Cheer UP! Podcast
Welcome to The Cheer UP! Podcast – Your Journey to Joy Starts Here!
Hosted by Kara R. Hunt and Cheri Swalwell, this is where you'll find real hope, relentless encouragement, and the kind of joy that outlasts the storm.
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
(John 16:33 KJV)
Life’s battles don’t disappear—but neither does Christ’s victory.
Whether you’re wrestling with anxiety, exhaustion, or just need a reminder that joy is your birthright, Kara and Cheri bring Scripture-soaked truth, laughter, and “me too” moments to every episode.
Tune in for:
Stories that prove cheerfulness is warfare against the enemy.
Battle-tested faith tactics for when life feels like a losing fight
Biblical takes on Scriptural truths (because overcomers need ammunition from the Word of God)
Uplifting stories that remind you joy is a choice
Practical faith for real-life challenges
Fresh perspectives on Scripture that make hope unavoidable
New episodes drop weekly. Arm yourself with joy.
Cheer UP! Podcast
Barak
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Explore the dynamic between trust and obedience in our latest podcast episode, where we connect the dots from Deborah and Barak's story to our everyday walk with God.
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Adult Coloring Books for Stress Relief
Speaker 1Hi and welcome to the Cheer Up Podcast . I am your host , kara R Hunt , and with me is the beautiful and kind and sweet Sherri Swalwell . How are you doing today , sherri ?
Speaker 2I am doing fantastic . Have you ever heard of ? So ? My daughter got me hooked on this thing called happy color . I love to color . In fact , I'll never forget when I was , when I first started in foster care , which we're talking like 27 , 26 years ago .
Speaker 2I was a foster care and an adoption worker for five years and I remember , in my interview , my , the lady who became my boss , said so what kind of things do you like to do to relax ? You have to have something , some kind of an outlet to relieve stress in this kind of a job . So what do you like to do ? And so I used to color all the time . I used to use actual coloring books and crayons and all that stuff . I was , like you know , in my late 20s , so I was an adult , but I loved to color . Well , there's this thing , there's this app now called happy color , that my daughter put on my phone and when I was sick over the weekend , um , I started coloring and I'm telling you , I think I'm hooked . It is so much fun . It is so much fun and , trust me , it's a free app . Nobody's telling me to you know , you're not a sponsor .
Speaker 1Yes , not a sponsor .
Speaker 2I am just a consumer who loves it , so it's just so much fun . So if you like to do things like , if you're the type of person who needs stress relief and you like the color , check out Happy Color because it is so much fun . Check out Happy Color because it is so much fun .
Speaker 1You know , it's so funny that you say that , because when Hubby and I were like go camping to one of our favorite spots it's about four hours away or whatever and I'm just when , I'm just sitting there . Okay , so in the car that we have on the passenger , on both seats actually drivers and passenger seats there is a I don't know pouch pocket right on the back of it where you pull it out . One of those pockets you know , and you want to know what's in the back on my side adult coloring books and those coloring pencils , yes , and so it's like all I got to do is like reach back there and they're huge . They're big and I think I got mine from christianbookcom or something . So there's like flowers , and then I think there's like I think you can color biblical characters or you know stuff like that .
Speaker 1But the one I got that was very intricate , right , got those very intricate right . So it's like like flower petals and things like that . And I got like two boxes of pencils Crayola colored pencils that I stuffed back there . So like , well , we're driving , or while he's driving , or whatever , I'm sitting there and I'm just coloring , you know , and what's so interesting is is that even while he's driving . He's kind of side side eyeing me because he wants to see like he's looking at how I'm going to make this picture come to life , right , and I'm sitting there going , you know , and he'll talk about colors and you know , and everything else , and so , and you're right , coloring is so stress relieving Well .
Speaker 2I love how . One more thing . One more thing . Yeah , you're right , coloring is so stress relieving . I hear people doing it on flight . One more thing that I didn't even know we had in common .
Speaker 1Right , you and I could be sitting at a table and we'd both be coloring and be happy as I don't know what .
Speaker 2Right , and the funny thing is that I used to color , not on my phone , not in this app , but I used to color the same with you . I would use either colored pencils or I would use markers . And I would buy the adult coloring books where they were Bible verses . And that's my only critique about this thing is that it's not . You know , there's no Bible verses . It's not Christian based . And I miss that part . I really truly miss that part .
Speaker 1Because it's uplifting while it's relieving stress , right , right , and it's uplifting and I don't know if I'll ever be able to get to the end of my adult coloring book . It's a nice size and I don't know , maybe 11 by 14 or so , and it is has a lot of pages in it and it's very detailed . So you know , and it's like I'll probably never get to the end of it . And the thing is about adult coloring books . You can find them anywhere . Now , if you want scriptural ones or ones that are more uplifting , then you obviously would have to go to a local Christian bookstore or , you know , find ones specifically like that , but they're not expensive .
Speaker 1No , I think I may have paid nine , maybe 10 bucks for that and I've had it for years and it's just stuck in the back of the pouch and whenever we travel or like we're stuck in traffic , instead of me getting frustrated , you know , I just pull them out and , just , you know , just start coloring and it's amazing , I don't know . I'm pretty sure there's some , probably some psychiatrists or psychologists listening that probably know why it is so stress relieving . But , yeah , absolutely Like I said , I've heard people doing it on flights when they're nervous , right .
Speaker 1Just taking it , you know , and doing it like that . But oh , absolutely , it's just the simple things , right ? Who needs a pillow when you can have coloring books ?
Speaker 2Well , I think I'm going to start coloring . I think I'm going to take your advice and I'm going to start coloring on our trip , because I have this horrible thing it's not really . I don't pan . Well , okay , um , I think my husband would disagree with me and he would use it , but I cannot stand . I hate being on a highway and having semi right next to me . I hate it , and so I'm constantly cleaning and I'm like putting my hand up on the dashboard or I'm putting the brake on with my foot and I don't want to read , because if I read , then I'm not talking to my husband , and this is why I love our time in the car to be able to talk together and catch up and have fun .
Speaker 2But I think I'm going to start coloring , because then I cannot see the semis right next to me . But I can still carry on the conversation . I think he's going to love it .
Speaker 1He is going to like give you a gift card as a thank you gift , because you have just made his life so much easier . It is , and it's so much easier to focus on that and what you're coloring . I remember one time we were on our way to a friend's out of town and , sure enough , and we had to be there . We were trying to get there by a certain time and guess what ? We get stuck in traffic that is not moving . When I say not moving , I mean it's like at a standstill , right , and we're still like two hours away and we're behind , and we're getting more and more behind the time .
Speaker 1We're , you know , scheduled to be there , while we're sitting there and nothing's moving and I'm like , oh my gosh , we're going to be super late , it's going to be super late , and I'm starting to stress , right , like , and we're going nowhere , how long am I going to be sitting here ? Yada , yada , yada , and I'm like , wait , what am I doing ? Let at my coloring , let me just pull out my handy books and my coloring pencils , you know , and just do this , because you get mad , because you're upset , you're stressing , you're like , oh my gosh , we're going to be late Now , we're going to be super late Now . We're going to be super , super late , and we're still not moving .
Speaker 1I mean just sitting there and fretting like that for what an hour while the highway is at a standstill . That works . That's not good for your body .
Speaker 2How many coloring book companies realize that they are saving marriages ? They are saving people's mental health . Like seriously , is that what they realized when they invented coloring books to begin with ?
Speaker 1I know it's like with kids and stuff . We'll sit down and color , okay . Well , you know restaurants have it for kids , right ? They used to have the little table mats there , and they have a few Crayola .
Speaker 1But yeah , and of course now as adults we don't want to color little dinosaurs and things like that , but we want more , you know , realistic type things . But yeah , it was , I was going to sit there and I would have fretted and I probably would have said a few things . I mean , but what , what would have been the end goal ? We still weren't moving , right right .
Speaker 1But I'm sitting there getting myself all upset , blood pressure raising muscles , tensing , jaw tightening all of this stomach getting upset , you know , and everything else , and I can't do a thing about it . It is what it is , unless we walk the rest of the way . I just need to shut up Right and I'm like or change my mind , or change what I'm looking at Right and I'm like okay , this is where those , those coloring books come in handy . Right and you know what ? It was less stress , because my husband didn't have to hear me . Right .
Speaker 1Because , he couldn't do anything Right , and he was already upset because he's , like you know , wanting to move and no one's moving , you know . So it's like no , that's okay , I'm getting ready to get it . Where's my purple pencil ? Oh , I'm getting that one .
Speaker 1I'm getting that one so those , ladies and gentlemen , are your tips , inexpensive tips on how to relieve stress without breaking the bank . Okay , it's like just buy a couple of inexpensive coloring books Uplifting ones is what Sherry and I inspiring and uplifting and encouraging ones are the ones Sherry and I , and scripture ones definitely are the ones that Sherry and I would recommend and just buy a bunch of color pencils and , if you have , you could keep them in a car that tends to be one of your stress points . Of course , if you're the passenger , I am so sorry but keep them . And I'm pretty sure our little car isn't the one that has those little pouches on the back right where you stuff a bunch of stuff in .
Speaker 1Right right Because I needed that . Like I said , mine is a nice size one , so I needed like a big space to just be able to shove it in . It wasn't like I could shove it in my purse or like my tote bag , but that little pocket on the back of the passenger seats and driver's seats are just perfect to stuff things in there and my two packs of colored pencils and everything . So that is the Cheer Up Podcast free tip of the day on how to relieve stress in an expensive way . So for those of you who are new to our channel , we want to say hi and welcome to Cheer Nation . We are so glad that you're listening to our podcast this morning and if you're listening on Spotify , iheart , itunes , we just ask that you just give us a like and subscribe , hit the subscribe button and download the podcast . All of that helps in the algorithm of our podcast and it just helps it to make other people who are searching for encouraging podcasts to be able to find us . So if you guys could do that for us real quick , we would greatly greatly appreciate it and we thank you so much . We would greatly greatly appreciate it and we thank you so much .
Deborah and Barak in the Bible
Speaker 1And today we are talking about today in this episode of podcast . We're talking about Barak from the Bible , b-a-r-a-k . From the Bible . And last week , in last week's episode , we talked about Deborah , who was a judge in the Old Testament , and her role , that she kind of had to play with Barack okay , and we kind of talked about her and her role and the things that she did . And again , just a reminder , we're talking about biblical figures in a Bible and even what the things that they have done or may have been known for in a Bible , and even the things that they have done or may have been known for in a Bible whether it's good , whether it's bad or somewhere in between is because all of it , even though it was thousands of years ago , all of it still resonates with our reality today , in a modern world .
Speaker 1And you can read the entire story , I believe , of Deborah and Barak . I recommend starting it in the Book of Judges in the Old Testament , chapter 1 . And I believe it wraps up their story . Their particular story of Deborah and Barak ends around Chapter 6 or so . The Book of Judges goes on further and now Deborah and Barak's story doesn't start until chapter 4 , I believe , of the Book of Judges , but I highly encourage you to read chapters 1 through 3 before that , because it just gives it all context of why they were doing what they were doing and why they were in this particular situation . So again , just highly encourage you to read Judges . Chapters 1 through 6 , I believe , is where it ends . Their story ends . I am so sorry .
Speaker 1And just to give you a little bit about Barak , I am just going to read just a little bit of it from chapter 4 . Just a really quick summary to kind of give you an idea of who they are and what they were . And it says and Deborah , a prophetess , the wife of Lepidoth , she judged Israel at that time , and I'm skipping down a bit . And it says Israel at that time . And I'm skipping down a bit . And it says and she sent and called Barak , the son of Abinoam , out of Kadesh , naphtali , and said unto him didn't the Lord tell you this ? That he is going to take you down to the River Kashan and Sisera , the captain of the enemy's army at this time again , that's why we encourage you to just read the first three chapters above it and they're not long reads .
Speaker 1But didn't he tell you to go down to this river and Sisera , the captain of Jabin's army . And he's in Sisera , the captain of Jabin's army , whose enemy's army , and all of his chariots and his multitude . Didn't God say he would deliver him into your hand ? Didn't God tell you this ? And that's why she's calling to him right . And she's saying didn't God you know , like why aren't you doing what God had told you to do ? And then Barak says to her and right now I'm in chapter 4 , verse 8 , and Barak said unto her if you will go with me , then I will go , but if you will not go with me , then I will not go .
Speaker 1And she said I will surely go with you , notwithstanding the journey that you take shall not be for your honor , for the Lord shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman . And Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kadesh . And I'm going further down . And it says and Deborah said unto Barak Up , for this is the day in which the Lord has delivered Sisera into your . Is not the Lord gone out before you ?
Speaker 1So Barak went down from Mount Tabor and 10,000 men after him and the Lord discomfited Sisera and all his chariots and all his hosts and the edge of the sword before Barak . So then Sisera lighted down off his chariot and fled away on his feet . So pretty much what the Lord said was going to happen , had told Barak was going to happen , is happening . So even though Sisera and the captain of the enemy's army had all these horses and chariots and everything that he needed , right now he's fleeing . He's fleeing because the Lord is literally delivering the enemy into Barak and Deborah's hands . And so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot and fled away on his feet . But Barak pursued after the chariots and after the host unto Harasheth of the Gentiles and all the host of Sisera fell upon the edge of the sword and there was not a man left . This was a defeat of phenomenal proportions because they were outnumbered , like we talked about last week's episode they were outnumbered , they were outpowered , they were outmightied .
Speaker 1And the reason Barak had said to Deborah was like if you go I'll go , but if you won't go then I will not go . He had said that was because he's like us take on this mighty , mighty army . You know , I don't know about that , because you know what God has said to you and I know he said that to me , but I'm scared , you know . But if you go with me then I'll go , but if you don't go then I won't go . And that's kind of what happened . But she went with him , but she said but you will not get the honor of this , the honor for what's going to happen to Sisera is going to fall into a woman's hand . And she was not talking about her hand , she was talking about someone else's hand . And when you read it to the end of chapter six , you'll see what happened to the captain of the enemy's army and how a woman was the one who basically took him out , basically and everything . And so what we're going to talk about today is Barak . Last week we talked about Deborah and her role , that she played and her significance in the Bible , but here we see a man . We see a man who's an army captain general , pretty much equal as we , you know . I think that we would call him today and we already know , because Deborah a prophetess and again I'm not calling her that she's described that in the opening sentence of chapter four in the book of Judges and she's pretty much saying to him has not the Lord , God of Israel , commanded ? So we already know that God has told him to do this , but still he's saying yeah , I already know that God already told me to do that , but I'm only going to go if you go , and then if you don't go , I'm . I already know that God already told me to do that , but I'm only going to go if you go and then , if you don't go , I'm not going to go .
Speaker 1So here's this man who evidently he didn't get this role by accident . He must've had the warrior type skill to be able to get to where he's at , but yet he wants this woman , he wants Deborah to go with him , because he knows that she knows the Lord , and he's like you know what ? I want you to just be there and because my faith is not strong enough . Is basically what he was saying , and he pretty much had more faith in Deborah than he had in the Lord , even though the Lord specifically commanded him to do this , and so that shows us automatically that we're dealing with a man of little faith here . What are your thoughts on that , Sherry ?
Speaker 2Yeah , like I sit here and I question . Yeah , like I sit here and I question . So there have been many times in my life when I have been encouraged that you go ahead and you take that step , you step out into the river , you take that step of obedience and God will let you know one way or the other pretty quickly if he's part of your step or if you're premature with your stepping or whatever . He'll give you an answer . And so I sit here and I have questions .
Speaker 2If Barack had already been told by God and from what you read it's very evident that he was what was his hesitation Like ? Why was he a man of little , or I guess I should say not to be rude , but no faith that he needed Deborah to hold his hand when God spoke directly ? I could understand it a little more if God had spoken to Deborah and not to him . And so he's like well , I didn't hear it from God's mouth , so I don't know if that's true or not , but God spoke directly to him too . So I'm sitting here just with this big question mark . I don't know why he didn't believe or trust God enough .
Speaker 1I think it's fear Right . Why was he so ?
Speaker 2afraid .
Speaker 1Because he could see the or well he knew the enemy's army well enough to know that they were . They were pretty much going to be destroyed and annihilated because they had more men . Even though he had 10,000 men or whatnot , sisera was a skilled captain and of course he was of the enemy's army . And I think when we just look at things in a natural , and I think when we just look at things in a
Trusting God's Guidance and Obedience
Speaker 1natural .
Speaker 1I was just going to say that he was focusing on the fear instead of focusing on God , instead of focusing on God and what God had told him . And now remember back in the Old Testament , a lot of times God would like send forth an angel or a prophet or something like that , to talk with you . Right , like , I am going to deliver the army into your hands . So you're going to go forth , you're going to take these men , you know , and everything else , and then it's going to be done . But in this case , it sounds like God spoke directly to him . Right , the God of the universe , the creator of all mankind , spoke directly to him . But he was so afraid and I think he was more the more that I think about it . It sounds like he okay . So he knew God existed , he knew that he could have a relationship with God . He did not say God didn't tell me that . So he knew that all this had happened . So he knows God . So he knew that all this had happened . So he knows God . And but I think he was more confident in Deborah's relationship with the Lord , with God . That last night and I don't know , is God still with me he told me that like a week ago . But is he still with me ? But , deborah , I know he's with Deborah , you know , because she doesn't do the stuff that I do and her relationship with the Lord is strong . Maybe she had a longer relationship with him or maybe he saw her as having a deeper relationship with him , you know . But the fact it doesn't change the fact that God told him right and I know a lot of people are just like you know . But how do I know when God tells me something and whether or not I should act ? Now , like I said back then , sometimes an angel would appear , sometimes he would send a prophet to say certain things and , as in Moses , god talked directly to the person . Today , I do believe God can still talk directly to us . I believe he talks to us through His Spirit .
Speaker 1Now , I have heard that with some people it's an audible voice , that they can hear it and that they know that . They know that . They know that it's the voice of the Lord . Some it's more of like what I want to term a spiritual voice . Right , you hear it in your spirit and it's just as loud , just as clear and with so much clarity that you know it's the voice of the Lord . Now I do want to say I think a lot of times it depends on your strength with the Lord Excuse me , your strength of your relationship with the Lord and how he has trained you personally along your Christian journey to hear him . With some people , like I said , it's more of like a spiritual voice . With others , it could be an audible voice that they actually hear . With others , it could be a vision where God is saying this is what's going to go down , this is what's going to happen . Okay , and this is what I want you to do when it does With others .
Speaker 1He gives dreams , he gives instructional dreams and he's saying essentially the same thing , and sometimes it's just a feeling in your heart , in your gut , that you just cannot ignore . And when any of those things happen and remember , we cannot limit God , because God can talk to us about things that he needs us to do , for instance , in a myriad of ways . I just named a few . But no matter how God speaks to you , you always want to ask Him for His confirmation before you ask anybody else . Be like God . Am I hearing you right that this is going to happen and this is going to happen and this is going to happen and this is what you want me to do , or me and my family to do , to do , or me and my family to do , and then just wait for the confirmation , because sometimes he will give you the confirmation immediately , like in your spirit , or you may be at church somewhere or just at the grocery store and someone would just confirm it with you . And it's all about just having that faith and we're not confirming God's word , we're confirming that we heard Him right , right . But once you have that confirmation you need to step out , you need to move right Because , like we talked about with Deborah last week , what God wanted from Barak was obedience .
Speaker 1He wanted him to obey . So technically Barak did obey , right , because he did go out , he did slay , as the scriptures say . There was not a man left after him . And Barak and his army , you know , confronted the army , the enemy's army . There was not a man left , not one man left . So God's word was true , what he had told Barak was true . And technically Barak did obey , sort of . But it didn't say Barak said go get Deborah and you have her go with you . He was saying look , I'm telling you this and that's why in the end , and kind of like in the Old Testament , I think the coup d'etat was when , you know , the captain of the army that you were fighting took the head of the other captain of the army , right , and you know , and things like that . And so it was like , wow , we got him , and here's proof , right , we have his head on a sword . So it was , you know , something similar to that . But he would not get that honor . That honor was given to another woman and as you read on into chapter six , it'll tell you and it wasn't Deborah , it was given to someone else and she was the one who had that honor because Barak disobeyed . So he did it , but he did not get the honor that God had in store for him .
Speaker 1And in today's , how does that Barak story relate to us in our modern world , in our everyday living ? And it so easily translates into that . Because how many times have God said something to you ? Or you've just had a nudging in your spirit to do something that would not let go , that would not let go , or God gave you a dream about something , and it's a repetitive dream . It's the same one over and over and over again . And you're just like Lord . I know what you're saying to me , I know it , I know it , I know it , but I can't . I am too afraid to step out . All he's asking is obedience . He just wants us to have faith in him and trust that we believe in him , that he's going to do what he said he's going to do , and he doesn't always give us the next steps
Steps of Faith and Obedience
Speaker 1.
Speaker 1Now , in Barack's case , he did . He's like I'm going to deliver them into your hands . It's going to be scary , it's going to be mighty , but I'm telling you you got the victory . And you're like , yeah , but Kara , how does that work in our life today ? Well , the same thing . They didn to have the victory . Am I right , sherry ? Amen , yeah , it says that in our foundational scripture for the Cheer Up podcast John 16 , 33 . In this word , you're going to have trials and tribulation , but be of good cheer , cheer up , because you're going to have the victory .
Speaker 1So , basically , you know , barak just needed to cheer up and just say okay , I don't know how the Lord's going to do this , because in the natural it looked like we were going to get crushed , and not just crushed , but just ground into the dirt type of crushed right . I don't know how he's going to do this , but I have been assured the victory out of the mouth of God himself , and what God wanted Barak to do was just obey . But instead he felt more confident and it seems , it appears to me , that he felt more confident in Deborah's walk with the Lord than he did his own , even though God has spoke to him Deborah's walk with the Lord than he did his own , even though God has spoke to him right , and he wasn't moving on it . So , god's like Deborah , would you go call this guy and ask him what his ?
Speaker 1You know , the problem is Because when she confronts him , it says she called him out of his hometown or whatever , and was like dude , what's going on ? Did not the Lord command you Right ? And so and that's the thing , it didn't say he didn't got to ask you to do this . He's like didn't he tell you to do this ? He commanded . And so I think , once we get confirmation of that word or something that God wants us to do , we need to step out in faith and just to be able to do that , and no one's going to say it's easy , and we may be doing it scared , with our teeth chattering , you know , but when God has commanded us to do something , we need to be able to do it . What are your thoughts on this , sherry ?
Speaker 2Oh , absolutely . There's been so many times in my life where and that's where you have to really know that you know that you know because you don't want to . I've had both instances in my life One where I'm like but , but , and he's like no , no , I didn't tell you that , that , that was your , that was your idea . And then there's been other times , like there's a conversation that I've been having with God for years now and I am still waiting for that confirmation from him . I'm like okay , lord , you know , I think you're telling me that I'm supposed to do this , but I don't know for sure . You've been telling it to me through another person instead of telling it to me , and not just my imagination , or not just me , um , cause I'm really good at yep , I'm really good at coming up with plans and I think that they're his and and they're not necessarily God , they're just .
Speaker 2I think that I have to , um , you know , torture myself or whatever , Um , because you know I can't just sit there and enjoy , um , enjoy my Christian life , but no , I have to make it really hard , Um , and I have to do things that I am not necessarily sure that it's really God telling me to do them . I , our pastor I will never forget , it was probably about 10 years ago and he said to us , he made a comment from the pulpit and he said if you , he says obedience to God . So if God gives you a direction , if God tells you to do something , and you do less than what God tells you to do , that's disobedience .
Speaker 2If you do more than what God tells you to do . That's disobedience . Doing exactly what God tells you to do is obedience . And that's one of the areas where I really struggled , because I'm like , well , if he wants me to do this , then doing double will be even better . No , god didn't say to do double . God said to do this .
Speaker 2So I don't think that it's bad , like with Barack , and maybe this is why God put the Barack story in the Bible . I don't think it's bad for us to have those conversations with God . But I think where the problem came up was that Barack didn't ask those questions . In my opinion , he didn't ask those questions with the intent of moving forward . He asked those questions with the intent of delaying what God is having them do , and God doesn't want us to delay what he wants us to do . He doesn't mind explaining things . If you think about it , he explains things to Moses . Moses was like , well , I'm not the right person for the job . And he's like yes , you are Well , no , I'm not , because I stutter . I said no , you're still the right person for the job . So I don't think God has a problem talking to us about stuff and explaining stuff to us , but there comes a point in a time where you have to take that step .
Speaker 2You have to take that step into the river and see what God's going to do with it , instead of just continuing to going to do with it , instead of just continuing to ask about it or continuing to delay the obedience that God is asking us to give Absolutely .
Speaker 1And I think it comes down to as well like if it just won't leave you alone , if you really feel like the Holy Spirit is telling you to do something and it just won't leave you alone and you're like , okay , god , all right , I'm going to take step one and then I'm going to take step two and I'm going to take step three , but please drain the water from the sea if I am not supposed to go do this right .
Speaker 1Like stop me in my tracks , you know , because maybe you just want me to take that first step before you tell me the rest of the story . And God works a lot like that in our Christian lives and journey . Right ? He's like , ok , well , I'll tell you more when you take the first step , you know , and you'll know whether or not this is , you know where it's supposed to be . Because I think a lot of it just all boils down to our trust in God and , I think , our faith in the way that he's communicating with us , like I said , with dreams , through visions , through nudges in the spirit , through gut . He speaks to each one differently , but I think we sharpen our , our hearing of that voice when we take the small steps , because then , as we grow in our Christian faith and our Christian journey , we now know how he communicates with us , and so there's less of that .
Speaker 1Is this what you really want me to do ? And everything else ? Because we have sharpened those skills of wow , god , this is the way God communicates with me . Right , and the more we do it , the more we take the little steps that lead up to the bigger one . As the years go by , if you're doing that , you're no longer questioning is this what God wants from me , as long as it aligns with the Word of God ? You're like okay , I know this is the way the Lord speaks to me . I know this is how he shows me things when he wants me to move , or you know , and do stuff , and everything else is less of that questioning because you've exercised that little bit of faith all the way up and then , as you go along your Christian journey , it's more of like other questions , like , okay , lord , I know you told me to do this .
Speaker 2But does it ?
Speaker 1have to be done this way , you know , the questions become a little bit more detailed , right ? Because it may be something we're not comfortable with , it may be something that takes us out of our comfort zone and we could think of an easier way to do it , you know . And so now the questions no longer become is this really what you're saying to me ? It becomes , are you sure ? Like does it have to be done this way ? Can I do it this way ? Because that's easier , you know so . But it's all about that growth in our personal relationship with the Lord and sharpening those skills . And I think a key part in sharpening those skills and when we feel like we've heard some from the Lord , is to take that first step , and then the next step , and then the next step , and ask God for guidance all the way and be like if this is not of you , lord , please just stop it in its tracks , right , but then as you continue to go and you're like so the Lord was telling me to do this right , and then you become more aware of how he speaks personally to you , because everyone's relationship with the Lord is so different , it is so personal . He speaks to Sherry in a different way than He'll speak to me . He'll speak to me in a different way than he would speak to my neighbor right or to another family member and everything . But it's honing in on , when we first get it , whether it's a nudge in the spirit , whether it's you wake up and you're like I feel like the Lord wants me to do this , or the Lord spoke to me in this dream that I'm supposed to do this right , or I just had a vision , you know , or something like that . And it's you know , and instead of saying , oh , it must have been the pizza I ate last night , or something like that , you could just say Lord , is this ? You , lord , is this . You Then keep revealing it to me and you get to that point in your journey where you no longer have to question if it's the Lord , because he's saying this is how I'm going to speak to you , sherry , this is my way of speaking to you , kara , this is how I'm communicating with you personally , this is how I'm communicating with you personally . And once you hone in those skills , I think that uncertainty of whether or not you're really hearing from God kind of just fades away , because you've learned to trust him and that's the way he communicates with you and then it's just that he graduates us as we go further , becomes more things like okay , I know I'm supposed to do this , I know I'm supposed to leave this job and go to that one , but Lord , really , that other job , are you sure ? Like that's in Washington State , you know , or something like that . So isn't there an easier way ? Isn't there one ? Because you know there's an exact job like that in just another city . It's just an hour away .
Speaker 1You know we always want to do things easier , but a lot of times he's calling us out , you know , of our comfort zone , um , to do a lot of things , and sometimes it's not even that um , complicated or that that in depth or something . It's like a big move . It could be something as a conversation with a person , right , as it could be . You know this person is doing this and you know that they are doing wrong . I need you to go to them and tell them they need to quit doing this . And this is why , and a lot of times , especially if you're not a person who enjoys confrontation , that can be a really big issue for you . Right , you're stressing over it and God doesn't want us in a stressful situation , because that's not blessing or glorifying Him . We just need to trust , and God knows our heart . And if we say , lord , I'm stepping out on this because I believe that this is what you told me to do , and you know my heart , one thing I don't want to be is disobedient . So help me be obedient in this matter and I'm going to take step one , you know , and everything else , and then just trust that the Lord has it , because he has it if you're wrong , he has your back . If you're wrong , and he has your back if you're right . You know so . Either way , you really can't lose as a believer in trusting in God . Trusting in God , you can never lose .
Speaker 1And what Barack found out was that he kind of sort of obeyed God . Right , to put it into more everyday terms , in today's time frame , contemporary time frame , that's like I felt like the Lord told me to do something . Let's just say he told me to take a job in Chicago . And I'm like whew , okay , chicago , lord . Okay , ooh , all right .
Speaker 1And he's like he doesn't ask , he commands . He's like you're going to pack up you and your family in one week and you're going to move to Chicago . And you're like , okay , all right , lord , I know you told me to do this , but instead of me packing up , getting moved to Chicago , I called my pastor , who I'll 100% trust , you know , and I'm like , if anyone hears from the Lord , then pastor would know and I'm going to go ask him to . If he goes with , you know , with me , or something like that , then you know I would go . Or if he goes with our family , or if he gives me the okay and he says that , yeah , I really feel like the Lord's telling you to move to Chicago , instead of just obeying the word of God , because then what I've done is I say , okay , god , I know what you commanded me to do , but I'm going to see what my pastor says . Right , because he gives sermons every week . He has a deep relationship with you , you know , and everything else , and so if he gives it a thumbs up , then I'm going to go , but if he gives it a thumbs down , then I'm not going to go
Trusting God in Everyday Life
Speaker 1.
Speaker 1Do you see how that relates to everyday living , sherry ? Exactly , yeah , and that's not the way that that goes . You know , I mean , and just think about it . That goes . You know , I mean , and just think about it . If we were to do that , if our children were to do that to us , and we say , hey , you know , don't run out into that street because there is a car coming , and they just completely ignore you and they go ask somebody else and be like , hey , you know , do I need to not run in the street because there's a car coming ? And they go definitely you don't run in the street because there's a car coming in . They go definitely you don't run into a street because there's a car coming down the road , you know . And then they listen to them instead of listening to you . So how does that make you feel as a parent ?
Speaker 2Exactly .
Speaker 1As a parent you're like , wow , my child doesn't trust me .
Speaker 1He doesn't trust me . I'm the one who said don don't worry , because I care . I don't want him to get hurt . That's what I was telling him . There's a truck coming down the road and he looked like he was about to go out and run . I say , hey , don't do that Like that , that truck will hit you and you could die . And instead they turn around to someone else that they , that they look up to , and turn around to someone else that they look up to and they go . Is that truck going to run on me if I went into the road ? And they go ? Definitely . And then they go , okay , well , I'm not going to go .
Speaker 1So it's like they completely pushed you aside , pushed your love for them , your concern for them , your feelings for them aside , and they're just basically saying I don't trust you , so I'm going to go ask this other person . And how would that make us feel ? We've almost to a point to be like well , why am I even saying anything ? They don't listen to me , they don't do what I say , they always second guess it and they always go to somebody else to get you know for that person . They don't trust me . And so , as a parent and he's our father . When we do that , he's like . But I commanded you you were to obey , because you know that I love you and you know that I only have the best in mind for you . So why would you not immediately do what I ask you to do ? And so I think that's something we have to bear in mind .
Speaker 1And again , as in Barak's case , you know he did obey . The enemy did follow his feet . Now one man of the enemy's army was saved . Pretty much they all fell by the sword , I think you said , but the honor of the captain of the enemy army which , like I said , would have been the best thing that could have happened for Barak , was not given to him . It was given to someone else , another woman , and when you're reading Judges , it tells you that . So the Lord kept His promise . He said I will deliver them unto you , and he did , but unfortunately Barak didn't get the main honor . That a woman did . And then back in those days we have to remember that was humiliating , because when she comes out and she's like , oh , here he is , he's in , here , I took care of him and everything else , and then people are going to be like , whoa , why didn't Barack do that that was his job , right , but he let a woman do it , like how does that work ?
Speaker 2So he's like there's that embarrassment , humiliation , you know , and everything that comes with it , because he made me really think . I think it boils down to trust . Brock didn't trust his , he didn't have a close enough relationship with God that he trusted him above all things , and he thought that Deborah had a closer relationship with God and obviously Deborah trusted God more . So , instead of us looking at God as someone who is trying to get us or someone who wants to torture us because if we're being asked to do something that's difficult or hard or scary then we could look at it from the perspective of does God ? God must not really love us because he , he's asking us to do this really hard thing . But I think what we need to do is we need to shift our focus and our mindset and we need to look at it from the perspective of look at what God wants to do through us , look at how he wants us , how he's inviting us to participate in his story and in the victory .
Speaker 2We have to be able to trust him , then we have to be able to say okay , god , I know this is super scary , but you wouldn't ask me to do something that it wouldn't turn out well , like you wouldn't ask , he's not going to set us up Right right , because that's not who he is .
Speaker 2So maybe that's one of the ways that we need to shift our focus and we need to see these different invitations from God as actual invitations and assignments from him that are a positive , that are a promotion , that are a way for us to show him that we trust him and a way to show the world how awesome God really is . So , instead of seeing it from the perspective of you know , god's asking me to do this again , god , you know how hard this is , god , you know how hard this is , god , you know how difficult this is . God , you know that I'm not there and I don't have that kind of faith , more of wow , he actually trusts me and wants me to do this for him .
Speaker 2He wants to use me in this . I just I don't know . That's just kind of what I was thinking as I was sitting here , because yes , barack didn't get the the .
Speaker 1I mean he still got the victory .
Speaker 2Yeah , he still got the victory .
Speaker 2He still was able to complete the assignment that God had asked him to complete , but he didn't get the honor . He didn't get the blessing that God wanted to bestow on him , that God wanted to give him , and instead that blessing was given to somebody who had more faith . So how do we build our faith ? How do we grow our faith ? Well , that's the thing . It's really kind of easy . It's easy but it's hard , or it's hard but it's easy . So when God tells us to do something and that's the other thing that I wanted to kind of piggyback on is , carrie , you did such a great job telling us how God speaks to us and how we can know that we know that we know . One other factor in that that I have found that has really helped me is and I say this to my kids all the time too . I remind them and I try to encourage them God is a God of peace . God is not sometimes everyone's in a blue moon . There will be a . We have to hurry up and do something , but most of the time God is not a God of hurry up , god is a God of peace , and so it may still be scary , but you're going to have peace You're going to have um , and I'll never forget this either .
Speaker 2When my father-in-law , um , was dying , we were . He was sent to the hospital , um , I believe it was um halloween night , uh , so october 31st , uh , november 1st . So we got a phone call at like 1 30 in the morning and they were letting us know that um , the news that they figured out what was wrong with him was much , much worse than what we had originally thought . And I remember going to bed while trying to go back to bed after that phone call , and I remember asking God and just talking to him and I said to him I said , god , I don't even know how to pray .
Speaker 2I don't know what to ask you for . I don't know if I should ask you to just ease his comfort and let him come home to you or if I should pray that you will heal him this side of heaven . I don't know what the right answer is . So I'm just asking you for your peace .
Speaker 2And God did . He answered that prayer and he gave me such peace and I will never forget those two weeks were incredibly difficult , but I never lost his peace in that two weeks . So I want to encourage people with that that it may still be a really difficult journey and it may still be a really difficult assignment , but when God is in it , you will have peace . It might not be peace that it's going to work out fantastic . It might not be peace that you know what the verdict is going to be , but the peace is that God is there with you , and so that's just another encouragement that I want to give to people that God does give us his peace , and when God is in it , you will have peace . You might be shaking in your bones , but you will have peace . So , anyway , those are just a few of the things that I wanted to highlight from what I've gotten from it , and again , we would love to encourage you to go back and reread it yourself , because God may speak to you in a completely different way than he speaks to us , and when Tara and I reread it in another year or two years
Speaker 2or whenever God has us read it again , I'm sure that we're going to be he's going to give us a whole nother . You know angle because when I read this . You know angle because when I read this , I don't know . I think it was in the summer , so almost a year ago now , nine months ago , when I read it for the first time in a long time , God didn't even talk to me about the whole getting excited about being invited into this adventure . Right ? So the wonder of God's word ?
Speaker 2right , absolutely , it's alive and breathing and and sheeks to us when we , when we , take the time to sit and listen . So if there's anything that you want to speak to us , if you want to tell us or share , head over to cheeruppodcasts at gmailcom . If you have a prayer request or you need some encouragement , or you just simply want to tell us that you're enjoying the series , or you'd like to have us talk about something else , or whatever , head on over to your podcast at gmailcom . You can also head over to the Facebook group Cheer Up Podcast on Facebook and you can start a discussion over there .
Promises of God Through Tribulations
Speaker 2It always comes back , though , to John 16 , 33 , that these things I have spoken to you , that in me you may have peace In the world . You are tribulations , but be of good cheer , I have overcome the world . I love how Tara said sometimes , when we're obeying God , we have to do it as we're shaking in our boots . He never promised that it would be easy , but he promised that he would be right there with us . He promised in his words that he would never leave us or forsake us , and that is one of the best promises that we could ever have .
Speaker 1Isn't that the truth ? Oh , it is .
Speaker 2I can't imagine how awesome that was for the Israelites way back when and they were dealing with so much instability and so many problems due to their own disobedience . And I look at today's world and I think thank you .
Speaker 2Lord , that you're right here with us too . We need you just as much as they did and we'll continue to need you just as much as they do . So , um , so , yeah , so next week , we're going to continue this conversation and continue this story as we find out , um , how Sisera died , who ends up helping to defeat him , um , how God uses the different people , and , um , and yeah , we'll wrap it up in a , in a pretty little boat , in April . So we have two more weeks to go with this story , and I just absolutely love , kara , how God talks to us about how he can use the same story , and there's four different people and four different perspectives in the story , and yet we can learn so much from each and every one of them , including the one who was so evil . So we can learn a lot from all the different aspects and all the different angles of the story . So , having said that , I hope that you have a wonderful rest of your day , a great Tuesday and we will or , sorry , wednesday , and we will talk .
