Dr Charles Stanley - Molded by the Master

0:00This is Ashley Akinetti from the almost famous podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resortpass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world. And I'm thinking, this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resortpass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury, resort, day passes, start at just $1,500. Once you post your daycation, people are going to ask where you are. Go to resortpass.com, slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off when you spend $100. That's code almost famous at resortpass.com slash almost famous. MacDonald's is putting value back on the menu.

1:04Whether you're craving a big Mac, McNuggets or sausage egg and cheese McGrittle's, make it a meal and save. Your favorite is now your wallet's favorite too. Extra value meals are back. Sun rises, prices fall, get a sausage Mcmuffin with egg or sausage egg and cheese McGrittle's small hot coffee and hash frowns for just $6. Price and participation may vary. Promotion pricing may be lower than meal pricing. Ba-da-da-da-da-da. Once I submit to his purpose and yield to his will, then I don't have to compare myself with someone else and think, well, I wish I was. I wish I were this. I wish that I wish the other if things were different. No. What matters is God, what are you going to do with my life? Whatever that is, hear him, I, you can mold me and make me and shape me any way you choose because after all, I was born for your purpose, born for your glory, born for your honor and born to glorify you. In the Old Testament, God sent the prophet Jeremiah

2:05to the home of a man who shaped pottery. This gave Jeremiah and us a visual reminder of how the Lord works in people's lives. Today on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley, we'll see that believers have every reason to trust God, the master potter, as he crafts us into the image of his son, Jesus Christ. Do you know what God is up to in your life? Well, you can, though. Now, you may respond, well, why do you think you can tell me what God is up to in my life? Simply because in his word, he tells us what he's up to in every one of our lives. With no exception, God is up to something in everybody's life. And so, as you think about what's happening in your life and what's going on, the things that are good, batter and different, you may be in a trial, some tribulation, some heartache, or things may be going just the way you want them. What is he up to?

3:05God is certainly not a distant God. He is a personal father. And that's what I want to talk about in this message entitled, molded by the master. And I want you to turn, if you will, to Jeremiah, chapter 18. Something happens here in Jeremiah that is a perfect setting for what I want to share with you about what God is up to in all of our lives. Jeremiah, chapter 18, he says in verse one, the word came to Jeremiah from the Lord saying, arise and go down to the potter's house, the potter's house is where they make a pottery of all sorts. And there I shall announce my words to you. Then I went down to the potter's house and there he was making something on the wheel. But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter. So he remade it into another vessel as it pleased the potter to make. Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, cannot not, O house of Israel, deal with you

4:07as this potter does, declares the Lord, behold like the clay in the potter's hand. So are you in my hand, O house of Israel. Now God would use the most common things throughout the scriptures to teach some of his most profound lessons. And that is certainly an example here as he sends Jeremiah down to the potter's house where the potter is making something on the wheel. And in the process, this is Ashley Akinetti from the almost famous podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resort pass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world.

5:08And I'm thinking, this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resort pass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury, resort, day passes, start at just $25. Once you post your daycation, people are gonna ask where you are. Go to resort pass.com slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off when you spend $100. That's code almost famous at resort pass.com slash almost famous. Right now at Subway, try the $4.99 sub of the day. Get a different six inch sub every day for just $4.99 each, like meatball marinara on Mondays, tuna on Tuesdays, and the BMT on Saturdays. It's a different six inch sub every day, packed with protein and your choice of chopped veggies for just $4.99 each. Or make it a meal with chips and a drink for just $2 more. But hurry, it's only for a limited time and only at Subway. After participating restaurants, prices higher in Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii, and on third party delivery, add on taxes and fees for delivery additional. McDonald's is putting value back on the menu.

6:09Whether you're craving a Big Mac, McNuggets or sausage egg and cheese McGrittle's, make it a meal and save. Your favorite is now your wallet's favorite too. Extra value meals are back. Get a big something extra with a Big Mac or 10 piece McNuggets, fries, and a medium Coke, all for just $9. Limited time only, promotion pricing may be lower than meal pricing. Ba-da-ba-ba-ba. Of him watching this potter mold something out of the clay, God gave to Jeremiah a very, very important lesson to the nation of Israel, because what he said is, Jeremiah, I am working in the life of the nation of Israel, and they oftentimes are like this piece of clay that's having to be reshaped and remade and remolded. I believe one of the most profound lessons in all the scripture and one that I think all of us need to understand clearly is right here in this particular passage. And that is simply this. I want to two things I want to say in essence. And that is, first of all, God, the Master Potter,

7:12listen, God, the Master Potter has a purpose for every lump of human clay. God has made every single one of us and is in the process of making us. He has a definite purpose in all of our lives. And therefore, what we have to discover is what that purpose is. There's some things he says he keeps only for himself, but certainly what he wants to do with your life and my life, he does not intend to keep that a secret. He doesn't always show us exactly when we'd like to know it, but he doesn't keep secrets. He wants us to know his purpose for our life, his plan, his will, what he has in mind. And so God doesn't make something for the purpose of nothing. You were born into this world, God allows you to be born for a purpose, for a specific purpose that he has now. When the potter places the clay, own the pot of wheel, he has a specific design in mind. You see, in his mind, he already knows what's going to happen. So he's not looking at clay, he's not looking at mud.

8:14He is looking at it and threw it into it. And what he is doing is simply bringing forth from it what he has already preconceived in his mind. And so when you think about your life in mind, God has already foreseen, predetermined what he's going to do in our life. So when you and I were saved, we were sort of like that glob of clay. Nothing attractive about that. It's just sort of a formless, shapeless kind of glob of mud and spiritually that's the way we were when we were saved. There was nothing beautiful about us spiritually. We were living in sin, disobeying God, transgressing the law of God, falling short, going our way, doing our own thing. And then God began to work in our life because he had purpose for saving us. And he had a design in mind, and Ulrich Halley says in Romans chapter eight, that God has predestined all of us to be conformed to the likeness of his son. Does that mean that we're going to look like him? Not necessarily, no, it doesn't. But it means that in character, God is shaping and working in your life in mind

9:16so that we will indeed be like his son. One of the things we make a mistake about is, we look around and we say, well, you know, if I could just be like him and if I could be like her, or if I had the gifts and talents that she has or he has, and God, nowhere in the scripture even intimates that he's ever made two vessels alike. No two fingerprints alike. No two persons exactly alike. And if you can think about how absolutely infinite God must be and his creative power that no two persons are the same. So when we look to see how God is working in our life and his purpose in plan for us, we can see that there is a design behind what he does because there's a different work for us. And so God has designed all of us for a specific purpose. What is that purpose? It is not my purpose or your purpose, but his purpose. And so the issue is not whether God is working in our life or not, the issue is am I in agreement with what God is trying to do in my life? And if I am in agreement, it doesn't make any difference.

10:17What he makes out of me? If I'm in agreement, it doesn't make any difference. Now whether he uses me over here in a small way in a larger way with a few people, with a lot of people, it doesn't make any difference. The issue is what did God have in mind when he put this old blob of clay on the wheel and it began to turn and it had your name on it and he began to work in your life? You see, he'd already pre-designed what he wanted to do. And so he put his loving divine hands on the clay and he'd brought out of that clay what he had in mind. You see, he's not looking at the clay, he's looking at the finished product and he sees it in his mind. He's designed for each one of us to fulfill his purpose in our life. Now, when the potter, this is Ashley Akinetti from the Almost Amos Podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resortpass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy.

11:20You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world. And I'm thinking this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resortpass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury resort day passes, start at just $1,500. Once you post your daycation, people are gonna ask where you are. Go to resortpass.com, slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off when you spend $100. That's code almost famous at resortpass.com slash almost famous. McDonald's is putting value back on the menu. Whether you're craving a big mac, McNuggets or sausage egg and cheese, McGrittle's, make it a meal and save. Your favorite is now your wallet's favorite too. McDonald's is putting value back on the menu. Whether you're craving a big mac,

12:21McNuggets or sausage egg and cheese, McGrittle's, make it a meal and save. Your favorite is now your wallet's favorite too. McDonald's is putting value back on the menu. Whether you're craving a big mac, McNuggets or sausage egg and cheese, McGrittle's, make it a meal and save. Your favorite is now your wallet's favorite too. Extra value meals are back. Get a big something extra. With a big mac or 10 piece McNuggets, fries and a medium coke all for just $9. Limited time only, promotion pricing may be lower than meal pricing. Ba da ba ba ba. Looks at that clay. It's pure clay. In the words, that's just a pure lump of clay. If he sees in that clay a stick of wood, or if he sees leaves, he sees gravel or some kind of rocks, he has to deal with that because you see, in order for him to mold that and to make it the kind of vessel, beautiful vessel that he wants it to be, it must be smooth, the clay must be pure.

13:22All when he put his hands upon it, he would quickly begin to realize there are foreign elements in that clay that don't belong there. That's why God in working in your life and my life. He has to remove those things that are hindrances to his purpose. That is anything that would hinder him when he puts his loving divine hands upon our life to mold us and make us into what he wants us to be. Those things have to go. God is a master at taking broken things and crushing them and smashing them and beginning to mold and throw them back on the wheel and to remake. My friend, you could never sin so much that you out-send the grace of God. Nor can you be so broken over your past. And no matter what you've done, God in his loving care will take you in his loving hands, begin to mold and begin to shape and make something beautiful and something good out of your life. He is the master potter. So first of all, I simply say that God has a purpose

14:23for every single lump of human clay. Now, the second thing I want to say is this, that God has a plan. Listen, God has a plan by which to fulfill his purpose for these lumps of clay, these old human lumps of clay. He has a plan by which to make it a reality. For example, when the potter takes his lump of clay and he knows in his mind what he wants to do, he wants to create a beautiful vase or a bowl or a picture of some sort or some utensil, remember that he already knows it. Here's what he does. He takes that lump of clay and he throws it on the wheel and he begins to turn. One very important thing I want you to remember, the only way the potter can form this piece of clay into something beautiful is he has to get it in the center of the wheel. And as I watched at the potter's house the other day, those people who were working, I remember watching this. And this young lady said, I have to get this right in the center of the wheel because if I don't, I can't mold it.

15:28And so she kept working until she got it right in the center. One of the reasons God is not able to mold us and make us and the person he wants us to be is because we insist on doing things our way and what do we do, we get off center. When we get off center and we get out of the will of God, out of the center of his will, wanting to do our thing, we want to be over here on this side. God says, I want you in the center. It is my purpose, my plan, it is my goal. I have the best for you. Now if you insist on doing it your way, this isn't going to work. And so what does he do? He puts it in the center of the wheel. Now, one of the things that Pada does is he dips his hand. This is Ashley Akinetti from the almost famous podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resortpass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort,

16:29pool, spa, massage without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world. And I'm thinking this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resortpass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury resort day passes, start at just $1,5. Once you post your daycation, people are going to ask where you are. Go to resortpass.com slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off when you spend $100. That's code almost famous at resortpass.com slash almost famous. Mike Nuggets, Fries and a Medium Coke, all for just $9.

17:30Limited time only, promotion pricing may be lower than meal pricing. Ba-da-ba-ba-ba. And it's in water. And the reason he dips his hands in the waters because he wants to lessen the friction as much as he can. Now, as it begins to turn, he places his hands on the clay. What happens is the pressure that he places on it begins to show. And what happens is the rough places begin little by little to smooth out. Little by little, that shapeless form takes on the most beautiful form. And you could watch it happen right before your eyes. And the more skilled the potter, the more beautiful the vessel that comes out. Now, when I walked into this class, there was not a sound except the whore of the wheel. Not anybody even looked up when I walked in. They had their mind exacting what they were doing because you see, they knew what they intended to draw out of that blob of clay. And I stayed long enough to watch them do just that. Now, as I watched that happen and sat there and thought

18:32about how God works in your life and my life and watching how He purposes to bring something out of our lives. And we look at ourselves and think, God, what could you do in my life? And you know, as I thought about how many people that I have known in history that I've read about, who came from a situation maybe that was very, very negative or maybe had absolutely nothing. And we talk about the day dysfunctional families. If you look around, everybody's got a dysfunctional family. I mean, we have tags, we put on everything and everybody's either addicted to something or come from a dysfunctional family or some kind of psychological term we put on everything. Nobody came out of a perfect family. Some people were more blessed than others. But it doesn't make any difference where you came from. It's what God's up to. You see, it isn't where you came from. It's what God is up to and what you're willing to allow him to do in your life. And so as I thought about watching this take place right in front of my eyes, I could not help, but to see here what God was saying to Jeremiah.

19:35He said to him, the potter is making something on the wheel. He's not down there just playing with clay. He's making something on the wheel. And so as he saw him, he said, as he was making the clay, the clay was spoiled. That is, he didn't turn out exactly like he intended for it to be. So he says he remade it as it pleased the potter to make. Now sometimes we rebel against God. Go if you will to Romans chapter nine. In Romans chapter nine, Paul referring to this very thing, speaking of being molded and made, listen to what he says. He says in verse 20, on the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, why did you make me like this, will it? That is think of the clay saying to the potter, what are you doing making me like this? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay to make the same lump? I don't want one vessel for honor, for honorable use,

20:37another for common use. He says now, who are we to say to God? God, I don't like you making me what I am. Once someone out here somebody say, I don't want the gift of service. I want the gift of profit. I want the gift of exhortation. I want the gift of giving. Lots of folks won't that give. Won't the gift of giving? Well, does not God know what is best for your life and my life? And so what happens? So the potter's it turns, he puts a little pressure here and a little there and it keeps dipping his hands in the water. And as he does, what happens? Something begins to smooth out and things begin to look a little better and it begins to take on some form and some shape and I think, hey, that's not, Lord, you are working in my life. And so what I want you to notice is this, that in the potter's hand, he puts his hands in water to lessen the friction. You know what God does? This is Ashley Akinetti from the almost famous podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous.

21:39We went to resortpass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world. And I'm thinking, this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resortpass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury resort day passes, start at just $1,000. Once you post your daycation, people are gonna ask where you are. Go to resortpass.com, slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off when you spend $100. That's code almost famous at resortpass.com slash almost famous. Day or night, VirboCare is here 24-7 to help make every part of your stay seamless. If anything comes up, or you simply need a little guidance,

22:40support is ready whenever you reach out. From the moment you book to the moment you had home, we're here to help things run smoothly. Because a great trip starts with the right support. And hey, a good playlist doesn't hurt either. Once he gets in the center of his will on his wheel, and he begins to turn your life in mind, and he begins to allow the pressure, you know what he dips his hands in? Pure love. You see, it is a loving potter who takes the glob and makes it into something like his son. Now I think it's important for you and me to know something about the potter. I want you to jot down about six words. Because as I sat there and watched these potters and thinking about what was going on and thinking about how God works in your life and my life and the fact that he is daily molding, allowing those circumstances and situations in our life, I thought about this. There are six words I want you to jot down about the potter.

23:40First of all, his power. Because you see the potter down at the potter's house, he has power over that lump of clay. He can do it with what he chooses. Because you see, this lump of clay has no mind and no will of its own. And so he has the power to mold it. The truth is that God has power in your life and my life because he's omnipotent. You and I could evaporate in a split second if he chose to do it. But he recognizes because he gave us a will of our own. And so when somebody says, is there any such thing as absolute free will, you better believe there is not. God is in ultimate absolute control over all things. He gives us free reign up to a certain point. But the father, the master potter has absolute power over the clay. The second word is purpose. As we spoke about in the first part of the message, he has a specific purpose in mind for this human clay just as the potter does. The third word is plan. He has a plan in his plan. He's a plan of molding,

24:40a working daily throughout our whole life that conforms to the likeness of his son. The fourth word is patience. God does not get in a hurry. It was interesting as I watched these potters work. Nobody was in a hurry. Nobody was pumping a wheel of speeding up the potter wheel to say, I've got to hurry. Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry, rush, rush. That is because you see spiritual maturity is not something you rush. Sometimes I think the pressure gets worse. The older I get. And I think, God, what are you up to? And in time I ask him what he's up to, he's the same thing I've been up to that is making you what I want you to become. I can't rush him. You can't hurry up and learn it because it's a lifetime process of learning the ways of God. The next word is perseverance. And I want you to remember something extremely important here, perseverance. That is, you know when the potters clay does not work at exactly like he wants it to or she wants it to, they just take it up and throw it back on there again and begin to reshape and remake and remold. One thing he doesn't do is throw it away. Now listen to me carefully, listen to me say, man.

25:42God never discards him and clay. My friend, he'll never throw you away. He'll never say, well, you're hopeless. And see, in the view, forget that, you won't work. He never says that because, listen, the omnipotent loving hands of a loving father. When he places his loving hands in the year life, he has the power to make you what he wants to make you. And you know what he does? Is that thing about and you think about in your own life? You know how many times you've disobeyed God and confessed and repented and gotten right with God and moved on your Christian life and you're growing, then you stumble, you fall and you get up and you go on. And we do that all throughout our lifetime. What's he doing? He's patiently making and working and molding and what's he doing? He's persevering. He's not giving up on us. And then the last word is personal. And I think this is still very important because as I watched the potters leaning over their clay and working, I could just see them putting themselves into it leaning into it and backing off and looking gently

26:43and sometimes with pressure. They were just putting themselves into that. And I thought about God. This is Ashley Akinetti from the Almost Amos Podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resortpass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world. And I'm thinking this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resortpass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury resort, day passes, start at just $1,500. Once you post your daycation, people are going to ask where you are. Go to resortpass.com, slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off when you spend $100.

27:44That's code almost famous at resortpass.com slash almost famous. Kitchen and bathroom professionals know what goes behind the tile matters. That's why Trade Pro's trust Fiber cement, Party Backer Board to keep tile firmly in place, resist cracking and help block moisture. Chosen over 40 million kitchens and bathrooms, Party Backer Board, what the best build on. Shop now at participating Home Depot, Lowe's, and floor into core stores. For more information, visit JamesHearty.com slash Hearty Backer. Kitchen and bathroom professionals know what goes behind the tile matters. That's why Trade Pro's trust Fiber cement, Party Backer Board to keep tile firmly in place, resist cracking and help block moisture. Chosen over 40 million kitchens and bathrooms, Party Backer Board, what the best build on. Shop now at participating Home Depot, Lowe's, and floor into core stores. For more information, visit JamesHearty.com slash Hearty Backer.

28:48That's the way you do us. You're just so personal and so intimate in our life. You're not some distant goddess up here on and heaven working on us, but you are in the process of molding and shaping us step by step, one by one. And you see, God doesn't put all human clay in one big lump. And he's not, listen, he isn't forming the human race. He's molding you and you and you and me. All of us individually, the fathers doesn't. You say, well, how can he do that? Because he's infinite in power and infinite wisdom and infinite in knowledge. He knows exactly what he's got in mind for each one of us. Listen carefully. Do you know why you not may not be where you want to be in life at this point? Maybe it's because when the father put his loving hands upon you, you said, no, I'll do it my way. Or you may have an averse sophisticated way, just sort of tightened up and said, no. You can rebel in the most comfortable fashions

29:52in the most deceitful kind of way, but rebellions rebellion. What God wants is to make something beautiful out of your life. And you don't have to ask him to do it. All he wants is a yielded heart. So then when he places his hands in your life, you say, yes, father. Yes, father, to the pressure, yes, father, to the light touch, yes, father. You may understand what he's doing or you may not, but this you'll know that a loving father who has your best interest at heart, who is all wise and all powerful, will always make of you. Listen to this. Will always make of you the maximum of everything you could become being what you are in the hands of God. Thanks for listening to In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. God has never created anything that is useless. Even before he formed you, he had a purpose in mind.

30:55Yield to God's loving leadership and allow him to make your life meaningful and fulfilling for his glory and your good. To find out more about what God has in mind for his followers, visit us at intouch.org. And that's where you can review today's message, follow the link to today on radio. If you'd like to order a copy of Dr. Stanley's complete message, mold it by the master, stop by our online store. Again, that's intouch.org or call or text 1-800-INTouch. If you prefer to write, our address is in touch. Post office box 7900, Atlanta, Georgia 30357. If you're a believer, Christ is living in you and that means no challenge you're facing needs to overwhelm you. Encouragement is on the way in today's moment with Charles Stanley. Dr. Stanley devoted his entire life to help in us. Get closer to Jesus as we all want to do.

31:56And also discover all that he has for us. Help us to be fully prepared for God's purpose in our lives. So are you ready for the next step in your journey? This is Ashley Akinati from the almost famous podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resortpass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world. And I'm thinking this is exactly what I needed. So just go to resortpass.com, choose your resort, choose your day, luxury, resort, day passes, start at just $1,500. Once you post your daycation, people are going to ask where you are. Go to resortpass.com slash almost famous and use the promo code almost famous to get $20 off

32:59when you spend $100. That's code almost famous at resortpass.com slash almost famous. Kitchen and bathroom professionals know what goes behind the tile matters. That's why trade pros trust Fiber cement, party backer board to keep tile firmly in place, resist cracking and help block moisture. Chosen in over 40 million kitchens and bathrooms, party backer board, what the best build on. Shop now at participating Home Depot, Lowe's and floor into core stores. For more information, visit jameshardy.com slashhardybacker. Bernie, it begins at the new Charles Stanley Institute. Bible based, Christ-centered, Holy Spirit-filled instruction so you can know God. You can learn how at Charles Stanley Institute.org. Trusting God each day can be a challenge, but working to grow that trust brings greater joy and peace than we could ever find on our own.

33:59And trusting God with today, the 365 day devotional from the teachings of Dr. Charles Stanley, we are encouraged to believe in God's love and rest and his purpose for us. Available now at intouch.org slash today. You're listening to Intouch. Believers can accomplish everything God requires of them through Christ. Here's a moment with Charles Stanley. When you were saved, the Bible says, the Holy Spirit came to your life and sealed you as a child of God, and Jesus said, abide in me and I am you. Who is living within you today? Who? Jesus Christ. Let me ask you a question. If Christ is in you, what conquered Jesus? Nothing. When he came out of the grave, he conquered the grave, that he conquered death, sin in the devil, all three of them he conquered. That living triumphant, victorious Christ is alive with an every single child of God.

35:02Let me ask you a question. If Jesus Christ, the triumphant one, is living within you today, what can conquer you without your consent? Nothing. If it can't conquer him who lives within you, it can't conquer you. Listen, and we cannot be conquered because he says, Christ has become our life. We are conquerors. I can only be conquered when I choose to believe what Satan says about me, then I'm going down into feed. But as long as I'm willing to believe what Almighty God said about me, there is absolutely no ultimate defeat. And it's based on our relationship to Christ. If you haven't received God's gift of forgiveness and eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ, don't put it off any longer. Trust in Him today. Learn more at ntouch.org. Next week on ntouch, a new year can seem dark and full of mystery,

36:02but God calls His followers to step out in bold confidence. Here how you can move forward by faith beginning Monday on ntouch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. This program is a presentation of ntouch ministries at Lanta, Georgia and remains on this station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts. This is Ashley Akinetti from the almost famous podcast. You ever notice you and your spouse keep saying, we need to get away, but you never actually plan anything. That was us until we did something fun and spontaneous. We went to resort pass.com. There are hundreds of hotel resorts, pools and spots and private beaches that you can enjoy. You can spend the day at a luxury resort, pool, spa, massage, without booking an overnight stay. And listen, I may have only been like 15 minutes from home, but it felt like it was a whole different world.

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