Cheer UP! Podcast
Cheer UP! Podcast
Elijah
Dive into the life of Prophet Elijah with us on the Cheer Up Podcast. Discover how ancient stories can embolden your modern faith journey.
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Hi and welcome to the Cheer Up Podcast. I am your host, Kara R Hunt, and with me is the sweetly and saintly Sherri Swalwell.
Speaker 2:How are you doing?
Speaker 1:today, Sherri.
Speaker 2:I'm doing good, but I do not. I do not. What is the word that I want? Measure up to the saintly part? Nope. I'm still working on that. I am a work in progress right, oh right.
Speaker 1:You know, I remember um seeing, like some years ago this meme kind of became popular. Where you know, it was like Christian under construction type thing you know, you remember those you, you know and everything and honestly I think, until the Lord comes back, we're all Christians under construction, right.
Speaker 1:You know, it's day by day, hour by hour, prayer by prayer. To be honest, you know so it is just definitely. You know, some of us are progressing faster than others, and then, you know, some of us are just we resemble the Israelites in a desert. Let me just say that.
Speaker 2:That is such a good opportunity.
Speaker 1:Yes, you know all certain things Well. Welcome everyone, and thank you again for tuning in to the Cheer Up Podcast, and we just want to say thank you for tuning in every week and, for those of you who are new, thank you so much for joining us. If you could, let us just ask a favor that you just download, hit, subscribe and the like button. You just download, hit, subscribe and the like button. It just helps us in the algorithm to when people say that they type in it, they just really want to listen to something uplifting, encouraging and inspiring Christian-type podcast, and so if you guys could do us that favor, that would be awesome. And not only that, but you'll also be able to. When you subscribe, you'll also be able to get notifications when a new podcast is uploaded, which is like we've talked about before, which is 99.9% of the time every Wednesday and, like I said, there's a 1% where sometimes you know there may be a glitch in the system and that doesn't happen, but generally it's every Wednesday morning that it is available.
Speaker 1:And today we are going to continue our discussion on biblical figures, and last week we did Ahab and Jezebel and this week we are going to cover Elijah, and Sherry is going to tell us about some of his story, the story, some of the stories, one of the stories, or several of the stories that the Bible talks about and shares with us, about Elijah and Elijah the Tishbite as he's referred to in the scriptures, and how that, what he did, what he went through, what he struggled with, what he was proud of and how, when we're giving situations like that today, in our time, in our culture, how we should deal with it and how would God have us deal with it. And you know, when we're faced with tribulations like, for instance, like Elijah was faced with, so, sherry, what Elijah? Right, where do you even start with him? It's like so much there.
Speaker 2:Exactly. Well, the funny thing is is that I have always struggled with differentiating between elijah and elijah. First off, I think that god has a wonderful sense of humor. The more I delve into the bible and the more that I get to know god, the more I realize that he is just funny and he is fun, because why would he have the mentor of Elijah be Elisha? They both were prophets, they both did all these miracles, and how are we supposed to keep them straight? It's kind of like Tom and Tom and Tom, I guess, or like that Bob Newhart show where there was this is my brother Bob and my other brother Bob, or something like that. I mean it's funny, but anyway, so Elijah was the first one.
Speaker 2:He was the one who mentored and ended up mentoring Elisha. But we're not going to talk about Elisha today, but anyway, he was mentored by Elijah. So Elijah ended up his career or his life. He didn't die right, he went in a chariot. Isn't that how that went?
Speaker 1:I believe so. Yeah, he never officially, I think, died, so to speak. Well, the scripture doesn't talk about his death, if I'm remembering the correct Elijah correctly.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so he ended up not even dying. So there's very few people in the Bible who didn't die, that God just took them up to heaven. Like how cool is that? But we're not even going to talk about that today. That's something that you can read about on your own. Today, we're going to talk about some of the miracles that he performed through God, through the Holy Spirit or through the power of the Holy Spirit. So one of them was he raised a boy from the dead. That in and of itself, is amazing. He multiplied a jug of oil. This is one that I absolutely love.
Speaker 2:So there was this widow. God told him to go into this town and that there would be a widow there, and so this widow was going to have to. I think her husband had died, and so she needed to pay off these debts, and she didn't have any money, and so I think she was going to have to either sell her son or they were going to have one more no, I'm getting two people mixed up. So she was going to have to sell her son into slavery or something like that, but instead Elijah came into town and he said hey, gather all of the jugs that you can. I guess he had two sons. Sorry, gather all of the jugs that you can and you're going to fill them with oil, you're going to sell them and then you're going to use that to pay off your debt and then you're going to have that the rest of the money, to live off of. So she went to all of her neighbors, got as many jugs as she could, filled them all with oil, and the oil never ran out. That's where the miracle came in. It's the oil that God used to fill these jugs never ran out. Is the oil that God used to fill these jugs never ran out. So she was able to sell all of this oil, she was able to pay off her debt, keep her son and then she was able to live off of the rest of it until they were either old enough to work or whatever.
Speaker 2:They don't really tell us the rest of the story, but that was a miracle in and of itself. So, elijah, with all of the different miracles that he did ahead of time, the one that I think that really stands out with people is the one that has to do with Ahab and Jezebel, and that's the one that I really want to focus on today. So I did not tell you, though. You can read about Elijah yourself. He starts in 1 Kings 17 through 19,. And then you see him again in 2 Kings 2. So the whole point is, I would love to encourage you to go read about Elijah and Elisha but we'll talk about him next week but Elijah yourself, so that you can hear it straight from the mouth of God instead of just the cherry version. So, ahab and Jezebel we already talked last week about how manipulative and how evil Jezebel was, and how she always wanted to get what she wanted and she always wanted to be right.
Speaker 2:Well, elijah, I just absolutely love this story, because he literally mocked the prophets of Baal. So he's one prophet to the God, and then there's a hundred prophets of Baal that he goes up against. So they're standing there together and he, he, he like challenges them, I guess is the best way to say it. So he says okay, this is what we're going to do. So they each built an altar and they had dug a moat around the altar, and he said all right, call to your God and and let's see what happens. Or call to your God and let's see what happens if he can make fire rain down on on this altar and so, like they put the wood there, they put everything there, or they have everything for the altar except for the fire. And so he said call down to your God's veil and let's see him, you know, show off. So they did, and obviously nothing happened. And so he started mocking them and he's like, well, maybe he's on vacation, maybe he can't hear you, maybe you have to do it a little bit louder, maybe he didn't turn his hearing aids on today, maybe he's sleeping. Like you know, keep going, keep going, keep going. So they did and nothing happened. Nothing happened. Nothing happened. And of course, jezebel sitting sitting there watching, and she's, I'm sure, probably getting really angry. And nothing happened.
Speaker 2:So finally Elijah does it to, or prays to, god. So he says God, you know, he's very worshipful. So the mocking is gone, he's not mocking anymore, he's very worshipful, he's like God. I know that you can do all things, I know that you are all powerful, I know that you are the only God. Would you rain down fire and prove your godliness? Basically, I mean, that's my version of it. And so God, oh and so. But before he did this, he goes. I'm going to make it even harder. And so he poured bucketfuls of water and drenched not just the wood but drenched the entire altar and the moat around it, like he had water upon water, upon water, as though there had been a flood. He had that much water soaking and saturating everything. Then he prayed to God and he asked God to rain his fire down upon it. So not only did God rain the fire down, but the fire consumed all the water that was in the moat consumed, the wood consumed all of it. Like that's how powerful God showed himself during this battle.
Speaker 2:Well, it turns out, then, that Elijah ended up having the hundred prophets of Baal get killed as well. So, when this battle was over, not only did he prove that God really is God God is the only God but he had the prophets of Baal that were Jezebel's all killed. Well, Jezebel was fit to be tied. She was not happy with this at all, so she said that she was going to. When this was all over with, she said she was going to kill Elijah. Yeah, so Elijah then got scared. Even though he just saw this amazing miracle happen, he ends up getting scared and he runs for his life. So he goes out and he hides in this cave in the desert and he's like God, just kill me because I can't do this. Like she's going to hit me, she's going to hurt me. I can't. You know, I'm the only one left who loves you. I just I need you to just take me now.
Speaker 2:Like he went into this severe depression. Instead of getting angry with him, instead of God saying seriously like did you not just see what we did, what I did during that challenge? Like, what is your problem? No, instead he sent an angel to minister to Elijah, because Elijah was hungry, elijah was tired. Elijah had fought this battle through God's strength. He had done the human part, god had done the God part and God knew that he just needed rest and he needed sustenance and he needed to restore. So the angels gave him honey cakes and they said take a nap. And it's funny because Kara and I will sit there and we will say I can't remember if we said it on the podcast or just among ourselves but I'll be like I just need a nap or I just need a snicker or I just need right, we're always comparing ourselves to this instance of Elijah in the Bible, because it's like, okay, we know we're just tired, we know we're overacting, we know that life is not as bad as we think it is right now.
Speaker 2:We just need a Snickers, and you know there really is something to that. Just so, you know, like protein, highly recommend it when, when you're, when you're tired and worn out, and you, you fought your battle and you, you need some sustenance.
Speaker 1:And it's now protein and water and sleep.
Speaker 2:Yes, protein water and sleep. Seriously, those are like the three major things. And so that is exactly what Elijah needed, and I just, I absolutely love that, because, even though, well, god is going to show us time and time and time again in the Bible that Elijah was just one of the first, but he wasn't the only one who forgot the miracles quicker than you can say, boo, as believers, is that when God shows up and does something amazing, we need to be prepared, because Satan is going to counterattack immediately. So Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and then he went immediately into the desert or into the wilderness and fasted for 40 days. At the end of the 40 days, when he was hungry, when he was tired, when he was depleted, that's when Satan showed up and tried to tempt him three times, and because God is God and because Jesus is Jesus and they are one in the same, he was able to resist the temptation through the word of God, through scripture.
Speaker 2:He kept, he counteracted every temptation that Jesus or sorry, that Satan gave Jesus with it is written, and then he told him what was written excuse me in the word of God After the feeding of the 5,000, when the disciples witnessed that with Jesus, after he started his ministry, which was after the fasting in the desert, then Jesus sent the disciples ahead of him in a boat and said I'll be there, but I'm going to go talk to God right now, I'm going to go fill up myself, because he knew what to do. He knew that when you know, after big, major things, he needed to fill up with his father. And so then there was this big storm and they got really scared and once again, you know, god showed up in a very miraculous way by feeding the 5000 with two loaves and five fish, or no, two fish and five loaves. And, sorry, I always have to sing the song because I always get it wrong otherwise. So, um, you know, songs are really good. That's how you learn the books of the bible too, fyi. So um anyway.
Speaker 2:So it was after that, after that miracle, that they saw and they witnessed, um, that god um calmed the storm. But they were scared to death. Until Jesus said you think that I can feed 5,000 people but I can't calm a storm. You think I can feed 5,000 people but I'm going to let you die in the storm, like hours later. Like that's just human nature, that's just the way we are, and God doesn't punish us for that, god doesn't get angry with us for that. God understands that we're human and that we have intimate fears as human beings and he wants us to come to him and he wants us to not be afraid. I mean, he tells us that multiple times in the Bible, but he understands our humanness and so he teaches us ways to take care of ourselves and ways to turn to him so that we don't have that fear as prevalently as before. But those are just a few of the examples that I can think of off the top of my head, where, when a miracle happens, when something amazing happens, like okay, for instance, we talked about Noah a few weeks ago. Noah saw the whole ark thing go down. He saw that God had saved him and his family's life from the flood, from pure death, and then he comes out of the ark and he gets drunk. So, like Satan is going to tempt us, satan is going to show up, satan is going to wreak havoc or try to wreak havoc after we see a miracle. It's just the way he is. It's just what's going to happen.
Speaker 2:And so we need, as humans, as believers, we need to be prepared, just like we need. Like if you see, for instance, it's in the springtime or even early summer, here in the Midwest we get a lot of storms. So we know that at certain times of the year, we need to make sure that our generator has gas or that we have extra gas. We need to sometimes put our generator out and cover it with the things that we cover it with to make sure that it's ready to go. We test it with the things that we cover it with to make sure that it's ready to go. We test it, we turn it on and make sure that it's easy to start. Sometimes you have to board up certain windows. You know little things like that. Like we have to prepare because we know that certain times of the year we're going to get storms. It's just, it happens Like clockwork, like we know. So we can either be prepared or we can let it take us by surprise, which it's really not taking us by surprise, because it happens every single year. That's what we need to.
Speaker 2:That's the way that we need to approach life as a believer. Is okay? Did something amazing just happen in my life? Yes, it did. Okay. So Satan is not going to be happy. So I need to be prepared.
Speaker 2:So, god, how do you want me to prepare for this, god? How do you want me to? Well, one, first off, I need to spend more time with my Heavenly Father so that I can hear his voice instead of hearing the voice of the enemy. Two, I need to be prayed up and I need to be worded up. I need to know the Bible. I need to know the promises of the Bible so that I can speak them back when Satan is trying to whisper lies to me.
Speaker 2:One of the best ways to combat. So God tells us to take every thought captive that the enemy is here to steal, kill and destroy. And how are we supposed to combat that? Through the word of God. So we replace his lies with truth. So we'll just say, for instance, we feel lonely or depressed. Well, we can speak back to God. We can say you know what you promised in your word, that you would never leave me or forsake me. So I may feel lonely right now, I may feel depressed, but that's just a lie from the enemy and I'm going to choose to believe your truth instead of that lie. Or if we feel like we're facing something that is overwhelming and bigger than anything that we like, we don't have the answer, or we don't have the strength, or we don't know what we're going to do.
Speaker 2:In Exodus 14, 14, it says stand firm. Or let me think it's one of my favorite verses, so just give me one second. Basically, I'm going to fight for you, so be still, I will fight for you. That is not the way that it says it in the Bible. But you know what? Just give me one second, people, because it's right here. Like I said, it's one of my absolute favorite verses.
Speaker 2:So Exodus 14, 13 through 14. And it talks about I used to use this all the time with God when I just really needed to know that he was right there with me. And it says do not be afraid, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord which he will accomplish for you today, for the Egyptians whom you see today. You will see again, no more forever. The Lord will fight for you and you shall hold your peace. The other version goes the Lord will fight for you. You only need to be still. That's what I was trying to remember, and so we can fight back those battles. We can fight those attacks that we know are coming. We can be prepared, have God's promises hidden in our heart or in our journal, or easy access to them somewhere, so that as those attacks come and we know they're going to come so anytime something amazing happens, be prepared, because you know then that Satan is not going to be happy and he's going to do everything he can to make your life miserable. Do you want to add anything to that, kara?
Speaker 1:No, oh my gosh. The scripture in Exodus, also one of my favorites. It is just a reminder, right? Just another powerful reminder that when it looks overwhelming that we just got to remember that God has it, and sometimes we just need to stand still and, to be honest, from being perfectly transparent that is one of the hardest things is the stand still and, to be honest, if I'm being perfectly transparent, that is one of the hardest things is the stand still part, because again our human nature will arise and be like Lord.
Speaker 1:I know, I know you got this, I know that you're going to take care of this, but I want to take care of now, you know, and your timing, and maybe three years from now, but I want this person to pay now, you know, or I want to see it tomorrow. I want to see this happen to them, and so sometimes that could be the struggle, but be assured that if God is telling us to stand still and just let him handle it, that is 100% the best way. 100% the best way. When we try to handle it ourselves, we get ourselves into deeper trouble that we weren't even supposed to be in, because we were just supposed to stand still and trust God, you know. So. It's very hard to do, but it is 100% the best way. Okay, that's all I wanted to add.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, I have to give a testimony about that. So I had read a book. This was probably 10 to 15 years ago now. I had read a book by Mark Patterson called Draw your Circle or Draw the Circle or something like that. Anyway, it was about a circle. And so I was convicted no, no, no, I was challenged, not convicted, I was challenged to circle my house every single day. And it just so happens that Exodus 14, 13 through 14, was the verse that I use. I can't remember if I got that from the book itself or if that was just a verse that God gave me, gave me. And so I literally, literally, took my Bible out with me and I circled my property and I prayed that that verse over my property every single day for over a year, I believe, at least six months, if not a year. Rain, snow, sleet or hail didn't matter. I was out there and I was circling my property and I remember looking up and I remember thinking okay, god, the Egyptians that I see today. So the roof that we have that I see today, the siding that we have that I see today, I will see no more because you will take care of it, you will fight for me. I only need to be still. I only need to be still Well.
Speaker 2:On my birthday I want to say it was 2019. On my birthday, we had a humongous storm, a hail storm, and, um, we ended up getting a new roof and new siding, also two new cars because it ruined our cars, because we don't have a garage Um, and I think we only had to pay like less than the deductible because of how everything worked out. God literally answered that prayer. I walked my house for over six months six to nine months, six months to a year and I literally prayed that prayer. And you're right, kara, it was in his timing not my timing, because I think I prayed that in 2013.
Speaker 2:And six years later, god gave us a new roof and new siding and I still, to this day, look at our roof and look at our siding and I'm like God. I wasn't even like literally. Well, I mean I was, but I wasn't like I. I didn't realize the power of that prayer and I didn't realize how you were truly listening and like hearing, if you saw that we needed a new roof even more than I did. Like like you said, like you can, one you can never out. Give God. That's a whole, totally different podcast, right, but he saw the need that we had and all I wanted was I. I personally see the verse a little bit differently than you do, because I love like hearing the I will fight for you. You only need to be still, or the Lord will fight.
Speaker 1:I'm like.
Speaker 2:Thank you, lord, because I don't want to fight, want to fight. I don't want to have to battle this. I don't want to have to speak up. I don't want to have to do any of those things. You're going to do it for me. Awesome, thank you. I will just sit back here, drink my cup of coffee and watch and see how you're going to do it, because I don't want to. I'm just being transparent and honest.
Speaker 1:You know, sometimes that's the best way no, not. Sometimes that actually is the best way to do it honestly is to just sit back and be like, okay, god, you got this. You know, especially when he's telling us to do that. But I also want to touch on something. You said you prayed that prayer and you did that in 2013. I also want to touch on something you said you prayed that prayer and you did that in 2013. And then in 2019, how it all worked out with the Ruth and the sighting. That's amazing by itself, but that's the only miracle you saw.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you don't know, there could have been tons of instances where you did not see how he was protecting you, your family and your property in the meantime, yeah, you know, that is the only the one that you could physically see with your human eyes, but in a spirit world, and the things that he could have protected your property from that you have no idea of, oh, he was still working. But then he blesses us by saying oh, by the way, I'm going to let you see this one, right, exactly, and everything else so absolutely. That's like the cherry on top, right.
Speaker 2:Because, all those other things are being taken care of. Right read about. You know how you had talked about last week about are you doing things to like, are you? Are you trusting God to supply or are you trusting yourself? Are you trusting God? Are you compromising your, your beliefs, in order to to make money to? You know, either get ahead or stay ahead or pay your bills or whatever. God was working with me during that period of Sherry, I am the one that supplies your paycheck, not a person.
Speaker 2:So you will depend on you and he wasn't saying it like. I'm saying it in a mean way you will depend on me.
Speaker 2:He wasn't saying it like that. He was like Sherry, I'm going to teach you to depend on me, because where I'm taking you, you need to depend on me. You need to not depend on a 401k. You need to not depend on me. You need to not depend on a 401k. You need to not depend on um, you know a retirement plan. You need to depend on me. And so, um, I will never forget.
Speaker 2:I used to always like I, I I guess you could almost say that I have like a poverty spirit, or I had like a poverty spirit I was always afraid we were going to run out of money. I was always afraid when, like sudden or unexpected financial things would come up and something had happened I don't know, it was probably something to do with one of our cars and I was sitting. I remember, I remember distinctly I was sitting at the, at our dinner table, and I couldn't eat because my stomach was in knots, because I'm like how are we going to pay for this? Actually, now that I think about it, I don't think it had anything to do with our cars. I think it just had to do with I didn't have a job yet, because my job had been um, yeah, I was doing medical transcriptioning and so, um, I got, uh, I got an email actually um, the Monday after Christmas saying happy new year, you have no job in 30 days. Um, and so I was sitting there in knots, my stomach was in knots, I couldn't eat. I was like God, I don't know how we're going to pay our bills, because I am a contributor to our our bills. And so we had to go get, or my husband had to go get gas, and so he invited me and our little one or he was like five or six at the time, no, actually I think it was three or four at the time and so he invited us to go with him. Sometimes we would just go to keep him company. So we were in the car.
Speaker 2:It was wintertime, so it was dark already because it was like 530, but it was dark and we were driving like on our normal route and we don't live like totally in the country, but we do live in an area where deer crop up and this was in like a. I mean, it was a main road. It wasn't like a highway or anything, but it was a main road and I remember he was driving and the next thing. I know there was a herd, I am not kidding you, not one. There was a herd of deer that crossed right in front of him and if he had been going any faster, oh, and before I start I have to I have to let you know that there had been like a police car or something at a, at a, at a house, right before this happened, so like literally I don't know, 20 feet before this happened. So he slowed down, he put the brakes on and slowed down to see what in the heck is going on.
Speaker 2:If he hadn't slowed down to look at that cop car or ambulance or whatever it was at the house, he would have literally hit this herd of deer and they were coming on his side of the car, which means they would have gotten him and they would have gotten our son, because they were both on the left-hand side of the car and I just remember God very distinctly saying to me Sherry, just as I protected your whole family from this herd of deer not one, but this herd of deer, I am protecting you and I've got you with whatever's coming.
Speaker 2:You know, whatever, whatever you're going to, face in the next couple of months, and it was so scary at first, but it was so peaceful. And then, just a couple months ago, um, no, well, probably about four, four weeks ago maybe we were driving and I don't even remember where we were, what we were doing, I think we were coming home from something, and this deer came out of nowhere, and I swear his fur was on the grill of our car.
Speaker 2:It was that close, and I remember instead of getting scared. This time, though, this is 10 years later, I'm just like God. Thank you for the reminder that you are always taking care of us. Sometimes we get to see it, sometimes we don't, but, like you said, how many times did he take care of and protect our property and we didn't even know it Exactly?
Speaker 1:Right, you know, and everything else. And then, like I say, the cherry on top is when he lets us get to see it like you know, after the storm, you know, and everything else. And so, oh, what a mighty God we serve, what a personal God we serve right?
Speaker 2:Amen, amen. So that's my challenge for people today is I want you to think about, first off, god doesn't get mad at us when we get depressed, when we get down, when we get tired, when we need refreshment. But he does want us to come to him. He didn't when Elijah was going through the depression and the exhaustion. He didn't just tell Elisha to go into the cave and take a nap. He had the angels. He himself ministered to Elijah through his angels. God wants to minister to us. God wants to be the one that gives us that refreshment and that nourishment physically, spiritually, mentally and emotionally. God knows that we are made up of all four and that we need to have refreshment all four ways. So I wanted to, first off, encourage you with that that God is not angry with us, that God gives us grace and he understands that we're humans with bodies that need to be refreshed and refueled, minds that need to be refreshed and refueled, spiritual parts of us that need to be refreshed and refueled, and psychologically and emotionally refreshed and refueled. So that's number one. Number two when you see God's hand at work, that is your signal to be to beware, to be leery, to be looking around to be alert, because the devil is coming to kill, steal and destroy, nothing more than to make you forget the ways that God is taking care of you and the ways that God is guiding you and the ways that God is helping you live out your purpose and your plan his glory. So be alert, be alert, have be prepared ahead of time. So have scripture handy.
Speaker 2:I was a very bad example because I had forgotten my. The Lord will fight for you. We only need to be still. I had to look it up again, but I knew where to look it up. I was prepared enough that I knew where to look it up. So you don't have to be perfect. You don't have to have everything memorized, although memorizing is good. But I took my Bible out with me every single day until I could memorize Exodus 14, 13 through 14. I carried around with me and I didn't even care that I probably look stupid to my neighbors. I really didn't.
Speaker 2:It was between me and God and I was like you know what, lord, I love you way more than I care if my neighbors think that I'm crazy, and I spoke it out loud. I wasn't like no, I was like the Lord will fight for me. I see these Egyptians and I named them my roof, my siding, my, this, my that. I see these, these Pharaohs, these Egyptians, but I am not going to see them anymore because you, lord, are fighting for me.
Speaker 1:I only need to be still so.
Speaker 2:I just want to encourage people with that too, Be bold, talk to God, ask him to show up, ask him to fight for you, ask him to let you be still. Ask him what your part is to play. God wants nothing more than to have these conversations with us, just like we love it when our kids want to have conversations or when a friend reaches out to us and wants to have conversations. I had a conversation just yesterday where I was told that I was an encouragement and I didn't even think I was being encouraging, like I looked back on the conversation and I was like I could have done that a lot better. I should have done this, I should have done that and I should have done that.
Speaker 1:We're all verse critic right.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, I should have done that. We're our worst critic, right? Yes, yes. So have those conversations with God, because he wants them with us even more than we want them with a friend or our spouse or our kids or our coworkers. So those are the encouragements that I want to leave you with today.
Speaker 2:And again, I honestly, kara, I cannot get enough of the Bible. Honestly, kara, I cannot get enough of the Bible. I love, love, love.
Speaker 2:Revisiting and talking about and just remembering all the historical biblical figures that God has given to us as examples, the encouragement that we get from it, the challenges that we get from it, whether they're the villains in the Bible or whether they're the heroes, whether they're the ones that show us how not to live versus the ones that show us how to live.
Speaker 2:And I love, too, how every single one of them are not perfect. So even the hero made mistakes, because you know what we're going to make mistakes, and that's okay. God not only expects us to make mistakes, but he's okay with it as long as we keep coming back to him. I love what you said about Ahab and Jezebel last week, how you said that God gives grace and God gives mercy, and he gave them so many chances to turn their lives around, and I think I don't know I don't know if somebody needs to hear this today or not, but there is nothing, nothing any of us can do or has done or will do that is bigger than God, able to cover it with the cross and the blood of Jesus Christ.
Speaker 2:Nothing, absolutely nothing. If you think that you're too far gone or if you think that God can't forgive you, that is a lie from the pits of hell, because God can forgive anything. In fact, we're going to be talking much from now still this year, let's see. We're going to be talking sometime in August about the Apostle Paul. You want to talk about somebody who you think can't be forgiven. We're going to talk about the Apostle Paul and he'll just throw that right out of the water for you, Because he went from killing people to being completely forgiven and God used him in great and mighty ways. So don't ever, ever believe that anything that you've done is too far gone that God can't forgive. He wants to forgive, he's waiting to forgive. In fact, if you are at the point right now where you want to ask Jesus into your heart, it is so simple. All it takes is a heart change.
Speaker 2:If you pray this prayer that we're going to talk or that we're going to pray in just a couple of minutes. If you pray this prayer from your heart, if you believe the words that you're saying because it's not the words that save you, it's your heart. It's a heart change, it's praying it and believing the words that you're saying If you pray this prayer and believe it in your heart, god says you will be saved. So if this is something that you want to do, I don't want to wait one more second, but I want to give you that opportunity today. So if you are ready to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior, if you want to surrender your life and say to him I want you in charge, then God says if you do this with a submissive heart, you will be saved. So repeat these words after me, heart, you will be saved. To repeat these words after me, oh heavenly father, I come to you in Jesus' name. I believe you died on the cross and that you rose again and you're seated on the throne. Jesus, forgive me for all that I've done wrong and I choose to forgive all others. Come into my life today and forever. I am yours In Jesus' name. Amen. If you prayed that prayer with us right now, then I just want to say welcome to the family. I also want to encourage you to get into a Bible-believing church and if you prayed that prayer and you don't know what the next step is and you want to be mentored, then email us at cheeruppodcasts at gmailcom and you can join the membership for free. That is how important it is to get mentored and to be able to start growing your relationship with Jesus Christ and, honestly, that's why Kara and I do this podcast. That's why we meet every week and tape the episodes is because we just want to help you. We want to do our part to help you grow that relationship with God, to grow closer and to have a personal relationship with him. So if that's something that you need and you want to get started on it, then email us at cheeruppodcasts at gmailcom and I will be happy to let you join the membership and you won't even have to pay. Or you can pay the discount or you can do it however you want to, because all I know is that it's so important to grow that relationship with Jesus. Also, if you need prayer or you want encouragement, or you just want to talk and say, hey, I've been listening to your podcast, this is who I am. Then email us at cheeruppodcasts at gmailcom.
Speaker 2:Head over to Kara's website, kararhuntcom, and then you can find out all the cool things that she has going on. You can come over to sherryswellwellcom and find out the things that I have going on. You can come over to SherrySwellwellcom and find out the things that I have going on, and you can also let people know. If you prayed that prayer and you're ready to let people know, then head over to the Facebook group, cheer Up Podcast on Facebook and say, hey, I prayed that prayer. I am now a brother or a sister in Christ. We just couldn't be happier. So that is what we have today. Next week we're going to talk about Elijah and he was mentored by Elijah and actually something really cool happened with him, but we will let you know about that next week. So have a great rest of your day, a great rest of your week, and we will talk to you next week.
