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[00:00:00] to me, you just find a way to stand. [00:00:03] You just do. It is so hard, but you find [00:00:06] a way to stand. And going through [00:00:09] scripture [00:00:11] heavily, [00:00:12] the two moments that have stuck out to [00:00:15] me through all of this with regard to [00:00:17] standing, [00:00:20] one where you're standing in suffering, [00:00:23] and then one where you're standing [00:00:25] against the wickedness of the devil. [00:00:30] And the the most beautiful depiction [00:00:35] of standing in the suffering [00:00:38] for me was in John chapter 19 verse 25 [00:00:43] where you have Mary the mother of Jesus [00:00:47] standing at the foot of the cross. [00:00:54] She just watched the most unjust [00:00:58] violence take place against the love, [00:01:05] love of her life, love of our life. [00:01:09] And what did she do? [00:01:12] She didn't scream. [00:01:15] [snorts] She didn't accuse. She didn't [00:01:17] try to explain God. She wasn't pulling [00:01:19] her hair out. She wasn't. She just [00:01:22] stood. [00:01:25] She had her friends next to her. [00:01:28] But she stood [00:01:31] with with composure [00:01:33] and divine power [00:01:36] of patience. [00:01:38] And [00:01:40] it's so when you trust in the Lord, [00:01:45] you have [snorts] no idea what you can [00:01:46] bear until you're tried. [00:01:51] And in [snorts] those moments, you just [00:01:54] know that his grace is sufficient [00:01:55] because you can feel it. [00:01:58] [snorts] You can deeply feel it. [00:02:01] And um [00:02:03] [snorts] [00:02:04] the part where you're standing [00:02:08] against the wickedness of the devil, [00:02:12] it's really interesting because it's in [00:02:13] Ephesians 6. And what I find so [00:02:16] fascinating, [00:02:17] I was always obsessed with Ephesians 5 [00:02:20] because it talks about marriage and um [00:02:23] it's really interesting that Ephesians 5 [00:02:25] talks about the proper order of marriage [00:02:28] and love [00:02:30] and then Ephesians 6 [00:02:34] prepares you for the warfare. [00:02:37] So if you have an Ephesians 5 marriage, [00:02:40] you better read Ephesians 6. [00:02:44] because the Lord's going to use your [00:02:46] marriage in ways that will blow your [00:02:48] mind. [00:02:49] And [00:02:52] what stuck out to me, [00:02:54] what's so powerful about Ephesians 6 [00:02:58] verses 10-18 is that Paul was very [00:03:02] intentional about using the word stand [00:03:05] twice. [00:03:07] The first time you stand is your choice [00:03:11] because you decided to put on the full [00:03:13] armor of God. You did. [00:03:17] As feeble of an attempt that it was, you [00:03:20] put it on. [00:03:22] But then [00:03:24] in verse 14, [00:03:28] after you're standing your ground, it [00:03:30] says, "Stand firm then." [00:03:34] And he's emphasizing the perseverance, [00:03:37] but he's also emphasizing that [00:03:43] you have to [00:03:45] know that your strength can only take [00:03:47] you so far. My grandma used to say, [00:03:50] "Your running legs can only take you so [00:03:52] far. Jesus does the rest." [00:03:55] But when you stand firm, [00:03:58] that's not you. That's God's strength. [00:04:02] You stood the first time, [00:04:05] ready for battle, bracing yourself. [00:04:09] God says, "Just stand firm." [00:04:12] And I'll never forget getting off of Air [00:04:15] Force 2 [00:04:17] and I looked at Usha and I said, "I have [00:04:20] no idea how I'm going to do this." [00:04:23] And I know that I've I've shared this [00:04:24] story before, but I want to share it [00:04:26] with you again because if any of you [00:04:27] guys are going through a really hard [00:04:28] time in your life, [snorts] [00:04:30] it was the most practical [00:04:34] response that anyone could give. [00:04:37] And I loved it. And she said, "You know [00:04:40] when you're on an airplane [00:04:43] flying with your kids [00:04:45] and there's 15 minutes left on this [00:04:48] plane ride and your kids are losing [00:04:51] their mind. I mean, toys are flying [00:04:53] everywhere. Passengers are looking at [00:04:56] you like, "Why are you a terrible [00:04:57] parent?" You're trying so hard to [00:04:59] negotiate with this little human that [00:05:01] has negotiation on lock because they [00:05:04] just It's always why no why, no. And [00:05:08] she's like, "And then the plane lands [00:05:13] and you survived those 15 minutes [00:05:16] and then the next 15 minutes and then [00:05:19] the next [00:05:21] And [00:05:24] to me, when I stood watching my [00:05:27] husband's casket [00:05:30] get taken off that plane, [00:05:35] she held my hand. I had one of our other [00:05:37] family friends with us [00:05:40] and we just stood and you just do it. [00:05:45] You just do it and you stand [00:05:48] and [00:05:51] I say all this because the way that God [00:05:53] has carried me is the way that he wants [00:05:55] to carry you through your trial, through [00:05:59] your life. [00:06:01] My cross is mine to carry. You have your [00:06:04] own. [00:06:06] It's your your own cross to bear. One is [00:06:09] not better or worse than the other. It's [00:06:10] just different. [00:06:13] Life is different for all of us. But [00:06:16] what we profoundly share in common is [00:06:17] that we are all operating within one of [00:06:22] it's just our world is so broken. Our [00:06:25] world is so evil. Our world is so dark. [00:06:28] And we're all touched by confusion. [00:06:30] We're all touched by disappointment. [00:06:31] We're all touched by loss. We all suffer [00:06:34] in different ways that are personal. [00:06:38] But what I want to remind you of is that [00:06:43] yeah, this world like [00:06:46] you might feel as if it is going to [00:06:48] break you, [00:06:52] but [00:06:53] Jesus already broke himself for us.