Participants: John Bradshaw
Series Code: IIW
Program Code: IIW001281
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00:00 [music] >: It has stood the test
00:08 of time. 00:12 God's book, the Bible. 00:17 Still relevant in today's complex world. 00:22 It Is Written, 00:25 sharing hope around the globe. 00:37 JB: This is It Is Written. 00:38 I'm John Bradshaw, thanks for joining me. 00:41 The Bible starts with those magnificent words, "In the 00:45 beginning God created." 00:47 The Bible says He began by creating light, and on He 00:49 went through creation week, making this beautiful world, 00:53 when then was far more beautiful than it is now. 00:55 On the sixth day God created people. 00:59 God made us to inhabit us. 01:02 We were designed to be His dwelling place. 01:04 In fact, He tells us in the Bible that we are 01:07 the temple of the Holy Spirit. 01:09 However, there's trouble in the temple. 01:12 Millions of people die prematurely every year from 01:15 lifestyle-related diseases. 01:17 Different choices would result in longer, better 01:21 quality lives, in many cases. 01:24 So, what can we do about the trouble in the temple? 01:26 Are there simple changes that we can make so that we 01:30 would be able to live longer, healthier lives? 01:32 Now, thankfully, there are. 01:34 I spoke with Dr. Brian Schwartz, a cardiologist in 01:38 Kettering, Ohio, and asked him how we could live longer 01:41 and avoid disease, especially heart disease. 01:45 [music] 01:50 JB: What else can we say to people who are 01:51 looking to do something about their heart health? 01:54 BS: Yeah, so if you are a sedentary person, you really 01:56 haven't exercised much, then even starting the basic 02:00 level of exercise--just simply going out 02:03 and walking. 02:04 Walking is one of the healthiest things you can do for 02:07 your heart, but you need to get in about 20 minutes 02:09 a minimum of 3 days a week to get a benefit. 02:11 JB: That's not too hard. 02:12 I'd like to come at this from a slightly different 02:14 angle, 'cause some people say, I know I'm overweight. 02:17 I know therefore that my risk factors are a little 02:21 high, but the mountain just seems so high. 02:25 Now, you're making it sound like from an exercise point 02:28 of view it's not undoable. 02:29 BS: Absolutely. 02:30 It doesn't matter what type of exercise you do, there 02:33 must be something that you take an interest in. 02:35 Walking is one of the very simplest things. 02:37 It doesn't require expensive equipment; it doesn't 02:40 require a gym membership. 02:41 If you've got sleet and rain and snow, you can go walk 02:45 at a local mall, but you can get out and walk 02:48 for just 20 or 30 minutes. 02:49 Now, ideally we'd like you to walk for at least 30 minutes, 02:52 5 days a week. 02:53 That seems to give the best benefit to the heart. 02:55 JB: But you're saying, start somewhere. 02:57 BS: A minimum of 20 minutes, 3 days a week, still gives 02:59 you a great benefit to your heart. 03:01 Just losing 20 pounds will often drop the blood 03:04 pressure by about 20 pounds and drop the bad cholesterol 03:08 by about 10 points. 03:09 Just losing 20 pounds may drop your risk of a heart 03:12 attack by nearly half, just by getting some 03:14 of the weight down. 03:15 You don't even have to get to the ideal range. 03:17 So, just starting to do some of these things. 03:20 I myself am a vegetarian. 03:22 I tell my patients, I don't expect you to do everything 03:24 that I do, but the closer you get to doing that, 03:26 the better off you're going to be. 03:28 JB: Is meat really that bad? 03:30 I mean, this is America, man. 03:32 We were raised killing animals and eating them. 03:34 BS: Exactly right. 03:35 Well, we are learning that there are all kinds 03:38 of consequences to eating meat. 03:41 Environmental impacts, health impacts, 03:45 a lot of the problems with global warming 03:47 can be traced to the factory farms that we do to get 03:50 all this meat. 03:51 There was an article in "Newsweek" last year showing 03:54 that Americans eat 4 times more meat than the rest 03:57 of the world. 03:58 We eat meat, you said we grew up eating meat. 04:03 But it didn't used to be that we had meat with every 04:05 single meal. 04:06 Now, you have meat with breakfast, lunch 04:08 and supper. 04:09 Meat has become the staple of our diet. 04:11 Just reducing it to an occasional thing would be 04:14 very healthy. 04:16 Eliminating it altogether though would be fantastic. 04:18 Meat is calorie-packed; it's full of saturated fat, 04:23 especially red meats. 04:24 We now know from studies that have been published 04:28 that it increases your risk for certain cancers. 04:30 And when you compare groups of patients, or groups 04:33 of people, that are vegetarian versus non-vegetarian, 04:36 the vegetarians live 7 up to 10 years longer than 04:40 non-vegetarians. 04:41 JB: I think that's worth repeating. 04:43 When you compare vegetarians with non-vegetarians, 04:45 the vegetarians are living as long as a decade longer. 04:47 BS: Up to a decade longer. 04:48 JB: And you didn't say you must get rid of it all. 04:51 You said, if you can't go that far, cut it back so 04:55 it's just an occasional thing. 04:57 BS: Yeah, I try to practice the ideal, and even then, 04:59 there's things that I can do better. 05:01 All of us have to make choices. 05:03 Sometimes I'm on a trip and I pick the best choice that 05:06 I have. 05:07 But as far as possible, I try to set the ideal. 05:11 I don't always get my 4 days a week of exercise in, 05:15 but I try to do that. 05:17 I live in a stressful world just like everybody else. 05:20 I have a very stressful job sometimes. 05:22 I get called in the middle of the night to come in 05:24 and treat patients with a heart disease and heart attacks, 05:27 and I have to just drop everything and run in. 05:29 That interferes with your daily life, so we try to do 05:32 these the best we can. 05:33 We have to start somewhere and work toward it, so just 05:36 giving up red meat is a big goal. 05:39 I tell my patients, if you don't want to be a vegetarian, 05:41 just eating fish or chicken that's been baked 05:43 or broiled is better than eating red meat. 05:46 But, if you want to give up fish and chicken and eat 05:49 a plant-based diet, that shows the maximal benefit. 05:52 Then there are vegetarians who decide to give up all 05:55 dairy and become vegan vegetarians, and that seems 05:57 to have even a better benefit. 05:59 They live even longer and have less risk of heart 06:02 disease, less risk of cancer, less risk of a lot of these 06:05 diseases that we suffer under. 06:07 JB: Exercise, diet. 06:11 If we make some modifications there, we will 06:13 benefit our heart health and in a life, in a nation, 06:18 where heart disease is the number one killer, 06:20 this is pretty serious. 06:21 BS: This is huge. 06:22 JB: What else can a person do? 06:24 BS: If you've optimized your diet, you've optimized 06:28 your exercise, if you smoke you definitely want to give up 06:33 smoking, that's huge. 06:34 Do the simple things that you can do. 06:36 There is still a role for medications, 06:39 in some instances. 06:40 If you have a very high cholesterol after going on 06:43 a careful low-fat diet, then it might be reasonable 06:45 to add a medication. 06:47 What is a concern is, I have patients literally come 06:50 in to my office and say, Hey, I want that pill I saw 06:53 advertised on TV. 06:54 JB: What's wrong with that? 06:55 BS: I say, well what pill is that? 06:57 They say, You know, the one that I can still eat my 06:59 chocolate cake, and I just take the pill and it 07:01 neutralizes the cholesterol. 07:03 That seems to be a problem, because we're not dealing 07:06 with the root cause. 07:07 The root cause is partly our genetics but largely what 07:10 we're eating. 07:11 Some of us have missed the boat on preventing 07:13 heart disease. 07:14 We've already had heart surgery, we've already had 07:16 a stint, we already have angina when we walk. 07:18 But the good news now is, by implementing these simple 07:21 measures you can reverse that. 07:23 If you've had one heart attack, you can prevent 07:26 yourself from ever having another heart attack. 07:28 If you've had heart surgery, by following simple 07:30 lifestyle changes you can prevent the need for ever 07:36 having to go through that process again. 07:40 People that are having angina, that need to have 07:42 heart surgery, have been placed in studies 07:45 with Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. Estenstein up 07:48 at the Cleveland Clinic. 07:49 And the ones that go on a very fat-limiting diet have 07:54 had reversal of their anginal pains in as low as 2 weeks. 07:58 JB: Two weeks? 07:59 BS: Dr. Estenstein has a series of 18 patients 08:01 that were referred for heart surgery but were turned down 08:04 because they were too high risk to go through 08:06 the surgery. 08:07 So instead, he took those patients, he actually 08:10 brought them to his home where he taught them how 08:12 to eat a plant-based diet that emphasizes absolutely 08:15 no fat. 08:17 In following those patients over the last 15-20 years, 08:20 not a single one of those patients that have stuck 08:22 to that diet has ever had a heart attack. 08:25 JB: Yet they were too sick to have surgery. 08:27 In other words, they were left to die. 08:29 BS: They were left with no hope from the medical 08:31 community. 08:32 JB: And now they're well. 08:33 BS: They may still have some plaques in their arteries, 08:35 but they're not having anginal pain, they're not 08:39 having heart attacks, they're following a very 08:41 careful diet, they're exercising, but they're 08:43 healthier now than they were when they were first diagnosed. 08:47 JB: Is there anything dangerous. 08:50 You know, somebody says, Well, I'm going to take some 08:53 of this on board, but maybe my doctor, he or she might 08:57 advise--you're not talking about anything that has 09:00 any danger attached to it, are you? 09:03 BS: Yes, if you have heart disease and you're getting 09:05 daily anginal chest pains, then you should consult 09:08 with your physician before you start a vigorous exercise 09:11 program. 09:12 If you're diabetic, you need to make sure you monitor 09:15 your blood sugars. 09:16 And if you're even thinking about changing your diet 09:20 and reducing your medications, you need to do that in cohort 09:23 with your physician, with his advice or her advice. 09:26 Some people will still need to be on a low level 09:28 of medication, so that has to be coordinated. 09:33 So don't just suddenly say, huh! 09:35 I'm stopping my medication, I'm going on this careful 09:37 plant-based diet and I'm giving it all up, because you're 09:40 asking for trouble. 09:41 It took many, many years to get to that point. 09:44 It's a slow process to reverse heart disease once 09:47 you have it. 09:48 JB: Number one, nothing dangerous about picking up 09:50 some shoes and taking a 20-minute walk. 09:53 Nothing dangerous about limiting the amount 09:55 of unhealthy food and increasing the amount 09:57 of healthy food. 09:58 That's healthy and that's responsible. 10:00 BS: Absolutely. 10:01 Unless you're actively having symptoms right now, 10:03 you can get out and start doing those simple measures. 10:05 JB: However, something, I think this adds appropriate 10:10 balance to any discussion like this. 10:13 Rome wasn't built in a day, just like your heart disease 10:16 didn't happen overnight. 10:17 People do need to take a medium- to long-term 10:19 approach at this. 10:20 If you want to lose 150 pounds and by this time next 10:24 week you're still 150 pounds overweight, it's a little 10:26 too early to get discouraged. 10:28 BS: Exactly. 10:29 Our bodies are actually fearfully and wonderfully 10:31 made. 10:32 It's amazing how much abuse they can take for many, 10:35 many, many years before these symptoms actually 10:37 start popping up. 10:38 I mentioned that these little fatty streaks occur 10:40 in children. 10:41 By the time people are in their 20s, 40-50-60 percent 10:44 of people have plaque in their arteries to the point 10:47 where half of Americans over the age of 45 have plaque. 10:51 The precursor of heart disease, all sitting there 10:58 in their arteries. 10:59 This all occurs over many, many years: 40-50-60 years, 11:01 so if you're setting off to reverse this process, 11:03 it's also going to be a very gradual process. 11:06 It's not going to all go away. 11:08 But the good news is that even stabilizing the plaque 11:11 that's there, preventing it from getting worse and 11:13 gradually reducing it, you're going to start 11:16 feeling better immediately. 11:17 JB: Is it fair to say that in relation to heart 11:20 disease, that there are many people, and there'll be many 11:22 people watching us right now, who are much sicker 11:25 than they realize? 11:26 BS: Oh, it's like a ticking time bomb. 11:29 So, we mentioned earlier that for some it will be too 11:32 late. 11:33 The first symptom they'll have is a clutch of chest 11:35 pain and they'll collapse on the floor as their heart 11:37 stops beating. 11:38 JB: And they die. 11:39 And they didn't know. 11:40 BS: Unless the paramedics can get to them within 5 11:42 or 6 minutes, somebody does CPR, get them to a hospital 11:46 where that artery can be opened back up, they're not going 11:48 to make it. 11:49 JB: So there are a lot of people right now who are 11:51 in that condition and they just don't know it. 11:53 And they're not going to know--they'll never know. 11:56 Their spouse might know, their children might know, 11:58 but they'll never know because-- BS: Their first 12:00 symptom might be that they died. 12:02 JB: This is something that people really ought to take 12:05 seriously. 12:06 BS: Absolutely. 12:07 JB: Let's talk about this from a spiritual perspective. 12:09 Why does it even matter? 12:10 I mean, in terms of the big picture, we are fearfully 12:17 and wonderfully made. 12:19 In the beginning God. 12:20 On the sixth day He made our grandparents. 12:24 How does this matter spiritually? 12:26 Does this have any connection? 12:28 What connection does this have to our spiritual 12:31 health? 12:32 BS: I think in two ways this relates. 12:35 First of all, we're made in God's image. 12:37 We were designed to reflect His character. 12:40 But we know that our heart, our mind and our bodies 12:44 is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. 12:46 God wants to communicate with us, to dwell with us, 12:50 and in order to be able to realize that, we need 12:53 a healthy body. 12:54 Particularly the frontal lobes of our brain are known 12:57 to be the spiritual centers of the brain. 13:00 And things like caffeine, like tobacco smoke, 13:02 like lack of exercises, diseases like diabetes and heart 13:05 disease, things that impair the blood flow to that area 13:08 are going to impair our ability to sense spiritual things. 13:12 And, from a further standpoint, you can wind up being 13:18 either somebody who can be of service to our fellow man 13:22 and be out there able to help others, or you 13:25 can become a burden: a burden to your family, 13:28 a burden to society because you haven't taken care 13:30 of yourself. 13:31 So I think it's also a matter a social 13:33 responsibility. 13:34 JB: The Bible says that our bodies are the temple 13:36 of the Holy Spirit. 13:37 BS: That's right. 13:38 JB: If that's the case, then we should be treating Him-- 13:40 BS: I believe that God created us in a way that we 13:43 live under the same laws that govern the whole universe. 13:47 The laws of cause and effect. 13:50 So, to a large degree the things that we do now might 13:54 impact what happens to us later. 13:56 Now, granted there are things outside of our control, 13:59 and nothing can happen to us if God does not allow it. 14:04 He ultimately runs the whole universe and cares about 14:07 even the hairs, knows the number of the hairs 14:09 on our head. 14:11 But we make choices, and as those choices are outside 14:14 of God's will, He doesn't protect us from the consequences 14:18 all the time. 14:19 There is a day in which He's going to make all things 14:21 new, and He does forgive us for our wrongful habits; 14:24 He does forgive for our sins; but many times we bear 14:27 the consequences throughout the rest of our life. 14:31 [music] 14:38 >: In Matthew 4:4, the Word of God says, 14:40 "It is written, man shall not live by bread alone 14:43 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." 14:46 "Every Word" is a one-minute, Bible-based daily devotional, 14:50 presented by Pastor John Bradshaw and designed 14:53 especially for busy people like you. 14:56 Look for "Every Word" on selected networks, or watch 14:59 it online every day on our website. 15:01 ItIsWritten.com. 15:03 Receive a daily spiritual boost. 15:05 Watch "Every Word." 15:07 You'll be glad you did. 15:08 Here's a sample. 15:12 [music] 15:19 JB: I get asked every now and then about this: 15:20 We're saved by grace through faith. 15:23 Right. 15:24 But then Revelation 22:12 says, "And behold I come 15:27 quickly, and my reward is with me to give every man 15:30 according as his work shall be." 15:32 Sounds to some people as though this is saying we're 15:34 not saved by God's grace but by our works. 15:36 Now, let's look at this carefully. 15:38 John writes that we are judged by our works, not saved 15:42 by our works. 15:43 The point is that our works, how we live our lives, 15:46 demonstrate or give evidence regarding the reality 15:49 of our profession. 15:50 Anyone at all can claim to be a follower of Jesus, 15:53 but it isn't what you say that really matters. 15:56 It's how you live. 15:57 That's where the evidence really is. 16:00 In the judgment, it isn't just a profession God 16:02 is looking for. 16:03 He's looking for the real thing. 16:05 I'm John Bradshaw for It Is Written. 16:07 Let's live today by every word. 16:12 JB: This is It Is Written. 16:13 Thanks for joining me today. 16:14 There's trouble in the temple. 16:16 The Bible says our bodies are the temple 16:18 of the Holy Spirit. 16:19 But thankfully God has given us in many cases ways that 16:22 we can reverse that trouble. 16:24 Here's more of my discussion with cardiologist 16:27 Dr. Brian Schwartz. 16:30 [Music] 16:33 This is a subject that comes close to home for me, 16:36 because my own father had heart disease, 16:38 had open-heart surgery, congestive heart failure 16:40 and died from a heart attack, which if we want to be honest 16:44 about it was preventable. 16:45 It was a result of his own lifestyle choices that 16:48 accumulated over many years and eventually the lights 16:51 went out and Dad was gone, when he could still be here 16:54 today. 16:55 BS: And that's the tragedy in families, is that so many 16:57 lives are cut short. 16:59 I have patients that come into my office and they'll 17:02 say, You know, I don't want to give up that part of my diet. 17:06 I don't want to quit smoking because it's not the quantity 17:09 I'm looking at, it's the quality. 17:11 And in reality they don't realize that those 17:13 last 15-20 years, what it's going to be like. 17:16 What is it going to be like to their family, to have 17:18 their life cut short and for the family to go on without 17:20 them, when they could have been there for that graduation 17:22 or for that wedding. 17:23 What's it like when they're smothering to death 17:25 with congestive heart failure those last few years. 17:28 Or, when they're trying to smoke a cigarette through 17:32 a trach, because they have such bad lung disease. 17:36 They're trading both the length as well 17:38 as the quality when they choose these habits. 17:41 JB: Alcohol must factor into heart disease somehow. 17:44 How does it play a part? 17:45 BS: It does. 17:46 There's a lot of mixed reviews in the literature 17:49 about having a glass of wine to help your heart. 17:52 JB: Oh yes, we've all heard that. 17:54 BS: It gets a lot of props. 17:55 Interestingly, the studies that have most carefully 17:59 looked at that, it turns out it's probably not the actual 18:02 alcohol content in the wine that gives the benefit. 18:05 There's other compounds that come from grapes, other 18:08 compounds in there that might give the benefit to 18:10 the heart and actually help you raise those good 18:12 cholesterols and help be protected. 18:14 Not necessarily the alcohol content. 18:17 And because alcohol has so many other deleterious 18:20 effects on society, on our livers, on the rest of our 18:23 health, I don't recommend it for my patients. 18:26 JB: Let's talk for a minute about congestive heart 18:28 failure, which my dad had and so many other people's 18:31 dads have. 18:32 What is it, and how does it come about? 18:34 BS: Okay. 18:35 So congestive heart failure is a term that's thrown 18:38 around out there, but it actually occurs 18:40 from a cardiomyopathy. 18:41 Something that damages the heart muscle itself. 18:44 So, the heart is about the size of our fist. 18:47 It squeezes the blood. 18:49 In fact, it pumps almost close to a million gallons 18:53 of blood every single year. 18:55 It does an incredible amount of work. 18:57 That little muscle only has about a half-second to rest 19:02 in between every beat. 19:04 But when you get a cardiomyopathy, 19:06 when the muscle itself is affected, the heart 19:08 begins to stretch out. 19:09 It can't squeeze with such vigorous contractions 19:13 each time. 19:14 That leads to congestive heart failure. 19:16 The symptoms of congestive heart failure are often 19:19 the feeling of smothering. 19:20 I can't catch my breath, I can't lie down flat. 19:23 You start retaining fluid. 19:25 The fluid builds up in your lungs and makes your lungs 19:27 stiff, and that's why you can't breathe. 19:29 Fluid may build up in your legs, and so your legs start 19:31 to swell. 19:32 You might have to let out a couple of inches 19:34 on your belt, because you're retaining fluid. 19:36 Those are all signs of congestive heart failure. 19:38 JB: What can be done about it? 19:41 BS: Congestive heart failure can be prevented. 19:44 The number one cause of congestive heart failure 19:46 in the United States is coronary artery disease, 19:50 which we've talked about. 19:51 JB: The old saying, an ounce of prevention is worth 19:56 a pound of cure, or bigger than a pound of cure. 19:59 BS: Absolutely. 20:00 JB: I imagine that you would say, the best way to treat 20:02 heart disease is to avoid heart disease. 20:04 BS: Absolutely. 20:05 I believe that in my practice close to 90 percent 20:08 of the cases of congestive heart failure, 90 percent of 20:10 the cases of coronary artery disease, are brought on 20:15 by our poor choices. 20:17 There are some people that do absolutely 20:19 everything right. 20:20 We still live in a sinful world where, regardless 20:23 of living well, living healthy, they can still suffer from 20:26 heart disease. 20:27 But that's not the average case. 20:30 JB: Caffeine. 20:31 Let's talk about caffeine in relation to the heart 20:33 of one's health. 20:35 BS: Personally, I don't drink caffeine. 20:37 That puts me in a very small minority of people. 20:40 People feel generally that they're more awake and more 20:43 alert when they drink their cup of coffee every morning 20:46 or have a caffeinated beverage. 20:47 JB: Well, we have these energy drinks that'll give 20:49 you a jolt of energy for 2-3-4-5 hours. 20:52 And it's just a caffeine blast. 20:54 BS: It's a lot of sugar and a lot of caffeine. 20:56 Both of those cause an immediate spike, but then it 21:00 tapers off quickly and you're probably actually 21:02 at a lower level of alertness after the fact, than when 21:06 you first took it. 21:09 Because of that, it causes you to want to do another 21:12 one so you can feel better again. 21:14 And so you're constantly in the cycle of feeling like 21:16 hmm, I'm not feeling quite so alert. 21:18 I need to take another caffeinated beverage or get 21:20 another caffeine boost. 21:21 It turns out that in the studies that I've seen, 21:25 that caffeine does make people feel like they're a little 21:29 bit peppier. 21:30 But after they've been on it chronically, you're simply 21:33 getting back to a normal level of alertness by taking 21:35 the caffeine that you would have had if you'd never been 21:37 on the caffeine in the first place. 21:39 JB: What does it do to your body that's bad 21:41 for your body? 21:42 BS: It's a stimulant. 21:43 It is causing you, and you can feel it if you drink 21:45 a lot of caffeine, you can feel a little bit jittery. 21:47 And because the muscle cells and the heart, all of them 21:52 can become irritable at different times. 21:54 Caffeine stimulates those other cells in the heart, 21:59 besides the natural pace maker, to become irritable. 22:01 And they can take over and trigger faster than 22:03 the natural pace maker. 22:04 When that happens you get a quick little jolt 22:07 in your chest. 22:08 That's what you feel when you feel a palpitation. 22:10 JB: So if someone is looking to look after their heart, 22:13 you'd say caffeine's got to go. 22:15 BS: Well, again, it's all about choices. 22:18 So I tell all my patients who drink a lot of caffeine 22:20 that it would be best to limit it to not more than 22:22 one caffeinated beverage. 22:24 But I also tell them again that I don't drink it at all, 22:26 and I think that's the ideal. 22:27 JB: Brian, thanks. 22:29 I really appreciate your taking the time today. 22:31 It's been a great blessing; you've helped a great deal 22:34 and you've given us a lot to think about. 22:36 Thanks. 22:37 BS: You're very welcome. 22:51 [music] JB: Eyes for India is giving sight to the blind, 22:54 and you can be a part of this amazing work 22:57 that God is doing. 22:58 Fifteen million blind people live in India--more than any 23:01 other country in the world. 23:03 And many of the blind in India could see again, 23:06 if only they could have simple cataract surgery. 23:09 It Is Written is making that happen. 23:12 Would you support Eyes for India? 23:15 For just $75.00, you'll be giving the gift 23:18 of sight to someone who desperately wants to see. 23:22 Here's all you need to do. 23:23 Call 1-800-253-3000. 23:24 That's 1-800-253-3000, to donate and support 23:32 Eyes for India. 23:34 Or you can write to It Is Written at Box O, 23:37 Thousand Oaks, CA 91359. 23:41 You'll also find Eyes for India online at 23:44 ItIsWritten.com. 23:46 Every $75.00 you give gives someone the precious gift 23:49 of sight. 23:51 Eyes for India. 23:52 Doing the work of Jesus in opening the eyes of the 23:55 blind, and opening hearts to the love of God. 24:02 Planning for your financial future is a vital aspect of 24:05 Christian stewardship. 24:06 For this reason, It Is Written is pleased to offer 24:09 free Planned Giving and Estate Services. 24:11 For information on how we can help you, please call 24:14 1-800-992-2219. 24:18 Call today or visit our special website: 24:21 www.HisLegacy.com. 24:29 JB: Jesus said He came into the world to give us 24:32 a more abundant life. 24:33 And you can have that by making simple changes 24:36 that bring profound results. 24:38 And with that in mind, I'd like to offer you a special 24:41 book. 24:42 It's called "Confidence in Chaos." 24:44 And this is a book that could change your life. 24:47 If you want to get your heart right with God, 24:50 this is the book that's going to set you on the path 24:52 to that place. 24:54 In order to get this book, call right now. 24:56 The number is 1-800-253-3000, and simply ask for 25:02 "Confidence in Chaos." 25:03 You can write to It Is Written at Box O, Thousand Oaks, CA 25:08 91359, and we'll mail a copy to your address 25:13 in North America. 25:14 This is a resource you'll appreciate. 25:17 It's yours free. 25:18 All you need to do is call right now, 1-800-253-3000 25:23 or write to the address on your screen. 25:26 There's no cost, and there's no catch. 25:29 Simply call now and ask for "Confidence in Chaos." 25:34 And remember, It Is Written is a faith ministry made 25:38 possible by people like you. 25:40 If you're blessed by this program, I want to ask you 25:43 to be gracious enough to help us through your financial 25:46 support. 25:47 We don't place a lot of emphasis on 25:49 that at It Is Written. 25:50 But that's not to suggest it isn't needed or appreciated. 25:53 Your continued financial support makes it possible 25:56 for It Is Written to continue sharing the Word 25:58 of God with the world. 26:04 Today we've discussed that there is trouble 26:06 in the temple. 26:07 Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. 26:09 We've also spoken not only about the physical heart, 26:11 but the spiritual heart. 26:12 How is it with your temple today? 26:15 If there's trouble in the temple of your life, I don't want you 26:18 to be surprised or discouraged, because the Bible 26:21 has said that we're all sinners and we all have come short 26:24 of the glory of God. 26:26 The key is not simply admitting or discovering 26:29 that there's trouble in the temple, but in coming 26:31 to Jesus so that He can do something about it. 26:34 So as we come to Jesus in prayer right now, I want 26:36 to pray for you and with you that He'll make everything 26:40 right in the temple of your heart. 26:43 Let's pray. 26:44 Our Father in Heaven, we thank You today for 26:47 Your great goodness to us. 26:49 We come to you, Lord, asking that You would make 26:52 our heart right. 26:53 I know there are some people who are sick and ailing 26:55 and they've been diagnosed recently. 26:58 Some people struggling now because of an uncertain 27:00 physical future. 27:01 I pray for them, please come close to them. 27:05 Remind us again that all of us have sinned, we're all 27:07 in this together, and that for all of us there is hope in You. 27:11 We thank You that You are a God who is a God 27:15 of forgiveness. 27:16 We pray with David, create in us a clean heart. 27:20 Take our hearts, make them Yours. 27:23 In Jesus' name we pray, amen. 27:34 [music] 27:44 Thanks for joining me today. 27:46 I'm looking forward to seeing you again next time. 27:48 Until then, remember, it is written: 27:51 "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every 27:54 word that proceeds from the mouth of God." |
Revised 2015-02-23