Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201914S
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00:01 ♪♪ ♪♪
00:11 >> It has stood the test of time -- 00:15 God's book, the Bible, still relevant 00:20 in today's complex world. "It Is Written" -- 00:26 Sharing messages of hope around the world. 00:31 ♪♪ ♪♪ 00:48 ♪♪ 00:57 >> ♪ Fairest Lord Jesus ♪ Ruler of all nature ♪ O Thou of God 01:10 ♪ And man the Son ♪ Thee will I cherish ♪ Thee will I honor 01:26 ♪ Thou art my glory, joy, and crown ♪ ♪♪ 01:40 >> ♪ Fair are the meadows ♪ Fairer still the woodlands ♪ Robed in the blooming garb 01:55 of spring ♪ ♪ Jesus is fairer ♪ Jesus is purer 02:10 ♪ Who makes the woeful heart to sing ♪ ♪♪ 02:23 >> ♪ Beautiful savior ♪ Lord of the nations ♪ Son of God 02:37 ♪ And Son of man ♪ Glory and honor ♪ Praise, adoration 02:53 ♪ Now and forever ♪ Forevermore be Thine ♪ Now and forevermore 03:11 be Thine ♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:34 >> What a beautiful song. 03:36 And here we are at Fountainview Academy with a few students, 03:39 with Miranda and Martessa and Cambria, and they're 03:41 gonna share with us what does it mean 03:43 to be a Christian and how do you become a Christian. 03:46 But I want to talk about that song, "Fairest Lord Jesus." 03:48 What does it mean to you? 03:50 >> Yeah, well, for me, "Fairest Lord Jesus" really means a lot to me because 03:56 it's talking about praising God. And as a Christian, praising God has been 04:02 the most fulfilling part, at least so far in my Christian walk. 04:05 And I know that, for me, recently, I've spent a lot of time in nature. 04:11 And when you look at nature, nature is God's second book, and He uses it to reveal 04:17 Himself to us. And sometimes I'll go outside, and I'll spend some time 04:23 just reflecting on Him, and I'll look at the things around me, like the mountains. 04:26 I'll look up at the mountains, and I can tell God, "Thank you so much. 04:31 You are an amazing God whose promises last forever, who is sturdy and strong 04:38 like a mountain." And for me, that has given me so much peace 04:41 because when I look at how great He is, my problems become so small and so insignificant. 04:47 And that has really changed my life, is just praising God and receiving that peace 04:52 that He promises. >> Praising God is very important. 04:56 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verse...I think it's verse 14, 04:58 where He says that we should rejoice at all times. 05:02 It's good for us. We feel good. 05:04 We enjoy being around people who are happy and rejoicing. 05:07 And so if God is so good to us that He takes care of us, you know, that's part 05:12 of being a Christian. I mean, it's a very central part. 05:14 Jesus said, "I have come to bring you joy and that your joy might be full." 05:18 So He wants us to be joyful, and He wants us to praise Him. So, Miranda? 05:23 >> So, yeah, and actually, in 2 Chronicles 20, there's a story that talks 05:27 about the tribe of Judah, and there were three nations that were coming 05:32 against the tribe of Judah. And they were afraid, and they went out to fight 05:38 these three nations, but they put the choir in front of the army, 05:43 and they were singing praises to God, and... >> How would you like 05:47 to be in that choir? [ Laughter ] >> That would be actually, like, 05:51 terrifying. >> That's true. >> So, these other guys are 05:53 standing there with swords coming towards you, and bow and arrow, 05:56 and you're just singing, and that's all you're doing, yeah. >> [ Laughing ] Yeah. 06:01 And they were praising God, and the enemy killed each other, and so they were completely 06:07 defeated just by praising God. >> Right. >> So they're praising God, 06:12 and the enemy starts turning on each other. They don't have anything 06:15 in their hands. They're not gonna fight against them. 06:17 They're just praising God, and God works on their behalf, or they themselves get 06:23 so freaked out that they start to fight against each other. That's...yeah. 06:26 >> Powerful. >> Powerful, yeah. >> There's actually a quote 06:29 that talks about this story in "Prophets and Kings" by Ellen G. White. 06:34 It talks about how this... When they were praising God, it was like their battle song. 06:41 And it's how they were defeated, is through that battle song where they were praising 06:47 and giving thanksgiving to God before they were even defeated. >> Yeah. 06:52 >> Yeah. >> So... >> So they were singing 06:55 a battle song. >> Yeah. >> And God was fighting 06:57 on their behalf. That's wonderful, yeah. Mm-hmm. 07:02 So, in terms of your Christian faith, has God fought on your behalf? 07:07 Has God been there for you and helped you to fight the battles of life 07:12 to be a Christian? And what has that meant to you and your personal experience? 07:18 >> So, for me, when I was younger, I remember having a great relationship with God, 07:24 and I was involved in church, my parents were involved in church. 07:29 But as I started getting older and as middle school started coming around and 07:34 I had trouble with friendships, my relationship with God just kind of dimmed out, 07:38 and I had a couple of experiences that really made me question, 07:44 like, is God even there for me? Like, where is He in my life? And I just kind of put God 07:51 on the back shelf after that, those experiences, and then I... A couple years later after that, 08:01 I had a couple of doctors appointments, and they told me that I had a mass and it could 08:08 possibly be cancerous. And so my parents and me, we talked to some doctors, 08:15 and they said the only option was to undergo surgery. And that was a really terrifying 08:22 time for me because I was like, "I don't know what's..." I had no control over my life 08:27 at that moment. And so it wasn't until I was actually about to go 08:32 into surgery that I was like, "God, you have to help me because I have no control 08:35 over this, and I don't know what's gonna happen to me." And so it wasn't until 08:41 after the surgery I found out that I was cancer-free, and it was amazing 08:48 because God -- even though I didn't have complete faith in God, God still 08:52 brought me through that. And then a year after that, or two, I came here 08:57 to Fountainview, and that was an amazing experience, and I was expecting 09:02 to get closer to God after this experience that He had brought me through. 09:07 And I made tons of friends, and it was great. And then at the end -- towards 09:14 the end of my junior year, I made some mistakes that I regret, 09:18 and God brought me through that. And at the end, I decided to recommit my life to Jesus. 09:25 And so I got rebaptized after that, and that was just, like, my testimony. 09:33 That's just... Like, I see it as getting closer to God, 09:38 and as like in an elevator, you're always going up. And even though I may fall and 09:45 even though I may make mistakes, Jesus is still there for me, and I'm always getting closer 09:50 to Him. >> That's a cool illustration. So, Paul says 09:54 we should be "in Christ." So, you're saying that getting into Christ is 09:58 like getting into an elevator. >> Exactly. >> And as that elevator door 10:01 opens up, we get in. >> Yeah. >> Door closes, 10:05 we start going up, and you fall down in the elevator. >> Yeah. 10:08 >> Are you still in a relationship with Jesus? >> Yes. 10:11 >> Yeah, even though you fell down, you're still going up with Christ. 10:14 >> Yeah. >> And He'll help you get back up so you can stand 10:17 in that relationship. >> Yeah, that's so true. >> Yeah, so, can you 10:22 relate to that, Martessa? >> Oh, yeah, I can actually relate a lot to your story 10:25 because, for me, I also started out as a young kid being pretty committed to God, 10:31 and my family was Christian, and we went to church every week. 10:35 We had Scripture memorization a lot, and I felt pretty close to God at that time in my life. 10:43 But, for me, my faith wasn't my own at that time. And because it wasn't my own, 10:47 I didn't embrace it. And as I got older, I started to follow my own desires, 10:53 and I started to really feed into the lie that the world has about instant gratification 10:58 and just taking everything that I wanted and not really thinking about the results. 11:04 And as I came to Fountainview, I started to change and realize this isn't the way 11:10 I wanted to go. And the problem was, it was really hard at that point 11:16 'cause I was struggling with myself and my habits and everything like that. 11:20 And I remember the turning point for me. I went to a revival seminar, 11:27 and my family wasn't able to attend, so I had to drive myself there 11:31 every single day, And it really changed my life, but the thing 11:36 that changed my life the most was actually a quote. And the one who did the seminar, 11:41 his name is Gary Venden, and this quote says that, "It's not about what you do -- 11:49 it's about who you know. And who you know will transform what you do." 11:53 And I had a lot of struggles with just letting God work. I tried to do everything 12:00 on my own, and this is when I realized that knowing God is what counts, not what I do. 12:05 And that's when I had that peace that I talked about earlier. >> Awesome, awesome. 12:10 And can you relate to that? >> Yeah, so, earlier this year, I went through this time 12:15 where I felt like God wasn't near, and, you know, I'd pray to Him, and I just felt like 12:21 my prayers were being bounced off the walls, and I didn't really... 12:25 I didn't see Him working in my life, and I just felt like He wasn't close to me. 12:31 But I believe that God taught me through that experience that it's not -- 12:38 Faith isn't a feeling. >> Mm-hmm. >> When you're a Christian, 12:42 you have to hope, and it's not a feeling that, "Oh, I feel like God is near. 12:49 I feel like He is answering my prayers." >> Yeah. 12:53 >> It's more like, just this hope that you cling to. And I realized that 12:58 God really taught me through that experience how to hope. And I also realized that 13:04 that's when He was closest to me because He was actually teaching me something. 13:08 >> Mm. >> And so it wasn't that He was -- He had just 13:11 left me. He was trying to teach me a lesson in hope 13:16 and trust and faith and not relying on my feelings. >> Mm. Wow. 13:24 Thank you for sharing that. And thank you, ladies. We're gonna have a break, 13:27 and right after that, we're gonna be back with some guys to talk to. 13:30 Thank you. >> Friends, thank you for remembering that 13:35 "It Is Written Canada" exists because of the kindness of people like you. 13:40 To support this life-changing ministry, please call us 13:44 now at 1-888-225-5449. You can also send 13:51 your tax-deductible gifts to the address on the screen, 13:55 or you can visit us online at ItIsWrittenCanada.ca. 14:00 >> And we will do everything we can to maximize your gift. 14:03 For example, a gift of $5 is enough for one episode 14:07 to be broadcasted to 50 households across Canada, 14:10 or a gift of $10 is enough to reach five individuals 14:15 with five heart-changing Bible lessons. 14:18 >> Friends, thank you so much for your financial support 14:21 and your prayers. Our number, again, 14:24 is 1-888-225-5449. Or you can visit us online 14:32 at ItIsWrittenCanada.ca. 14:37 >> So we're back, and we're with the guys. We're with Vinnie and Josh 14:41 and Cameron and David, and they're going to share what it means to be a Christian 14:46 for them personally. >> But before we talk to the students, 14:50 just listen to Joshua tell us about his Christian experience. ♪♪ 15:04 ♪♪ >> Jesus says, "Follow me." It's one of the easiest commands 15:15 in the Bible, one of the shortest ones -- only two words, 15:18 but it's so hard to obey. Every time, I try. I try to be patient. 15:24 I try to think good thoughts, to tell the whole truth, to do the right things that Jesus 15:28 would do, but somehow, I always come up short. I try to keep up with Jesus, 15:34 following Him on His path, but I always trip on a rock or run into a tree 15:39 or fall off a cliff. Even when I try my hardest and use all of my strength, 15:44 I'm useless. Why can't I just do it right? Am I just worthless? 15:51 I know He has a purpose for me, but if I can't even follow Him, how can He show it to me, 15:56 and how can I fulfill it? Why can't I just do what God designed me to do? 16:01 And if I can't, why am I here? I'm just an empty body. But that's why Jesus tells me 16:08 to follow Him, because when I follow, I'm not just walking behind Him. 16:12 He's leading. Like a shepherd, He tenderly guards His sheep, 16:17 going before me to make sure there's no danger ahead. He holds my hand, 16:22 so when I fall, He pulls me back up to my feet so I can keep following. 16:27 If I let go and I try to walk in my power, I'll still fall, but 16:30 His mighty arm will hold me up, reminding me to walk in His strength. 16:35 Letting Him lead, I can follow to fulfill his purpose for me. >> So Josh, you're talking there 16:44 about some really deep topics -- I mean, how you felt inside about Jesus' calling to you 16:49 to follow Him. Do you want to talk about that? >> Sure, so, for me, to follow 16:54 Jesus is, of course, the main part of being Christian, but it's also the hardest part. 16:58 'Cause if you've read any of the Gospels, you'll see that what Jesus did during His life 17:04 on Earth, where He walked, His walk wasn't an easy walk. >> That's right. 17:08 >> I like to think of it as one of our Fountainview hikes here, 'cause none of our 17:11 Fountainview hikes are easy. You're always going uphill, and it's always rugged terrain. 17:14 It's really hard. So, the hardest part is falling. >> Yeah. 17:18 >> And when you fall... It's hard to fall, 'cause you feel like you failed yourself. 17:23 But it's even worse to know that you failed Jesus, 'cause He's so loving 17:27 and He's so kind and He cares. He cares about you, and He wants you to follow. 17:31 And then you fall, and you ask for forgiveness. Then you fall again, 17:34 and you ask for forgiveness, and you fall again. And it's, each time, 17:36 promising, "Yes, Lord, I'll follow you this time, and I'll do the right thing." 17:39 But when you fall, it just gets harder and harder to ask for forgiveness 17:42 'cause you know you're letting Him down over and over again. >> Yeah. 17:45 >> It's almost like it messes with your pride. >> Yeah. 17:49 >> So you have to release all your pride. You have to give it up to ask 17:52 forgiveness over and over. >> Yeah. >> And that's the hardest part 17:55 about being a Christian. >> I think that's the biggest thing, right? 17:58 I mean, it's a pride issue, but it's also an issue of, I realize I need a savior. 18:05 I can't save myself. I know the right things to do, but I don't always 18:10 do the right things. >> Exactly. >> So being a Christian isn't 18:13 just "being good," right? 18:16 It's knowing Jesus, as He says in John 17:3. 18:23 It says, "To know God is eternal life," 18:25 and He wants us to know Him. 18:27 That's not just talking about time. It's talking about 18:30 a relationship. And so when you have that relationship with Him, 18:33 you don't want to break that relationship. And so that is very 18:38 disappointing that we do fall, but we realize He is our savior, and He lifts us up, yeah. 18:45 Can you relate to that, Cameron? >> Yeah, my Christian... The way I view 18:52 my Christian experience is a little different, but it's different because 18:56 my entire life, growing up, I've been in the Church. You know, you go to church. 19:02 It's kind of like a tradition thing or kind of like just, you do what your family does. 19:06 And I've called myself a Christian my entire life, but I'm coming to learn now, 19:14 and I'm learning now. It's a continuous journey, but I'm learning now especially 19:18 that, for me, being a Christian is that choice you make every single morning 19:23 and every single moment when you're faced with a decision. It's choosing to follow Jesus 19:29 because you're actually choosing. You're making that choice. 19:32 And what happened before in my life is, I would just do things 19:37 because my family did it or because I was told to. It wasn't a decision of mine. 19:42 So I'm coming to discover that I actually haven't been a Christian my entire life, 19:46 but it's more so, truthfully, like, meaningfully being a Christian, 19:53 I've only been, like, a truthful meaning Christian for like a year and a half now. 19:57 But it's amazing how after every decision you make to continue following Christ, 20:02 how He blesses you and how He continues to lead you. >> Yeah. 20:05 >> And I feel like in, at least, my own experience... I haven't experienced a lot, 20:12 like, a lot to, like... I don't have this great, like, extremely, 20:17 you know, amazing testimony, but from what I've already experienced, the little things, 20:22 I know that God is there, and I know that He's the only... He is the only thing that is 20:28 truly solid and that will last till eternity. >> Mm-hmm. 20:33 >> He's the only thing that's meaningful. >> Yeah, yeah, and so that's the 20:36 why -- why are you a Christian. >> Right. >> Yeah, because 20:40 He's given meaning to your life. >> Mm-hmm. >> Yeah, and what about how? 20:45 How do we get to know God? Are there any practical steps that we can do? 20:51 Are there things that you can think of that... of how to be a Christian? 20:56 What things would you do to get to know Him? >> Well, for me, 21:02 being at Fountainview... I know a lot of times at home what kept me from, you know, 21:10 getting to know God or really, I guess, pursuing my walk with Him was distractions. 21:15 And they're prevalent a lot, you know, in our world today. You have your phone ringing 21:20 constantly or notifications, things like that. But being here at Fountainview, 21:26 where it's kind of... You're surrounded by nature, and they give you 21:29 many opportunities to go out, take hikes, and just have that quiet time in the morning. 21:35 For me, one of the things that has helped me to get to know God was discovering 21:40 and understanding the truth, that getting to know God is not always going to be 21:46 an amazing feeling. There's a quote that has profoundly impacted me 21:51 this year, and it was that, "80% of your life and 80% of your spiritual walk 21:55 is showing up." And to me, what that means to me is, you may not feel the 21:59 feelings, but you keep showing up because you know ultimately that God is the only thing that 22:06 will give your life meaning, which goes back to the thing that God gives 22:10 your life meaning. >> For me, showing up is reading my Bible. 22:13 >> Mm-hmm. >> It's praying. >> Right. 22:16 >> And just the outflow of those is to share that with others, yeah. 22:20 >> Mm-hmm. >> What about yourself, Vinnie? >> My experience, I can totally 22:24 relate to Cameron, because before, I would go to church 'cause it was the tradition 22:32 in our family, right. I would pray and stuff 'cause my parents told me to do it. 22:39 But I think you become a Christian when you make it your own. 22:44 I know that might sound, like, cliché a little bit, but if you think about it, like, 22:49 when you make it your own, it's like your own decision, right. 22:52 And you accept it yourself that you want to follow Jesus, you want to be like Jesus. 22:57 So, in my experience, and what I think to be a Christian would be making it your own -- 23:03 like, deciding for yourself. >> Yeah, it has to be your own. It's your own personal 23:07 relationship. Yeah, excellent. David? >> Personally, I know that for 23:14 me what it means to be Christian is trusting that God knows what's best for your life 23:19 and that ultimately He will make the right decisions for you. About a year and a half ago, 23:26 I was diagnosed with a spitzoid melanoma, which is a type of skin cancer. 23:29 And at this point, I was probably like 15. And it just, like... 23:34 It really struck me hard because I couldn't understand why God would allow something 23:37 like this to happen to me, 'cause, you know, I had been a devout Christian all my life, 23:42 and I just, like... I struggled, but through it... you know, through it, later on 23:46 in time, I just, like... God was able to show me that, yes, this was bad, and, 23:56 you know, it was a bad thing, but through this, I could now help other people 24:02 because I could relate to them, and, like that, I could be a witness for God, you know. 24:08 And although it might've been ugly, it actually came out to be more 24:12 of a blessing in the end. >> Mm-hmm. >> So I think trusting that 24:15 God knows what's best from the very beginning and knowing that, yeah, 24:18 He'll have the best plan for your life. >> Thanks for sharing that. 24:22 We're gonna go to a song -- "Be Thou My Vision," and the guys are gonna be 24:26 singing that song. So, let's watch that together. ♪♪ 24:36 ♪♪ >> ♪ Be Thou my vision ♪ O Lord of my heart 24:52 ♪ Naught be all else to me ♪ Save that Thou art ♪ Thou my best thought 25:08 ♪ By day or by night ♪ Waking or sleeping ♪ Thy presence, my light 25:25 ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 25:52 ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 26:20 ♪ High King of Heaven ♪ When victory is won ♪ May I reach Heaven's joys 26:36 ♪ O bright Heaven's sun ♪ Heart of my own heart ♪ Whatever befall 26:52 ♪ Still be my vision ♪ O ruler of all ♪♪ 27:10 ♪♪ 27:20 >> Well, that was a beautiful song. Thank you so much, David, 27:23 for sharing that with us. >> And thank you very much for sharing your stories, guys. 27:28 Friends, we have to remember the words of Jesus because when we talk about Christianity, 27:32 it's really about Jesus. 27:34 And in John 15:5, He says, "Apart from Me, 27:38 you can do nothing." Let's pray to Him right now. 27:42 Let's close our eyes. Father in Heaven, as we have been sharing 27:48 our experience with You, and You want each one of us to own that experience, 27:52 to have it as our own. And we thank You that You want us to know You 27:56 and that to know You is eternal life, that this is the testimony, 28:00 the Scriptures say, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 28:06 Help us, Lord, to fight that good fight of faith, that we will take hold 28:10 of eternal life. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. >> Amen. 28:16 >> So, friends, thank you for joining us again, and remember the words of Jesus -- 28:19 "It is written: 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from 28:25 the mouth of God.'" 28:27 ♪♪ ♪♪ 28:43 ♪♪ ♪♪ |
Revised 2020-05-20