September 6, 2023 • 36 mins
Ever feel like you're stumbling through life's challenges, questioning whether you're on God's path or your own? Trusting His plan can often feel like a leap in the dark, especially when we're stuck in the wilderness of uncertainty. Today on the FeedSheep Podcast, we unpack the character trait of trust, drawing inspiration from Deuteronomy 8, and explore the journey of the Israelites who, despite their doubts, were sustained by God’s provision in their past, present, and future.
Our doubts can take us on a distracting detour, often causing us to lose sight of God's unchanging faithfulness. Yet, in His divine mercy, God invites us back to His table, offering us His unwavering patience, kindness, and love. He patiently grooms us, testing our trust and character, like a parent who disciplines a child for their good. We reflect on how this divine discipline and humility can lead to character growth and how, as disciples, we can build our "trust muscles" one day, one step at a time.
However, mistrust can also lead to missed opportunities, preventing us from experiencing the fullness of God's blessings. As we delve into the miraculous provision of manna for the Israelites, we're reminded of God's constant faithfulness, even when we doubt it. Through prayer and confidence in His word, we can break free from mistrust and enter the unlimited possibilities of a Christ-like character and faith. So, let's embark on this journey of trust together, one episode, one story, and one lesson at a time.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Dan Schilling (00:07):
Hey, welcome to the Feed Sheep podcast, where we
help you hear God's voice,follow His lead and thrive as a
disciple.
I'm Dan Schilling and I'll beone of your guides.
Now let's get into today'stopic.
Hey, thanks for tuning in tothe Feed Sheep podcast.
Thanks for joining us today.
Good to be back, Michael.
Haven't seen you in a while.
Michael Blue (00:27):
Yeah, that's been really nice.
I mean no offense.
Dan Schilling (00:31):
Good brings me back.
Good to see you.
Well, thanks for tuning in.
Today we're going to go into atopic that, Michael, you and I
were just talking a little bitabout, that our goal is here is
to help all of us you and Iincluded Michael to hear, follow
, thrive.
Hear God's voice, follow Hislead, thrive as disciples.
(00:54):
And sometimes, in the midst ofthis journey, it doesn't always
feel like we're thriving, and Iknow we've talked about this on
some of the past episodes.
When you think about how Paul,when he was in a season of life
being beaten, shipwrecked, snakebitten you know all the
different things that were goingon would you think he was
(01:16):
thriving.
And I would say, if you askedhim today, he'd say, man, I was,
because I was experiencing joyof the presence of God, I was
spending time with my HeavenlyFather, and so today we're going
to address some of that heretoday in the area of trust.
Michael Blue (01:37):
So yeah, it's such a tough place to one, I think,
is we have this idea of thriving.
It's given to us by you knowjust all the things that we see
in here around us, and so wethink that these certain
elements of life equate tothriving, when oftentimes those
(02:00):
actually end up drawing us awayfrom a nearness to God, because
thriving happens in nearness andrelationship with God.
And so those 10, those outwardthings that seem like thriving
oftentimes make our inward lifenot thrive.
Yes, but that's a tough realityto swallow sometimes.
Dan Schilling (02:20):
Well, we're going to again talk about an area of
trust.
You and I've talked about thismany times in our journey and
how God asked us to do things.
We shared some of our story andsome of the past episodes of
areas where God was asking us totrust him and take steps of
faith and do different things.
(02:42):
But I recognize in this seasonof the journey that it is still
a journey and I'm still in theon the potter's wheel, being
formed and fashioned, made intothe image and likeness of Christ
, and trying to get that junk,the dross, the gold.
(03:02):
And so I feel like the heatfeels like it's being turned up
a little bit in this season andsome aspects of that doesn't
make me feel like I'm thriving,but I do.
When I'm spending time with myfather, I do feel like I'm in
the midst of a thriving season.
It's just not easy.
So we're going to address someof that today.
Michael Blue (03:26):
Yeah, I'm glad that we picked something light
on our on our return at the endof the summer.
Dan Schilling (03:31):
Yeah, yeah, well, and I think this is something
for all of us, right?
We all, every day, we all havean opportunity to say am I going
to?
Am I going to trust Jehovah,jireh, him as the provider, not
just for the material thingsthat I need, but am I going to
trust him in how I deal with myteenage son right now?
(03:54):
I've got some provision I needin that area of my life right
now.
To trust him.
Is he going to help me?
I mean, is he going to providefor the issues that are going on
with work?
Is he going to provide for thethings with our kids that the
schools they're at?
They're at a new school rightnow.
For the first time in ourmarried life, our boys are
attending Christian schools.
So we've been homeschooled mywife done all the labor, really,
(04:16):
but homeschooling for the lastalmost 20 years.
Now the boys are all going toChristian schools.
So it's a new season and we'rejust kind of navigating through
this whole trust journey.
So what I'd know is for each ofus that God wants to meet us in
each one of these areas of ourlife and show us that he's
trustworthy.
(04:37):
So yeah, that's good Well.
Michael Blue (04:39):
I'm excited.
Okay, god, thank you so muchfor a chance to come together.
Thank you for your word that weget to dive into today, and I
just pray that you administeredour hearts and the hearts of
those who are listening as weseek to thrive in the way you
define it and not the way wedefine it.
We love you and thank you fortime together in Jesus name,
amen.
Dan Schilling (04:58):
Amen.
Well, michael, we're going tolook at Deuteronomy 8.
Today is the text of ourpassage.
Before we get there, I want tolook at a couple things.
And this character trait oftrust right, we're talking about
that.
This, with this whole contextof Deuteronomy 8, is going to
(05:19):
take us into to see what God wasdoing with the children of
Israel, why he took them to thedesert, what he was trying to
accomplish in and through themand really what he wanted, not
just to see them, how he was theprovider for them in the in the
past, but also the present andin the future, and then gives
them a warning of when thatprovision comes.
(05:43):
That the problem is sometimesour heart gets stuck on
provision that's come and wemiss what God wants to do going
forward in the future.
So there's two words that Iwant to we're going to look at
in our points that.
There's five different points,but as I was processing through
this, there was two words.
I'm not a grammarian, butthere's sometimes like words
(06:05):
come and I had to Google it tolook it up to make sure I was
thinking is it mistrust or is itdistrust?
Is it miss or dis?
I'm like I don't remember.
Is it one or the other, and soI looked it up.
Have you ever looked this up,by the way?
No, okay, so I'm the only goofyone that doesn't know these
things right.
(06:25):
So I'm like, okay, what is it?
So they're actually, they bothare words distrust and mistrust
are both English words and so,as I was looking at, here's the
definition distrust is thefeeling that someone or
something cannot be relied upon.
Mistrust is being suspicious of, having a lack of confidence in
(06:48):
.
So I'll repeat that distrust isthe feeling that someone or
something cannot be relied upon.
Mistrust is being suspicious ofand having a lack of confidence
, and so what I've kind oflanded on for our time today is,
I think a lot of what I'm goingto deal with today is mistrust,
(07:08):
and that mistrust is, in someways, I'm kind of suspicious of
God.
Now, I shouldn't be, but I'mkind of suspicious or I'm
lacking confidence in him to bewho he says he's going to be.
He's God, he's Jehovah-Jer,he's.
(07:28):
That shouldn't be in question.
But the reality of my life anddecisions and choices and things
that I exemplify many timeswould say that I have a lot of
mistrust in him.
Michael Blue (07:43):
Right, yeah, I mean and I think that's a good
distinction Distrust is seemslike a level too far that we
know that we ought not distrustGod, but we tend to mistrust God
and that displays itself in thefact that we're kind of
suspicious of whether he'll bethere and so we take care of it
on our own, as opposed to wealways say we trust that God
(08:04):
will is reliable, but we act ina mistrustful way where we're
actually suspicious of whetherhe will be reliable.
Dan Schilling (08:14):
Yes, and you know we we had a series a while back
on the be, then do, and I feellike that continues to be
something.
God has been inviting me back,you know, to a place of being
with him, coming and being athis table, the father's table
and I shared with you a littlebit ago just kind of the imagery
that I feel like he's beenshowing the around.
(08:34):
This is that it's like a big,long table, like those big, long
banquet tables, and I'm sittingat the end not the head of the
table in any way, but I'msitting at the end, the one end
of the table, and he comes down,you know, and sits beside me,
kind of like adjacent to me onthe corner, and just sits down
and brings that low a loaf offresh bread and there's an aroma
(08:54):
of that bread.
You know, like when you go intoa place and there's that man,
that fresh bread aroma, andyou're hungry and so that aroma
of that bread's there and hejust like enjoy it, have some,
let's have, let's havefellowship together and you need
to enjoy this bread together.
But the problem is that I'm soanxious inside with different
aspects of life right now, soconcerned about the future that
(09:18):
I'm so worried about how I'mgoing to make, bake and eat next
week, next month, next year,next decades bread that I'm
missing the enjoyment, righthere in front of me right now,
with my father, in that freshbread that he's sitting before
me and I'm not able to enjoythen because I'm so worried
(09:40):
about what's to come and thoseyou know, maybe some bills that
are coming, maybe some differentaspects of how is this going to
work out, how is that going towork out?
And so, in some ways, I feellike I'm being robbed of the
enjoyment and the pleasure ofjust being with my father and
(10:01):
recognizing that he is JehovahJireh and that the issue really
is.
I'm looking to Dan Jireh, whichthere's no Dan Jireh in the
Bible.
Michael Blue (10:12):
I'm 100% certain of it.
I sure sound a place.
It sounds like a place.
Dan Schilling (10:17):
But you know, this is Dan Jireh doesn't exist.
Michael Blue (10:20):
There's Wailing and gnashing at thieves.
Dan Schilling (10:22):
Yeah, that one, and that I'm missing out.
And that the.
You know, when Matthew 13 talksabout this and 13, he says you
know that the, that the richescares, and a pleasure this world
choke out or crowd out the seedor the word, and that we're
going to look at this becausethis is in our tax today, that
(10:45):
man doesn't live by bread alone.
But every word that proceedsfrom the mouth of the father
right, that I'm missing out onthose words, those words of
encouragement from him that arejust saying I got this, you
don't have to worry.
Michael Blue (11:02):
Right, and I think of, as you, as you say that, I
think of Mary and Martha, right,and you have the busy body and
you have the worshipful postureand it's really easy.
And I think what Deuteronomygets to is is we have these good
, busy, you know productiveactions yes, that you know that
(11:24):
have their place.
But if they crowd out worship,if they crowd out drawing near
to God, they become verydangerous.
And so you know, in both ofthose, you know that Martha,
mary and this Deuteronomypassage just say look, when you
follow God, there's going to be,you know, some productive,
thriving, if you will right thefields and the houses and all of
(11:45):
those things.
But the danger is is they makeyou busier, they make you
distracted and so, and then theyactually lead you into this
weird place of mistrust of theperson who's given you all those
things.
Dan Schilling (11:58):
Yes, yes.
Michael Blue (12:00):
And then you're suspicious of whether he's going
to continue to do it in thefuture.
Yes, yes, and so you've drawnto, you've drawn near to those
things as opposed to, you know,eating that bread in the
presence of the Father.
Dan Schilling (12:13):
Yeah, and that distraction, right, that the
cares, the other attention andtime is no longer there with him
at the table, at the father'stable, just Resting.
And I've been thinking aboutthis too.
In the Hebrews 3, when he talksabout you know that they never
enter into my rest, and it's notjust in Hebrews, it's
(12:33):
throughout the Old Testament,but he's reminding again in
Hebrews, the writer there issaying, you know, because they
didn't, they weren't hearing myvoice, they never, they wouldn't
enter my rest.
So, um, you know, there's partsme think, oh god, I don't want
to miss this, I don't want tomiss the fellowship with you
here at the table.
And when I find myself kind oflike what you just said to we're
(12:56):
gonna see in Deuteronomy, likethe problem is, then I get so
distracted and worried that I'vebeen many times I start
complaining, I'm I'm ungratefulfor all the fun, all the things
that he has done, and I feellike in this season when I'm
with him, that he's beenEncouraging me towards many
things.
One is saying to me Well, lookbehind you, like in life, right,
(13:19):
look behind you.
How many days number the daysfor me, would you?
How many days behind you have Ileft you hanging when I didn't
take care of it.
Go ahead and count them up realquick.
Go ahead and count them up likeWell, there's none.
But so why would I besuspicious of him that he's not
gonna be there tomorrow, rightwhen the track record is and
(13:41):
years ago I felt like One timethat I just my time with the
Lord.
I felt like he said, let me justput it for this way you, you
have boys, I have boys.
Imagine one of your boys comingto you and they come to you at
breakfast and they say daddy,I'm worried that you're not
gonna feed me today.
I'm worried you're not notgonna take care of me.
And you say hunt, son, I loveyou, there's, there's no way I
(14:03):
wouldn't do that.
You, you get him some food,need to take him over the cover
and say and I've got enough forthe rest of Today, you're not
gonna have any problem today, Igot you right.
And then he comes back at lunch, he crying and, just you know,
distraught, and says you, I'mdaddy, I'm just I'm.
You're not gonna feed me,you're just not gonna take care
of me.
Again you say, son, I got it.
I mean, show him the cupboard.
You know you screw him.
(14:24):
He comes back again at dinnerand comes back again and again
and again and I felt like, thatsaid, I want to ask you how long
if your boys did that with you,how long would it take before
you'd be frustrated and angryand, you know, agitated with
them?
Like man, I wouldn't make it tolunch.
Yeah, shut up.
Would you stop it?
Like, what are you doing?
Why are you so suspicious of me?
Why do you have mistrust in me?
(14:47):
I'm I love you, I'm gonna takecare of you.
Yeah, guys in like.
But but you come back to me,like that, day in, day out, year
in, year out.
And Yet I felt like he was alsoshowing me in that time that it
wasn't.
He wasn't trying to make mefeel guilty, but he was also
letting me see that his merciesare new every morning for me.
(15:08):
Right, despite my mistrust inhim, he invites me back to the
table, that's down the freshbread and says it's okay, I got
you, I love you and I want to, Iwant to be with you.
Michael Blue (15:24):
So yeah, that's good Grateful.
He is much more patient than weare with our children.
Dan Schilling (15:32):
Yeah, well, let's get into our text.
Deuteronomy 8, one of the voteverses that we're gonna focus on
today.
Just kind of a highlight herewe're gonna see in just a second
and it's verse 3, and it'swhere he talks about humbling
ourself, and so let's justactually just get right into it
and we're just gonna pull thatout when we read it.
(15:53):
Here we're gonna look first,michael, at verse 1 and 2, and I
got we have five points thatwe're gonna go through today.
Let me give those to us realquick.
So the first one is mistrustlimits my character growth.
The second one is mistrustleads to missed opportunities,
(16:13):
mistrust leads to ingratitude.
Number four mistrusts causesrelational distance.
And number five, that mistrustleads to pride and destruction.
So let's, let's look now hereand verses one and two this is
again Deuteronomy 8 have a newliving translation and we're
(16:34):
gonna look here about mistrustlimits my character growth.
Michael Blue (16:35):
All right, I'm gonna read it for us Be careful
to obey all the commands I amgiving you today.
Now, this is Moses speaking tothe Israelites.
Just context for people yes,then you will live and multiply
and you will enter and occupythe land of Lord swore to give
your ancestors.
Remember how the Lord, your God, led you through the wilderness
for these 40 years, humblingyou and testing your own and
(16:57):
testing you to prove yourcharacter and to find out
whether or not you would obeyhis commands All right.
Dan Schilling (17:04):
So if you were looking to say what was the test
I that God was giving theIsraelites and Moses is kind of
telling them if you were sayingwell, what was the test, what
was the thing that he was reallytrying to figure out with these
folks, and it was will you the?
Michael Blue (17:27):
trust.
Well, right?
Yeah, do you trust me, right?
Dan Schilling (17:29):
it's tested to prove their character yes, and
that character trait of trust iswhen, when I think about back
to what we were talking abouthere again, about these
relationships like with a fatherand a son, if you want to, your
boys continued on that path,would there, would it inhibit
(17:52):
the growth of your relationshipif that mistrust was present
absolutely?
And then you'd say, well thenwhat?
What happens if that mistrustand that that relationship, then
it, we never enter into thatplace of closeness of him,
(18:12):
knowing that I'm gonna take careof him.
And then that angster, that rub, and that relationship again.
We have a good, good father whodoesn't cast us away, but he's
wanting for us to know hischaracter and become more like
him and his character beingconformed into the image and
likeness of Christ.
And so there's.
(18:34):
You ever do p90x, any of thoseexercise program?
Did you do it?
Did you?
Okay, I?
Michael Blue (18:41):
was 30 years old.
I don't know if I could dotoday I couldn't do it today I
could.
Dan Schilling (18:46):
But so my wife was doing p90x years ago and I
was.
You know, I was younger, youknow, you did 30, I might have
been 30 something, but I I'mstill feeling like, yeah, I got
it and so she's doing it, andI'm wondering like, hey, I'll do
it with you, and so I did.
You know this thing.
And the next day I wasliterally so sore I couldn't
(19:07):
move.
I mean, I was the most painI've ever been in playing, being
an athlete, you know, playingsports, football, whatever.
I've never been so sore in mylife.
I mean, I literally was like intears, like God, just take me
now.
Yeah, and what God was showingme at that season was also
another season of our journey,where he was teaching me to
trust in him.
And he said you know, just likeright now, like your muscles
(19:30):
were flabby, out of shape, fullago, and so when you pushed him
to this level, you, you knowit's creating great pain you
pushed them to an extreme andjust like those physical muscles
are flabby, not a shape, yourtrust muscles, you know, are
(19:51):
flabby, out of shape and flu,and I'm I'm gonna be developing
them, not in one big, you know,p90x, but over time, lovingly,
not so that you can't walk thenext day.
But I want to just keepbuilding these muscles in you,
these strength in the area oftrust.
This character traded you right?
Michael Blue (20:12):
yeah, it's.
It's funny.
As you talk about it, peoplewould ask me after I did it,
like does that work?
And you know, after a whileit's like, of course it works.
You work out for an hour to anhour and a half every single day
for 90 straight days, basicallyyes, yeah, I'm in great shape
it's.
I could have done practicallyanything for that length of time
(20:33):
in an exercise and it wouldwork, yes you know, as I thought
about that as a and you'retalking that it's kind of like
we chuckled out that, but that'sthe same.
It is with trust, like ifsomeone says well, yeah, I began
to trust and I began toexercise these muscles daily.
Yes, and so yeah, of course, Igrew in my trust.
Yes, because, like you said,you look behind and he is
(20:55):
faithful every single time.
And so, just like, if weexercise 90 minutes a day for 90
straight days, we're gonna bein really, really good shape.
Dan Schilling (21:04):
Yes, if we exercise these trust muscles, we
will grow in our faith becausewe'll see him have we'll, we'll,
we'll strengthen them but I'vesaid this before and it's just
most of us like, oh yeah, I want, I want to trust that, but I
just don't want to be in a placewhere I have to trust him,
right, I don't, I want to.
I want to be big and strong andyou know, big muscles, like I'm
(21:26):
gonna get on P9X, I want mytrust muscles to be big and
strong.
But I don't want to have thepressure of the bar on my chest
Right when I feel like, oh, nowwhat, you know, like I need some
help here.
So and that Is part of whatthis journey has been for us you
know it's like, oh god, I don't, I don't want to, I Don't want
to feel that pressure.
(21:48):
But the question for all of ussometimes am I willing to put
myself in a place where I haveto trust him?
And Most, most of our culture,most of everything, is try to do
everything we can to insulateourselves so that we don't ever
have to be in a place.
And I know some folks wouldargue and say that's
irresponsible, that's not goodstewardship, that's not whatever
(22:08):
.
And I'm not talking about beingFoolish, I'm talking about if
the spirit of God leads me to aplace and am I willing, like the
rich young ruler when he says,hey, I got a plan for you, you
know right, so you have goodporn.
Come follow me You'll.
Your trust will be placed in meand it says, be, he couldn't,
because his great wealth, right,he is heart and his love and
(22:28):
his affection was in his wealthand it kept him from following
right.
Michael Blue (22:33):
Well, in the reality of building our faith
and trust muscles, it requiresus to take steps, yes, and to be
in places and positions where,where we need God to come
through, and so that's not justfinancial, but it certainly
Places of risk.
It may be, you know, there'sevangelism, there's, you know,
(22:53):
there's trial and tribulationthat we go through, that we
certainly don't pursue, buthappens that we learn to trust.
But there's the, the buildingof faith muscles, like the
building of muscles, comes inthrough discomfort, like if I'm
lifting those muscles it's notlike, ah, this is fun, I'm
loving this, like I'muncomfortable and it hurts.
Yeah, if I, if they're gonnaget bigger, I grown and I strain
(23:15):
and I and I push more than Ithink I can, and I and I do that
, and I think it's this, I meanthe analogy.
We could take it too far, butthe analogy, I think, is good in
that I Must be willing tostrain and strive, which means
I'm walking into these placeswhere I, where I need to Trust
God, and that might be with hey,god's leading me to give an
(23:36):
amount that I can't imagine, howI'm gonna give that amount,
leading me to fund a project,like I don't have that.
But, god, I'm gonna trust youand I'm gonna take the first
step into it.
Yes, and watch yes.
Dan Schilling (23:49):
Well, and the other part of this verse that I
think is is a key part is thathe says remember that he took
you there for a couple of things.
It wasn't just, I think, justfor trust, but it's also for
humility.
Yeah, and that willingness tosay, okay, I I can't come up
with the answer on my own, IDon't have the solution, I don't
(24:10):
know, like you just said, mademe think of it, like I don't
have the resources to take careof that.
Right, okay, good, now you knowwhere it's actually coming from
you recognize who's taking careof it right, and I'm not
looking for Dan gyra.
I have realized my position as Aservant at the table, that it
(24:31):
isn't about me doing something.
It really is about me coming tomy father and says so how do I
handle that?
And and I also just want to sayhere too, when it comes to
trust, I think there's anotheraspect to relate relationally To
.
So I don't want to just makethis about financial things, but
you know, there's sometimes,just like God, I don't know what
to do about this certainsituation right now with my
teenage son.
I Mean, I'm, I'm lost and I justfelt like this last week, as I
(24:54):
was spending time with Lord atthat table and I'm saying to him
I don't know what to do withthis, I felt like he said Well,
why don't you just go to him andtell him that you love him,
that you want to do whateverit's going to take to have a
good relationship with him, thathe's so important to you, that
you love him and you you, justyou value him and you don't want
to miss this season of my lifetogether, an Enjoyment of having
(25:15):
the best relationship you canhave, and that you want to do
whatever.
What's it going to take?
What's it going to take?
Ask him, what's it going totake that we can have a great
relationship?
I thought, wow, that's good, Ishould go ask him that, right.
Michael Blue (25:26):
Thank you, I should do that.
Dan Schilling (25:28):
Yeah, I should do that right, but that time that
that okay, I trust you right andso last night we we started
that process with with our sonand so just trusting him for,
okay, you can give me thatwisdom, you can give me that
insight, you can, you want tohelp me in all aspects, so
(25:50):
that's good.
Yeah, well, let's, let's get atleast the second one here in
this episode.
Let's go get that next,starting there in verse three,
this is our highlight verse, andlet's read three and three
through five.
You do five, all right.
Michael Blue (26:06):
Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and
then feeding you with mana, afeed of food previously unknown
to you and your ancestors.
He did it to teach you thatpeople do not live by bread
alone.
Rather, we live by everywherethat comes from the mouth of God
.
For all these 40 years, yourclothes didn't wear out and your
feet didn't blister earthwell,think about it.
(26:27):
Just as a parent disciplines achild, the Lord, your God,
disciplines you for your owngood.
Dan Schilling (26:37):
Well, and this area of Scripture, several
things that I want to pull outhere as we look at.
This Is the second point hereis that mistrust Leads to missed
opportunities and that manytimes in our in our journey
(26:58):
Again when we talked about thislittle video that I don't want
to be in a place where I have totrust him, but it's in those
places I have to trust him.
I get to see his miraculousprovision and I don't.
You know, I don't really wantto be in that.
But how many times am I missingOpportunities because of my
mistrust?
I don't, I don't want to bethere, I don't want to have to.
(27:20):
And you know the story.
You and I talked about this acouple of weeks ago when we were
sharing we're sharing our story, sharing about our story, and
that we were coming to a end ofthe year one year and I was like
I'm gonna write letters.
You know I deserve to startasking people for support and
I'm gonna send out these supportletters and we've been
(27:41):
missionaries and we're okay, I'mgonna do it and felt like God
asked us to you know, trust him,but I'm not gonna do that
anymore.
I'm gonna go ahead and takecare of it in my own, my own way
, and just felt like the Lordsaid, okay, it's gonna be your
way, my way, but it won't beboth.
I mean, like you know right,we're not cope, not co-doing
this.
You know, I've given you thedirections and so we didn't send
(28:06):
the letters out, and then thatmonth ended being one of the
biggest months of giving we hadever experienced, and again it
was.
It's a great story now, but inthe midst of it, I mean it was
one of the most painful, trustmuscle building times of our
life.
But I would have missed out onopportunity.
I would have missed out on thataspect of the story, if you
(28:26):
will, how God wanted to showhimself again to us as Jehovah's
Jireh right.
Michael Blue (28:34):
Yeah, I mean the and you know you think about
this the stories of God'sprovision.
I mean this is one of the mostremarkable verse four to me
Versus in all of scripture andone of the most remarkable
miracles in all of scripturethat I know.
People talk about it.
It gets kind of skipped overand it's for these 40 years
walking in the desert, yeah,your clothes didn't wear out and
(28:58):
your feet didn't blister orswell.
I mean that Pretty remarkable,that that God cared for them in
such a remarkable way of.
You know, in some ways I'm surejust became you almost don't
realize the provision and thathe's given to you because
they're they're not wearing out.
Yes, not like they wore out andhe miraculously made them new
(29:22):
again.
Dan Schilling (29:22):
It's like they just lasted yes, you have any
shoes at a 40 years old no.
Michael Blue (29:31):
I am wearing a pair that are about 18 years old
, but I don't wear them everyday, nor do I walk in the desert
and I look pretty terrible yeah.
Dan Schilling (29:40):
Yeah comfortable.
Yes, Well, it's.
Michael Blue (29:46):
They didn't have cowboy boots like we have Dan.
Dan Schilling (29:48):
Oh, that's true, that's Texas, got cowboy boots,
right, so right.
Well, I think what a couplethings that I see here.
One, obviously, that that versethree that we want to focus on.
You know, we see this otherplaces of scripture as well.
But he homo'd you by lettingyou go hungry.
Well, I think what I see there,for it's a starved of the death
.
But they did feel somediscomfort, right, or some
(30:15):
Displeasure, right, when I'mreally hungry, that doesn't feel
good.
But in the midst of that hungerthat he, he still provides.
And then I started feeding themmana, which no one had ever seen
before, right, he's essentiallysaying no one's ever seen it
before, unknown to you and yourancestors, it's never existed
(30:36):
before.
But I did it because I hadsomething in mind.
I did it to teach you thatpeople don't live by bread alone
, but rather every word thatproceeds or comes from the mouth
of the father.
Again, we see that passage youknow quoted another text
throughout the scriptures butthat the picture that I see is
(30:58):
like this time with my father.
Yes, he did right, but thepicture that I see is this what
I'm kind of painting is I'msitting with my father and he
sets down that loaf of Bread,which is encouragement, and but
it's not just to to physicalprovision, it's it's the time
(31:21):
that we're together Enjoyingthat bread Together.
Yeah, that word, that that I'dlike to tell you.
What did what I have for youtoday?
How about this for your son?
How's that sound?
Oh man, it's really good.
Or how about this for the?
Take care of the, that bill youhave coming up, oh man, thank
you.
So having that type ofRelationship and intimacy was
(31:48):
always what God's goal, was whathe was trying to teach them,
and I believe what he's stilltrying to teach us today is I
want to teach you this and yes,we probably don't see menna
coming down I don't have any inmy backyard but he still does
reveal himself in ways that arebeyond our understanding.
(32:10):
Conference, if we're willing,and that's the hardest part.
Michael Blue (32:14):
Yeah, and I think you know, talk about mistrust
leads to missed opportunities.
If we, if we begin to doubt God, we kind of doubt the fact that
he's actually through all of it, through the difficulty,
through the Struggle, he's, he'spreparing us like, he's
training us.
He's.
It says discipline like a child, but you know, discipline is
(32:35):
not punishment.
It's not the same thing aspunishment.
Punishment is it's like makingyou pay for what you did, versus
discipline is is Preparing youand training you, yes, and other
things.
And so all of this points to aloving father, who's, who's care
.
He's intentionally Teaching youthat you do not live by bread,
(32:57):
a bread alone, disciplining youfor your own good, so that
you'll trust him, and so all ofthese Things when we try to
avoid, then we actually miss thetraining, missing, miss the
hand of a loving father to kindof shape Us and mold us into
people who remember the 40 yearswhere our clothes didn't wear
out and when the manna came downevery day and when we were
(33:17):
hungry.
Yes, and they teach us, as yousaid beforehand, to follow a
loving father or the goodshepherd.
Dan Schilling (33:24):
Ultimately, yes, yes, well, we're gonna Pick up
on the next episode here.
We're gonna get the pointsthree, four and five, but let's
just kind of tie a bow on thisfirst part here.
Any Any other insider thoughtsaround these first couple
(33:44):
passages or anything we'retalking here so far about them?
Training in 48 provision.
Michael Blue (33:51):
I Just this this trust thing is so big and and
that it it locks us out of somuch growth and so much
opportunity.
And so you know, I read a quoteI think William McDonald maybe
said it in a book called truediscipleship where you know, in
heaven there will be people whodidn't didn't trust God enough,
(34:13):
but there will be nobody whotrusted God too much.
Yeah, the idea is is we're notgonna get to a place where it's
like man, I trusted him too much, but we only learn that by
actually stepping into trust andlearning, and that's where we
grow, that's where we comecloser, that's where we see
(34:35):
these opportunities.
So I think it's reallyimportant that we we see that
mistrust leads to kind of aweakening of our of our own
faith.
It's really to our detriment.
Dan Schilling (34:44):
Yes, Well, I want to wrap up this segment with
this and, just as anencouragement to you, that I
just want to make sure One, asyou're listening today, this is
not about guilt, condemnation,like you're not good enough, you
, you're terrible, you know,you've got mistrust, you've got
(35:05):
a problem, I have a problem, andso I just want to help you.
Join me on this journey,because I want to.
I want to hear, follow andthrive.
I want to be in a place whereMistrust isn't stealing from me,
and I'm in the midst of itright now.
But I want to encourage you.
Doesn't matter where you're at,wherever you're Struggling in
(35:25):
this area Maybe, or you feellike gosh, I'm just not meeting.
It's okay, because the fatheris inviting you and I both to
that same table and to come toenjoy that fresh bread, that
Fellowship with him, and to knowhim as the good, good father,
know him as the good, goodshepherd who wants to care for
(35:45):
us and take care of us.
So yeah, michael Wanchip, wepray for us.
Close this segment up and we'llJump back in here and get the
next couple points and get itfor next time.
Michael Blue (35:56):
Sure God.
Thanks so much for time I thisfirst part of Deuteronomy 8,
just a reminder that that you doprovide that you, you're one,
who, who is, is ultimately andalways trustworthy.
So help us to move and freedomfrom a place of mistrust
Hopefully never distrust Help usgive us confidence to take the
(36:18):
steps and I so we don't missopportunities to grow in Christ
like this Jesus, and I pray amen.
Dan Schilling (36:26):
Amen, and then thanks for tuning in the
FeedSheep podcast.
We'll be back again next time.
God bless you.
Hey, welcome to the Feed Sheep podcast, where we
help you hear God's voice,follow His lead and thrive as a
disciple.
I'm Dan Schilling and I'll beone of your guides.
Now let's get into today'stopic.
Hey, thanks for tuning in tothe Feed Sheep podcast.
Thanks for joining us today.
Good to be back, Michael.
Haven't seen you in a while.
Michael Blue (00:27):
Yeah, that's been really nice.
I mean no offense.
Dan Schilling (00:31):
Good brings me back.
Good to see you.
Well, thanks for tuning in.
Today we're going to go into atopic that, Michael, you and I
were just talking a little bitabout, that our goal is here is
to help all of us you and Iincluded Michael to hear, follow
, thrive.
Hear God's voice, follow Hislead, thrive as disciples.
(00:54):
And sometimes, in the midst ofthis journey, it doesn't always
feel like we're thriving, and Iknow we've talked about this on
some of the past episodes.
When you think about how Paul,when he was in a season of life
being beaten, shipwrecked, snakebitten you know all the
different things that were goingon would you think he was
(01:16):
thriving.
And I would say, if you askedhim today, he'd say, man, I was,
because I was experiencing joyof the presence of God, I was
spending time with my HeavenlyFather, and so today we're going
to address some of that heretoday in the area of trust.
Michael Blue (01:37):
So yeah, it's such a tough place to one, I think,
is we have this idea of thriving.
It's given to us by you knowjust all the things that we see
in here around us, and so wethink that these certain
elements of life equate tothriving, when oftentimes those
(02:00):
actually end up drawing us awayfrom a nearness to God, because
thriving happens in nearness andrelationship with God.
And so those 10, those outwardthings that seem like thriving
oftentimes make our inward lifenot thrive.
Yes, but that's a tough realityto swallow sometimes.
Dan Schilling (02:20):
Well, we're going to again talk about an area of
trust.
You and I've talked about thismany times in our journey and
how God asked us to do things.
We shared some of our story andsome of the past episodes of
areas where God was asking us totrust him and take steps of
faith and do different things.
(02:42):
But I recognize in this seasonof the journey that it is still
a journey and I'm still in theon the potter's wheel, being
formed and fashioned, made intothe image and likeness of Christ
, and trying to get that junk,the dross, the gold.
(03:02):
And so I feel like the heatfeels like it's being turned up
a little bit in this season andsome aspects of that doesn't
make me feel like I'm thriving,but I do.
When I'm spending time with myfather, I do feel like I'm in
the midst of a thriving season.
It's just not easy.
So we're going to address someof that today.
Michael Blue (03:26):
Yeah, I'm glad that we picked something light
on our on our return at the endof the summer.
Dan Schilling (03:31):
Yeah, yeah, well, and I think this is something
for all of us, right?
We all, every day, we all havean opportunity to say am I going
to?
Am I going to trust Jehovah,jireh, him as the provider, not
just for the material thingsthat I need, but am I going to
trust him in how I deal with myteenage son right now?
(03:54):
I've got some provision I needin that area of my life right
now.
To trust him.
Is he going to help me?
I mean, is he going to providefor the issues that are going on
with work?
Is he going to provide for thethings with our kids that the
schools they're at?
They're at a new school rightnow.
For the first time in ourmarried life, our boys are
attending Christian schools.
So we've been homeschooled mywife done all the labor, really,
(04:16):
but homeschooling for the lastalmost 20 years.
Now the boys are all going toChristian schools.
So it's a new season and we'rejust kind of navigating through
this whole trust journey.
So what I'd know is for each ofus that God wants to meet us in
each one of these areas of ourlife and show us that he's
trustworthy.
(04:37):
So yeah, that's good Well.
Michael Blue (04:39):
I'm excited.
Okay, god, thank you so muchfor a chance to come together.
Thank you for your word that weget to dive into today, and I
just pray that you administeredour hearts and the hearts of
those who are listening as weseek to thrive in the way you
define it and not the way wedefine it.
We love you and thank you fortime together in Jesus name,
amen.
Dan Schilling (04:58):
Amen.
Well, michael, we're going tolook at Deuteronomy 8.
Today is the text of ourpassage.
Before we get there, I want tolook at a couple things.
And this character trait oftrust right, we're talking about
that.
This, with this whole contextof Deuteronomy 8, is going to
(05:19):
take us into to see what God wasdoing with the children of
Israel, why he took them to thedesert, what he was trying to
accomplish in and through themand really what he wanted, not
just to see them, how he was theprovider for them in the in the
past, but also the present andin the future, and then gives
them a warning of when thatprovision comes.
(05:43):
That the problem is sometimesour heart gets stuck on
provision that's come and wemiss what God wants to do going
forward in the future.
So there's two words that Iwant to we're going to look at
in our points that.
There's five different points,but as I was processing through
this, there was two words.
I'm not a grammarian, butthere's sometimes like words
(06:05):
come and I had to Google it tolook it up to make sure I was
thinking is it mistrust or is itdistrust?
Is it miss or dis?
I'm like I don't remember.
Is it one or the other, and soI looked it up.
Have you ever looked this up,by the way?
No, okay, so I'm the only goofyone that doesn't know these
things right.
(06:25):
So I'm like, okay, what is it?
So they're actually, they bothare words distrust and mistrust
are both English words and so,as I was looking at, here's the
definition distrust is thefeeling that someone or
something cannot be relied upon.
Mistrust is being suspicious of, having a lack of confidence in
(06:48):
.
So I'll repeat that distrust isthe feeling that someone or
something cannot be relied upon.
Mistrust is being suspicious ofand having a lack of confidence
, and so what I've kind oflanded on for our time today is,
I think a lot of what I'm goingto deal with today is mistrust,
(07:08):
and that mistrust is, in someways, I'm kind of suspicious of
God.
Now, I shouldn't be, but I'mkind of suspicious or I'm
lacking confidence in him to bewho he says he's going to be.
He's God, he's Jehovah-Jer,he's.
(07:28):
That shouldn't be in question.
But the reality of my life anddecisions and choices and things
that I exemplify many timeswould say that I have a lot of
mistrust in him.
Michael Blue (07:43):
Right, yeah, I mean and I think that's a good
distinction Distrust is seemslike a level too far that we
know that we ought not distrustGod, but we tend to mistrust God
and that displays itself in thefact that we're kind of
suspicious of whether he'll bethere and so we take care of it
on our own, as opposed to wealways say we trust that God
(08:04):
will is reliable, but we act ina mistrustful way where we're
actually suspicious of whetherhe will be reliable.
Dan Schilling (08:14):
Yes, and you know we we had a series a while back
on the be, then do, and I feellike that continues to be
something.
God has been inviting me back,you know, to a place of being
with him, coming and being athis table, the father's table
and I shared with you a littlebit ago just kind of the imagery
that I feel like he's beenshowing the around.
(08:34):
This is that it's like a big,long table, like those big, long
banquet tables, and I'm sittingat the end not the head of the
table in any way, but I'msitting at the end, the one end
of the table, and he comes down,you know, and sits beside me,
kind of like adjacent to me onthe corner, and just sits down
and brings that low a loaf offresh bread and there's an aroma
(08:54):
of that bread.
You know, like when you go intoa place and there's that man,
that fresh bread aroma, andyou're hungry and so that aroma
of that bread's there and hejust like enjoy it, have some,
let's have, let's havefellowship together and you need
to enjoy this bread together.
But the problem is that I'm soanxious inside with different
aspects of life right now, soconcerned about the future that
(09:18):
I'm so worried about how I'mgoing to make, bake and eat next
week, next month, next year,next decades bread that I'm
missing the enjoyment, righthere in front of me right now,
with my father, in that freshbread that he's sitting before
me and I'm not able to enjoythen because I'm so worried
(09:40):
about what's to come and thoseyou know, maybe some bills that
are coming, maybe some differentaspects of how is this going to
work out, how is that going towork out?
And so, in some ways, I feellike I'm being robbed of the
enjoyment and the pleasure ofjust being with my father and
(10:01):
recognizing that he is JehovahJireh and that the issue really
is.
I'm looking to Dan Jireh, whichthere's no Dan Jireh in the
Bible.
Michael Blue (10:12):
I'm 100% certain of it.
I sure sound a place.
It sounds like a place.
Dan Schilling (10:17):
But you know, this is Dan Jireh doesn't exist.
Michael Blue (10:20):
There's Wailing and gnashing at thieves.
Dan Schilling (10:22):
Yeah, that one, and that I'm missing out.
And that the.
You know, when Matthew 13 talksabout this and 13, he says you
know that the, that the richescares, and a pleasure this world
choke out or crowd out the seedor the word, and that we're
going to look at this becausethis is in our tax today, that
(10:45):
man doesn't live by bread alone.
But every word that proceedsfrom the mouth of the father
right, that I'm missing out onthose words, those words of
encouragement from him that arejust saying I got this, you
don't have to worry.
Michael Blue (11:02):
Right, and I think of, as you, as you say that, I
think of Mary and Martha, right,and you have the busy body and
you have the worshipful postureand it's really easy.
And I think what Deuteronomygets to is is we have these good
, busy, you know productiveactions yes, that you know that
(11:24):
have their place.
But if they crowd out worship,if they crowd out drawing near
to God, they become verydangerous.
And so you know, in both ofthose, you know that Martha,
mary and this Deuteronomypassage just say look, when you
follow God, there's going to be,you know, some productive,
thriving, if you will right thefields and the houses and all of
(11:45):
those things.
But the danger is is they makeyou busier, they make you
distracted and so, and then theyactually lead you into this
weird place of mistrust of theperson who's given you all those
things.
Dan Schilling (11:58):
Yes, yes.
Michael Blue (12:00):
And then you're suspicious of whether he's going
to continue to do it in thefuture.
Yes, yes, and so you've drawnto, you've drawn near to those
things as opposed to, you know,eating that bread in the
presence of the Father.
Dan Schilling (12:13):
Yeah, and that distraction, right, that the
cares, the other attention andtime is no longer there with him
at the table, at the father'stable, just Resting.
And I've been thinking aboutthis too.
In the Hebrews 3, when he talksabout you know that they never
enter into my rest, and it's notjust in Hebrews, it's
(12:33):
throughout the Old Testament,but he's reminding again in
Hebrews, the writer there issaying, you know, because they
didn't, they weren't hearing myvoice, they never, they wouldn't
enter my rest.
So, um, you know, there's partsme think, oh god, I don't want
to miss this, I don't want tomiss the fellowship with you
here at the table.
And when I find myself kind oflike what you just said to we're
(12:56):
gonna see in Deuteronomy, likethe problem is, then I get so
distracted and worried that I'vebeen many times I start
complaining, I'm I'm ungratefulfor all the fun, all the things
that he has done, and I feellike in this season when I'm
with him, that he's beenEncouraging me towards many
things.
One is saying to me Well, lookbehind you, like in life, right,
(13:19):
look behind you.
How many days number the daysfor me, would you?
How many days behind you have Ileft you hanging when I didn't
take care of it.
Go ahead and count them up realquick.
Go ahead and count them up likeWell, there's none.
But so why would I besuspicious of him that he's not
gonna be there tomorrow, rightwhen the track record is and
(13:41):
years ago I felt like One timethat I just my time with the
Lord.
I felt like he said, let me justput it for this way you, you
have boys, I have boys.
Imagine one of your boys comingto you and they come to you at
breakfast and they say daddy,I'm worried that you're not
gonna feed me today.
I'm worried you're not notgonna take care of me.
And you say hunt, son, I loveyou, there's, there's no way I
(14:03):
wouldn't do that.
You, you get him some food,need to take him over the cover
and say and I've got enough forthe rest of Today, you're not
gonna have any problem today, Igot you right.
And then he comes back at lunch, he crying and, just you know,
distraught, and says you, I'mdaddy, I'm just I'm.
You're not gonna feed me,you're just not gonna take care
of me.
Again you say, son, I got it.
I mean, show him the cupboard.
You know you screw him.
(14:24):
He comes back again at dinnerand comes back again and again
and again and I felt like, thatsaid, I want to ask you how long
if your boys did that with you,how long would it take before
you'd be frustrated and angryand, you know, agitated with
them?
Like man, I wouldn't make it tolunch.
Yeah, shut up.
Would you stop it?
Like, what are you doing?
Why are you so suspicious of me?
Why do you have mistrust in me?
(14:47):
I'm I love you, I'm gonna takecare of you.
Yeah, guys in like.
But but you come back to me,like that, day in, day out, year
in, year out.
And Yet I felt like he was alsoshowing me in that time that it
wasn't.
He wasn't trying to make mefeel guilty, but he was also
letting me see that his merciesare new every morning for me.
(15:08):
Right, despite my mistrust inhim, he invites me back to the
table, that's down the freshbread and says it's okay, I got
you, I love you and I want to, Iwant to be with you.
Michael Blue (15:24):
So yeah, that's good Grateful.
He is much more patient than weare with our children.
Dan Schilling (15:32):
Yeah, well, let's get into our text.
Deuteronomy 8, one of the voteverses that we're gonna focus on
today.
Just kind of a highlight herewe're gonna see in just a second
and it's verse 3, and it'swhere he talks about humbling
ourself, and so let's justactually just get right into it
and we're just gonna pull thatout when we read it.
(15:53):
Here we're gonna look first,michael, at verse 1 and 2, and I
got we have five points thatwe're gonna go through today.
Let me give those to us realquick.
So the first one is mistrustlimits my character growth.
The second one is mistrustleads to missed opportunities,
(16:13):
mistrust leads to ingratitude.
Number four mistrusts causesrelational distance.
And number five, that mistrustleads to pride and destruction.
So let's, let's look now hereand verses one and two this is
again Deuteronomy 8 have a newliving translation and we're
(16:34):
gonna look here about mistrustlimits my character growth.
Michael Blue (16:35):
All right, I'm gonna read it for us Be careful
to obey all the commands I amgiving you today.
Now, this is Moses speaking tothe Israelites.
Just context for people yes,then you will live and multiply
and you will enter and occupythe land of Lord swore to give
your ancestors.
Remember how the Lord, your God, led you through the wilderness
for these 40 years, humblingyou and testing your own and
(16:57):
testing you to prove yourcharacter and to find out
whether or not you would obeyhis commands All right.
Dan Schilling (17:04):
So if you were looking to say what was the test
I that God was giving theIsraelites and Moses is kind of
telling them if you were sayingwell, what was the test, what
was the thing that he was reallytrying to figure out with these
folks, and it was will you the?
Michael Blue (17:27):
trust.
Well, right?
Yeah, do you trust me, right?
Dan Schilling (17:29):
it's tested to prove their character yes, and
that character trait of trust iswhen, when I think about back
to what we were talking abouthere again, about these
relationships like with a fatherand a son, if you want to, your
boys continued on that path,would there, would it inhibit
(17:52):
the growth of your relationshipif that mistrust was present
absolutely?
And then you'd say, well thenwhat?
What happens if that mistrustand that that relationship, then
it, we never enter into thatplace of closeness of him,
(18:12):
knowing that I'm gonna take careof him.
And then that angster, that rub, and that relationship again.
We have a good, good father whodoesn't cast us away, but he's
wanting for us to know hischaracter and become more like
him and his character beingconformed into the image and
likeness of Christ.
And so there's.
(18:34):
You ever do p90x, any of thoseexercise program?
Did you do it?
Did you?
Okay, I?
Michael Blue (18:41):
was 30 years old.
I don't know if I could dotoday I couldn't do it today I
could.
Dan Schilling (18:46):
But so my wife was doing p90x years ago and I
was.
You know, I was younger, youknow, you did 30, I might have
been 30 something, but I I'mstill feeling like, yeah, I got
it and so she's doing it, andI'm wondering like, hey, I'll do
it with you, and so I did.
You know this thing.
And the next day I wasliterally so sore I couldn't
(19:07):
move.
I mean, I was the most painI've ever been in playing, being
an athlete, you know, playingsports, football, whatever.
I've never been so sore in mylife.
I mean, I literally was like intears, like God, just take me
now.
Yeah, and what God was showingme at that season was also
another season of our journey,where he was teaching me to
trust in him.
And he said you know, just likeright now, like your muscles
(19:30):
were flabby, out of shape, fullago, and so when you pushed him
to this level, you, you knowit's creating great pain you
pushed them to an extreme andjust like those physical muscles
are flabby, not a shape, yourtrust muscles, you know, are
(19:51):
flabby, out of shape and flu,and I'm I'm gonna be developing
them, not in one big, you know,p90x, but over time, lovingly,
not so that you can't walk thenext day.
But I want to just keepbuilding these muscles in you,
these strength in the area oftrust.
This character traded you right?
Michael Blue (20:12):
yeah, it's.
It's funny.
As you talk about it, peoplewould ask me after I did it,
like does that work?
And you know, after a whileit's like, of course it works.
You work out for an hour to anhour and a half every single day
for 90 straight days, basicallyyes, yeah, I'm in great shape
it's.
I could have done practicallyanything for that length of time
(20:33):
in an exercise and it wouldwork, yes you know, as I thought
about that as a and you'retalking that it's kind of like
we chuckled out that, but that'sthe same.
It is with trust, like ifsomeone says well, yeah, I began
to trust and I began toexercise these muscles daily.
Yes, and so yeah, of course, Igrew in my trust.
Yes, because, like you said,you look behind and he is
(20:55):
faithful every single time.
And so, just like, if weexercise 90 minutes a day for 90
straight days, we're gonna bein really, really good shape.
Dan Schilling (21:04):
Yes, if we exercise these trust muscles, we
will grow in our faith becausewe'll see him have we'll, we'll,
we'll strengthen them but I'vesaid this before and it's just
most of us like, oh yeah, I want, I want to trust that, but I
just don't want to be in a placewhere I have to trust him,
right, I don't, I want to.
I want to be big and strong andyou know, big muscles, like I'm
(21:26):
gonna get on P9X, I want mytrust muscles to be big and
strong.
But I don't want to have thepressure of the bar on my chest
Right when I feel like, oh, nowwhat, you know, like I need some
help here.
So and that Is part of whatthis journey has been for us you
know it's like, oh god, I don't, I don't want to, I Don't want
to feel that pressure.
(21:48):
But the question for all of ussometimes am I willing to put
myself in a place where I haveto trust him?
And Most, most of our culture,most of everything, is try to do
everything we can to insulateourselves so that we don't ever
have to be in a place.
And I know some folks wouldargue and say that's
irresponsible, that's not goodstewardship, that's not whatever
(22:08):
.
And I'm not talking about beingFoolish, I'm talking about if
the spirit of God leads me to aplace and am I willing, like the
rich young ruler when he says,hey, I got a plan for you, you
know right, so you have goodporn.
Come follow me You'll.
Your trust will be placed in meand it says, be, he couldn't,
because his great wealth, right,he is heart and his love and
(22:28):
his affection was in his wealthand it kept him from following
right.
Michael Blue (22:33):
Well, in the reality of building our faith
and trust muscles, it requiresus to take steps, yes, and to be
in places and positions where,where we need God to come
through, and so that's not justfinancial, but it certainly
Places of risk.
It may be, you know, there'sevangelism, there's, you know,
(22:53):
there's trial and tribulationthat we go through, that we
certainly don't pursue, buthappens that we learn to trust.
But there's the, the buildingof faith muscles, like the
building of muscles, comes inthrough discomfort, like if I'm
lifting those muscles it's notlike, ah, this is fun, I'm
loving this, like I'muncomfortable and it hurts.
Yeah, if I, if they're gonnaget bigger, I grown and I strain
(23:15):
and I and I push more than Ithink I can, and I and I do that
, and I think it's this, I meanthe analogy.
We could take it too far, butthe analogy, I think, is good in
that I Must be willing tostrain and strive, which means
I'm walking into these placeswhere I, where I need to Trust
God, and that might be with hey,god's leading me to give an
(23:36):
amount that I can't imagine, howI'm gonna give that amount,
leading me to fund a project,like I don't have that.
But, god, I'm gonna trust youand I'm gonna take the first
step into it.
Yes, and watch yes.
Dan Schilling (23:49):
Well, and the other part of this verse that I
think is is a key part is thathe says remember that he took
you there for a couple of things.
It wasn't just, I think, justfor trust, but it's also for
humility.
Yeah, and that willingness tosay, okay, I I can't come up
with the answer on my own, IDon't have the solution, I don't
(24:10):
know, like you just said, mademe think of it, like I don't
have the resources to take careof that.
Right, okay, good, now you knowwhere it's actually coming from
you recognize who's taking careof it right, and I'm not
looking for Dan gyra.
I have realized my position as Aservant at the table, that it
(24:31):
isn't about me doing something.
It really is about me coming tomy father and says so how do I
handle that?
And and I also just want to sayhere too, when it comes to
trust, I think there's anotheraspect to relate relationally To
.
So I don't want to just makethis about financial things, but
you know, there's sometimes,just like God, I don't know what
to do about this certainsituation right now with my
teenage son.
I Mean, I'm, I'm lost and I justfelt like this last week, as I
(24:54):
was spending time with Lord atthat table and I'm saying to him
I don't know what to do withthis, I felt like he said Well,
why don't you just go to him andtell him that you love him,
that you want to do whateverit's going to take to have a
good relationship with him, thathe's so important to you, that
you love him and you you, justyou value him and you don't want
to miss this season of my lifetogether, an Enjoyment of having
(25:15):
the best relationship you canhave, and that you want to do
whatever.
What's it going to take?
What's it going to take?
Ask him, what's it going totake that we can have a great
relationship?
I thought, wow, that's good, Ishould go ask him that, right.
Michael Blue (25:26):
Thank you, I should do that.
Dan Schilling (25:28):
Yeah, I should do that right, but that time that
that okay, I trust you right andso last night we we started
that process with with our sonand so just trusting him for,
okay, you can give me thatwisdom, you can give me that
insight, you can, you want tohelp me in all aspects, so
(25:50):
that's good.
Yeah, well, let's, let's get atleast the second one here in
this episode.
Let's go get that next,starting there in verse three,
this is our highlight verse, andlet's read three and three
through five.
You do five, all right.
Michael Blue (26:06):
Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and
then feeding you with mana, afeed of food previously unknown
to you and your ancestors.
He did it to teach you thatpeople do not live by bread
alone.
Rather, we live by everywherethat comes from the mouth of God
.
For all these 40 years, yourclothes didn't wear out and your
feet didn't blister earthwell,think about it.
(26:27):
Just as a parent disciplines achild, the Lord, your God,
disciplines you for your owngood.
Dan Schilling (26:37):
Well, and this area of Scripture, several
things that I want to pull outhere as we look at.
This Is the second point hereis that mistrust Leads to missed
opportunities and that manytimes in our in our journey
(26:58):
Again when we talked about thislittle video that I don't want
to be in a place where I have totrust him, but it's in those
places I have to trust him.
I get to see his miraculousprovision and I don't.
You know, I don't really wantto be in that.
But how many times am I missingOpportunities because of my
mistrust?
I don't, I don't want to bethere, I don't want to have to.
(27:20):
And you know the story.
You and I talked about this acouple of weeks ago when we were
sharing we're sharing our story, sharing about our story, and
that we were coming to a end ofthe year one year and I was like
I'm gonna write letters.
You know I deserve to startasking people for support and
I'm gonna send out these supportletters and we've been
(27:41):
missionaries and we're okay, I'mgonna do it and felt like God
asked us to you know, trust him,but I'm not gonna do that
anymore.
I'm gonna go ahead and takecare of it in my own, my own way
, and just felt like the Lordsaid, okay, it's gonna be your
way, my way, but it won't beboth.
I mean, like you know right,we're not cope, not co-doing
this.
You know, I've given you thedirections and so we didn't send
(28:06):
the letters out, and then thatmonth ended being one of the
biggest months of giving we hadever experienced, and again it
was.
It's a great story now, but inthe midst of it, I mean it was
one of the most painful, trustmuscle building times of our
life.
But I would have missed out onopportunity.
I would have missed out on thataspect of the story, if you
(28:26):
will, how God wanted to showhimself again to us as Jehovah's
Jireh right.
Michael Blue (28:34):
Yeah, I mean the and you know you think about
this the stories of God'sprovision.
I mean this is one of the mostremarkable verse four to me
Versus in all of scripture andone of the most remarkable
miracles in all of scripturethat I know.
People talk about it.
It gets kind of skipped overand it's for these 40 years
walking in the desert, yeah,your clothes didn't wear out and
(28:58):
your feet didn't blister orswell.
I mean that Pretty remarkable,that that God cared for them in
such a remarkable way of.
You know, in some ways I'm surejust became you almost don't
realize the provision and thathe's given to you because
they're they're not wearing out.
Yes, not like they wore out andhe miraculously made them new
(29:22):
again.
Dan Schilling (29:22):
It's like they just lasted yes, you have any
shoes at a 40 years old no.
Michael Blue (29:31):
I am wearing a pair that are about 18 years old
, but I don't wear them everyday, nor do I walk in the desert
and I look pretty terrible yeah.
Dan Schilling (29:40):
Yeah comfortable.
Yes, Well, it's.
Michael Blue (29:46):
They didn't have cowboy boots like we have Dan.
Dan Schilling (29:48):
Oh, that's true, that's Texas, got cowboy boots,
right, so right.
Well, I think what a couplethings that I see here.
One, obviously, that that versethree that we want to focus on.
You know, we see this otherplaces of scripture as well.
But he homo'd you by lettingyou go hungry.
Well, I think what I see there,for it's a starved of the death
.
But they did feel somediscomfort, right, or some
(30:15):
Displeasure, right, when I'mreally hungry, that doesn't feel
good.
But in the midst of that hungerthat he, he still provides.
And then I started feeding themmana, which no one had ever seen
before, right, he's essentiallysaying no one's ever seen it
before, unknown to you and yourancestors, it's never existed
(30:36):
before.
But I did it because I hadsomething in mind.
I did it to teach you thatpeople don't live by bread alone
, but rather every word thatproceeds or comes from the mouth
of the father.
Again, we see that passage youknow quoted another text
throughout the scriptures butthat the picture that I see is
(30:58):
like this time with my father.
Yes, he did right, but thepicture that I see is this what
I'm kind of painting is I'msitting with my father and he
sets down that loaf of Bread,which is encouragement, and but
it's not just to to physicalprovision, it's it's the time
(31:21):
that we're together Enjoyingthat bread Together.
Yeah, that word, that that I'dlike to tell you.
What did what I have for youtoday?
How about this for your son?
How's that sound?
Oh man, it's really good.
Or how about this for the?
Take care of the, that bill youhave coming up, oh man, thank
you.
So having that type ofRelationship and intimacy was
(31:48):
always what God's goal, was whathe was trying to teach them,
and I believe what he's stilltrying to teach us today is I
want to teach you this and yes,we probably don't see menna
coming down I don't have any inmy backyard but he still does
reveal himself in ways that arebeyond our understanding.
(32:10):
Conference, if we're willing,and that's the hardest part.
Michael Blue (32:14):
Yeah, and I think you know, talk about mistrust
leads to missed opportunities.
If we, if we begin to doubt God, we kind of doubt the fact that
he's actually through all of it, through the difficulty,
through the Struggle, he's, he'spreparing us like, he's
training us.
He's.
It says discipline like a child, but you know, discipline is
(32:35):
not punishment.
It's not the same thing aspunishment.
Punishment is it's like makingyou pay for what you did, versus
discipline is is Preparing youand training you, yes, and other
things.
And so all of this points to aloving father, who's, who's care
.
He's intentionally Teaching youthat you do not live by bread,
(32:57):
a bread alone, disciplining youfor your own good, so that
you'll trust him, and so all ofthese Things when we try to
avoid, then we actually miss thetraining, missing, miss the
hand of a loving father to kindof shape Us and mold us into
people who remember the 40 yearswhere our clothes didn't wear
out and when the manna came downevery day and when we were
(33:17):
hungry.
Yes, and they teach us, as yousaid beforehand, to follow a
loving father or the goodshepherd.
Dan Schilling (33:24):
Ultimately, yes, yes, well, we're gonna Pick up
on the next episode here.
We're gonna get the pointsthree, four and five, but let's
just kind of tie a bow on thisfirst part here.
Any Any other insider thoughtsaround these first couple
(33:44):
passages or anything we'retalking here so far about them?
Training in 48 provision.
Michael Blue (33:51):
I Just this this trust thing is so big and and
that it it locks us out of somuch growth and so much
opportunity.
And so you know, I read a quoteI think William McDonald maybe
said it in a book called truediscipleship where you know, in
heaven there will be people whodidn't didn't trust God enough,
(34:13):
but there will be nobody whotrusted God too much.
Yeah, the idea is is we're notgonna get to a place where it's
like man, I trusted him too much, but we only learn that by
actually stepping into trust andlearning, and that's where we
grow, that's where we comecloser, that's where we see
(34:35):
these opportunities.
So I think it's reallyimportant that we we see that
mistrust leads to kind of aweakening of our of our own
faith.
It's really to our detriment.
Dan Schilling (34:44):
Yes, Well, I want to wrap up this segment with
this and, just as anencouragement to you, that I
just want to make sure One, asyou're listening today, this is
not about guilt, condemnation,like you're not good enough, you
, you're terrible, you know,you've got mistrust, you've got
(35:05):
a problem, I have a problem, andso I just want to help you.
Join me on this journey,because I want to.
I want to hear, follow andthrive.
I want to be in a place whereMistrust isn't stealing from me,
and I'm in the midst of itright now.
But I want to encourage you.
Doesn't matter where you're at,wherever you're Struggling in
(35:25):
this area Maybe, or you feellike gosh, I'm just not meeting.
It's okay, because the fatheris inviting you and I both to
that same table and to come toenjoy that fresh bread, that
Fellowship with him, and to knowhim as the good, good father,
know him as the good, goodshepherd who wants to care for
(35:45):
us and take care of us.
So yeah, michael Wanchip, wepray for us.
Close this segment up and we'llJump back in here and get the
next couple points and get itfor next time.
Michael Blue (35:56):
Sure God.
Thanks so much for time I thisfirst part of Deuteronomy 8,
just a reminder that that you doprovide that you, you're one,
who, who is, is ultimately andalways trustworthy.
So help us to move and freedomfrom a place of mistrust
Hopefully never distrust Help usgive us confidence to take the
(36:18):
steps and I so we don't missopportunities to grow in Christ
like this Jesus, and I pray amen.
Dan Schilling (36:26):
Amen, and then thanks for tuning in the
FeedSheep podcast.
We'll be back again next time.
God bless you.
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