#18 - Drifting and Anchoring in the Waters of Faith

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I grew up watching Gilligan's Island, and I think

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of the theme song a few times a year, and it

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gets stuck in my head. And there's a line in

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the song that says, the weather started getting

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rough, the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the

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courage of the fearless crew, the minnow would

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be lost. Beyond being catchy, this line contains

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truth. for our lives and you're probably singing

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it now and I don't blame you. Life's challenges

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or storms can definitely throw us off course

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from where we expected we were going and it takes

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courage sometimes to just survive and not get

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lost in the storm. Today I want to talk about

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something a bit less dramatic than the storms

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of life but equally dangerous. drifting away

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from God without even realizing it. Picture this.

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Have you ever been on a boat or a raft or even

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a kayak, because I love kayaking, and you look

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up and suddenly you realize how far you've drifted

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from the shore. You didn't mean to. You weren't

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trying to get lost or lose your bearings. But

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the combination of the waves, the wind, and even

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just sitting still too long all work together

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to slowly move you away from where you started.

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That really is what spiritual drift feels like.

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You look up one day and realize prayer feels

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distant. The Bible isn't in your clear view anymore

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and God seems far off. We realize that we aren't

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even thinking about how we can respond to God

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in faith because we're too busy with life itself.

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But it's not God who's moved, we have. And that's

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what we're talking about today. And I want to

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remind you that our spiritual lives are not separate

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from our mental, emotional, or physical health.

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When we drift spiritually, everything else can

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feel off. Welcome back to Mind of Faith Matters.

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I'm the host, Dr. Cory Potter, and today's episode

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is about how to recognize that drift in our spiritual

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lives, how to do a self -check, how to encourage

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others in their faith journey, and how to anchor

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yourself, again, in truth and grace. And if you've

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been listening to the podcast, first, thank you.

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But second, I want to let you know that this

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builds On our previous conversations about why

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it's difficult to be still before God in episode

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7, and the practice of being still before God

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in episode 8, and those episodes explored what

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it meant to practice this stillness in the presence

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of God. And today we're asking, what happens

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when we stop even doing that? So the first question,

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how do we know we're drifting spiritually? And

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it is challenging because you might not recognize

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it right away. You might feel off just in general.

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And a lot of things in our lives can make us

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feel off. Our relationships, our jobs, our stress,

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our finances. So it gets lost sometimes. But

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when you're drifting spiritually, maybe you've

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pulled away from those godly influences in your

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life. Like the people in your church or your

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group maybe you're too tired to pray or you're

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just not interested in it or maybe you feel shame

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and you're not even sure why you just have this

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sense of guilt and shame you know you can ask

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yourself some questions and we're going to talk

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about them later but when we live with that spiritual

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disconnection for too long our bodies start to

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carry it It's like our bodies feel restless and

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uneasy. And like I say, it can be the grind of

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life, but other times it's the absence of peace

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that only comes from being close to Jesus. And

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this inner spiritual weariness or uneasiness

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in our spirit can show up as a loss of joy, a

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lack of motivation. Maybe it's even a sense of

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disconnection from yourself or others. I've seen

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it where it becomes distrust in the intentions

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of those around us or like an emotional distance

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that we go through and even anger for some. People

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can get angry in response to things that happen

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to them quicker but maybe it's just this anger

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about their situation and in some cases it really

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can be a blaming of God. So what does the Bible

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say about this drifting away? Hebrews chapter

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2 verse 1 gives us a strong warning It says we

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must pay the most careful attention Therefore

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to what we have heard so that we do not drift

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away And I think about this in my kayaking life

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because I do love to kayak and I think of this

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warning About drifting away in our spiritual

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lives But you really do have to be careful and

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pay attention to where you're at on a lake or

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a body of water because there are bigger vessels,

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bigger boats out there that can steam you over

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or you can get caught up in the shoreline bushes

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or on rocks. I was so excited one day that we

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were going to get to go in this lake and kayak

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up the river and this series of channels and

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it was miles of kayaking but there was a barrier

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there because of this deep waterfall so The lake

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was way higher than the actual river and I couldn't

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go the whole distance. But the point of it is

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you have to pay the most careful attention to

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where you're at or things can happen. And drifting

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happens on a body of water just like it does

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spiritually. It happens quietly and subtly, often

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by not taking action. You don't have to rebel

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to drift. You just have to stop paying attention.

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Pastor Jim Soul once said, All you have to do

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to become a lukewarm, worldly, spiritually indifferent

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Christian is nothing. That hits hard because

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it's true. Spiritual drift often begins with

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neglect, not defiance. But we have to understand

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we have a very real spiritual enemy. And the

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devil isn't always trying to shock us and rock

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us. Sometimes he's content to distract us. to

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lull us into spiritual sleep. Scripture says

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he's crafty and spiritual inactivity is one of

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his most effective tools. Satan is pleased when

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we stop making the effort to draw near to God.

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2 Corinthians chapter 2 verses 9 through 11 is

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where Paul explains that he's just going to conduct

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himself in the sight of Jesus and do the things

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that he knows that Jesus wants him to do. such

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as forgiving each other. He gives the reason

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so Satan might not outwit us. Paul writes it

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like this, For we are not unaware of his schemes.

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I know that scripturally, there are many warnings

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about staying on the right path and allowing

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God to help us and illuminate the path so that

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we don't get off track on our journey. But having

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this enemy against us can make some feel hopeless.

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Like, why bother? Well, I'm going to tell you,

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there's a reason why we should bother. We're

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not left without hope. Hebrews chapter 6 verse

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19 reminds us that we have this hope it's God's

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promises and his unchanging nature as an anchor

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for the soul. It's firm and secure. It means

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we have Jesus as the anchor we can return to

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to stop drifting because just like in the waters

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when I'm kayaking if I want to stay still and

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not take any action I'm going to drift. But the

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action that I need to take is to anchor myself

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where I'm at in order to not drift. And that's

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Jesus! In the Message Bible, Hebrews 6 verses

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19 through 20 is described like this, reaching

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past all appearances right to the very presence

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of God where Jesus running on ahead of us has

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taken up his permanent post as high priest for

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us. I love this imagery here. There's a weight

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we carry when we're not walking closely with

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God, but we have the answer. But I don't mean

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there's a weight we carry that's a religious

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check -the -box kind of way. I mean, the kind

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of disconnect where the prayer feels distant,

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the Bible feels dry, and you're not sure if God

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is even interested in what you're going through.

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You know, sometimes to talk about mental health,

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it feels the same and it gives us this anxiety,

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this irritability, and even depression can have

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spiritual roots. I'm not saying that all of it

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does. But certainly, we need to do this spiritual

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check when we're feeling certain kind of ways.

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As Christians, David describes what happens to

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him when he had unconfessed sin in Psalm 32.

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And I'm not reading it, but I'm saying that David

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mentions things like when I kept silent about

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his sin, my bones wasted away through my groaning

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all day long. And then he says his strength was

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sapped as if in the heat of summer. He was experiencing

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physical symptoms based on a spiritual problem

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of sin and the guilt that he had from that sin.

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Isaiah chapter 59 verse 2 tells us that your

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iniquities have separated you from God. But the

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good news is scripture doesn't stop there. The

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gospel always calls us back. So I want to talk

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about what we can do to help each other and really

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ourselves. I want to talk about this in light

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of spirituality and I'm going to talk about what

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the Bible says, but I want to get practical and

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walk us through a spiritual check -in. And I've

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gathered up some questions for men, for women,

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whether you're a Christian who feels solid or

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one who knows you've drifted. Here are some honest

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questions to use and they were designed to be

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used in a circle of trusted believers. I mean,

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you could use these as personal reflective questions

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as well. You might have to reword it, but let's

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start with men. The questions come directly from

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the Fight Club, which is an accountability framework

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that Passion City Church out of Atlanta, Georgia

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put in place. And in their Fight Clubs, which

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are just small groups of three to five men that

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get together and talk on a regular basis, the

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first question is, have you intentionally pursued

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Your relationship with God since we last met

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because if you haven't pursued a relationship

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with God as a believer It typically means that

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you've been pursuing something else With far

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less value to your spiritual life So that's a

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powerful first question next one Have you made

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it a priority to love and lead your family well

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since we last met? How about this have you looked

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at anything or been involved with anyone in a

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way that would compromise your purity since we

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last met? Next, have you been honorable and lived

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with a sense of mission, leveraging your life

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for others since we last met? To me that means,

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are you doing the things that God asked you to

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do and living sacrificially accountability matters

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in the sense that it's hard to ask yourself that

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question because either you've really convinced

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yourself that you have been honest and you're

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not doing anything wrong or you're not aware

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or you are aware and you're already feeling guilty

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so with other men it becomes oh wow I'm bringing

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this to the light I'm bringing this out of the

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darkness into the light so we can discuss it

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and then these questions really are not about

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performance they really about being honest accountability

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to others is wise and can bring you back to your

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anchor as I've said Jesus when you've drifted

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and notice that these questions work best when

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it's done on a regular basis you know consistently

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so it says since we've last met in some of the

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questions which means you are regularly meeting

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with these people. So now let's talk about for

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women. Let's go through some reflective questions

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from a framework that it's used by women in the

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Community of Faith Church. I found this online,

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by the way. First question, how has your personal

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time with God been this week? Have you encountered

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temptations or sin struggles? Is there anyone

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you need to reconcile with or forgive? How can

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your sisters pray for you this week? Have you

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spoken truth to yourself or have fear, shame,

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or comparison been louder? Women, I want to say

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just like men, your worth isn't defined by what

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you do or how well you hold it all together.

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These questions help you to be real with God

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and with others, staying anchored to your hope

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in Jesus. And these questions aren't really gender

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specific. They were just from resources that

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worded them for men and women. So you could do

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the comparison thing and you could ask all the

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questions. And how do you get them? You could

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go to the companion resource guide for episode

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18 on my website for the podcast mindandfaithmatters

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.com and just simply Save it or print them out?

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Here's some bonus questions. What lie have you

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believed about yourself or about God this week?

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It's very similar to have you spoken truth to

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yourself. Next, are you walking in freedom or

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are you trying to earn what's already yours in

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Christ? I'm gonna say it like this. Are you walking

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in freedom? Or are you walking in sin? Are you

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shutting God out or are you letting Him in? That's

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the mindset that I have. Is there anyone who

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truly knows how you're doing spiritually, emotionally,

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and relationally? You could take the cop -out

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answer and say, well, yeah, God knows. But I'm

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talking about accountability. And really, have

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you been sharing? We were never meant to follow

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Jesus alone. And these questions help us really

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with truth and then how to live in freedom that

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this truth brings. You know, that's how it works.

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So what should you do when you realize you've

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drifted due to sin? And I want to challenge you

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here, and I know it's going to sound somewhat

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like a sermon, but failing to do something that

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you can and ought to do is considered sin. A

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lot of times it's referred to as the sin of omission.

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Like not praying Not worshiping not studying

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scripture not helping others Not being honest.

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There's so many Things it's not I've told a lie

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it's I've Withheld some truth. I didn't do it.

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I didn't say the truth James 417 in the New International

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Version says it clearly if anyone then knows

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the good they ought to do and Doesn't do it It

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is sin for them. So if any of these questions

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and reflection hits home, or even close to home,

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don't run from it. It might just be the Holy

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Spirit drawing you in. And the next thing you

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need to do is confess. Because 1 John chapter

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1 verse 9 says, Confession leads to cleansing,

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not shame, not punishment. Cleansing. And James

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4 .8 says, draw near to God and he will draw

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near to you. You know, he's not playing hide

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and seek with you. He's already near. You just

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have to turn toward him again. Get your vessel,

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whatever it is, your spiritual vessel, out of

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that drift and back to him. And practically speaking,

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Don't keep this to yourself. Find someone you

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can trust, a friend, a mentor, a small group,

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and do for them what we've talked about doing

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for yourself. Ask how they're really doing. Use

00:18:59.099 --> 00:19:02.200
some of these check -in questions and start a

00:19:02.200 --> 00:19:05.259
regular schedule of mutual encouragement and

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accountability. Don't isolate. I'm not trying

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to simply make sure my listeners are self -aware.

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I want you and I want us to keep building one

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another up. in Christ and anchoring ourselves

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to Him. Let me leave you with this encouragement.

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If your soul feels off, it may be because you've

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drifted slowly, quietly, over time. But spiritual

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drift doesn't have to lead us to spiritual defeat.

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You can come back. You can reconnect. These spiritual

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check -ins aren't meant to guilt trip you. They're

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meant to ground you. They help us name what's

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going on beneath the surface so we can bring

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it into the light, as I've said. So we can walk

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in freedom. You don't have to fix yourself. You

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just have to come home. And if you need help,

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don't wait. Reach out. Confess. Reconnect. Jesus

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isn't surprised by your struggle. He's just waiting

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to meet you in it. I want to thank you for joining

00:20:08.769 --> 00:20:11.230
me today. And I want you to remember that we

00:20:11.230 --> 00:20:13.809
recently launched a small merchandise line on

00:20:13.809 --> 00:20:16.650
our website to help support the podcast. And

00:20:16.650 --> 00:20:20.190
for the entire month of July, 100 % of proceeds

00:20:20.190 --> 00:20:23.410
from every purchase of these really cool mugs,

00:20:23.809 --> 00:20:27.470
hats, shirts, will go straight to Heads Up Guys

00:20:27.470 --> 00:20:30.990
org. Heads Up Guys really is a place dedicated

00:20:30.990 --> 00:20:34.549
to helping men fight depression and prioritize

00:20:34.549 --> 00:20:37.470
their mental wellness. And that's been my focus

00:20:37.470 --> 00:20:40.130
for July. I didn't want to leave the women out

00:20:40.130 --> 00:20:44.150
so I had to speak this week to everyone. So I

00:20:44.150 --> 00:20:46.509
want you to visit the store mindandfaithmatters

00:20:46.509 --> 00:20:51.130
.com forward slash store and check it out. Make

00:20:51.130 --> 00:20:53.869
a purchase to support a worthy cause. I want

00:20:53.869 --> 00:20:56.470
to thank you for all those who've already purchased

00:20:56.470 --> 00:21:00.170
shirts and mugs. It's much appreciated and I'm

00:21:00.170 --> 00:21:03.309
excited to be able to donate something to this

00:21:03.309 --> 00:21:07.190
organization. I'll see you next time on Mind

00:21:07.190 --> 00:21:10.400
and Faith Matters. And until then, I want you

00:21:10.400 --> 00:21:15.059
to think about how you can stop drifting and

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get back to that anchor in Jesus. God bless and

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have a great week.