{"id":302869,"date":"2013-11-28T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2013-11-28T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good\/"},"modified":"2013-11-28T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2013-11-28T17:00:00","slug":"trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Trust in the Lord and do Good"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s easy to thank God in the good times, but Dr. Duane Litfin<br \/>\ntells what happens when we thank God in the bad times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/web.familylifetoday.com\/fl2013-11-28.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:","filesize":"22.82M","filesize_raw":"23927885","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2822],"tags":[4299,5060,5307],"podcast_series":[7984],"cwp_profile":[9314],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-302869","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-growing-in-your-faith","tag-faith","tag-growing-in-your-faith","tag-psalms","podcast_series-psalm-127","cwp_profile-duane-litfin","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/302869\/trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/302869\/trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"uNQOoZluIL\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good\/\">Trust in the Lord and do Good<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/trust-in-the-lord-and-do-good\/embed\/#?secret=uNQOoZluIL\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Trust in the Lord and do Good&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"uNQOoZluIL\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg",508,508,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"kfairris@familylife.com","author_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/author\/kfairrisfamilylife-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"It's easy to thank God in the good times, but Dr. Duane Litfin tells what happens when we thank God in the bad times.","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylifetoday.com\/fl2013-11-28.pdf","transcript_content":"<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Do you ever feel like your life is a part of the proverbial rat race?\u00a0 Maybe, it\u2019s because your priorities aren\u2019t what they ought to be. Here\u2019s Dr. Duane Litfin.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dr. Litfin: <\/strong>All the time, all the strength, all the toil\u2014getting up early, staying up late, eating the food of that toil\u2014all this time and energy spent on something that God is not interested in. It\u2019s not what He\u2019s doing\u2014it\u2019s not one of His projects. So, everything you spend on that is wasted\u2014it\u2019s gone. The most precious things you have\u2014your time and your strength\u2014are poured down the rat hole for nothing.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>This is <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> for Thursday, November 28<sup>th<\/sup>, Thanksgiving Day, here in the United States. Our host is the President of FamilyLife<sup>\u00ae<\/sup>, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. Unless the Lord builds the house, all who labor do indeed labor in vain. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>1:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019ll hear a message on that Psalm from Dr. Duane Litfin today. Stay tuned.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd welcome to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. Thanks for joining us on the Thursday edition\u2014Thanksgiving Day. I know you don\u2019t have the whole family joining you for Thanksgiving but\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>You know, a year ago, Bob, you should have seen our back porch. We had all the kids on the porch. We had a record number of card tables lined up.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Now, is that French toast for everybody?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>That\u2019s the Company French Toast and the kids\u2014this was not fair\u2014the kids had Barbara and me all the way down at the end of the table\u2014with the grandkids!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>[Laughing]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>So, we were huddled around the rug rats, and cleaning up spilled milk, and engaged in great conversation, by the way\u2014while the adult children were at the other end\u2014just having a great time!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>2:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Enjoying their opportunity to catch up with one another\u2014let grandma and grandpa take care of the kids while they visit.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>I was a good 30 feet away!\u00a0 It was a long table!\u00a0 I\u2019m telling you!\u00a0 Let\u2019s see now, we\u2019re expecting our 20th grandchild in April of this year. We didn\u2019t quite have all of them there, but it was over\u2014it was 16 of them.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>I know our listeners may be getting together with family or friends on this day. I hope\u2014that if you\u2019re only able to hear a portion of today\u2019s program and tomorrow\u2019s program\u2014I hope you\u2019ll take advantage of the opportunity to download this message because you\u2019re going to get a chance to hear a great Bible teacher take us to one of the Psalms and peel it back for us.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Dr. Duane Litfin was a seminary prof when I went to Dallas Theological Seminary. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>3:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHe is a past-president\u2014in fact, the seventh past-president of Wheaton College, up in Chicago. He did a great job of addressing our staff and just talking about the necessity of really focusing on working in what God is doing in our nation. Of course, FamilyLife, I think, is smack-dab in the middle of what God is doing in our country, Bob, around marriage and family.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>You think that\u2019s an issue today?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>I think that is a <em>table-pounding<\/em> issue. In fact, I just knocked over the controls, here in the studio; but honestly, that\u2019s why our team labors hard because we want to equip you with practical, biblical principles and tools that will help you in your marriage and family; and we want to help you help others in your community. We want to turn you into a spiritual multiplier. So, as you listen to Dr. Litfin speak about working in God\u2019s economy, it\u2019s not just to our staff he was speaking. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>4:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>I think he\u2019s going to be speaking to you, as a listener.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Well, and even with the challenges we\u2019re facing, we still have a lot for which to be thankful. Here is a message from Psalm 127 from Dr. Duane Litfin.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t[Recorded Message]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dr. Litfin: <\/strong>Pull out your Bibles. Let\u2019s turn, together, to this wonderful passage: Psalm 127. I want to give you\u2014in this passage of Scripture\u2014that you would come away with an experience of this passage that would outlast a talk or a devotional by someone who comes and addresses you on a morning like this.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tPsalm 127: This is a Psalm of ascents\u2014a Psalm written, according to the superscription, by Solomon: \u201cUnless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain. In vain you rise up early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>5:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tfor He grants sleep to those he loves.\u201d That particular line is an important line in this Psalm. I\u2019m reading the NIV. If you look at the margin, it says: \u201cAn alternate reading for \u2018While they sleep, He provides for those He loves.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf you\u2019re reading the NASB, it is: \u201cFor He gives to His beloved, even in his sleep,\u201d\u2014that\u2019s the alternate reading. It\u2019s a Hebrew phrase that can be translated either way\u2014either: \u201cHe gives sleep to those He loves,\u201d or, \u201cHe gives, even in his sleep, to those He loves,\u201d\u2014\u201cgives to His beloved, even in his sleep.\u201d I prefer the latter reading. I think the NASB has it right, and we\u2019ll come back to that here.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIn vain you rise up early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat\u2014for He gives to His beloved even in his sleep. Lo, sons are a heritage from the LORD; children are a reward from Him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one\u2019s youth. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>6:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBlessed is the one whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou know, it\u2019s an old line\u2014I think it\u2019s attributed to Socrates. I don\u2019t know if Socrates said it or not. Plato says he said it\u2014but it\u2019s a great line, and one that we, as Christians, ought to be able to appreciate. That is that: \u201cThe unexamined life is not worth living.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s really true; isn\u2019t it? \u201cThe unexamined life is not worth living.\u201d\u00a0 I recognize there are people who don\u2019t want to examine their lives. If we\u2019re talking to an audience\u2014in any audience\u2014probably, not this one\u2014but in almost any audience\u2014you will have people sitting there who are not interested in examining their lives. That\u2019s the last thing they want! \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThey work very hard <em>not<\/em> to examine their lives. They fill their lives with sound and activity. They\u2019re constantly messaging and twittering. You know\u2014got the ear buds going\u2014if they\u2019re on the move. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>7:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf they\u2019re sitting still, they have to have the television blaring\u2014anything but having a moment of quiet and solitude that would, maybe, trigger some evaluation\/ examination of their lives. That\u2019s the last thing they want because they know that the moment\u2014intuitively\u2014they sense, that if they stop and examine their lives, there\u2019s nothing there\u2014it\u2019s hollow. It\u2019s empty. It\u2019s an abyss. So, the last thing they want is an examined life. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut there are a lot of people, especially a lot of Christians, who really do want to examine their lives. They just don\u2019t really know how. They\u2019re not very good at it. They\u2019re not quite sure what to look for. This little Psalm is a delightful tool for helping us to examine our lives. It is really a wonderful instrument for helping us think through: \u201cWhat, on earth, are we doing with our lives?\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s a Psalm that has really focused on the kinds of things that you folks are about. As I\u2019ve thought about what to do on this occasion\u2014what passage to touch on. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>8:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI thought: \u201cI would love nothing better than to give you a gift of this passage\u2014of really thinking it through, if you haven\u2019t done it before\u2014of how this passage doesn\u2019t <em>challenge<\/em> what you\u2019re doing\u2014it <em>reinforces<\/em> what you are doing\u2014and your investment of your life in this ministry.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s a wonderful Psalm. It\u2019s a little Psalm about the subject of spending. You might not think that\u2014at face value, just reading it\u2014but trust me. It\u2019s dealing with the subject of spending. What is it we spend?\u00a0 We spend our money, we spend our time, and we spend our strength. We wear ourselves out\u2014we say, \u201cI feel spent,\u201d\u2014our time, our strength, and our money. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to suggest\u2014money doesn\u2019t belong in that trio. It really should be ejected from that trio. It\u2019s kind of like talking about\u2014you think about water\u2014hydrogen, oxygen, and ice. You wouldn\u2019t categorize those three things together. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>9:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHydrogen and oxygen, together, make up water; and then, ice is one of the forms that water takes. You don\u2019t categorize those together. In the same way, our time and our strength are fundamental things. Our money is simply one of the forms that our investment of time and energy takes. So, we\u2019re talking about spending this morning, but I\u2019m not talking about spending money. You get the first two right\u2014money will take care of itself. This is about how we\u2019re spending our time and our strength. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou can tell how odd the money piece is in this way: There are people in this world\u2014just watching, again, this report on Bill Gates. He\u2019s got like $65 billion. There are people in this world who have far more money than they will ever be able to spend. You couldn\u2019t spend that much money in a lifetime\u2014unlimited quantities of money. There is no one\u2014not even Bill Gates\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>10:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\twho has unlimited quantities of time and strength. Every one of us has very limited quantities of time and strength. The older we get, the more we know it, and feel it, and see it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSo, the question is: \u201cHow are we spending our time and our strength?\u201d\u2014these most precious commodities that we have: \u201cHow are we spending those precious things?\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s what this little Psalm is about. The author of the Psalm, Solomon, does this really by offering us, in those first two verses, a poetic contrast. The first side of the contrast is not fully-balanced in terms of the lines, but it\u2019s a poetic contrast.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe first half of the contrast is found there in the first verse and a half\u2014one-and-half verses: \u201cUnless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor <em>in vain<\/em>. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard <em>in vain<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>11:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>In vain<\/em> you rise up early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat.\u201d [Emphasis added] Do you hear it three times?\u00a0 \u201c\u2026in vain\u201d,\u00a0 \u201c\u2026in vain,\u201d\u00a0 \u201cIn vain\u201d\u2014it\u2019s empty, worthless, poured down the drain, lost forever, with no value. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhat is it he is saying is vain, empty, and worthless?\u00a0 He\u2019s not saying, \u201cDon\u2019t take on things that are too big for you.\u00a0 If God is not in it, don\u2019t take it on because God is bigger than you are,\u201d or something of that sort. You know\u2014the old Jim Croce song: \u201cYou don\u2019t tug on Superman\u2019s cape, you don\u2019t spit into the wind, don\u2019t mess around with a junkyard dog.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t take on a\u2014thing.\u201d That\u2019s a good piece of wisdom, but that\u2019s not what he\u2019s saying here. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHe\u2019s not even saying: \u201cUnless the LORD is in it, you\u2019ll never get it done. You\u2019ll never build that house. You\u2019ll never guard that city, if God isn\u2019t doing it.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>12:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat\u2019s not really his point. You may well get it built. You may well guard that fortress\u2014but, so what?\u00a0 It\u2019s empty. It\u2019s vain. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAll the time, all the strength, and all the toil\u2014getting up early, staying up late, eating the food of that toil\u2014all this time and energy spent on something that God is not interested in\u2014it\u2019s not what <em>He<\/em> is doing. It\u2019s not one of <em>His<\/em> projects. So everything you spend on that is wasted\u2014it\u2019s gone. The most precious things you have\u2014your time and your strength\u2014are poured down the rat hole for nothing in the long run. It is vain\u2014it is vain\u2014it is vain.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat is one side of this contrast\u2014a very important truth. Everything we spend on projects, that God doesn\u2019t care about, is utterly wasted. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>13:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut here is the other side of the contrast. Now, we come to that line\u2014that second line\u2014which is the most important line, but it\u2019s also this enigmatic line\u2014but by contrast. Everything we spend on things God doesn\u2019t care about is wasted; but, <em>by contrast<\/em>: \u201cHe gives to His beloved, even in his sleep.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tNow, this is a piece of poetry. We have to let the Psalms be poetry. We have to treat them as poetry and understand how poetry works. Poets do this to us all the time. There are these poetic allusions\u2014not illusions\u2014\u201cI\u201d \u201cL\u201d\u2014but \u201cA\u201d \u201cL\u201d\u2014allusions. They\u2019re alluding to something; but if you don\u2019t understand the poetic allusion, you\u2019re going to miss the point.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI was reading, some time ago, a book by John Betjeman called \u201cSummoned by Bells\u201d.\u00a0 He was the poet laureate of Brittan for many years. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>14:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI was reading this particular poem called \u201cSummoned by Bells\u201d. I came across these lines:\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tTake me, my Centaur bike, down Linton Road, \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGliding by newly- planted almond trees \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhere the young dons with wives in tussore clad \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWere building in the morning of their lives \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHouses for future Dragons.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAs I read those words, you\u2019re probably saying: \u201cWhat?\u00a0 Huh?\u201d\u00a0 [Laughter] I read those words, and it was like bells going off in my head. I could see the\u2014he was talking about the neighborhood we lived in at Oxford. We lived just off Linton Road. I rode my old-fashioned English bike\u2014this Centaur Bike\u2014down to the bottom to the library every day. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u201cGliding by newly-planted almond trees\u201d\u2014he wrote this in the early part of the 20<sup>th<\/sup> century. There are big, tall, arching trees, now, in the neighborhood in which we lived. I would go riding my bicycle under those big trees where \u201cthe young dons\u201d\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>15:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tthose are the tutors at Oxford University. \u201cTheir wives in tussore clad\u201d\u2014Tussore is a particular kind of silk imported from Tussore, India\u2014that you make the Oxford gowns from\u2014women would make their clothing from. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhere they were building\u2014these young professors \u201cwere building in the morning of their lives\u201d\u2014when they were young\u2014\u201chouses for future Dragons,\u201d\u2014future Dragons?\u00a0 \u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d Well, here was the Dragon School\u2014right there. I used to ride my bicycle past the Dragon School\u2014this elite boys\u2019 school where John Betjeman, himself, had gone to school, as a boy. You\u2019d go by and see the boys out there, playing rugby or something, in short pants. They were called the \u201cDragons\u201d. So, I\u2019m riding my bike\u2014I understood every bit of these poetic allusions; but if you don\u2019t have that, you read that and you think: \u201cWhat?\u00a0 I don\u2019t get it.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWell, this line in the Psalm is full of poetic allusions. Unless we stop with it, for a moment, we won\u2019t understand the contrast. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>16:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHere\u2019s one: \u201cHe gives to His beloved, even in his sleep.\u201d\u00a0 The word \u201cbeloved\u201d is the <em>yadid<\/em> in the Hebrew. Let me ask you a question. Solomon had a nickname. In fact, it was a nickname given to him by God. Do you know what that nickname was?\u2014anybody?\u00a0 It\u2019s a famous passage. This is, of course, David and Bathsheba. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The Lord loved him; and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan, the prophet, to name him Jedidiah\u2014the <em>yadid<\/em> of Yahweh\u2014the beloved of the LORD.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSolomon\u2014saying: \u201cGod gives to His beloved, even in his sleep.\u201d\u00a0 When you think of Solomon, what do you think of?\u00a0 What is he famous for?\u2014well, the wisdom of Solomon. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>17:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhere did he get that wisdom? At Gibeon, the LORD appeared to Solomon, during the night, in a dream. He said, \u201cAsk whatever you will.\u201d\u00a0 He asked for the right things. He asked for a discerning heart\u2014to govern Your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. And the LORD says to him: \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSince you have asked this, and not for long life, or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies, but discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you nor will there ever be.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd the text tells us: \u201cThen, Solomon awoke; and he realized it had been a dream\u201d\u2014\u201cGod gives to His beloved, even in his sleep.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t[Studio]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>[Chuckles]Don\u2019t you love that?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>18:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>It\u2019s amazing to think, while we were sleeping last night, God was at work, blessing us.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>And, you know\u2014here\u2019s the thing\u2014I was just listening there to Dr. Litfin, again. If God could come to you and say: \u201cWhat would you ask Him for?\u201d\u00a0 Would you ask Him for long days, wealth, fame, or power?\u00a0 Or would you ask Him for something that would impact generations?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAs I was listening, again, to that, I thought: \u201cYou know\u2014if God came to me and said, \u201cWhat I would ask for?\u201d I\u2019 would say: \u201cYou know what\u2014that there would be spiritual vitality in my children, and my grandchildren, and my great grandchildren, <em>and<\/em> in the lives of families, all across this country, that confess and seek to follow Jesus Christ as Master and Lord.\u201d I mean, Bob, that\u2019s what our nation needs, here at Thanksgiving. We need a fresh return to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>19:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Of course, that is our mission, here at FamilyLife\u2014to effectively develop godly families. We want to see every home become a godly home. That\u2019s why we create the resources we do. It\u2019s why we have this daily radio program. It\u2019s what <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is all about. We want to be used by God to effectively develop godly families\u2014families who change the world, one home at a time. Our goal is that every home would be a godly home. It\u2019s to that end that we create this radio program\u2014it\u2019s why we create the resources we create, we host the events we host\u2014all of it with one goal in mind\u2014to effectively develop godly families. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd, we\u2019re thankful, on this Thanksgiving Day, for those of you who stand with us in making that goal possible. We appreciate your financial support of this ministry\u2014we\u2019re grateful for that. And we thought it would be nice, here on Thanksgiving, to listen to a song of thanksgiving from Kristyn Getty. This is from Keith and Kristyn\u2019s album, <em>Hymns for the Christian Life<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>20:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe song is called: <em>My Heart is Filled with Thankfulness<\/em>\u2014a great song to listen to on Thanksgiving Day.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t[Song: <em>My Heart Is Filled with Thankfulness<\/em>]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>23:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Once again, that is Keith and Kristyn Getty in a song called <em>My Heart Is Filled with Thankfulness<\/em>.\u00a0\u00a0 We are grateful that you\u2019ve joined us for the Thanksgiving Day broadcast of <em>FamilyLife Today. <\/em>I hope you can be back with us tomorrow as we will hear Part Two of Duane Litfin\u2019s message on Psalm 127.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to say, \u201cThank you,\u201d today to our engineer, Keith Lynch, and to our entire broadcast production team. And, on behalf of our host, Dennis Rainey, I'm Bob Lepine. We hope to see you back tomorrow for another edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHelp for today. Hope for tomorrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<sup>\u00a9<\/sup>Song:\u00a0\u00a0 <em>My Heart Is Filled with Thankfulness<\/em>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tArtists:\u00a0\u00a0 Keith and Kristyn Getty\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAlbum:\u00a0\u00a0 <em>Hymns for the Christian Life<\/em>, (p) 2012 Getty Music Label, LLC\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts to you. However, there is a cost to produce them for our website. If you\u2019ve benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/donate\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCopyright <sup>\u00a9<\/sup> 2013 FamilyLife. All rights reserved.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/\">www.FamilyLife.com<\/a>\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t1\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>","theme_header_position":"","post_header_is_sticky":"","is_header_overlay":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast\/302869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/podcast"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=302869"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=302869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=302869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=302869"},{"taxonomy":"podcast_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast_series?post=302869"},{"taxonomy":"cwp_profile","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cwp_profile?post=302869"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=302869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}