00:00:00:00 - 00:00:03:09 Unknown but let's let's jump right in to the passage. 00:00:03:11 - 00:00:34:15 Unknown Mark chapter 12 and verse 30, I want to read that for you because, chances are over the next few weeks, as we go through a little series here, chances are we, you know, we'll use up a good bit of our time and then, and diminish the prayer time. But then, you know, so it's important that we do that at home and, and in our prayer closets and, and really keep praying for the church family. 00:00:34:15 - 00:01:09:21 Unknown But I will go over some of those at the close. And so, and so but Mark, chapter 12, verse 30, and so we need to look at verse 29 as well, though Jesus answered him, the first of all, the commandments is hero law. Hero Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all. 00:01:09:23 - 00:01:33:05 Unknown This is the first commandment. And so, father, we thank you tonight for your word. We thank you for, grace and mercy. Thank you that each and every one of us here are better than we deserve. And so, father, I pray that tonight you just, And through this series, you would just speak into our hearts and into our lives. 00:01:33:05 - 00:01:58:05 Unknown Into our souls. Heavenly father, our minds. And you would just strengthen us for the days ahead as we, begin to really search out some truths. In Jesus name, Amen. Amen. A couple of things. I'm going to give you a couple things about the text. Then I'm going to do a little bit of more of an introduction, then come back to the text. 00:01:58:05 - 00:02:24:23 Unknown And so a little different, but here Jesus tells us what the greatest commandment is. Okay. And we you know, there's three ways that word greatest is understood or defined. It can mean when we see the term greatest, it can mean, size. It can be talking about the size, or I can't even read my own writing. 00:02:25:05 - 00:02:54:03 Unknown And so it could be talking about the quality, the size or the amount. And so it can be talking about the quality, you know, or, skill maybe, but here, what it's talking about is important. It's saying the great and or the most important, the most serious. The main or chief, item of these is, is this. 00:02:54:03 - 00:03:24:15 Unknown And so this word greatest is implying the most important commandment. And it is what? But before we get to that, look at what a prerequisite is, a prerequisite instruction is of this. It is you shall love the Lord your God. That's the base. It is the base is it starts with the believer's love for God. And then it points out four things is pretty, pretty straightforward. 00:03:24:15 - 00:03:55:15 Unknown And you guys have probably all heard messages on this passage before. And so with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all, with all your strength, that's how we are to love the Lord with all of those things. And the point Jesus is making here is we are to love God with our entire being, with our entire being, with every thing we are. 00:03:55:15 - 00:04:19:03 Unknown And so there's something that's been on my mind for quite some time, and I couldn't really just, you know, it just didn't click. And, just been trying to figure that out. And so yesterday, actually, God opened some things up for me, gave me a clarity on a couple things. And then about 30 minutes ago, I finish this message. 00:04:19:03 - 00:04:50:15 Unknown And so, and didn't start it until late today. It's been kind of crazy. And, this is Staff Wednesday for work. So, other things going on. And so I've been a little behind. And so, I cranked this out this afternoon as an introduction message to a series. I'm going to spend, probably each week looking at one of those, with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and so and so it's been on my mind. 00:04:50:15 - 00:05:19:13 Unknown And so people today live. I live such compartmentalized lives. Okay, follow me here for a few minutes. Like I said, I've just been putting this together this evening. And so we live such compartmental lives, which means, mentally, we divide our lives into boxes such as time, money, relationships, emotions, responsibilities. And we have a myriad of things we can write. 00:05:19:13 - 00:05:44:07 Unknown Our hobbies. You could just go on and on everything. We just kind of take this and plug it here into this box. We put this over here into this box. And so. Yeah. And so we we have a myriad, myriad of ways we can compartmentalize our loss. Honestly, the there it could be viewed as they're both positive and negative things to this. 00:05:44:09 - 00:06:04:12 Unknown And so let me give you an idea. So first of all, let's talk about what it looks like for a minute. And this is kind of this is kind of a very practical to our lives. It's not real spiritual yet. And so but I'm building a case and so work with me here. So what it looks like. 00:06:04:14 - 00:06:37:05 Unknown Oh, so to to have a life that's compartmentalize, it means that a person is able to build boundaries for multiple roles, such as, myself, father. So, me I'm saying such as me, I'm a father. I'm a pastor. I'm a regional manager for, you know, a company. And so I'm a friend. And so there's certain, so I'm able to compartmentalize those that a person, is able to do that. 00:06:37:05 - 00:07:01:09 Unknown And so able, a person who compartmentalize the things is able to delay feelings. And so because of taking this and I've plugged it in over here in a box or I've hid this behind this or I do this, this way, we can deal with those emotions in private rather than wear them on our sleeve. And so that's what it is. 00:07:01:11 - 00:07:30:08 Unknown Compartmentalization helps us do it is we can better control and manage our emotions. And so, this person is able to have, clear lines of separation, such as work versus personal, this group of friends versus this group of friends. And so how I interact at work is different than how I interact here may be. And so so you understand what I'm saying? 00:07:30:11 - 00:07:55:08 Unknown This person who can compartmentalize things. Now let's take that. That's kind of a quick glance, to my knowledge at this point of that. And so let's take now let's see, I mentioned that it could be both positive and negative. Well, let's look at some positives might be lower stress. I don't have to deal with everything at once in my life. 00:07:55:10 - 00:08:16:22 Unknown I can deal with it one box at a time, right? Yeah. That's positive. If I had to open every box at once, I might be in trouble. And so, my brain might explode, and so, I focus. This is another one. If I'm not dealing with 400 things at once. We call it at work. Spinning plates. 00:08:16:22 - 00:08:41:15 Unknown You know, you got all these plates, and if the plates ever stop spinning, you know, they're just going to crash to the floor. And so. But but, you have high focus, because why you, you in this high focus, you handle crisis. Will, because you're able to shove this issue in a box over here and compartmentalize it while you deal with this issue. 00:08:41:17 - 00:09:07:20 Unknown And so and so these could be seen as some positives. Protection. You can shut out the ugly so you don't have to deal with it right away. And so I've experienced this firefighter is the idea firefighter police officers, they do this all the time. They can they can put that happening, that experience in a box and and leave it there. 00:09:07:20 - 00:09:38:12 Unknown And so, I'll talk more about that in a minute. And so but let's look at some of the negative negatives. Negatives, negatives. And so, there's the hidden build up of always cramming stuff in a box and not dealing with it. Right then as a negative. So, there's distance that's created, creates feelings of coldness. Numbness and a detached sense because it would, put stuff in a box. 00:09:38:12 - 00:10:05:08 Unknown I'm not really interacting with that right then and there. And here, here's a big one. It creates this sense of fake peace. It creates a sense of fake peace, because we're really, we're not dealing with it again. We're avoiding the real problems. And so, so all these, on one hand, it looks like, wow, I like this. 00:10:05:10 - 00:10:39:04 Unknown And we think it has these positives. But on the other hand, we see these really this these real negative things and it and and so you're saying well quite frankly, none of them are healthy if maybe in a secular sense, but in a Christian sense, none of them are healthy. Here's a statement I kind of wrote in my notes a thought of later when left to themselves. 00:10:39:06 - 00:11:14:14 Unknown The compartments allowed to fill up leads to a faith crisis, doubt, emptiness, bad decisions, etcetera. You could build that list depending on the life. And so I think, personally, I learned the hard way and so but generally, I don't know many people that don't have to learn certain things the hard way. Right. And so that, but me, I might be a little more hard headed than some people. 00:11:14:14 - 00:11:31:15 Unknown So I've learned some things. The hard way. You know, I had to have a conversation. I was telling John about it earlier. I won't go into as much detail as I did with John, but, I had to. I got to sit down today from my two bosses, and so. Hey, man, you need to check your attitude around here. 00:11:31:15 - 00:11:55:03 Unknown And so is basically the gist of there because I've been kind of ornery. And, John, you don't have to share anything. John knows where the bodies are buried, so to speak. And so, so, so, and so, but and they weren't wrong. Okay. Well, and see that part, I know it's hard to believe that. 00:11:55:03 - 00:12:27:14 Unknown And so and so see you laugh. So that tells me it's you. Here's the thing. What you think you've got compartmentalize and shoved away in a box. It might be in your mind, but it isn't to anybody else, especially to your brothers and sisters in Christ. And so that's that's key to remember. But so anyway, I had to have this conversation, had to say I'm sorry and repair and, kind of already worked through that piece prior to the meeting. 00:12:27:14 - 00:12:47:17 Unknown So, I knew the meeting was coming, and so, and so, so anyway, other things I learned the hard way. It's not just like that. When I worked on the road, you know, I was a traffic, what they called a traffic engineer. I wasn't really an engineer. I did have federal certification on. 00:12:47:17 - 00:13:32:16 Unknown I was a guy that made people's lives miserable. I had a crew, and we would walk down, interstates. I only worked mostly on interstate projects, federal projects. And so. So anyway, that's terrible job, because you see things I've seen so many people killed and run over and hurt and maimed and and so to be able to deal with that and then the fire service, I was in the fire service for about four and a half years, EMT and, and, and firefighter some of the things I've seen in that you know, and and just, it's terrible to watch that witnesses witness that. 00:13:32:16 - 00:13:58:18 Unknown And so, police, served as a chaplain for the fire service. After I was I moved back to town. I become a chaplain for the fire department and the police department. Death notification. It's just horrible, horrible things that people, humans have to do each day and walk through. And so, learn ministry. I remember the first funeral I did and how that impacted me. 00:13:58:22 - 00:14:29:11 Unknown I remember the first funeral had to do for a child, three month old, remember a three year old, you know, and so, so you, you pretty quickly in those roles, learn how to take that emotion, take those feelings, or take that down, or that lack of faith. You learn how to take all that, and you shove it in a box, and you just put on a smile and keep walking through life. 00:14:29:16 - 00:14:56:05 Unknown You hope you can put on a smile. And so, here's what I learned about all that. And we don't have to I don't want to build up the ugly so much. Here's what I learned out of that. For me personally, I've learned that the more walls I can break down and less compartments I have, the more well-rounded and equipped I am to walk worthy of my calling in Christ. 00:14:56:07 - 00:15:32:02 Unknown And so the the. So now, let's come back to this passage of Scripture in Mark 1230 and this kind of drill in on Christians, believers and how often, we compartmentalize our lives. It has a tremendous negative impact, not only on our lives, but the lives of the people around this. This kind of relates to where we're at in Galatians with the apostle Peter. 00:15:32:04 - 00:15:55:05 Unknown He had compartmentalized the truth of the gospel, and he was walking something else out in his life. And, and so, I remember and I could have used this illustration before, but, I was shooting competitively. You're dealing with guys from all over the country, and we I I'll never forget this. I don't think I had a guy. 00:15:55:10 - 00:16:22:08 Unknown I knew this guy for a long time. And, man, I've been around truck drivers, construction workers, firefighters, police officers. If it can be said I've heard it, this guy would make me blush. And so he was. He was just had a filthy mouth. And so. And so. But, you know, one day we were in a conversation and he said to me, he said, hey, I just heard you were a pastor. 00:16:22:10 - 00:16:45:18 Unknown Said, well, I was a part of this before I came back into the pulpit. I said, I was a pastor. I do preach from time to time still, but yes, I'm Christian a little more. And so he said, oh, that's awesome. He said, I'm a deacon at my church. And I said, whoa, okay. And so you must go to a different denomination than I do if you're allowed to talk like that. 00:16:45:18 - 00:17:13:00 Unknown I mean, I literally said that to him. What's he going to say? I got a shotgun in one hand, a pistol in the other, and so on the hip. And so no, just kidding. And so. But that's what I'm talking about. Our our brain, it's dangerous to to think that we can take aspects of our life and shut it out over here, put it in a room, or put this piece of our life in this room and this piece over here. 00:17:13:02 - 00:17:39:22 Unknown And so it leads to, an unhealthy, walk or relationship to the Lord or maybe even others. And so because of some of the things God has shown me in my life as well as Scripture, and I think all this is kind of come to the head. And that's why it's so, quick it is to just, you know, we haven't announced it or told or published that I was going to start a series. 00:17:39:22 - 00:18:11:14 Unknown We will. But I just had a heart to get started. And so I've called this saying it'll be about five parts, fit for the journey and what you need to understand. And I'll tell you exactly the truth of where I got the idea for the name is fit because I'm spelling for, f0. You are like the numeric nut for f0 or fit for the journey, because there's four things here that we really need to be looking at. 00:18:11:14 - 00:18:43:13 Unknown And so we're going to get into that. And so, and so you just consider tonight kind of an introduction. And so it will be the goal of this series to understand just how connected four specific areas of our lives are. And I think that's where we get off track, is we begin in our faith or in our understanding of the word we maybe because of inexperience or, immaturity is what I meant to say. 00:18:43:13 - 00:19:12:01 Unknown Maybe because of immaturity or lack of understanding of the word. Somehow we get off to the wrong start. And so, this verse, mark chapter 12, verse 32, four areas we're going to study the heart. The heart. What's that talking about is talking about that of our emotions and relational, selves. And so we're going to talk about the heart. 00:19:12:01 - 00:19:33:16 Unknown We're going to talk about, again, our emotions, are relational. We've been talking a lot about the heart and how deceitful it is. How do we change that? How do we grow that? How do we how is our heart to function today in such a way that's right before the Lord. And so we're going to look at the soul. 00:19:33:16 - 00:20:01:22 Unknown That's the next one. The so that which is spiritual. Right. That which is spiritual. So we're going to talk about that, the mind, it's the brain and the transformation of it that Romans calls for. It's it's how we walk uprightly before the Lord. It's this transition of the mind and the brain. It's it's the transition or the the the the growing of the heart. 00:20:01:22 - 00:20:39:03 Unknown It's the deepening of the soul. Spiritual understanding. And then it says our strength. It's our physical, being empowered by the Lord. And so, in so we're going to talk a lot about, about a lot of things, relationships, health, our physical being. And so it's my position tonight that each of these areas of our life must work in unison with the others. 00:20:39:05 - 00:21:01:19 Unknown And I would venture to say we could sit down tonight. If you were to do this, you could take this test right now. You could put those four things on a piece of paper heart, soul, mind and strength. You might have one of those you're really good at. Or really, I don't want to say good or bad. I want to say really close to the Lord. 00:21:01:19 - 00:21:44:00 Unknown And, and and you really got that area of your life. But but over here, you know, I'm really struggling with my heart. I'm really struggling in this area. But, you know, I'm kind of doing okay. Imagine if all four of those areas were tied together, working in unison in Christ. The way the Scripture talks about. And so it's my position again, I'll say it again that each of these areas of our life must work in unison with the other when they're not functioning as one, our entire life becomes what unbalanced? 00:21:44:01 - 00:22:04:05 Unknown I mean, it's just this, folks, this truth. And so let me give you, I'll use myself as an example. You know, so many of you know that I've been off and on carnivore for a little over a year now, so I've lost today. Put a few of it back on about 50 pounds. I went down from a, 00:22:04:09 - 00:22:26:22 Unknown I'll just tell you the truth. I went down from a 48% when I started. I wear a 38 about to go into the 36. And so probably, you know, close and I'm back on. I'm doing. But here's the real kicker. When I, started it, I was on seven medications, $1,600 a month. That's what motivated me, by the way, to to even try something. 00:22:26:22 - 00:22:51:06 Unknown It wasn't the help, really. It was the it was a $1,600 a month. And that's after insurance and so good insurance. And so, and so, I was taking three medicines at the time for, sugar type two diabetes. I was taking two medicines for blood pressure. So that's five, of course they always want to throw in cholesterol and something else. 00:22:51:06 - 00:23:17:04 Unknown And so I can't even remember what one of them was. And so now. And so do you know that when I started that and I really took charge of that, it only took me two and a half months to be off of all of it. So here's but that's not my point. My point is what I can tell you about that time in my life when I was so unhealthy, it it was just my weight. 00:23:17:06 - 00:23:38:23 Unknown It impacted every part of my life, my spiritual walk. I was living in disobedience to the word. This is this is a temple of God. I would take care of it. I was living in it. I was living it. I couldn't do the things that God called me to do because, I had these health issues that prevented that. 00:23:39:01 - 00:24:08:18 Unknown I mean, there's just so many ways that impacted my physical walk, but it greatly hindered my physical. It hit my physical walk was obvious, but it hindered my spiritual walk, because of what it did in my life, before the Lord. It hindered my mental, because of the medications, because of the fatigue of sleep, because of all these things that interact it. 00:24:08:18 - 00:24:38:14 Unknown It hindered my emotional state. And so you think I'm irritable now. And so, and so, it's, it's so. Yes. My reputation precedes me, and I'm not real proud of it, but, but so it impacted every aspect of my life. Here's what I want you to understand tonight. For me, it was the physical. Are we not to believe? 00:24:38:16 - 00:25:05:03 Unknown Had it been my heart that it wouldn't have equally, impacted my life? It if it was my think of this if it was my spiritual part. That was the main issue. Do we not believe that that would have impacted the other areas of my life? And so it it for me, it might have been physical for somebody else, it might be spiritual for this person over here. 00:25:05:03 - 00:25:36:03 Unknown It might be mental. And so so we see that this imbalance takes place. And so and so again, all of these things, come together. And so I want to take a few minutes just on the onset or outset of this series, I want to just go through and share some scriptures with you. I didn't give these ahead to, Sean, so he might keep up, with us, and so that'd be great. 00:25:36:03 - 00:26:08:10 Unknown But if you have your Bibles, there's a Bible in the P for you. Turn with me. We'll look at. I just want to look at four, Proverbs 17, Proverbs 1722, and I'll. I'll take time. She get there sometime? Because I do want to get to our prayer list. And so verse 22, chapter 17 of Proverbs, a merry heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit draws the bones. 00:26:08:12 - 00:26:35:13 Unknown So this passage, what I want you to see is the connection that I'm talking about tonight and how important one has to do with the other. And so this passage connects the emotional and mental joy to our physical health. You see that, right? It's not really hidden. A merry heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit drives the bones. 00:26:35:14 - 00:26:54:11 Unknown Look at first Thessalonians. Five. We're going to be a little bit back and forth, between the old and new, but apologies for that. They just, wrote them down as it came to me. First Thessalonians. 00:26:54:13 - 00:27:01:14 Unknown Second, this audience, we're looking at five, verse 23. 00:27:01:16 - 00:27:32:19 Unknown Now, may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, you see that your whole spirit, your whole being, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus. So as we look at this, this passage specifically connects the spirit, the soul in the body. Okay. Specifically, connects the spirit, the soul and the body. 00:27:32:19 - 00:27:50:02 Unknown So we can't say, what I do over here doesn't matter over here. You know, I want you to see, before we go into the rest of this, series that we understand there's a distinct connection, between these sayings. And so, 00:27:50:04 - 00:28:00:13 Unknown Chapter one, verse two. Beloved, I pray that you may, prosper in all things and be in health just as your soul prospers. 00:28:00:13 - 00:28:20:21 Unknown And so once again, we see this connection. We see, physical vitality connected to spiritual health. And so, what a great, picture we have through God's Word. Look back. You go to Proverbs chapter three. 00:28:20:23 - 00:28:43:14 Unknown I hope I didn't mess this one up too, but sometimes my fingers get go, and sometimes people come in in the middle and, it just happens. And so, chapter three, Proverbs, verse seven, take a look at, 00:28:43:16 - 00:29:14:15 Unknown Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh and strength to your bones. So we see spiritual obedience connected to physical health as well. And so, No. Am I saying because you're sick, you got this sin in your life? I'm not saying that. And so but I'm saying that there is there is a connection between spiritual obedience and physical health there. 00:29:14:15 - 00:29:35:19 Unknown The word of God, witness said it. And so, another go of this because, let me go back to that just for a minute. And make another comment about that, because we have to remember, we live in a fallen world and a sinful world where sin has impacted, and been imputed to all men. And so why do children die? 00:29:35:19 - 00:29:59:08 Unknown Why do bad things happen? Why do people get sick when they don't deserve to be sick? Sure. And so, however, I want to make sure that if something happens to me, it happens because of that and not because I warranted it, or I asked for it or I did it, you know, in a way to dishonor God. 00:29:59:10 - 00:30:36:11 Unknown And so so we see spiritual obedience is connected to physical health. And so another goal of this series is to help you and, identify areas in our life that we need, discipline in. We might need correction in, self-correction. I don't plan each week to say you need this, you need that. And, and so self-correction from the Spirit of God, exercise, you know, maybe, you know, and, in other words, maybe physical exercise. 00:30:36:11 - 00:31:06:23 Unknown That's not really what I meant, but maybe to exercise some of these truths and celebrating as well is a study when we study the word of God or about B, about celebrating. We can't forget that. Celebrate the things we're doing well, celebrate the things God gives us restoration and celebrate the things where God is given grace, celebrate, where we've come from and so, so that this series is really about, really about those things as well. 00:31:07:04 - 00:31:19:17 Unknown That why? Because we're better prepared to face this earthly life with supernatural power, and because we are fit for the journey.