Life.Church with Craig Groeschel - Struggles, Part 5: Rest

Episode Date: October 4, 2014

As you scroll through your day, does it feel like everyone else has it all together? Someone always has the best job, cutest kid, or happiest relationship. We're pressured to measure up to other people's status updates and left with more #struggles. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Well, it's awesome to have all of you with us today at all of our life churches and our network churches and our family all over the world at church online. Today, we're in the fifth and final week of a series called hashtag struggles. We're talking about how do we follow Jesus in a selfie-centered world. Today, as we conclude this message series, I want to talk to you about how do we find rest for our souls. as so many of us are tethered to these devices, how do we find spiritual rest in our souls? And I cannot think of a more appropriate way

to start this very important message than with some lines from an all-time classic movie, Napoleon Dynamite, when Kip, at the end of the movie, sang to LaFonda his soulmate. We met in a chat room. Now our love can fully bloom. Sure, the World Wide Web is great, but you, you make me salivate.

Yes, I love technology, but not as much as you, you see. But I still love technology, always and forever. Now that's what I'm talking about, right? I don't know about you, but I honestly do. I relate to those lines. I love technology. I absolutely love all the amazing things about technology. That's probably somewhat obvious to use since we do video teaching all over the world,

since we give away free resources with technology, since we were honored to invent church online, since we are blessed to give away. as of today, 155 million free U-Version Bible apps. We will simply redeem technology to get the message of the gospel out. I love technology. But at the same time, as much as I love it, I honestly kind of have a love, hate relationship with it.

I love it for all the obvious reasons, but I hate the fact that I am often a slave to it. I hate how much it often owns it. me in my own life. In fact, Kerry Newoff is a pastor in Canada, and he said this, I think it's in your notes. He said, like money, social media is a great servant, but a horrible master. To me, that really speaks to me. It's a great servant, but it is a horrible master. I want to start today with the words of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verse 20. the context, he was talking to the Corinthians who were into all sorts of perverted and sinful

actions. And he was explaining that in Christ we have freedom. There are certain things that we can do, but just because we can do them doesn't mean we should do them. And he said this. He said, I have the right to do anything. But then he said something that's very important and powerful. He said, but I will not be what? All of our churches, let's say this aloud. I have the right to do anything, but I will not be what? I will not be mastered by anything. I have the right to do some things, but I will not be mastered by anything. This to me honestly is one of my favorite verses in scripture. I really believe that the power of Christ in me should be bigger than anything else in my life. I will not be mastered by an addiction to food. I won't be mastered by an addiction

to look at something inappropriate, I don't want to be mastered by this. And quite honestly, so many times I really am mastered by this. Now, it's really crazy that I'm going to bring a message on this subject today. I never thought in a million years I would. But the reality is in our world today, this is a very serious issue for a lot of people. Some of you, this is not going to be for you. Like Amy, she's pretty cool. She's not mastered.

If you're not, you can just sit back and relax. This is an easy one where I'm not going to step on your toes. You can just every now and then lean down the aisle and look at somebody who is and kind of give him how he's talking to you while you're playing with your phone. Look, for some of you, it's a real serious issue. I will not be mastered by anything. And yet so many people are mastered by, drawn to, addicted to, compulsively checking the default mode when you have nothing to do is reach over, pull up your phone,

let it interrupt whatever you were doing, and look. In fact, just to make sure we're on the same page, I came up with the top seven ways to know that you might be addicted to social media. You may say, why seven ways? Because seven is God's number, and I couldn't think of eight. Top seven ways. Number seven, you plan your throwback Thursdays weeks in advance.

Number six, your cat has this. own Instagram page. Number five, you look forward to going to the bathroom so you can get to level seven on your favorite game. If you find your legs falling to sleep every time you go to the bathroom, you have an issue. Number four, you change your Facebook profile more than a 12-year-old girl. Number three, you sleep with your phone like a teddy bear. Number two, you say, sorry, not sorry, in real life.

And the number one way to know that you might be addicted to social media. is if you come onto your spouse by saying, hashtag, are you in the mood? Do not do that. That is a dangerous thing. She might respond to you, hashtag, I have a headache. You might be addicted to social media if all the time, all the time you find yourself looking at your phone rather than talking to the people that are there. If it bings, if you can't help but look at it, you've got to know all the time.

In fact, there's a new phobia that Dr. are now dealing with to help people is a very serious problem. It's called nomophobia. It's not a joke. Nomophobia and no mo implies what you think it would be. It's the fear of not being connected through a mobile device. Nomophobia. In fact, studies show that about 66% of people have extreme anxiety if they lose connection, if their batteries fail, or if their phone is not with them. In fact, for those who are not with them, in fact, for those who are not, you 18 to 24, the number jumps to 76% of people over 3 and 4 in that age group have a massive fear of not being connected online.

When I listened to that, I kind of thought, that's crazy. I mean, who would have this type of anxiety when their device isn't with them? And just earlier this week, we had all of our staff members from all the churches and their spouses in for a big three-day event, and I handed my phone to my assistant to do something for me on it and then she left with my phone during the service and I'm telling you it's like 30 minutes I don't have my phone 40 minutes I don't have my phone and all of a sudden I'm like freaking out where is she somebody find her I can't text her I can't do anything I'm powerless how can I run the world without my phone you know and it's all of a sudden I mean I had extraordinary anxiety because for 45

minutes I was disconnected and I was also disheartened at that state of my own In fact, here are some stats for you that I came across as I was doing research that if you take a step back from it are really quite staggering. 58% of people don't go one waking hour without checking their phone. 59% of you check email as soon as it comes in, and according to the studies, 89% of you check it daily on vacation. teenagers. The study shows 80% of you sleep with your phone. You need help. You need counseling. You need Jesus. And someone needs to take that phone away for you for eight hours while you sleep. 84% of people believe they couldn't go one day without their phones. Okay? Nomophobia. In fact, I'm curious that all of our churches, let's be real honest for a minute. Let's kind of be real honest. Remember, God is watching you. Do not lie in church. I'd hate for lightning to strike you.

and you'd be a little black spot on the chair. How many of you that one of the last things you do in your day is check the phone, don't raise your hand yet, and one of the first things you do in the morning is check your phone. Be real honest, raise your hands up high right now, raise your hands up high right now, raise your hands up high. All of our churches, look around and touch those people and say, this message is for you, okay?

This message is for you. I was working on this message, and I just wanted to, study my own habits and what I found is the very day I was into this the most I got three texts after 1045 in the evening and then at 11 15 when I was going to bed or so I checked my email one last time and there was an email that was upsetting to me but there was nothing I could do about it but it was upsetting to me and so I couldn't sleep for some time because when I should have been doing something else, I was looking at this device and letting it own me. Here's what happens for so many of us. We have an inability to shut down. For so many people, the default is, okay, there's nothing

going on right now. I'm not thinking of anything meaningful. I'm not making a difference in this world. I've got nothing to do. So what do you do? You pick it up, slide it over, and you just start wasting time looking at whatever. That's the default for so many, many people. And what happens is, I believe, our minds are not shutting down. We're constantly distracted. We don't work for long stretches with great productivity because something bings or beeps, and then we break our concentration and we find ourselves with our RPMs always running, constantly, constantly, constantly. We're overwhelmed. We don't know why. We're short with our children. We don't know why. Spiritually, we feel exhausted. We don't know why. We don't know why.

We're longing for something more, and yet we keep going back to the very thing, and we're not finding it there. Almost everybody in our culture today would acknowledge, most of us, our bodies need rest. I'm going to argue that our souls need to rest, that our souls need to be disconnected from bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, long enough to find peace and some solitude in the present. of the God who created us to know him, to walk daily with him, to be an intimate, ongoing, thriving relationship, representing his love in this world rather than being wrapped up all the time with a device. Please, please hear me. I love technology. It's obvious. We will use it to do a lot of good. but I also refuse to be mastered by anything. Christ in me is bigger than any addiction in me.

Christ in you is bigger than any addiction in you. And we will not be mastered. So, if you find yourself constantly connected and constantly with low-grade frustration, there's got to be something more, There's got to be something more. There's got to be something more. I'm going to argue that God has a special rest for you in Christ.

And it is available to your soul and it is available now. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 9 through verse 11. This represents my one word for the year. For those of you that were with us earlier this year, we did a series called Small Things, Big Difference. And we talked about the power of one word that could focus us in a direction that would be pleasing to God. My word was rest based on this verse.

For there is a what? Everybody say it aloud, everybody together. For there is a special rest, still waiting for the people of God. Some of you need to understand. There is a special rest away from everything that draws you in. There is a special rest waiting for you, the people of God. For all who have entered into God's rest, I love that imagery, have rested from their labors, just as God did after creating the world.

So what are we to do? By the power of Christ, verse 11 says, let us what? Everybody say it aloud. All of our churches, network churches help me out. So let us what? So let us do our best to what? To enter that rest. Let us do our best to enter into the special rest.

that God has for our souls through his son, Jesus Christ. Why is it that we don't find this rest? Why are we longing for it? I like what St. Augustine said about God. He said, God, you have made us for yourself, O Lord. And our soul is restless until it finds rest in you. Some of you, I mean, this captures exactly where you are. Your soul has been restless for so long.

You've been looking for something that brings satisfaction, something that brings meaning, something that helps your relationships work, something that fills the void inside, something that makes you feel significance and purposeful in life. You have in you a Christ-shaped void. Nothing besides Christ will fill that void.

Our soul is restless until it finds rest in him. I love the words of Jesus that this creates a longing in my heart for him. Matthew 11, 28, and 29. Jesus just broadcast an invitation to all and says, come to me, all who are weary and burdened. And what will he give you? He said, I will give you rest when you come to him.

For those of you who are weary, you're overwhelmed, your burden. Come to Jesus. Come to him now. Come to him by faith, and he'll give you rest. He says, take my yoke upon you and learn from me. for I'm gentle and humble and heart. And when you come to me, he says, what will you find? You will find rest for your souls.

There's a special rest for us through Jesus. So what do we do? What do we do? We're at the end of a five-part series. And this, quite honestly, to me, is where the rubber meets the road. This is where there is application and you do what God is leading you to do, or you go on with life just as it has been, making no changes whatsoever.

How do we find rest in God? I want to give you two thoughts that are very practical and can be very life-changing. The first is very, very simple. I'm going to encourage you to learn the discipline of being still. Number one, be still. Learn to be still. Learn to be disconnected and still in the presence of God.

Psalm 46, verse 10, David said to be what? All of our churches, it's obvious. Be what? Be still. and what do you do? You know that I am God. Be still and focus on God. I don't know if any of you have ever been around

like a young kid that just can't be still. Anybody have a kid like that? Anybody married to a big kid like that, right? You know, ah, you know, sometimes you just want to say, sit down! In the name of Jesus and love, you know, be still, right? Sit down. Sometimes you have to say to your soul, chill,

cool it don't be so wound up sit down be at rest in fact this is what david said in psalm 131 verse two he said but i have stilled and quieted my soul notice he did it it didn't happen by accident he just wake up one day and get five texts three facebook notifications and he go oh i'm so still he stilled and quieted his soul. He did it. He thought his way into a state of solitude. I've stilled and quieted my soul. Like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child, there are so many things I could say about that that I'm not going to say right now because I'd mess it up. Like a baby that needs mama, right? Okay, that's weaned off of it. Somebody stopped me before we go there, okay? Like a winged child is what do you say, is my soul?

within me. I has stilled and quieted my soul. Those of you that have been with the church for a while, you know, I've told you honestly that two different times I went to counseling for being a workaholic. The first time I was assigned to go and kind of thumbed my nose at it, the second time I went because I realized I needed help. And one of the things that counselor told me was that my body and my mind is addicted to adrenaline and that I need to learn how to shut down. And so, my counselor told me what to do. And quite honestly, I was kind of like offended. Like, this is the stupidest thing ever.

He said, what I want you to do is I want you to spend five minutes a day doing nothing, thinking about nothing, just being still before God. I'm thinking, number one, I don't have time to do nothing. Number two, I'm paying you $95 for this advice, and that's all you're giving me. That stresses me out right now, okay? Five minutes, do nothing. Well, that's ridiculous and stupid. and easy enough.

Let me tell you what. You try to do nothing for five minutes. It's one of the most difficult things I have ever done in my entire life. Number one, when you just start, your phone beeps somewhere in that time. And you're wondering, what happened? What am I missing?

Did somebody just post a picture of their coffee with a swirly at top? What am I missing? Five minutes. Completely still. One of the most difficult things that I've ever done. Because my mind racist. Try it.

You know, I'll be thinking, well, you know, I've got to do your hard work. You know, I've got to cook dinner. You know, there's kids with diapers. You know, I don't have time for this. Be still. God says, and know that I am God. Be still. steal your soul.

Have the discipline not to be mastered all the time and go to by default, look at what's going on in somebody else's life, but have the discipline by the power of Christ to contemplate the goodness of God and simply to be still and know that He is God. Just let it breathe.

The gift of solitude. solace and peace. God, you can run the universe for five minutes without me. I'm just going to chill and focus on you and enjoy your presence. Not ask you for anything, not worry about a thing, just be still and thank you for who you are. A gift. Five minutes. Five minutes.

Be still. Be still. and know who he is. Be still. And embrace his goodness. Be still. And enjoy the beauty of a moment with the God who created you to love him and be loved by him. Be still before God.

Who wants to try that with me this week? Five minutes a day. Be still. Second thing I'm going to encourage you to do, and this is really, really important. We're going to be still and we're going to listen to him. Then I'm going to ask you if this is a problem for you to make a plan. Proverbs 13, 16, the Today's Living Bible, I like this translation, says, a wise man thinks ahead.

Wise man is going to make a plan, come up with an attack. But a fool doesn't and even brags about it. A lot of people, I'm going to just call you what you are. I'm going to put you in a foolish category, and you're going to say, hey, it's no big deal, it's no big deals, no big deal, no big deal. I'm going to tell you right now, this can be hurting your relationships. It can be hurting your intimacy with God. It can be distracting you from raising your children.

It could literally hurt your marriage over time if you don't get control of it. Make a plan if this is a problem. Acknowledge it, call it what it is. For me, I'm acknowledging it, and I've called it what it is. Amy's for far too long. I said, you're interrupting the family dinner by doing what you're doing. The church can be without you for 45 minutes while we have family time. Make a plan.

And I don't know what this will look like for you, but you're going to want to have a defensive plan and an offensive plan. Every good team is going to have a good defense if you want to win and a good offense. And I want to break this down for you because we will not be mastered by anything. The power of Christ within us is greater than any addiction or draw within us. We will not be mastered by anything. So on the defensive side, I don't know what this would look like for you. But it might mean as you pray and you think about it and you talk about this with your spouse

if you're married with your best friends, or the people in your life group, or the people around you who care about you, your defensive plan might be no phone during the meal. We can start there. Where it might be no phone during the life group. Or you might put a time limit on your day. You know, at 10 o'clock at night,

this is our time, not my time, with something else out there online. And so you put your phone on, do not disturb, and it goes quiet from 10 o'clock at night until 7 in the morning. Whatever it is, it's your rule, is the defense to say, we're going to use this, but not be mastered by it. I'm going to keep it far enough away.

Some of you, your defense plan might be to turn off social media notifications. So all day long, you don't hear when somebody's cat has the sniffles. You just don't have to know all that. For me, one thing I do during the day, because this thing goes off nonstop, is I often will leave it with my assistant. And say, if it's Amy, one of my kids, come get me. me, if it's anything else, you handle it. I need six hours in God's word to get this message ready. I'm not going to let a single distraction take me away from that. For some of you, it might be a social media break where when you go on vacation, you don't look. For five days, all you do is

focus on the people who are with you that you love instead of looking at other people doing other things. Some of you, you might need to take a month-long break. Why? Because you're totally mastered by it. And if you can't go a month without it, then that tells you something about where your true priorities are. And I'm not going to tell you what to do, but if you think about it, you come up with your own defensive plan. Then you need an offensive plan. For me, what I want this to be is my primary tool in relating to God. Think about this. Instead of looking at everybody else, what is the first and most highest use of this?

First thing in the morning. You version Bible plan. Maybe second thing. I'm going to the bathroom first. God will understand that. Can somebody say, amen? Second thing in the morning for significant action is to pull up the Bible. Some of you, you need an offensive plan to get in the Word of God, to feed on the word,

to let it build your soul, renew your mind, transform you into the image of Christ. Some of you, it will be five minutes of solitude a day where you contemplate the goodness of God. Some of you, it's a consistent prayer time where you learned offensively to be bathed in the presence of God as you learn to pray without ceasing, to have focused prayer time where you intentionally seek God for some things, and then you walk with him daily an attitude of prayer. For some of you, it might be cultivating a worshipful spirit, where you don't just worship on the weekends, but you have a worshipful heart. Your heart is always lifted toward heaven, and you find different ways to give God praise as the weeks go on. You're cultivating a spirit of

worship in who you are and all that you do. It's an offensive plan toward God. Some of you, sometimes just go outside and look at the awesome creative power of God. Look at the glory of his creations where the rocks will cry out and worship in if people do not. And look at a sunset and just bask in the power of God and resist the temptation to take a picture of it. And if you do, I forbid you to post that picture on Instagram because you don't need likes for something God wanted you to love. You have that moment with him in his presence and just thank him for it rather than using it

to feed your own ego. Defense and offense, whatever that is for you. Defense and offense. And talk about it. Get serious about it. This is where we decide. Are you going to continue as it is? And some of you listen, you are so mastered it's not even funny.

There are people praying for you. Oh, dear God, let him hear this, okay? Right now. I will not be mastered by anything. Go back to week number one. Let's review. Week number one. The more we compare, the more discontent we become.

Some of you is time to distance yourself from comparing so that you can find out when Christ is all you have. Christ is all you need. Week number two, relationships. So many of us were thumb to thumb, thumb, thumb to thumb. of them, but the fear of missing out. What you're missing out on is you're missing out on the very people who love you the most, who are right in front of you.

It's time of our offensive plan, a defense plan. Week number three, the more filtered our lives become, the more filtered we are, that more difficult is to be authentic. But only Christ can remove the veil. We who with unveiled faces contemplate the glory of God, and we're being transformed into the veil. the image of Christ, if through the power of Christ we will remove the veil. Week number four, the more pain we see, tragically, the less we care. But true compassion demands action.

To say you care but not act is to not care at all. And they will know that we are disciples of Jesus, not by how many followers we have, but by how much love that we show. Offensive plan and a defensive plan. I will care for the glory of God and make a difference in this world. And week number five, the RPMs are going and they simply won't shut down. The default in our life.

How insulting is it that the default action you are created for way more than that? You can use it, but not be mastered by it. So, here it is. Closing verse. We wrap it all up. This is what the Lord says, Jeremiah 616.

Stand at the crossroads and look. Some of you, you're at a crossroads right now and you have a decision to make. Ask for the ancient paths. What if there are some ancient disciplines that are higher than the new technologies, fasting and prayer and solitude and seeking the goodness of God? ask him, where's the good way, God? What is the good way? Then when you see it, what are you going to do?

You're going to walk in it. And when you walk in God's good ways, what will you find? You will find rest for your souls. Be still and know that there is one who loves you and is more deserving of your worship than anything on earth. Put him first. seek him with all of your heart and then he will add everything

that matters unto you be still and know that he is God our father in your presence we ask that you would do a healing work in our lives as unusual as it seems to preach a message about this in church

God I believe in the world we live in there are so many people who have been mastered by something and we thank you oh God the power of Christ in us is bigger than any draw of this world. And all of our churches, as you take a moment and reflect in prayer, I just want to ask, and I'm going to broaden the net a little bit. First of all, those of you who would say, I've got a dysfunctional relationship with my mobile

device, let's call it that. Would you raise your hands right now? Raise your hands up right now. Raise them up all over the place. Okay? Put them back down. Those of you who would say, let's get beyond that. I've got something in my life.

Just think about this for a minute. That is mastering me. I'm eating more than I should. I'm not disciplined in my workouts. I'm looking at things I shouldn't look at. I don't have control in a certain area of my life. I'm addicted to a substance, a chemical, something I'm smoking, something I'm drinking.

There's something right now that's been bigger than me and has control of me in some area. Lift up your hands right now, all of our churches. All of your churches. Father, right now, I pray for those who are addicted. I thank you, God, that we by the power of Christ never need to be mastered by anything. That when we're tempted, by the grace of Jesus, he always gives us a way out. I pray right now the name of Jesus over every addiction.

Believing God, that greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world. Believing, Father, that we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength. And, God, I pray for victory over pornography. I pray for victory over alcoholism. God, I pray for victory over eating disorders. God, I pray for victory over drugs. drug addictions. God, I pray for victory over, even the lies our minds would believe, God, whatever would hold us captive, God, we thank you that the name of Jesus is greater. We thank you

that no stronghold can hold us because Christ is stronger. God, for those that are addicted with a dysfunctional relationship to their devices, God, we thank you that we will not be mastered by anything. I pray, God, that in five minutes of quiet time with you, that you would re-align our hearts to you, that we would seek you first. And God, beyond that in your presence, I pray you would give us a practical plan of attack, a defense and an offense, to think ahead, to hear from your spirit, and to do what is necessary to help us put you first and people in the front of our hearts, to love you, God, with our heart, mind,

soul and strength, and to love our neighbors as our self, glorifying you, being still in your presence and knowing that you are God. As you keep praying today, all of our churches, there are those of you, you're going to recognize right now that your soul is not at rest. You've tried to fill your life with all sorts of different things. Hey, let's go make money. That'll make me happy. Let's go pursue relationships. That'll make me happy. Let's go party. That'll make me happy. Let's go do this and that. and you've done this and that, and you're still empty, you're longing for something more, you're often overwhelmed. You feel the weight of your own sin catching up to you.

You feel guilty. Why can't I overcome this? Where do I stand with God? You feel like you're not good enough for God, and your soul is not at rest. Jesus says to you, come to me now, exactly as you are. Come to me. Don't clean up your life first. You come to me first.

And when you call on Jesus, who was without sin and died for our sins, He will forgive every sin you've ever committed. He will make you brand new. He will fill you with God's spirit, and you will never be the same. And all of our churches, there are those of you. There's a void in your life, and your soul does not have rest. You come to Jesus and let him fill you, and you will find rest for your souls. All of our churches, those who would say, yes, I know I'm a sinner, and yes, I need a savior today by faith.

I give my life to Jesus. That's you lift your hands high right now. All of our churches, lift them up and say yes, right over here, and right. here as well. God bless you guys right back over there. Others of you who say, yes, I surrender Jesus. Be the Savior the Lord of my life. Church online, you click right below me.

And all of our churches, as we see people calling on Jesus, would you pray with those around you? Pray, Heavenly Father, forgive me, be the Lord of my life first in every way. Holy Spirit, fill me, that I could know God and serve him and live for him. My life is not my own.

today I give it to you. Thank you for new life. In Jesus' name I pray. Somebody shout out loud, celebrate, give God glory and welcome those born into his family today.