Romans 6:14-19 (#22.2025.05.18)

Scott Keffer [: 00:00:02

Hi. If you're looking for greater hope, assurance, and confidence through the shifting sands of life, then join me on today's episode as we dig deep into the bible to discover rock solid truth for life and living from the God of the bible. I'm your host, Scott Keffer. Hi, and welcome to today's episode. As always, for a deeper experience, you can go to the show notes and download the blank insight sheet. Fill in the blanks along with the group. Depending on how you're listening to this, there'll be a link to the episode website at beholdingbibletruth.com, and a sheet with the answers is included as well. Enjoy today's episode.

Scott Keffer [: 00:00:52

How many of you how many have been on a health transformation trips? How many have been on a mission trip, transformation trip? We've done that. Yep. Yep. Yep. Yep. They are very life changing. And our sister went on a trip to Thailand. You wanna come up? Cindy? Yeah.

Scott Keffer [: 00:01:11

Let's give her a So I thought we'd just spend a couple of minutes. And, share, that was your very first trip, Yes. Yeah. So talk about how the Lord kinda spoke to you to do that and how you felt initially about going. So how do you felt like would the Lord do? Because I I know for me I mean, I was literally in in prayer the first time I went, and it it was in a time of prayer the lord spoke and said, you're gonna go to Russia. And I said, what? He said, Russia. No. What? So talk about how that happened for you.

Cindy [: 00:01:46

When they mentioned to go on the trip, I was always wanted to do a mission trip, and I really like Maria and and the mission that she has. And when she came to our class and I got a chance to hear her, I thought, oh, that'd be really great. Like, then my friends offered me to go to to Florida to spend my birthday. So so that'd be nice of a week in Florida. But, well, I placed it on my part to go on this mission trip. So I changed my time network to go on the mission trip because I was really going to see Marie. I just didn't know it was, like, twenty three hours.

Scott Keffer [: 00:02:19

Yeah. On a plane. Yeah. Right. Perfect. Did you have a no yes kind of internal Yeah. Struggle? How'd how'd you deal with that?

Cindy [: 00:02:25

Because of all of you praying for me, it made it easier for me because it's hard for me to sit that long.

Scott Keffer [: 00:02:32

It's a lot of sitting.

Cindy [: 00:02:33

Yeah. It's a lot of sitting. So I'm nervous, but I really felt all the prayers. Really?

Scott Keffer [: 00:02:40

That's so cool. That's so cool. And so I would say, we think, oh, what's God gonna do through me? But I always found it's what God did in me. So talk about some of the things that that you experienced as you, you know, did this.

Cindy [: 00:02:55

I think one of the biggest things was that being blessed by the, the young girls that they asked me to I don't know why, but they asked me to be their mentor. And I was, like, really nervous. Because I'm I feel that I'm really silly, but maybe they didn't say it that way. And I told them that this was my gift for my birthday, was coming there to assist Maria for her work, and I was kinda bouncy. I know you don't know that about me, but I was kinda bouncy. So they didn't believe I was 67 years old. But I I just, you know, spoke to them. We had a Brenda gave us a lesson that we had to present.

Cindy [: 00:03:37

So mine was on leadership because of my background running a college, you know, running CCAC where I taught there as well as oversaw the, like, the two centers. So my topic was to the younger girls was talked about the book of Ruth, and I talked about how they were called, they were chosen, and they were loved. And gave them some bible verses on that, but I would always give them bible first and then go in and and constantly tell them that. They were called. They were chosen. They were loved. And then for the university girls, I I talked about the book of Ruth. I talked about Eagles.

Cindy [: 00:04:19

How you should soar high as a eagle. But as geese, we come together like we do in your class, and we encourage one another. So that was the scripture I gave him as well. But I told him they were called. They were chosen. They're anointed, and they're enough.

Scott Keffer [: 00:04:34

Which is hard because they're broken. They all come from very broken backgrounds and, really hard background. So, you know, we're helping them see a possibility of future that they can't see, really blessing them with a with a sense of vision about their life and purpose. I you always think some favorite things. Do do you have a story of one of the girls with that buzz? Yeah. Yeah. I know you do.

Cindy [: 00:04:55

The highlight would have been, one of the girls I I didn't know her. I don't ask people their backgrounds, but, you know, they all went through something. But one of the girls, I had to speak through an interpreter, so I had to slow down to talk. And I asked her

Scott Keffer [: 00:05:10

By itself is hard.

Cindy [: 00:05:11

Yeah. It was. It was. No.

Scott Keffer [: 00:05:12

Just speak to an interpreter because you gotta you gotta speak in a little bites.

Cindy [: 00:05:15

Yeah. And so one of the girls, her name is Rosie. I asked her the Holy Spirit put this on my heart to ask her if she could play for a song for me that were family. And they sang it in English, But, I asked her was that her spiritual gift? And she said, yes. I said, I'm sure you have many, but that was one. So she so when I spoke, she played that song. Needless to say, later on, Maria told this girl kinda dressed up the guy, but I didn't know her background. But they had spoke earlier other people spoke on forgiveness.

Cindy [: 00:05:55

And later on, Maria had told us how she was a bully, was bullied, and what happened to her. And she then Maria sent us a picture of how she changed. I mean, you wouldn't even believe she was the same girl.

Scott Keffer [: 00:06:08

Even physically. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. Because she even been released

Cindy [: 00:06:11

from Mhmm. Asking for forgiveness. And just speaking into them, telling them, you know, how they need to walk like a like a queen because that's how they started out. Or we telling them that they were princesses. And just we all build up on it and telling them that, they were called. They were chosen. They're loved, but they're princesses of god. And and she you know, there's others that changed as well.

Cindy [: 00:06:35

But that would probably be the one of the highlights.

Scott Keffer [: 00:06:39

And what what about changing you? What what occurred? What kind of changes occurred in you as a result of this trip?

Cindy [: 00:06:45

Really understanding people that go on the mission field. It it's a lot. It means, really, you have to be committed like that lady that's on. It is a big commitment, but I think that God were changed more than I I felt I was changed more. I I was impacted more than I felt that I impacted them.

Scott Keffer [: 00:07:06

And what did you see about God's character that was either a reminder or deepening of something you already knew or something new about him? What what did he show you about himself through the whole journey?

Cindy [: 00:07:18

I've seen through those young ladies and through Maria and her staff, how, they the word of God is alive in him every day because that that's how they live. I mean, they don't have as many distractions and how they have to really depend on God for everything. I mean, everything.

Scott Keffer [: 00:07:35

So what does that mean to you?

Cindy [: 00:07:37

Oh, I become more I need to study more. I need to read my word more.

Scott Keffer [: 00:07:44

And I think it's you know, and you you don't realize what you you have because it's the world you're in. Right? And when we're in the bottle, we can't see the label. Right? But when you go around the world, you realize, you know, we're we're in a different situation than than 98% of the people around the world, and you see the brokenness and the challenges. And what do you see about God's power to to save and transform?

Cindy [: 00:08:12

Just to to those girls. And even though the situation that they're in, the joy that they have, and they're they're so caring. And I got to meet several of them, and so now they became my spiritual daughters. But when they send me something, they always send a scripture. So I mean, that's, like, really important to them is to give you a scripture. So for my birthday, one of them sent me a scripture as a birthday gift. Oh, so

Scott Keffer [: 00:08:37

that's really cool. That's really cool. So you have some now long time relationships as a result of that. Yes. So what's one thing that the group can, pray for as result of the work that you did over there?

Cindy [: 00:08:50

Well, I did ask Maria that, and she said because it there's, like, 48 girls there. She said if we pray to help them to get some more pots and pants and utensils. I mean, that's a lot of lot of girls to feed. Mhmm. That and then she said that someone was having surgery, and it's like like $350. And she said if any way that we could pray that this lady would be able to receive that, she would appreciate it very much. And and they she definitely appreciates all of our prayers.

Scott Keffer [: 00:09:23

Yeah. She's special. Right?

Cindy [: 00:09:24

Oh, oh, she's very special.

Scott Keffer [: 00:09:26

Yeah. She's, you know, she's a she's a a lot she's a, strong and courageous in a little package. Right? Yes. I'm little too. Yeah. Yeah. You're I can say you're smart. I've just said Yeah.

Cindy [: 00:09:37

Yeah. Yeah. Good things come in small packages. Alright. So I just wanna say.

Scott Keffer [: 00:09:46

So one one insight from the whole journey from, you know, you're being called to go over and, you know, everything you have to go through to to do that and reentering on the way back, kind of all of that stuff. What's what's one thing that sort of echoes through the the whole experience for you?

Cindy [: 00:10:06

Just that help the value of people praying for you. For all those safe travels because the I the, those check loads are dangerous. I didn't that's probably what I didn't like Probably most, it's going through those and, you know but it I mean, everything else was good because Maria made everything pretty nice for us and made it smooth, but it's dangerous. She we got to see the refugee camps from a distance. And, there was, like, 450,000 people or something like that there in there, but we've seen it from a distance. But, it's just, I think. Brian, I think that's a big thing I left from there. Is it really, when people ask me why did I go and not help people in our country, but SABs are my sisters overseas, sisters and brothers overseas.

Cindy [: 00:10:58

And I'd want somebody to do that if I lived in our country, somebody to help me.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:03

Yeah. I think for sure for sure. So be bright, you can give to Maria and the work over there through bebrightbebright.org, I think it is, and, just Brenda and the the work she's doing to connect to Maria and the work over there. And you can sponsor a girl. You can help with the facility. I mean, there's just a ton, and a little bit here goes a lot away. You know? And so pray and give. Pray and give.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:28

Pray and give. And even a even a small amount because scripture says where your heart is there, where your treasure is there, shall your heart be also. You'd like your heart to be over there. Just need to get small amount just to, you know, help them. So, is it worth it

Cindy [: 00:11:44

Oh, yes.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:44

To go ahead and serve like that? Yes. Scary?

Cindy [: 00:11:47

I wasn't scared. It was just a flight.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:48

Little bit. Come on.

Cindy [: 00:11:49

No. It's just a flight.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:51

Just a flight?

Cindy [: 00:11:52

Uh-huh. I don't like this city. Yeah.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:54

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Usually, there's some part of when saying yes to that, that's that's hard. And it's always some part of it's hard, and then you you have to really depend on the Lord. And you see, missionaries really have to depend on the Lord. Oh, yeah. Really have to depend on yeah.

Scott Keffer [: 00:12:08

For us, everything you can go to the corner. You know? But for them, that's not the case.

Cindy [: 00:12:12

Right. Yeah. They're they're very thrifty, and they really watch what they do.

Scott Keffer [: 00:12:16

They have to right now.

Cindy [: 00:12:17

They do.

Scott Keffer [: 00:12:18

They have to. So we'll give her a round of applause. Thank you. Thank you. So, again, you know, you can pray, you can give, and you can go. You know? And not not everybody has to go. And our boot camp, which everybody prayed for, thank you so much for that. And I'm not I'm not aware, my, my Christianity on my sleeve, but I slide it in everywhere.

Scott Keffer [: 00:12:55

Alright. That's good. Because I don't think you'd be a Christian businessman because business you can't be a Christian business because businesses aren't called to follow Christ. You could be a Christian who's running a business, which is what I am. So early on in the boot camp, I get to tell my story, And one of the ways I do that is with this. So I will share it with you as well. That's why I say they're you know, you tend to think this is about me, but, no, you're gonna be changed. You you just come back different and, you know, it and then you think I gotta get Charlie going here.

Scott Keffer [: 00:13:35

But it's about many. It's not many. It's about few. Like, one one one first one. Oh, yeah. It did it's it it sets the tone for what, you know, what we're about. I tell it I tell the story that we were, you know, we were half a million dollars in debt. We were, you know, struggling to 49 years old and, you know, no you know, just big challenge.

Scott Keffer [: 00:13:56

I wanna go through all of that. And I say in the midst of that, is the ability to still do what matters. And then we play that and, of course, then people have a sense of where we are. You know? And then they get it as through three days, I get lots of opportunities to weave it in there. So, anyway, we're yeah. Lord is so lord is so faithful. He's he's just awesome and good. Awesome and good.

Scott Keffer [: 00:14:32

So so glad you went. So glad you went. And, you know, the it it is a great reminder to, you know, I'm sure you got pictures and you got the video of you speaking and, just memorialize that and remind yourself. So I do every year, I'm playing that at a boot camp because I probably wouldn't, but it's just it's just a great reminder of those things when we, get a chance to connect with Andre. I think about when we went over there. So it's good to memorialize it for yourself. And it's in here. I'm glad that during my boot camp Okay.

Scott Keffer [: 00:15:11

Let's stand and, greet our today. Good. Room 6. For sin, shall not be master over you. You're not under law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin? Because we're not under law, but under grace? May never be. Do you not know that when you present yourself to someone that's slave your obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey. Either a sin resulting in death or an obedience resulting in righteousness.

Scott Keffer [: 00:15:48

But thanks be to god that though you were slave in sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed. And having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. I'm speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh for just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness resulting in further lawlessness. So now present your members as slaves to righteousness resulting in sanctification. The word of the lord. Thanks be to god. Be to god. So scripture reminds us that sin's reign talked about this a bit last week.

Scott Keffer [: 00:16:41

Sin's reign has been broken. Sin's reign has been broken. But there was a thing in your life that reign, and it was sin. And that that sin, right, has been broken because of the cross. Right. And that although that king has been dethroned, if you will, in in life, we now have a choice As we're we go through sanctification, right, we choose, right, sin or god and his righteousness. That's the battle, isn't it? That's the battle. So I saw John Peter Savage on the way, and he said, yeah.

Scott Keffer [: 00:17:41

Just, you know, he's feeling better, and he's getting stronger. He said, just battle with sin. I said, John. He said, I gotta get over that. I said, no. You can't get over that. You don't get over that till you die. So I don't want to take over that too soon.

Scott Keffer [: 00:17:54

I just want you to hang around. Because you're not gonna you're not gonna get better in the apostle Paul for the things that I wanna do, I don't

Cindy [: 00:18:00

do. Yep.

Scott Keffer [: 00:18:02

But he says no more lifestyle of habitual sin. Lifestyle. Right? A life characterized by habitual sin. No more lifestyle. And and literally, he says, are we to in in Romans one, are we to continue in sin? Remember, he asked this question before. So it seems like he's asking it twice. But in Romans six one, the way the the verb is, it's habitual sin. Though it's it's the same way as first John if you've read that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:18:35

Because the scripture literally says, whoever abides in him does not sin. And you'd say, oh, wait a minute. What about me? I sin? That means I don't abide in him. You have to understand the Greek. Whoever abides in him literally means does not habitually sin. Whoever habitually sins has neither seen him nor known him. Whoever has been born of God does not sin is what you'll read in your Bible. You'll say, what? Does not habitually sin.

Scott Keffer [: 00:19:04

Continue to sin. Stay in a lifestyle characterized sin. For his seed remains in him, and he cannot habitually sin because he's been born of God. So when we're born again, right, sin has been broken. In in other words, we we are literally not without responsibility, but we have one king. We had what we have one one one, we were slaves to sin with no option. God rescues us out of there. We're born again.

Scott Keffer [: 00:19:36

Now we're battling, aren't we? We're battling. We're battling. So he says you are under grace. You're under grace. What then? Then he said, what then? Shall we sin? You said, wait a minute. Is he asking the same thing again? No. He's saying, shall we dabble in? So in the parenthesis, it that it's literally, shall we dabble in sin? So shall we sin? Right? Shall we mess with it? Shall we mess around with it? Shall we well, here's what we says, who's a words he he he's a word guy. The verb in six one is the present subjective and subject such that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:20:19

Yeah. Speaking of habitual continuous action, the verb in verse 15 is in the heiress thing, referring to a single act. Right? So this is the, you know, shall we mess with sin? Shall we sin on a right? So it's a reminder of the two. So I said you are you were a slave of sin, underlined sin. Slave of sin. You were a slave of sin, but no longer. So we now says, okay. Slavery.

Scott Keffer [: 00:20:53

Because this is about right, who are you a slave to? Who are you a slave to? Right? This is now a, a series of choices. So he says the slave, number one, their will is swallowed up. Their will is swallowed up in the will of the one of the one master. Right? So the will is swallowed up. Number two, they're bound with bonds, only death. Right? Bound with bonds, only death. So this is a a lifetime bonding. Right? Only death can break.

Scott Keffer [: 00:21:51

And number three, they serve the master to the what? Disregard. To the disregard of our own interest, which means so you see, we'll swallowed up, bound to death, and disregard your own interest, which means when you're serving and you're serving the will of this one, what is the will of sin?

Cindy [: 00:22:33

Yeah.

Scott Keffer [: 00:22:34

Your death. What is the will of God? You are good. Yeah. But I don't like swallowing, giving my will to another. I just don't. I mean, if I have I don't take care of myself, who's gonna take care of it? So the whole idea of being a slave is not something that seems to resonate with our core being, is it? I don't wanna be a slave. We're saying you were a slave. You just were a slave of sin.

Scott Keffer [: 00:23:11

And sin, when you serve it, the end is death. Oh, so now you choose your master. Now choose your master. What do you say? Now choose your master. Choose your master. And what are what are the choices? Yes. Sin or righteousness. Now you get to choose.

Scott Keffer [: 00:23:37

Right? That's broken. So now it's sin or god. He says sin or righteousness. Literally, now these were literally following god or not. So you can serve two masters. No. You can't. It's a scriptural principle.

Scott Keffer [: 00:23:55

If you have anybody ever been in the workplace where you have two bosses?

Cindy [: 00:24:00

Go ahead.

Scott Keffer [: 00:24:01

Have you ever tried that? And how does it work? You'll love one and you'll hate the other. You can't have you can't yeah. You totally hate them both. You'll love one and hate the others. You can't serve two masters. It's a kingdom principle. So God says you can't serve God and mammon. You just can't serve two masters.

Scott Keffer [: 00:24:20

You cannot serve two masters, not for long because you'll love one and you'll hate the other. You can't serve two masters. You gotta decide whom you're going to serve. And he says, here's the thing with it. He says, you become obedient from the heart from the heart. That's deep is in our in our soul. It's a transformation of our desires at the core at the core. But as people, we get really good at at saying the things that we need to say while my heart's not in concert.

Scott Keffer [: 00:25:13

Right? And as Christians, you get the language. I get the language. Right? Jesus is lord. Jesus is lord. I could say that. Where's my heart? That's why he says you know, in the Old Testament, he said, you serve me with your mouth, but you're not serving me with your heart. So those two need to be in context. So he's saying obedient from the heart, and it literally means to hear under, to hear under, which is what a soldier does.

Scott Keffer [: 00:25:48

Commander. Right? My dad was in the marine corps, served in Korea, and then was in the reserves. Your your job is not to question why. Yours is to do and die. That's what's their that was their motto. Hoopla. You know? I mean but the idea was, you're not here to question. You're here to follow.

Scott Keffer [: 00:26:10

That's what it means. I mean, it's literally here under.

Cindy [: 00:26:12

K.

Scott Keffer [: 00:26:13

Here and follow. Here and follow. That's kinda what this thing is like, this thing thing. Here and follow. Here and follow. He's saying here, you didn't really have a choice internally because you were a slave of sin. No choice. In fact, you couldn't even see it.

Scott Keffer [: 00:26:28

You're in darkness. You're in the kingdom of darkness. You were dead in your sins and trespass. Now you kinda see, so now you got a choice. Then it's fun for a time. And the enemy is an angel of light. He wraps it up in nice packages, and there is a part of me, the old self, the flesh, the old man, who likes it. Right? And I remember liking it, and I still like it.

Scott Keffer [: 00:26:55

So now we've got this battle here. But he says it's from the heart, not lip service. So literally wholehearted. Wholehearted. How many have managed people? Do you remember any who are wholehearted? They're rare. They're they're rare. Do you have a wholehearted employee fully there? And they found that, employees are really in one of three states. They're they're wholehearted, all in, whatever it takes.

Scott Keffer [: 00:27:33

The center is kinda like, yeah. Whatever. Whatever. Whatever. And then there's an active there's a there's a set of people who are actively trying to dismantle a company. After 2020, that actively dismantling grew doubled. The the percentage of people who were actively right? Then the number who are wholeheartedly in dropped down. Right? The whole, yeah, lockdown kind of stuff.

Scott Keffer [: 00:28:00

So companies are struggling. They got workforces with, you know, quarter to a third are actively trying to dismantle the company mission. Then you got the, yeah, whatever. What's that? What's going on? Absolutely. No. I'm home. I'm more efficient. I don't have to travel.

Scott Keffer [: 00:28:26

You know, the dog needs let out. Yeah. You get the cat. I'm getting I'm doing the yeah. I got it. No. We're definitely more well, we're much more effective at home. I can't get you to focus at the office, let alone at home with all the stuff.

Scott Keffer [: 00:28:40

Yeah. Oh, yeah. We're definitely more effective. So he's saying what we want is wholehearted wholehearted obedience from the heart from the heart where I got all of you. He says, obedient from the heart. He said to that form of doctrine, that form of teaching, that form.

Cindy [: 00:29:05

Form.

Scott Keffer [: 00:29:07

So when we went to Mexico when Josh and I went to Mexico, we helped build a structure for, a family, and we poured concrete down to build kind of the framework house on it. So you had to pour the concrete into a form. That's what that form means. It's a mold. The

Cindy [: 00:29:29

mold.

Scott Keffer [: 00:29:30

That form of doctrine. So either god's mold or the world's mold. Adam Clark says a mold or a dye. The figure upon this dye, right, the new dye, the new image, new mold is god's image. Right? It's the image of god, righteousness and true holiness, which was stamped on their souls and believing the gospel and receiving the holy ghost. So it refers to the melting of metal, which is then liquefied, cast into the mold that it may receive the impression of that which is sump or cut in the mold. And therefore, the words may be literally translated into which mold of doctrine you've been cast. So it requires a melting of our former shape, a pouring into the mold and taking on the shape of the gospel, if you will, the shape of God's righteousness, the righteousness of God, the character of God, the nature of God, pouring into the image of his son.

Scott Keffer [: 00:30:30

That that he might become the firstborn among many brethren, that we might be cast into his image. Do not be conformed. It's that same world. Do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed. Metamorphomized. Three times, it shows up on the mount of transformation. That's the word where Jesus outside, we saw what was inside. That's really what happened.

Scott Keffer [: 00:31:02

Jesus showed his glory, which was inside the outside. That's where it was like, woah. Scripture says, the father dwells in unapproachable light, blinding, overpowering light because he's pure. He's holy. Oh, so he let that out. That's what he's saying. Be poured into that mold that you could prove that you can show forth the will of god, which is not just good. It's also what is it? It's good.

Scott Keffer [: 00:31:36

Acceptable. Acceptable. Acceptable. Perfect. Good. Acceptable. Perfect. And perfect.

Scott Keffer [: 00:31:47

Oh, death. So the enemy comes. Yeah. So we have sin and, of course, you have the evil one over here. You have the world system here, and you have your flesh. And and he comes to kill, steal, and destroy. But he comes as an angel of light. Goodies.

Cindy [: 00:32:28

No.

Scott Keffer [: 00:32:29

They're delivered in HD. Hi, So it says for your sanctification. So now present your members as slaves to righteousness resulting in what? Sanctification. That's what this battle is. Right? Moment by moment, day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year till they call you home. That's the deal. Sanctification. So we are set free from sin, but we are not sinless, not sinless perfection.

Scott Keffer [: 00:33:01

Or I said to John Peter seven, it's it's not sinless perfection. So we will be sin free when we see him. That's what awaits. And we should anticipate the day when god rids us of the presence of sin. That's called our glory, our glorification. But until then, we bow to sin. That's called sanctification. For that which I'm doing, Paul says, I do not understand for I'm not practicing what I would like to do, but I'm doing the very thing I hate.

Scott Keffer [: 00:33:42

And sometimes I'm doing the very thing that I love, but it is the thing I should hate. But then I hate the fact that I love the thing that I should hate. How many feel like? Like, so that's sanctification. That's sanctification. So I'm gonna get super practical here. So what what helps with the ballot? You need a daily routine. A daily routine. I teach this to my business coaching private members, a daily routine.

Scott Keffer [: 00:34:22

Okay. Who you are, believe it or not, you better figure this out. But believe her, you need a daily routine. The assumption is somehow I'm gonna get up and walk into a life that's there to support me and be for me and help me and energize me, give me good stuff and affirm me. Does that happen? Ever. No.

Cindy [: 00:34:45

You're pretty

Scott Keffer [: 00:34:46

It's like getting in the car on an empty tank of gas and thinking, what's wrong? A power plant does not have power. It generates power. A power plant does not have power. And so I teach my private coaching members, there's a difference between a thermostat and a thermometer. What's the difference? The thermometer tells temperature. Thermostat sets the temperature. If you live a life where you're living to outside circumstances, you're like a thermometer. If you wanna be a Christian in the world, you have to be like a thermostat.

Scott Keffer [: 00:35:31

You gotta set your own temperature, and you have to you have to, fill your own power plant. Now we get the power of the spirit of God, but we have to participate. So I put in there, we you have to choose your master each day. You got it may be through the day, but you definitely have to choose your master each day. Remember, we said surrender or seven yourself, which is literally. Right? Every knee will bow and every tongue confess. But in Isaiah, which is really what he's quoting, every knee will bow and every tongue will swear allegiance. There's a difference.

Scott Keffer [: 00:36:11

I can confess Jesus with my mouth, but swear allegiance. Put Put your hand on everybody put your hand on your heart. I swear allegiance to the lord. Now feel the difference? I could say Jesus is lord, and I'll say I swear allegiance. So each day, put your hand on your heart and say, okay. Who am I swearing to? Who am I swearing to? For allegiance. Swear allegiance daily. So the spirit of God to the impossible says, hey.

Scott Keffer [: 00:36:46

I I urge you. I urge you, which mean I poke you. I prod you, right, With electric shock.

Cindy [: 00:36:58

Uh-huh.

Scott Keffer [: 00:36:59

Right? They go out prodding a cow. I prod you, if you will, brethren. By what? By the severity of God, by the anger of God, by the, no, by the mercies. He says, stop. By the mercies of God. In the prophet, it says, don't be like a horse. Or is that James? It's James. Don't be like a horse where I gotta stick a bridle in your mouth and and pull you up.

Scott Keffer [: 00:37:25

But sometimes, I I gotta prod you. I said, prod you. By what? The mercies of God. What should we do? Present our bodies, but surrender it. So say, you know what? Not doing that. Here's my body. Here's my body. Do not be conformed to this world.

Scott Keffer [: 00:37:52

Right? Be transformed. So swear allegiance daily. First, remember Joshua. If it's disagreeable I like this. Judges if Joshua says, if it's disagreeable to serve the lord, okay, go and serve sin. If if you wanna serve if you wanna serve, right, the gods back in Egypt, go ahead and serve them. If you wanna serve the gods in your past, go ahead and serve them. That's what he's saying.

Scott Keffer [: 00:38:18

If you wanna serve the gods that you used to serve, serve them. That's fine. If you wanna serve the gods who are around us right now in today's world, serve that. Or you can serve the lord. That's who I'm following. That we get to do every day. There's who I used to serve. There's the potpourri of I can serve today, or he's saying, as for me and my house, for me and my house, I'm gonna serve the lord.

Scott Keffer [: 00:38:48

I gotta do that daily. I have to do that daily. So he's saying choose choose your master each day. Second is beware of the little the little sins. Called foxes in the song of Solomon. Catch the foxes for us. The Little foxes. What are they doing?

Cindy [: 00:39:18

Ruining

Scott Keffer [: 00:39:19

the vineyards. When are they doing that? When things are going well, but I'm fruit bearing. Careful. See? Careful of the little stuff. Just careful of the little stuff. It sneaks in there, isn't it? So he says, he who is faithful in a little thing is also faithful in much. He also says, he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. A very little thing.

Scott Keffer [: 00:39:51

So he just it's just caught he's just cautioning us. Watch it. Because it's easy to slip, isn't it? Gotta slide back. Oh, it's no big deal. That's kinda no big deal. It's kinda no big deal. Okay. No big deal.

Scott Keffer [: 00:40:02

Right? When you think about what are your little foxes? The most important thing is to tell yourself the truth. Most important thing is to tell yourself the truth. I coach professionally. The most important thing about a coach is a coach sees what you can't see, that's a blind spot, or sees what you won't see and tells you the truth. And the truth will set you free if you wanna hear the truth. Right? But the truth requires us to see ourselves. Beholding as in a mirror. It's hard to do, isn't it? It's It's hard to do.

Scott Keffer [: 00:40:44

Beholding is in a mirror. Beholding is in a mirror. Who's the truth teller in your world? Tells you the truth about your life. I don't want anybody to tell you the truth. I don't want you to follow me. I don't want you to see what I do in the nobody watching. Right? And you gotta have more than one reason. Like, all the you know, to make the right choice, I'll do that for God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:41:12

I'll do that for Beth. I'll do that for the kids. I'll do that for the grandkids. I'll do that for my Sunday school. I'll do that for the bus I gotta have lots of reasons. Because sometimes the one reason is more powerful than the other. Ain't that right? At the what if I would say, what if what if was playing on a screen? I told to remind myself. What if? What if? Right? And I'm reminded there.

Scott Keffer [: 00:41:33

It can be good things in excess. Could be good things in excess. And I remind myself, god's not killing your joy. He's just reminding you I have a path for you. And in his presence, his fullness of joy is right in our place forever. God says, I know much more about having good in your life. I gave Adam and Eve everything that they needed and more, and they thought, well, there must be something. Must be something he's keeping from us.

Scott Keffer [: 00:42:11

Let's go over in the heat of that tree. Go over in the heat of that tree. So it feels like. Right? So it could be good things in excess. Last I put bookends. This is very practical. First hour power and last word. First hour power.

Scott Keffer [: 00:42:26

First hour power. Teach this. My coaching crunch, what do you do in the first hour after you wake up? What do you do in the first hour after you wake up? What you should think about is spiritual body. So for me, it's alive in five. Alive in five, which is what do I do for energy? What do I do spiritually? What do I do mentally? What do I do physically? What do I do relationally? Alive in five. Alive in five. So I don't think the hardest thing to do is wake up and say, okay. How am I gonna start my day? It's just hard.

Scott Keffer [: 00:43:07

Right? If you do that, it's likely you're all over the place. I don't think. It's the same I mean, same five. Right? It may change just a tad to the same five. Alive and five. So energy for me, it's, you know, twenty hours, twenty ounces of water with a with a a supplement mix. Boom. That's the first thing that goes down.

Scott Keffer [: 00:43:28

Although now, because of my back, I'll stretch for about ten minutes just to get my back warmed up because I can hardly roll out of bed sometimes to get my back warmed up. Boom. Bang. Into a quiet time. And then what are you doing, right, for some version of spiritual, mental, right, physical, relational, alive and five. Not put down write this down. Not your phone or computer. Not your phone or computer for the first hour.

Scott Keffer [: 00:44:05

Not your phone or computer, email, social media, not your phone. What can you did I say that? Yeah.

Cindy [: 00:44:17

I thought.

Scott Keffer [: 00:44:21

So so for some people, it'll be how I go through the DPs. You know what the DPs are? Yeah. Yeah. He says, I mean, the god of peace himself is the power of god necessary. But what's he gonna do? Sanctify you spirit, soul, and body. What are you doing? You better be caring for your body and helping it. Right? Paul says I buffet my body, I make it my slave. You gotta help your body.

Scott Keffer [: 00:44:50

We need energy to battle sand dune. We need the power of God, but I need to participate. I need to be energized, enthusiastic, engaged in what I do. That needs work. That needs fuel. How are you fueling yourself? Physically, mentally, spiritually. Every day, fill up. Like, you're showing up at the spiritual station.

Scott Keffer [: 00:45:13

Fill that tank up. Showing up at the body station. Fill that tank up. Mental station. Fill that tank up. Don't let the crap of the world or the crap of meteor, the crap on the phone. Like, get your mental state ready. Does that make sense? They go.

Scott Keffer [: 00:45:28

By the end of the day, you'll be out of gas.

Cindy [: 00:45:31

Yeah.

Scott Keffer [: 00:45:32

But if you if you start into your trip without any gas, what's it like? By 09:30, you're willing to get ready to give up. 10:00, whatever noon. Right? First hour power. Buff it by body, make it by slave. And then pray for your heart. This is obedient from the heart. Pray for your heart and IQs. I got this from John Piper, and I modified it.

Scott Keffer [: 00:46:01

Incline your heart. Create a clean heart. That's confession. Unite my heart to fear thy name. Incline my heart to thee and to thy testimonies. Enlarge my heart. Enlighten my heart. Strengthen my heart.

Scott Keffer [: 00:46:20

Is that a good set of prayers? Yeah, man. Then I pray for your heart. Pray for your heart. And then bookends is first hour power, last word, God's word. First hour power, last word, God's word. Christian or not, they tell you, don't let this or a TV be within anywhere within the last sixty minutes of your your day for all sorts of physical, mental reasons. But last word's god's word. I want last word, god's word.

Scott Keffer [: 00:46:57

Right? So we have the we'll pray we'll read a portion of songs, pray, fed. Why? I want that dumping into my subconscious and rolling around. For I meditate upon thee in the night watches for thou hast been my help. And then I have a go to when I wake up. Psalm 18. Oh, oh, lord. How I love thy strength. Right? The lord is my strength, my port my portion, my defender, right, my rock.

Scott Keffer [: 00:47:27

Right? So go to in the middle of the night. So he says how blessed is the man who does not walk in the council of the wicked, stand in the path of sinner, nor sit in the seat of scoffers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord. And in his law, he meditates when? Day. Day and night. That's the whole idea with day and night is when I wake up, when I end my day. Bookends. Open the day, close the day.

Scott Keffer [: 00:47:54

Two bookends. And, of course, weave it in through the day, but the day gets busy. Right? It'll pop through. I make sure I start and end it. Why should I do that? Well, you will be like a tree. What kind of tree? A tree from not just planted, a firmly planted tree by streams of water. Is that good? Yeah. That's like life, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.

Scott Keffer [: 00:48:26

And whatever it does, it prospers. Would that be good? Oh, this is like prosperity. It says there's prosperity over here. There's life and prosperity. How many want prosperity? That's sometimes I think I have a better root. This promise is more fun. Lord just reminds us prosperity. So daily routine, choose your master every day.

Scott Keffer [: 00:49:03

Beware of the little sins and bookend your day. First hour power and last word. Is that good? Alright. Right and insight. Amen to that. He puts guardrails in our life, and they're there for our good. Otherwise, I'm going over the cliff. Right? I'm going over the cliff.

Cindy [: 00:49:22

Big time.

Scott Keffer [: 00:49:23

I said to the Lord, you know, I'm one of the sheep that all just wander. I'm wandering over there. I'm down over the hill. As if you need boundaries to keep you on the path to prosperity. And we It's not over there. Right? And, of course, we're right recognizing we have enemies. We have the evil one, right, spiritually in the invisible world. We have the world system, which is the physical world, and then we have our flesh, that dang flesh, that old man and me.

Scott Keffer [: 00:49:52

Holy smokes. The old Adam wants the stuff. Wants the stuff. Follow the trinkets. I followed the trinkets, did I? Well, so vigorous men young men stumble badly. Those who wait for the lord, they will mount up with wings like eagles. They will walk and not grow tired. They will run and not become weary.

Scott Keffer [: 00:50:18

So we can mount up with wings like eagles. Today, I'm sure glad that he's my energy, and it ain't up to me. So let me let me pray first. Bless the lord, oh my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the lord, oh my soul, and forget none of his benefits, who pardons all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with loving kindness and compassion, who satisfies your years with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle. How we bless you today, heavenly father. You are, glorious and gracious and good. So we're so grateful for that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:51:01

And for each person in the area, I pray that you would strengthen them with power through your spirit so that Christ can dwell in their heart by faith and that you they would be rooted and grounded, and they would know the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge that they might be filled up today to all the fullness of you, filled up to all the fullness and overflowing, filled up, Lord, to all the fullness overflowing and impacting others. So, Lord, bless you and keep you. Lord, cause his face to shine upon you. Lord, lift up his countenance and grant you a shalom deep in your soul, May he bless you, bless you, bless you, and keep you until he calls you home. Amen.

Scott Keffer [: 00:51:49

Thanks for listening. I hope you have greater hope, assurance, and confidence in your life and a deeper trust in the God of the Bible and his son, Jesus Christ. Until next time, may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. And may the Lord lift up his countenance on you and give you his peace, his shalom in your soul and in your life. Until next time, may God bless you and keep you.