her and said, Youre in my seat. My wife said, Oh, I didnt realize that somebody was sitting here. Im sorry. Yeah, thats my seat. You need to move. So my wife got up, and she moved. The lady sat down and had her dinner. My wife said, Im sorry. Ill have to carry on this conversation with you later, and she left. Later on, the woman found out that she was my wife. She came back and apologized to her, Im sorry I made you move and that I was rude to you. I didnt know who you were. How do you think that made her feel? She said, Im the same person. So Im more important now than I was before because my husbands the pastor? Have we ever done that? Have we ever treated somebody one way and then found out that they had a really important job or found out they had a lot of money or knew somebody we wanted to impress or get to know? We start to treat them differently. Thats favoritism. Maybe because of a handicap, we treat them differently than we would somebody else? When I was a little boy, I was afraid of a boy named Mike in my neighborhood. He was in a wheelchair, and he would moan, groan and contort. I used to deliberately walk on the other side of the street to stay away from him. I was scared of him. Later on, I got to know his mom and came to find out that intellectually he was as smart or smarter than anyone around him. He had cerebral palsy. His body would spasm and he had a difficult time speaking. She relayed stories to me of how kids would push him down hills in his wheelchair, how people would treat him differently; yet inside in his mind, he understood everything that was going on. One day I went into his house and got to meet him. I found out he was just like me. He loved baseball, and he collected baseball cards. In fact, he had become close friends with a player by the name of Brooks Robinson from the Baltimore Orioles who often called him to see how he was doing. He became my friend. I began to see he was no different than I. So sometimes we treat people differently who are different than we are. There was a man by the name of Rick who I knew in college. When I was in college, his dad was the dean of the university I attended. They were looking for somebody to hang out with their son, be his friend, because he really didnt have any friends. When he was born, he was deprived of oxygen for a period of time which caused brain damage his whole life. He was very different and you could tell. He could function. He could speak a little bit, but you could just look at Rick-his mannerisms, his face, the way he talked-and you would know he was different. They shared some painful stories to me and in a book they had written about what their son went through because of his handicap. They said, Were looking for somebody to be his friend. The first thing I had to do was kinda do a gut check and ask myself, Am I doing this because I want to get in good standing with the dean? Because if thats my motive, then thats wrong. Then Im just using this young man to try to get in good standing with the dean. Then I decided, You know, the dean really cant help me. Hes not my professor. Thats not my motivation. I really do have a heart for this young man. I want to make a difference in his life, so I began a friendship with Rick. I would be out with him, and I would see and experience how he would be treated differently. Sometimes people would treat me differently because I was with him. There were times when wed be walking down the street, and hed reach out, hed hold my hand and hed walk with me. It was not anything sexual. He was just saying, Youre my friend. In fact, he would say to me, You my friend? You my friend. Id go, Yeah, Im your friend, Rick, and hed put his head on my shoulder. Sometimes hed even kiss me on the cheek. That was a little embarrassing having a grown man kiss me on the cheek or hold my hand out in public, but I would hold his hand. Make no mistake about it-he loved girls. It was nothing like that. Wed be in a restaurant or at a ballgame, and a pretty girl would walk by. He did not hide it. Hed go, Wwwwww, wwa girl, wwaaa girl, wwwaaaa girl, like that. Id go, All right, Rick. Settle down. Settle down. He had all the feelings that young men have, but I remember taking him to some of the college functions. One particular day, it was a softball game. Rick loved the Cubs, loved baseball. I used to have to take him to a Cubs game every year. Even after I graduated, I was still involved in Ricks life for many years until he moved. He finally got to play, so I said, Okay, were going to play softball, and we took him to the game. Of course the guy pitched to him, and he just missed terribly. We just came closer and closer, and pretty soon he was almost on top of him, but that didnt matter to Rick. We just kept pitching to him. Strikes didnt count. Wed pitch to him until he hit the ball. As soon as he hit the ball, wed say, Run, Rick, run! He started running to first, and almost like it was orchestrated, nobody communicated this in advance, but the first baseman dropped the ball. Keep running, Rick! Run to second. Over there! Over there! He was all excited. He was smiling. Wed throw to second-another error! Wed throw to third, and the next thing you know, hes scoring a homerun. Were high-fiving him and hugging him. Hes just grinning ear to ear. His mom and dad later that week thanked me and said, Thats one of the greatest things that ever happened to Rick. He was so excited to tell us about the homerun he hit in the college softball game. Do you know what I found out? When you reach out to those whove been victimized, it lifts your spirits. You gain more back than you give. I can honestly say that when it was all said and done, I gained more from knowing Rick, being his friend and being a friend of the family than I gave him; so thats an important lesson. Jesus taught us that lesson, didnt He? Lets turn in our Bibles to the Book of Luke 4. In Luke 4, Jesus has just begun His earthly ministry. He just finished the temptation in the wilderness. Hes done some teaching and preaching, but the Disciples havent yet been chosen. Miracles have not happened. Hes just beginning to teach and preach, and Hes really popular. Hes coming back to Galilee, where Hes from-that region. He comes to the synagogue. He is the guest preacher that day. They give him the scroll of the Prophet Isaiah. It says here that everybody was looking at Him. Everybody was silent. He was a hometown boy making good. Jesus begins reading the Scripture, and the verses that He read from Isaiah we find in Isaiah 61. Verse 18 (of Luke 4, page 1018 of pew Bibles) says, The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me… So right away we know that this passage is referring to the Messiah. Messiah means anointed One. Christ is the Greek word for Messiah. Messiah is the Hebrew name, and it means anointed One, literally; so it was understood that this Passage was spoken of and about the anointed One, the Christ, so He reads this Passage. …anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lords favor. Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on Him, and He began by saying to them, Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. In other words, I am the One of whom Isaiah wrote. I am the anointed One. I am the Christ. That was a bold assertion, but interestingly enough, they dont run Him out of town. Theyre listening. They know Hes a leader; they know Hes charismatic, [and they think,] Maybe He is. To have the Messiah from their home area, that is pretty cool. If the Messiah grew up in your neighborhood, thats pretty cool. As a boy, you played with the Messiah. You used your wooden utensils and tools made by the man who was going to grow up to become the Messiah. Wow, pretty cool, so nobody questions that. Nobody raises a fuss about that, and Jesus begins to preach. What He is going to say is going to be so radical, so controversial, that they wont let Him finish the sermon. They are going to rush Him, grab Him by force, and pull Him to the brow of the city-their hometown boy-and throw him off the brow of the hill to kill Him. What could He have said that was so evil and so wrong that it went from adoration and respect to hatred and wanting to murder Him? What could He have said? I mean Ive preached some bad sermons in my day. Ive preached some sermons in which youve walked out of here saying, Boy, was that a snoozer today, man! Ill tell you! That was just not good! I know that. Theyre not all homeruns. Believe me-you try this; its not easy. They are not all homeruns. Sometimes theyre bunts, strikes, but you do your best; but I have never had you guys rush me and say, Were going to kill you now, man! If youre going to throw me on I90 or something…thats never happened (congregation laughing). With Jesus, its going to happen. What does He say? When I read this Passage, dont feel bad after Im done reading it; you still dont understand why theyre mad. Ill explain it to you. Some of you are going to understand it. Others of you are going to go, Why did that make them want to kill Him? I dont get it. Verse 25, this is Jesus sermon, …I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijahs time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. And there were man in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisa the Prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed-only Naaman the Syrian. All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove Him out of the town, and took Him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. But He walked right through the crowd and went on His way. I would have loved to have been at the front of that line, give Him the old hee-ho, and all of the sudden, Hes not there. Where is He??? What happened??? Whyd they get so mad? Do you know why? Heres what Hes saying. There was a great famine, and there were many Jews during that period of three and a half years famine, but who did God send Elijah to? A Gentile widow. There were many people in Israel with leprosy, but who did God send the Prophet to in order to heal? A Gentile man. Now do you get it? They were Gods chosen people. If you were the chosen people, that could go to your head, right? If you were the teachers pet-the coach loves you best-that could start to go to your head. You are the chosen people, Were the chosen people. They began to equate that as were the only people. Were the only ones that matter. Jesus comes on the scene, and He says, Im the Messiah, not just to the Jew, but Ive been sent to the Gentiles too. Ive come to minister to the poor, all poor-not just the Jews. Ive come to minister to the oppressed and to the downtrodden. That is My mission. They are my target audience. They are the ones Ive come to seek and save. The Messiah was to be a political, military figure who would come and set up a literal thrown and rule from Jerusalem. Jesus says, Im the Messiah, but Ive not come to set up a thrown in Jerusalem. Ive not come to lead an army and conquer Rome. I have come to reach the people that are oppressed. Ive come to reach the poor. I have come to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, and Ive come to reach all people for I am the God of all races, all nations, all people-not just the God of the Jews. There was not a worse thing He could have said, so they decided they wanted to kill Him. Were the favorites! Were the ones that deserve the special treatment! We are the chosen people! We are the entitled ones! Jesus lived that, friends. What a great marketing strategy, right? My marketing strategy is to reach the poor. Thats what He did. He became a friend to the poor, to the lepers. He became their friend. The outcasts of society-even to prostitutes-He was their friend. He became friends of tax collectors who were seen as traitors. One of them became His Disciple. Samaritans were looked down upon because they were half Jew/half Gentile. They were looked upon with disdain, but Jesus comes on the scene. When He tells a parable, who was His hero? A Samaritan. His birth, in a humble manger, not in a palace, not greeted by kings and governors, but greeted by shepherds and barn animals; so His birth, His life and His death all demonstrated the same thing. Hes a God of all the people. Is that the correct time? Holy mackerel! Wow. Lets turn to Acts 6. I have to cook now. Put on your seatbelts (congregation laughing). We are going to fly! We see that though the church should know better, it doesnt. In Acts 6 right at the very beginning, there was a division because of ethnicity. In Acts 6:1 (page 1083 of pew Bibles), it says, In those days when the number of Disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews… That has nothing to do with Jews who dyed their hair, guys, okay? Grecian Formula? I dont know. Maybe they dont make it anymore. …the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. There were Jews who were born in Jerusalem, stayed in Jerusalem and spoke Aramaic-spoke the native tongue; and there were Jews who moved away and came back from Greek countries and Greek cities who were Jews, but they spoke Greek. Their widows were being passed by. They were treated like they were second class in the church. The widows who were Jewish got the food first. Those who were of Greek culture got what was left if anything at all, and they began complaining and saying, This is not right. This is unfair. Were being treated different because of our ethnic background. Favoritism was being shown to the Jewish widows, and the Apostles had to set it straight; so even in the church-that should know better-that was happening. Theres more I want to say about that, but we have to move on. Sometimes Im convinced we should tape Saturday night because Saturday night I usually preach about 20 minutes longer. In the Book of Galatians 2, remember this concept that the Jews were not to associate with Gentiles-they werent to receive them into their homes. They werent to work with them. They were basically to be excluded from them in the realms of commerce and so forth, and so it was a radical thing for the Jewish believers to begin to accept the Gentiles. There was a group for the Pharisees called the Judaisers. The Judaisers were a sect that taught that it was the law plus Jesus. You could accept Jesus, but you had to be circumcised and you had to follow the law of Moses, so it was Jesus plus. They began to infiltrate the church and try to tell the Gentiles, Youre not really Christians. Youre not a Christian until youre circumcised. The Gentiles would say, Well, whats circumcision? The Jews would tell them, Oh, no. That's not going to happen. Theyd say, Well, we dont want to observe the law either. Then the Jews would say, Well, then youre Christians. So Paul would come to the defense of the Gentiles. [Galatians 2:11, page 1152] it says, When Peter came to Antioch… Remember, thats where Christians first were called Christians-in Antioch. There was a missionary hub of the church. …I opposed him to his face because he was clearly in the wrong. Before certain men came from James… That means Jewish believers from Jerusalem. …he used to eat with the Gentiles, but when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. He was intimidated by them. He wanted to impress them. He wanted to be their friend. They were still seen in his eyes as the one with the power and influence, and he wanted them to like him; so when they came, he pulled back from his Gentile brothers and sisters. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. Even Barnabas. This guy was so positive, so encouraging that they changed his name from Joseph to Encouragement. Thats what that word means-son of Encouragement. Joseph, you are such a positive person, accepting person, from now on, your name is Encouragement. Even he was led astray. So the lesson here in this Passage is none of us are exempt. All of us in this room can show favoritism. All of us in this room can treat people as less than we should for whatever the reason might be. Weve touched on several. All of us can be guilty and have been guilty of that. As Christians we are not exempt. If Peter and Barnabas can fall away, so can you and I. What do we do? Verse 14, When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the Gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? What do you mean? Peters not forcing anybody to do anything. By Peter hanging with the Judaisers, he was in essence saying, These guys are right. By fellowshipping exclusively with them, he was saying-communicating in no uncertain terms of the Gentiles, To be a Christian, its not just enough to follow Jesus, but you have to observe the law too. Paul says, You dont do that. Youre a hypocrite, Peter! He told him that to his face in front of everybody. You think he might pull him aside to a private room, but he wants everybody to hear the message. You think he might be intimidated because hes Peter. Hes second in command in the church. James is the top dog, but early in the Book, Paul said in this same chapter, Im not impressed by people. He said, God knows no partiality. In the eyes of God, were all equal, so Im not impressed by whom a person is, so he was not impressed by Peter. Regardless of whom he was, he was showing hypocrisy. He was demeaning a group of people because they were Gentiles, demeaning them because of their race. He says, Im going to set you straight to your face, Peter. Peter learned that lesson years later when the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 and the stage were set, Peter was the one who spoke up for the Gentiles and say, They are a part of the church. They belong to God as we do, and they are justified by faith as we are. So the second lesson in that Passage is when you see discrimination, when you see favoritism, when you see prejudice, and its in your power to do so, stand up against it. Dont just idly watch it happen. Stand up against it. Paul became a difference maker in Peters life. Be a difference maker. Stand up against it. Dont just allow it to happen, but speak up. Before you do that, get the facts. Were going to combine a lesson from a couple weeks ago. Remember, Quick to listen. Slow to speak. Slow to become angry. Make sure you have all the facts before you make a judgment and before you take action. There used to be a magazine-I dont know if it still exists-called the Wittenburg Door. It was a satire magazine that kind of made fun of Christians; but they (employees of the magazine) were Christians too, so it was okay. It was a Christian publication that put it out. They were equal opportunity bashers. They would make fun of the Catholics, the Presbyterians, the Methodists, the Pentecostals, and the Baptists. Theres humor in all denominations. Theres stuff that we can laugh at ourselves for, and they would find that. For instance, this was back in 1980, there was a page that said, Heres what you can do with $15 million. You can feed this many thousands of people. You can give immunizations to this many thousands of people. You can clothe this many thousands of people. There was this long list of all these wonderful things you could do with $15 million. It took up the whole page. On the other side, it said, …or build a crystal cathedral. So who were they talking to? Dr. Schuller. Thats an example of their humor. One day, I get The Wittenburg Door, and its on this cheap paper-like from a bad copying machine. The ink is all smudged. The paper is really cheap. It was just common paper, and I was like, What is up with this? There was a letter that said, We ran out of good paper, so we had to give the good paper to our best customers. We have to print it out on this for you and people like you. I was like, Whats up with that? My money spends like theirs! These people have been with us longer. They give more, so theyre getting the best. Whats up with that? I said, Well, maybe Ill cancel my subscription. By the way, the theme that month in The Wittenburg Door was on prejudice. Everybody got the same magazine-everybody, every subscriber, so the next month in letters to the editor, [there were multiple comments like], Cancel my subscription! Who do you think you are? Youre preaching against prejudice? Yeah, you practice it! People like me-who do you think you are? Then as hes writing, he says, Oh, I get it! Youre trying to show me what its like to be prejudiced against! This is brilliant! I want to keep my subscription! So people were jumping to conclusions without gathering all the facts. Gather the facts. But once you know it, take action. We had an individual in our church years ago who had some deep pockets. He was giving big bucks to the church-big bucks to the church; and we were very small, so that was very helpful! They began to think that they were in control and could call the shots. Heres what I want you to do. You cant do this in the church. I dont want you to do that anymore. He starting rattling things off. Wait, wait, wait, wait. Time out. What are you trying to do here? Because they had big bucks, they could kind of boss everybody around and get their way. I just said, Thats not going to happen here. I appreciate what you give, but because you give money here, it doesnt mean youre going to call the shots of how we minister and how I preach. Well, I guess maybe well have to part ways then. It was kind of like, Im going to take my checkbook then too. I guess we have to then. That person left. God sent about ten other families in who when combined gave what the (wealthy couple) give within a span of a month, and we just sailed on. He wanted favoritism. I said to him, Its not going to happen here. By the way, I dont know what you give. I know what the offering is, and occasionally, Ill know if a big gift comes in because youll share with me youre going to give something; but I dont run to the books and say, Who gives what? to treat you in a certain way. I dont know if you tithe or if you dont tithe. If you do tithe, I dont know what you tithe because Im not going to treat anybody any differently in this church. I dont want to see you through those lenses, so I dont look at those numbers. I have a right to, but Im not going to. There isnt anybody in this church getting preferential treatment because of whom they are or what they give. We come into this church-no matter what your background, no matter what your job, your socio-economic status, your race, whatever it is-were all the same. We are all equal. We are all equal at the foot of the cross. There is Jew nor Greek, Gentile; there is neither slave nor free; rich nor poor; male or female; black or white; we are all one in Christ. Lets pray together and well receive communion. Father, we thank You for the message spoken through our brother, James. We thank You for how it was modeled and lived by our Savior. Lord, might we too follow his example and be people not who show favoritism but people who treat all people with equality, recognizing Christ died for all, that Christ loves all, and we all are one. We are all equal at the foot of the cross. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believe in Him [might not perish but have everlasting life-John 3:16]. You said if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto Me, (John 12:32). You communicated the message from Your birth to Your death and all through Your life that You were the Savior of all people, of all countries, of all races-whether they had disease, a handicap, a deformity; whether they had become wayward with their lifestyle-whatever their background, You forgave, restored, loved and accepted them. Might we be that kind of a church. Might we be that kind of a people. We pray in Jesus name, Amen.
Lets turn in our Bibles this morning to Judges, Chapter 6. Were talking about walking on water this morning, looking at the biblical principals of faith that we found in the story of Peter. Peter was following the Lords example of calling him out of the boat to walk on the water. Pastor Ortberg said one of the greatest possible things that happened in that story was that little phrase that Peter walked on water. Though it was brief, Peter walked on water-a truly amazing thing. Walking on water means that you allow God to use you to do extraordinary things. You allow God to use you, an ordinary person, to do extraordinary leaps of faith and use you in a way that brings honor and glory to Him, a way that you could never have done on your own. In order to do that, you have to get out of your boat. Theres a man by the name of Gideon who is very content with his boat. He lived in a time when Israel was oppressed by a group of people called the Midianites. The best way to describe the Midianites is to say they were bullies. They picked on Israel because they could. Israel would grow crops, and theyd come and just burn them down. Israel would try to raise livestock. Theyd come in and kill them. Theyd just pick on them. Have you ever had any bullies in your life? Anybody here, maybe when you were in grade school? Maybe at work you have some bullies that pick on you? Maybe youre married to a bully. I dont know. Im looking around for elbows right now. Im looking for dirt right now. I dont see any elbowing going on (congregation laughing). A bully tries to intimidate through fear. It says here in the beginning, Verse 2, that the Israelites prepared shelter for themselves in mountain clefs and caves and strongholds. Entire families were hiding their activities and their way of life for fear that the Midianites would come and take what they had. You and I may not live with bullies in the physical sense of the word, but we all have bullies in our lives. Sometimes the bully takes the form of fear and tries to intimidate us, telling us lies and getting us to paralyze ourselves into inactivity; then we wont take a step of faith or get out of the boat because fear will paralyze us. For some of you its a bully of anxiety. You worry about the what-ifs and the what-thens. For some of us, the bully might be a low self-esteem that tells you that youre inferior or you dont belong. That bully inhibits you and impedes you from doing what God has called you to do and becoming what God wants you to be. So God wants you to go from succumbing to those bullies and allowing those bullies to intimidate you to being a person who gets out of your boat and pursues Gods call on your life. Thats what this storys about. Gideon receives his call of God while he is hiding from the Midianites in a wine press threshing wheat. At the time we find Gideon, he is doing a menial-labor job in a place where the Midianites wont see what he is doing, so they cant come and take his work. So right now, hes living an intimidated lifestyle. He is a victim of fear and bullying. We pick up the story when the angel of the Lord comes to him in Verse 12 (pg. 239 of pew Bibles). He says, …The Lord is with you, mighty warrior. Right there, Gideon is looking around like, You talking to me? Hes doing a De Niro, You talking to me? I dont see anyone around. You must be. You talking to me? Im not a mighty warrior. Far from it. Hes an ordinary guy. …But sir, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all the wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt? But now the Lord has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian. Sometimes we feel that way. Sometimes, even believers can get to the point where we say, God, are you even there? Are you still with me? If youre in my life, how can all these bad things happen to me? Well, the bad that Israel was going through, at the beginning of the chapter, tells us that its because of sin they had fallen into this. Sometimes, what were reaping-sometimes, not all the time-is the consequence of our own sin, the consequences of our own lack of faith. The Lord turned to him and said, Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midians hand. Am I not sending you? Go in the strength you have. How much strength did Gideon have? Not much. Not much. It doesnt take much, you might have a little strength and a little faith, but if youre willing to yield that to God, He can do great things with it. You dont just say, Im a person of great strength or I have to be a person of great faith before God can use me. No, you have to be willing to be a person who will let God use what little faith and what little strength you have. Go in the strength you have. He says, Go! God is a God of action. We get it backwards. We wait for God to zap us, spiritually shoot us with a bullet of faith. Then, when God energizes us with faith, He clears all the obstacles out of the way, and weve seen that demonstration of His power, then well step out of the boat. It never works that way. It never will work that way. Years ago, we took our family to Yellowstone. Lindsey was five, and we decided we were going to go see Old Faithful. We were trying to explain to this five-year old what a geyser was, that water heats up and it shoots way up in the sky, Its going to be really cool. Were going to see Old Faithful erupt! Wow! So, were there. This is a child whos been to Disney World. This is a child whos seen Mickey Mouse and Cinderellas castle. You plop her in front of a hole in the ground, and youre like, There it is. She is waiting. Pretty soon, waters going to come out, and theres going to be this display of power! Its Old Faithful! Its going to erupt! Shes waiting… This is boring! To a five-year old, this is like an eternity. She finally in exasperation looks up and me and says, Daddy, when does Old Faithful throw up? Whens it going to happen? I said, Honey, its erupt. Its not throw up. Its erupt. Its going to happen soon. We waited some more, and pretty soon, it shot up. Shes like, Whoa! We see Old Faithful go up in the air, this powerful demonstration, and then she believed. Then she understood. Thats how some believers are. We kind of think, we just sit back and wait for Old Faithful. We just kind of twiddle our fingers and tap our feet and go, When does Old Faithful show up? Whens Old Faithful going to display his power? Whens Old Faithful going to act? God has said, You act. You act on my commands now. You take a step of faith, and then I will demonstrate My power. Its not just information. We think its just information. All of our classes are great. I love cross training, marriage encounter, experiencing God class. Those are all wonderful, but do you notice what the class said, the subtitle for Blackabys book? Experiencing and Doing the Will of God. Doing the will of God. Its information plus a step of faith or action. That leads to a demonstration, and that demonstration leads to transformation. We want to bypass all that and go, Information, transformation. It doesnt work that way. Its not information, transfmoration. Its information, action, demonstration, transformation. We see God act. We see the display of His power, and we know He is with us, and we step out in faith. Gideon had to take some steps of faith. He had to do several things. God told him to tear down the altar to Baal and tear down the Asherah pole, goddess of fertility, and he did that, risking his very own life. He did it at night because he was afraid. They were going to kill him the next day. His dad said, Well, if Baal is so strong, why cant Baal stick up for himself? Why does he need you guys? If Baal is so all powerful, let him take care of Gideon. So they left Gideon alone. Gideon sends out the police, and all these things happen, but one of the biggest steps of faith that Gideon took was to assemble an army. That took a step of faith right there. Gideon assembles the army. Lets look at Chapter 7 together. So heres the scenario. On this side, we have Midianites, the Amalekits, 135,000 fighting men-trained soldiers, career soldiers. They had experience in war; they were the oppressors. On the other side, we have 32,000 untrained bullied, intimidated men lead by a common laborer who up until a couple days ago, nobody even knew who he was. Gideon, who had no military experience, is going to lead these spontaneous 32,000 men who are going to fight. Theyre tired of the bullying, so theyre going to pick on the big guys who the Bible says are like locusts. Their camels were like the sand in the seashore. They couldnt even be counted. What are the odds there? Thats not good, right? So we pick up the story as Gideon is looking at this situation and saying, Boy, are we outnumbered. I dont do the math here, but 32,000 and 135,000-Im not sure how many to one that is, but its not good. So hes looking at this situation, and Gods going to speak to him. He probably thinks God agrees. Gods probably going to say something like, You know what Gideon? I have to get you some reinforcement. I have to get you some help. You dont have enough guys, but thats not what Gods thinking. He says to him in Verse 2, The Lord said to Gideon, You have too many men. Im sure Gideon was thinking the same thing. You have too many men for Me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, Anyone who trembles with fear may burn back and leave Mount Gilead. Can you hear that speech? I bet you Gideon is doing his best Braveheart impersonation, riding on his horse, They may take our lives, but theyll never take away our freedom! Whos going to stand? Whos going to fight? I know youre not afraid of the enemy, and I know you want to fight for your family and your heritage and for your God, but if you are afraid-which I know youre not-anybody whos afraid, one or two wimps out there, you can go home, and the rest of us are going to fight! Twenty-two thousand guys head for the exit. Not a good motivational speech. It didnt work. Braveheart, he was not. After listening to Mel Gibson in Braveheart, I was ready to go fight the bad guys, put blue makeup on my face, Lets go! Gideon didnt have that gift, so they all leave. So now hes left with 10,000 men, and hes thinking, Oh boy. Im in trouble now. This is not going to work with 10,000 guys. But at least theyre brave. Well just do the best we can with 10,000 guys. The Lord speaks again. He says, Gideon, there are still too many men. Gideon at this point has got to be wondering if God was using that new math or maybe theres something wrong with his calculator. Ive got 10,000, and Youre saying thats too many? He says, Take them down to the water hole and those who get down like a dog and drink, youre going to send home, but whoever laps with water in their hands, youre going to keep those guys. Can you see Gideon bringing them down there probably giving him some lessons on how to drink, Okay, here we are. Do like this. Laps for the enemy. This is how were going to drink. Okay, everybody get a drink. They all start drinking like dogs except for 300 men, so 9,700 men go home. That leaves Gideon with 300. If Im Gideon at that point, Id be tempted to use a little sarcasm and say, What? Still too many? Maybe I should just go at it by myself. Would that please You? God finally looks at that number and says, Thats enough. With this group, I will lead you in to defeat the Midianites. Well, Gideon still has some fear. Thats normal. Anytime you encounter or want to step out of the boat in faith, youre going to encounter some fear. Its just normal. So God says, Get up, go down to the camp because Im going to give it into your hands. If you are afraid to attack, Ive got a message for you. Go down and hear it. So he goes down at night, and he gets in the outskirts of the camp of the Midianites, and he and his servant listen outside the tent. The man inside the tent describes a dream, and this loaf of barley roles down and wipes out the tent with great force. The guy says, Well, you know what that is. Thats Gideons son, Joash. Hes a mighty warrior. Gods going to deliver Midianites into his hands. Thats a sign from God. Thats what that is. Were doomed. Gideon hears his name spoken of by the enemy. Thats a confirmation. He says, They even know who I am. A couple days ago, nobody knew who I was. Now even the Midianites know who I am, and theyre afraid! Unbelievable! Hes excited, and he gets up and starts saying, Get up! Get up! He goes back to the camp and says in Verse 17, Watch me! Follow my lead. What a transformation! How do we get from hiding to Watch me! Follow me! leading 300 men into battle against the Israelites? Do you know what the key was? The fear was gone. When fear is gone, the bully has lost his power because thats the bullys leverage. If he gets fear from you, hes got you because fear makes a situation worse than it really is. Fear intimidates. When fear left, all that was left was faith. I had a bully pick on me named Noah when I was a little boy. One day he pushed me so far that I finally tried to defend myself, and I ended up beating him up. This was second grade. Do you think Noah could bully me anymore? I remember watching Mike Tyson win fights just in the stare down before the bell rang. Wed be watching over at Kens house, Ken Bergerons house. Id say, Look at him! He cant even look Tyson in the eye. This fights done. Theyd go Ding, and the guy would almost lie down. One day, he fought Evander Holyfield. Tyson looked him in the eye, and I said, Look at Evanders face. Hes not afraid. That put a little fear in Tysons face. When you take away that element of fear, what does the bully have to work with anymore? Gideon says, Lets go. Lets go get it done. This was a demonstration of Gods power. He says, God knows where I am. He knows Im here. Im in the right place. I want to share a story with you quickly if I could. Have any of you heard of Ken Gaub before? Ken Gaub, the speaker/author? He was on I75 near Dayton, Ohio, with his wife and his children on a vacation. He was having a downtime in his ministry. He felt empty and was having doubts, just like Gideon had. He was afraid of the wind that was around him, feeling like he was going to sink into the water. Hes walking by, sipping on a drink, and he walks by-in the middle of nowhere-a random stop on his vacation-and the telephone booth is ringing. Why doesnt somebody get that? he says. He ends up going to answer it when nobody answers it. He says, Hello? The operator says, Long distance call for Ken Gaub. He said, I started looking around for Candid Camera. He says, Youre crazy. Then, he says, I realized I couldnt speak to an operator like that. He thought, This cant be. Im just walking down the road, and the phones ringing. Is Ken Gaub there? she interrupted. I have a long distance phone call for him. He stopped and said, Yes, Im here, but how in the world did you reach me here? She says, Well, is Mr. Gaub there or isnt he there? She doesnt have time for this. He said, Yes, Im here. The voice on the other line said, Thats him. Thats Ken Gaub. He listened as a woman identified herself as Millie from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. You dont know me Mr. Gaub, but Im desperate. Please help me. What can I do for you? She described how she was going to commit suicide. She wrote her suicide note, and then she remembers praying to God, saying, God, I really dont want to do this. I really dont want to take my life. Then she said, I remembered you. I remembered watching you on television and thinking to myself, I know Mr. Gaub could help me if he were here. Then all of the sudden numbers came to my mind, and I started writing the numbers down, and I said, Wouldnt it be a miracle if these numbers were the numbers of Ken Gaubs office? So I called the number. Are you in your office in California? He said, Lady, I dont have an office in California because shed called in California. He said, My office is in Yakima, Washington. A little surprised? She says, Oh really? Where are you? He said, Dont you know? You made the call. She said, I dont even know what area Im calling. I just dialed the numbers that came to my mind. He said, Maam, you wouldnt believe this, but Im at a payphone in Dayton, Ohio. She said, Really, what are you doing there? I kidded her gently and said, Well, I answered the phone. It was ringing. I walked by, so I answered it, and Im talking to you. Isnt that amazing? Its just amazing to me. He randomly pulls off the road; the phones ringing out in the middle of nowhere, and the woman on the other end wants to speak with Ken Gaub because shes going to take her life. He said, Only God could have done that. Of all the combinations of phone numbers in the world, of all the phones you could call, all the places I could be at that given time, only God could have arranged that. He said, Words came out of my mouth that were beyond my intelligence, and he lead her to Christ that day. He went back to tell his wife, and he said, Youll never believe this, but I couldnt contain it. He said, Barb, you wont believe this. God knows where I am. God knows where we are. The same God of Gideon was the God of Ken Gaub. The same God of Ken Gaub is our God. He knows where we are, so when we understand that, we can take those steps of faith. Instead of being the one bullied, the one doing the hiding, we can become the pursuer. Look at Verse 12 of Chapter 8 (pg 242). It says, Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of Midian, fled, but he (Gideon) pursued them and captured them, routing their entire army. I thought, Whoa, talk about transformation. One minute, youre bullied, and youre hiding. Im nobody and how in the world can God use me? He takes some steps of faith. God demonstrated His power. God transformed Gideon to now chasing the kinds of Midian. Can you imagine if He would have told Gideon when he was threshing that wheat, Hey Gideon, a few days from now youre going to be chasing the kings and the Midianites. He would have said, You know what? I think youre hitting the sauce a little bit too hard, pal. God can do things through your life, days from now, years from now, that if somebody would have told you today this was going to happen, you would have said, Youre crazy. Youre nuts. Thats because its not you; its Him. You take the little faith, the little strength you have, and you allow Him to use it. But its not a matter of Im going to sit back and let Old Faithful do his thing. Im going to sit back and wait. You pursue Gods call. You pursue the dream Hes put on your life. Dont be the victim; be the victor. Dont be the pursued; be the pursuer. Dont allow the bully to intimidate you and hold you back. You step out in faith and pursue the dreams, the passions, the callings God has placed on your life. Years ago, Im talking way back in the establishing of our church, I had found some land that I thought would be good for our church to buy. There were 15 acres. It was bare. There was no Holiday Inn Express, no houses here. The owner of the land just wanted to sell the five acres near the interstate. I thought that looked pretty good. Thatd give us some good visibility. You know how much this land was in 1990? It was $32,500 for five acres on I90. Thats a pretty good deal. We were offered well over six figures just a couple years after that. In those days, we had just a few small handfuls of families, no rich people in our body. That $32,500 seemed like a ton of money. We needed $10,000 down. We were going to finance the rest with three years on a balloon, but how would we come up with that kind of money? So, I said to our leadership, I would like to take the first thousand dollars in our building fund and give it to the church in Rockford as a thank you for helping us out and getting us started. Thats what we did. We took the first thousand, and we gave it away. We didnt tithe on our building fund. We basically gave our entire building fund away. They had not even cashed that check-it was that same week-when later in that week, a businessman came in my office and said he wanted to help with what our church was doing. He gave us a check for $10,000. That became our down payment on our land. So what do you do? Do you say, Hey God, we need ten grand? Heres our bank account number, okay? Whens Old Faithful going to show up? Whens Old Faithful going to put ten grand in the bank account? I dont understand whats taking so long. Is that how you do it? Or do you take an act of faith? God gives a demonstration, and that demonstration leads to transformation, and thats when we begin to realize, Hey, Gods in this thing. There are more stories I could tell you. Some of you know those stories. This is Gods work, not our work. This is exciting. This is fun. Lets do this some more. Lets dive in to what God has for us. Lets watch now a song by Steven Curtis Chapman by that same name called Diving In. (http://www.christianlyricsonline.com/artists/steven-curtis-chapman/dive.html) Isnt that passive? Faith dives in. It says, Sink or swim, Im diving in. Thats the faith Gideon had. Thats the faith Peter had. Thats the faith God wants us to have.
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