“Spiritual but not religious.”

Transcript

uh well uh good evening everyone um as x Jim said tonight's uh subject spiritual x but not religious I'll give you a little x backstory as why I selected this uh x maybe unorthodox topic but um so I'm on x this group text thread with about seven x or eight high school friends of mine for x I don't know the last six seven years or x so and uh I don't I don't respond to it x very often and um it's usually all x political and nonsense type stuff so as x usually don't anything there's a few x times where I've been like uh you know x maybe I'll throw out U you know God x rules in the Kingdom of men you know x there's a lot of election stuff or uh x you know putting out your trust in man x but but I was like no I'm not going to x I'm not going to do that yet I I know I x I only had one x shot these group of guys so I was like x no I'm not gonna not going to do that x yet so then about two months ago um x these two guys were arguing about um x genders and homosexuality and one of x them say you know God says there's only x two genders and God's against x homosexuality and the other guy x responded with well you know no one x really knows about how many genders x there are and um you know that was then x with homosexuality but you know maybe x things times are different and if the x churches changed their rules more people x would start to go and I have a niece x who's lesbian and she's really nice and x so uh you know I still I was not going x to enter the conversation at that point x and then um another gentleman responded x with a pretty lengthy uh post about x religion and uh he says boy this isn't a x spot that we usually go but let me let x me give you my two cents on religion and x um you know he he start out with you x know he believes in God he believes God x loves x everyone um he believed that God was the x creator the two genders but he said you x can't trust the Bible uh because the x Bible is written by man and man is x fallible um it's open to private x interpretation um he said it goes on to x say you know all beliefs are fine um the x only the meaning of life is the pursuit x of x happiness so at that point I decided I x can't let this go and and so I I x responded but he he finished with um you x know I I grew up as a Catholic but I x don't identify with the Catholic faith x anymore I consider myself to be x spiritual but not religious and I said x boy that is like the eighth ninth time x someone has uh said that to me in in x discussions and and and talks about x religion or or they go with the uh the x the sister belief if you will the x unreligious but not affiliated meaning x um I'm religious I'm Christian usually x but I don't feel the need to belong to x any one of those particular Christian x faith x um and so really in the end there's not x much difference between the two so I I x decided you know I'm thinking about x those conversations and I'm like I don't x even know how I responded to when x someone said that to me and I said I got x to I got to take a closer look at this x because I need to have an answer for x when the next time someone brings that x up in x discussion so that was the reason why I x kind of started to dig into it and I x said well might as well make a class of x it uh so that's what we're going to look x at tonight what do they mean when they x say um spiritual but not x religious um you know what's the problem x with it is it is it scriptural why is it x why are people attracted to it and um x you know how might we answer uh to this x so that's what we're going to attempt to x do tonight um I'm hoping to leave some x time at the end uh where you guys can x share your experiences cuz I've told Ted x to a few brothers that said oh yeah I've x I've heard that one before too so I'd x like to hear your experiences and maybe x how you responded uh to well so please x uh you know do share your experiences x there x so um this is taken from the Pew x research they do a lot of study on x religion in America and they say that uh x seven in tenuous adults uh describe x themselves as spiritual in some way x including 22% who are spiritual but not x religious goes on to say Regent decades x Americans are become less likely to x identify with an organized religion x however belief in spirit or a spiritual x realm Beyond this world is widespread x even among those who don't consider x themselves x religious uh so that's a you know that's x a pretty you know seven and 10 and x spiritual in some way but they they x don't want to be considered religion so x if we kind of take a definition I found x this definition of religion thought it x was pretty good um it's a word used to x uh reference uh to refer to expressions x of Devotion to God or or Gods primarily x through acts of worship prayers x sacrifice uh attending Services Etc x there's an adherence to a set of beliefs x rules practices and rituals often x containing a moral code of x conduct it operates on faith a faith x that is never questioned of course you x know that last part there um you know x when we're talking to people about our x faith we this is the point where we're x trying to get them to question their own x faith right we're okay with our young x people coming to us and questioning x their faith as long as they're seeking x out the matter if they come and they say x hey is baptism you know is it really x necessary we'll say hey we'll check into x it find out and we're quite comfortable x with them doing that because we know x what they're going to find if they're x sincere in their search for the truth x they'll find it and then it'll just x solidify their faith right that's what x it does when we dig deeper to uh to x convince ourselves is this really and x then boom yes yes it x is so this is uh this is this these are x some quotes from a book that uh promotes x this um spiritual but not religious and x this is just a few things that they have x to say uh spirituality is the study of x uh spirit or Consciousness religion is x pretty much a prepackaged belief system x that seems satis seems satisfactory for x a lot of people uh religion is a blind x faith to a pre-made God of course we x wouldn't again we we don't you know x Blind Faith stuff there are many x Christian faiths that promote um Blind x Faith um we do not you know people that x were part of the Catholic Church would x tell me oh you're just supposed to x believe and have a question well well x that's not us we do not have a blind um x Faith a friend of mine we were talking x we we I was teaching him some Bible x classes and we talked about the trinity x came up and he says no my church does x not believe in the Trinity I said yeah x it does and I said why don't you ask x your pastor and um uh long story short x he he met with some friends that go to x that and they were going to explain to x him the Trinity now I had already x schooled them a little bit and I said x don't let them give you any analogies x like you know the Trinity is like a x tripod or the Trinity is like water it x comes in various forms I said tell them x you want to see scripture and you want x to see a lot of it so he said no they x did exactly what you said and then when x I said show told me the scripture uh the x woman told him that you have to have x Blind Faith so it is incorporated into x many Christian religions that you just x supposed to believe but we we don't x believe that um it's a ritualistic x practice fed to the masses on the other x hand spirituality is the very definition x of what it is to be human we are all x Spiritual Beings having a human x experience it's a trendy phrase people x often use to describe their belief that x they don't need organized religion to x live a life of faith of course we know x where faith comes from and that comes x from the reading the scriptures but uh x the spiritual but not religious don't x feel the need to go to the x Bible necessarily you know you might x also hear this one a little little x differently is I don't need a book to x tell me how to be good because I'm x naturally x good of course none of that we subscribe x to so when they are um you know kind of x coming up with a definition of uh x spiritual uh they say you know we're x Seekers we're constantly learning from x Life Experiences growing along the way x it's a journey in search of personal x truths they give this analogy they they x they say that religion is like a x stagnant Pond but to be spiritual that's x like a river it's always flowing and x changing one size does not fit all each x person has the freedom to create their x own path and their own way to connect to x their greater power which is often how x they refer to God sometimes they'll use x God but more more than likely it's to x this greater power this Supreme Being x whatever it may be but we know you don't x create your own path right let God guide x us down the path but this is a create x your own x way they respect all forms of belief x thoughts Faith because they they can all x help us grow I remember um seeing x something written by x um uh Dawkins right the famous um x atheist and you know he said about the x Bible he said the Bible's fine I don't x got a problem with it's got a lot of x life lessons in it but so do all other x books of religion uh books of philosophy x books from poets we should take them all x one not one is above the other so this x is kind of their their thought process x it's a personal journey of understanding x and there's no need to conform to any x type of laws or behavioral x guidelines the sbnr group um there's a x few other facts from um from the Pew x research report I believe uh they say x that only 20% believe in God as x described by the Bible now if you add x also the religious but not affiliated x group to that it only goes up to 30% so x those two groups combined only 30% x believe in the in God as the Bible x describes it um now I would imagine that x has to do with that you know the Old x Testament God who's mean and uh he's x always murdering people so I imagine you x know that's not the vision that they x want to have I'm guessing that why it's x so low uh 42% say religion causes x Division and x intolerance um maybe you've heard you x know hey religion causes all wars that's x what my cousin told me once because he x said I tell you what I don't like about x religion it causes Wars and I just x questioned him like I go does it really x I go I can't I go World War I World War x II Vietnam War Korean War which ones and x he goes you know what I'm talking about x so I don't know I mean eventually you x know you go back far enough there'll be x some religious wars but nothing uh x nothing in recent memory only 15% x believe that religion is helpful to x society the spnr group is very x anti-organized x religion just 2% regularly attend any x type of worship service compared to 40% x who claim to be righteous religious uh x only 4% belong to a spiritual Community x uh compared to 39% of the religious x group that are involved in a community x uh like x church only 21% pray uh daily compared x to 64% of those who deem themselves to x be x religious um again they they're praying x to a god they they don't x know and when asked you know what it x what does it mean to you to be x spiritual 72% said to be connected to my x inner self well 80% of the religious x responded with being spiritual means to x be connected to God so you know already x I think we can see what the spiritual x but not religious is all about well it's x all about me it's all about x self um and that's what we're going to x find um that's what we're going to find x out so why are people so attracted to it x it's a heavy x moving uh people are trending this way I x actually had a call from a friend of x mine this morning who's one of the x individuals that I his wife actually who x I had this conversation with and she x gave me the uh well I'm religious but x don't need to be Affiliated to any x particular faith and so I said Hey x listen I got to go I can't talk all day x I got to prepare for this Bible class x and he said well what are you teaching x about and and I mentioned it to him this x religious but and he says oh that's very x popular I hear that quite a bit I said x oh that's that's interesting so made a x little discussion about that but you x know why are people attracted well I x think the big one is there's no x responsibility I'm not making a x commitment right the flesh doesn't like x to be responsible right if we believe x that there is a x Creator then you know we're our lives x are responsible to him and the flesh x doesn't like that we only want to be x responsible to ourselves so by saying x I'm not religious then it removes that x commitment and then they can say hey I'm x openminded right that's pretty that's a x pretty good thing that's looked upon x positively in today's society if you say x that you're open-minded people are like x yeah that's good me too or they say I'm x enlightened right that's what the woke x movement was x Enlightenment but we're looking for a x different type of Enlightenment than x that they you know we got many beliefs x many spiritual book many different x spiritual leaders it's not just the x Bible and Jesus you know we're not x confined just to that we many many x anything x is fine so their beliefs change like the x wind right there's a saying it says if x you believe everything you believe you x really believe nothing right you got no x Foundation where you going to plant your x flag on what you believe in right that's x why we're fine with our young people x saying yeah look into it you're not x quite sure we get this right look into x that belief and you'll find it and then x you'll build a foundation on a rock x right x the other thing there's no negative x stigma that is attached to religion x which is you know Rel to be to say x you're religious today it's you know x maybe this hinders Us x in you know inviting people to our faith x uh telling them about our faith because x it has what one uh article said it has x an ick Factor i c ick or gross factors x like he's x religious I don't want to talk to that x guy right that's how it's kind of x perceived in society so maybe that's one x of the things that you know maybe x prevents us from speaking up when we x should be and you know it's arrogant for x you to say you've got the truth who are x you that say your religion is right out x of all the other ones well you know I've x heard that in Christadelphian circles x maybe we shouldn't say we have the truth x of course we should are we not confident x that we know the way of self ation right x are there many many religions and it's x all good with God does it not matter x what we believe now that's not what we x believe right one body one hope one Lord x One Faith one x baptism another reason is there's no x baggage from the religious groups I.E x the Catholic church and the sex abuse x right I and I can see why someone who x was Catholic would want to separate them x I don't want to be associated with that x sex abuse use stuff but there's you know x there can be is there baggage following x Jesus Christ you know how about those x first century Believers you that I think x they had baggage right following Christ x right many were they were persecuted x they were killed set on fire right made x human torches of um and we're told Jesus x says you know if the world hates you x remember it hated me first that's x baggage right don't worry he says they x will hate you because you don't think x like like they do right we we have um we x have different goals different x priorities in our life than the world x has and when the when when when they x don't line up the world doesn't like you x right birds of a feather flock together x and we're going to be different and he's x saying that's okay so was x I and another reason is it takes away x the guilt of not being religious x according to one article that only 4% x of Americans identify as being x atheist and it's because you know that's x like you don't want to say that because x Americans hold a negative view of x atheists they think they lack morals and x values they deem to be x untrustworthy so this kind of solves a x lot of problems if I just say I'm x spiritual but not religious means okay x forget all the religious stuff I'm away x from all that and guess what I'm not x saying I'm x atheist uh so I I take away that x negative guilt I think another thing x that it does is they hope to end the x conversation when I look back at the x conversations I had I can't remember x what my response was and I think it did x end the conversation and that's what x they're looking to do because they know x if we're talking religion eventually x we're going to get to the Bible and x they're pretty ignorant of the Bible and x so they don't want to go there they x don't want to look ignorant so if they x can just throw out a a phrase x and that ends the conversation then x they've saved their ego their pride and x we'll we'll talk a bit about that in a x moment so this keep seeking keep growing x keep questioning that's kind of their uh x SLO slogan right we're just always x looking we're always seeking we're x always x questioning uh you know we're told seek x and you shall find and if you if you're x constantly seeking and you're con x constantly x questioning well then you're never going x to be doers of the word and that's what x we're supposed to be doers of the word x not hearers only right this is a lesson x for ourselves right you're only x deceiving yourself if you think if you x think that like we know the truth we've x already found it our job now is to be x doers of the word right our faith in x action so another one of the tenants uh x is you know you know it's not about the x destination but the x journey right see always when you're x always seeking you're really not seeking x at all right because we're told that you x know seeking you shall find and guess x what when we find the Journey's over x there's no need to keep seeking because x we've already found the truth we we're x not continuing to try to find the truth x we're continuing to grow that's one of x the things they say continue to grow x yeah okay we could say that we're trying x to continue to grow to be more like God x to develop that Godly character and x that's a lifelong Mission CU you know no x one's walking in on a Sunday morning x saying hey guess what brothers and x sisters I nailed it yeah I'm just like x God I've got that you know God character x down pat all set right so that's a x continual process but when you know x we're not always x seeking and the destination it's about x the journey not the destination that's x the kingdom of God see they have no x there isn't much of a a focus on the x future everything is focused on the x present the here and the now with the x spiritual but not religious type of x thinking and boy you take away the x kingdom of God you take away the x resurrection you take away eternal x life and who's there on a Sunday I mean x look what Paul says right if in this x life only we have hope in Christ where x of all men most miserable right if if x there was no such thing as the kingdom x of God or the resurrection or eternal x life no one's at x meeting and in Proverbs it says Where is x where there is no vision the people x perish they don't have a vision they x don't have a destination there's no x clear goal there's no direction there's x no purpose of x life the people perish x this is just a little quote that I x stumbled upon but I I thought was pretty x good it says the human soul without God x is restless lonely dissatisfied x constantly seeking never finding such x people do not dare to be alone with x their thoughts they are constantly x looking for something to anth notize if x I'm pronouncing that correctly the pain x of x loneliness so they see diversion through x a NeverEnding quest of Thrills pleasure x entertainment or Conquest that is the x story of humanity and it's so true isn't x it we know people with you know you x don't have God in your life there's a x big void and you need to fill it and x what people are doing is they're trying x to fill it through pleasure Thrills x entertainment what they're trying to do x with something that we know is x absolutely impossible they don't know x it's impossible so they got to try to x figure it out the hard way it's x impossible to please the Flesh and x that's what they x do so the lesson for us right faith x without works is dead you know when x James is describing religion you know x devotion worship to God he says religion x pure and undefiled before our God and x Father is this to visit to look after x fatherless and the widows and their x affli x and to keep oneself unspotted from the x world so what James is saying is this x outward show of worship which in his day x was considered to be a positive it's not x in our day any outwood show is frowned x upon hey keep that religion to yourself x don't shove it down my throat in his day x it was okay but he's saying it's empty x unless it's followed by works right so x we need the worship of God and these x acts of x charity and the spnr group and the x religious but not affiliate they're void x of any type of worship or devotion other x than to x themselves in one article it said that x this group um is less charitable they're x less likely to volunteer less likely to x help out their Community compared to x those of the religious group so there's x no talk of works of putting that faith x into Works kind x actions and of course this you know x Jesus is Calling out the teachers of the x law and the Pharisees you know you you x give a tenth of the spices but you x neglected the more important matters of x the law Justice mercy and faithfulness x you should have practiced the latter x without neglecting the former right they x adhere to the rules of the religion but x they missed the charity so you know this x is a lesson for us it's you know we have x the truth now let's put that into action x right let's develop that Godly character x let's show it forth let's follow the x example of x Christ and we've got to remain x unspotted uh from the world right x therefore come out from from them and be x separate touch no clean thing and I will x receive you I will be a father to you x and you will be my sons and daughters x you know x separation from an unbelieving world is x a x requirement of being a child of God it's x not just by my natural birth right it's x you know we're going to separate x ourselves from the world from its x ideologies from the way it thinks right x we get our guidance from x God in Romans of course and uh be not x conformed to this world but be x transformed by the renewing of your mind x and we know there's only one way to x renew the mind right we are mind to x going to replace the connal with the x spiritual the only way to do that is put x the mind of God the word of God right in x our minds and uh we we do that of course x by reading our scriptures and we'll I'll x talk about that in a x second in Isaiah it says I Delight x greatly in the Lord my soul rejoices in x my God for he has clothed me with x garments of righteousness I wonder what x those garments of righteousness are well x Paul tells us for as many of you has put x on have been baptized into Christ have x put on Christ right so all of us have x put on Christ in baptism we have those x garments of x righteousness right so now we've got to x leave we got to keep those garments x unspotted from the polluting influences x of the world tough to do I know right we x live in the world but not of it but we x want to be influenced by the word of God x we don't want to be influenced by our x neighbors by world L those things that x they're trying to appeal to us we don't x want to do x that and Jesus says um to the Ecclesia x and Sardis right there is a few names in x Sardis that have not defiled their x garments right it's not the whole x Ecclesia he doesn't say all the old x Ecclesia and most of the Ecclesia he x says but a few in that Ecclesia they x shall walk with me in white for they are x worthy so that's you know our x responsibility now that we've put on x Christ it's now to um remain unspotted x from the x world so Bible reading all right so this x is an article from Christianity Today an x article is titled The Greatest Story x never read right it says the concurrent x declines of biblical literacy and x biblical morality right to disregard the x source to neglect the Bible is to remove x the chief Authority on which our faith x is built we're left vulnerable unable to x check the teachings of those who invite x us to follow incapable of charting a x true course past sirene voices calling x from treacherous Islands such as TV x programs popular books enchanting x prophecies displayed on colorful x websites surely it's no coincidence that x biblical literacy and biblical morality x appear who have plummeted simultaneously x and we we already know this right we go x back and look at the example of Israel x every time they turn away from God where x does the morality go it goes right down x they go hand in hand the article goes on x to say we've shifted from being a nation x which people believed that right and x wrong morality was defined by the Bible x now we live in a nation where only 42% x believe the Bible is true accurate x relevant where the largest share of x adults believe there's no absolute moral x truth that all truth is determined by x the x individual and on what basis do they x determine their truth primarily emotions x if it feels like it's right or x appropriate thing to do or say or x believe then that becomes the course of x action right so boy that you know we got x to get out there and preach right but x this puts us handicapped doesn't it if x because you know you come across someone x and you want to start talking and they x say listen I do not believe in the Bible x well we might as well just pack up and x go and walk away because if we can't x have a solid basis for anything there's x not no need to have a conversation and x we get people saying no it's whatever x you feel we can't you can't trust x there's no absolute truth you can't x trust the Bible that's pretty x tough because you know those who say x they're faithful and yet if they don't x know the Bible because we know where x faith comes from comes from hearing the x word of God so this is a little chat x over here of the frequency of Bible x reading now this is a chart from those x who are church goers these are people x that are going to church on Sunday and x look at how often they're reading the x Bibles only 133% read it daily 28% never x read it 30% say they read it once a year x you might as well never read it right x that's 58% of basically are never x reading their Bible of churchgoers so of x course you know the others you know x they're not reading it at all right 7% x monthly weekly that's you know when you x go into meeting on Sunday um you know I x don't know I it'd be interesting to see x what what would those numbers look like x in the x Brotherhood there are times for me it's x it is only weekly you know I've been x spending time on this class you know x tomorrow uh I'm going to need a break I x don't know how long that break's going x to last it might be a few days before I x pick up the scriptures to my own shame x right might not be till Sunday that when x the readings am me that's when I get it x but we know that you know we need that x Daily x Bread so this was an interesting article x paganism and Witchcraft making a x comeback witchcraft which includes wiah x you know you know what a Wiccan is they x they uh they worship nature uh the Sun x and the Moon the seasons x they have a goddess of fertility right x does this sound familiar right this is x what Israel was doing way back when x right this stuff is still out there x magic right it say it's one of the x fastest growing spiritual paths in x America see when you're seeking your own x path unguided by God this is where you x might end up this is the danger you x might end up in one of these things x paganism x magic um and it you know it reminds me x of what Paul writes in Romans because x when they knew God they glorified him x not as God neither were thankful but x vain in their imaginations and their x foolish heart was darkened professing x themselves to be wise they became fools x and exchanged the glory of the immortal x God for images made to look like Mortal x men Birds animals and reptiles they x exchanged the truth for a lie and x worshiped and x served created things rather than the x Creator I mean I found that to be x fascinating that witchcraft magic making x a x comeback so you know the spiritual but x natural uh but not religious they kind x of think like um you know it's with you x know it's x thought-provoking it's this new age type x of thinking you know I'm a free thinker x I think for myself and I think these x things are all positive that's not new x at all it's humanism it's putting man x above God it's carnal thinking right and x and carnal think has always been there x right and just like sin It comes x naturally to us when doubt creeps into x our minds humanistic thinking is right x there waiting to share its thoughts to x convince us it's okay to deceive us and x this is what the carnal mind does we x know the carnal mind is a problem Maybe x not today maybe you know sometimes we're x super strong but in a moment of weakness x that's when we can get in trouble right x just like Eve the garden remember she x first proclaims the truth but when x another idea is introduced a more x appealing idea appealing to the flesh x then she's deceived and we can easily x deceive ourselves and we know that you x know this type of thinking carnal x thinking it has no x future for they that are after The Flesh x do mind the things of the flesh but they x that are after the spirit the things of x the spirit for to be carnally minded is x death but to be spiritually minded is x life and x peace okay so this this is guy he's an x actor maybe you recognize him um you x know when I read his little statement x here on x religion um you know I I just see x pride uh he says you know I'm not x religious but I'm spiritual I have my x own relationship with a being that I x consider to be everywhere all and x everything I don't need a church a x synagogue or a mosque I don't need to x kneel I don't need to stand up I don't x need to be hanging from a thread think x what he means for that is you know I x don't have to give any Consciousness to x what I'm doing I can do as I please I'm x not bowing down to anybody I don't need x to follow any x rules right and in its pridefulness and x when I think of those individuals that x I've talked to I would say Pride was a x characteristic that I would describe for x seven of the eight of them x um they would be considered um very x successful in the western world because x they have money uh from wealthy to x extremely wealthy um and and they're the x ones who would throw this type of thing x out there and pride is um Pride's very x um you know when we think of sin perhaps x it's you know stealing it's uh murder x it's you know one of the lusting type of x uh sins and maybe Pride falls down the x list a little bit but it is a very x dangerous one because really what the x spiritual but not religious and the x religious but I don't need an x affiliation what they're really saying x is I am my own God I come up with my own x rules I say what's right and wrong it's x all about me I am my own God and so x Pride you know we've got these these x quotes x from another time from the scriptures x here right Pride goes Before Destruction x a hearty spirit before a fall you know x and Psalms it says he guides the humble x in what is right and teaches them his x way well why doesn't he do that with the x proud because they won't listen right x the humble realize they need x help Jesus says for everyone who exalts x himself will be humbled and he who x humbles himself will be exalted so Pride x it really poses a significant stumbling x block I think for someone who wants to x come to the knowledge of the truth right x you got to admit I need help I don't x know I need someone to teach me I need x guidance I've made mistakes I'm a sinner x right I can't do it myself oh these are x all the things that the prideful don't x like to x say um you know and so Pride can be a x problem for us it clouds are judgment it x leads us away from the humility that God x desires from us right the humble realize x the limitations the proud don't they x think they can do anything and overcome x anything but the humble realize we're x nothing we seek God's guidance because x we don't know the way and we acknowledge x the role that God has had in our lives x all the gifts that we're given no matter x what type of accomplishment we have x you know we've been given the great gift x of the Gospel what are you going to do x with it that's what God wants to know x I've given you this gift of the Gospel x what will you do with it will you bury x it in the ground I've given you a a a x gift um you know you're compassionate x will you use it to serve the Ecclesia x I've given you maybe it's wealth what x are you going to do with it what you x going to do with it to serve your x brothers and sisters to help people out x how are you going to do these gifts we x recognize all these things things come x from but for the x proud uh it's difficult and you know as x you get older like the guys I'm talking x about they're all in their 50s what are x they going to say all my life I've been x going astray telling me everything I did x was wrong now I got to turn I have to x admit I've made a huge mistake you know x that might be one of the things that x keeps people from you know people that x have left the truth and want to come x back it's Pride I think because they got x a I have to admit it's a mistake little x do they know we don't care we're x thrilled to have them come back walk x through the door I know it took a lot of x courage to come back in there come on x back in and yet they're too x prideful so prideful thoughts that we x might have when these things enter our x minds right I'm right my opinion is x better I'm worthy I don't deserve this I x deserve better I don't even need help x from God right those prideful thoughts x can enter our minds and you know they've x got coner quences because they develop x characteristics that we're not looking x to try to develop sorrow and self-pity x anger bitterness Envy jealousy and a x hard heart x towards God right so the whole spiritual x but not religious uh is nothing new x about it they were doing it in the days x of Israel right Israel says well there x was no King in those days Israel had a x king it was God but they rejected him x and they said we'll just do do what's x right in our own eyes it's the same x thing it just comes in a fancier package x now it says that it was spiritual but x not religious it's the same thing it's x always been there Adam right Cain right x Cain wanted to do it his own way right x you look at all those examples lamech x Nebuchadnezzar on and on it x goes so how might we how might we x answer to x this um x so one is you know we talked about they x have no destination right the x destination is important to them when x pressed on the afterlife uh 54% well x Heaven and Hell or some sort of other x realm and 43% said reincarnation so x really they have no idea they have no x destination so of course what people you x know hey Jesus says I must preach the x good news of the Kingdom it's why I was x sense it was important right and of x course we're instructed to do the same x thing Paul went out and he preached the x gospel and those things that concern the x Lord Jesus Christ so we got to give him x a destination and of course all people x want to know what's in it for me right x that's pretty natural what's in this x deal for me again like I said you take x away the kingdom of God the resurrection x eternal life I don't know who's that x meeting anymore x so that's one x thing but sometimes after you do that x you might not get a x response and sometimes it's give not x that which is holy unto the dogs neither x cast your Pearls Before Swine lest they x trample them under their feet and turn x again and lerate you so there are some x that just don't want to hear it and x don't waste these Pearls of the Kingdom x unto the unclean because they don't x appreciate the sacrifice of Jesus x they're quite comfortable in the life x they have and have absolutely no x consideration for anything else and they x they just don't care so wipe off the x dust of your feet and that can be a x tough that can be a tough lesson to x learn um and into to app why CU you x always want to go no there's always you x know so I I had a friend you know was x talking to him and he you put his hand x up and he said stop I born Irish x Catholic I'm going to die Irish Catholic x I don't want to hear it I said okay and x then uh you know a few years later he x said you know something always stuck x with me something came up and we started x talking he goes when you when you said x about infant baptism he said you know x you told you know you got to believe and x be baptized he because that made sense x to me you know what does it the baby x believe right he go that that that made x some sense so that ended up leading to a x few Bible classes and x uh you know then I met with his wife and x um we had decided I would go over on a x Monday and would have a Bible class and x um she put the kaios on that and I x received a text from her an hour later x and he said yeah next week's not going x to work from us then we'll go on the way x to Florida I'll I'll be in touch when I x get back so uh I knew that was at the x end of that and um I couldn't get in x touch with him uh for quite some time x after that and finally I did and I said x Hey listen you've been avoiding me like x plague I go you don't want to talk about x this stuff you won't I I won't bring it x up again um and he's like no no it's x just going to take me some time I said x whatever you know um you know so we x throw it out there and you know at first x I was like oh those seeds are getting x planted and then like no it's they're x getting you know trampled maybe a little x bit so that's a tough x one uh to uh to do but you know you give x it a go and if they don't want to hear x it you move on so that's what I have x um okay so yeah we got plenty of time x you know if anyone's had any experience x if I assume uh many of you when speaking x about this you've heard this before or x someone has um you know kind of x mentioned that to you um you know any x experiences that you would like to share x that would be great