Erwin McManus | The Last Arrow: Choose The Future

so I want to take a minute and just welcome everyone who listens to us and joins us on the livestream across the country and other parts of the world and for everyone who joins us through the podcast it's amazing how as so many people across the world are connected to our community and even though they're in Berlin or they're in Tokyo or they're in Sydney or they're in Paris they feel that this is their community and what we do together makes that possible for people all over the world and even when I was in Dallas this morning I've had so many people come up to me and they go we're we've been a part of mosaic for years and they don't even say we listened to the podcast or we listened them was a ago we've been a part of mosaic for years and that's a beautiful thing that here in the corner of Hollywood Boulevard we could do something together that could bring hope and meaning across the world we've been looking together at the material in the last arrow and we've been going chapter by chapter but I want us to remember that the overarching theme of the book and its subtitle saved nothing for the next life it is really rooted in an observation I've made over almost 60 years of life that people with incredible talent and potential and intelligence and capacity rarely live up to everything that's inside of them that most of us end up living our lives with an overwhelming sense of regret and loss and some of you you're here and you're young you're in your 20s and you already feel as if you've wasted more of life than you can bear some of you sensing that there's a hollowing emptiness in your soul and even though you're you're frantically doing stuff you're hard at work you're ambitious you're determined and you're scrambling something inside that tells you that you're somehow missing the reason for your existence that whatever your intention is seems to elude you yeah III think some of it's a misunderstanding of how life happens not just for for people who believe but even for those who do not believe in God but but for many of us who have faith I think we have almost a superstitious understanding of how the future happens and that's why we pause and take an entire chapter to talk about a very significant aspect of living the life you're created to live but you need to choose the future have you ever thought about how many choices we have to make all the time have you ever just been overwhelmed by all the choices in front of you I mean there are moments III start overthinking life hi I'm here once I started getting really nervous about breathing I mean how does this happen but what about if I get confused what about if I forget to order inhale exhale inhale exhale I remember thinking to myself that's your something go out do the inhale or out doing the exhale I saw you getting nervous I started hyperventilating and and I'm really grateful that that breathing is is an automatic unconscious choice but it's a choice your body has to choose to breathe do you realize that if your body just stopped choosing you would die you would suffocate can you imagine if if God designed us so that breathing was a choice we had to make every second of our life hi how you doing I mean could you ever apply for a job would we ever have movies we couldn't because it'd be a 10-hour movie with just about five lines it's good to be here and what other choices could you make you couldn't make choices for dating you couldn't make choices where forever for for career because all you'd be doing every second of your life inhale exhale we wouldn't have the Olympics I mean how could you do that these are the things I think about there are choices that are part of our existence that are are so essential to our survival and breathing of course is one of them but another one is like eating I I said moments I remember I said they said God why why did you like design is where you have to eat all the time I mean I bet they said that tomorrow is another day where I have to eat again I never just get tired of eating no that's the American dilemma and but I do and and when Aaron and Mariah were young and their mom would go out of town they would be terrified and my kids would come and say daddy we need an adult I knew what they meant and probably more than once they would come up they would come up to me and say daddy I said yes and they go are you gonna feed us today yeah yeah yeah soon and Myra so but it's almost bedtime and because I would forget I we forget because it even gets in the way of all the other choices in life and and then it's not just eating it's it's having to choose what to eat I mean half the time I don't want to eat just because I don't want to choose what to eat and then after with cam it's impossible to choose because she just says oh I'm a see honey I'll eat whatever you want but that's not true because she doesn't like the things I want and and whenever I would list st. you go no not that that well then just tell me what you want choose no no it's whatever you want you just pick a place to that I'd forget another place she goes yeah not that and but after about three or four of those I just look at could you could you just tell me what I want and that way I could get it right and and it just makes eating too complex it's just too difficult of a choice and now that my nose is sleeping I it's so frustrated I mean III don't know if God's paying attention more things I have talked to him about is why waste half of our life unconscious I I hate sleeping I just hate the choice that I have to go to sleep I in college I went about six days without sleeping I was trying to see how long I could go without sleeping I thought it's an incredible waste of time if I could figure out how to exist without sleeping I could live two lives at the same time at but you know they tell you you have to sleep and everything and and you have to eat and you know course you have to breathe and and you know I try to exercise over it go try with my friends Chris and cricket and every time I get over there cricket looks at me and she was for us did you eat today I like you so edgy but really what she's asked me is am I making good choices which is the core the fundamental human act see if I asked you what's the most spiritual thing a human being can ever engage in you might say well meditation or prayer or reading the scriptures or maybe serving humanity maybe it's going to church I don't know what you would answer what you would see as spiritual but all those spiritual acts are actually connected to one singular act to choose see before you pray you have to choose to pray before you meditate you have to choose the meditate before you read the scripture you have to choose to read the scripture before you're involved in the community you have to choose to be involved at community before you love you have to choose to love to choose is the most spiritual activity that you'll ever engage in and whether you even understand yourself to be a spiritual being you need to understand the dynamic of choosing because your entire life will be created by your choices which then begins to make sense to me why in the scriptures there are always these these epic intersections that God drives people to where they have to make a choice the universe is breathing deeply and I'm afraid so in Exodus chapter 14 beginning in verse 10 it says as Pharaoh approached the Israelites looked up and there were the Egyptians marching after them you understand this moment right the people of Israel had been enslaved by the Egyptians they cried out to God God deliver us God invades Moses his life interrupts his life sends him to sent the people of Israel free he confronts Pharaoh God sends ten plagues the people of Israel get released out of Egypt with all the treasures of Egypt and Pharaoh changes his mind and goes after them to kill him so here's where we are as Pharaoh approach the Israel's looked up and there were the Egyptians marching after them they were terrified and cried out to the Lord they said to Moses was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us through the desert to die what have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt didn't we say to you and Egypt leave us alone let us serve the Egyptians it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert Moses answer the people do not be afraid stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring thee today the Egyptians you see today will not you will never see again the Lord will fight for you you need only to be still then the Lord said the Moses why are you crying out to me tell the is rights to move on raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea divide the water so the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground so here they are in this intersection moment this critical moment they have choices that they have to make and the choices they make will affect their future any what I want to talk to you about is this unique dynamic that humans have with the future because I think a lot of us have almost a magical view of the future that future sort of happens don't you realize that that the future doesn't just happen the humans make the future happen we understand this with other species silkworms just create silk I don't think they wake up in the morning thinking about whether they should create silk or polyester I think silkworms just creates silk because that's how they're designed they're created by God to create silk and honeybees they create honey they never make peanut butter they're just really singular in their focus that's what bees do they create honey and and we can see the silkworm green silk and we can see the honeybee creating honey but we don't realize that humans create the humans create futures and so if you're not choosing the future you're entering into the wrong one have you ever noticed that when you just let the future happen you end up with the future you never wanted see if you're here and you hate the life you have right now if you're here you only how did this happen to me it's because the future happens by the choices you make and if you don't make the choices consciously you end up defaulting to the worst choices possible it's a strange thing would it be better if by accident we made all the right choices I doubt the apnic going I don't you have to think it's like breathing this something life choosing I don't have to think about Tuesday every time I choose the right thing happens it's really odd if you don't choose to choose you will create a life you never wanted and you won't know how to work your way out of it because your choices will become a pattern in your life and you won't be able to see that the choices brought you there in which choices can get you out as Pharaoh approached his rights looked up and they saw the Egyptians marching after them and they were terrified and cried out to the Lord this is kinda like whiny crying that's prayer a lot of prayer is just whining to God because no one else will listen to you and now it's amazing that when they saw Pharaoh they were terrified now why would that be the automatic response just because they saw the most evil emperor that they had ever known chasing them down with all the force of their armies to kill them why would they be terrified because they saw what was there and they forgot who God was because they just experienced God sent ten plagues on Egypt you ever thought to yourself the reason I struggle with faith is because I've never seen a miracle every year I thought like if God just could you show up once like big time he's like epic undeniable all right if God just could you some think the parting of the Red Sea I would never doubt again it's just not true because you'd forget by the next day because yesterday's faith never seems to carry us cure tomorrow's crisis's he says they were terrified even though they had experienced that deliverance of God God set them free from Egypt and now they don't have enough confidence to believe that God can finish the job this is why a lot of us panic because we begin by trusting God or following him and then when life gets turbulent and gets challenging gets difficult we think God isn't coming through that he didn't know that this was coming and so we become terrified and we cry out to God complaining and then they sent the Moses by the way this next line is really funny you may not know this because you're a Gentile but but the Bible is full of humor the Old Testament is full of like Jewish humor here now I I mean really the funniest comedians I know are Jewish I mean there are a few really funny depressed Irishmen but but overall the best comedians I know are Jewish and it's because they have this greatly jaded sarcasm and it's all over the scriptures it says they said to Moses was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die see that's fine I mean doesn't sound funny but you have to kind of hear it right so wait we can't just die they're gonna have to move us over here so we could die over here what do you need down to us by bringing us out of Egypt I love this I love this question what have you done to us and then I love the next line you ever remembered something the way it did not happen memories funny isn't it first of all didn't we say to you in Egypt here's Moses they're coming at him didn't we save you in Egypt leave us alone let us serve the Egyptians Moses like no you didn't say that you didn't I can that really never came up that was not an option that anyone even like advocated I didn't know that you wanted to stay cuz I'm out being a shepherd living my life with my sweet wife take care of sheep no problems no stress no hassle I get a burning bush cause you were crying out to God I do not volunteer for this job you didn't really give me an option oh I am that I am and then he sends me down to you I'm gonna go face Carol because you were crying out to God set us free set us free and now they're saying what have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt what were you thinking sending us free we're a bunch of slaves we don't know how to be free we don't know what we're asking for we don't know what we were thinking let us go back you ever you're paid a big prayer even if you didn't believe in God your praise like a big prayer you know like God do something great in my life anybody you ever liked you ever prayed that prayer god i think i'm mike i think i'm created for great things yeah yeah that twins are like spiritual narcissism I know I'm awesome God you know cuz you created me this way and and so I'm not really being arrogant because I'm just giving you all the glory for the awesomeness of me and so god I just like you know but could you do something awesome could you do something incredible in my life if you pray to God God do something great in my life do you end up going what in the world is going on God made my whole world has turned upside down i mike i'm in the middle of crisis what were you thinking what are you doing see if you want God do something great in your life he has to send you through great hardships great trials great crisis so don't ask God to make you great and keep your challenges small because great men and women look for great challenges I think we pray and we want God's outcome but not his process we pray and ask God to do something with our lives to set us free and then we get angry when he takes us out of slavery and moves us into the uncertainty of freedom see what they didn't remember what they didn't realize was that freedom brings responsibility and so they suddenly felt like the safety of slavery was more attractive than the uncertainty of freedom wonder if we're ever like that you ever wonder why you keep dating that guy I don't think I need to say anything else [Applause] why you keep or you keep that job that you're miserable in if some of you here you hate the relationships you're in but you're you're so afraid to be alone that you'd rather keep the wrong relationships and go into a desert where you let go of everything so that God can bring to you than you some of you you're so afraid to let go of your job and your security and your safety to step into the future that God is birthed in your soul with a dream and a longing and a passion and so you you'd rather stay in the security and safety of a job you dread than a career that will fulfill you some of you hate your life you hate your life and and then and then the moment someone says to you you know that that there is a way you can have a new life yeah what's that well you have to surrender your life to Jesus because you see when God stepped into human history and died on the cross for you and Rose knew that he actually made a way for you to step out of the life you hate into the life that you could only imagine but we don't do it or I don't know I don't know cause like I hate this life but it's but this is the life I know like this is like this is the life I gots I don't know if I want to give this miserable existence to God because who knows what's on the other side you could make it worse but here's the thing even if God gave you a new life with the same you you would ruin that new life too because the only way you can actually live a new life is to become a new you so I want to feel like didn't we tell you God does leave me alone no every time you've cried out the depth of your so God do something in me every time your soul feels an overwhelming emptiness and and no matter how hard you try you can't find that love that that fills that deepest need no matter what you do hope always seems to evaporate you're overwhelmed with despair and depression and anxiety every time you think you're gonna make progress you find yourself following back it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert I think code word desert is future see I think a lot of us are afraid of the future because the future is different than the past and so we'd rather be trapped in the past then the step into the future I want to break an illusion that we have because I think we need to realize that as human beings perceptions are actually embraced as realities you know that right see we we have a perception that we are all moving into the future but I want you to know something just because you're stepping into tomorrow does not mean you're stepping into the future see tomorrow is coming no matter what you do but the future comes based on what you do the and some of you you are burning up tomorrow's because you haven't stepped into your future you've trapped the past your psyche on the same mistakes and the same choices and the same pain and the same fears over and over and over again said Moses answers to people do not be afraid it's amazing how many times it has to be said in the Bible you know why cuz the future is scary and I think most of us have a default mode we would accept the comfort and safety of a past that holds us captive than the mystery and uncertainty of a future that our souls long before so Moses says do not be afraid stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today the Egyptians you see today you will never see again got to say I'm gonna put your past in the past but just like the Egyptian army chasing down these rights I'm telling your past is trying to hunt you down you ever notice that you thought you let it go you forgave and now the bitterness is back you thought you let it go you overcame that addiction now it's coming and haunting you again you thought you let it go you thought you left it in the past but all that hurt all those wounds all that fear all that doubt it just keeps coming back you're felling I left it in the past where the past keeps catching up with you it's here's the past is running after you and if you allow yourself to be paralyzed in the present not moving into the future the past will grab you and suck you back and what's crazy is that it's always the worst part of our paths that pursue us the most it says the Lord will fight for you you only need to be still that's probably the most Mis interpreted statement from God in the Bible or at least in the top 10 you only need to be still you ever heard that Psalm 46:10 I think it says be still and know that I am God now I'm not sure why but especially was in my 20s everyone who knew me would say would just be still just be still and know that He is God and you know what I found everyone who told me be still was really still like almost like dead I don't just be still and know that he's gone and and that verse would be used to stop me from being too proactive too ambitious too determined too reckless oh I'm reckless they thought I would outgrow it mm-hmm not gonna happen and in fact we do this assessment called the Burkman and there's an activity score and it's from a scale of 1 to 99 and I think me and Mariah are like 96 on that activity score so we're like high activity and everyone would say to me Erwin just be still just be still and you don't be still and know that He is God and everyone would use it to act as if I was trying to move into the future too fast but you know it's interesting that's not why God's saying that so they're not trying to move too fast into the future they're not running into the red sea going go ahead God do your thing God tells them to be still not because they're trying to move forward but because we're trying to go backwards God never tell someone to be still because they have too much faith too much courage too much ambition too much activity too much productivity I know you're awesome but you're just not too fast for God that's like oh I can't keep up with you ah so much faith how do you get so much done in a day the Lord will fight for you you need only to be still so here's the rule if you're trying to retreat be still if you're ready to give up be still if you're considering returning to your slavery be still let God fight for you because God only moves forward into the future God's got your back so just keep moving forward and he says then the Lord says the Moses why are you crying out to me I love that that I can be translated maybe better translated why are you praying to me that's an odd thing for God to say right I mean aren't we supposed to pray to God in that the whole point aren't you always trying to get us a prize who prays too much God and God looks at Moses why are you praying what are you doing I've been married about thirty four years to the amazing Kim McManus then you know that little Irish girl and I remember one time she said honey you talk about all the cultures in the world and their contribution to societies what's the Irish contribution and I said pubs and fights she didn't drink but she just fight she got that Irish temper we meant what we getting our masters degrees we were just friends I kept trying to set her up with friends she kept going out with other people I said think back that was that was unfair and eventually realized oh I want to spend my life with her so uh this guy talked me into getting an engagement ring cuz I was like I'm a non materialist at that time you know not supposed to have anything and this guy said you're gonna buy her an engagement ring you cheap jerk and so I went and I got a little engagement ring and and I took her out to this tree and I I got on my knee and I left the camera and I said Kim would you marry me you know what she said you know what she said she said let's pray let's pray see ya I totally get got here what are you frying right now this is not the right moment to pray I looked at what I know I supposed to like be super spiritual and go oh yes it's pray I looked I said no I said no two-minute prayer is gonna save you now and my mildly cocky way I looked at and I said I'm gonna do this one more time and this time I need you to get right I [Laughter] don't know she got it right but she said Jess but you know what I've noticed is that a lot of us hide behind spiritual language to hide our spiritual emptiness we want to pray because we are afraid to act we want to be still because we're paralyzed to move forward and God says why are you praying to me now don't you see the Egyptians they're coming hard and fast this is really not the moment for a conversation you need to raise your staff point it toward that water part those waters and move and God says tell the Israelites to move on you ever get confused with God what do you want me to do God first 14-piece still verse 15 move on that's what you need to keep reading because some of you are so still God must think you're dead because if you're just trapped in the past what exactly is your life see that the future doesn't just happen you make the future happen the future doesn't come to you the future waits for you the future is waiting for the person who has the courage to create it and you need to choose the future every single day of your life no every moment of your life you need to choose the future you need to lean in and move forward and trust - God has a future for you that you can be better than you are that your life can be better than it is that the world can be better than we know it says raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so if the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground ha I wonder what choice God is waiting for you to make right now what is the choice that will open up the future for you see maybe maybe you're just as naive and unaware as a silkworm you didn't know you created silk or just as disconnected to your reality as as a honeybee didn't know that they're creating honey did you know you were creating futures are you aware that you are a creative being and every choice you make Asher's in a future you will have to live in and others will be affected by here's the problem a lot of us have this magical view of the future you know if God wants it to happen it's gonna happen who taught you that if you're likely to know Cynthia Sierra who taught you that who taught you that you are disconnected from the creation of the future because that's exactly the opposite of what the Scriptures teach you are creative being and your choices are your most spiritual activity and they are your power and here's the problem evil men they don't wait for God's permission to act on the future they desire their dark imaginations they commit everything to make that our nightmare but good people just sit back going why doesn't God do something God or pray see I think God's again saying why are you praying to me right now it was like God do something Ivan got screaming back I have done something I created you now you do something so stop blaming everyone on your life sure other people's choices may have crashed into your soul left you trainer act that's the reality isn't it some of you know the power of other people's choices because you are wounded and gutted and broken and shattered because someone you trusted made a choice that left you racked so don't let those choices define your future recognize the power of choosing and choose a different way your choices don't just affect you they affect everyone you care about they affect everyone within your sphere of influence and the ripple of your choices may affect countless multitude that you're completely unaware of what would happen if all of us decided we're gonna choose the future we're gonna live our lives creating a future that only God could dream up we're gonna believe that we are God's creative agents to create a future filled with beauty and truth and goodness we're not gonna live our lives apathetically we're not gonna drown in mediocrity we're not gonna live in fear or paralysis we know who we are we have the power to choose and we're gonna choose to create a world no matter what anyone else says no one anywhere else believes and I'm not even at the facts affect my future let me tell you if you're gonna go with the facts you're gonna you're not gonna create the future that God has in mind because we've always known war we've always known violence we've always known poverty who's always known injustice all the facts tell us that the world is not going to change so it's me unreasonable let's gain a madness it says I don't care what history says coz the past is in the past we're here to create the new so what will you choose what will you choose what will you choose let's all stand together just bow our heads just for a moment close our eyes there's a choice you need to make right now I don't know what it is but there's a choice that will open up your future and break you free of your past in your heart that choice is going to become clearer and clearer right now fact I'm just gonna ask God to make that choice so clear it in your heart then when you hear it you may not want to hear it they may terrify you it may threaten you it may cost you something but I want you to choose your future there's some of you here right now the choice you need to make it's to surrender your life to Jesus 2,000 years ago he made a choice for you Jesus chose to die on the cross so that you and me could have a future in hope and right now some of you you just you know you didn't know you're gonna know you didn't know you're gonna be at this place at this moment but you know that it's time to cross the line of faith and give your life to Jesus and I want to lead you in a simple prayer right now where you could give your life to Jesus and receive his life right now here's the prayer Jesus I give you my life that's it just one sentence there are a lot of things you and guide will talk about later but this is the starting point Jesus I give you my life if you're here and this is the choice you need to make Jesus I give you my life just right now just pray that prayer just whisper those words to Jesus right now Jesus I give you my life God will hear you and here's the beautiful thing if you give him your life he will give you his life and with that life he'll give you a future and a hope stop wasting tomorrows without taking a future in Japan Jesus I give you my life if that's your prayer right now I want to pray for you if you just whispered that pair of Jesus I give you my life I just want you right now just to hold your hand up so I can see you so I can pray for you beautiful anyone else right now just hold your hand up high so I can see you wonderful anyone else all over the room anyone else don't be embarrassed don't be hesitant just right now just hold it up I anyone else wonderful Jesus they give you my life can't me to pray anyone else before I pray father I thank you for those that in this moment have whispered those words Jesus I give you my life I pray that in this moment you would wrap them up in your love and let them know that you have heard their prayer and even as they have given you their life that you have given them your life and they belong to you I thank you that in this moment they are choosing you they're choosing a life they are choosing the future and where you are there is a future and a hope but you fill them with that hope but they step into that future may they find the courage and faith to leave the past behind and step into a future that only you God can imagine I thank you Jesus through your death in the cross through your resurrection we live and we have help and we don't simply have tomorrow we have a future that steps into eternity we thank you and pray in Jesus name Amen can we just thank God for all those responded [Music] [Applause] so good the band's gonna lead us in another song I would encourage you to step into a crew this week because in the cruise they're gonna be diving into the chapter they're gonna be diving more deeply into this conversation and and when you come here for an hour an hour and a half you can be inspired God can speak into your life but when you get into a group and you and you dive into the material it will actually build into your life so take some time and invest in your future make the choice to live a different life to walk a different path choose the future and so get into a book club get to crew get connected do not miss what God is doing in your life right now let's worship together [Applause]

Channel: Mosaic

Views: 43,542

Rating: 4.8654432 out of 5

Keywords: MOSAIC, MOSAIC Los Angeles, Erwin McManus, Erwin Raphael McManus, Los Angeles Church, YouTube Church, Church, Jesus, Worship, Mosaic MSC, Mosaic, MSC, Hillsong, Mosaic Church, Bethel, The Last Arrow

Id: MnTDqbE1rpQ

Length: 42min 35sec (2555 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 16 2017