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Fighting Within the Family 0:01 Welcome to the men's global livestream. If you have a bible, you're gonna wanna hold a spot in Ephesians chapter 4 and James chapter 4. Those are gonna be a couple of the key passages that we're gonna look at. And if0:12 you're if you're joining us for the first time, we're in a series called Fight for the Fam. It is what it sounds like. We're talking about how to fight for the family, which is presently and has always been under attack.0:24 And just by way of review, some key thoughts is that family, is God's creation order. Family is God's chosen tool. Alright? To love and form0:36 healthy relationships and people. And because that is true, family will always be attacked by evil. The evil 1, evil masquerading as0:48 culture. And right now, more than ever, men need to learn how to fight for their families, especially, you young dads. So what we've been doing is we've been going step by step, relationship1:00 by relationship, issue by issue, to learn how to fight for the family. And today, we're not going to talk about the topic is not fighting for the family, the topic1:12 is fighting within the family. Alright? Conflict, conflict resolution, fighting within the family, and fighting for the1:23 family by doing conflict resolution the right way, God's way. Now, to get God's mind and to advance God's mind and to apply God's1:35 mind, we've got to go to the Bible. And this is that first passage I told you to put a hold on. Ephesians chapter 4 verses 25 through 27. Let's start there. It says this, therefore, each1:47 of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of 1 body. In your anger, do not sin.1:59 Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Now, the reason I chose this passage is because2:11 it addresses a unit of people that are doing life together. Alright? And families are definitely units of people, the primary unit of God's choice, that is doing life together. The Bible says2:23 that we're all members of 1 body. Family members are like a body. There's different parts of it, different roles in it, different things that happen within it. So whether you're part of a blood family, or an2:35 adopted family, or a blended family, or maybe you're a part of a spiritual family, like here. You're a unit, and guess what? That unit is filled with2:47 imperfect people, flawed people, selfish people, and sinful people. Uh-oh. So what does that mean? That means that there are unmet needs and unmet wants2:59 and desires in conflict. And when people don't get those unmet needs met and those desires satisfied and they feel like the people3:10 next to them are thwarting them from getting their unmet needs met and their desires satisfied, whether you're a toddler or whether you're a parent, you are gonna have3:22 some good old fashioned fighting. Alright? You're gonna have conflict. Right? And this is true of every family. It's the3:34 presence of conflict is normal in every family, but the battle for all of us, especially you dads and you grandpas and you uncles and you older siblings3:46 is you gotta fight fair and you gotta fight God's way. You see, God has a purpose for everything and in everything, and he can redeem everything, especially things where it feels3:57 like there's no way any good is gonna come out of it. He can redeem that and he can redeem even conflict to glorify himself the same way he redeemed a tortured4:09 son on a cross to bring salvation to humanity. So that's where we're we're looking into. And I wanna unpack the passage we just read, Ephesians 4 25 to 27, and4:21 just identify some core truths upfront, get God's mind, that will help us begin to think about conflict. Alright? Now based on the passage, here are 4 truths. Number4:33 1, deceit stokes division in families. Alright? So there's a unit of people together, in this instance, a spiritual family, but true for any family. There's a unit together,4:45 and the command is that you must put off falsehood. Alright? Shady stuff. Alright? Manipulation, falsehood,4:58 misdirection. Alright? Deceit always stokes division in families. Because when there's deception, husband to wife. When there's deception, parents to children. When there's deception,5:11 brother to brother, sister to sister, or brother to sister. Alright? And then the deception is comes out, and truth always comes out, there's gonna be anger, and there's gonna5:22 be betrayal. And where there's anger and betrayal, there is division. Number 2, withholding truth holds peace hostage. The passage in the Bible says, put off falsehood5:34 and speak truthfully. Alright? But sometimes we don't want to speak truthfully because it might damage our image or we might lose our position or power in a family. Right? But you know when we do5:46 that, when we withhold truth from people, whether it's truth about ourselves, whether it's truth about another person, or truth about a situation, or truth about reality, or just truth about5:58 life. And we try to pad it, and we try to cuddle, and we try to, make the landing easier. All right? Sometimes when we do that,6:10 and then the person discovers that, okay, we didn't tell them the truth. Whether it's a child, we didn't tell them the truth about themselves, and then they grew up to be a spoiled, a self absorbed6:22 adult, or a truth about an issue, and the truth wasn't told about that early on, and then later on, you know, there's pain connected to not telling the truth. In families, when we withhold truth, we6:34 hold peace hostage. Alright? And we want peace in our families, but to do that, we just kinda gotta be in truth and reality. We gotta be real. Alright? Third,6:47 conflict is inevitable, but destruction is optional. That's what I love about the Bible is it says, hey, in your anger, just don't sin. It's not saying don't be angry. Alright?6:58 People are gonna get angry. People are gonna feel thwarted. People's needs are gonna go unmet, and they're gonna feel things about their needs going unmet and their desires being unfulfilled in family. So there's gonna7:10 be, some emotion, some negative emotions in family. And so some of you know what I'm talking about right now. Right? But the key is is that we can be angry, but we don't have to sin. We don't have to destroy.7:23 We don't have to bring death. We don't have to tear down. We don't have to violate God's word or be unloving in that situation. Because the Bible says7:35 that we don't have to sin when we get angry. Alright? But we really have to lean on God's truth and God's power to help us do that. Alright? Fourth,7:47 the Bible says that either we fight fairly or, if you don't, you give the devil a foothold. And this is the the fight for the family at its7:58 very root. Again, family is a creation order. Family is God's chosen tool for forming people and healthy relationships. Family is covenant. Satan attacks all of8:10 those. He hates all of those. Alright? And when he smells just a little division, it's like chum in the water for the shark. Alright? You could smell it miles8:22 away and just heads right for that division and that little space inside your family where division is allowed. It's a little foothold. It's a small space to start off with.8:35 But just like in war, if you win the foothold, you can win the next hundred yards from the foothold, and the next hundred yards, and the next hundred yards, and the next mile, and 2 miles, and 50 miles. You can take down8:45 a whole country from a little small spot. Did I just give you a picture of the fight for your family? The devil wants a foothold of division, and he wants to pour8:57 lies and truths and untruths and selfishness and fill your head seizing upon that distance and that division in a9:08 family to take down the whole thing. You know, the end product of a divorce or division, permanent division in a family, it didn't start off that9:20 way. It starts off as an a little situation that created a little attitude that was fueled and fed, that's right, by the devil who seized the foothold. So9:31 what does the Bible say in response to those truths that, hey, deceit, that stokes division, withholding truth holds peace hostage, conflict is inevitable, alright, and our anger, just don't9:43 sin, but destruction is optional, and we gotta fight fairly and fight the right way, God's way, or else we give the devil a foothold. And the line of that, look at Romans 14 verse 19. It says this, lest therefore9:55 make every effort. Alright. There's a fight. Full effort to do what leads to peace and mutual edification. So those are God's goals10:07 for your family, but you gotta know how to manage conflict in a family. Alright? And to maintain the peace and to maintain people not tearing down.10:19 Alright? Those are 2 things that you gotta fight for and guard and be sober about and know. And and the amount of energy the Bible says that we have to put into that man of God is to make10:31 every effort. Versus what? Well, versus a kinda effort or a sort of effort or just defeat the effort. You're the source. Alright? God's saying to us right now, in this moment in time, if10:43 you're watching me, you gotta make every effort to win peace and mutual encouragement and edification in your family. So if you're not there, alright, you need to listen up, and you need to10:55 follow me about how we're gonna win peace. And so what we're gonna do with the rest of our time is we're going to look at some key realities that we have to recognize so that we have less11:07 conflict and more peace. Anybody up for that? I'm for less conflict, I'm for more peace in my marriage. I'm for less conflict and more peace. Alright? With my children. Alright? Parents11:19 to children, dads to children, mom to children. I am up for less conflict and more peace, sibling to sibling, brother to brother, sister to sister, sisters to brothers, brothers to sisters. Okay. So11:31 there's the family unit. Alright? And we're looking for peace and mutual encouragement. The first step that we take in that direction is we gotta recognize the11:43 person within me that feeds division. Alright. The Bible says that you have a part of you, alright, that wants and isn't satisfied, that11:55 desires but doesn't get everything they want. Right? And when you want stuff, or you want an outcome, or you want a thing, or you have a desire that's unmet,12:07 a lot of times you blame the people next to you for thwarting that desire or want manifesting in your life.12:19 Alright? So you gotta recognize that there's a part of you that is the source of division. Alright? And it's just the selfish you. It's the sin nature. It's12:31 that chump inside that wants what he wants when he wants it. Alright? And that throws sometimes an adult temper tantrum, over it and projects that12:43 little toddler inside who's having a temper tantrum onto the people around him. The Bible speaks into this source. James chapter 4, our second key12:55 passage says this, what causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire, but you do not have, so you kill. You covet, but you cannot get what you13:07 want, so you quarrel and and you fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. And when you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives that you13:18 may spend what you get on your pleasures, or on yourself. Alright? So you look at that man, and you see that they13:30 have desires in conflict, they can't realize their desires, all right? So then their lack of satisfaction gets projected onto the people around them. All right?13:42 And this person is not bringing, listen, is not bringing God into the mix. They're just they're in their own head. Right? They're not even considering God.13:54 They're not talking to God. They're not asking God. They're not processing that with God. And so when you're not making room at the table in your life for God, right, then who's it on? It's all on14:06 you and it's all on the people next to you to get that desire satisfied. But when God's in the picture and we say, Hey, not my will be done, but your will be done. Or we're talking to God and saying, God, you know,14:18 this is my desire, and I know you love me, and I know you want the best for me. And so this is my desire, but I trust you and your timing and what you wanna do for me. And it's not about you having14:30 the capacity to deliver that into my life. It's just my character and the process leading up to that, or you deciding in your wisdom and love to keep it out of my life. And both are a14:41 win. See the difference? So if there's a man in a family and he has a personal connection, if God is personal to him and God's intervening in his life with these wants and14:53 desires, and he's processing it with God, the person who can actually pull it off and will allow it happen. Alright? He's processing it there, and he's open to God's best interest and even15:05 will look at his own motives. Alright? There's gonna be a lot less conflict and a lot more peace, but we gotta recognize. Alright? Number 1, the source of division in your family is15:17 you. It's me. And there's a built in part of us that is selfish. And I don't think we have a problem admitting that. Alright? But the way you deal with self causing15:28 division is you bring your whole self to God. And you begin to go, okay. It's not about me. It's about him, and he has my best interest in mind. He's able. He's wise. I'm15:40 gonna process my wants and needs and desires with him. He's gonna speak into my motives and kind of expose them if they're not right and if it's selfish. Or he's gonna say, hey, that's a holy motive. That's a good15:51 motive. That's a healthy way of thinking about this. I wanna do that for you. Keep praying. Right? But the first thing we need to recognize is we need to recognize the person within me that feeds division.16:03 Second, alright, also a point of recognition. We gotta recognize the person outside of me, not that feeds division, but that fuels division, the great divider,16:15 Satan himself, who will, in the midst of your needs and want, he will plant comparing thoughts. Well, look at what he has and what you don't have. Look at what they have. Look at how16:27 his wife treats him. Look at how their kids listen and behave. Look at he'll he'll feed you thoughts that will fuel division and discontentment in your family. Alright? Judging16:39 thoughts, right, where you judge others. Well, if only things you know, if only the people in my family were more like me, things would be going much, much better around here. That's a judging thought. And16:51 most men have had that thought, whether it comes to their spouse or their kids. That's from the devil. Alright? It's a judging thought. God didn't create them to be like you. Alright? Then there's selfish thoughts.17:03 You know, who's taking care of you? How come you're not getting your needs met? You're meeting everybody else's needs, but you're not getting your needs met. Alright? That's from the devil. Rationalizing thoughts,17:13 justifying thoughts, all of those types of thoughts come from 1 place to accomplish 1 goal, to fuel division in your family, to get you in17:25 your own head, get you thinking about you, alright, in unhealthy ways because there's healthy ways, healthy self thought, but these are unhealthy self thoughts, right,17:37 that ruin relationships. Alright? And his name is the devil. Now in second Corinthians chapter 5, what we see is we see sort of a investigative17:49 situation. The apostle Paul is the pastor, he planted this church in Corinth, they're a family, And guess what? Their family's divided. Right?18:01 There is huge resentment, huge bitterness, huge lack of forgiveness. And Paul is coming in, he's like dusting for prints. Let's listen to what he found. He describes the18:12 situation and then he tells the Corinthians what he's found. If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you to some extent, not to put it too18:24 severely. The punishment inflicted on him, the 1 causing grief, by the majority is sufficient. Now instead, you ought to forgive and18:35 comfort him so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. I urge you therefore to reaffirm your love for him. Another reason I wrote you was18:47 to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. Anyone you forgive, there's the test, I also forgive. And what I have18:59 forgiven, if there was anything to forgive, I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, Listen in. In order that Satan might not outwit19:11 us, for we are unaware of his schemes. In order that Satan might not outwit us, for we are not unaware of his schemes. What's Paul doing? He's recognizing the person outside of this spiritual family19:23 that is trying to create division, and he's helping them navigate the relationships in there because there was breach, there was violation, and there was19:35 pain, and there was consequences, and but there was also love, and there was also forgiveness, and there was also this encouragement19:47 as believers to offer forgiveness and to receive forgiveness so that relationships can be repaired and restored and renewed and then19:59 released to the next chapter. Alright? With that behind them. And so Paul, as the leader, alright? So if any of you are leaders in your family, it doesn't matter if you're grandpa, dad,20:11 older brother, uncle, if you're a leader in your family, take a cue from Paul, and the cue is this, that he's willing to be first to forgive.20:23 I love the language, you know, that that he uses. If there's anything to forgive, I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake. Alright? He leads in reconciliation.20:35 He leads in forgiveness. Why? Because he ain't gonna allow the devil to get a win in this family. What's your attitude toward division20:47 in your family? Is it just everybody else's fault and everybody else's character and, you know, it's just the way it is or it is what it is? Well, the Bible doesn't believe that and neither should you. There's an active20:58 force outside of you that is fueling that division, fueling your thinking about people and thoughts. Alright? You gotta recognize that. Or otherwise, you're you're lost. So those 2 big sources21:10 of division in your family, the selfish you and Satan, if you don't recognize those, operating in this theater of family, your family's gonna be divided. Right? A lot of21:22 guys don't account for evil attacking their marriage and their family. They just think it's the other person, or life or circumstances. And then they look for temporary solutions and natural solutions21:34 when there is a supernatural force, and they're not even dealing with it, which allows for that division to continue in that distance, and that resentment and anger and lack of forgiveness to21:46 continue. Number 3, we gotta recognize the lies we're believing, and this goes right along, this path that we're on. We lie to ourselves. Okay? We don't even21:58 need Satan. Alright? Satan already knows that we're going to want stuff, and we're going to tell ourselves whatever we need to tell ourselves to do what we want to do, and then he piles on, right, some other lies22:10 that we're believing so that we can get to our goal, and in the context of relationships, and get it how we want it, or get what we want. There's always lies that are believed22:22 behind division. Under division, in a family, there are lies that are being believed by some party or by both parties. Alright?22:34 And men who believe lies are separated from God, and they're just not able to hear the truth.22:45 So when you're in the lie, when you're in your let's call it your narrative, man, is this the culture of narratives today that are lies? So when you're in your narrative, your personal22:58 narrative, it's very hard to listen to the truth. And you know what? Satan loves a good deceptive narrative that you tell yourself and that you may even tell others to23:10 justify division in relationships. Listen to Jesus talk about the confusion23:22 that happens in men when they are listening to the line. Jesus said to them, if God were your father, you would love me, for I have come here from23:34 God. I have not come on my own. God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong23:46 to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in23:58 him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Do you did you catch that? Where there's a a lie that's being believed, the lie24:10 clouds and confuses men to the point where clear communication from God can't be heard. Why is that? Because their their spiritual and emotional24:21 and psychological ears are plugged. Their selfish ears are wide open to the lie from the liar who24:33 Jesus also calls a murderer of relationship. So when you think about the master strategy, you've got self in man, you've24:45 got a good liar that lies into that self, that wants what he wants when he wants it, and when the man who is already selfish and lies to himself believes the extra lie that pushes24:57 him toward actions that divide, man, you've got a winning formula. So what's your narrative? What's your narrative? And is your narrative25:09 truth, or is it a self serving lie? Anytime you're, like, rationalizing a lot or justifying your behavior a lot or making excuses or blaming other people or using kind of25:21 twisted logic to get your needs met in the context of family, alright, that's the devil. Alright? If you're confused over a clear word from God,25:33 that's because you're clouded by some narrative or some lie that you're believing. Listen. All miscommunication in families comes from differing assumptions.25:45 Satan lives in that realm of creating assumptions, alright, without communication. Alright? So he'll lie into you and he'll create a narrative and you'll run with it, but you won't talk about25:57 it. In fact, you'll start miscommunicating in the lies and misses and and and assumptions without actually really processing it or dealing with it. Alright? Alright. So we're26:09 unable to hear when we're believing the lies in the narrative. We're confused when God's will is clear. Alright. We're believing the lie who has been given to us by the26:21 liar. We're under the control of the lie. And when you believe a lie, you will behave out of that lie. See how important that behaviors reflect beliefs, and either we're believing truth or26:32 lies. Alright? So we gotta be really careful about what we let into our mind, the narratives, the rationalizations, the justifications, the thinking. Right? So we gotta recognize26:45 the sources in us, the ones that feed division in us, the ones outside of us, cultural forces, and the devil himself that26:56 fueled division in the family, and that is happening right now. Alright? Cultural forces and the devil. And then we have to recognize the lies that we believe. So if you got a narrative27:08 going, right, you gotta really examine your narrative. If there's division in your family, division in your in your marriage, before God, you gotta really look at that narrative. Next, we gotta recognize the truth27:20 we are avoiding. Alright? Now as a pastor and mental health worker, I have assessed thousands upon thousands of people27:32 who are avoiding the truth. And they're avoiding the truth, and in avoiding the truth, they're they're allowing unhealth and division and addiction27:44 and other things to enter their lives. Can I just tell you something? And please write this down. Problems slash conflicts seldom exist at the27:56 level at which you finally see it. Alright? What do I mean by that? Alright. So we'll finally see a divorce. We'll see division happening in our families. We'll see words28:08 exchanged between people and families. But the problem doesn't exist when the words are said or the papers are signed or the division is being experienced. The problem exists somewhere else,28:20 you know, back here. You know, I had a good friend, his name is Todd. He was talking to me about, you know, a conflict, an argument he had with his wife. And it started over frying sausage. How to cook sausage.28:32 So guys, are you with me? Is the issue really how to fry a sausage? Or is there another problem that exists at a very deep level where28:45 that's just the symptom. It's not the root. Alright? So when we think about division, we have to recognize that usually there's some truth about ourselves or about the28:57 situation or about another person that we're avoiding. Listen to what the Bible says in John chapter 3 verse 20, when truth comes in and man's response of avoidance. Alright?29:09 Everyone who makes a practice of doing evil, addicted, listen, to denial and illusion hates god light and won't come near it. Why? Fearing29:21 a painful exposure. But anyone working and living in truth and reality welcomes god light, parenthetically truth, so the work can be seen for the god29:33 work it is. So what you see in this passage of scripture, Jesus's word, is you have facers of of of issues, facers of truth,29:44 facers of problems. Alright? Those are the people who welcome truth, who realize God's bigger than the problem, and who work with truth to address the problem, versus fleers29:56 of problems. You got facers and you have fleers. Alright? And the fleers, they are problem avoiders. Alright? They fear some kind of exposure. They're gonna lose power.30:08 They're gonna lose their image. They're gonna lose something. Or maybe some truth will come out about them. So when truth comes to the table, they either kill the messenger, or rationalize not30:19 obeying or act confused. Why? Because they're avoiding truth and reality. Men, here's the thing, in families, you know where God is? You know where God's presence is and God's power30:31 is and where healing and freedom are? It's in the truth. And so, the question in your family and in your connection in the family when it comes to conflict30:43 is, are you seeking truth? Because that's where God is. And we don't have to be afraid of expressing truth or owning truth or discovering truth30:55 because whatever the problem or situation is, God is bigger and his love is present and permanent. And so we can we can do it. You know, Jesus said, I am31:07 the way, the truth, and the life. Alright. So when we are avoiding truth, whether it's truth about ourselves, truth about what we're doing, truth about the reality of a31:19 situation, man, we will stoke division in our family. Alright. God is present in truth and reality. And a31:31 lot of times talking about reality is hard, but you see, God can redeem whatever that reality is. God is present. How do we know that? Again, God redeemed the hard31:42 situation of the cross. If he can do that here, he can do it in your life. So, don't avoid truth. Next, you gotta recognize that God is watching. And this is a big point. Alright?31:54 You gotta recognize the source of division in self. You gotta recognize, Satan. You gotta recognize, the the the lies you believe. You gotta recognize the truth we avoid. You gotta recognize, and32:06 this is huge, God is watching you. Alright? This division in your family, he's tracking it. He's tracking the health of your relationships. He's tracking your character and32:18 conduct in this, you know, and he cares about your family. Listen to what the Bible says on this whole topic of God is watching. Says this, for the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the32:30 house of Israel, and the men of Judah his delightful plan. Alright? So you've got a family situation. You've got the whole family, and then you've got the leaders, the men. Then he32:41 says, thus he looked for justice to see if people were giving what is due. He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed, for righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress. It's not going well32:53 in his family. But the key words here is God's got a family, God sees your family, God sees our spiritual family, God sees his children, God sees you, God sees your wife and your children, and he's watching. And he's33:05 looking to see if you will agent his justice, If you will give your family what is due. If protection is due, you give protection. If compassion is due, you give compassion. If33:16 discipline is due, you give discipline. If truth is due, you give truth. If if forgiveness is due, you give forgiveness. If peace needs to be fought for, you fight for peace. Right. He looked33:28 for that, but then God discovers, oh, man. It's a mess. Bloodshed and cries of distress. You know? And it starts with the man. God puts33:40 his delightful plant. Right? And it's a picture of a king who has a hanging garden in Babylon, and he's walking through, and he's got all these cool trees and flowers and plants.33:52 And they're like, they reflect his glory, because and his power and his majesty. That's how God looks at us, guys, as we're lead. We're in the garden of his delight, and his we are34:04 his delightful plant. And he is looking at us to reflect him, the God of love and justice. And he looks for it. He's watching for it through us to our family.34:16 But in this instance, he's not seeing it. And I know that for some of you right now, you're in the middle of conflict. And you gotta realize, man, I gotta get this right. God34:28 cares about He's not like blowing it off. He's not blowing, you know, thoughts of divorce off. He's not just gonna like, you know, write that off like we do things on taxes. He's not gonna write off34:40 division. He wants unity. He wants what you know in him to be experienced by your wife and your kids. So you gotta fight fair. But you gotta34:51 recognize the sources, you gotta recognize the lies, you gotta recognize that avoiding truth isn't an option, and that he's watching. Next you gotta recognize that peace is glorifying. If God35:03 is watching, then what's the goal if God is watching? That peace, fighting for peace in your family is glorifying. You know, we all35:15 know that famous theme in the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew chapter 5 verse 9 where Jesus declares, blessed are the peacemakers,35:27 for they will be called children of God. In other words, my identity as a child of God presumes in God's mind an activity. Identity35:39 commands energy, produces an activity. What activity is that? Peace making. Peace making. We build bridges. We we make hard decisions.35:51 We don't avoid truth. We take responsibility. We help people in our our our families take responsibility. We don't seek to tear down. We don't seek to destroy, but we seek36:03 to create peace and build up. Remember at the beginning? Right? That passage from Romans? Make every effort to do what leads to peace and mutual edification. Why?36:15 Because peace is glorifying to God. You wanna glorify God? Fight for and secure the peace between you and your wife. Fight for and secure the peace between your your you and your kids. Fight for and36:27 secure the peace, between siblings and your family, grandchildren, brothers, sisters. Peace glorifies God. In fact, that's what the36:39 angels declared. Right? When they the set the heavens open and the shepherds hear them. What do they say in Luke 2 14? Glory. Glory to God in the36:51 highest. And on earth, peace to those on whom his favor rests. If you're in Christ, God's37:03 favor rests on you right now. And I'm praying God's favor. Even as I'm saying these words, I'm praying God's favor on you right now. That you would experience his peace and love, and that you would give it away. You'd37:13 fight for peace in your family. Right? Glory to God in the highest. Fight for peace in your marriage. I put a couple verses there. First Peter 3 7 on your notes if you have the notes. You gotta live with your wife in37:25 an understanding way or else God won't hear your prayers. Fight for peace. I put another reference there on the notes, Ephesians 6 4. Don't exasperate your children. If you exasperate your children by being demanding and37:36 controlling and having all these rules and being a perfectionist, man, you're not gonna have peace in your family. Alright? So why obey those commands with your wife and with your kids? Because God wants peace. Say37:48 that with me. God wants peace in my family. Say it again. God wants peace in my family, but you gotta fight for it. He supplied everything that you need. Look, this word this38:00 morning is so powerful and strong. Let's go to the last point today. Right? If we're gonna win peace, we gotta recognize that relationships demand sacrificing.38:12 And I know it's it seems like, an easy truth to understand, but it's a harder 1 to apply. Right? That Jesus sacrificed his own38:24 comfort of living in heaven, his own comfort of not having nails in your body and spears thrust into your side and thorns crushed onto your head and bleeding38:35 out because you've been flogged. So that Oh man. He did that so that you and I38:48 could be a part of the same family. You know? And if you're watching this, I'm your brother. We're gonna be together forever. But you know that that first family that you have. Alright, wife, kids,39:00 that's a reflection of God. And God's calling you to make some hard choices and some sacrifices39:13 to keep to your family together. And I know I'm speaking to a lot of you out there. I know it isn't easy. I know it it isn't the way you expected things to go. I know the39:24 distance isn't what you planned for. But you know what? We've just got a word from the war this morning. We've got a game plan. We have a war plan. 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