Share Your Story | Grow Week 3

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- You know, what'd be really stupid

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is if you would take a light

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and put it under a basket or a bushel.

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I wonder what's -- Oh, a light.

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Yeah. It doesn't make any sense

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for a light to be under a bushel.

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When stuff is going to grow

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because it's exposed to light.

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Welcome to Crossroads and welcome to the Grow Journey.

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I'm Brian, and before we get started,

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just what exactly is this Journey thing?

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Well, let me start with the word grow.

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In the Bible, we see seven practices that Jesus does,

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and when we unlock these proven practices

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in our own lives, we grow, we advance,

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we go to the next place, we feel closer to God.

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Each week of the series, we will be looking at

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a different one of the seven proven practices

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and figuring out how to apply to our individual lives.

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That's the grow part.

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The journey part means that

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we're going on a journey together,

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a bunch of people going step by step

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through a process of self discovery

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and sharpening one another and sensing God

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moment by moment, week by week.

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As a church, we're all doing it,

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and we do it by meeting in groups

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and going through the guidebook,

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as well as having something

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to see online or in a building.

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We'll show you how to do that later in the episode.

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I'm glad you're watching.

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And I believe if you engage,

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you're going to grow closer to God

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in the next 20 minutes.

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Now, let's get started.

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- Let's talk stories.

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- When I was 16, I was invited

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to a Young Life camp in Colorado.

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I heard the gospel for the first time

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in a language that I could understand.

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- My mom was an Ethiopian immigrant

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and she raised me and my brother on her own.

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At first, sharing my story was really hard,

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but I had to work through some things

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to get to a place of healing.

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And now I feel like I can truly be myself

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and be vulnerable.

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- Everything changed when I realized

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the only thing I needed to do

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was just be God's daughter, and that wasn't it.

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- So, God was there for me

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and He walked me through that painful time.

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- I hope my story rekindles their faith

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and helps them place their faith in God.

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- God uses all of our stories to understand Him better.

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- There's power in your testimony.

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- I have a story worth sharing.

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- You have a story worth sharing.

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- In order for us to spiritually grow,

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one of the approval practices is sharing our story.

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Sharing our story is likened in the Bible

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to shedding light, sharing your light.

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You know, there's a lot of -- there's a lot of light verses

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or light songs relative to Jesus.

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Like, (singing) this little light of mine,

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I'm gonna let it shine.

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All kind of cheesy songs like that,

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that those of us who have extremely church backgrounds,

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who are 50 years old, can remember.

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The truth is, for all of the lush things to grow,

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there has to be light.

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That's why Jesus says in Matthew 5:14:

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Light, shining, causing things to grow.

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You know what'd be really stupid is if you would

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take a light and put it under a basket or a bushel.

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I wonder what's -- Oh, a light.

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Oh, didn't see that one coming.

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Wow, that's really stupid

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to put your light under a bushel.

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What's could be under here.?

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Oh, more lights.

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How unfortunate that these lights

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are wasted underneath a bushel.

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How about this one?

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Oh, there's some Lites.

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God bless America. God bless America, Miller Lites.

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Wonderful.

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Yeah. It doesn't make any sense

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for light to be under a bushel.

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When stuff is going to grow, it's got to grow

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because it's exposed to light.

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I recently got invited to speak at an event

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in Rock Valley, Iowa,

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a place of true blue hardcore farmers.

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There's a few hundred guys that came out.

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A bunch of churches kind of rallied them in

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and put posters all over town.

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I mean, it was rural, good person America.

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There's something about pure about farmers.

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It just seemed like that to me.

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And just these lush fields all over the place.

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And the amazing thing was

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the organizers of the event said this,

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that these farmers during harvest,

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they're working 18 hours a day.

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They never turn off their equipment

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because it is time to make money.

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Shutting off the machine

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means shutting off making money.

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They don't have any paid vacation or anything like that.

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They make money while they can.

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So, they are saying for them to shut that machine off

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and come to event to be challenged and grow spiritually

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was quite a statement

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about how serious they were about growth.

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You know, that's not too unlike our world today.

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Jesus at one time says the harvest is plentiful.

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There are people out there that need to grow

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and be exposed to the light of Jesus.

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If you look at the social indicators in America,

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just about every single one is negative:

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divorce going up, depression going up,

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anxiety going up, suicide going up.

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Things that are going down are things like

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happiness is going down,

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contentment is going down,

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personal savings is going down.

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It's just it's really, really bad.

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Our world, don't be confused

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by how many green, leafy things are in our world,

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people are hurting and they desperately need the light.

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And if I have the light of Christ,

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if I have received Jesus, He's in my heart,

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and I hoard it.

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I keep it to myself as if I don't want to fumble him,

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how am I serving and loving people around me?

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I'm not.

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In Matthew 10:7, Jesus takes His disciples and He says,

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"It's time for you to go out into the world."

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And He sends them off two by two into all the --

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all the basic cities around there.

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And He says the basic stuff.

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I want you go proclaim the Kingdom,

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and I want you to to heal the sick

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and cast out demons.

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No big deal. Right?

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Ready? Go. Break. Away they go.

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Heal the sick and cast out demons.

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You know, you might not have faith or knowledge

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in how to heal the sick with your prayers

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or cast out demons.

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But one thing, if you do have faith for it,

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I can help you with today is to give you the knowledge

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of how to share your story.

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Those folks went into towns,

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and they weren't just doing those things.

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I'm confident they were sharing their story

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and what took place in their lives

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to help them do that right now.

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We're going to hear right now somebody tell their story.

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I- grew up in Over-the-Rhine, when it was not OTR,

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but it was crime ridden.

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And I had to learn that that environment

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and that neighborhood did not define me.

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Throughout my life I've always felt

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that Jesus is my superhero.

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A lot of times growing up in the ghettos,

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like, one of my neighborhoods were so bad

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that they closed the neighborhood down.

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And when I used to walk through that place,

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anything could happen.

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But when you feel that Jesus is behind you,

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literally with a cape, on protecting you,

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you're just not afraid

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when you're supposed to be afraid.

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My parents were not together, so I did not grow up

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in a home where Mommy and Daddy came home from work,

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you know, every night,

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and we sat around the dinner table.

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There was infidelity on one side

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and there was instability on another side.

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I didn't need to see a healthy relationship modeled

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to know what being in a healthy relationship should look like.

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But when I believe that I am here for a purpose,

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God made me for a purpose.

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I don't need to see how to act.

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I don't need to see things model in front of me

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because I'm here for a purpose

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and I have to live to that purpose.

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You don't fall for these traps that society has set for you.

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A few years ago they were doing

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Come Pray for Me in front of the stage.

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And always look for the old people

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when they're trying to lay hands on you.

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And my wife was like, "Oh, there's one."

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"Okay, fine, I'll go."

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And she put her hands on me.

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And she goes, "You feel like you were lost,

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like you're in the woods

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and there's so many different paths."

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I was like,

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"That's exactly how I felt."

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And she goes, "God is saying, just trust Him.

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Trust Him. He wants you to trust Him."

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You know, like, 50 to 100 people can see the same exact movie

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and walk away with completely different versions

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and things that stood out to them.

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Everybody has a story.

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Your story is going to hit some people in one way,

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and it's going to make people feel

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that another person didn't feel from words that you said.

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If you can impact one person, that is all it takes.

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If there's a room full of 50 people that see your movie

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and only one person walks away with a message,

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that's all that matters.

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- This is not a complicated week.

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I don't know if you've noticed that.

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That story matters, and your story matters.

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You have a story to share, and when you do,

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it's proven to lead to growth. Share your story.

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- That's exactly right. And you know what?

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We're in the Journey and maybe you're like,

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"This is my first time.

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I don't know what we're talking about."

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That's totally okay.

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You can still hop in. It's not too late to get a guide.

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It's not too late.

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- Completely free guide, by the way.

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- Oh, it's free. Zero money.

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It's not too late to find a group,

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to get into community, to connect with someone, to grow.

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You can do that at Crossroads.net/Journey.

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Plus hop back into the message.

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- Isn't that good stuff? That's great.

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You know, telling your story isn't something

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that I do while I'm being paid to do it

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because I'm a preacher.

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Though I can and should tell my story then.

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It's a thing where I do all over the place.

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The thing I do when I'm playing basketball

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or when I play basketball.

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It's the thing I do when I'm in the gym

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and I have an appropriate opportunity

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to talk with somebody.

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It's the thing I did actually, after I spoke

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at that event in Rock Valley.

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I went to the local hotel, they had a little bar there.

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I went in to have a beer debrief.

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And as I was in there, there was a guy in there.

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I started talking with him.

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He was a cell phone tower repair man.

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I'm like, "Dude, you do that?

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How far up do you go? That's -- are you lashed off?

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What's the safety protocol?

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Are you scared up there?"

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He said, "Well, what do you do?"

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I said, "Well I'm -- I'm a pastor."

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As soon as I do that, that shuts down the conversation

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or opens it up, one way or the other.

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So, we start talking about spirituality.

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I could just sense that, like,

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um, he wasn't wanting to go further, so I just stopped.

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I don't need to, like, give him some formal plan

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of salvation with four Bible verses.

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If someone's not feeling it or I'm sensing that, I stop.

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But I shared a bit of my story.

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He might have been ready for the harvest, but he wasn't.

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You know, we're so afraid today of sharing our story.

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It's almost like there's a conspiracy in America

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that says, "Proselytizing is awful.

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Religion is a private thing."

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Religion's not a private thing.

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Maybe practiced privately sometimes,

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but your religion,

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at least if it's the religion of Jesus,

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is not meant to be a private thing.

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It's meant to be shared.

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It's meant to be proclaimed.

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It's meant to bless other people.

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In 1993, 89% of self professed Christians said,

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"I share my faith with other people."

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That's another way of saying evangelism,

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sharing your light.

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I share my faith with other people.

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In 2018, it was down to 64% of self professed Christians

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said, "I talk about my faith with people."

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That's a 25% drop.

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I don't know what it is today, but I'll bet you

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from 2016 to 2022, it is a massive, massive drop

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because we don't talk about it.

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I don't remember the last time I overheard somebody

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in a coffee shop talking about their faith

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to somebody who didn't have faith.

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I don't. I don't remember the last time.

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Maybe it's because we're not growing personally.

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Maybe it's because we don't have a heart

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to see somebody else grow personally.

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Maybe it's because we just don't know how to.

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Or maybe we've see it done awfully.

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Like, have you seen the video?

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I'm laughing. It's awful. It's awful.

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Just Google, try to find the video

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of the group of people who decide

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to pull out their guitar

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and do a little worship service inside of a plane.

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Like, (singing) The name above all names.

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It was -- I'm laughing.

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It was cringeworthy. It was awful.

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Let me tell you something.

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I'm a pastor.

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I'm pretty big on worship and the Bible.

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If you start bringing out a guitar

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and doing worship songs on the plane I'm in,

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I'm going to punch you in the mouth.

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I don't want that, unless you're Jason Aldean.

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If you're Jason Aldean, bring it on out.

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I want to hear about your big green tractor

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all day, every day. It's be awesome.

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Your music is meant to be on Spotify,

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not somebody in a thing on an airplane.

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But at least the heart was

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they wanted to share their light.

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I think sometimes we don't share our story,

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we don't share our light

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because we're afraid of looking weird.

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You won't be.

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Just sharing your story, you won't be seen as weird.

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If you think that person thinks you're weird, just stop.

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But also, we may not share our story

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because we don't know how to.

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Here's how I do it. Three basic things.

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Number one, I give the past.

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What was the past? What was my past like?

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And then two, what is the point?

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What is the point that the light came into me

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and I started to grow. I received Christ.

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And number three, what's my present like?

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What is it right now?

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So, as an example.

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The past: The past was I grew up as an adopted child.

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I always felt rejected, I felt abandoned.

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I always felt like I was on the outside of everything.

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That's the way I was.

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And then someone told me about Jesus

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in a language I could understand.

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I thought I was going away for a football event.

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I ended up going away to have an event

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where someone told me about Jesus and I received Him.

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He came into my life.

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That was the point where things started to change.

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And now, where I am right now,

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and where I have been for the last decades

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is I never feel rejected by Him.

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I never feel on the outs by Him.

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I sense His compassion and His presence in my life.

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He's enabled me to grow.

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Now that story may change a little bit,

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accentuate some certain things,

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blow some certain things out if I want.

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But that's basic my story.

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I'm sticking to it and I'm sharing it.

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And as a result, people are growing

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and coming to know Him.

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Who are the people?

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Who are they that could be in the Kingdom of God,

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who could grow, who could get harvest

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if you got into their life?

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Because you may be the only person

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who has the opportunity to share your story,

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and then you get to grow as well.

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And while I'm at it, I would be really remiss

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if I didn't recognize there's some people here today

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who this might be your point.

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Right now, you can receive Christ right now.

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This broadcast was meant as a light to come in

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and grow you and bring you to Christ right now.

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Seal the deal, say this prayer kind of like this:

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God, I want you in my life.

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Jesus, I ask for your forgiveness.

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I give you my life and I ask you to fill me

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with your Holy Spirit as I give you the rest of my life.

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Amen.

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Let's do this together. Let's grow.

00:16:16

- There are three parts to the Journey.

00:16:18

Step one: Attend the weekend

00:16:21

and receive weekly teaching at a site or online.

00:16:24

Get inspired with the good news.

00:16:27

Step two: Do your guide work.

00:16:29

You get your very own printed guide.

00:16:32

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

00:16:36

And step three: meet with your group.

00:16:39

During the Journey we meet in groups

00:16:41

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

00:16:44

Go here for more.

00:16:46

Come Grow!

00:16:49

- I hope you enjoyed that explainer

00:16:51

learning how to do a Journey.

00:16:52

I've got one more thing to throw at you,

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and it's crucial because

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it's on the seven proven practice list.

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It is share your story.

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And you know what? We want to know your story.

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My story, Kyle's story, your story.

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The quickest way to do that is get on your phone.

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Now, some of us like to take videos like this,

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but I want you to take the video vertical,

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not horizontal, vertical. Don't -- you know.

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- I just want to give a special call out to my dad right now.

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Dad, this is a chance for you to grow.

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It's the Grow Journey. - That's right?

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- And just listen to what Shep's saying.

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She's giving you biblical truth right now. Follow it.

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- That's right. This is how you flip your phone.

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Anyway, you got it.

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- Stories are important.

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See stories help us just, like,

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break through that barrier of disbelief.

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You know what I mean?

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Like, as a teacher, do you ever feel this?

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Like, I can say it all day long.

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I can make my points rhyme.

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I can do all this stuff, and there's still this,

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like, "Yeah, that's nice that you're saying that,

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but does it actually play out?" - Right. Is it truth?

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- That's where stories push us through it.

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In my life, it's the stories of people

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who decided to give that actually got me to give.

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It's like, "Oh, you actually do this?"

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- Yeah.

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- Gave me the courage to give it a shot.

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If you want to give it a shot,

00:18:00

just go to Crossroads.net/give

00:18:01

to support not just content like this,

00:18:04

but community and world changed all over the place.

00:18:07

Pretty cool.

00:18:08

- Hey, we've got some more Journey for you,

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believe it or not, and you can find out

00:18:11

what's happening right now next week on Crossroads.

00:18:16

- Well, hey, today we're talking about growth.

00:18:18

Just like plants need water to grow,

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so it is that you and I need water to grow,

00:18:23

specifically, water that comes from baptism.

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