{"id":302870,"date":"2013-11-29T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2013-11-29T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/delight-yourself-in-the-lord\/"},"modified":"2013-11-29T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2013-11-29T17:00:00","slug":"delight-yourself-in-the-lord","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/delight-yourself-in-the-lord\/","title":{"rendered":"Delight Yourself in the Lord"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dr. Duane Litfin reminds us to invest our lives in God&#8217;s work.<\/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\/fl2013-11-29.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:","filesize":"22.82M","filesize_raw":"23927761","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2822],"tags":[4299,5060,5307],"podcast_series":[7984],"cwp_profile":[9314],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-302870","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\/302870\/delight-yourself-in-the-lord","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/302870\/delight-yourself-in-the-lord","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=\"as3PGtGyDt\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/delight-yourself-in-the-lord\/\">Delight Yourself in the Lord<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/delight-yourself-in-the-lord\/embed\/#?secret=as3PGtGyDt\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Delight Yourself in the Lord&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"as3PGtGyDt\" 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":"Dr. Duane Litfin reminds us to invest our lives in God's work.","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylifetoday.com\/fl2013-11-29.pdf","transcript_content":"<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Neil Postman has said, \u201cOur children are a message we send to a time we will never see.\u201d Our children really are significant. Here\u2019s Dr. Duane Litfin.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Duane:<\/strong> What is the picture of children being like arrows in the hands of a warrior? Well, a warrior has a quiver full of arrows and uses that arrow to send it off to make an impact far beyond anything the person himself can reach. That\u2019s what we do with our children. They\u2019re like arrows that we send out into the world. Everything that we invest in shaping them for Christ is not only <em>not <\/em>wasted\u2014it is invested, with dividends, even while we sleep.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> This is <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> forFriday, November 29<sup>th<\/sup>. Our host is the President of FamilyLife<sup>\u00ae<\/sup>, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. Would you say you are investing your life in things that really matter? And by the way, some of the things that really matter are your children. We\u2019re going to talk about that today. Stay tuned.\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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\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 Friday edition. You stop and think: \u201cFour weeks from today, Christmas will be over.\u201d It\u2019s a short season from the end of Thanksgiving to\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> You\u2019re kind of sad about that; huh?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Well, it just\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> I thought you were going to say, \u201cIn four weeks, we\u2019re going to have Christmas.\u201d You\u2019re\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> It will be gone.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> You\u2019re grieving.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Well, I\u2019ll tell you who\u2019s grieving. It\u2019s the retailers. They\u2019re hoping that, today, you are busy at the mall, spending your money, because they have fewer shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Instead of really focusing, though, on the material aspects of Christmas, Bob\u2014what we\u2019re doing here on the broadcast today is\u2014we\u2019re going to put our arms around the shoulders of the listener. \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>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re going to say: \u201cYou know what? There is an invitation to you that we\u2019re going to make today for <em>you<\/em> to make a difference in the lives of other people.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe problems our nation is facing cannot be tackled head-on by any organization\u2014even the Church, Bob, with the number of churches across the country. The challenges that we\u2019re facing today demand that\u2014men and women, young men and young women, boys and girls\u2014all do the work of God\u2014what God has for them to do\u2014and make sure they\u2019re about what God is up to in our country right now.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re going to hear a message by Dr. Duane Litfin today on just that\u2014from Psalm 127. It\u2019s about doing what God wants you to do and being involved in what He\u2019s up to in our country.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> This is one of your favorite Psalms. You\u2019ve quoted this many times.\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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> \u201cUnless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Yes. The truth is: \u201cUnless God is building families\u2014unless God is strengthening marriages\u2014we\u2019re just twiddling our thumbs;\u201d aren\u2019t we?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Yes. In fact, Bob, I want to stop there for a moment and just say, \u201cIf you want to know where the work of God begins\u2014if you\u2019re married, it begins in your marriage of building into your spouse.\u201d I\u2019ll never forget Dr. Bill Bright, who was the founder and President of Campus Crusade for Christ, now known as Cru. Dr. Bright used to say, \u201cMy wife,\u201d\u2014Vonette is her name\u2014\u201cis my number one disciple.\u201d I thought: \u201cThat\u2019s a good thought. My wife should be the person I pour my life into, as a husband.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd I think wives should build into the lives of their husbands, as well; and then, beyond that, our kids. We need to be discipling them, introducing them to Christ, building a strong spiritual foundation\u2014a moral foundation. That\u2019s where the work of God begins\u2014at home\u2014but beyond that, I think we\u2019re to reach out\u2014into our neighborhoods, our communities, and beyond\u2014with the gospel of Jesus Christ.\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>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> We have already heard, this week, the first part of a message from Duane Litfin, taken from Psalm 127. You and Dr. Litfin go back quite a ways; don\u2019t you?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> We do. He taught me, back at Dallas Theological Seminary. He went on to be a pastor, over in Memphis, and the president, later on, of Wheaton College.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And you guys serve together, today, on the Board of Dallas Seminary; right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Dr. Litfin and I sit together, in a corner; and I\u2019m not saying that corner causes trouble for the Board of Directors of Dallas Seminary\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> That\u2019s exactly what you guys do\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 --but\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> \u2014you\u2019re troublemakers.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> \u2014but Duane and I are for the seminary. We believe it\u2019s the best seminary in the country. We want to see it have the greatest impact it can have. So, we\u2019re constantly kind of pressing and pushing into it; but we have a great time together. He\u2019s a good friend, and I just appreciate him. He gave this message you\u2019re about to hear, first, to our staff.\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>5:00<\/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>Dennis:<\/strong> I\u2019ll tell you what\u2014they sat there mesmerized because he is masterful in his knowledge of the Greek and Hebrew languages, which are the original languages of the Scriptures. He just does a great job on Psalm 127.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And Psalm 127 is unique in that it is a Psalm of Solomon\u2014not a Psalm of David. So, keep that in mind as you hear Part Two of Dr. Litfin\u2019s message on Psalm 127.\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>Duane:<\/strong> One of my favorite references is way back in Deuteronomy 33. This is talking about the various tribes: \u201cAnd of the tribe of Benjamin he said, \u2018Let the beloved of the LORD,\u2019\u201d \u2014the <em>yadid<\/em> of the LORD\u2014Benjamin\u2014\u201c\u2019Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in Him, for He shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves,\u2019\u201d\u2014the <em>yadid<\/em>\u2014\u201crests between His shoulders.\u2019\u201d Do you love that reference? \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe beloved of the Lord is one who rides piggy-back on the Lord! It\u2019s a wonderful picture. You can almost picture a father and a little boy along on a hike. The little guy gets tired. So, the father takes him up on his back. He\u2019s carrying piggyback, and the little boy falls asleep. Lo and behold, later, he wakes up; and they\u2019re way down the path. Why?\u2014because he\u2019s riding piggyback on the Lord\u2014the beloved of the Lord, who rides between His shoulders. Well, the Lord gives to His beloved, even in his sleep. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou see, this is the other side of the poetic contrast. If everything that we invest in\u2014things God doesn\u2019t care about\u2014is wasted, down the drain for nothing\u2014by contrast, when we invest in things that God cares about\u2014they\u2019re His projects\u2014we\u2019re riding piggyback on Him. We\u2019re riding between His shoulders on His journey. Then, everything we spend\u2014all of our time and energy\u2014is not only <em>not <\/em>wasted\u2014it\u2019s <em>invested<\/em> with dividends, even while we sleep.\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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThis is that wonderful passage, over there in the Gospel of Mark, where the Lord Jesus is talking in a parable\u2014\u201cThis is how the kingdom is.\u201d \u201cThe kingdom is like this\u2014like a farmer who sows the seed. He goes to bed at night; and he wakes up in the morning\u2014and look\u2014he\u2019s getting a crop, even while he was sleeping. That\u2019s the way the kingdom is.\u201d Everything you invest\u2014all of your time, all of your strength\u2014when you invest in things God is doing, you\u2019re about <em>His<\/em> business\u2014you\u2019re on <em>His<\/em> journey\u2014riding piggyback on Him. You\u2019re not only <em>not<\/em> wasting your time and strength\u2014you\u2019re <em>investing<\/em> them, with dividends, even while you sleep. That\u2019s the way the kingdom works. You have blessings far beyond anything you imagined. What a wonderful message that is. Let\u2019s just capture this quickly\u2014a couple of concrete images. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tDo you know the name Sisyphus? What an ugly name that is. Have you ever met anybody named Sisyphus? This is from ancient Greek mythology, of course. Sisyphus was the one who had to roll the boulder up the mountain\u2014dirty, sweaty, dusty work\u2014only to get it to\u2014this was his condemnation for his sins. This was his eternal\u2014he had to do this all through eternity\u2014roll it up. He\u2019d get it to the top, and it\u2019d roll back down. Then he\u2019d have to roll it back up, and then it would roll back down. Then he\u2019d\u2014over and over\u2014meaningless, toilsome, empty, profitless work\u2014called a Sisyphean task.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat\u2019s the one side of this contrast\u2014just all the time and energy spent on things that don\u2019t matter\u2014just like poor old Sisyphus. How many people that you deal with through your ministry\u2014their lives are like that? They\u2019re spending their time and energy\u2014the most precious things they have\u2014are things that matter not one whit in the light of eternity.\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\tIt\u2019s toilsome. It\u2019s wearisome, and it\u2019s occupying all of their efforts; and for what?\u2014zero. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBy contrast, here\u2019s a very different image. When we were living in Memphis, we came out of our home, one day. We looked up, and there was this huge hot air balloon going over. It was really low. You could almost have called out to these people. There were four people in the gondola\u2014beautiful, huge thing. It went across pretty fast, across the sky, above our home. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI\u2019ve never been in a hot air balloon, but those who have will tell you that it\u2019s very peaceful up there. They may be moving pretty fast, but it\u2019s very peaceful. Why?\u2014because they\u2019re not going against the wind. They\u2019re riding on the wind. They\u2019re riding on the wind; and it\u2019s just completely peaceful in that balloon, even though they\u2019re making tremendous progress.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat\u2019s kind of the way it is\u2014the other side of this contrast. When we are investing ourselves in the work that God is doing in the world, we\u2019re on His journey. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re riding on the wind of God, and it can be very peaceful. I don\u2019t mean by that\u2014you know better than this\u2014that you become a Christian, serving Christ; and suddenly, everything becomes peaceful. Excuse me. Oftentimes, you have more stress, more difficulty\u2014even suffering because of the name of Christ\u2014but at the center of it, when you know that you\u2019re about the work of God, and what you\u2019re doing with your life counts for eternity\u2014you\u2019re spending your time and energy for what matters\u2014there is a peace that you see in the committed Christian that is a delight to behold.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThis is the poetic contrast. Everything we spend on things that God doesn\u2019t care about is wasted; but when we spend our time and energy on things God cares about\u2014they are His projects\u2014we\u2019re not only not wasting them, we\u2019re <em>investing<\/em> them, with dividends, even while we sleep. You say: \u201cWell, that\u2019s a wonderful contrast; but it\u2019s all up there in the abstract. What does that look like in real life?\u201d\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<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWell, commentators often struggle with this transition that comes between verses 2 and 3 of this Psalm. It is so obvious. I don\u2019t know how anybody misses it. \u201cLo, children are a gift from the Lord.\u201d You want to talk about projects?\u2014custom-designed\u2014given to us by the Lord. Look, here\u2019s a perfect illustration of the principle at stake. Look: \u201cChildren are a heritage from the Lord, a reward from Him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one\u2019s youth. Blessed is the one whose quiver is full of them.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAgain, we\u2019re dealing with a Psalm, which is all about imagery\u2014pictures. What is the picture of children being like arrows in the hands of a warrior? Well, a warrior has a quiver full of arrows and uses that arrow to send it out to make an impact, far beyond anything the person himself can reach. That\u2019s what we do with our children. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThey are like arrows that we send out into the world. Everything we invest, in shaping them for Christ, is not only <em>not<\/em> wasted\u2014it is invested, with dividends, even while we sleep.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI think of my own situation, sometimes, when I read this Psalm. We\u2019re in the process of putting my father\u2014moving him over into an assisted living. He\u2019s 94 years old\u2014still doing pretty well. He lost my mom a couple of years ago. My mom and dad were both children of the Depression\u2014born\u2014my mom\u2014really, barefoot poverty in rural Kentucky. My dad\u2014Detroit, during the Depression\u2014had to quit school at 15 to support his family.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBoth of them bright, intelligent readers\/thinkers\u2014never had the slightest opportunity to go to college\u2014neither one. Going to college or university for them was like going to the moon for you and me. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd yet they raised us children. They shaped us\u2014sent us out. Here I am\u2014with two PhD\u2019s, a professor, pastor, college president\u2014out there doing far beyond what Mom and Dad could do. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd yet, you know what? What they\u2019ve said to me, over and over, during my adult life\u2014I have heard this a hundred times: \u201cDuane, we have no greater delight\u2014no greater blessing than to see what God is doing through you\u2014what He\u2019s doing with you in the world.\u201d You see, far beyond anything they could reach, they sent out an arrow to make an impact. They shaped me\u2014made me into who I am.\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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAllen and Rachel Litfin, 804 Signs, Royal Oak, Michigan\u2014they shaped me into what I became. They invested in me\u2014paying dividends for them the rest of their life and for all eternity. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd you know what? We have three kids\u2014all of them walking with the Lord and wonderfully married\u2014and nine grandchildren. We see our children raising their kids to love Christ and serve him. My wife and I have said, repeatedly to ourselves, \u201cWe are absolutely certain\u2014that when we get to heaven, and look back, and are able to see and understand\u2014we will have made more of a difference in the world for Christ by what we have invested in those three kids than anything we have done ourselves\u2014no question.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>Everything<\/em> that we invest\u2014all of the time \/ all of the energy that we invest in our children like that\u2014has the potential to pay dividends, even while we sleep. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOne of the lies of our society\u2014one of the lies of Satan\u2014to tell particularly women that: \u201cYou know, it\u2019s a shame to stick yourself at home with those screaming kids. You\u2019re sharp. You could be out earning a paycheck. You could be in the corner office. You could be somebody. What a waste to be stuck at home.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSolomon wants to say to us: \u201cYou\u2019ve got it dead wrong. It\u2019s just the opposite.\u201d It\u2019s worthwhile to be out in the workplace\u2014I don\u2019t want to challenge that\u2014but there is no better investment of our time and strength, as parents, than in the God-given, custom-designed projects that He has put into our hands\u2014our children \/ our families. You are about the business of, not only trying to live that out in your own lives, but trying to train, and encourage, and strengthen that in the Church and in American society. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat\u2019s why I say I want to use this Psalm\u2014not to challenge you\u2014but to reinforce you\u2014to encourage you, to give you a word, a passage of Scripture you can turn to\u2014to be reminded why it is that you\u2019re doing what you\u2019re doing\u2014why you\u2019re spending your time, your strength, here, as part of this ministry, to make a difference for Christ\u2014to teach this profound truth.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThere are many applications. Children are just a great illustration. There are many other illustrations of the poetic contrast\u2014that we invest in those things that God cares about\u2014and that\u2019s what matters for life. We could talk about those, but it\u2019s enough to talk about our kids and the family life that you are so bent upon for Christians.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt was C.S. Lewis, though, who said that everything that is not eternal is eternally out of date. \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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s a great line; but Solomon said it more beautifully still, long ago\u2014everything we invest\u2014all of our time and strength\u2014in things that God cares about\u2014they are His projects\u2014is not only <em>not<\/em> wasted\u2014it\u2019s invested, with dividends, even while we sleep. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI\u2019m not really a bumper-sticker kind of guy. I don\u2019t have any bumper stickers. But if I were ever going to put a bumper sticker on my car, I ran across one, not long ago, that I think is the one I would choose. I pulled up behind this car. There, on this bumper sticker, it said: \u201cYou have a plan. God has a plan. Your plan doesn\u2019t matter.\u201d It\u2019s a great bumper sticker and a great truth. \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>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s His plan. When we\u2019re about His plan\u2014investing our time and our strength in His plan\u2014our lives are able to count for eternity.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tFather, we ask Your blessing on this passage of Scripture and our understanding of it. Would You use this, Father, to encourage us, strengthen us, challenge us in the work that we do\u2014each one of us\u2014the work of our families\u2014but also, for these folks in the work of their day-in and day-out ministry. I pray for their sake, and for the sake of the Church, and the sake of this world. I pray in Jesus\u2019 name. Amen. [Applause]\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>Bob:<\/strong> We\u2019ve been listening to a message that Dr. Duane Litfin presented to the staff at FamilyLife recently.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Yes, they all attended that day. There were over 250 folks, there, in the conference room. They didn\u2019t skip\u2014they didn\u2019t skip that! [Laughter]\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> Are you suggesting that they skip, sometimes, when you are sharing?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> May it never be, Bob. May it never be, but you know what? He\u2019s on-target on this because he\u2019s talking about all of us, regardless of our role in life. Whether you\u2019re a single man, single woman, husband, wife, mother, father, grandparent\u2014you need to grab that responsibility God has given you, and not listen to the culture, and not do what they\u2019re telling you to do\u2014which is lean your ladder against the wall of the world.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tInstead, be about what God is up to. Be about His business; especially, the moms. I love what he said there, earlier, Bob, about moms not listening to the culture. I\u2019m really pleased that all of my daughters and daughters-in-law, who are in our family, are really all over being a mom.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> They\u2019re making motherhood a priority.\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\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> They are. I\u2019m really proud of them because they could do anything they wanted to do; but they are choosing, in my opinion, the most noble thing. They\u2019re investing in the next generation, and so are our sons, and also our sons-in-law, too.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> I don\u2019t know how many of our listeners have ever taken time to investigate the <em>MomLife Today<\/em><sup>\u00ae<\/sup> website that FamilyLife has\u2014where we provide input from moms, at all seasons of being a mom\u2014and try to provide some encouragement, some mentoring, some coaching for moms\u2014because motherhood is a challenging assignment. To invest in the next generation is no small thing.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat\u2019s the reason we created the <em>MomLife Today<\/em> website. Let me encourage our listeners\u2014if you have some extra time this holiday weekend\u2014why don\u2019t you go to FamilyLifeToday.com and click on the link you find there to <em>MomLife Today<\/em>. That way, you can spend a little time exploring all that\u2019s available on the <em>MomLife Today<\/em> website. Again, go to FamilyLifeToday.com and click on the link for <em>MomLife Today<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>21:00<\/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\tYou should know that <em>MomLife Today<\/em> is headed up by Tracey Eyster, who wrote a book called <em>Be the Mom<\/em>. That\u2019s a book that we have in our <em>FamilyLife Today <\/em>Resource Center. You can go online for more information about how to get a copy of Tracey\u2019s book for moms. Again, it\u2019s called <em>Be the Mom. <\/em>Go to FamilyLifeToday.com for more information; or call 1-800-\u201cF\u201d as in family, \u201cL\u201d as in life, and then, the word, \u201cTODAY\u201d.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tFinally, we want to make sure we say, \u201cThank you,\u201d to those of you who make <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> possible. I think, if you\u2019re a regular listener, you know that there are costs associated with producing and syndicating this daily radio program. We don\u2019t have commercials in the middle of the program to interrupt things. So, we depend on listeners, like you, who occasionally get in touch with us and let us know that God has used <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> in your life in some way. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf that\u2019s the case, let me encourage you to make an online donation. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>22:00<\/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\tGo to FamilyLifeToday.com. Click the button that says, \u201cI CARE\u201d. Make your donation online. Or call 1-800-FL-TODAY. You can make a donation over the phone. When you get in touch with us, we\u2019d like to send you a thank-you gift. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBarbara Rainey has created a resource that many of our listeners used at the Thanksgiving dinner table yesterday. These are napkin wraps that you can use that, after you untie the napkin wrap, there is a question on it. It\u2019s designed to spark some conversation around the holiday dinner table. Well, you can use the same thing again at Christmas time. If you don\u2019t have the Untie Your Story napkin wraps, from Barbara Rainey, we\u2019ll send that to you as a thank-you gift when you make a donation today.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAgain, go to FamilyLifeToday.com. Click the link that says, \u201cI CARE\u201d, to make an online donation. Call 1-800-FL-TODAY to make a donation over the phone, and be sure to ask for the Untie Your Story resource when you do. Or if you\u2019d like to mail a check, our mailing address is P O Box 7111, Little Rock, AR. Our zip code is 72223.\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\tAnd we hope you have a great weekend. Hope you and your family are able to worship together this weekend, and I hope you can join us back on Monday when we\u2019re going to talk about Christmas. We\u2019re going to talk about how you can make this Christmas season, in your home, more memorable and meaningful\u2014how you can decorate your home in a way that draws attention to the real meaning of Christmas. Barbara Rainey will be here with us. Hope you can be here, as well.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to thank our engineer today, Keith Lynch, and our entire broadcast production team. On behalf of our host, Dennis Rainey, I'm Bob Lepine. See you next time for another edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\u00a0 \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.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHelp for today.\u00a0 Hope for tomorrow.\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\/302870","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=302870"}],"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=302870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=302870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=302870"},{"taxonomy":"podcast_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast_series?post=302870"},{"taxonomy":"cwp_profile","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cwp_profile?post=302870"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=302870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}