Chapters
0:06 Opening Prayer
0:41 Introduction to Christian Ethics
3:03 Understanding Wisdom in Ethical Decisions
3:53 Real-Life Scenarios for Guidance
6:13 Breaking Down Decision-Making Elements
10:45 The Importance of Heart and Motive
12:48 Evaluating the Results of Actions
14:12 Sources of Guidance in Decision-Making
21:32 Navigating Changes in Circumstances
23:43 The Role of Conscience in Decisions
26:27 Seeking Guidance from the Holy Spirit
30:55 Acquiring Wisdom for Life Decisions
35:19 Applying Lessons to Daily Life
37:03 Closing Prayer and Reflection

Transcript
[0:00]Wonderful day you've given us, another day of your creation,
[0:02]of showing your sovereignty in us, depending on your grace. I pray you help us, Lord, to be humble, to understand our limitations, and truly be grateful for the message you've given us today, to understand your will. This is a very complex topic, but may the Spirit lead us, open our eyes and ears to understand. And I pray that the teaching here will help us understand you better and glorify you more. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Okay, so is the volume good or is it too loud? Maybe a little. You're good? Okay, thanks, Greg.
[0:41]Introduction to Christian Ethics
[0:41]So we are in the Engrudium series about Christian ethics, and my topic today is about knowing God's will, understanding the factors to consider in making ethical decisions. To start with, let's go to the key reference. The key reference in the book of James, chapter 1, verses 5 to 6. It says, next slide, please. So if any of you lacks wisdom, let them ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. So what I've done in this slide, I just try to… When I read the Bible and I look at these verses, I really like to break them down because I feel like it's kind of like when you eat your food, you really want to chew and savor and enjoy the taste of the food. So in the first part of this verse, it says, if any of you likes wisdom, it just reminds us that we need to know ourselves. We need to know who we are, our limitations, where we are in our walk in Christ. That's important.
[1:58]Secondly, it says that as we understand our limitations, we should learn to surrender to God. We should come to Him humbly, ask for His help, And it's also a reminder to us that the God we serve is very generous and always there, sovereign. And so He will give generously without reproach. No matter what you've done in the past, your condition in the present, He doesn't look at that because what He sees is Christ in front of you. And our God will give it to us. Now, when we ask for God's will, it might not be the kind of answer that we expect. But if we believe in our God and we trust Him, then that is the right answer to our prayer. And importantly here, it says that let him ask in faith without doubting. And it's easy to say ask in faith, but really asking faith comes without doubting. So once you trust that God has revealed to you His will, you really should not doubt and let go. Or let Him take the course of His will in your life.
[3:03]Understanding Wisdom in Ethical Decisions
[3:04]Because the water dives like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. Next slide, please. So, I grew them, you know, has some examples. I thought I should make a little bit more kind of personal examples. They're not really personal, personal me, but like maybe some people we know or some situations we're familiar with. I think these are common situations we deal with in terms of, okay, how do I decide and what do I do? So, again, if you can't see if it's too small, they're all here and actually more detailed in your outline. So I'm just going to read them. And then what we're going to try to do at the end of this talk is maybe try to answer some of these. In other words, think of yourself as somebody that this person is seeking advice from and how you would walk them through understanding God's will.
[3:53]Real-Life Scenarios for Guidance
[3:54]So one is Clara is 22 years old and a senior in college. She's asking you advice about seeking God's will in her career path, whether she should go to post-grad school or she should work after graduation. Common, simple questions, but I'm sure we deal with this on a regular basis. Another person is Xavier is an 18-year-old who has been making harmful choices in his life. And you're a parent. You raise him in a Christian home, and you see what this is doing to him. And so how do you pray for God's will in your child, your children?
[4:29]Another one, Leonora has three young children as a single mother. When she was younger, she wanted to be an engineer. But for some life circumstances that didn't happen, she had three kids at 30 years old. She's really not happy about her work. And she wanted to have a better future for her children. So she comes to you. She wants to talk to you. She's got young kids, all less than 10 years old, and asking what she would like to go back to school and how can she make it work. I think those are very realistic questions. And those are scenarios we deal with every day. Next one is Antoine. His dad is 93 years old, has declining health. This is his dad's third hospitalization in the last six months. And that's been really hard on his dad. And his doctors gave his dad a poor prognosis for recovery. So as the son, who is a Christian and having three sisters who are not believers, how do you deal with this end-of-life decision? How do you approach this? How do you talk about this?
[5:36]In my line of work, I see this every day, too. And, you know, it's never easy. You have to look at family values. You look at different things. But hopefully we can learn from the lesson how to approach these kinds of situations. And lastly, Suzanne and Hemmer have been trying to have a baby for five years. Suzanne has had three miscarriages. Recently found out that she's got a medical problem, but they want to have children. And so they're considering either in vitro fertilization or adoption. So they approach you, talk to you, and how would you advise them?
[6:13]Breaking Down Decision-Making Elements
[6:08]Next slide, please. So, Drew, I like the way he approached this. I think we all know this, but maybe it's nice to sort of really break it down and say it. So, in every action that we make, there's kind of different parts that we have to consider. So, we always have to look at when you make a decision or, you know, when you plan for something. So, he breaks it down into four things. He breaks it down into the action itself. So, what are you doing?
[6:39]It looks at your attitude towards the action. It looks at your motivation for doing something and then the result of your action. So like, say, for example, when Joseph, you know, was tempted by Potiphar's wife, that was an instant decision. I mean, that was, you didn't have to go through like, what's the action, you know, what's my attitude, what's my motivation? No, you got to make quick decisions at that point. But there are situations where we have to really ponder and think and contemplate and pray and ask these things. So, for example, the action itself. Well, if it's morally good, it's easy, right? The 10th commandment. So do not steal, not murder, obey your parents. Those are simple, straightforward. And I think those are solid actions, commands. There's really no room for negotiation. But there's a lot of things that we have to decide in life that really do not have clear actions, clear direction. So when there's no clear direction, we have to ask the next question. What's your attitude towards that action? And I'm going to ask somebody to help me here. So if you guys are ready, there's verses in there. So somebody can read 1 Samuel 16, 7.
[7:56]Right. So, you know, when the things that we do, we always have to ask ourselves, but what is in our heart? What is in the heart that we are doing this? So you could say, you know, I want to be part of a church ministry or I want to start a charitable group or I even want to start a business. So, you know, these are situations where, I mean, you have a good idea, a good plan, but then you have to ask yourself what's in your heart? What is it really that you want to do?
[8:28]And you know, the heart is complex. It's not simple. I mean, like, you know, the heart, you talk to somebody and you think you know their heart, but you don't, right? Because we have layers, like onions. We have layers. There's layers that we see, but it is God who really sees through all these layers. And so when you ask God for revelation of His will, we have to ask Him to peel off those layers. and let him see that heart. And, you know, it's not like a one-time thing. It really all comes with your prayer and reading scriptures and talking to people, but also just be humble enough to let him reveal that. And that's the example in Samuel. You know, it's not the appearance. It's really what's in the heart. And I think all of us, all of us, including myself, we just have to know those layers and we just have to peel them off and let God expose us, make us be vulnerable so he can show us his will.
[9:26]Um next uh is a motive for doing the action um and i love this example and and maybe i'll skip this part here depending on the time but um you know classic example you have a child and you tell that the kid to clean the room and that kid cleans the room and that's your job and then bangs the door afterwards so so break it down yep she did she or she he or he cleaned the room, followed you but what's in the heart most motivation maybe just get you off the back and kind of like be done with this and i can move on to my whatever i'm doing so so very trivial superficial juvenile thing but as adult in a way we have these things too and we just have to ask ourselves like did i really do this in the right motive i mean is it So, and it's not that easy.
[10:20]An example that I gave you was Leonora, who's got three children, you know, and wants to go back to school. And what's in her heart? From the outside, maybe we can say, golly, the answer is so simple. You've got three kids. I mean, really, what are you going to do, right? But we don't know the person's heart. We don't know the person's desire.
[10:45]The Importance of Heart and Motive
[10:40]And God gives inspiration sometimes that we just have to find that. And I'm not saying what the right answer is but really when you look, when you advise, when you meet somebody, we also have to understand what's in the heart any questions? So just for reference, maybe somebody can read Matthew 6, 1-2, I always love to have verses associated with a certain principle because it just validates the things that we learn, I'm just not making this up and it's really coming from the scriptures is. It's amazing because everything in the Bible is so timely as long as you seek God's guidance. But this is still relevant today. This is relevant thousands of years ago and still relevant today. We could be very superficial. We could look really good. But really, what's in the heart is important.
[11:34]And then the next one is the result of the action. I really love to spend more time on this. Oh, sorry. Can you check, Deb? I don't see any.
[11:47]Oh, sorry. I turned the font black, but it's still white there. So anyway, I'll just follow you out, man. So the result of the action. I'd like you to read 1 Corinthians 14, 26. Somebody can do that for me, please. So when we decide, when we ask, when we have a plan, like say I want to do this, I want to go back to school, I want to teach at this school, I want to volunteer, At the end of the day, I thought it's a really good guidance that whatever that action is going to be, you have to edify others. So that action's result is not just for you, but for others. It could just be one person, maybe a group. And maybe we're not going to see the result of that in our lifetime. Maybe we're not going to see that result in a month. But if you feel that you're doing this in a pure heart and good motivation, and that it will be honoring to God.
[12:48]Evaluating the Results of Actions
[12:43]So anything you do that will edify others, it will honor God for sure. That's consistent with God's will. Now, how do I know what's honoring to God? How do I know what's edifying to others? Well, we have to study. And that's part of the lesson we're going to talk about is you have to have this knowledge base. Again, I don't want to be academic in this Sunday school, but Grudem is giving us all these guidelines. So I have to follow that. But just kind of remember that at the end of the day, the Bible is a reference and we use that and we go there.
[13:17]So the other question to ask is that, does this action, is it going to cause a wrongful result or grief to others? You know, so there's stories about like drinking wine in front of young believers or the kind of food that you eat way back then in the Old Testament days. So these are little things that maybe for you is normal, but then you have to think like how would it impact other people when they look at you or people you come across with. And of course, at the end of the day, and there's always a question, does this bring glory to God? We're not going to read this, but the reference in 1 Corinthians 10.31.
[13:54]So you really ask that, you know, will God be pleased in what I'm going to be doing? Whatever endeavor you have in mind, is God going to be glorified and pleased? So next slide. Oh, there you go. That's good.
[14:12]Sources of Guidance in Decision-Making
[14:08]So now this is kind of a long list of things to do. And, you know, I think we have time, but this is he gives us. So he says in Joseph's case where he had to make a decision to run away from Bodefer's wife, you're not going to go through these nine sources of information, obviously. But there are questions in light. Like, for example, you want to decide you want to start a business or you want to move to a different town or want to go to a different church or you decide you want to quit your job and do something else, medical questions. When you have time, he suggests that you look at these different sources of information because you want to really be objective. So there's two groups in this, sources. There's an objective and there's subjective. I'll explain what they are. So the first one is the Bible.
[15:06]You know, it's just amazing that we keep going back to this, but how much you understand or how quickly you see God's kind of revelation in your life also depends on how much you know about the Bible.
[15:23]And I'm not the one saying I know a lot of these things too. I don't think any one of us would remember all the verses we read like 10 years ago. I used to journal. I used to write the notebook and that was really nice. Especially during COVID time that was wonderful. And I should be doing that more. I've been doing the electronic, but it's not the same. But the point is, you know, if you meditate, you write down notes, it's nice to go back later to review your notes and maybe look at what happened in the past. But the more you read the Bible, attend sermons, Bible studies, the more you know about verses you keep, you hold them, they're really treasures. Members, at some point in your life, they will come back to you and help you when you reflect and finally decide what to do. So I could never stress enough that the Bible is a really very important source of information. Secondly, we have to understand the situation. I just said earlier, you know, I hope you don't judge people just by what we see because the heart is very complex. But when you make a decision, you have to study. You know, like say you want to relocate to a different state. You want to take your family there. And so you have to study like, okay, does it make sense? Do I have a job? You know, there's a place for us to stay. You know, how will this impact my wife, my kids? And so you have to do your research. and, you know, it's basically your own. You spend time before you make a decision.
[16:51]I like what's mentioned here that Grudem is saying that he likes the word imagination. So when we plan ahead, like you plan, like say you want to have a baby and you cannot have a baby and you have these options, you want to have in vitro fertilization, you want to have adoption, you have to do your research. You really have to study, but it's more than that doing the research. You also have to say, well, what if any of these things don't work? What if they don't work? You have to have the question of what might be, what is plan? In my work, I have plans A, B, and C in what I do. So that's normal for me. But what if what you want or what you're asking God is not going to be granted to you? What happens next? So you always have to have that. As much as you want to know the facts, but you also have to have the what if. But what if is still part of God's sovereignty. Because He gave us imagination and He gave us the ability to kind of see through all these different situations. But we always have to have that. But at the end of the day, like I said, previously, once you act in faith, then you should not doubt. You should let God's will take its course. Thirdly, information about oneself. Can somebody read Romans 12.3, please? Thank you.
[18:17]As I was, yeah, I've always held on to this verse. Part of what I do, I have to be humble all the time and kind of understand my limitations. But really, as a person, I believe this is a good principle in life. You know, kind of you look yourself in sober judgment, know your limitations. Don't think of yourself more highly than you ought to think. And, you know, there are things that we are good at and we can say that, you know, I'm better at what I do. But if you say that in your ability, I still think that they'll be honoring, God honoring. So what this is saying is that when you try to make a decision, like say, you know, Leonora, he's got three children who want to go to school. She has to ask herself, am I strong enough? Do I have the energy? Do I have the motivation to take care of these kids and go to school and spend time? And do I have the savings to be able to do this, to pull this through? Do I have the support system? And then she's going to say, I don't have a support system. I need a support system. I have to look for a support system. Or say that I don't have enough savings. I got to get a loan.
[19:26]But sometimes, so what I like about this is that you really have to humble yourself, make yourself vulnerable in this kind of situation and say that, I don't know, I need help. And just by saying that, it's a good first step actually towards getting there, understanding that you need help from others.
[19:48]So part of the pitfalls that we have when we make decisions sometimes is we think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think, which is true, very true. And so it requires a lot of time in prayer and asking God to reveal your true self. Sometimes we don't know ourselves. We ask our spouse or family members to tell us who we are. We have to accept what they say. So that's kind of a good way of part of trying to understand when you make a decision. Number four, advice from others. Advice from others. You know, we have lots of wonderful people here in church. You can seek attention. You can seek counsel and ask for help in certain situations. Of course, you also have to sort of seek out people who might know your background, your history, and things you're thinking about.
[20:36]But it is a good guideline to sort of really get, especially those who have been in this road before, who have seen different situations, they can help you navigate through what you're going through. So Romans 15, 14 basically says to instruct one another. Proverbs 11, 14 talks about the abundance. In the abundance of counselor, there is safety. So truly, it encourages us to do that. If you're an introvert, you know what? You can still find somebody to talk to in church here. I mean, we all have our own personalities. I'm sure you're going to be able to connect with somebody that you can talk to. and just approach that person, I'm sure that that person will be happy to sort of share you the advice. Number five, changes in circumstances.
[21:32]Navigating Changes in Circumstances
[21:32]Grudem gives us an example of Gideon, you know, when he asked for the miracle of the fleece of wool in Judges 6. I think that was sort of the best example in terms of circumstances, asking for something, right?
[21:53]Not really your ideal example because Gideon kind of questioned God's response and asked for another miracle.
[22:01]Sometimes when we are praying for something, our circumstance change. Like say, for example, a person who is trying to help his dad make a decision, and then the dad showed signs of recovery, you know? So that changes things, right?
[22:19]And so your question like, oh, a circumstance change? Does it mean that this is God's answer? So there's a good example of Paul when they were in Athens. And in Athens, there were people who weren't accepting them. They were really resistant to the message that Paul and his mission. And so he decided to leave Athens and go to Corinth. And so in the verses there, in Corinthians, it talks about God opening the door. And so Paul went to another city because God opened the door. So that opened the door is also applicable to us every day. The ability to see the open door is really inward. It's really the Spirit leaving us and leading us. And it's also about where you are at the time that the door opened. You know, what your heart condition is at that time the door opened. So we have to be mindful of changed circumstances. Changed circumstances doesn't really mean that's the answer. But if your heart is aligned with God and the Scriptures, you're going to be able to discern if that is a message for you or not.
[23:32]Number six, conscience. Conscience is something that people know. It is an instinctive inward sense of right and wrong.
[23:43]The Role of Conscience in Decisions
[23:43]Can I have somebody read 1 Peter 3.16, please? And then somebody's reading, get ready for Acts 24.16. So it's clearly stated there that part of what you do, you want to have a clear conscience. So like when you already made up your plan, you decided this is what you're going to do, you have to be able to go to sleep at night. You got to be able to walk and say, I did it with clear conscience.
[24:13]But also, Grudem and the Bible also tells us that not everybody has a similar level of consciences. So there are people with weak conscience and people with strong conscience. So conscience sort of is inner, you know, kind of inward. It's innate.
[24:32]But it's also developed by how we're nurtured and the people we're around and how you're raised in your family and, you know, the biblical references you have. So we have to be careful. Some people have big consciousness and you can't really use that to direct you, right? So, um, If you have time, just read this. It's in 1 Timothy 1, 18 to 19. But this is really a good example of what happens when a person rejects their conscience. So the conscience is giving a strong signal. You reject it. There are consequences to this. So again, this is a good reference for us. I'm going to move on because I don't have a lot of time here. So number seven is the heart. So there's going to be the last three is the subjective portion. One is the heart. The heart is the inward center of a person's deepest moral and spiritual inclinations and convictions, especially in a relationship to God. So remember, this guidance is given to Christians because at the end of the day, who cares about God's will if you're not a Christian, right? So why do we even care about God's will? because at the end of the day, we want His pleasure. We want His honor. We want His smile on His face. That's really what we want. But Christians don't really care about this, but we care.
[26:00]So here, you have to look at your heart. We talked about that. And it says here that for a person to sort of, if you really want to, you say, how do I tune my heart? How do I make my heart to be in tune with God? You know, how do we do that? You do that by walking in obedience in the Lord. So, you know,
[26:27]Seeking Guidance from the Holy Spirit
[26:24]day to day, you know, live that out. Stay in fellowship with Him. Fellowship with Him through prayer, through others. Go to church and with other believers. Regular prayer. And of course, Bible reading. So these things, you put them together, you practice every day. it will sort of tune your heart to sort of be in tune with God. And I think that's important. Any questions? You're still awake, so that's a good sign. Okay.
[26:54]Number eight. This is interesting because I didn't really think of it this way. So one of the sources of information is a person's human spirit. Not holy spirit, but person's human spirit. So like, what is human spirit? Is that a soul? So the way he describes this is a human spirit is a non-material part of a person. The part that survives in the person's physical body dies. So Romans 8.16 differentiates this from the Holy Spirit. This is not the Holy Spirit. Okay. So I want to just bring up this verse. I thought this is relevant. I've experienced this. I'm sure some of you have. Somebody can read Acts 17.16. So this is an example that Paul was sensing something, something not right, something that's a negative baby. You know, we've had a situation where you felt the oppressive spirit in the room. And that is our human spirit. And I think that in a way, I've experienced something like that. When you experience something like that, you have to ask for discernment. So when you're in a situation trying to make a decision and you're sensing something that's probably not right, maybe something that you feel there in the spiritual plane, there's something else that's happening in that particular situation, then you have to acknowledge that's real. And all the more you have to hold on to God's word and the Spirit to lead you.
[28:24]Because it's real. We cannot ignore that. And lastly, the guidance from the Holy Spirit. And, you know, Romans 8.14 talks about that. But at the end of the day, I ask myself, you know, when we ask for God's will, right? We want to please God. But what does the Holy Spirit really give us? Anybody? How do you know that you're truly at the center of God's will and you're doing the right thing? There you go. Thank you. Peace. That peace is immovable peace. That's peace. It doesn't matter what the weather, the world condition is. That peace is something that we seek. And non-Christians don't know that. But that peace, that means you really walk on water. That peace is, I've experienced that and I wish you could experience that every day. I wish for all of you to experience that because it's amazing. It's like truly what the Bible says. You know, right, Howard? It's really unmovable. And you know that God's with you in front, next, behind you. You're all protected. That is the Holy Spirit. That's really where it's important to seek the Holy Spirit in everything that we do. So in the secular world, you say, you know, I'm asking for the Holy Spirit. And they say, oh, so your feelings, you feel good. You feel that this is the right thing to do. And we have to say to them, no, it's not a feeling. It's real. It's the Holy Spirit in me. And of course, it's a testimony and how you share it to others.
[29:51]But to be able to understand that feelings can also be subjective and influence by what's going on around us. So, just seek God to give you the clear idea of what's going on and understand truly, you know, what's happening in that room in that particular situation. At the end of the day, like, gosh, there's so many things to remember. I mean, really, I had to go through this and I make a decision what to do. But, of course, what did we say in James 1? At the end of the day, ask God. Simple. At the end of the day, be humble and ask God. So I have eight more minutes. Acquiring wisdom. So next slide, please. So this is really important, and this is a lot. You can use your reference here.
[30:42]So how do we really know what God's will, right? So you say we pray, we read the Bible, we fellowship. But then how do we get the skills, how do we get the knowledge?
[30:55]Acquiring Wisdom for Life Decisions
[30:54]So he talks about wisdom. It's a moral vision. It's basically understanding what is right and what is not right beyond the influences of this world. So, you know, and it's really, you know, so number one, we know this, wisdom comes from God. So we have to believe that God's wisdom is superior to us. We also have to believe that we are never going to know the answer in our lifetime. Maybe we're going to have part of the answer. Even God's will, God's answer to you, of course, why do you have to move like for us? Why did we come to Duluth? I'm sure there's the reasons why we're here, but I'm sure there's more than that that I don't know. I'm not going to know in my lifetime.
[31:38]But that's part of faith, right? Sometimes God just gives you, if God gives you only 10% of the answer, that should be good enough for you. Just go. You might not have the 90%. He'll reveal that later on, maybe. When the time comes, He will. But 10% is enough. If it's 10% from God, that's better than 90% from the world, right? Right? So that's important, you know, that we have to believe that God, that we believe it, truly. And again, there's a lot of references there. I'm going to leave you to look at that. What I like about that is in Philippians chapter 1, verses 9 to 10, it says, We have to ask God to give us wisdom so we can approve what is excellent. And so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. I love that. This is amazing. That's just really good. And excellent is something that we are never going to be able to achieve because it's really, truly God-centered. There's excellence. In my world, secular, there's excellence. But our excellence is not even close to God's excellence. So we trust that God will give us that excellence.
[32:43]It's unmatched. And we have to believe that. Next, wisdom comes from the scriptures. I think it's clear. Third, I want to spend time on this because it says, wisdom comes with the fear of God. So like, okay, what is he saying, fear of God? So there's really kind of, Christian, as a Christian, there's kind of three fears that we have to look at, fear of God. So there's a fear of eternal condemnation, which thankfully we are spared because we are saved in Christ. But really the fear of God in a Christian should be the fear of displeasing God or grieving the Holy Spirit. And also the fear of God's fatherly discipline.
[33:26]So, if you say, well, God is love, why do we have to have that? Because a healthy fear is actually a very good thing to have. A healthy fear is a, I'm sure if I were to ask Joseph why he he fled Potiphar's wife is because he's got this fear and that fear is innate. And when we have that fear, And if you feel that, you have to listen to it. Healthy fear is really good. And again, there's verses in your outline that talks about that. And also Romans 3.10 to 18, which you can read later as reference, it tells you what happens to people who do not fear God. So it's going to say that they might be successful in life. They might have all these things that they have. And you hear stories about people who have everything but never happy or maybe they'll took their own lives because at the end of the day, it's not something that is so satisfying in their lives. And that satisfaction is not outwards, it's the heart satisfaction and only God can give that. And that's what we seek for when we ask for God's will.
[34:37]So next is obedience comes with knowledge. And again, knowledge comes with reading and knowing God's word and talking to people. Wisdom comes with obedience to God. Wisdom comes with accepting counsel from others. Wisdom comes with humility. And finally, as much as Howard said that we want to have peace in our decision, when you made the wise decision, you'll have joy. And that joy is not like, oh, I'm happy because I got what I wanted. No, because you felt like you found God's will and you did it. You know, it's not a good feeling like, I did it. I felt good. I connected.
[35:19]Applying Lessons to Daily Life
[35:20]So I'm going to move on to the next slides. And again, the rest is going to be assignment. But in your slides, I have this little table. Can I did this? You see that is green here, but it's called living application. And what I like to do when you go home is you write the activity and you say, do I pray for this? So example, I get up in the morning, I exercise or I eat breakfast. Do I have to pray for that? I drive to work. Do I have to pray for driving to work? So it's just kind of nice thinking like the things you do every day, how much time do you spend praying about these things? So in your own spare time, maybe in your journal, do that. That'd be great. But the next part in your outline, page four, and I'd like you to spend time on this, is question for reflection. So what are these really things we talked about? It's nice to sort of apply the things we talked about because I did all the talking. I apologize. But it's really nice to ask the question and see if you can answer these questions in your own mind. And it's also a good self-reflection.
[36:26]And my favorite part is in page five. So what I did was I took all the verses from this chapter, I converted them into a prayer. So you can choose one line there and say, the first one is, ask God for humility and to understand the weight of your heart in everyday decisions. So I love to pray using the Bible. So you read the scriptures and you pray and maybe use it as your prayer list every week, whatever. But it's a good way to reveal to us God's will. So I'm going to end there. I'm sorry, I don't have time. I only have one minute for questions. Any questions?
[37:03]Closing Prayer and Reflection