Make Room Series, Combating Lukewarm Faith w/Sheri Prescott

Speaker 1: 0:00

And I think that being Lukewarm does so much more damage to the body of Christ, then being cold, not knowing the Lord at all, and then, when we see the truth as someone that's hot, we see faithfulness in their lives, helping you live brave build community and pass on courageous faith to the girls around you.

Speaker 3: 0:20

This is Be the Brave Ones podcast hey everybody, it is Mandy here and I'm here with Delaney.

Speaker 2: 0:28

Hey guys, what's up? Welcome back to the Be the Brave.

Speaker 3: 0:30

Ones podcast, Delaney. How's your day going so far?

Speaker 2: 0:33

So far, so good. It has been gloomy and windy out, so we are tucked away inside and it is quite cozy in here, if I do say so myself. So I'm very excited for this conversation because not much is going on inside. It's very quiet and yeah, Me too.

Speaker 3: 0:48

I'm excited and I feel like this is like Tampa winters, like overcast skies here and there. You know we still get our sunny days, but there's been quite a few Every now and then. Yeah, overcast skies, but the weather we can't complain about the weather and we can't complain about playoff football because the Bucks won last night, I know you're not a huge football person, but this household is, and we were super excited about that.

Speaker 3: 1:11

We raised the flags the flags are on my car anyway supporting our local team.

Speaker 3: 1:17

Yes, I also worked out this morning and during my workout I had this kind of like imagery of something that we kind of talked about at the end of last episode, but like I got another kind of like parallel and that is like with our, when we work out, we're working out our physical bodies, right, and today I worked out literally and I work out with a group, so I'm not doing this to myself, like someone else is asking me to do this and I'm doing it, I'm willingly participating. But I worked out so hard that I felt like I was going to throw up and I was like, oh my gosh, as I left there, I was thinking about like a spiritual workout, right, like when we're exercising our spiritual bodies, when we're getting with God, like what is it likened to? Like can I walk away from it? What would I say? What I say Like, oh, that was like a brisk walk or that was like I really got in there and I really lifted some heart weights, yeah. So I thought I would just bring that to the conversation today.

Speaker 2: 2:11

That is such an interesting perspective. I'm excited to dig into that deeper because I feel like there's something here in this conversation that it takes work. It takes work to meet with the Lord, but it is so refreshing and sometimes in the moment you're like what am I doing? Why am I doing this? And then you get done and you're like, oh, all right, let's do this again next time.

Speaker 3: 2:34

Yeah, especially when we're doing it, we're like this is good, this is really good for me. And so today we are going to narrow in on our key scripture. Our key scripture is Revelation 3, 14 through 22. If you haven't read that scripture and you're listening we encourage you after this episode, go read it. And today we're focusing in on two, three verses. Actually, it's Revelation 3, verses 15 through 17. And I'm going to go ahead and read that now. I know your works. You are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot? So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say I am rich, I have prospered and I need nothing, not realizing that you are a wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked. And so, delaney, you actually wrote this portion of the study that is going to be coming out next month, and so I would just love to hear from you like what stood out to you most when you're putting that part of the study together.

Speaker 2: 3:32

Yeah, there's a lot here and I'm excited to talk about it with you and with our guests. The first thing that comes to mind is the words hot and cold, and they're obviously opposite. But in this time period, doing my research, hot and cold temperatures whether it be water or anything was always useful. Hot water was useful. Cold water was useful for different things, but like never lukewarm Lukewarm was not something that anybody wanted. So here, what I think the Lord is getting at, and what a lot of other commentators suggest too, is that Jesus is claiming that they're apathetic.

Speaker 2: 4:06

So we're gonna talk a lot about apathy, the symptoms of apathy, how to recognize it in ourselves, how these people, how Jesus, recognized their apathy and what to do about it. Because it is common Like we can read this and feel like oh my gosh, luke warm, is that me? How do I tell that that's me? Am I Luke warm Christian? Am I Luke, warm in my heart and my spirit? So, really, this is a heart issue we're getting at that we all can struggle with and we all can go through seasons with. So, listeners, if you're out there and you are worried that this could be you, you are not alone. We all go through this, but we're gonna dig into apathy and what that means in our own lives, because it can be evident and it can be equally dangerous too.

Speaker 3: 4:50

Yeah, I think it's a common thing that many of us are struggling with that. I see we're talking with others, this, just this apathy and wanting to burn hotter and like Lord, give me like that passion, like bring it back, like what does that look like? And also in commentary it said that back in these times that medics would give Luke warm water to actually make someone who was sick throw up. And I think that's probably what made me make that connection today. I have not felt like that in a really super long time. I'm not that person. I'm not that person. It's like let's go work out until we throw up. I'm not like that. It's just what happened. But it made me think of the scripture that we're gonna talk about today as well. And really, what stood out to me was actually in the study Delaney, where you had you emphasized those words, not realizing you had us emphasize those words, and I think that that's the biggest thing is that we cannot recognize that. We might actually think that we're not lukewarm. You know, we might recognize some apathy, but do we recognize, like, the true condition that that's putting us in? Because if we recognize the true condition that that was putting us in, we would probably be like, really like, get me out of here. I don't want to be in a place where Jesus says I want to spit you out of my mouth, I want to burn hot for him. So we have an super fun guest on today.

Speaker 3: 6:03

It's someone that Delaney and I both know through our church circles. She is someone who is a faithful follower of Jesus. She is the wife of a hero she calls him. She's been married for 24 years. She is the mama of five kids, and they range from college age all the way down to kindergarten. I mean, this mama is wearing some hats.

Speaker 3: 6:29

Her husband's military career has taken them all around the globe, where she has learned that the hidden and holy work of homemaking, homeschooling and hospitality are small moments God can use to change the world, which is really a huge reason. We know this about her and we were like we have to invite Sherry Prescott onto the podcast. Her favorite place to be is with her husband and her kids serving the Lord as a family, and in that she's been honored to serve as a speaker, writer and worship leader with dozens of ministries over several decades. She currently leads a mom's ministry at her church in Tampa, florida. As well as loves opening her home to women of all ages for encouragement, prayer and discipleship. Hey, sherry, thanks for being here with us. Welcome.

Speaker 1: 7:15

Thank you so much for inviting me, both of you. It's such a fun way to enjoy this little bit of gloomy day. Like you all mentioned outside, I'm just excited to be here and to get to share and talk and see what God has to tell us all.

Speaker 3: 7:31

Me too, so excited. I've so been looking forward to this, as I know Delaney has as well. And Sherry, I just want to ask you, because we were just talking about football Do you have a team? Do you have a team that's still in the playoffs? Are you a Bucks fan? I mean, you've been in Tampa for a little while. Have we won you over?

Speaker 1: 7:43

Oh, friends, I am not really a football fan. However, I am married to someone who grew up next to Arlington Stadium in Dallas, texas, if that tells you yes. So it was sad around our house for him and those of us or I'm not really one of them, but those in our household that really love football. But last night, of course, the whole family was cheering for the Bucks because, yes, we have been in Tampa for years, so we're excited.

Speaker 3: 8:09

Yay, let's go. Yeah, I was watching part of the Cowboys game. I have a friend who's a you know like die hard. I think all Cowboys fans are die hard. It's like they're like don't mess with me, like don't even talk about my team. So yeah, I was. I was praying for her, like the office banter that she was going to have to go into this week. I just praying that God would give her some quick comebacks like help shut it down. Anyway, we are talking about making room for Jesus, and this is something that we know that you do, and something that we've been opening with with each guest, is to tell us a little bit about what making room for Jesus looks like for you lately.

Speaker 1: 8:41

Well, I guess, when I think about teenage girls which I'm so grateful that you all are focused on that part of ministry when I was 13, I had a camp counselor who challenged us to get up every morning before school of that coming school year to read God's word, and she would send us snail mail. There was no such thing as email or social media when I was a 13 year old girl to encourage us in doing that. And I tell you what, at 13 years old which was a long time ago, decades ago for me, that created a foundation in my life that I am truly hungry in the morning to spend time with Jesus and it's become a habit all through motherhood. Obviously, that's looked differently. Sometimes that's really quick time in the word.

Speaker 1: 9:27

Other times the best part of God's word is teaching my own children and hearing God speak to me that way, but usually it starts in the morning. And then, first Thessalonians 5 reminds us that we can pray continually. We don't have to stop praying when we're unloading the dishwasher or in the carpool line or scrubbing my lovely bathroom, like yesterday. You know, jesus' presence is in every moment of our lives. So that's my prayer, is that I would spend time making room for him all day long.

Speaker 3: 10:00

I love that you're bringing to the table when you were 13. And, delaney, I don't know about you, but I'm like, wow, like someone was writing a letter encouraging these girls to get in the word. Isn't that crazy, yeah.

Speaker 1: 10:13

It's crazy and I'm so thankful.

Speaker 3: 10:15

I mean, I'm looking at you, sherry. I mean I think we're around the same age and I'm going yeah, when I was 13, there wasn't email. And I'm like man, we're like ancient, like to young people, we're like so old. They're like what do you mean? There was three hours. There wasn't even email. We're so wise, yes, we're so wise.

Speaker 1: 10:30

No, we're so wise, we're so wise. But yes, and I think about the commitment that she made and also it was seeing Jesus in her, you know in her. That really gave me that passion to do that. And then it becomes a habit, and then you can't live without it because you know there's nothing better than being in his presence.

Speaker 3: 10:48

Yeah, yes, amen, and that is the key right there. So our key scripture, as we shared with you prior to this conversation, is Revelation 3, 14 through 22. Delaney and I were just talking about those three verses 15 through 17,. When you looked at those three verses, was there something that stood out particular to you?

Speaker 1: 11:06

Well, I first love that it says I know your deeds. Jesus is talking, he knows us, and isn't that just comforting that he knows us even with all of our sin and yuckiness and messes.

Speaker 3: 11:16

That can be comforting and not comforting all at the same time.

Speaker 1: 11:19

Well, yes, true, but he still wants to know us. I mean, despite everything I was thinking a lot about, I loved what you two shared about being hot or cold, and I think you rarely hear someone say I walked away from Christ because of an atheist. It's usually because of someone in the church that's hurt them or that's lived a very hypocritical life. And I think that being lukewarm does so much more damage to the body of Christ than being cold, not knowing the Lord at all and then being, when we see the truth. As someone that's hot, we see faithfulness in their life and I think more and more teenagers especially I know you all see this. They want to see that there are pioneers of our faith that are sold out for Christ, no matter what, that are gonna live differently. So being lukewarm pushes people away from Jesus because they don't want that. Why would they want that? So good, that's so good, jerry.

Speaker 3: 12:17

So good. When I think about that, I go. That is so true that lukewarmness is what puts us in a position to not emulate the true God. People confuse God with people and they associate our actions with him and turn away and girls out there listening. I think this is why it's so important for you to make room for Jesus, because when you have your own personal time with Jesus, he's showing you who he is. And when you look at your Bible, the first question to ask is what are you showing me about yourself, god? What can I learn about you in this scripture? Because I need to know what you look like so I can see when people don't look like you and I can go.

Speaker 2: 12:57

That's not you that's them.

Speaker 3: 12:59

That's why they need you.

Speaker 2: 13:00

Yes, yeah, that discernment that we get, especially if you are trying to figure out what it looks like for you to be a part of the body of Christ, to be a follower of Jesus. You need the discernment to say who do I follow, who follows Jesus that I can follow. You need the discernment that comes only from your well spent time in the word, and you don't have to be a super smart theologian to read the Bible. You can just read it. In theology that's such a big word but it is just meaning knowledge of God. So you can get to know God when you're 13, when you're 12, when you're 10, if you just read the word.

Speaker 2: 13:36

I know you guys spent a lot of time reading in school, so it's definitely like the Bible is so cool. I also like I didn't know that until I was probably like 16 or 17, that I was like, oh my gosh, there's so much in here that is just actually I don't want to say entertaining, but engaging, and like God is the center of the Bible and he is the coolest, most like wonderful thing, a wondrous thing that we could ever imagine. So reading a book about him will blow your mind. So there is, there's a lot there when you choose not to be lukewarm and you are one of those Christians who are just hungry for the word of God and therefore it just lights a fire in you and you are hot, as Jesus would describe it in this section here.

Speaker 3: 14:27

And we live in a day and time where we have so many resources available to us that allow us to study the word.

Speaker 3: 14:33

And it's so many free resources. I actually have put this in my notes to mention this at the beginning of our conversation twice now and I've forgotten. But now that you've brought it up to Lainey or what you've shared, what you've shared, it sparked my memory To let our listeners know just a few of those resources. You can go to BibleHubcom. You can go to Blue Letter Biblecom. They have commentaries, which is basically someone who spent a really long time with that section of scripture and sought the Lord and got some insight into it to help you understand it better. And then there's also where you can actually look at the real meaning of the Greek or Hebrew word on those websites Just incredible resources.

Speaker 3: 15:11

In the study we encourage you to read the introduction of Revelation in your Bible so you can kind of get a general idea of who this letter is to, what was going on when it was written, who wrote it, all those pieces which just help you understand it more. And then also there's a great website If you have questions, because Revelation can bring up questions. The Bible just brings up questions. There's a website that you can trust. It's called GotQuestionsorg and it was like an in-house theologian of a church that recommended that site for me because I had a lot of questions for him and he's like Mandy, I want to tell you about a website, so you stop coming to me. No, he wanted me to come to him, but he was like when you have questions GotQuestionsorg, you can go there and like almost any question you have about the Bible. You're going to find a good, solid, theologically sound answer there.

Speaker 3: 15:53

And so we have been in this section of Scripture, revelation 3, 14 through 22. And, sherry, again, we sent that to you in advance. And talking about theology, many theologians have said this church sounds a lot like the Western church, which is us. The American church is part of the Western church and so, sherry, I'm wondering if you saw that when you looked at this. Where did you see that? And what do we do if we're looking at this and we're going gosh? We're kind of like this what do we do about it?

Speaker 1: 16:18

I've definitely heard that since I was I was a teenager, we've been saying that America is very much like the church of Laodicea. We're very comfortable. In some ways we're so, we're so blessed that it makes us so comfortable. And there are, you know, when I think of my kids, I think, wow, I want them to feel comfortable in my home, I want them to have what they need. I just, you know, I want to shower them with things, and I know our Heavenly Father loves us so much more than we love our own kids.

Speaker 1: 16:46

But at the same time, the trials that I've seen them walk through, that I couldn't change, that there was nothing I could say or do that would make it go away, those are the things that drew them closest to Christ, and me too. I'm sure you both see that in your own life. It's those times when you're uncomfortable that we grow in our faith, and so I think God and His grace gives us those seasons of rest so that we can get ready for the next battle. But we definitely. It's a struggle for the American church to have to say, listen, yes, it's comfortable. How can we come to Christ every day saying I am so desperate for you, even though I seem to have all my needs met.

Speaker 1: 17:26

Because in a blink all those needs could be gone. All those things could be gone, all those blessings. I think of Moses. When he asked God, he said you know, I need you to help me to lead these people. And God said my presence will go with you and I will give you rest. But all the blessings that they were going to get in the Promised Land didn't matter at all if they didn't have His presence. And so you know, I guess, for me I just want to examine my own heart and say, lord, am I being like this church? You know, am I so comfortable with all that you've given me that I'm not willing to step out in obedience and do the hot thing Be hot for you?

Speaker 2: 18:05

That's so good. I think of immediately. Verse 17,. Jesus says for you say, talking to the church I am rich, I have prospered and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. But how often can we look at our lives in our comfort and say I'm rich, I need nothing. And in pointing that to or that having that come from that confidence, come from self-sufficiency, or come from the tangible things of this world, rather than coming to the Lord and saying I am rich in you, Christ, I need nothing because I have you, jesus, like what a difference that would make in our hearts. And I jotted this down and then I think I also put this in the study too.

Speaker 2: 18:51

The symptoms of apathy, like if we are like, do I, when you examine your heart, when you're with the Lord and you're asking yourself do I have this apathy, do I have this lukewarmness in my heart? Something you can ask yourself is is there pride, is there self sufficiency going on? Do I love the world? Does this? I am rich, I am, I have prospered, I need nothing attitude, does that sound like something I would say Day to day? Is it like looking at our lives, is that evident?

Speaker 2: 19:21

Because that could be a sign that we aren't hungry for the Lord, that we assume that we don't need Him and so we don't seek Him and therefore we are apathetic, meaning that we are just not really interested in spending time with Him, not really caring about His Word or caring to be obedient with Him. There's like a lack of work ethic, I guess. Or to make room for Jesus, to show Jesus hospitality in our hearts and our lives. It takes work, it does, and so this apathy that we're talking about is a lack of that work, a lack of that desire to do that, and I see it in my own heart. When I'm self-sufficient, when I'm prideful, usually it's because I just forget, or I don't have this burning desire and hunger, like you were talking about, sherry, to sit down and forget about my true need, which is the Lord.

Speaker 3: 20:16

Yeah, and I think that too. With that you're looking at, what do I consider blessing? What am I striving towards? Do I see myself as poor because I don't have this, or I don't have this latest thing, or the neighbor has such a nicer house than I do? And with that we don't even recognize all the blessing, like the blessing of living where we live and having access to what we have access to, even if we don't have the latest and the greatest things. But that's not the true blessing. The real blessing is Jesus. That is the true blessedness, that is the true richness.

Speaker 3: 20:46

I was at Winter Jam the other night and Lecrae. I hadn't heard this song. I think it's a new song and I don't know the exact name of it, but the chorus goes Be and Broke made me rich, and he had the whole audience singing that Be and Broke made me rich and it made me think about this series too, and I was like there was a time when I was broke, you guys, and you know what Be and Broke made me rich. So you find out what richness is in your brokenness.

Speaker 2: 21:10

Yes.

Speaker 1: 21:11

And even that's so good. My dad used to say, sherry, you make time for what's important to you. So if I say, for instance, you brought up working out, if I say working out is important to me, but we look at my life and I went on one walk that week for, you know, 15 minutes, my dad would say, clearly that's not important to you. So if we really say that not having apathy, that being on fire for Christ, you know, knowing his truth, being, you know, a woman of God is important to us, that's what we're gonna make time for. So that always really convicts me of okay, my time is given to me by God. How am I spending it? It's a clear representation of what's important to me.

Speaker 2: 21:52

Yes, yeah, mandy, you're saying that like you work out with a group of people that make you do that, and I think it's the same thing. If we don't want this apathy, that Jesus, that makes Jesus sick, that makes him literally vomit he says his words, not mine we need other people around us who are on fire, who are showing interest, like making the work ethic a priority, making room for Jesus daily. That'll make us want to not have apathy and it'll show it Like it'll give us in awareness of our own apathy when they're like, hey, I read this in my time with the Lord, and not to shame us, but just to spur us on in the Lord, to make us zealous too. I think that is why getting together and not doing this alone, this meaning life, this meaning trying to follow Jesus it needs to be done with other people and having those meaningful conversations. One of my favorite things that people ask me and I know both of you have asked me this before whenever we've gotten together is like what has God been teaching you lately? And that is such a good question.

Speaker 2: 22:58

So, listeners, if you are wanting to spur someone on in the faith when you're meeting with them, or you just want meaningful conversations, if you could just ask that, like what has God been teaching you lately? Because we're always learning and that is such a mental like oh, what has been God, god, been teaching me lately, and have I been in the Word? And so it just it puts this awareness in us to get with God, to make room for Jesus, so that when that question comes we have an answer and not just to prove ourselves yep, I'm good, I'm spending my time with Jesus check, you don't have to worry about me but to talk about it with other people, to make room in our lives for Jesus to be a center of conversation as well, yeah, to spur one another on, and I do see it kind of like like our spiritual, like a spiritual cycle of like we fill ourselves up and if we don't ever have a place that we're pouring out, it's kind of like we just like get stuck with all this stuff inside of us.

Speaker 3: 23:52

You know, like what gives us energy to go back and get more is that we gave it away. It's like, oh wow, that was really cool to talk about that. That was really cool to share that with someone who needed to hear that. And now I wanna make sure that I get more and we're gonna talk about the Proverbs 31 woman next week. We probably should have talked about that with you, sherri, but then I was kind of excited that we didn't, because I was like I wanna hear what Sherri has to say about Proverbs 16. But anyway, okay, yes, but I just feel like, too, that, yeah, we have to get in that place of pouring it out, of taking it in and pouring it out. And I think it's really good to get together with others and like hang out and catch up on life.

Speaker 3: 24:26

But ask that next question in the conversation. Ask that question what's the Lord teaching you? Or what's going well right now? What's going hard right now? What's God telling you about that? It's also a great question what's God telling you about that when something is hard? And someone asked me that the other day and Sherri, so we like to take a moment to go deep on the podcast. Well, this is something new kind of that we're trying this series Like be like seriously, like don't put on like the mask, or like tell us like the fluffy answer, but the real answer, what's the real answer? What is the biggest threat that comes at you personally when it comes to making room for Jesus, and practically what do you do when you see it getting in the way?

Speaker 1: 25:02

That's a great question For me. You know, obviously I'm a lot older than some of your listeners, but I really relate to both Mary and Martha's story and the Bible and serving the Lord has. Often it sounds crazy. It will keep me from sitting at his feet, knowing him, because there's a difference. Like I might think that I know things about someone and I could know a lot about them by serving them, but until I sit and listen to their story, until I sit and pay attention to who they are, what they love, what you know, what their life is like, I don't really know them. And I've just related.

Speaker 1: 25:45

It's in Luke, chapter 10, there's two sisters, really quickly, that are getting ready for Jesus to come to their house and they welcome him into their home and one of them basically says to Jesus don't you see that my sister isn't helping me? They didn't have Uber Eats, they didn't have electricity, they couldn't put a frozen pizza in. They had to make all the food for Jesus and his disciples. And Martha's sister, mary, was sitting at Jesus' feet listening to what he said and I loved how Jesus responded. He didn't say, martha, you're wrong for serving me. He didn't. He just said you are worried and upset about so many things and only one thing matters, and Mary has chosen the best parts and I'm not gonna take it from her.

Speaker 1: 26:28

And I think in that story God has just worked it in my heart so often that I can get so busy serving him that I don't really take time to know him.

Speaker 1: 26:37

And I'm convicted of it often, so often that there was one time I broke my leg and couldn't walk for two months and I really think that that was God saying you need to sit at my feet and listen to me. I think what's neat about that part of scripture is that it doesn't say that Mary wasn't just as busy as Martha before Jesus arrived, but when he was there she was sitting at his feet, listening. And so, as women who follow Jesus, ordering our time is so important because we're called to serve. I mean, we're called to be faithful stewards, we're called to serve. But we're also not going. We're gonna miss the best part if we don't actually know Jesus. So that is what I'm constantly struggling with, and I may be till I'm 95, I don't know but God is just refining me in that way, reminding me to spend time getting to know him, not just serving him.

Speaker 2: 27:29

I love that. I think you shared that multiple times I'm sure, but I remember scrolling through Instagram once and you shared that and immediately that day I wrote that on my sticky notes and I put it in my one of the cupboards in my kitchen, cause I go to that cupboard often. You know it's the cup one, it's the Tupperware one, everything is Mitz-Mack in that cupboard. But I saw it so often and I was like in the heat of the kitchen mess, I was like, oh, that's right, okay, thank you Jesus, like it's just a constant reminder that you spurred that on in me to put that sticky note in my kitchen.

Speaker 2: 28:02

I remember that came from you and that sticky note has stayed. It stayed all throughout postpartum. So I know, like a lot of other women who are serving me and serving my little one who were in my kitchen while I was like in bed with a newborn, they saw it and I know they were blessed by it too. So that's sweet. It's definitely a struggle for us all, whether you are. I remember being super busy when I was a teen too, with sports, with school, with friends with everything You're so busy.

Speaker 3: 28:30

Yeah, so they're so busy. I have a-.

Speaker 1: 28:34

They are, aren't they?

Speaker 3: 28:35

Seventh grader she's so busy.

Speaker 1: 28:37

Yes, it's crazy. They're schedules, yeah, and you think ladies you're gonna have to. It gets busier in different ways it does it really does.

Speaker 3: 28:47

We don't know busy until we really step into like Full adulthood and we're like, oh my gosh, I have no time anymore. I truly you'd have no time. But what you were sharing there, first of all, love, love, love, delaney, that sherry shared something you put on your refrigerator. It's blessing you, it's blessing the people coming into your house. That's the way that God works when we pour out what he gave us when we were sitting with him. But also, what it started me is how pride for me guys can get in the way where I will get into self-sufficiency I think you use that word, delaney, one at one of you did but I, I can go. Oh, I got this, oh, I got this.

Speaker 3: 29:21

You know, every time before a podcast like we've been podcasting for a long time, I've spent time with this text, right, I've spent time going. Okay, I know sherry, right, a red, her bio. You know like that's familiar, more familiar, sherry. Like I have time. But every time before the podcast, even if it's only for a minute, I go and I get down on my knees and I say, lord, I empty myself of me, fill me with you. And sometimes I'll be like, oh, but like I still haven't printed the thing and I'm like, oh, I got it. And I'm like, no, get on your knees. Like I have to get Self-sufficiency out of me, you know, and that's something that I have to continually, and just that posture is that reminder of this is not about what you can do, mandy. This is not how you can string together some words. This is not how you can edit words that you didn't string together. Well, this is about me.

Speaker 3: 30:14

So, anyway, final, final segment here. We always like to round table scripture together. We like to model what this can sound like for women and girls when you are talking about scripture. And so the scripture that we're gonna round table is proverb 16. Delaney brought this to the table as a heart check. Like this is a great. Proverbs can be a great heart check, psalms can be a great heart check, but this proverb 16 mark it in your Bible and go there. If you're like I need a check in my hot, cold, lukewarm, let's pull up from some proverb 16 and look and see. We're not gonna read the whole thing today, but, listeners, I want to encourage you to read the whole thing. We've read the whole thing, we're just gonna talk about it. So I want to ask you to, when you look through this proverb, what stood out to you?

Speaker 1: 30:51

Well, right, in verse 2, all a person's ways seem pure to them. But motives are weighed by the Lord and In making room for him, he can give us what we need to understand his word. And he shows us our motives, you know. Am I considering others better than myself? Am I, you know, respecting my husband? Am I loving my children the way he wants me to? Because he knows my motives, and that's scary. But also, in making room for him, it allows him to change us. We can't be changed if we don't hunger and thirst for his righteousness. So that was I mean. Obviously there's a lot of verses in that, but that one really stood out to me. Also, in their hearts, humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps in verse 9. We can be self-sufficient, we can think that we are, and then in the next moment, something changes everything. And with a husband who's been deployed numerous times in the military, that's part of the hero part, also because he's my best friend and hero in that way.

Speaker 1: 31:53

But you know there were so many times that my plans weren't God's plans and you know we just have to trust that in making room for him he gives us a foundation that we can walk through any fire because he's with us. Yeah, so making room for him changes everything.

Speaker 2: 32:10

It's so good. Verse 17 stuck out to me. It says the highway of the upright turns aside from evil. Whoever guards his way preserves his life.

Speaker 2: 32:18

And that last part I just think of, like guarding my way is a way that I can order my time. Like I have to make room for Jesus and It'll bless me, it'll preserve me, it'll like that is the way to do it. Guarding my way is like okay, when I set out my day, I need to make sure my time with the Lord is in there. And like guarding my time too, like you said, like making sure that, like I get everything that I need to be done. I am responsible, I am serving, I am working, but I also have time to sit at the feet of Jesus. And they don't coincide that when Jesus wants to come and he's knocking at the door that I'm not sorry, I'm too busy, I'm just gonna all I'll listen in on, like, while I'm doing this, like making time to really get on my knees, like you were saying, mandy, and guard that time with the Lord. Make it precious to me.

Speaker 2: 33:06

And the last one, the last section, verse 32, really stuck out to me whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty and he who rules his spirit, then he who takes a city. So I just thought of self-control there and the self-control that is needed for me to combat apathy, like if I am Not gonna have this lukewarm spirit where I'm like, uh Jesus, I'll get to you tomorrow or the next day or the next day or the next day, but to really hunger for him I have to have self-control, my own heart, because my pride will get in the way, I'll make room for all this Stuff and lies and selfishness and then I won't have Enough control of my own emotions truly to even want to have time with Jesus. So those are the I wrote down like eight verses or something. I try to have something down for all 33 verses, but those are the two that I wanted to make sure that I shared in, especially the specifically correlating with Revelations 3, 15 through 17.

Speaker 3: 34:07

Yes, there were so many verses here. We could stop and sit on each one of them and talk about them. Or, if you're doing this on your own, you could literally take each verse, but just you know, depending on the time you have, just going through it, maybe you do like want to take a couple verses a day, like make it a heart check every day, read another verse, but just go through it and what's standing out to you, like what is God ministering to you today? Where is he like? I really want you to pay attention to this one, and I did. I did stop on that first verse there for a minute and then it made me look it up in the message because I wasn't sure exactly what it meant in the ESV. And so this is another way, listeners, that you can expand your understanding is look at it in a different version and sometimes the message is a great version to look at it. And if you don't have time to go, look up a commentary, because it's kind of like written, it's a paraphrase, kind of written in today's language. I'm like oh yeah, I get that, but what it says in today's language is mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word and he has the last word. So I should give him the first one. You know, I should let him speak into it, because he's gonna have the last word. Let that last word be something I'm already lined up with, you know. But really, what ministered to my heart personally, like where I felt like God was wanting me to pay attention in this proverb it's especially when it comes to a heart check is verses 14 and 15. So I love that it was different for all of us too.

Speaker 3: 35:24

A king's wrath is a messenger of death, and a wise man will appease it. In the light of a king's face, there is life and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain, and what I was seeing here is when someone is Not being the person that I want them to be. If I'm wise, I will appease it like. I won't fight back, but I will. I will have the Lord in me. I will have his response. I will come back with an answer that is going to Soften what the wrath I'm not gonna be like. Well, I'm mad at you because you're doing that. You know I'm going to bring something to the table that's going to help mellow everything out if I'm a wise person and Then, in the light of a king's face, there is life and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain.

Speaker 3: 36:15

And I see that when I am being like Jesus, my face has life in it, like what you were talking about, sherry, about people being able to see Jesus in us and on us, like you could with that leader when you were 13, and then I just love that visual picture of His favor. Is like the clouds that bring the spring rain, like we can bring spring rain or not. And then the verse before was talking about the king, and in this verse too, like when we appease, when we appease wrath, we're inviting good things over ourselves, we're inviting spring rain over ourselves. We can break, we can be spring rain and rain and we can invite spring rain.

Speaker 3: 36:55

So that was kind of what was ministering to me as in I want that Jesus, like when I'm with you, I want to be that Help me, because I struggle with that, if I'm honest. So, all right, sherry, this was so awesome. What a great conversation. I mean just like so many nuggets in here. We really appreciate you joining us today, taking the time to be here and don't like both of you for having me.

Speaker 1: 37:15

It's been an honor and it's fun just to sit and talk about Jesus together.

Speaker 3: 37:20

Thank you, guys, so much for joining us for this episode. If you have been enjoying this series, can you do us a favor and rate the podcast wherever you listen and, of course, share it with your friends or a girl that God puts on your heart, as always? We want to remind you that we have meaningful conversations on the podcast, in hopes that you will go when have meaningful conversations of your own with the girls in your life, and we give you tools to help you with this. You can find them on our website. Currently, we have conversation cards that are about making room for Jesus, and we are about to release our make room Bible study. So be on the lookout for that, and we hope that you will join us back here next week for episode 3 in the make room series.