Joe White Drive Time Podcast

Harmonious, Sympathetic, Brotherly - Peter 3:8-9

"Counselors that'll meet each other at Kamp and then they'll marry each other. But one of my favorites of all of our marriages is this couple that are married. They're raising kids together. But three years ago, they were ready to kill each other." 

Family Discussion:

1. Who is it in your life that you need to love like that?
2. Who is it that that may be the hardest to love, but that you need to watch God do a big miracle as you begin to love that person like Jesus would?

Transcription:

00:13          You know, here at Kanakuk at the sports Kamps and Kids Across America, I get to see some of the greatest relationships. Counselors that'll meet each other at Kamp and then they'll marry each other. But one of my favorites of all of our marriages is this couple that are married. They're raising kids together. But three years ago, they were ready to kill each other. I mean, three years ago, there was so much strife in their marriage. I mean they had already thrown in the towel, but then they went to counseling and God showed up as they begin to replace the insults with kindness and they replaced the anger with forgiveness. And now they're walking hand in hand and loving each other socks off. Listen to what first Peter Three, eight and nine said, if you've got a dad in your life or a brother or an employer, employee or spouse and you just, you know, you feel like they're just ridiculing you or they're like your enemy.

 

01:09          This should it encourage you? It sure does. Me Listen to what first Peter says, chapter three, verse eight and nine. "To sum it up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, humble in spirit, not returning, not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead. For you were called for this very purpose that you might inherit a blessing." One of my favorite things in sports, you know, as I get to share with teams around the country and college and pros is after the game. You know, before the game, they're getting fired up to smash each other. And during the game they're doing that. They're trying to take each other out. But after the game, the Christian guys will get together and they'll get in circles. It happens all over the league and in NFL. The cameras don't show it.

 

02:03          You know, the TV producers, they're uncomfortable with prayer for some strange reason, but these teams, after they play each other, the Christian guys, and sometimes you'll see 20 or 30, 40 players out on the field. As Christian brothers holding hands and praying together after the game because that's what scripture says to do. It says to love your enemies, to pray for those who persecute you. I used to admire my dad so much, but one of the most admirable things about him was the way he forgave my brother. He was going through some awful times as a teenager. And he ran away. And my daddy was so mad when he left home, but when he came back, I remember he walked in my house and he had this big, beautiful smile on his face. And the first thing my daddy said to him, even though he had been, you know, evil or battered, you know, when he left. But the first thing my daddy said to him, he said, I wouldn't, I wouldn't trade $1 million for that smile. And when my daddy died, my brother was sitting at his grave and he said, my daddy was my best friend.

 

03:08          So my question for you today is this. Who is it in your life that you need to love like that? Who is it that that may be the hardest to love, but that you need to watch God do a big miracle as you begin to love that person like Jesus would? Go, hug somebody today.

Becoming an Example of Christ - 1 Thessalonians 1:5-6

"Advice can be confusing, but examples are always clear."

Family Discussion:

• Why is a lifestyle dedicated to Christ the most powerful witnessing tool that we have?
• How consistently do your friends see you living out your faith in Jesus?
• Does your lifestyle lead your unsaved friends to Christ? And then, how can you change it So it can be just like Brett's and what happened to him and Josh?

Transcription:

00:04 We're going to be in a great book. And not like they're all not great books, they are. But this is, this is one of my favorites. And it's first Thessalonians 1:5-6. And Paul writes this: "for our Gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit. And with full conviction, just as you know what kind of men we prove to be among you for your sake, you also became imitators of us and of the Lord. Have we received the word of the Lord in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit."

00:51 I call this one walking your talk. And let me just tell you this story. Josh had been in trouble since elementary school. He'd been kicked out of school for carrying a concealed weapon in fifth grade and using drugs extensively and fighting in high school. It left his heart cold and hard. Although Josh had a religious background, he had ceased to believe in God because he accepted his biology teachers' fraudulent Darwinian ideas that we had somehow evolve by chance over a long period of time from slime. That all started with nothing, that nothing exploded. The cosmos erupted. And out of some lifeless pool of prebiotic soup, life somehow emerged out of nothing and that he literally was an ancestor, and his ancestor was slime. But Josh had a friend named Brett who had been a drug user and a dealer alongside of him for the better part of three years. Brett stopped by my house one day a few years ago after one of his friends that almost died in a heroin overdose. And Brett gave his heart to Christ. And I mean sincerely, I challenged Brett to give up drugs for 21 days, knowing that after 21 days saying no would be a habit, he accepted the challenge and said no. In those 21 days, he told me more times than he could count. Josh saw a complete change in Brett's heart. Brett was a new man. He even broke up with this drop dead gorgeous girlfriend because their relationship had become sexual and he knew it was wrong. So Josh asked Brett to bring him to my house for a life challenging talk. After I cleared up his misconception about evolution and that he indeed was created intelligently, scientifically by an intelligent designer, a creator, he gave his heart to Christ. I asked him why he wanted to make such a life changing decision. He had one word for his answer and his answer was because of Brett.

02:56 Here's the questions today. Why is a lifestyle dedicated to Christ the most powerful witnessing tool that we have? And then secondly: How consistently do your friends see you living out your faith in Jesus? And then the third question is this: Does your lifestyle lead your unsaved friends to Christ? And then: how can you change it So it can be just like Brett's and what happened to him and Josh. And here's the lifeline today: You know your eye is a better pupil and we're willing than the ear is, the poem said. Advice can be confusing, but examples always clear. And that point says, I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day.

The Power of His Presence - Acts 1:9-11

"I heard an old country friend of mine say one time, "you know, there's only three things you need in life. Duct tape, wd 40 and Jesus." Well, I suppose that's true because Jesus is included."

Family Discussions:

1. How did Jesus' departure make you stronger than even if he was standing by your side?
2. How is the force similar to our faith? But how is the force of star wars different than our faith?
3. What difference does it make in your life today that Jesus is praying for you?
4. What difference does it make in your life today that Jesus, is building a mansion for you?
5. What difference does it make in your life today that Jesus is allowing his spirit to live inside of you?

Transcription:

00:14 I heard an old country friend of mine say one time, you know, there's only three things you need in life. Duct tape, wd 40 and Jesus. Well, uh, I suppose that's true because Jesus is included. You want power? You want authority? You want strength? You want courage? Hey, get into this devotional a day and you're going to find it. It's from Acts chapter one verses nine through 11. Jesus and disciples are on the Mount of olives and he's about to be taken away. It's called the ascension. And here's here it goes, Luke is writing. He says, "after he had said these things, he was lifted up while they were looking on and behold, a cloud received him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while he was departing, behold two men in white clothing stood beside them. And they also said, men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky?

01:06 This Jesus who's been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you've watched him go into heaven." My little grandson, Dax, uh, who are loved so much. He is a big time star wars fan. And uh, you know, I remember in the first star wars movie, you know, where, I think Obi wan is talking to you know, Darth Vader and he says, if you kill me I'll be stronger. And, and what he's talking about is this new age idea about the force. May the force be with you, whatever. And of course it's, it's, it's a new age concept. It is absolutely useless. But there's something similar to that. Although this one is true where Jesus said to his disciples, I'm not going to leave you as orphans in John 14. He said, I'm going to come to you in a little while.

01:52 He said, the world will behold me no more, but you will behold me because I live. You shall live. Also in that day he's talking about he said, I will be in the father and you will be in me and I will be in you. He's talking about the Holy Spirit and you know what? The Holy Spirit, which of course is the spirit of God, is who you receive when Christ comes into your life. And, and y'all, you talk about motivation, you talk about power, you talk about hope. Now check this out. When Jesus went to be with the father, three things happen on that day. One, he went into the construction business because he said in John 14, he said, I'm going to go prepare a place for you. I'm going to go to prepare a mansion for you. The second thing that he did on that day is he begin a work in your life through the Holy Spirit.

02:45 And the third thing he did that day, he went to be with God. And as Romans eight says, he began to pray for you. He began to pray for you all the time. What would you do if Jesus came back and he literally, uh, begin to hold your hand and began to walk with you every where you went? You think you'd be powerful? You think you could be strong? You think you could overcome temptation? And what if Jesus was right over there? Next you and you saw him on his knees praying for you all the time? You think things in your life would change? You think your attitude would change? You think your faith will change? And then, man, what if, what if every morning you and I woke up and we saw this mansion, this mansion in heaven, that's going to be yours forever.

03:33 that he had personally built for you, what do you think? You think our life would change if those three things were reality in our life? Well I'll tell you something, they are. They're reality in your life. So here's the questions today, how did Jesus' departure make you stronger than even if he was standing by your side? And then in kind of a crazy way. How is the force similar to our faith? But how is the force of star wars different than our faith? And then what difference does it make in your life today that Jesus is praying for you? What difference does it make in your life today that Jesus, is building a mansion for you? And what difference does it make in your life today that Jesus is allowing his spirit to live inside of you and the lifeline for today is this live today in the power of his presence and watch what happens.

The Holy Spirit: God's Voice Inside - John 16:7-14

"A young lady entered this Christian counselor's office one day with, with eyes that told a story of a life of misery and sin and as she sat down, the counselor asked her what was wrong."

Family Discussions:

1. How does the Holy Spirit speak to you?
2. What part does God's word play in your conscience? How does His word build your conscience?
3. What happens when we ignore the voice inside?
4. How does the Holy Spirit glorify Jesus?

Transcription:

00:13 Well, I love to grill. Every man loves to grill and uh, I love to start the fire. Today, I'm going to tell you about a fire. I'm going to tell you about a great fire, the best fire of all. John 16 verse seven through 14, Jesus speaking the last night before he's crucified, what a discourse it was in the upper room. Um, here we go. Verse seven through 14, "He said, but I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away for if I do not go away. The helper will not come to you, but if I go away, I will send him to you. And He, when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment concerning sin because they do not believe in me, concerning righteousness because I go to the father and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

01:02 I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot hear them now. But when he, the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. For he will not speak on his own initiative, but whatever he hears, he will speak and he will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify me. Jesus said, for he will take of mine and will disclose it to you." The Holy Spirit, God's voice inside. Uh, the story goes of a Christian psychologist who specialized in helping people get out of their bad habits, relieved the stress and the fears that they were experiencing and to get their lives back on track. I believe in Christian counseling and by the way, a lot in this story, a young lady entered this Christian counselors office one day with, with eyes that told a story of a life of misery and sin and as she sat down, the counselor asked her what was wrong.

01:56 She openly told him of her godless lifestyle The stuff she was doing, her guilty conscience and how miserable she was because of all the stuff that was going on in her life. The psychologist asked her if she wanted some help to change her ways. And she quickly replied, no, I don't want to change. I just want you to weaken my conscience. Little did she know that your conscience is like the nerves in your hand that make you pull away from a hot flame before it roasts your skin. Your conscience is the spirit of God guiding a believer into the things that are right in leading you away from the mistakes they're caused by sin. When your conscience speaks, that's a fire in your heart. And when that fire's burning, you better listen. Here's the questions for the day. How does the Holy Spirit speak to you? And the second question, What part does God's word play in your conscience? How does His word build your conscience? And then the third question is what happens when we ignore the voice inside? And the last one, how does the Holy Spirit glorify Jesus? And here's the lifeline: As we keep God's word alive in our home, we keep our consciences sharp.

The Holy Spirit: The Counselor - John 15:26

"This young woman had been abused as a small child. Her sadness and her depression is still lingered across her precious 19 year old face. I picked up on her sadness one day as she diligently served meals in our camp dining hall."

Family Discussions:

1. What are some of the other names for the Holy Spirit?
2. How is he tied to the Trinity?
3. How does that all work together in your mind? Father, son, and Holy Spirit?
4. How can his ability as a counselor help you today?
5. Why did God give a believer his spirit? Why did he give you his spirit?

Transcriptions:

00:13 It is the best day of my life. Every single day. When I get to see someone, just transformed by the spirit of Christ. I want to, I want to tell you about one of those today. And, and, and, and the, uh, the ability for that comes from, uh, from scripture and from the man of scripture. John Chapter 15, 26 when he writes of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. And here's what Jesus says. He says, "when the helper comes, whom I will send to you from the father. That is the spirit of truth. Who proceeds from the father. He, the Holy Spirit will testify about me." Oh Man. This, this young woman had been abused as a small child. Um, her sadness and her depression is still lingered across her precious 19 year old face. You know, I, I picked up on her sadness one day as she diligently served meals in our camp dining hall.

01:11 Uh, just, just a lovely girl with a humble servant's heart. Uh, we talked for a long while there in the dining hall in amidst many tears. She let me in on her seemingly unresolved problems. With much assurance of God's amazing unconditional love, I got to share with her that his word and his spirit, were her constant counselor. Uh, you know that she literally had a problem solver living in her heart. You know, it was unbelievable. You know, that day she began to memorize God's word and, and defeat her mind with her counselor's thoughts - God's thoughts. She began to pray constantly to fill her heart with, with her counselor's love. She trusted Christ continuously to fill her soul with her counselor's assurance and, and, and, and I'm telling you something. It's true. Y'All a week went by and I saw a smile. A month went by and I saw a happy heart.

02:07 A year went by and I saw her dance. I saw her dance like a little kid at Christmas. You know, the Holy Spirit comes into your heart the moment you accept Christ as savior. He is a humble person and he always lifts up Jesus. His ministry in your heart is to make you like Christ and to make your heart dance. Here's some questions to ponder. What are some of the other names for the Holy Spirit? Uh, you know, spirit of God, you know, Holy Ghost, you named some of them in scripture. And then how is he tied to the Trinity? How does that all work together in your mind? Father, son, and Holy Spirit? And then this question, how can his ability as a counselor help you today? And then lastly, why did God give a believer his spirit? Why did he give you his spirit? And here's the lifeline. When you think about the Holy Spirit, you can agree with Paul when he said, thanks be to God for the indescribable gift.