This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.

Hey, welcome to Prairie Lakes Church, A great job making it this weekend. Um, we are, you know, hitting the, the throes of summer now, and, uh, there's lots to do and you being a part of this, whether you're at a campus or, uh, online at home or at the lake or wherever, great job.

I'm really proud of you for joining and being a part of this thing. And don't forget this. We're a no matter church and we mean it. No matter who you are, where you've been, what you've done, or even what's been done to you, God does love you.

You may right now be sitting in the spot. And if not you, I know one of your friends is thinking, God couldn't love me. I've done too many things, right? Listen, he proved his love for you and me in this while we were yet sinners.

Christ died for us. So we're, no matter, because we serve a no matter God, we're really glad that we get to be a part of this together. And what a great weekend we're having, okay? Across our sites in Iowa, we're gonna have over 40 baptisms, uh, this weekend.

So, hey, what? Right? What a joy. So we're glad to be a part of it. All right, here's what we're gonna do. We're gonna spend the next three weeks starting a new series called Scrolling. And why are we doing this? One? Because it impacts all of us.

And what we know is this, this issue's only going to increase. So we're gonna spend three weeks, um, talking about consuming it, right? The consumption of our devices and how we're tied to our digital devices and social media.

Um, next week is comparison. And then the third week is this. Why is it such a disconnection? Why is it disconnecting us? So it's gonna be a great series. And, and, and I think it's, I think it's legitimate question to ask, why are we talking about this in the church?

Why, why? So let's obvious, let's, let's answer the obvious one, um, first, and by the way, scrolling means this, it's kind of this generic word for, for phones and tablets, devices, social media, anything that we do this to, right?

Anything that, anything that we do this to, it's kind of a generic for that. So the obvious question is, is why do we talk about this in, in the church? Why, why are we doing that? Okay? So let's catch up to the latest research.

And the research is, is, is really getting more and more, um, complete and thorough and exhaustive. And it, it's, it's, it's not good. I mean, just a, a chat GPT, right? With, with a bunch of resources, just a very simple one of, of is social media scrolling harmful, uh, to, to, to us, right?

And, and it really, it, it, this is just a, a, a, a real swift and short grab of, right? A negative productivity, sleep impact, the relationships, all, all, all of the stuff, right? And, and it's, it's, it's, it's, it's unquestioned that the scrolling this doom scrolling is harmful to us in lots of ways.

Latest headline is this, just this week, surgeon General comes out with a tobacco like warning label for social media, like a, a tobacco like warning label that we are saying this is harmful to you. Some of the latest research says this, that in particular, in particular, it's harmful for everybody.

But we talk about kids. We're seeing an increase in, in diagnosed disorder. We're seeing an increase in anxiousness, in depression and anxiety. Um, we're seeing an increase in all kinds of disorders. But here's, here's, here's one that's really scary for me.

In 12 to 15-year-old girls who are going through that season of their life, it is disproportionately harmful to them. And I'm not saying it's not to boys, not saying it's not to adults, Nope, all that's true. But 12 to 15-year-old girls in, in, in this vulnerable spot in their life, they're discovering that this scrolling on social media is disproportionately harmful to them.

Okay? So let's ask the question again. So why are we talking about it other than, okay, it's a big deal. It's, it's a part of this. Let's, let's take it to another level, okay? And these things called our phones, these scrolling devices, right?

They have become inseparable from almost all of us. They are literally like an appendage that's attached to us. They're with us all the time. We are in a deep relationship with our devices. We are. And 'cause, you know, right? When you can't find your phone for even a couple minutes, you begin to panic.

If you accidentally leave your house with your phone, like what's the distance that you'll go before you go back to get it? Right? It, it's, it's, we're inseparable. And it's, it's, it's, it's, it's almost kind of getting crazy that we have this deep relationship with it.

It, it, it literally, what's what's been happening is this device is coming between us and relationships, us and God, uh, husband and wives, parents and children, coworkers, friends, relatives. It's, it's, it's certainly are, are some, some advantages of connection.

But man, when it comes to this idea of scrolling and what it does to us, um, there are disadvantage and it is coming between us. And here's the crazy thing, and this is the one that I think is a little bit damning. It's this, isn't it weird that the phone, the device, for many of us, it's the last thing that we see and touch at night, and it's the first thing that we see and touch in the morning.

That, that's, that's, that says that we, we, we, we need to talk through this and let's, let's take it, let's just take it a a a another step, okay? Um, since this really began to take off was really the social media, right?

And in 2010 when the iPhone four came out, that's when, that's when it did. So, so in oh four, um, oh four or oh three, uh, MySpace started, and that was kinda the first of these, but it wasn't on the phone yet, okay?

And in oh six, Facebook expanded off just universities to be available to everywhere, but it wasn't really the phone yet. And then Twitter in oh seven and by 2011, Twittered a hundred million in four years, a hundred million active users.

Snapchat in 2012, Instagram in 2010. And so just picture this, right? Just think of this for a minute. So that today's 25 to 40 year olds, and many of you fall into that camp, you're kind of the first generation, you were kind of high school, teen, preteen, teen, high school, college.

When, when the iPhone four came out in 2010, that's when, that's when this started to become an issue. And honestly, we didn't know any better. And, and, and, and take another step. Now, now you 25 to 40 year olds, you are now parenting and raising the first generation that will completely grow up with devices in their hands, with social media to deal with, with scrolling as an issue that can cause harm to their, their, their, their whole being.

And, and so that's why, right? That's why we're gonna talk about it. And I think we could all say, right? I agree. I agree. I agree mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally. There are, there are the, the, the bad side of the scrolling, it's not good for us, right?

And the evidence is clear. But hear this, it's not a blind spot anymore, okay? When you, 25 to 40 year olds were, were in the middle of it, we didn't know for sure, right? We didn't know like, what's it doing? Now we have literal evidence that says, this is not good, this is not good.

And, and, and, and here's what, what I, I believe that if left unchecked, okay, if left unchecked, this scrolling is attacking us at the deepest level of who we are. And, and by that I mean this connection that we have with, with God and what God wants for us, it's offering almost the opposite of what God's best is for us.

So let's go down the road together, okay? Let's go the road together, grab your Bibles, okay? Grab your Bibles. And if you would turn to Psalm 23, we're gonna stick almost this whole weekend in this one Psalm, okay? So go to Psalm 23.

Now, Psalms is a giant book in the middle of the Old Testament. And, and if you just do one of these, um, you will find psalms and turn to Psalm 23. Now, for many of us, this is a familiar psalm, and, uh, uh, you've heard it.

Maybe you didn't know what it was, but there's songs about it and you've heard it at funerals and, and in, in lots of different places. But let's read it together and then we'll walk through kind of this road that we're gonna go on.

Okay? So here's Psalm 23 from David who wrote it, king David. And he wrote this, and it's this about, this, this life with God. Walk with God, how good God is, what God does for us and the relationship with us.

All right? So here's what he said. The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures. It leaves me beside quiet waters. He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley or the valley of the shadow of death, is a little more common phrase for that I will fear no evil, for you are with me.

You're Rod and your staff, they comfort me. And then he ends the last two verses like this. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.

And I will dwell on the house of the Lord forever, and I will dwell on the house of the Lord forever. Friends, I want to you to hear this. David wrote this psalm as a picture of what it means to be with God and in walking with God and what God's best is for us on this journey called life.

And what we run into and why we are talking about scrolling is because scrolling, digital devices doom, scrolling, mindless interaction with these devices that are coming between us is almost the opposite of what God wants for us.

Okay? Now, listen, I'm not anti phone, I'm not anti technology. I've got an iPhone 15. I've got, I've got Google Minis all over my house. I cook it to my car, right? I've got all of it. I'm not anti, but we've gotta raise the blinds a little bit here and we've gotta dig.

Okay? So here's the first one, and here's why we're, we're raising the alarm a little bit, okay? Um, discontent is, is at an all time high, and we're seeing it in the evidence of what's going on, uh, around us in, in all the studies, okay?

So just, just think now what the David said. At first, David said this, the Lord is my shepherd, and here it is, ready. I lack nothing. Okay? I lack nothing. And then he fills that in. And, and think of this now, just kind of, kind of think of it as a shepherd leading sheep.

Okay? So Jesus is our shepherd, and Jesus leads us the sheep, right? And what's he do? He makes me lie down in green pastures, right? So what's the sheep want? Food. God provides green pastures, not dry, not withered, not rocky, but green pastures.

He leads me beside quiet waters because sheep won't drink from, from bustling noisy water. He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake. Just sit in this just for a minute. Just sit in this, God is my shepherd brings contentment to my life.

When I follow his lead, when I let him lead me. Here's what he does. He brings contentment. He brings contentment to my mind and to my heart, and to my body. He refreshes my, my soul. He, he makes sure I'm on the, the right path, right?

That's God's best for us. What God wants for you and me, for your kids, for, for my kids, for your grandkids, for for my grandkids. It's the plan and provision for life. Contentment. I got what I need because I've got God, and God's got me.

But here's what scrolling does. Scrolling is the enemy of contentment. Scrolling well continually throws at us. These, these simple ideas that, that I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm not enough. It's a constant reminder of, of there's more to life than I've got.

There's that I need more than what I've been given, that I'm not complete in who I am, that I need to be more like them, or I need to have that, that I'm not fulfilled, that I'm not good enough, that I'm not living the life. And it produces this fomo, this fear of missing out in us that's real.

And one of the issues with, with kind of this, this, this device and connection and scrolling, is I'm being constantly reminded that I'm not enough and I don't have enough, and I have reason to be mad. And I'm not getting the, the, the, a fair shake here.

And there's so much more out there that I, that I could have if, if only listen to this, would you, would you hang out with a friend or allow your kids to hang out with a friend who 24 7 constantly made you feel less than you wouldn't?

W would you invite an unknown people to give you critical, unfair, mean feedback at, at, at your table with you? You wouldn't, you wouldn't allow them into your life. You wouldn't allow them into your kids' life. You'd put up borders, you put up boundaries around it. And yet, here we are feeding and inviting self-inflicted discontent into our souls.

David said, listen, this is, this is what if you, you, you, this is what God's best is for. This is what God does. This is what he does. And this is contentment later when, when Paul, the apostle was right into the Philippians, he, he, he said this about, about contentment in Philippians four, 11 to 13.

Um, Paul, here's what he says. I'm not saying this because I'm in need. And then, and then, and listen, for I've learned to be, what's the word? Say it, content. Whatever the circumstances, I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.

I have learned the secret of being everybody say it out loud again, content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or, and want. And then he says this, I can do all this through him talking about Jesus who gives me strength.

And here's what, here's what Paul says. The secret to contentment, the secret to life is know this. Not that I am self-sufficient 'cause I'm not, but I am Christ sufficient. And just as David said, the shepherd, the Lord is my shepherd.

And here's what he does for me. Paul says, and Jesus, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm sufficient in the sufficiency of Christ, what he's done for me, what he does for me. I can be content even if my circumstances are here or my circumstance are there, or my need is here, or my need is there, I can be content because Christ is my shepherd, because Jesus is my king.

So, so the, the, the, the issue, the issue really is this, the issue is that God's best for you, for your kids, for your children, for your friends, for your neighbors, for your coworkers. God's best is this, is that you can live this life walking with him and contentment with him.

And scrolling continually says this, but you don't have enough, but you're not enough, but you're less than. And my friends, that's the opposite of what God wants. And I wanna just go just a little bit, a little bit farther in this, just, just a little bit, okay?

Baked into those two verses. Go back to those verses if you would, baked into the psalm, baked into those first three verses of the Psalm, okay? Baked into that is this, this, this, this personal presence that's with it, right? It's a picture of presence. Look, he's my shepherd, right?

He's, he's present with me. He, he makes me, he, he leads me. He refreshes me. He guides me along, right? And there's this picture of, of this, this presence with God, right? One of the basic needs of, of, of humans is connection to God and connection to others.

Feeling and having that connection, scrolling, disconnects and put us on a lonely journey of isolation and insulation. And we'll talk about more of that in week three. One of the terrible byproducts of scrolling, that's just, just a little bit of side note here. One of the terrible byproducts of this is that it's addictive.

And this is coming between people. Scrolling often leads to a lack of presence, even with those you love the most. If you're a parent, your kid should never feel like they have to compete with your phone. They just shouldn't. Just as David said, I'm content because my shepherd brings me and takes me and leads me where I need to be.

I'm content with that, my friends. Here's what we need. And you need to be content and not constantly be reminded of how discontented and can be. Scrolling pulls you away from being prayer. It brings discontent. All right, let's, let's keep moving.

Okay? The, the middle of the psalm, okay? This is verse four. Um, just, just listen to it, okay? Then we're gonna hit this word distract, so we have discontent. Okay? Scrolling brings disco, scrolling brings distraction. It distracts, okay?

So David says this, well, he says, Hey, God, I've, I'm contentment with God, right? He, he leads me along the right paths and the quiet waters and the green pastures, he refreshes my soul. And then in verse four, look what he says. Even though, right?

Even though, even though sometimes people think, well, if I just follow God, my life should perfect, or, or boy, if, if God was really real, things would be perfect. Listen, God never promises that. In fact, he even says, here's what's gonna happen. Jesus said it clearly in this life, you will have troubles.

But David says this, even though I walk through the darkest valley, the valley of the shadow of death, right? I'll fear no evil for you're with me. You're roding your staff, they comfort me, right? Just, just look at that, right?

So he's, he's, we, we can't avoid tough things. We can't avoid hard spots. We can't avoid uncomfortable and bad things, just it's life. We all know that. And he says, even though I walk, here's what he knows, that God is with him.

God is, God is walking with him and he's feeling it, and he's dealing with it. One of the keys to maturity in life, one of the keys is, is adults can. Uh, we, we, we, we have to learn how to, how to handle these spots that we're in.

It's not easy. Oftentimes we have to walk through things and be present in the uncomfortable and not escaping it. And he says, walk through, not run, not escape, not sleep through, just, just uncomfortable happens, right? I was just in, in Phoenix this past weekend.

I was speaking at a church down there after the Saturday night service. I, I was in my rental car on the I 10, going to my sister-in-Law's house. We're coming back. It was eight o'clock at night. It was 111 degrees at 8:00 PM 111.

I'm insulated from it, right? I'm insulated. I've got my air conditioning on, I've got the windows up, I'm going down the, the interstate. And I, here's what I think, I think I, I, I wanna feel this. I I wanna know what is it like at 111 degrees at eight o'clock at night?

I roll all the windows down and I just sit in it, right? That, that suffocating air just, just comes in and, and I, and I spend a just a little bit like, like living in it, right? What's it feel to be on Hell's Porch, right? Just, just for a minute, okay?

Here's the problem with scrolling. You ready for this? We know valleys are gonna come, but when we feel anxious or afraid or ashamed or embarrassed or sad, we distract ourselves and soothe ourselves with cat videos rather than dealing with it and working it out in real time.

We're not processing and dealing with it and working it out, thoughts and feelings and, and wounds. Instead, we distract and scrolling has become the latest escape path, so we don't have to deal with it. But you gotta understand this.

And what we're seeing is the effect. Now, if I refuse to deal with pain, and if I refuse to deal with my feelings of sad or anxious or, or, or fearful, if I refuse to deal with it, right? I scroll, I don't deal with it. It gets stuffed. And like a beach ball, trying to hold a beach ball under the water, it's eventually gonna come popping out of you.

It's eventually gonna blow. It is. And what we're seeing is the rise in adolescent anxiety and depression, gender confusion. We're seeing all the stuff. We are seeing a mental health crisis, that the evidence is beginning to point towards.

This stuff called scrolling. This thing goes scrolling. We are looking for relief, but we're ending up with regret. It's the new smoking, right? I'm, I'm, uh, I'm feeling an, it used to be years ago, it used to be, oh, I'm feeling a little anxious.

I better, I better light what up? Oh, I'm feeling a little, I'm a little frustrated. I be, I'm mad. I better light one up. I'm, I'm depressed. I'm, I'm, I need to, I just need some relief. And the light one up. Well, what is it today? I'm feeling anxious. Well, I'm gonna look at something else.

I'm, I'm not gonna think about it. I'm feeling really mad about, well, I'm gonna look at something else and I'm gonna bury myself in, in this. And here's what happens. The scrolling is a distraction. So that we don't have to deal in the real world with the real pain of what it is like to live, to walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

Here's the crazy thing, right? Well, why don't we just don't let kids have it? Or why don't we just stop doing it? Listen to me, adults can't regulate it. I can't. Okay, listen, I caught myself even in the last week, Blackstone videos at night, Blackstone videos at night.

Not only do I stay awake way too late, but here's what happens. I get really hungry. It, it just, and if I as a 60-year-old man can't regulate it, how in the world are we expecting a 13-year-old to regulate it, my friends?

It, it's, it's not just, it's not just discontent. It's a distraction. We have to learn to walk through the valleys. We have to learn to not scroll through funny cat videos. We have to deal with it. I want everybody to turn in your Bible to Luke chapter 24, okay?

Luke 24. In, in Luke 24, we have this picture. And it, it's, it's this picture of of having to walk through it, right? And, and the picture involves Jesus and two disciples. Now, this is the, this is after the Jesus has risen from the dead.

Okay? He was crucified on Friday. On Sunday, he rose from the grave, and then he began to interact and meet different people. And in Luke 24, starting at 13, verse 13, he's on the road to a mass, okay? And it says, now that same day, two of them talking about disciples, were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.

They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. And, and, and check out verse 15, as they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along this with them, but they were kept from recognizing him, right?

So notice what Jesus does. He sees them. They're walking along, they're kicking the dirt. They're confused, they're frustrated, they're sad. They're angry, right? All the stuff. What does Jesus do? Jesus gonna just soothe them. Jesus gonna just say, ta, it's okay.

Nah, what's he do? He lets him walk through the valley. He lets him, he lets him be in it and work it out and deal with it and feel with it. And he asked them, what are you discussing together? As they walk along, they stood still, their faces downcast. And one of them named Cleopas asked him, are you only a visitor to Jerusalem?

And did not know the things that have happened here in these days? What things? And again, Jesus could have gone, it's me, but he doesn't because part of life is walking through the hard things and not just soothing over them and distracting from them about Jesus of Nazareth.

They replied, he was a prophet, powerful in the word deed before God. And all the people, the chief priest and our rulers hand him over to be sentenced to death. And they crucified him. And here's the, here's the verse 21. But we had hoped that he was the one who's gonna be redeem Israel.

And what is more? It is the third day since all this took place, and the story's beautiful. Jesus later reveals himself to them, and they, they see him. But, but they didn't get to see Jesus until they walked through the valley, until they had to deal with it and feel with it.

And my friends, one of the biggest dangers of scrolling is this, that it distracts us, distracts us, and soothes us instead of growing into the men and women, God's called us to be. Okay? Alright, let's go to the last one quickly. Okay? Stick with me on this one. Stick with me.

So the Psalms with you, prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You knock my head with oil. My cup overflow. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life. And I'll dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Just, just sit in this for a minute. Boy, this is God, isn't it? He's prepped and he's got a plan. He does the anointing. The, the what we have is all from him. It overflows from him. It's his goodness. It's his love. It's, it's his house that will get the dwell in, right?

This is this, this is the picture of God. And David ends with this. He's got it. He's powerful. He knows it. He has a plan. Theologically, we have words for this. We have three words that we've kind of taken scripture, and we make it into theology so we can kind of understand God.

So here's three terms that we, that we use to understand God, omnipotence, omniscience, omniscience, and omnipresence. Omnipotence is, God is all powerful. Omniscience is God is all knowing, and omnipresence is God is everywhere, present, right?

So we use these words as descriptors of God. These three omni attributes of, of, of God's character has all powerful, all knowing and everywhere present. Okay? So, so what does scrolling have to do with the Omni of God?

Genesis three. There's the fall of man. That's a story of Adam and Eve. Most of us are familiar with that. So Eve and Adam, they're in the garden and God says, you can have everything. Just, you can't have this one. Don't eat this.

And Satan comes along and, and, and he says to them, no, you can, you can have this. And here's the temptation. Are you ready? What he, what he, what he says to them is, if you'll eat this, here's the temptation that you'll be like, God.

The lie is that you can be like God. Now, this is, this is, don't, this is a stretch, but just, just stick with me on this one. Our devices tempt us in the same exact way. They give us a develop, uh, a, a, a, a, a ability to know more than our minds could hold, and an ability to feel like we have to know more and be engaged with more, and be a part of more and be included with more than we can ever could, could imagine that we have filled our minds with so much useless stuff, knowing about people and about Vince and about things.

We have to keep relationships going with knowledge with thousands of people that we just can't and our devices. What scrolling does is it, is it gives this illusion that we can be all knowing. And when we're not, it's frustrating to us. So, so take another step with our devices, with scrolling, we can be all present.

I, I can be anywhere at any time in real time. I, I, I can, I can FaceTime with, with anybody in the moment. I can look at my security cameras from wherever I'm, I can start my car from wherever I am, right? I I can, I I I can be present and peer in and connect with anybody anytime.

And what we're finding out is, is that that becomes overwhelming to us. And it's frustrating when we can't actually do it. Scrolling also tells us that like, God, we can be all powerful. Device is almost magic to us, right?

I can buy groceries in the TV and I can, I can, I can turn my lights on to my house, right? It's profound is that we have this, this power, right? And it's, it's right here. And I can do anything. Anytime. I can buy whatever I want, almost when I want it, and it's right here.

I'm all powerful. But my friends, here's what we know, that we were never made to be all powerful or all knowing or present everywhere. Only God is. God has no limits. We were made with limits. And when we feel like we have to be like this, then here's what it leads to you being discontented, you being distracted, and it leads to a life of frustration.

And it leads to a life of being angry because I can't be, even though this tells me I could or should be, it's crazy. It's crazy what's happening with these devices. Now, again, I'm gonna say it, I'm not anti phone.

I'm not anti-technology, but it's supposed to serve us. We're not supposed to serve it. And what's happening too much is this is coming between us and coming between us and is causing great damage to the fabric of not only our souls, but our society and our culture.

Discontent, distract, and want to be deity. It's crazy, right? It's crazy. Alright, we're gonna do two more weeks of what we do here, but I, I've gotta leave you with two things, okay? I'm gonna leave you with two, two handles to hold, okay? Some resources. One of them is go arrow.com, G-O-A-R-O.

Go Ro, go Arrow. I'm not sure how you say it. Go arrow.com. And it's a, it's a website that's just filled. Actually, they're trying to sell a product, which is an arrow box, which I don't have it. I haven't bought it. My wife wants to buy one. I think it's probably worth it.

So I'm not selling the product. But what this is, this is just a beautiful site of podcasts and blogs and just teaching about the whole goal is to say, let's, let's break the phone addiction that starts at home. Let's, let's do that. Okay? So GOAR o.com. And the second one is, is this, um, this is just really hitting it right now.

It's called The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haight. And, uh, it is a, it is a, my wife got it early. She's an early adopter. Um, and she was telling me about this, um, uh, for, for a long time now. Um, but this is, this is fantastic. It's fantastic.

And, and the, the byline is how the great rewiring of childhood is causing an epidemic of mental illness. And he said, we've gone from a, um, here, let me, lemme just read his words. We've gone from a play-based childhood to the rise of a phone-based childhood, and what that, what that means for us.

So a couple resources. Now I'm gonna give you one tip, okay? Listen, I'm, I'm gonna give just one tip. Um, so don't let this be lead you to discontent. Don't let this lead you to be distracted away from dealing with things. And, and don't let this lead you to thinking you ought to be deity.

You ought to be God. Okay? So one tip I have is, is, is this, um, don't allow this to be in your bedroom anymore, okay? There's lots of, we can gray out, we can gray scale. There's all kinds of, we're gonna give you a bunch of 'em, okay?

But if there's one tip, it would be this. Just find an alarm clock. Use your watches and alarm clock. But do not, do not let this be on your phone. Do not let this be the last thing you see at night and the first thing you see in the morning that's gonna cause discontent, distraction, and frustrate you because you cannot have it all or be all.

All right? Let's pray together. God, thank you. You're good to us. We're grateful that, uh, you're way better than anything that we could hold in our hands. You're way better than thing we can see with our eyes. God, you're it. God, forgive us for settling for a substitute rather than the real thing at times in our lives.

Help us, God, give us courage to change and grow. In Jesus name, amen.