Nicole C. Mullen & Tim Timberlake: Being Courageous To Do What Is Right | Takeaways with Kirk Cameron

October 27, 2025 | 54:42

Kirk Cameron is joined by singer & songwriter, Nicole C.Mullen and pastor Tim Timberlake sharing strategies of how to make godly and courageous decisions in the midst of difficult situations.

#Author #Morals #Character #Integrity #Calling #Culture #SeekGod #Bible #WomenoftheBible #Choices #Courage #PersonalStory #Testimony #Trials-HardTimes

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Takeaways with Kirk Cameron | Nicole C. Mullen & Tim Timberlake: Being Courageous To Do What Is Right | Takeaways with Kirk Cameron | October 27, 2025

Kirk cameron: there's a line of dialogue in
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One of the harry potter movies where
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Two of the main characters are talking
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About their world turning more wicked, and headmaster
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Dumbledore tells harry, "dark and difficult times lie ahead.
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Soon we must all face the choice between what is right and what
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Is easy."
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That's a true statement for any of us needing courage to make
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Godly decisions in hard situations.
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There's a lot to risk if you do, and there's a lot more to risk
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If you don't.
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My guests today, nicole c. mullen and tim timberlake will
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Be sharing the struggles and the strategies of doing the right
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Thing in the midst of tough circumstances and why it's
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Always worth it.
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So let's get to it right now on "takeaways."
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Nicole mullen: and a lot of times we don't realize, kirk,
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How our little decisions of faith and of doing the right
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Thing can facilitate years and years and years of fitness.
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Tim timberlake: one of the greatest tools the enemy uses,
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Distractions, disruptions, and delays.
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And if we can see past those things, we can actually see the
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Purpose of the plan of god in our lives.
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[music]
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Kirk: my first guest is a multiple dove award winning
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And grammy nominated singer-songwriter.
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She's known worldwide for songs like "redeemer"
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And "call on jesus."
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Nicole c. mullen is a sought-after speaker, and she's
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Authored her latest book entitled "it's never wrong to do
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The right thing."
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Nicole, thanks so much for coming on "takeaways."
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Nicole: aww, thank you so much for having me.
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Kirk: yeah, you know, we all know you as a singer-songwriter,
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And you've been so successful at doing all that, why go toward
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Authoring books?
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Nicole: because normally when you write songs, you only get
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Four minutes.
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When you write a book, you can expound.
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No, you know there's plenty of things that the lord has placed
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On my heart that i love sharing about, you know, i love
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Testifying about, and at the same time i've had so many
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Conversations from so many women across the globe about doing the
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Right thing, about being in the right posture before the lord,
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About being courageous in this day and time, and so i wanted to
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Share from what the lord has done in my life, from the
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Different characters from the bible and contemporary figures
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That have really encouraged me in my walk, so i want to share
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It so that i can see them rise up and be who god has called
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Them to be as well.
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Kirk: i love that, because so many of us listen to your songs,
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And we're inspired by the music and the lyrics, but we want to
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Know how do we download that into my life and have more
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Inspiration to be able to be one of those heroes?
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How did you choose the stories that you wanted to be in
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Your book?
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Nicole: well, these have been some of my sheroes and heroes.
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Kirk: your sheroes and heroes.
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Nicole: sheroes and heroes, like they really have been.
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Now, some of them, of course we didn't live in the same, you
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Know, time frame, but like i say all the time, like people like
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Abigail in the bible, she's one of those unsung heroes.
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Kirk: yeah, tell me about abigail, because i don't often
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Hear about her.
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Nicole: no, we don't.
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Kirk: i hear about esther, but i don't hear about abigail.
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Nicole: we don't hear about abigail, but i have loved her,
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Kirk, since i was a little girl.
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You know, she's the one that she has one of those stories where,
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You know, it's kind of that, i don't know backwards cinderella
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Kind of a thing, where here she is, the bible describes her as
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Being beautiful and intelligent, and she's married to somebody
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Who's kinda on the rude side of life, you know?
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And it's during the time of david.
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You know, he had already been anointed king, he had already
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Killed the lion, the bear, and the giant, and now he's on the
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Run, because saul wants to hunt him down.
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And so now, you know, david's looking for a place, and david
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Comes across the property where abigail and her husband nabal,
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That they own, and david is, you know, he's taking care of all of
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Their property, their sheep, and all of that, and david is
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Hungry, him and his men, so they're like, hey, can you go in
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And ask nabal for some food?
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Well, long story short, nabal is rude, and david is about to come
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And kill everybody in the household, and so abigail hears
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About it, and she has to make a quick decision, a decision of
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Righteousness, a decision of wisdom, and so she runs
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Interference on behalf of the safety of her whole household,
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And because of that, she actually encourages david not to
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Seek revenge, not to avenge himself on behalf of his enemies
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But to allow the lord to do it, and so david stays his hand,
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Long story short, and david does the right thing, and her
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Husband, sadly enough, because when he heard of what his wife
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Had done in order to save the household, his heart hardened.
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The bible says his heart became a stone, so either he had a
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Heart attack or he just became callous, and the bible says that
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Ten days later, the lord struck him, and he died.
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And then before you know it, david takes abigail to be one of
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His wives, and she becomes royalty eventually, but the
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Bible just-- i love the description of who she is and
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How in the midst of a hard situation, in the midst of, you
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Know, either she could have chosen to be a sapphira to
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Ananias and go along with like we know in the new testament
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Where ananias is doing the wrong thing and his wife decided to
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Side with him in the wrong thing, and it cost them their
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Lives, both of them.
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Or she could decide to say, you know, in the midst of the wrong
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I'm going to be honorable, i'm gonna be respectful, but i'm
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Going to honor god even in this right here and walk upright, and
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She did it, and it was life for her and life for her household
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And eventually an upgrade to royalty for herself.
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Kirk: yeah, and there's so many stories like that in the bible,
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Many of them we haven't even heard about because they're
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Lesser-known sheroes.
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And then in your book, you're also giving us all of the shero
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Stories of other women in your life that are modern-day heroes.
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You also are transparent about your story and decisions that
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You have made, some of them good, some of them not so good,
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And you talk about a decision that you made when you were
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About 20 years old, and it takes courage to tell the whole story.
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It's one of the things i love about the bible, too, is it
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Doesn't sugarcoat everything, and you get these real people
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That they're not paragons of the lord's virtue and character and
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Faith and all that stuff, but that's why we relate to them.
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So can you talk and share a little bit about what you've
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Written about past decisions that have led you down dark
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Roads and how you found safety and freedom on the other side?
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Nicole: absolutely, i grew up in a christian home.
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My parents were deacons in the church.
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My grandparents were pentecostal pastors on both sides of
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The family.
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I love to say we were in church like nine, ten days a week, like
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All the time, you know, i grew up in the church.
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But at at around the age of 8, i gave my heart to christ,
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Catechism at 12, bible school at 17, i moved to dallas from
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Cincinnati, and you know, i met someone after i graduated from
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Bible school, and i thought he was the one.
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He said the right things, he looked as if he was the right
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Person for the part, and i-- on our first date he proposed to
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Me, and i told my mom, and she said this ain't god, you know?
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And i was like, ooh, but i feel like now i have to prove that i
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Can hear from god myself because i'm grown, i'm almost-- i'll be
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21 before we know it, you know?
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And i proceeded to say i do but i didn't have the heart to tell
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Them at the time, by the time the wedding came around that he
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Had already hit me the first time, and so for the next three
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Years after i said i do, it was a series of domestic violence
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From being grabbed by the heels, kicked in the ribs, punched in
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The face, he'd play in the knife drawer, and over and over he
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Would yell a question at me, and the question that he would ask
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And answer would be, nicole, what is your purpose in life?
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And then he would answer, and he would say that's your problem,
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You have no purpose in life.
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And i remember sitting there, kirk, so many times thinking,
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Okay, like, i don't have the courage to articulate my
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Rebuttal, but on the inside i was saying i do have a purpose,
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I do have a purpose, because i was remembering the god of the
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Universe, the god of the bible through the person of jesus
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Christ, i was remembering these stories of how god had taken a
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Smelly shepherd boy named david and made him into a king.
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I had remembered stories of how he had taken an orphan girl
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Named esther, made her into a queen, and i had learned that
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The same god who did that still does things like that today.
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And so i wasn't able to articulate it, but i would rebut
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On the inside saying i do have a purpose, i do have a purpose.
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And later on i would recall a passage of scripture that i had
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Memorized when i was 17 years old and i had challenged myself
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To memorize the whole book of rom-- or the whole chapter of
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Romans 8. and we quote this verse all the time, kirk, and
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It's the 28th verse, and it says, "but we know that all
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Things work together for good to them that love god."
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That's the qualifier, he was gonna work everything together
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For my good, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
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Like, he said according to his purpose, so i didn't have to
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Have my own purpose.
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If i loved god, i was called according to his purpose, and
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Therefore he was gonna work even the broken pieces of my life
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Together for his good.
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And years later he has given me songs in the night, he has taken
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Me around the world singing for him.
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He has done more in my life than i could have ever dreamed,
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Because i was called not according to my own purpose but
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According to his purpose.
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Kirk: right, right, and i'm curious to know who are the
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Heroes that were there to support you during that dark
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Chapter of your story?
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Nicole: wow, the biblical ones, of course, the abigails, the
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Ones i was saying, but also my mom is one of those, you know?
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There's a chapter in the book called "a shero named mom,"
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You know?
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And mom was one of those people who prayed for me, my dad as
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Well, he has always loved the lord, he has modeled the father,
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The heart of the father very well for me.
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I've had some rocky times, i have had some ups and downs, i
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Still consider myself a work in progress, i'm under
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Construction, but i'm so grateful to my father who
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Resides in heaven right now.
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He went to be with the lord in 2016, but he modeled the lord
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And the heart of the father, like i said, very, very well to
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Where i could never say all men are dot, dot, dot.
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I could never say, well, you know, i've been abused, i've
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Been betrayed, i've been abandoned, i've been there, but
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At the same time i've seen the heart of the redeemer show up in
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Every season of my life in the form of people, but even more so
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In the form of himself in his presence.
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Kirk: you're like a trusted guide for others who are trying
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To walk down that road, and they feel like it's just it's dark in
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Front of them, or it's foggy, and they can't see clearly, what
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Would you say to someone who's listening to us right now that's
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Trying to find their way forward after making past
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Unwise decisions?
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Nicole: well, you're the kind of person jesus came for.
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Like, that's-- i mean, honestly, none of us are perfect.
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We don't come to christ because we have it all together, we come
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Because we don't, and oftentimes he uses our weaknesses to make
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Us hunger and thirst for his goodness, for his kindness.
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And so i would say that you are one breath, one sentence away.
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He says if you draw near to him, he would draw near to you, and
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That drawing near can be in the form of i need you.
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God, can you help me?
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Jesus, can you save me?
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And when we utter those words when our hearts are inclined
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Toward him, he shows up, and he loves on us.
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And so if you're broken, if you're wounded, if you've made
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Bad decisions, if you have shame, if you have heartache,
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You're the person he came to save.
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He didn't come for the righteous, he came for the
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Sinner, and that's how we all qualify.
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Kirk: that's right.
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Oh, wow, i can't wait to dig in more to your book and hear more
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Stories of these heroes and sheroes, but what you just said
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Is exactly how we turn regret into renewal, and we're gonna
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Talk more about it in just a minute.
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When we come back, nicole is gonna share about some of her
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Favorite heroes of the faith from the bible and from her
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Own family.
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And then later, pastor tim timberlake is gonna join us and
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Share his insights on navigating through hard seasons of life
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With wisdom and courage, so stay with us.
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Tim: i think that when we honor what we know
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God is doing on the inside of us,
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A delay is preparation for something greater.
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[music]
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[music]
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[music]
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Kirk: welcome back everybody.
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We're talking with nicole c. mullen about her latest book,
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"it's never wrong to do the right thing."
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I love that story that you told about abigail, and i wanna hear
00:13:00.907 --> 00:13:04.310
Another one about someone that we might not know too well,
00:13:04.310 --> 00:13:08.581
Like, you talk about rahab in the book, and we know a little
00:13:08.581 --> 00:13:11.517
Bit about rahab because people love to talk about rehab, but
00:13:11.517 --> 00:13:14.153
Then jochebed.
00:13:14.153 --> 00:13:16.155
Who is jochebed, and what is her story?
00:13:16.155 --> 00:13:18.057
Nicole: she's a shero, another shero.
00:13:18.057 --> 00:13:20.693
I love jochebed.
00:13:20.693 --> 00:13:22.028
Jochebed was faced with the decision of either giving into
00:13:22.028 --> 00:13:25.198
Her government and going along with the mandate to eliminate
00:13:25.198 --> 00:13:29.168
All the hebrew male babies of which she had a baby boy or to
00:13:29.168 --> 00:13:34.173
Conceal him and preserve his life, and so she chose the
00:13:34.173 --> 00:13:38.077
Harder thing of the day, and that was i will save the life of
00:13:38.077 --> 00:13:42.248
My child.
00:13:42.248 --> 00:13:43.616
I will not exterminate him.
00:13:43.616 --> 00:13:44.951
And so she hid him, the scripture says, for
00:13:44.951 --> 00:13:47.020
Three months.
00:13:47.020 --> 00:13:48.388
She decided to make him a little ark, akin to, you know, a
00:13:48.388 --> 00:13:52.225
Miniature version of what noah had back in the day, and she
00:13:52.225 --> 00:13:55.728
Covered it with pitch, and she put him in this little papyrus
00:13:55.728 --> 00:13:59.198
Basket, and so she pushed his little boat down the the river
00:13:59.198 --> 00:14:03.836
And had his sister, big sister go and just watch.
00:14:03.836 --> 00:14:06.906
And so she went and watched to see where the baby would land,
00:14:06.906 --> 00:14:10.476
And before you know it, all of a sudden here comes pharaoh's
00:14:10.476 --> 00:14:12.845
Daughter, pharaoh, the one who had mandated the elimination of
00:14:12.845 --> 00:14:16.683
All the hebrew males.
00:14:16.683 --> 00:14:18.318
Now his daughter is coming out, and she's bathing and she sees
00:14:18.318 --> 00:14:20.987
This little basket, and then she goes over, because he's starting
00:14:20.987 --> 00:14:25.091
To cry, and she's like, oh, that's one of the little hebrew
00:14:25.091 --> 00:14:28.194
Boys, and she has mercy and compassion on him.
00:14:28.194 --> 00:14:32.098
And so all of a sudden, the little sister who's been
00:14:32.098 --> 00:14:34.100
Watching from afar, she stands up, she comes in, she says, oh,
00:14:34.100 --> 00:14:38.438
Would you like for me to get one of the hebrew women to nurse him
00:14:38.438 --> 00:14:40.907
For you?
00:14:40.907 --> 00:14:42.275
And she says that's a good idea, okay.
00:14:42.275 --> 00:14:46.012
So the little girl goes back and she gets her mama, of course,
00:14:46.012 --> 00:14:49.916
And her mother jochebed is now getting paid by pharaoh's
00:14:49.916 --> 00:14:54.187
Daughter, pharaoh, the one who wanted her to kill her son, is
00:14:54.187 --> 00:14:57.590
Now responsible for giving her income to save and to take care
00:14:57.590 --> 00:15:01.961
Of her own son, and eventually after he is old enough, she has
00:15:01.961 --> 00:15:05.765
Weaned him, she gives him to the princess, and the princess
00:15:05.765 --> 00:15:09.535
Adopts him, and he becomes royalty, and eventually this
00:15:09.535 --> 00:15:14.474
Little babe whom the princess names moses, he grows up and he
00:15:14.474 --> 00:15:19.846
Becomes the deliverer of the hebrew people.
00:15:19.846 --> 00:15:23.116
God uses him to deliver them from slavery and bring them
00:15:23.116 --> 00:15:26.886
Toward the promised land.
00:15:26.886 --> 00:15:28.221
He gives him the ten commandments, and he gives him
00:15:28.221 --> 00:15:30.523
The book of genesis and all kinds of books in the bible.
00:15:30.523 --> 00:15:33.159
Matter of fact, you know, i'm already on the run, but i found
00:15:33.159 --> 00:15:36.662
Out, too, that moses is also the one who wrote psalm 91,
00:15:36.662 --> 00:15:40.833
You know?
00:15:40.833 --> 00:15:42.201
That eventually that says, "he that dwelleth in the secret
00:15:42.201 --> 00:15:44.170
Place of the most high shall abide under the shadow of
00:15:44.170 --> 00:15:46.773
The almighty.
00:15:46.773 --> 00:15:48.107
I will say of the lord, 'he is my refuge and my fortress, my
00:15:48.107 --> 00:15:50.643
God in whom i trust.'
00:15:50.643 --> 00:15:52.245
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler."
00:15:52.245 --> 00:15:54.747
Like, he goes on, and he tells us that we don't have to be
00:15:54.747 --> 00:15:57.683
Afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flieth by
00:15:57.683 --> 00:16:01.287
Day, nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness.
00:16:01.287 --> 00:16:03.689
They had that.
00:16:03.689 --> 00:16:05.024
Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
00:16:05.024 --> 00:16:07.060
A thousand shall fall at thy side, ten thousand at thy right
00:16:07.060 --> 00:16:10.430
Hand, but it shall not come nigh thee.
00:16:10.430 --> 00:16:12.265
But moses's life was facilitated by the courage of his mother
00:16:12.265 --> 00:16:16.669
Jochebed and by the help of pharaoh's daughter who chose to
00:16:16.669 --> 00:16:21.274
Adopt him as her own and by the assistance of his little sister
00:16:21.274 --> 00:16:26.379
Who went and facilitated the connection between the two.
00:16:26.379 --> 00:16:30.216
And so this story has meant so much to me.
00:16:30.216 --> 00:16:32.718
I come from a family where my grandmother, my father's mother,
00:16:32.718 --> 00:16:36.923
You know, back in the day, back in the '30s when she had my dad,
00:16:36.923 --> 00:16:41.527
And they told her in the hospital that she may as well
00:16:41.527 --> 00:16:44.997
Leave him there, because he had whooping cough, and he wasn't
00:16:44.997 --> 00:16:47.033
Going to live.
00:16:47.033 --> 00:16:48.501
And so she decided to take her baby to the house of the lord,
00:16:48.501 --> 00:16:52.371
Because she had heard the scripture that said if someone
00:16:52.371 --> 00:16:54.974
Is sick, take him to the elders of the church, and the prayer of
00:16:54.974 --> 00:16:57.343
Faith will heal the sick.
00:16:57.343 --> 00:16:59.045
She took him there, the lord miraculously healed him, and he
00:16:59.045 --> 00:17:02.815
Lived, and years later he became my father, and then years later
00:17:02.815 --> 00:17:07.253
My grandparents, they began to foster kids, and then they began
00:17:07.253 --> 00:17:10.690
To adopt, and then as my parents grew, my dad and my mom, they
00:17:10.690 --> 00:17:15.027
Began to foster, and they began to adopt, and then as i grew, i
00:17:15.027 --> 00:17:19.599
Began to foster, and my oldest son is adopted, but it all goes
00:17:19.599 --> 00:17:23.069
Back to jochebed, you know?
00:17:23.069 --> 00:17:27.039
And a lot of times we don't realize, kirk, how our little
00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:31.144
Decisions of faith and of doing the right thing sometimes in a
00:17:31.144 --> 00:17:36.115
Wrong situation can facilitate years and years and years of
00:17:36.115 --> 00:17:40.686
Goodness, you know, decades and millennias of righteousness, and
00:17:40.686 --> 00:17:44.891
It just may feel ordinary in the moment, but we don't know that
00:17:44.891 --> 00:17:48.528
Oftentimes god kisses those decisions because they're built
00:17:48.528 --> 00:17:53.199
Upon biblical principles, and it's kissed by heaven, and he
00:17:53.199 --> 00:17:56.669
Allows those decisions to turn into life for many.
00:17:56.669 --> 00:17:59.805
And so jochebed is definitely one of my sheroes as well.
00:17:59.805 --> 00:18:03.209
Kirk: thank you for sharing that.
00:18:03.209 --> 00:18:04.577
I don't think many, maybe most of us, have ever thought about
00:18:04.577 --> 00:18:08.981
The implications of that woman's decision and even the the
00:18:08.981 --> 00:18:13.619
Reference, the parallel to the ark of noah and the flood and
00:18:13.619 --> 00:18:18.491
The nile river.
00:18:18.491 --> 00:18:19.825
I mean, that's pretty amazing.
00:18:19.825 --> 00:18:22.195
So, how can we hear stories like jochebed and abigail and esther
00:18:22.195 --> 00:18:29.101
And rahab and others in a book like this or in a book like the
00:18:29.101 --> 00:18:33.039
Bible and then take modern-day inspiration for it like in our
00:18:33.039 --> 00:18:37.376
Own life now?
00:18:37.376 --> 00:18:38.711
Nicole: great question.
00:18:38.711 --> 00:18:40.079
First of all, i tell people all the time, if you're in a
00:18:40.079 --> 00:18:41.847
Relationship with jesus christ, you've already made the first
00:18:41.847 --> 00:18:44.617
Right decision.
00:18:44.617 --> 00:18:45.952
After that, i'm asking the holy spirit.
00:18:45.952 --> 00:18:48.287
He promised, the bible said that the holy spirit would lead and
00:18:48.287 --> 00:18:50.823
Guide me into all truth.
00:18:50.823 --> 00:18:52.625
So when i'm making these decisions or i have these
00:18:52.625 --> 00:18:54.527
Questions, i'm like, okay, lord, can you allow the holy spirit to
00:18:54.527 --> 00:18:57.730
Tell me what i need to do?
00:18:57.730 --> 00:18:59.098
How do i apply my life to the scriptures?
00:18:59.098 --> 00:19:02.301
Not necessarily apply the scriptures to my life, because
00:19:02.301 --> 00:19:05.238
I'm to be conformed not to the pattern of this world, but i'm
00:19:05.238 --> 00:19:10.276
To be transformed by the renewing of my mind, and the
00:19:10.276 --> 00:19:13.012
Renewing of my mind comes from the word of god, and so if i'm
00:19:13.012 --> 00:19:16.916
Needing more faith to do something, he says faith comes
00:19:16.916 --> 00:19:20.286
By hearing and hearing the word of god.
00:19:20.286 --> 00:19:23.022
So if i'm needing to increase my faith in order to do something
00:19:23.022 --> 00:19:25.791
Bigger, i need to go back to the source, and that source is the
00:19:25.791 --> 00:19:29.195
Word of god.
00:19:29.195 --> 00:19:30.563
And so that's kinda how i do it.
00:19:30.563 --> 00:19:32.598
And i've made some, like i said, horrible mistakes.
00:19:32.598 --> 00:19:35.601
I have not done everything right.
00:19:35.601 --> 00:19:37.136
I need the same redeemer as everyone else does, but i love
00:19:37.136 --> 00:19:40.439
The word.
00:19:40.439 --> 00:19:41.807
I love the god of the word, and i'm always asking him like,
00:19:41.807 --> 00:19:43.943
Lord, can you teach me?
00:19:43.943 --> 00:19:45.645
I'm your child.
00:19:45.645 --> 00:19:46.979
Can you show me?
00:19:46.979 --> 00:19:48.347
Can you tell me where i need to pivot or i need to
00:19:48.347 --> 00:19:53.319
Change things?
00:19:53.319 --> 00:19:54.654
Or whatever it is that i need to do so that i can come into
00:19:54.654 --> 00:19:57.290
Alignment with your word.
00:19:57.290 --> 00:19:59.191
Because at the end of the day, the proof of my love is not the
00:19:59.191 --> 00:20:02.528
Songs i sing, but it's the obedience that i give to him.
00:20:02.528 --> 00:20:06.132
As he said, that's how you know i would prove that i love him.
00:20:06.132 --> 00:20:09.635
Kirk: that's right, that's right, and i think so many of us
00:20:09.635 --> 00:20:12.638
Today are-- we're dying to see authentic examples of
00:20:12.638 --> 00:20:16.442
Christ followers.
00:20:16.442 --> 00:20:17.810
Tell us more about maybe a real-life hero in your own life,
00:20:17.810 --> 00:20:21.614
Maybe a relative, a friend, somebody who is there for you
00:20:21.614 --> 00:20:25.351
And still serves to inspire you today.
00:20:25.351 --> 00:20:28.187
Nicole: i have to come back to my mom again.
00:20:28.187 --> 00:20:29.889
I know i keep saying my mother.
00:20:29.889 --> 00:20:31.223
My mother, she will be 80 this year.
00:20:31.223 --> 00:20:33.592
She's my next door neighbor, she loves the lord, she and my dad
00:20:33.592 --> 00:20:36.395
Were married for 54 years.
00:20:36.395 --> 00:20:38.964
She has loved the lord since she was a little girl.
00:20:38.964 --> 00:20:41.267
She gave him her life, and she grew up and she grew up in her
00:20:41.267 --> 00:20:44.770
Dad's church.
00:20:44.770 --> 00:20:46.105
He was a pentecostal pastor.
00:20:46.105 --> 00:20:47.473
And mom would tell us stories, and she still does, and as her
00:20:47.473 --> 00:20:51.243
Daughter, i rise up and i call her blessed, because she is
00:20:51.243 --> 00:20:54.480
Carrying out the lifestyle of a godly woman, and she's not
00:20:54.480 --> 00:21:00.886
Afraid, and she's modeling that for us.
00:21:00.886 --> 00:21:03.089
My mom was given a cancer diagnosis, and this was a couple
00:21:03.089 --> 00:21:06.092
Of years ago, actually last year, and they told her she had
00:21:06.092 --> 00:21:09.595
A growth on her head.
00:21:09.595 --> 00:21:11.063
And my mom said, you know what?
00:21:11.063 --> 00:21:12.398
I don't want you to pray with me according to your faith.
00:21:12.398 --> 00:21:15.368
Agree with me according to mine.
00:21:15.368 --> 00:21:17.269
And she said these are the scriptures i'm believing the
00:21:17.269 --> 00:21:19.438
Lord for, this is what the word says.
00:21:19.438 --> 00:21:21.207
Mom is hardcore, she just is, okay?
00:21:21.207 --> 00:21:23.476
So, mom says she goes into the doctor, the doctor's not a
00:21:23.476 --> 00:21:25.945
Believer, and the doctor says she's a dermatologist, and she
00:21:25.945 --> 00:21:28.948
Said, well, i'm not sure i'm gonna be able to cut the mass
00:21:28.948 --> 00:21:31.117
Off your head and then sew it up, so i'm going to have to
00:21:31.117 --> 00:21:34.186
Leave it open after i cut it off, and you'll have to go the
00:21:34.186 --> 00:21:38.090
Next day, come back in and undergo surgery and have the
00:21:38.090 --> 00:21:41.127
Plastic surgeon, you know, stitch it up.
00:21:41.127 --> 00:21:43.763
Mom says, well, at this age, i'm not planning on going under, so
00:21:43.763 --> 00:21:47.433
This is what i need you to do.
00:21:47.433 --> 00:21:48.868
She said, can you place your hands in my hands?
00:21:48.868 --> 00:21:51.404
And so the doctor placed her hands in my mom's hands, and my
00:21:51.404 --> 00:21:55.040
Mom began to say, father, in the name of jesus, i'm gonna
00:21:55.040 --> 00:21:58.944
Pray, sir.
00:21:58.944 --> 00:22:00.279
I'm praying right now that you would anoint my doctor's hands
00:22:00.279 --> 00:22:02.348
And that you would give her wisdom to know what to do.
00:22:02.348 --> 00:22:05.451
And she began to decree and declare what the word said and
00:22:05.451 --> 00:22:08.154
Pray a blessing over her doctor's hands.
00:22:08.154 --> 00:22:10.756
Months later, they go in, my sisters and i were waiting in
00:22:10.756 --> 00:22:14.126
The waiting room, and we're trying not to be afraid because
00:22:14.126 --> 00:22:16.429
Our dad is already in heaven, and we don't want to lose
00:22:16.429 --> 00:22:18.230
Another parent, and so we're praying, and eventually after
00:22:18.230 --> 00:22:21.801
Hours later they come out, and the doctors she says i was able
00:22:21.801 --> 00:22:25.938
To cut the whole mass off, and i was able to sew it up myself.
00:22:25.938 --> 00:22:30.476
And she says i don't think i would have been able to do it
00:22:30.476 --> 00:22:33.179
Had your mother and her friends not been praying for me, but god
00:22:33.179 --> 00:22:37.016
Allowed me to be able to do it.
00:22:37.016 --> 00:22:38.784
Now, does this happen to everybody?
00:22:38.784 --> 00:22:40.119
No, but i'm telling you, mom has great faith.
00:22:40.119 --> 00:22:42.755
Mom has that it only takes a mustard seed to move a mountain,
00:22:42.755 --> 00:22:46.492
And she acts upon it, and so watching her has increased my
00:22:46.492 --> 00:22:51.096
Faith, and i pray that eventually my feet grow to be
00:22:51.096 --> 00:22:54.600
Big enough to fit my mom's shoes so that i, too, can be
00:22:54.600 --> 00:22:58.771
Who my mom is.
00:22:58.771 --> 00:23:00.439
And so she's one of those everyday heroes that i feel like
00:23:00.439 --> 00:23:03.676
A lot of us have them around us, but sometimes we don't
00:23:03.676 --> 00:23:06.846
Notice them.
00:23:06.846 --> 00:23:08.214
Sometimes we don't stop long enough to applaud them and say i
00:23:08.214 --> 00:23:10.850
See you, and i wanna follow christ, follow you as you
00:23:10.850 --> 00:23:14.353
Follow christ.
00:23:14.353 --> 00:23:15.721
I'm so grateful that god gave her to me, you know?
00:23:15.721 --> 00:23:18.757
And she's my next door neighbor, and she's probably out there
00:23:18.757 --> 00:23:20.860
Gardening even as we speak and just loving on people.
00:23:20.860 --> 00:23:23.896
Kirk: oh, thank you for sharing these stories with us both on
00:23:23.896 --> 00:23:27.967
"takeaways" and in this book.
00:23:27.967 --> 00:23:30.803
In closing, nicole, what do you hope will be the big takeaway
00:23:30.803 --> 00:23:36.408
After someone reads this?
00:23:36.408 --> 00:23:38.244
Nicole: the big takeaway, i pray that they would love jesus with
00:23:38.244 --> 00:23:41.280
All their hearts, first of all, seeing that he is the champion
00:23:41.280 --> 00:23:44.149
Of all champions.
00:23:44.149 --> 00:23:45.518
He is the the apex of life.
00:23:45.518 --> 00:23:47.853
And then i pray that they would live a life of courage and a
00:23:47.853 --> 00:23:52.558
Life of obedience to him, rising to the occasion, doing what he
00:23:52.558 --> 00:23:56.862
Says that they're called to do in the moment and therefore reap
00:23:56.862 --> 00:24:00.399
The rewards that he has for them.
00:24:00.399 --> 00:24:02.234
Kirk: yes, yes, oh, i hope so.
00:24:02.234 --> 00:24:04.670
Yeah, thank you so much.
00:24:04.670 --> 00:24:06.105
Nicole: thank you too.
00:24:06.105 --> 00:24:07.473
Kirk: thank you.
00:24:07.473 --> 00:24:08.807
After the break, pastor tim timberlake will join us on the
00:24:08.807 --> 00:24:11.343
Importance of doing the right thing even when it comes to hard
00:24:11.343 --> 00:24:15.681
Conversations and making hard decisions, so don't miss it.
00:24:15.681 --> 00:24:19.084
[music]
00:24:19.084 --> 00:24:25.007
[music]
00:24:25.007 --> 00:24:25.660
[music]
00:24:25.993 --> 00:24:29.564
Kirk: my next guest serves as the senior pastor of celebration
00:24:32.400 --> 00:24:35.670
Church in jacksonville, florida.
00:24:35.670 --> 00:24:37.838
Tim timberlake has authored several bestselling books, and
00:24:37.838 --> 00:24:40.808
His latest is about embracing the hard things of life with
00:24:40.808 --> 00:24:45.046
Divine and human help.
00:24:45.046 --> 00:24:46.480
It's called "the bumpy road to better: unlocking the hidden
00:24:46.480 --> 00:24:50.251
Power in hard things."
00:24:50.251 --> 00:24:51.886
Tim, thanks so much for joining us.
00:24:51.886 --> 00:24:53.254
Tim: thank you, kirk.
00:24:53.254 --> 00:24:54.589
It's an honor and privilege, man.
00:24:54.589 --> 00:24:55.957
Kirk: well, i can't think of anything more helpful and needed
00:24:55.957 --> 00:25:01.329
Than framing the way that we interpret hard things, because
00:25:01.329 --> 00:25:05.600
So often what i really want is the easy life.
00:25:05.600 --> 00:25:09.036
I don't want to have things that cause me pain, but life's so
00:25:09.036 --> 00:25:13.641
Full of that stuff that if you can transform that for me into
00:25:13.641 --> 00:25:18.312
Gifts that actually make me better, i will be so grateful.
00:25:18.312 --> 00:25:22.216
Tim: absolutely, i think, you know, a lot of times we look at
00:25:22.216 --> 00:25:25.086
Pain as this negative thing, when in fact pain can produce
00:25:25.086 --> 00:25:29.590
Something positive.
00:25:29.590 --> 00:25:30.958
It can promote us, it can elevate us, it can push us.
00:25:30.958 --> 00:25:34.261
When we're thinking about pain in the gym, we endure it, we
00:25:34.261 --> 00:25:38.299
Overcome it because we have a mental image of what it is that
00:25:38.299 --> 00:25:41.502
We desire to become.
00:25:41.502 --> 00:25:42.837
So my hope is that when readers read the book, they have a
00:25:42.837 --> 00:25:45.373
Mental image as to what pain is developing them into.
00:25:45.373 --> 00:25:49.810
Kirk: that's a revolutionary concept, that god could allow,
00:25:49.810 --> 00:25:54.348
Use, ordain in his providence something as unattractive as
00:25:54.348 --> 00:26:00.187
Pain to be the very thing that conforms us to be more
00:26:00.187 --> 00:26:05.192
Like jesus.
00:26:05.192 --> 00:26:06.527
Tim: yeah, i mean when you look at the model of great men and
00:26:06.527 --> 00:26:08.963
Women in the bible, there's a call, there's a purpose, but
00:26:08.963 --> 00:26:11.832
Then there's a process, and oftentimes in that process is
00:26:11.832 --> 00:26:15.269
Great pain, and that pain produces the purpose of god in
00:26:15.269 --> 00:26:19.340
That great man or great woman of god's life to get them into the
00:26:19.340 --> 00:26:22.910
Assignment, to get them into the call, to get them into that
00:26:22.910 --> 00:26:25.546
Greater purpose that god has placed on them.
00:26:25.546 --> 00:26:28.382
And so often the very places we desire to run from are then the
00:26:28.382 --> 00:26:32.319
Very places god desires to do a miracle in.
00:26:32.319 --> 00:26:34.955
And so "the bumpy road to better" helps us navigate pain,
00:26:34.955 --> 00:26:38.192
Helps us navigate hard things, helps us navigate the
00:26:38.192 --> 00:26:40.928
Uncomfortable and inconvenient things so that we can step into
00:26:40.928 --> 00:26:44.465
The purpose of god for our lives.
00:26:44.465 --> 00:26:46.267
Kirk: i can tell this is gonna be a great conversation, and if
00:26:46.267 --> 00:26:48.602
I'm honest, i admit that the times when i've had the most
00:26:48.602 --> 00:26:53.808
Personal growth was not when i was comfortable and happy but
00:26:53.808 --> 00:26:58.679
When i was struggling, and i realized that everything is on
00:26:58.679 --> 00:27:02.349
The line, this is painful.
00:27:02.349 --> 00:27:04.919
I'm hurting, and i've got to grow or i'm not gonna make it.
00:27:04.919 --> 00:27:09.190
So it really does turn out to be a gift in the end.
00:27:09.190 --> 00:27:11.759
Tim: it does, you know, when we think about those that are
00:27:11.759 --> 00:27:13.994
Great, let's just utilize sports for instance.
00:27:13.994 --> 00:27:16.997
We don't celebrate their greatness because their path
00:27:16.997 --> 00:27:19.467
There was easy.
00:27:19.467 --> 00:27:20.835
We celebrate their greatness because in spite of opposition,
00:27:20.835 --> 00:27:24.538
In spite of defects, in spite of people flying at them, coming
00:27:24.538 --> 00:27:29.410
Against them.
00:27:29.410 --> 00:27:30.745
You think of michael jordan, the whole team knew he was going to
00:27:30.745 --> 00:27:33.848
Get the ball, and in spite of them knowing he would get the
00:27:33.848 --> 00:27:37.017
Ball, and he would just do whatever he wanted to do to get
00:27:37.017 --> 00:27:39.587
The bucket.
00:27:39.587 --> 00:27:40.955
That's what made him great, and it's the same thing for us.
00:27:40.955 --> 00:27:43.290
We have to understand that there's gonna be opposition that
00:27:43.290 --> 00:27:45.693
Comes against us.
00:27:45.693 --> 00:27:47.027
Life is going to life, and the enemy is going to be who he is,
00:27:47.027 --> 00:27:51.332
And so with the help of jesus christ, we can navigate the
00:27:51.332 --> 00:27:53.968
Various seasons of discomfort, pain, hardship with him, and he
00:27:53.968 --> 00:27:58.172
Promises i'll never leave you, nor will i forsake you.
00:27:58.172 --> 00:28:00.941
I'll be with you to the very end of all time.
00:28:00.941 --> 00:28:03.811
So with him, all things are possible to those that believe.
00:28:03.811 --> 00:28:06.881
Kirk: tim, what was it in your own life that launched you into
00:28:06.881 --> 00:28:11.385
Writing a book on these things?
00:28:11.385 --> 00:28:13.420
Tim: yeah, i think it's the compounding of a bunch of
00:28:13.420 --> 00:28:16.590
Different things.
00:28:16.590 --> 00:28:17.958
And so there's been season after season, circumstance after
00:28:17.958 --> 00:28:21.228
Circumstance of hardship, pain, inconvenience, discomfort, and
00:28:21.228 --> 00:28:27.268
Sometimes when we read books, we read it from the perspective of
00:28:27.268 --> 00:28:31.205
This is what i have come out of, these are the things that i've
00:28:31.205 --> 00:28:34.275
Learned, this is a little bit different for me, because i'm
00:28:34.275 --> 00:28:37.111
Still in the middle of seasons of pain, in the middle of
00:28:37.111 --> 00:28:39.980
Seasons of hardship, and i just wanted to write a book of
00:28:39.980 --> 00:28:43.217
Encouragement while i am still in the middle as a reminder to
00:28:43.217 --> 00:28:46.887
Myself that these things are possible and this is what the
00:28:46.887 --> 00:28:50.357
End looks like, if you can endure, if you can be resilient,
00:28:50.357 --> 00:28:53.427
If you can anchor your hope and faith in jesus christ and allow
00:28:53.427 --> 00:28:57.097
People to go on this journey with me as we navigate the
00:28:57.097 --> 00:29:00.301
Various pain points and hardships together.
00:29:00.301 --> 00:29:03.304
Kirk: that is so encouraging, because we all want to be on the
00:29:03.304 --> 00:29:06.240
Other side of the pain point and say let me tell you how wise i
00:29:06.240 --> 00:29:10.010
Am now and all that god taught me so that i can comfort you now
00:29:10.010 --> 00:29:13.247
That i'm pain free.
00:29:13.247 --> 00:29:14.615
But most of us don't find ourselves in that position,
00:29:14.615 --> 00:29:18.085
Because i think it's because we actually got signed up for a
00:29:18.085 --> 00:29:21.822
School where we learned how to die to ourselves for the rest of
00:29:21.822 --> 00:29:24.558
Our life until we enter into, you know, the fullness of life
00:29:24.558 --> 00:29:29.630
In heaven.
00:29:29.630 --> 00:29:30.998
The book emphasizes the importance of resilience.
00:29:30.998 --> 00:29:35.536
What is resilience, and why do you think it's so important
00:29:35.536 --> 00:29:38.472
For us?
00:29:38.472 --> 00:29:39.840
Tim: i think resilience can be best defined as a tenacity to
00:29:39.840 --> 00:29:43.844
Bounce back in spite of whatever it may be.
00:29:43.844 --> 00:29:47.848
And there's a couple of things as humanity that unites us, and
00:29:47.848 --> 00:29:51.151
We've developed the resilience around those things.
00:29:51.151 --> 00:29:54.788
There's a common ground no matter what your background is,
00:29:54.788 --> 00:29:57.758
No matter what language you speak, no matter what your
00:29:57.758 --> 00:30:00.928
History is, one of those things is food.
00:30:00.928 --> 00:30:03.464
We can sit across the dinner table together, and no matter
00:30:03.464 --> 00:30:06.133
What our walk of life is, we can agree that this is either good
00:30:06.133 --> 00:30:10.004
Food or bad food.
00:30:10.004 --> 00:30:11.639
Music is the same way.
00:30:11.639 --> 00:30:12.973
Sports is another one of those things.
00:30:12.973 --> 00:30:14.808
But pain, it has a way of uniting humanity, allowing us to
00:30:14.808 --> 00:30:19.747
Either retreat in comfort or to push forward with resilience.
00:30:19.747 --> 00:30:25.185
And so this is just a blueprint to help us to overcome, develop
00:30:25.185 --> 00:30:29.623
A god-given tenacity to look in the face of adversity and say
00:30:29.623 --> 00:30:33.827
I'm still here, i'm still standing, and with the help of
00:30:33.827 --> 00:30:36.597
God will overcome whatever this pain point is, whatever this
00:30:36.597 --> 00:30:39.533
Obstacle is, with the help of jesus.
00:30:39.533 --> 00:30:42.202
Kirk: man, what would you say to somebody who says, you know, i
00:30:42.202 --> 00:30:46.307
Just have a hard time asking for help?
00:30:46.307 --> 00:30:47.875
I'm going through a hard time, i'm on the bumpy road, i want it
00:30:47.875 --> 00:30:50.811
To lead to better, but i don't see it, but my pride won't let
00:30:50.811 --> 00:30:55.182
Me admit it.
00:30:55.182 --> 00:30:56.517
Tim: yeah, i think we have to do inventory on the control aspect.
00:30:56.517 --> 00:31:00.154
We oftentimes don't ask for help in the areas that we think we're
00:31:00.154 --> 00:31:04.558
Going to be successful in when in fact that's a fleeting myth.
00:31:04.558 --> 00:31:08.696
We have to kill that pride.
00:31:08.696 --> 00:31:10.898
We have to understand that partnership is essential to our
00:31:10.898 --> 00:31:14.902
Walk as the believer.
00:31:14.902 --> 00:31:16.737
God himself lives eternity in community, god the father, god
00:31:16.737 --> 00:31:20.541
The son, god the holy spirit, and so if he lives in community,
00:31:20.541 --> 00:31:24.745
And he's developed us to live in community as well, i think it's
00:31:24.745 --> 00:31:29.416
Important that we ask for help.
00:31:29.416 --> 00:31:31.885
So, although we may run faster alone, we will run faster
00:31:31.885 --> 00:31:36.690
Running alongside of some other people that can help us along
00:31:36.690 --> 00:31:39.927
The way when we get weary and when we get tired.
00:31:39.927 --> 00:31:42.196
You know, we need those people in our lives that remind us of
00:31:42.196 --> 00:31:45.599
The goal, that remind us of why we're running, that remind us
00:31:45.599 --> 00:31:49.336
That the road may be bumpy, but it leads us to better.
00:31:49.336 --> 00:31:52.673
Kirk: man, i would not be who i am today if i didn't get over my
00:31:52.673 --> 00:31:56.643
Pride and ask for help and have a couple of faithful friends who
00:31:56.643 --> 00:32:02.683
Will run alongside with me.
00:32:02.683 --> 00:32:04.184
I'm so grateful for them.
00:32:04.184 --> 00:32:05.686
Tim: yeah, partnership is key.
00:32:05.686 --> 00:32:07.021
Kirk: tim, you talk in your book about hard beginnings, about the
00:32:07.021 --> 00:32:10.491
Difficult just to get started for some people.
00:32:10.491 --> 00:32:12.459
What are some of the obstacles to these hard beginnings, and
00:32:12.459 --> 00:32:15.763
How do we get past them?
00:32:15.763 --> 00:32:17.164
Tim: i think sometimes beginnings don't arrive the way
00:32:17.164 --> 00:32:20.000
We expect them to.
00:32:20.000 --> 00:32:21.368
I remember i ordered something off a particular website, and a
00:32:21.368 --> 00:32:26.173
Box was delivered, and the box came differently than how i
00:32:26.173 --> 00:32:29.977
Expected, and so i placed the box on my front dresser at the
00:32:29.977 --> 00:32:33.881
Front of my house, and i'm tracking this package that i'm
00:32:33.881 --> 00:32:36.817
Waiting for three days, and it says arrived, and i'm not
00:32:36.817 --> 00:32:40.687
Thinking that it's the box that came, because surely what i
00:32:40.687 --> 00:32:43.390
Ordered can't be in that little bitty box.
00:32:43.390 --> 00:32:46.093
So i'm looking past that box, i'm looking past it for three
00:32:46.093 --> 00:32:48.796
Days, and finally i opened the box, and sure enough, what i
00:32:48.796 --> 00:32:51.999
Ordered was inside of the box.
00:32:51.999 --> 00:32:53.967
And hard beginnings are a lot like that.
00:32:53.967 --> 00:32:56.670
We despise them because they arrive differently or smaller
00:32:56.670 --> 00:33:00.407
Than what we anticipated and expected.
00:33:00.407 --> 00:33:02.743
And so if we can get beyond our expectations and our
00:33:02.743 --> 00:33:06.080
Anticipations and trust that god can do something great out of
00:33:06.080 --> 00:33:10.250
Something small, then we can see god do something supernatural
00:33:10.250 --> 00:33:13.787
Even if the beginning is hard.
00:33:13.787 --> 00:33:17.024
Kirk: man, all of this is so good.
00:33:17.024 --> 00:33:19.059
I can think of applications to each one of these points.
00:33:19.059 --> 00:33:23.831
I wanna ask you also about tough setbacks.
00:33:23.831 --> 00:33:29.069
What would you say to somebody who's experiencing a setback?
00:33:29.069 --> 00:33:31.772
Everything was going great, then all of a sudden i went one step
00:33:31.772 --> 00:33:35.008
Forward and three steps back.
00:33:35.008 --> 00:33:36.910
Tim: yeah, i think all of us will have to navigate tough
00:33:36.910 --> 00:33:39.413
Setbacks, but setbacks are setups for something greater.
00:33:39.413 --> 00:33:43.717
And so when we take those setbacks and we may take a step
00:33:43.717 --> 00:33:47.988
Back, it is to get us prepared to project and step forward.
00:33:47.988 --> 00:33:53.827
So when i think about a slingshot, the only way a
00:33:53.827 --> 00:33:56.230
Slingshot can propel a rock forward is it first has to be
00:33:56.230 --> 00:34:00.300
Pulled back.
00:34:00.300 --> 00:34:01.668
And there's somebody watching right now that may feel like
00:34:01.668 --> 00:34:03.904
They're in a season where they're being pulled back or
00:34:03.904 --> 00:34:06.507
Held back or restricted or restrained.
00:34:06.507 --> 00:34:09.276
I truly believe that it's preparation to propel them for
00:34:09.276 --> 00:34:13.313
Into greater seasons of what god has in store for them.
00:34:13.313 --> 00:34:16.550
Kirk: oh, man, i love that.
00:34:16.550 --> 00:34:17.918
I can think of some people right now that i want
00:34:17.918 --> 00:34:19.386
To share that with.
00:34:19.386 --> 00:34:20.821
God's just pulling you back right now.
00:34:20.821 --> 00:34:22.389
This is he's just loading the sling with all of this potential
00:34:22.389 --> 00:34:27.194
And experience.
00:34:27.194 --> 00:34:28.529
Tim: and sometimes it's preparation, and sometimes
00:34:28.529 --> 00:34:30.731
It's protection.
00:34:30.731 --> 00:34:32.799
And you know, my son, he was three years old, he wanted to
00:34:32.799 --> 00:34:36.003
Walk down these flights of steps, and i told him no, not
00:34:36.003 --> 00:34:39.039
Because i didn't want him to try, but because i was
00:34:39.039 --> 00:34:41.542
Protecting him from what he did not yet know.
00:34:41.542 --> 00:34:44.344
And sometimes when we feel like we're being restricted and held
00:34:44.344 --> 00:34:47.681
Back and for some of us pulled back, it's protection to keep us
00:34:47.681 --> 00:34:51.618
From stepping into something prematurely, and we have to
00:34:51.618 --> 00:34:55.022
Understand this.
00:34:55.022 --> 00:34:56.356
Anything that we receive prematurely we always receive
00:34:56.356 --> 00:34:59.660
Too small, and so god will absolutely protect us, he will
00:34:59.660 --> 00:35:03.096
Absolutely pull us back, he will keep us from stepping into
00:35:03.096 --> 00:35:06.433
Certain things until we're mature enough to understand the
00:35:06.433 --> 00:35:09.736
Season that we're stepping in.
00:35:09.736 --> 00:35:11.104
Kirk: oh, man, that's such rich wisdom for relationships and
00:35:11.104 --> 00:35:14.675
Young people.
00:35:14.675 --> 00:35:16.076
Oh, that's terrific.
00:35:16.076 --> 00:35:19.646
What about hard delays?
00:35:19.646 --> 00:35:22.049
I like that you talk about the fact that many of us feel like
00:35:22.049 --> 00:35:26.486
We're ready, we're just chomping at the bit, we're like a bull at
00:35:26.486 --> 00:35:28.789
The gate ready to bust out and have and do this thing, but we
00:35:28.789 --> 00:35:32.960
Feel like it's just stagnant.
00:35:32.960 --> 00:35:34.328
Like, is god on a coffee break right now?
00:35:34.328 --> 00:35:37.164
Like, why are we waiting?
00:35:37.164 --> 00:35:38.832
Time is wasting.
00:35:38.832 --> 00:35:40.200
Tim: i think that when we honor what we know god is doing on the
00:35:40.200 --> 00:35:44.404
Inside of us, a delay is preparation for
00:35:44.404 --> 00:35:47.507
Something greater.
00:35:47.507 --> 00:35:48.842
And so when we think about a dog or a cat and a dog giving birth
00:35:48.842 --> 00:35:53.680
To another dog, they're so common because they happen every
00:35:53.680 --> 00:35:57.184
Eight to nine weeks.
00:35:57.184 --> 00:35:58.752
You know, a cat has a litter probably five or six times a
00:35:58.752 --> 00:36:02.489
Year, and we don't stop for cats in the various places that we
00:36:02.489 --> 00:36:07.461
See them, because they're common.
00:36:07.461 --> 00:36:09.529
But what we stop for are the things that are uncommon, such
00:36:09.529 --> 00:36:12.866
As elephants, you know?
00:36:12.866 --> 00:36:14.334
I go to africa, and i see an elephant or a baby elephant,
00:36:14.334 --> 00:36:17.504
Everyone stops and marvels.
00:36:17.504 --> 00:36:19.473
And they stop and marvel at that elephant because of the sheer
00:36:19.473 --> 00:36:22.643
Size and the magnitude of that elephant.
00:36:22.643 --> 00:36:25.679
Well, it takes that mother elephant about 18 months to give
00:36:25.679 --> 00:36:29.549
Birth to a baby calf elephant, and that's special,
00:36:29.549 --> 00:36:33.387
That's significant.
00:36:33.387 --> 00:36:34.755
And so we stop and marvel at how long it took for that elephant
00:36:34.755 --> 00:36:39.059
To be born.
00:36:39.059 --> 00:36:40.394
That's a delay worth stopping for.
00:36:40.394 --> 00:36:42.562
And if we view the various seasons of life the same way and
00:36:42.562 --> 00:36:46.633
Don't rush to them, and don't get distracted by the things
00:36:46.633 --> 00:36:49.236
Happening around us, but put our focus on what god is doing in
00:36:49.236 --> 00:36:52.272
Us, then what we give birth to is so significant that people
00:36:52.272 --> 00:36:55.976
Will have to stop and marvel at it because we're patient enough
00:36:55.976 --> 00:36:59.079
To let god develop it.
00:36:59.079 --> 00:37:01.281
Kirk: that's awesome.
00:37:01.281 --> 00:37:02.649
Man, i wanna drill down deeper into all the concepts in your
00:37:02.649 --> 00:37:05.118
Book after the break.
00:37:05.118 --> 00:37:06.720
When we continue the discussion with tim after the break, we're
00:37:06.720 --> 00:37:10.090
Gonna learn how to deal with hard people and hard criticism,
00:37:10.090 --> 00:37:13.860
So don't go away.
00:37:13.860 --> 00:37:15.195
[music]
00:37:15.195 --> 00:37:21.005
[music]
00:37:21.005 --> 00:37:22.227
[music]
00:37:22.561 --> 00:37:26.265
Kirk: we're back with pastor tim timberlake discussing
00:37:29.001 --> 00:37:31.537
"the bumpy road to better."
00:37:31.537 --> 00:37:34.473
Tim, i love this chapter that you have on relationships.
00:37:34.473 --> 00:37:38.210
You're talking about hard people.
00:37:38.210 --> 00:37:39.645
We all have them in our life.
00:37:39.645 --> 00:37:41.513
Talk to us about how we can be thankful for difficult people
00:37:41.513 --> 00:37:46.118
And set boundaries with them while maintaining
00:37:46.118 --> 00:37:49.488
Meaningful connections.
00:37:49.488 --> 00:37:51.123
Tim: that's a great question.
00:37:51.123 --> 00:37:52.491
I have this this theory, and it's this, when god wants to
00:37:52.491 --> 00:37:56.295
Bless you, he sends you people.
00:37:56.295 --> 00:37:58.764
When the enemy wants to curse you, he sends you people.
00:37:58.764 --> 00:38:01.600
And so we have to navigate who's in our lives for what reason.
00:38:01.600 --> 00:38:06.071
And to be frank, we have hard people in our lives that we have
00:38:06.071 --> 00:38:09.575
To navigate, and so we have to love everyone, but we don't have
00:38:09.575 --> 00:38:13.245
To like everyone, and there's some people in my life that i
00:38:13.245 --> 00:38:17.349
Don't like, and so i have to set boundaries to protect my heart,
00:38:17.349 --> 00:38:21.754
To protect what i know god is doing, to protect my mind, to
00:38:21.754 --> 00:38:25.691
Protect my spirit, to make sure that poison doesn't seep into
00:38:25.691 --> 00:38:29.261
My soul.
00:38:29.261 --> 00:38:30.596
And when i do those things, it's a healthy boundary put in place
00:38:30.596 --> 00:38:35.934
That provides guard rails, and it provides, you know, outposts
00:38:35.934 --> 00:38:40.406
For me to navigate those various associations and relationships
00:38:40.406 --> 00:38:45.244
So that i can continue to be a reflection of jesus christ.
00:38:45.244 --> 00:38:48.814
There's a powerful scripture that teaches us, "he prepares a
00:38:48.814 --> 00:38:52.317
Table in the presence of my enemy."
00:38:52.317 --> 00:38:55.421
Well, that's a hard relationship, that's a hard
00:38:55.421 --> 00:38:58.023
Person, that's a hard situation to navigate, but one of the key
00:38:58.023 --> 00:39:02.094
Elements to that is he prepares, i don't have to prepare.
00:39:02.094 --> 00:39:05.597
All i have to do is continue to walk in obedience, continue to
00:39:05.597 --> 00:39:09.101
Love others as i know god loves me and as i love myself and
00:39:09.101 --> 00:39:13.906
Allow him to navigate the various things he wants me to do
00:39:13.906 --> 00:39:16.909
And be obedient to that.
00:39:16.909 --> 00:39:18.444
Kirk: yeah, but that's so important, because we all have
00:39:18.444 --> 00:39:23.816
Difficult people in our lives, and we know that the pain that
00:39:23.816 --> 00:39:27.853
They may cause us or the pain that we're causing them or just
00:39:27.853 --> 00:39:31.156
The inherent pain in the relationship because of the
00:39:31.156 --> 00:39:33.659
Past, things that have gone down, it's water under the
00:39:33.659 --> 00:39:35.694
Bridge, we can't change it, could be the very things that
00:39:35.694 --> 00:39:38.096
Actually sanctifies us in ways that nothing else will.
00:39:38.096 --> 00:39:41.600
Another thing that we all have is people who are critical
00:39:41.600 --> 00:39:45.170
Of us.
00:39:45.170 --> 00:39:46.505
Now, sometimes i accept criticism well if it's from
00:39:46.505 --> 00:39:49.875
Someone who i know loves me, who cares, and then there's other
00:39:49.875 --> 00:39:52.311
People where it's just like, man, take the speck out of your
00:39:52.311 --> 00:39:55.481
Own, right?
00:39:55.481 --> 00:39:56.815
Because you're just on me all the time.
00:39:56.815 --> 00:39:58.851
So what do we do with hard criticisms from people?
00:39:58.851 --> 00:40:01.820
Tim: yeah, i think you hit the nail on the head.
00:40:01.820 --> 00:40:03.755
We have to know who the person is speaking and what role or
00:40:03.755 --> 00:40:07.192
Position they hold in our lives.
00:40:07.192 --> 00:40:08.794
If it's a person that knows me, and i know that they love me,
00:40:08.794 --> 00:40:12.030
Then i wanna listen to what they're saying.
00:40:12.030 --> 00:40:13.699
I wanna lean into what they're saying.
00:40:13.699 --> 00:40:15.801
There's a difference between being critical and giving
00:40:15.801 --> 00:40:19.404
Healthy criticism.
00:40:19.404 --> 00:40:20.806
And so i know the difference based upon who it's coming from.
00:40:20.806 --> 00:40:24.109
If it's an internet sleuth or someone online, someone that's
00:40:24.109 --> 00:40:27.579
Just trying to make a name by talking about something that
00:40:27.579 --> 00:40:31.517
I've done or something that i've said, that's, you know, in one
00:40:31.517 --> 00:40:35.020
Ear out the other, but if it's someone that i love, i wanna
00:40:35.020 --> 00:40:37.990
Take note of what they're saying, and i have to make sure
00:40:37.990 --> 00:40:41.393
That the areas that they are being critical in or giving me
00:40:41.393 --> 00:40:46.565
Criticism in is in an area that i am defending because of
00:40:46.565 --> 00:40:50.235
Insecurity or disobedience to something that god has told me
00:40:50.235 --> 00:40:53.405
To do.
00:40:53.405 --> 00:40:54.740
And so whenever i receive that, i wanna do personal inventory to
00:40:54.740 --> 00:40:57.543
Make sure, okay, no, i am doing what it is that god desires for
00:40:57.543 --> 00:41:01.213
Me to do, and if i'm not, then i need to make a tweak, or i need
00:41:01.213 --> 00:41:04.650
To change this so that i can become the person that jesus
00:41:04.650 --> 00:41:08.086
Desires for me, too.
00:41:08.086 --> 00:41:09.421
And one of those people for me is my wife.
00:41:09.421 --> 00:41:11.723
You know, she has a healthy perspective.
00:41:11.723 --> 00:41:14.293
We all need people in our lives that have what i call a sidewalk
00:41:14.293 --> 00:41:18.130
Perspective, because we all have blind spots, and the danger of
00:41:18.130 --> 00:41:21.533
Blind spots is blind spots let you look but they don't let
00:41:21.533 --> 00:41:25.304
You see.
00:41:25.304 --> 00:41:26.672
And so we need someone else that can see what we cannot to give
00:41:26.672 --> 00:41:29.708
Us criticism, to give us direction, to give us, you know,
00:41:29.708 --> 00:41:33.412
Guardrails for the areas in our lives that need them, and when
00:41:33.412 --> 00:41:36.682
We know it's people that love us, we know they're doing it out
00:41:36.682 --> 00:41:39.418
Of love and protection for us.
00:41:39.418 --> 00:41:41.086
Kirk: yeah, that that makes me think of like those cameras on
00:41:41.086 --> 00:41:43.922
All the new cars now where you got the 360 view, and we didn't
00:41:43.922 --> 00:41:47.559
Used to have that, but they're so helpful, and that's what my
00:41:47.559 --> 00:41:50.329
Wife provides for me too.
00:41:50.329 --> 00:41:51.697
Or a trusted friend.
00:41:51.697 --> 00:41:53.031
Tim, how do you stay grounded personally when people are
00:41:53.031 --> 00:41:56.168
Coming at you and you're experiencing setbacks
00:41:56.168 --> 00:41:58.804
And criticisms?
00:41:58.804 --> 00:42:00.172
Do you have like a personal little three-step process or a
00:42:00.172 --> 00:42:04.309
Mantra or a something or a verse of scripture that helps you to
00:42:04.309 --> 00:42:09.281
Stay grounded in hope, faith, and kindness?
00:42:09.281 --> 00:42:12.718
Tim: one of my go-tos is nehemiah chapter 6, where he's
00:42:12.718 --> 00:42:16.488
On the wall, he's building, he's working, and the enemy sends
00:42:16.488 --> 00:42:20.225
People to disrupt what he's doing, to distract what he's
00:42:20.225 --> 00:42:23.462
Doing, and he tells them, "i'm doing a great work, and i cannot
00:42:23.462 --> 00:42:27.799
Come down."
00:42:27.799 --> 00:42:29.134
And so whenever it comes to criticism, or whenever it comes
00:42:29.134 --> 00:42:31.370
To people that are talking against something that i've said
00:42:31.370 --> 00:42:35.340
Or something that i've done, i always ask myself the question,
00:42:35.340 --> 00:42:38.877
Is it contributing to what i'm doing, or is it distracting me
00:42:38.877 --> 00:42:42.147
From what i'm doing?
00:42:42.147 --> 00:42:43.515
And if it's a distraction, i remind myself i'm doing
00:42:43.515 --> 00:42:46.084
A great work.
00:42:46.084 --> 00:42:47.419
God has called me to do a great work.
00:42:47.419 --> 00:42:48.787
This is my assignment, and i cannot come down to entertain
00:42:48.787 --> 00:42:52.391
The voices of other people in their insecurities.
00:42:52.391 --> 00:42:56.528
One of the things that i have to be reminded of on a weekly
00:42:56.528 --> 00:42:59.364
Basis, sometimes on a daily basis, specifically in the
00:42:59.364 --> 00:43:02.267
Culture and the climate that we live in right now, whenever i
00:43:02.267 --> 00:43:06.004
Lose focus, distractions begin to look like opportunities, even
00:43:06.004 --> 00:43:10.676
If it's a distraction that someone else brings to me where
00:43:10.676 --> 00:43:13.679
It's a rebuttal or a remark or a statement, and they want me to
00:43:13.679 --> 00:43:17.649
Respond, and so i have to keep my hands in the hands of jesus.
00:43:17.649 --> 00:43:21.420
I have to keep my eyes fixed on the word of god and my ears in
00:43:21.420 --> 00:43:24.790
Tune to his voice so that i'm not distracted by the
00:43:24.790 --> 00:43:27.693
Other voices.
00:43:27.693 --> 00:43:29.094
Kirk: that is really important.
00:43:29.094 --> 00:43:30.495
I experienced that, where, like you said, if your focus is not
00:43:30.495 --> 00:43:36.034
On point and you are not locked in to a mission, distractions
00:43:36.034 --> 00:43:41.440
From the enemy, whatever that might come-- what form that
00:43:41.440 --> 00:43:44.743
Might come from start to look like opportunities.
00:43:44.743 --> 00:43:49.081
And all of a sudden, you're looking around and every shiny
00:43:49.081 --> 00:43:52.551
Thing has your attention, and pretty soon you're off mission,
00:43:52.551 --> 00:43:55.153
And you're not productive anymore.
00:43:55.153 --> 00:43:56.488
Tim: that's right, that's right, distractions are so dangerous.
00:43:56.488 --> 00:43:58.924
One of the greatest tools the enemy uses, distractions,
00:43:58.924 --> 00:44:02.661
Disruptions, and delays, and if we can see past those things, we
00:44:02.661 --> 00:44:06.765
Can actually see the purpose of the plan of god in our lives in
00:44:06.765 --> 00:44:11.069
Spite of.
00:44:11.069 --> 00:44:12.404
Kirk: tim, you say in your book so much of life comes down to
00:44:12.404 --> 00:44:15.173
Managing your decision-making under pressure.
00:44:15.173 --> 00:44:19.444
That's when it's hard.
00:44:19.444 --> 00:44:20.812
I mean, when i'm unhurried, unworried, i can make decisions
00:44:20.812 --> 00:44:26.151
By going through, you know, reading some great wisdom books,
00:44:26.151 --> 00:44:30.088
But when i am under pressure, and you know, the clock is
00:44:30.088 --> 00:44:33.692
Ticking and people are counting on me, it gets really hard.
00:44:33.692 --> 00:44:37.963
So, what suggestions do you have for making wise decisions
00:44:37.963 --> 00:44:40.499
Under pressure?
00:44:40.499 --> 00:44:41.833
Tim: yeah, because things are rushing around you doesn't mean
00:44:41.833 --> 00:44:45.237
That you have to be rushed.
00:44:45.237 --> 00:44:47.105
Just because people are demanding things from you
00:44:47.105 --> 00:44:50.108
Doesn't mean you have to react to the demands.
00:44:50.108 --> 00:44:52.944
And so one of the things that i try to do is move at the pace
00:44:52.944 --> 00:44:56.848
Of god.
00:44:56.848 --> 00:44:58.183
A word that i believe we don't use often enough is a word
00:44:58.183 --> 00:45:00.886
Called god speed and although life is busy around us, god
00:45:00.886 --> 00:45:05.023
Orchestrates, god ordains, god puts in place his timing for the
00:45:05.023 --> 00:45:10.495
Various things that he desires for us.
00:45:10.495 --> 00:45:12.531
And so if i move at the speed of god, and i move in the obedience
00:45:12.531 --> 00:45:16.835
That he has set before me, then i see things in his timing and
00:45:16.835 --> 00:45:21.039
Not in my own.
00:45:21.039 --> 00:45:22.374
Kirk: yeah, oh, that's so good.
00:45:22.374 --> 00:45:24.442
Sometimes i feel like i'm living 2x speed.
00:45:24.442 --> 00:45:29.714
You know, like the, you know, like the play speed on your
00:45:29.714 --> 00:45:33.418
Youtube video?
00:45:33.418 --> 00:45:34.786
I'm like i got it at 2x all the time because i just don't have
00:45:34.786 --> 00:45:37.522
Time, and i'm trying to think that way and make decisions that
00:45:37.522 --> 00:45:40.158
Way, and i like your phrase.
00:45:40.158 --> 00:45:42.360
Let's watch and let's live at god speed.
00:45:42.360 --> 00:45:48.400
That's just 1x the way it's supposed to be.
00:45:48.400 --> 00:45:51.770
Tim: absolutely, move at the speed of obedience.
00:45:51.770 --> 00:45:53.672
Kirk: okay, you've got a chapter title in in your book, "you're
00:45:53.672 --> 00:45:56.341
Not losing, you're choosing."
00:45:56.341 --> 00:45:59.711
Unpack that for us.
00:45:59.711 --> 00:46:01.046
Tim: oftentimes we think because something leaves, we've lost,
00:46:01.046 --> 00:46:05.584
And when we grow and seasons change, we automatically assume
00:46:05.584 --> 00:46:09.855
We've lost something when in fact we're growing, and so i
00:46:09.855 --> 00:46:13.091
Like to utilize this as a statement and as a mantra for
00:46:13.091 --> 00:46:16.428
My life.
00:46:16.428 --> 00:46:17.762
I win some and then i learn some, but i never lose as long
00:46:17.762 --> 00:46:20.799
As i learn.
00:46:20.799 --> 00:46:22.133
And so as long as we're learning, we are growing.
00:46:22.133 --> 00:46:25.503
I had this business one time, and the business was losing
00:46:25.503 --> 00:46:29.007
Money, and i was talking to a mentor of mine, and he was
00:46:29.007 --> 00:46:31.543
Telling me you haven't lost.
00:46:31.543 --> 00:46:32.911
I was telling him i've lost this money, how can you tell me that
00:46:32.911 --> 00:46:36.147
This is not a failure?
00:46:36.147 --> 00:46:37.515
He said, well, did you learn something?
00:46:37.515 --> 00:46:38.850
I said, well, yeah, i learned what not to do.
00:46:38.850 --> 00:46:40.385
He said, well, you haven't lost.
00:46:40.385 --> 00:46:42.087
I said what do you mean?
00:46:42.087 --> 00:46:43.421
I've lost all these different things.
00:46:43.421 --> 00:46:44.789
He said did you learn anything?
00:46:44.789 --> 00:46:46.124
I said yes, i learned what not to do.
00:46:46.124 --> 00:46:48.026
Said, well, then you haven't lost.
00:46:48.026 --> 00:46:49.394
And i was so confused for a while until i grew beyond the
00:46:49.394 --> 00:46:52.397
Pain and realized, okay, he's actually right.
00:46:52.397 --> 00:46:55.367
I learned something, so i didn't lose.
00:46:55.367 --> 00:46:57.903
I know what to do next time, and i know what not to do next time.
00:46:57.903 --> 00:47:01.539
And so you win some and you learn some, but you don't lose
00:47:01.539 --> 00:47:05.143
As long as you learn.
00:47:05.143 --> 00:47:06.745
Kirk: dang, i love these.
00:47:06.745 --> 00:47:08.113
I gotta memorize these, in the conclusion of your book, you
00:47:08.113 --> 00:47:12.083
Talk about the importance of a sense of humor and curiosity
00:47:12.083 --> 00:47:17.489
Even when the journey is difficult.
00:47:17.489 --> 00:47:20.425
How do we cultivate those types of attitudes?
00:47:20.425 --> 00:47:23.695
Tim: so, in the season that i'm in right now, a season of pain,
00:47:23.695 --> 00:47:28.233
A season of waiting on god to do some things that both me and my
00:47:28.233 --> 00:47:33.405
Wife are waiting on, we are trusting in god's ability and
00:47:33.405 --> 00:47:39.010
Not in our own.
00:47:39.010 --> 00:47:40.345
And so we have this saying that if we're gonna laugh about it
00:47:40.345 --> 00:47:43.281
Later, we're gonna laugh about it now.
00:47:43.281 --> 00:47:45.884
I don't want to get to the other side of this and say, man, i see
00:47:45.884 --> 00:47:49.220
Now what god was doing, and i see what he was doing in the
00:47:49.220 --> 00:47:53.091
Midst of that, and, man, that was funny, that was difficult,
00:47:53.091 --> 00:47:56.394
But i find the joy in it, i find the humor in it.
00:47:56.394 --> 00:47:58.930
And so if i'm gonna laugh about it later, i'm gonna laugh about
00:47:58.930 --> 00:48:01.900
It now.
00:48:01.900 --> 00:48:03.234
If i'm gonna rejoice about it later, i wanna rejoice about
00:48:03.234 --> 00:48:05.203
It now.
00:48:05.203 --> 00:48:06.538
And so i don't wanna push or delay joy and rejoicing off for
00:48:06.538 --> 00:48:10.875
Some future day, i wanna do it in the midst of what i'm
00:48:10.875 --> 00:48:14.079
Going through.
00:48:14.079 --> 00:48:15.447
So, if god has not changed my circumstance and god has not
00:48:15.447 --> 00:48:18.616
Changed my situation, it's because he's still changing me
00:48:18.616 --> 00:48:21.820
In the midst of that circumstance and that situation.
00:48:21.820 --> 00:48:24.990
And so as i am growing, as i am going through, as i am
00:48:24.990 --> 00:48:28.293
Overcoming, i wanna maintain and steward an attitude of gratitude
00:48:28.293 --> 00:48:33.031
And an attitude of joy and rejoicing in the middle of
00:48:33.031 --> 00:48:36.634
Whatever season i'm in right now.
00:48:36.634 --> 00:48:38.703
Kirk: man, this is wisdom i need to hear.
00:48:38.703 --> 00:48:42.173
You have so much of it, and i'm just so thankful that you wrote
00:48:42.173 --> 00:48:45.844
This book, that you pastor this church, and that everybody's
00:48:45.844 --> 00:48:48.179
Listening to you right now.
00:48:48.179 --> 00:48:49.514
Yeah, god bless you, brother.
00:48:49.514 --> 00:48:50.882
Tim: thank you, god bless you.
00:48:50.882 --> 00:48:52.217
Kirk: after the break we'll review today's takeaways.
00:48:52.217 --> 00:48:54.252
[music]
00:48:54.252 --> 00:48:59.999
[music]
00:48:59.999 --> 00:49:00.692
[music]
00:49:01.026 --> 00:49:04.729
Kirk: welcome back.
00:49:07.599 --> 00:49:08.933
We've got some really wise insights from nicole c. mullen
00:49:08.933 --> 00:49:11.669
And tim timberlake today on how to honor god in the difficult
00:49:11.669 --> 00:49:15.974
Seasons of life.
00:49:15.974 --> 00:49:17.375
Let's review a few of our takeaways.
00:49:17.375 --> 00:49:20.211
Honor god and walk upright.
00:49:20.211 --> 00:49:22.814
Nicole had such great stories to share, didn't she?
00:49:22.814 --> 00:49:25.417
Abigail, jochebed, depictions of everyday sheroes who chose to
00:49:25.417 --> 00:49:30.989
Honor god even in the most difficult moments.
00:49:30.989 --> 00:49:34.092
So what does it look like to honor god and live
00:49:34.092 --> 00:49:37.695
Upright today?
00:49:37.695 --> 00:49:39.164
Well, we talked about several practical disciplines that can
00:49:39.164 --> 00:49:42.100
Help us do this, remembering that we are people called
00:49:42.100 --> 00:49:46.404
According to his purpose, acknowledging that our
00:49:46.404 --> 00:49:49.707
Weaknesses cause us to hunger for his goodness, and then
00:49:49.707 --> 00:49:53.978
Inclining our hearts toward god and his word rather than our
00:49:53.978 --> 00:49:58.183
Fleeting feelings.
00:49:58.183 --> 00:50:00.518
Little decisions and years of goodness.
00:50:00.518 --> 00:50:04.022
Another great reminder from the story of jochebed was her bold
00:50:04.022 --> 00:50:08.426
Decision to save the life of moses and how it created
00:50:08.426 --> 00:50:12.063
Shockwaves of impact.
00:50:12.063 --> 00:50:14.599
What if you woke up tomorrow morning fully aware that your
00:50:14.599 --> 00:50:18.403
Simple decisions impact eternity?
00:50:18.403 --> 00:50:22.540
Because they do.
00:50:22.540 --> 00:50:24.309
So how do we honor god in our decision-making?
00:50:24.309 --> 00:50:27.378
We ask the holy spirit to guide us.
00:50:27.378 --> 00:50:29.881
Remember, we're not making these decisions alone.
00:50:29.881 --> 00:50:32.650
We know god's word, and we surround ourselves with everyday
00:50:32.650 --> 00:50:37.655
Heroes who we follow as they authentically follow christ,
00:50:37.655 --> 00:50:42.360
Even when no one is watching.
00:50:42.360 --> 00:50:44.629
Like nicole so rightly said, the proof of my love is not in the
00:50:44.629 --> 00:50:49.134
Songs that i sing, but in my obedience to god.
00:50:49.134 --> 00:50:54.372
Move at the pace of god.
00:50:54.372 --> 00:50:57.275
I loved this take from pastor tim.
00:50:57.275 --> 00:50:59.811
It takes a lot for us to get out of our hurried way of life, to
00:50:59.811 --> 00:51:04.015
Not react to the rush of others, and start seeing things in light
00:51:04.015 --> 00:51:07.886
Of god's timing.
00:51:07.886 --> 00:51:09.687
It's this perspective that allows us to perceive
00:51:09.687 --> 00:51:12.991
Frustrating delays as actually preparation for something
00:51:12.991 --> 00:51:16.961
Greater or to understand that a setback could actually be a
00:51:16.961 --> 00:51:21.833
Divine protection until we're ready, mature enough to
00:51:21.833 --> 00:51:26.371
Understand and handle what's ahead.
00:51:26.371 --> 00:51:28.973
Moving at the pace of god requires that we trust him and
00:51:28.973 --> 00:51:32.243
Submit ourselves to stop and marvel at what he's doing and
00:51:32.243 --> 00:51:36.948
Developing in us.
00:51:36.948 --> 00:51:39.450
A sidewalk perspective.
00:51:39.450 --> 00:51:41.786
Tim also encouraged each of us to have people in our lives with
00:51:41.786 --> 00:51:45.790
A sidewalk perspective, those who love us who can be trusted
00:51:45.790 --> 00:51:50.295
And are willing to help us see beyond our own blind spots to
00:51:50.295 --> 00:51:54.566
Find direction, correction, and build healthy guard rails.
00:51:54.566 --> 00:51:59.170
For tim, one of those people is his wife.
00:51:59.170 --> 00:52:02.473
Me too.
00:52:02.473 --> 00:52:03.841
Who is it for you?
00:52:03.841 --> 00:52:05.176
Through these trusted people and personal inventory questions
00:52:05.176 --> 00:52:08.613
Like am i defending this because of a personal insecurity?
00:52:08.613 --> 00:52:12.250
Or am i sure i'm correct?
00:52:12.250 --> 00:52:14.652
Or is this contributing to what i'm doing or distracting me?
00:52:14.652 --> 00:52:18.923
We can stay on mission for the work that god has for each of us
00:52:18.923 --> 00:52:22.927
As we continue to be shaped by him.
00:52:22.927 --> 00:52:26.798
Well, that's all for this episode of "takeaways,"
00:52:26.798 --> 00:52:28.866
Thanks for watching.
00:52:28.866 --> 00:52:30.368
And if you've enjoyed the show, please don't forget, set your
00:52:30.368 --> 00:52:32.770
Dvr so you never miss an episode.
00:52:32.770 --> 00:52:35.240
And of course, you can always catch up on past episodes, just
00:52:35.240 --> 00:52:38.643
Search for takeaways on tbn+ or visit the kirk cameron
00:52:38.643 --> 00:52:43.615
On tbn youtube channel.
00:52:43.615 --> 00:52:45.316
We'll see you here next time for more great conversations.
00:52:45.316 --> 00:52:48.720
[music]
00:52:48.720 --> 00:52:52.390
[music]
00:52:54.692 --> 00:52:54.692

Nicole C. Mullen & Tim Timberlake: Being Courageous To Do What Is Right | Takeaways with Kirk Cameron

October 27, 2025 | 54:42

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