1
00:00:00,600 –> 00:00:04,080
In 2025, I found myself
wrestling with frustration that

2
00:00:04,080 –> 00:00:08,520
God was not giving me joy.
And then God very patiently told

3
00:00:08,520 –> 00:00:11,200
me what was actually happening.
It wasn’t that he was

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00:00:11,200 –> 00:00:14,080
withholding joy, it was that I
was rejecting it.

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What followed was an invitation
to spend 30 days looking at 30

6
00:00:18,200 –> 00:00:21,320
passages on Joy and turning it
into a devotional called

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00:00:21,320 –> 00:00:24,800
Rejecting Joy No longer.
You’d think I would have learned

8
00:00:25,000 –> 00:00:28,160
that coming into 2026, I was
wrestling with hope.

9
00:00:28,840 –> 00:00:32,040
God, why are you making me so
hopeless?

10
00:00:32,640 –> 00:00:35,480
And God very patiently let me
know the reality.

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He wasn’t withholding hope.
I was rejecting it.

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And so now here I am, spending
30 days looking at 30 passages

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00:00:43,560 –> 00:00:46,560
on hope.
And my hope is that this

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encourages you.
One thing that’s different this

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00:00:49,440 –> 00:00:52,160
year is I felt like God was
inviting me to be publicly

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00:00:52,160 –> 00:00:56,440
transparent with my processing.
To actually go live on social

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00:00:56,440 –> 00:01:00,880
media, pull out a random verse,
and then read and process

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through it on camera.
This isn’t me coming to you as

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an expert on hope, but me coming
to you honestly as someone

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wrestling with hope.
And by witnessing that some of

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you might feel less alone, may
feel seen and understood, may

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end up being encouraged in a way
that is far deeper than the best

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platitude.
So join me as I spend 30 days

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navigating 30 passages on Hope.
This is day 26.

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You’re listening to episode 233
of the Where Did You See God

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podcast.
Hey folks, we’re going to see

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how this goes.
Got kids going all over.

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Hey buddy, you’re going to have
to do that somewhere else.

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I’m recording buddy.
Thank you.

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That’s an example.
Unless you want to hear an audio

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book instead.
When I got to look, but I had

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already talked to him.
All right, let me pray.

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Probably guys just thinking that
you got and you were good for

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the ways that you move.
And so right now we just pray

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for this time now that you’d be
honored and glorified.

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00:02:15,080 –> 00:02:17,920
I thank you for this verse.
Your word, Holy Spirit, just

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move and giving hears to hear
and deeper understanding beyond

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human logic.
Name Amen.

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OK, he’s gone.
It’s 2 upstairs.

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Will they stay upstairs?
We’ll find out.

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We’re not in Psalm anymore.
First Timothy 617.

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As for the rich in this present
age, charge them not to be

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haughty, nor to set their hopes
on the uncertainty of riches,

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but on God, who richly provides
us with everything to enjoy.

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00:02:51,880 –> 00:02:55,600
Let’s pull it up.
Interesting.

46
00:02:56,160 –> 00:02:59,160
Let’s scoot back.
These are the things to teach

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00:02:59,160 –> 00:03:01,600
and insist on.
If anyone teaches otherwise and

48
00:03:01,600 –> 00:03:03,960
does not agree to the sound
instruction of our Lord Jesus

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00:03:03,960 –> 00:03:07,080
Christ into godly teaching, they
are conceited and understanding

50
00:03:07,080 –> 00:03:09,800
nothing.
He’s coming in hot.

51
00:03:10,400 –> 00:03:13,240
They have an unhealthy interest
in controversies and quarrels

52
00:03:13,240 –> 00:03:16,920
about words that result in envy,
strife, malicious talk, evil

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suspicions, and constant
friction between people of

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corrupt mind who have been
robbed of the truth and who

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think that godliness is a means
to financial gain.

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All right, so this is where it
comes into this passage.

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00:03:29,040 –> 00:03:32,600
Those who think that godliness
is a means to financial gain,

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but godliness with contentment
is great gain.

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00:03:37,360 –> 00:03:40,920
For we brought nothing into the
world and we can take nothing

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out of it, but if we have food
and clothing, we will be content

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with that.
Those who want to get rich fall

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into temptation and a trap and
into many foolish and harmful

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desires that plunge people into
ruin and destruction.

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For the love of money is a root
of all kinds of evil.

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Some people eager for money have
wandered from the faith and

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pierced themselves with many
griefs.

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00:04:03,120 –> 00:04:06,720
But you, man of God, he’s
talking to Timothy, flee from

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00:04:06,720 –> 00:04:09,280
all this and pursue
righteousness, godliness, faith,

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love, endurance and gentleness.
Fight the good fight of faith.

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00:04:13,560 –> 00:04:16,279
Take hold of the eternal life to
which you were called when you

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made your good confession, in
the presence of many witnesses

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in the sight of God who gives
life to everything, and of

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Christ Jesus, who while
testifying before Pontius

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Pilate, made the good
confession.

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I charge you to keep this
command without spot or blame

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until the appearing of our Lord
Jesus Christ, which God will

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bring about in His own time.
God the blessed and only Ruler,

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the King of Kings and Lord of
Lords, who alone is immortal and

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who lives in unapproachable
light, whom no one has seen or

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can see.
To him be honor and might

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forever Amen.
Command those who are rich in

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this present world not to be
arrogant, nor to put their hope

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in wealth, which is so
uncertain, but to put their hope

84
00:04:58,600 –> 00:05:02,200
in God, who richly provides us
with everything for our

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enjoyment.
Command them to do good, to be

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rich and good deeds, and to be
generous and willing to share.

87
00:05:13,720 –> 00:05:16,840
And this way they will lay up
treasure for themselves as a

88
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firm foundation for the coming
age, so that they may take hold

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of the life that is truly life,
so that they may take hold of

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the life that is truly life.
The here and now.

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Life is not truly life.
Paul is really pushing Timothy

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on this understanding of money,
on the misunderstandings of

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provision.
This is something I’ve talked

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about a lot as someone in full
time volunteer ministry, haven’t

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received a paycheck since 2018.
I’ve had to really sit with this

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idea of God as provider.
But the big thing that Paul is

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doing here is calling out the
dangers of when money consumes

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our mind.
And I want to talk about verse

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00:06:02,160 –> 00:06:04,840
10.
For the love of money is a root

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of all kinds of evil.
Some people eager for money,

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have wandered from the faith and
pierced themselves with many

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00:06:10,320 –> 00:06:12,760
griefs.
We take the love of money to

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mean greed more often than not.
That is not how I understand it.

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I think greed is a form of love
of money.

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I think love of money is any way
in which we give money power and

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authority over our lives.
And so for some, it’s actually

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financial fear.
And so Paul is recognizing the

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impact that this pursuit of
money, whether out of greed or

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fear, the impact that that has
had on people who wanted to seek

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godliness and has led many of
them to wander from the faith.

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In other words, it’s not that
they are overtly rejecting God.

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The fact that it says wandering
makes me feel like they were

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following God.
And then they saw another path,

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another trail wasn’t that they
were trying to dismiss God, but

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their eyes were set on something
else.

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In this case, the need for
money.

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Some of them did take it to
greed.

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People of corrupt mind who have
been robbed of the truth and who

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think that godliness is a means
to financial gain.

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We see that often now.
Many spiritual leaders who it

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seems are using godliness for
financial gain.

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Very, very dangerous.
And there are many spiritual

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leaders who have been caught in
it.

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That’s documented.
It happens, it happens.

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It’s a really unfortunate thing.
Paul is recognizing that even

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Timothy could fall into this.
Now this I think is important

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because it’s written in such a
way initially that one could

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think, Oh well, I would never do
that.

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But Paul is saying you, man of
God, flee from all this.

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So flee from those things and
pursue righteousness, godliness,

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faith, love, endurance, and
gentleness.

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Paul recognizes even Timothy
could stumble into this if he is

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not mindful and aware.
Command those who are rich in

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this present world not to be
arrogant nor to put their hope

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in wealth.
So this brings us back to the

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core of what all this is about.
Paul is setting a foundation for

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a right, healthy spiritual
understanding of money and he is

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acknowledging that some people
do have money.

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So knowing the danger of money,
how should we relate to money?

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And what Paul says is command
those who are rich currently in

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this world that have money now
not to be arrogant.

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So don’t let that become a
source of pride thinking they’re

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better than others because that
goes against a lot of what Jesus

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taught.
Kids are being loud nor to put

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their hope and wealth.
We put our hope and money often

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when we don’t have money, that’s
when we start to feel hopeless.

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Pause saying do not put your
hope and wealth.

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Wealth is not the thing that
actually will provide for you.

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Do not put your hope and wealth,
which is so uncertain money

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00:09:06,840 –> 00:09:11,360
could be gone like that, but to
put your hope in God who richly

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provides us with everything for
our enjoyment.

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I have some thoughts about that
because there’s a lot of times

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that don’t seem like enjoyment
to me.

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It references Acts 1417.
Yet he has not left himself

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without testimony.
He has shown kindness by giving

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you rain from heaven and crops
in their seasons.

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He provides you with plenty of
food and fills your hearts with

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joy.
Part of me, I think, is of all

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those things that I don’t enjoy
that verse acknowledges.

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But did you eat?
It causes me to question the bar

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that I’m setting for God and the
unwillingness to be content in

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all situations.
I’m going to have to go in a

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minute because the kids are not
letting me do this.

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They are so loud, man, I’m
really going to have to stop.

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00:10:03,760 –> 00:10:05,040
I’m going to have to stop in a
moment.

166
00:10:05,280 –> 00:10:07,640
So here’s the bottom line.
Let me read this verse again.

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Command those who are rich in
this present world, not to be

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00:10:09,720 –> 00:10:11,720
arrogant in order to put their
hope and wealth, which is so

169
00:10:11,720 –> 00:10:14,560
uncertain, but to put their hope
in God who richly provides us

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00:10:14,560 –> 00:10:17,000
with everything for enjoyment.
Paul says he’s learned the

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00:10:17,000 –> 00:10:19,000
secret of being content in every
situation.

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00:10:19,000 –> 00:10:21,360
So one, let’s acknowledge the
bar that we’re setting because

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here’s the other part, command
those who are rich.

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00:10:24,080 –> 00:10:25,600
Many of us would be like, well,
that’s not me.

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00:10:25,960 –> 00:10:28,280
I was reading a passage today
that was saying if you’re living

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in America, you have access to
clean drinking water, which is a

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00:10:31,840 –> 00:10:33,280
lot more than many people in the
world.

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00:10:33,360 –> 00:10:35,600
There are many people in the
world who do not have readily

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00:10:35,600 –> 00:10:39,600
accessible clean drinking water.
The fact that I’m in an air

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00:10:39,600 –> 00:10:43,520
conditioned home right now, that
I’m in a home that has multiple

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00:10:43,520 –> 00:10:47,360
rooms, that I’m live streaming a
computer, I’m rich.

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00:10:48,160 –> 00:10:51,040
If you’re watching this, you
have a device, you are rich.

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00:10:51,040 –> 00:10:54,360
Like in terms of the world,
there are many people who have

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00:10:54,360 –> 00:10:57,600
far less.
If we distance ourselves and

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00:10:57,600 –> 00:11:01,840
think the rich are only the
Super rich, then we are going to

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00:11:01,840 –> 00:11:04,240
free ourselves from what’s being
said here.

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00:11:04,680 –> 00:11:08,600
We understand ourselves rightly,
that most of us, all of us

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00:11:08,720 –> 00:11:11,800
engaging with technology right
now, are at a level of wealth.

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00:11:12,360 –> 00:11:18,200
Then we are actually meant to
pay attention to this, that we

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00:11:18,200 –> 00:11:21,920
should not become arrogant and
nor should we put our hope in

191
00:11:21,920 –> 00:11:28,520
wealth.
Wealth is uncertain, but we

192
00:11:28,520 –> 00:11:31,920
should put our hope in God who
richly provides us with

193
00:11:31,920 –> 00:11:35,680
everything for our enjoyment.
Command those who are rich in

194
00:11:35,680 –> 00:11:38,480
this present world not to be
arrogant, nor to put their hope

195
00:11:38,520 –> 00:11:42,320
and wealth which is so
uncertain, but to put their hope

196
00:11:42,320 –> 00:11:45,280
in God, who richly provides us
with everything for our

197
00:11:45,280 –> 00:11:47,360
enjoyment.
Father God, I thank you that you

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00:11:47,360 –> 00:11:49,440
are God and you are good and for
the ways that you move.

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00:11:49,440 –> 00:11:52,360
And we pray that you would teach
us how to not put our hope in

200
00:11:52,360 –> 00:11:54,920
things that are uncertain.
Teach us how to put our hope in

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00:11:54,920 –> 00:11:57,600
you last.
Grandma’s holy name, Amen.