The Disciples Despair Turned to Joy part 1

Really enjoyed worshiping to that last song, "He Will Hold Me Fast." It really, really fits where we're going. And our message this morning, it's one that we use in our home. I can sing those lyrics because I have been able to live that song, and it's only because he has done that work in me. Thank you for that one, Keith. Take your Bible this morning, turn with me to John chapter 16. Turn to John chapter 16, and we will be in verses 16 through 24. We'll be in verses 16 through 24. Now last Lord's Day, we were in our Easter message. We had a very good time celebrating the resurrection together.

We should celebrate, obviously, the resurrection each time we meet. Obviously all of the days of our life. Now the Lord's Day before that, we finished up our teaching on the Holy Spirit. We had what I called a bookend message for all that we learned about the Holy Spirit, and all of that came out of John chapter 14 and 15 and 16. Now this morning we are back in our verse-by-verse portion of our study through the Gospel of John. Now you know by now, because of some things that I have said and Brother Keith have said, that we find ourselves in what Bible scholars call the farewell discourses.

These farewell discourses are between the Passover, the Last Supper, and Jesus' arrest. Now we're over halfway through this section of Scripture, the farewell discourses. Now within our verses this morning, we find the disciples in that very familiar, that same old pit. They are in that same old dilemma. The disciples are still engulfed in despair and delusionment. We see Jesus state this back in verse 6. If you would, go ahead and go back to verse 6. It should be just above those verses that we're going to look at this morning. What does Jesus say? "Because I have said these things to you." That's the reference to the cross.

What does He say? "Sorrow has filled your heart." So we see that Jesus is stating to them that sorrow has filled their heart. There in verse 5, we see the reason for this sorrowful disposition. He told them that He was going away. And of course, this is a reference to the cross. Jesus had told them many, many times that He was going to the cross. We see this fact when we study all four of the Gospels. Matthew's account shows us that Jesus shared the cross with the disciples. See that in Matthew chapter 12, starting in verse 39. We see it in Matthew chapter 16 verse 21, Matthew chapter 17 in verse 22, and then Matthew 20 verse 19.

Mark teaches us the very same truths. Mark chapter 8, Mark chapter 9, Mark chapter 10, all teach on the cross. And then Luke teaches us the very same truths. We see this in Luke chapter 9 verse 22, Luke chapter 18 verse 33. And of course, we saw this earlier in John's Gospel, specifically John chapter 2 verse 18 through 22. But we also need to see that Jesus did tell them of His resurrection. Of course, the disciples understood none of this teaching. And I repeat that, they understood none of this teaching. So a question here. What needs to be seen right here as we start these verses, verses 16 to 20.

There are three realities that will help us before we divide the verses. First, Jesus had told the disciples many, many times that He would leave them. Of course, that's the cross. Second, Jesus told them that He would rise again. That's the resurrection. And then third, the disciples were still in this pit of despair and disillusionment. But we will see that they do have a wonderful hope. We will see that the disciples' despair will ultimately turn to joy. Now, I will go ahead and give you the title of the message. That is the disciples' despair turned to joy. The disciples' despair turned to joy. Now you see how we'll divide these verses.

The Lord's prediction in verse 16, just that one verse. The disciples' perplexity, verse 17 through 19. And then the promise given. And that is in verse 20. We will examine how the Lord deals with them and their despair. And then we will see how this relates to the despair and the disillusionment that we can face. Now, it should be easy for you to take notes. We do encourage you to take notes because it's our habit here to study during the week what the Lord gives us on Sunday. So let's look at our verses together starting in verse 16. "In a little while, and you will no longer behold Me or see Me.

And again, a little while, and you will see Me." Some of the disciples therefore said to one another, "What is this thing He is telling us?" "He is telling us, 'A little while, and you will not behold Me.' And again, a little while, and you will see Me. And because I go to the Father." And so they were saying, "What is this that He is saying a little while?" We do not know what He is talking about. Verse 19, "Jesus knew that they wished to question Him, and He said to them, 'Are you deliberating together about this, that I said a little while, and you will no longer behold Me?

And again, a little while, and you will see Me?" And then our last verse for the morning, verse 20, "Truly, truly, or verily, verily, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned to joy." So you see how we're going to divide these passages. So let's start with our first major truth, our number one in our outline. The Lord's prediction, that's right there in verse 16, "A little while, and you will no longer behold Me." And again, "A little while, and you will see Me." Now here we have a very short verse, but it is loaded with teaching.

All of the translations that we study, many of us have the King James, some of us have the New Americans, some of us have the English Standard. They all read basically the same thing. And all of the translations have this little phrase, "A little while." And it is mentioned twice in the text. Now to understand the verse, we need to examine how this little phrase is used. So we have two observations or two sub-points in our outline, and that is first, the first little while. Go back to the verse. "A little while, and you will no longer behold Me." Now here it is plain to see that Jesus is talking about the cross.

When Jesus is arrested and led to the cross, the disciples will be separated from Jesus. Of course we know that as Jesus was uttering these words, plans were being made to arrest Jesus, thus fulfilling this very prediction. So this first use of this phrase, "a little while," it obviously refers to the cross. Now second, the second little while. Go back to the verse. "A little while, and you will no longer behold Me." And again, "A little while, and you will see Me." Among Bible scholars, there is a debate as to where this second little while should be applied. Some view this as connected to the second coming of Jesus.

Other scholars believe this connects to the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus to the disciples. A third view is that this is speaking of the time of the coming of the Holy Spirit to the disciples. Now that leads us to a question, what is it? What view is correct? Now personally, I do not believe that this refers to the second coming. There's not really enough textual evidence to back up that position. I do see where one could believe that this is applying to the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus to His disciples. There are many reputable commentators that do take this position.

But I do not think that this view gives the full picture. I think two observations need to be made here. First in verse 16, verse 16 must be seen within the context of the entire teaching of these verses. In verses 20 to 22, we will see that Jesus predicts their future joy. I read that verse earlier. One day their despair and disillusionment will give way to complete joy. This does not happen at the post-resurrection appearances. They never had joy during that time. The disciples' despair and disillusionment did not give way to joy until after the Holy Spirit was given.

Second, I believe, verse 16 must also be seen against the backdrop of the Holy Spirit teaching that has filled these previous chapters, chapter 14, 15 and chapter 16. About separate times, Jesus had thoroughly taught the disciples of the coming of the Holy Spirit. Now, I want to go back to one, and that is in chapter 14, starting in verse 16, on down to verse 20. I think it needs to be read. Verse 16 of chapter 14, "And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another helper." That's the Holy Spirit. We've learned that.

"That He may be with you forever." That is the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you will know Him because He abides in you and will be in you. Let's continue on down. "I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. After a little while, the world will behold me no more, but you will behold me. Because I live, you shall also live." In that day, speaking of the coming of the Holy Spirit, verse 20, "You shall know that I am in the Father, and you in me, and I in you." Now, what do we see? A completion of this work. They have a knowledge of all that God is doing.

So in summary, what do we see here? Jesus tells His disciples that in a little while, they will no longer see Him. This is an obvious allusion to the arrest and the cross. He will be taken from them in their understanding, but in a little while, they will see Him. Yes, they will see Him after the resurrection, but they do not fully understand Jesus' mission until after the giving of the promised Holy Spirit, according to John, verse 20. What do we see? They know that He is in the Father. They know that they are in Him, and they know that He abides in them.

When the Spirit comes, He will be in them, and He will bring them understanding of these matters. When this takes place, they will be brought to that wonderful place of joy. That is the prediction here, just in this one verse. Now an application. What do we need to see? We need to see that if we are in trial, if we are going through difficult times, if we are battling despair and disillusionment, we need to see that there is a future day, a day ahead, a day of joy. Not that the pain will go away. The pain that you're experiencing might not go away for years. It might not ever go away.

Not that the source of that pain will ever possibly go away. The source of your pain, the source of your despair, the source of your disillusionment might never be taken out of your life. But what I believe we can learn here is this. Is through pain, we can receive joy. And you might find yourself in pain and in despair, but I believe there can be joy in your future. But the pain might not ever go away. The source of that pain might not ever go away. And you might find yourself saying, "Pastor, is it not a contradiction?

Is it not a contradiction that you're saying that I could have joy but yet my pain will never go away?" I believe the answer to that question will come to you very soon as we progress. Our second major truth in our outline, that is number two, the disciples' perplexity. The disciples' perplexity. I won't read these verses again, but from verse 17 all the way through to verse 19, we see the disciples talking among themselves. Here we see the disciples, they continue to reveal their confusion. They're just revealing the condition that they're in. Now this is the first time they have spoken up since Judas questioned Jesus back in chapter 14.

Now, we have seen the disciples reveal their confusion all throughout this teaching. Back in chapter 13, when Jesus was washing the disciples' feet there at the Last Supper, Peter revealed his confusion. First he refused to allow Jesus to wash his feet, did he not? I mean, he steps up and almost causes a scene. Then he said he wanted to be washed all over. He was very confused. And then later on in chapter 13, Peter declares to Jesus that he wanted to follow Jesus after he told them that he was leaving them. Now Jesus was speaking of the cross, but Peter says, "We'll follow you. I'll follow you." Very, very confusing.

We see Thomas reveal his confusion when again Jesus tells them that he will leave them. And then after Jesus tells them that they know the way to where he is going, Thomas speaks up revealing his confusion as well. So here in these verses, verses 17 to 19, we see their continued confusion. And this is just a pervasive perplexity among the entire group. The two observations that I want to make here are two sub-points in our outline. First, the disciples were questioning things. Go back to those verses, verses 17 and 18 specifically.

Some of the disciples therefore said to one another, "What is this thing he is telling us?" So back and forth they are examining, they're questioning what Jesus had told them. Now here we see the disciples, they're discussing things again. They are discussing what Jesus had been telling them. It is obvious that they were struggling with this teaching concerning the cross and the prediction that Jesus had made about his death. Now I ran across something that a couple of Bible commentators pointed out that will help us see how the disciples were thinking and why. The disciples were looking ahead and everything was mysterious.

There was no way they could understand these things. Now for us, we are looking back. We have the full revelation so the mystery has been revealed to us. That would be the case for the disciples after the coming of the Holy Spirit. All that language talks about them understanding. And the Spirit would guide them to these truths. That's why I believe that this little while applies to the coming of the Holy Spirit. Simply looking forward, all these things were cloudy. But looking back, all things will be clear. Of course we know that in time their understanding will go from cloudy to clear when the Holy Spirit comes.

The second observation I want to make, Jesus knew what they were thinking. Let's read verse 19. "Jesus knew that they wished to ask him or question him and he said to them, 'Are you deliberating together about this that I said a little while and you will not behold me?' And again, 'a little while and you will see me.' Here we see that Jesus knew they wanted to question him. It is obvious that their questioning among themselves was not out in the open if we go back and examine the language. But here Jesus reveals that he knew their thinking. Now this should be no surprise.

Back in chapter 2, verses 24 and 25, John teaches that Jesus knew all men. And this fact is illustrated when Jesus dealt with certain individuals. For instance, when Jesus revealed himself to Nathaniel in chapter 1, verses 47 and 48, Jesus said he saw Nathaniel before Nathaniel came to him. Another instance of this ability with Jesus is when he revealed himself to the Samaritan woman in chapter 4, verse 17 and 18. Jesus stated that he knew how many husbands she had had previously and that she was living with another man even at the time.

And when Jesus was dealing with the great crowds that followed him in John 6, John stated that he knew from the beginning who would believe. So Jesus knew what his beloved disciples were thinking right here in these circumstances. So in summary, what do we see? The disciples were still in their state of disillusionment. They were personally perplexed about all that is going on and this is beautiful. Jesus knew them. He knew their thinking and he loved them anyway. He loved them in spite of their confusion and despair and disillusionment.

Now for you, for me, for us, we need to see that when we're in trial, when we're in the depths of despair, when we're disillusioned and we maybe even feel like God has abandoned us, when we're looking forward, it always and many times can be cloudy. Isn't that what it was for the disciples? Jesus had told them over and over, but it was always cloudy. And so that can be the case for us. It is cloudy. We can't find the Lord, feel the Lord or see the Lord. But yet when we get through this type of trial, when we get through the difficulty, when we look back, then all things can be clear. That's why this applies so much to us.

But also an application, I want you to see that Jesus knows our thinking. Just like he knew how the disciples were questioning, he knew what they felt. He knew everything in their heart. When we're in trial, when we're questioning the Lord, when we're feeling so upside down, when we are in despair and sorrow, Jesus knows exactly how we feel. Jesus knows exactly what we're thinking. Now this can cause two things to come into your mind right now. This might be comforting or it might be shameful. You could think, "Oh my, the Lord knows how I feel.

The Lord knows what I'm saying in my mind as I'm struggling to get through what I'm going through." This can be comforting and it can be shameful. Now I want to share something with you out of my own life. This might shock you. There are times when I have been angry at circumstances, not angry at the Lord. There have been times when I have been angry about circumstances and I have closed the door in my personal time with the Lord and I have told God exactly how I feel. "Lord, I'm angry. I don't like this. I can't change that. I can't make this happen and I don't like it." You might say, "Pastor, they're not a little irreverent.

He knows how I'm thinking. He knows what I feel. He knows our struggles." And see, you need to see that when you're in the midst of trial and you're in the depths of despair, you're looking forward and everything is cloudy and you need to see that the Lord knows exactly how you feel and it should be comforting to you. It should be comforting to know that the Lord that you serve knows exactly what is going on in your mind. So we see the disciples and their perplexity. Let's move on. I want us to see our third major truth in our outline and that is a promise is given. A promise is given right here in verse 20.

Now we really interrupted Jesus' response but there's a different teaching here in verse 20. Go back to the verse. "Truly, truly, I say to you that you will weep and lament but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful but your sorrow will be turned to joy." Now here we see Jesus use this familiar language. We've seen this pop up all through our study of John. "Truly, truly, the King James reads verily, verily." This is what we would call in our language and in our day a double amen. This simply means that Jesus is elevating the importance of what He is about to say.

When we are in a worship service and we hear an amen in our service, that is someone affirming the importance of what is said and that is what Jesus is doing. He is elevating, He is emphasizing what He is about to say. Now two observations just out of this verse, two sub points in our outline. First I want you to see their sorrow and the world's rejoicing. Their sorrow and the world's rejoicing. "Truly, truly, I say to you that you will weep and lament but the world will rejoice." Here Jesus is stating that when He is arrested, when He is crucified, they will weep and they will lament.

They will be in such a state of despair that they will fail to continue to follow Jesus. Now we know that's the part of the story. Peter even denies Jesus three times as Jesus predicted that He would. But notice a contrast. Go back to the verse. "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament but the world will rejoice." Now there is a very sharp contrast in this language. This conjunction but in the original, it is in the emphatic, meaning there is a stark difference in the two. This is speaking of the Jews and the Jewish leadership. They are joyful that the seeming false Messiah has been put to death.

They conspired along with the Romans to rid themselves of Jesus. Both the Jews and the Romans are joyful at Jesus' death while the disciples were in their despair. The second observation, "Their joy turned to rejoicing. Truly, truly, I say to you that you will weep and lament but the world will rejoice." See that contrast? You will be sorrowful but your sorrow will be turned to joy. Here Jesus gives them the promise. He states that their sorrow will be turned to joy. Now one observation about the text that makes a very, very big difference here. The verse reads that their sorrow will turn to joy, not that it will be replaced by joy.

Any time I give you a quotation from a commentator, they are just saying it in such a way that I just can't find myself with the ability to say. But the Bible commentator Leon Morris captures this wonderfully. And I quote, "The very same thing, the cross that would be to them first a cause of sorrow would later become a source of joy. So all of their hurt, all of their despair, all of their disillusionment, all of their failure associated with the cross, it is not taken away. But this turns to joy. You can say that this joy is given on top of all of the hurt and all of the despair and all of the confusion and all of the failure.

So what do we see here? Jesus gives them a beautiful promise. When this twofold work comes to completion, there is a beautiful outcome. When the work of redemption and the ascension and the giving of the Spirit is complete and the work of God is brought about in them, then their sorrow and their despair will be turned into joy." In application, what would you say if I told you that God might not take away your despair and your disillusionment? You might not take it away. What would you say if I told you that God might not take away your pain?

I read even this morning a testimony from a famous Christian who talked about 30 years of carrying a very difficult pain. What would you say if I told you that God might not take away that despair? He might not take away that pain. What would you say if I told you that God might not take away the source of that pain, the source of that disillusionment, the source of that despair? You might be saying right now, "Pastor, I don't know if there's much hope." What would you say if I told you that God can bring you great joy to go along with that great pain?

What would you say if I said God can work in you where joy would come alongside and on top and in the middle of that great pain? Now, I'll give you an example that really hits close to home. Many of you know that Brother Keith and Teresa, God led them to adoption. It's a wonderful thing. Many of you know that it wasn't a while back they had sought to adopt a little baby girl, a beautiful girl put in their home. Now things didn't work out. The little girl was taken away. What did we say? Great pain, great despair, lots of questions. Why? Who? What do we do?

Great pain, even despair, but God did not take that pain away, but God ultimately brought joy on top of that pain and to go along with that pain. You see the work of God here? This is a beautiful promise given and we need to see that whatever trial we go through, whatever difficulty we may face, you might say, "Pastor, you don't understand." Christ does. The pain, the fear, the cowardice that it can produce, all that you can say, God might not take it away, but joy can come. Now I want to move away from the body of the message and I want to move to some application. Now I'm going to be truthful with you.

I'm going to revisit this application again because next week's going to be a part two of this message. Now I'm going to repeat this application for two reasons. First of all, we're prone to forget. Sometimes we need to be reminded. And then second, this application really fits versus 21 to 24. Versus 16 to 24 go together, but because of time we needed to make it a part one and a part two. So I want to make four points of application here at the conclusion that really fits with this teaching. Now, it might be tough for you to write this down. I'd rather you listen and get the notes or this information later.

So I want you to get what I'm going to share. Number one, I want you to see that there can be a failure to see that God is good and that He knows best. We can fail to see that He has a purpose for all of the circumstances in life. I don't know all of the reasons why these things happen. You might say, "Pastor, it was a horrific sin. I had no choice. I was a victim. I don't know why these things happen, but in the end we have to say God is good and He knows best." And many times we can fail to see and believe and trust that God is good and He knows best.

Yes, even the trials which produce great despair and great disillusionment, and you might say, "Pastor, it's robbed me for years. God is still good." We can fail to see that God has a greater good for us even if it means despair in the midst of trial. I thought about a great illustration. It's comical, but it fits. Many of you know what this is like, but you remember the days when you're taking your small child to the dentist? You've been in a dentist office and you've seen a parent in there with a child.

I mean, you're bringing your child to the dentist and that child can't see that the shot that's going to be given in the gum, that it's good. You know to that child, how big does that needle look? I mean, the child can't see that the drilling in the teeth is good. The child can't see that the bitter medicine is a good thing. See the child can't see past the despair, past the fear, past the pain, past the terrifying circumstances to the greater good. If the child will just trust the dentist, guess what? A greater good. The dentist and the parents know best.

I think sometimes when difficulties and trials come, we're just like the kid in the dentist office. We're kicking and screaming and crying by our heads off. Listen people, God is good. He knows best. He is a sovereign God and a loving God. And then second, we need to see that there can be a failure to trust God. We do not want to move in the direction that God is sending us. We are backing up. We are backing up with all of our might. We are feeling sucked in. We are desperately trying to get out of what is before us, but we cannot get out. Why? Because God has ordained these things. And God does these things, sometimes we feel to us.

But we've got to see that God does these things for us. And this can be a sign of distrust. Because when things like this happen, I'm telling you, we're like the kid in the dentist office. You give us a minute, we'll bowl for the door. I thought about another little illustration. Many of you know that we have some family property and with family, we get to enjoy some deer hunting a little bit, and I do enjoy taking my girls deer hunting. We have a good time together. One of the things that I have done through the years of taking them deer hunting is I try to educate them about what's out in the woods and all the things of nature.

I remember as a child, my granddad teaching me all of those things. But you know, when we go deer hunting, many times we go real early in the morning and we stay real late in the evening. And we'll come out of those woods at night with a flashlight. And we'll hear all kinds of noises. Now because of my years, I usually know what they are. When I hear a screech owl, I know what it is. When I hear a barred owl, I know what it is. Usually when something runs away, I can tell if it's a rabbit or a deer or even an armadilla. But you know, my kids don't know. And when we're going along, what do they have to do? They have to trust me.

Now I know that property like the back of my hand. I was born and raised on it. I know where the trails go. I know where they stop. I know where the big trees are that have fallen over. I know the place. And so I know where we're going. I've got the light or I've given them the light. And I know the destination. And I know all of the obstacles. And I even know what many of those mysterious and scary things are. And my children just have to trust me. Isn't that what we saw with Joseph and his brothers in the Old Testament? Remember his brothers? He so sinfully sold him into slavery, years of slavery and pain and disillusionment.

He is in Egypt away from his family. And at the end of the whole thing when he is revealed to his brothers, what does he say? "You meant it for evil. God meant it for good." What is Joseph saying? When I was walking in the woods with a flashlight, I just had to trust God. Sometimes we just don't want to trust God. And then third, there can be a failure to seek him. There can be a failure to seek him in despair and in disillusionment and in the sorrow. These circumstances are hard and we can find ourselves wallowing like a pig in the pit. And we just can't seek him. And if you're honest, if you're honest, it has robbed you of your prayer life.

It has robbed you of your ability to go in and close the door and just say, "Lord, I'm going to serve you and trust you and I'm going to love you no matter what. And I'm just going to stay right here only because I love you." Listen, you have to seek God in the trial. I don't know if the disciples were seeking him, but at least they didn't leave him. They still hung on. Can I be honest with you as your pastor? There have been some times when all I could do was just hang on. I really couldn't seek him, but I didn't leave.

And then our fourth point of application, there can be a failure to see or understand that the source of grief can and most likely will become a great and wonderful source of joy. Joy in a particular set of circumstances many times cannot come unless there is pain first. And let me tell you people, the greater the pain, the greater the joy, the greater the pain, the longer the circumstance, the greater the joy, and the greater the work that God does in us. Now let me simplify real quickly these points of application. Sometimes there's a failure to see that God's good no matter what. Sometimes there's a failure to just trust God.

Sometimes there's a failure to seek God in the pit of despair. Sometimes there's a failure to see that this great source of grief and pain ultimately is a great source of joy. So what are we looking at this morning? The title of the message is simple, but it fits. The disciples' despair turned to joy. We will see that joy come when the spirit is given to them. May the Lord help us when we are in difficult circumstances much like the disciples. Let's pray. Lord we thank You for the teaching of Your Word. Lord we thank You for sometimes little phrases, little words, sometimes just a small understanding.

Lord in our journey, chapter by chapter, verse by verse, section by section. Lord it's just like a flower that's unfolded. So all through this book it's just been flower after flower, truth after truth, teaching after teaching. Lord you are good and Your Word is good. We submit ourselves to Your Word. Lord specifically I pray that You'll take this teaching and You'll apply it to us. Lord I know that we've got two kinds of people here. We've got some that are struggling and some that will. We've got some that are in the middle of a difficulty and some of us will face one in the future.

So no matter where we are and who we are and no matter our experience in walking with You, I pray that You'll do a work in us. Lord I see great comfort when I look at these men. They're all different, very diverse. But Lord You persevered in them and they persevered in You. So do that same work in us, a work of perseverance so that we would ultimately be the people You want us to be. Thank You for this time under Your Word again and we ask You to do these things in the wonderful name of Christ our Savior and Lord, Amen. Let's stand to our feet. Have we trials and temptations? Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Can we find a friend so faithful? Who will all grow share? Jesus knows our every weakness. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Very fitting way to end that message. One we all know. Two things and then we're going to dismiss real quickly. Most of you know Jacob Wiggins. He's one of our college students that comes. He's at Meridian Community College now. Most of you know we call him Wiggins. That's kind of his nickname. But we've been announcing on Wednesday night that Jacob's mother, his name is Jennifer, Jennifer and Eddie Wiggins, she's battling cancer.

She's going to have surgery tomorrow and some of our ladies have been ministering to that family and their members of First Baptist they've worshiped with us here before. Jacob would call Nola, his home church. He said that to me and Keith. So this is an opportunity for us to minister to their family. So I think some of the women are talking about taking maybe some meals. I don't know all of the details but y'all can talk to Teresa. Teresa has kind of been that connection there. So we wanted to make that available to you and then also pray for them.

It's Eddie and it's Jennifer Wiggins and if there's an opportunity for you to minister you just let us know. We'll be glad to point you in that direction. Don't forget we've got Bible drill today. All pray for us and then we'll meet tonight to discuss the direction of our adult small groups. Okay. Let's pray and then we'll dismiss Keith. Lord we should never be discouraged when we have found a friend so faithful who will all our burdens bear. Well we know we have the Holy Spirit and we have the church. God we thank you for the testimonies in this place of how you have persevered in us.

I thank you Lord for the testimonies here before us of people who are in the middle of trial and how they would bear witness of how you have been a friend to them. We thank you God for the encouragement that we have today in this word. And I pray it would stay with us when we are in the next critical trial, in the next hour of trial and despair. And we love you. We thank you for your faithfulness to us. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. ♪ Mercy don't realize and dream ♪ ♪ A soul of God can bow to me ♪ ♪ From living on the ground and free ♪ ♪ That thou might not choose ♪ ♪ God for me ♪ [MUSIC]