William Dix was a successful insurance salesman who lived in Glascow, Scotland in the last part of the 19th century. When he was only 29, Dix was stricken with a near fatal illness that left him confined to his bed for an extended period of time. These long bed-bound months caused him to fall into a deep depression. One day, in the midst of his despair he cried out to God for help. Dix testifies that God answered his prayer and that he, “met God in a new and real way.” This is a great way to put it because his experience led Dix to faith in Jesus, and that bed-bound decision prompted him to write one of our most popular Christmas Carols, What Child is This?
In its lyrics Dix posed a question that has been on people’s minds since the moment Jesus was born—namely: “Who is this Person? I mean, Who is this Who can come to someone in his sick bed in Scotland and lift him from the pit of despair?” You can hear Dix’s amazement at what Jesus did for him in the lyrics of this carol as he asks,“What Child is this, Who, laid to rest, on Mary’s lap is sleeping? Whom ANGELS greet with anthems sweet, while shepherds watch are keeping? Why lies He in such mean estate where ox and ass are feeding? WHAT CHILD IS THIS!”
Of course Dix is not the only one to be perplexed by the Christ. He has always caused people to wonder about His identity and nature. This began when He was just a child and I’m referring the time when Jesus was left behind in the temple in Jerusalem. Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph found the 12 year old Jesus, “…sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all those who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers.” (Luke 2)
I’m also thinking of Jesus’ first followers who watched Jesus stand up in their boat and calm the storm. They asked, “What kind of man is this?—even the winds and the sea obey Him!” (Matthew 8:27) And then do you remember when the temple police sent to arrest Him by the religious leaders came back empty handed? When asked why they said, “No one ever taught like this Man.” (John 7:46)
One unknown writer expresses all this WONDERING about Jesus with these words:
“He Who is the Bread of Life began His ministry HUNGERING.
He Who is the Water of life ended His ministry THIRSTY.
Christ hungered as a MAN, yet He fed the multitudes as GOD.
He was weary, yet He is our rest.
He prayed, yet He hears our prayers.
He was sold for 30 pieces of silver, yet He redeems sinners.
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, yet He was the Good Shepherd.
He died and by dying destroyed death.”
Add to all this the fact that almost everyone—even those who don’t follow Him—will agree that, from the standpoint of human history—Jesus Christ is the most significant person Who has ever lived. I’ve lost track of how many times Newsweek or Time have had him on the cover—and the reason they do is whenever Jesus’ face is there it increases sales by 45%!
In his book, Jesus Through the Centuries Yale historian, Jaraslav Pelikan puts it like this:
“Jesus of Nazareth has been the most dominant figure in the history of western culture for almost 20 centuries. If it were possible, with some sort of super magnet, to pull out of that history every scrap of metal bearing at least a trace of His name, how much would be left?”
To answer his question, “Not much!” Without the impact of Jesus’ life human culture would collapse like a house of cards. Consider the following facts that show the amazing influence of Jesus.
- Other than the writing on the ground after rescuing the woman caught in adultery Jesus never wrote anything, yet, some of the greatest works of literature were inspired by His life.
- Jesus never painted a picture, yet some of the finest paintings from Michelangelo and de Vinci were inspired by Him.
- He composed no music, yet Handel, Beethoven, and Bach reached their highest perfection in songs they wrote in praise of Him.
- Although Jesus taught for only three years, His influence is larger than the combined influence of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, who taught for a combined 140 years!
- Why, humanity even marks time by the year of Jesus’ birth.
So you easily can see that it is impossible to overstate the impact Jesus Christ has had on this earth. Tim Peck mentions something ELSE that is ironic and perplexing about Jesus: Every major world religion makes a special place for Him—something you don’t see in any other context.
- For example: even though they reject the idea that Jesus is God’s Son, the Muslim religion views Him as the greatest prophet before the coming of Mohammed.
- Hinduism reveres Jesus as one of their thousands of different gods and goddesses.
- The Mormon religion claims that Jesus is the spirit-brother of the devil.
Of course we don’t agree with their teachings but the point is—no matter how you approach His life—no matter where you look—no one has had more impact on human history than Jesus.
Well, why is that so? Why would the life of an itinerant preacher from a back water country who lived in the first century be more significant than any other? What child is this? Or to put Dix’s question in more common vernacular, “Who is this Guy?” Of course we find the answer to our question in the chorus of Dix’s carol. Sing it with me:
This this is Christ the King, Whom shepherds guard and angels sing!
So—Haste, haste to bring Him laud, the Babe the Son of Mary.”
This Advent I want us to look to John’s Gospel for guidance in preparing ourselves to help OTHERS understand better what Dix is saying about that Baby born in Bethlehem. We’ll do this by looking at some of Jesus’ famous “I Am” sayings—our Lord’s Own answers to this question Dix poses in his carol. And—this morning we begin with Jesus’ words in John chapter 8 where He said, “I am—the LIGHT OF THE WORLD.”
As I often tell you, the setting of a text is always important—so let’s start there. When Jesus uttered these words about Himself the feast of the tabernacles was going on—the purpose of which was to celebrate the exodus—those 40 years when God guided the Hebrew people from bondage in Egypt to the Promised Land.
The events in John 8 took place in the court of the women—that place in the temple beyond which a woman could not go. Now—in this courtyard there was a place set aside for the temple treasury. As you can see, all around the Court of the Women there was a colonnade…or porch and in that porch, set against the wall, there were 13 treasure chests into which people dropped their offerings. These treasure chests were called “THE TRUMPETS” because they were shaped like trumpets: narrow at the top and swelling out towards the bottom. Each chest was for a specific offering.
The first two trumpet-shaped chests were there for every Jew to pay their half shekels that went towards the upkeep of the temple. Into the third and fourth were placed the offerings used to purchase the two pigeons which a woman had to offer for her purification after the birth of a child. Into the fifth trumpet chest were put contributions towards the cost of the wood which was needed to keep the altar fire burning. Into the sixth were dropped moneys used to defray the cost of incense used in temple services. The seventh was for upkeep of the golden vessels which were used in Temple services. Into the remaining six trumpets people dropped anything extra they wanted to give—as if anyone would have any extra money to give after all that!
Well, with all these offerings, the Temple treasury area was a busy place—perhaps the busiest place in the entire temple. It was constantly flowing with worshipers. I mean, this is where the DEVOUT Jews went—so it was the PERFECT PLACE to collect an audience of devout people to teach! Well, on the opening night of this feast four large candelabras were lit in the Temple and some say they were so bright that they lit the entire city. Each candelabra was said to be 75 feet tall with huge bowls at the top. Each bowl held 10 gallons of oil. The wicks were made from the old, no longer useable garments of the priests. These huge lights were meant to symbolize the pillar of fire by which God led the people through the wilderness—-the Shekinah glory of God. Throughout the week these lights burned brightly as the wisest and holiest of Israel’s men danced before the Lord and sang songs of joy while the people watched and waited.
The celebrations surrounding these candelabras both reminded the Israelites of the glory of God dwelling among them during the exodus and the promise of God to send a future LIGHT, the anointed One—the Messiah. This all continued until it’s culmination on the final day—when these huge lights would be extinguished as a reminder that God had not yet sent the Messiah.
Well, at this point, right after the candelabras were extinguished—in the PERFECT PLACE—at the PERFECT TIME, right after the candelabras were put out and darkness filled the courtyard—-Jesus stood up and in the silence said to that huge crowd of pious Jews, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” I’m sure you will agree that there couldn’t be a more spectacular way to say this—a more powerful time and place to declare exactly Who He was—not “a” light but “THE” light—the long-awaited Messiah of God.
Well, the Pharisees knew what Jesus was saying so they immediately challenged Him on this. In fact, over the next 47 verses they interrupted Jesus TEN times in a very heated debate. We don’t have time to read all 47 verses but if you haven’t already take your Bibles and turn to John 8 and follow along as I give you a quick summary of the blow by blow—beginning with verse 13.
First they say that Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah is not valid because there are no WITNESSES to back Him up. Jesus responds by saying they are mistaken because He in fact has two witnesses: Himself, and His Father. They ask where His Father is and Jesus told these religious leaders that they didn’t know His Father—because He is from above and they are from below.
Then—ignoring what Jesus just said—they ask Him to identify Himself and Jesus reminds them that He’s been telling them all along Who He is and why He has come. They continue to feign ignorance, asking Him once again Who He thinks He is, so Jesus prophesied His own death and said they would understand Who He is after He is lifted up. Then He tells them that if they hold to His teaching, they would know the truth and the truth would set them free. But they get defensive and say that as Abraham’s children they don’t need to be freed because they have never been enslaved. Jesus warns them that sin enslaves everybody—even the descendants of Abraham. Then He chastises them for their pride and says they are acting like satan is their father—not Abraham. They piously respond by telling Jesus that God is their father—and that, by the way, He shouldn’t bring up the subject of parentage because as everyone knows He was illegitimate. And—if that jab weren’t bad enough, they follow up this verbal blow by calling Jesus the worse name they can think of: a Samaritan and a demon-possessed one to boot.
Jesus counters by telling them He knew Abraham. That gets their attention so they say, “How could you know Abraham? You’re not even 50.” And Jesus says, “Before Abraham was I AM”—and with those last two words—that phrase God used to identify Himself to Moses—Jesus was once again claiming to be God become flesh. They understand this claim so they begin to throw more than WORDS. They bend down and look for STONES to throw at Him—but Jesus slips away.
Now—before we go any further I want to make an important point. These Scribes and Pharisees act like the enemy—but they were really victims of the enemy. I say this to make sure you know that Jesus loved these men. Our Lord’s love is not selective. He loves ALL people—even His enemies. Remember, as He hung on the cross He prayed for the men who had put Him there. I’m sure His heart broke for these religious leaders who rejected His love. I imagine He spent many hours praying for them before the cross. And if you have an enemy—someone who treats you as hatefully as these guys treated Jesus—you need to follow our Lord’s example and love them and pray for them! But let’s get back to the statement Jesus made that ignited this lengthy 47-verse-debate. Do you remember how it all started? Jesus stood up as these huge candelabras were extinguished as the traditional symbol of the hope for the coming Messiah and said, “Hey—it’s ME. I am here! I am the Messiah, the LIGHT OF THE WORLD.”
In that statement Jesus claimed to be GOD become flesh—and it’s no wonder the Pharisees and Scribes understood His claim because so much of the Bible uses this metaphor. I mean, light is used throughout the Scriptures in connection with the Christ of God. For example, Isaiah 9:2 says, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great LIGHT; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a LIGHT has shined.” This is continued in the New Testament. Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist prophesied the coming Christ when he said: “The Dayspring from on high has visited us. To give LIGHT to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.”(Luke 1:78-79) When the aged Simeon took baby Jesus into his arms as He was dedicated at the temple he spoke of Him as, “A LIGHT to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.” (Luke 2:32) John began his gospel by saying, “In Him was life and the life was the LIGHT of men. And the LIGHT shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” (John 1:4-5)
The question I want us to consider this morning is what does this metaphor tell us about our Lord? How does it help answer Dix’s question? I mean, what does LIGHT do—that Jesus does? I want to suggest four things.
(1) First, light gives LIFE.
Think about it. Light sets our biological clocks. It triggers in our brains the sensations of color. It even supplies the energy for things to grow. Without the light of the sun, plants die—and so would we if we didn’t get vitamin D in some other way. Light is literally a life-giving thing.
One of my favorite old SCI FI films is SILENT RUNNING starring Bruce Dern. It stands out because it’s one of the few times that Dern plays the good guy. This film portrays a future in which mankind has taken all the trees and animals and put them in huge space ships orbiting the sun. They did this to make room for more cities and buildings. I mean, in this future, there are no more trees on earth—it’s just one huge metropolis—kind of like Coruscant in Star Wars. It’s a planet covered by one huge city. Well, in SILENT RUNNING the order is given to destroy all the trees. The powers that be say they are no longer needed. As the good guy, Dern’s character refuses this order and blasts off on his own into deep space. But after a while the trees and plants start to die—and Dern’s character learns why. They need light to grow and THRIVE and in the darkness of deep space there is none. So he rigs ultraviolent lights and the trees and plants recover.
This is because light literally gives life—and so does our Lord—abundant, meaningful LIFE! In fact, as we get to know Him and join Him in His purposes—we begin to realize that life without Jesus—is more like death than life!
And speaking of THRIVING, F.T.T. is an acronym doctors use to describe an ailment where—for unknown reasons—a newborn infant, is unable to gain weight or to grow. F.T.T. stands for “Failure to Thrive.” Sometimes it happens when a parent or care-giver is depressed, and the depression seems to get passed down to the infant. Sometimes something seems to be off in an infant’s metabolism for reasons no one can understand. I mean, FTT is one of those mysterious words or phrases that sounds like an explanation but explains nothing. It’s simply a failure to thrive.
Well, I agree with John Ortberg—who says that this is a good illustration of the human condition—without Christ. Without Jesus—people fail to thrive. I mean, without God people wander through meaningless lives. Without God people search in vain for true joy. I think this is probably why thousands of books are published every year on the subject of how to be happy. People yearn for purpose and hope and joy—but look it in all the wrong places. The fact is without God, our lives are lifeless. We fail to thrive. We miss out on abundance.
In his book The Spirit of the Disciplines, Dallas Willard writes that although we have tended to think of the word “salvation” as the forgiveness of sins or the escape from punishment—it actually has a much more robust meaning for the writers of Scripture. Willard says, “the simple and wholly adequate word for SALVATION in the New Testament is ‘LIFE.’ Jesus said, ‘I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly.’ —and ‘He that hath the Son hath life.’ Paul said, ‘Even when we were DEAD through our trespasses, God made us ALIVE together with Christ.’” So, this is the fallen human condition. FTT—failure to thrive. Without God that’s what our life is like—but when the Light of the World comes in, He brings us life—meaningful life—joyful life.
As John says in the beginning of His gospel, “In Him—in Jesus—was LIFE—and that life was the LIGHT of men!”
(2) A second thing that light does that Jesus also does is this. Light REVEALS.
Light enables us to see things that were there all along — but were hidden by the darkness. Let me put it this way. Darkness CONCEALS and light REVEALS. In a similar way Jesus—God in the flesh—shines the light of TRUTH on our lives—and when He does we see or understand things we wouldn’t see or understand otherwise. In the Christian movie, Do You Believe, there is a gang member named Pretty Boy whose older brother pulls into a life of crime. After they rob a drug lord and are chased by the police Pretty Boy hides in a budget motel and while there he reads the Bible that he finds in the night stand. God’s Word shines the light of truth on his life and he sees how messed up he has become. He sees his need for Jesus’ forgiveness and restoration. Well, countless billions have had the same LIFE REVEALING experience—in their encounter with Jesus. I like how C. S. Lewis puts it. He said, “I believe in Christ like I believe in the sun. Not only because I see it, but because by it all things are seen.”
We see this principle here in John 8 because in His “discussion” with these men our Lord shined the light of truth on things they were blind to. For example, that day Jesus illuminated the fact that the Jews’ HERITAGE would not save them. They needed a RELATIONSHIP with God. The problem was these Jews had gone too far in their admiration of their father Abraham. They thought that Abraham was so good that he had earned favor with God not only for himself but also for his descendants. Well, Jesus was trying to open their eyes so they could see the flaws in that line of reasoning. And, unfortunately we find people who are blinded by that same faulty reasoning today. People say, “Of course I am a Christian. I was born a Christian!” or “I’m from a Christian family.” But, being a Christian has nothing to do with birth. I mean Hugh Hefner was raised in a minister’s home. Joseph Stalin studied for the priesthood. Mao Tse-tung was raised under missionary teaching. So you see, birth—heritage—doesn’t get us into Heaven. REBIRTH is required—the rebirth that results when as individuals we make the personal decision to confess our faith in Jesus as the Christ of God—the Savior of the world.
Another bit of truth Jesus highlighted that day was when He told those men they were ENSLAVED and that He had come to free them. These religious leaders were incensed by this comment—because they placed a very high view on freedom. Even to suggest to a Jew that he was a slave was an insult. You may remember that when the Romans cornered the Jewish zealots on Masada, they committed suicide rather than be taken into slavery.
Well, Jesus was saying, “You are living in denial! OPEN YOUR EYES—you are enslaved. Sin enslaves you. Everyone who sins is a slave.” I’m reminded of something Socrates said, “How can you call a man free when his pleasures rule over him?” Without Jesus living in us—we are all slaves to our pleasures—our desires. Without the freedom that He makes possible, we are all enslaved by sin. What’s worse is the fact that without Him we don’t SEE this. Before long we don’t even see sin as sin.
This week I read that there is a new app out that allows sighted people to “lend their eyes” to those with visual impairments. It’s called “The Be My Eyes” app and it was developed by a visually impaired man in Denmark. It connects blind people to sighted volunteers through video chat. The volunteer can answer questions because they can see the blind person’s surroundings using that person’s smart phone camera. For example, recently the “Be My Eyes” app connected a sighted user with a blind young man who wanted to know the expiration date of the milk in his refrigerator. The visually impaired man positioned his phone’s camera to the top shelf. Looking at the image of the milk carton on my phone, the app user said, “I wouldn’t drink that if I were you.”
As fallen human beings we are blinded by our sin—and Jesus in essence lends us His eyes—eyes that can see sin we can’t. Jesus helps us to see the damage our sin can cause and then decide to turn from them. He helps us decide NOT to drink the “blinky milk” of life. This is what I mean when I say that like light God REVEALS.
(3) Here’s a third thing that Light does that Jesus does. Light GUIDES.
And this is wonderful because in this dark, fallen world, we are constantly faced with decisions for which we need guidance. Consider just the decisions you are forced to make at your typical American supermarket:
- Crest toothpaste comes in 27 varieties—which is best?
- Campbell’s condensed soup comes in 53 varieties—which should I get for dinner?
- Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice comes in eight sizes, from 8 to 128 ounces and several varieties of each size—some with no pulp others with some—others with so much pulp you have to chew your OJ.
- Breyers ice cream: Natural, French, Half the Fat, No Sugar Added, Extra Creamy, Homemade, Lactose Free, CarbSmart (and that’s just for vanilla ice cream)
- Cheerios cereal: Original, Honey Nut, Honey Nut Medley Crunch, Apple Cinnamon, Banana Nut, Frosted, Chocolate, Multi Grain, Multi Grain Peanut Butter, Dulce de Leche, and Cinnamon Burst
- Tide liquid laundry detergent: Original Scent, Plus Febreze, Plus Febreze Sport, Free & Gentle, Plus Bleach Alternative, Coldwater, Clean Breeze, Mountain Spring, Plus Downy, With Acti-Life
- Head & Shoulders shampoo: Active Sport, Old Spice, Deep Clean, Hair Endurance, Refresh, Extra Strength for Men, Citrus Breeze, Ocean Lift, Dry Scalp Care with Almond Oil, Classic Clean, Sensitive Scalp Care, Itchy Scalp with Eucalyptus, Smooth & Silky, Extra Volume, Green Apple, Damage Rescue, Extra Strength, Clinical Strength, plus seven more
Little wonder, then that a 2014 Consumer’s Reports survey of nearly 3,000 shoppers found that 36 percent “…were overwhelmed by the information they had to process to make a buying decision.”
Of course these shopping decisions are trivial—I mean, it doesn’t really matter which box of Cheerio’s you buy or which dandruff shampoo you use. But life is filled with decisions that ARE literally life changing—who to marry—what career to pursue—how to raise our kids. We are constantly confronted with decisions like how to cast our vote—or whether or not to cut corners to get ahead at work. The point I am making is that without Jesus to guide us we really do wander in darkness. And in this text Jesus promises to help us with that. As He put it in verse 12, “He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness but have the light of life.”
Do you grasp this awesome truth? The LIGHT OF THE WORLD is willing and able to guide you and me. He invites us into a relationship with Him through which He promises to point which way to go at each intersection on the road of life. As it says in Isaiah 58:11, “The Lord will guide you continually.”
So Jesus is the LIGHT of the WORLD in that He gives life. He REVEALS. He guides…and then here’s one final thing I’ll mention.
(4) Jesus—the LIGHT of the WORLD—banishes FEAR.
It’s like the comforting feeling you have when you wake from a nightmare and turn on the light—and realize it was only a dream. Well, this fourth phrase about Jesus is good news because life on this fallen world of ours is full of things that make us afraid—real, live nightmare scenarios.
For example we all dread hearing the “C” word—and it seems like that word is being heard by more and more people these days. Then there are financial fears—so many people are just one pay check away from homelessness. Others listen to the daily stock market reports with fear and trembling because they know one bad dip could wipe out their retirement in an instant. Of course this is not to mention the fear we experience when we hear about the latest mass shooting—if I count right there were two within the last week alone! I didn’t mention terrorism—but based on the events in Paris and San Bernadino I’m sure we will all agree that the “T” word lives up to its name. We have learned to be afraid that the mall we frequent or even the church we attend will be the next soft target. I’m saying this is a scary world—fear is a part of life. And as adults we all yearn for the comfort our parents would give us when we were little. When we were afraid those big strong arms would hold us and whisper, “It’s okay—don’t be afraid.”
You know, when I was in college I learned what was then a “new” game—a game called ROOK. How many ROOK players do we have with us today? It’s like SPADES. Well, my college friends and I LOVED to play ROOK. At the BSU we’d even cut class to play. And one of the first things I learned about the game is that this card—the ROOK card—beats every other card in the deck. The 1 is a powerful card—the most powerful in any suit—and every other player could play the 1 but if you had the ROOK, you would still win that trick. In the game of ROOK a color is chosen as trump—and a trump color beats anything—except for the Rook card. You could say the ROOK card trumps everything.
Well, Jesus is like that ROOK card—because He is BIG enough and POWERFUL enough that no matter what other card you have in your “life’s hand,” He beats it—HANDS DOWN. Let’s say you have financial problems—you don’t know how you’re going to make it. You worry about feeding yourself or your family. Well, if you have Jesus you don’t have to fear that because He promises to meet our needs. In Matthew 6 Jesus says, “I tell you do not worry about your life, what you eat or drink. Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.” What if you worry about war or terrorist attacks? Jesus said, Matthew 24:6 – “When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic.” And here’s WHY you don’t need to worry about those things. In Matthew 14:27 and 28:20 Jesus said, “Take courage! I am here! I will be with you always—even to the end of the world!” And in John 14 – “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in Me.”
But here’s the bottom line. Jesus is all-powerful. He loves us and nothing—NOTHING can trump that. As Paul puts it in Romans 8 Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction?
Everyone say NO!”
“Can anguish—fear?” NO
“Can persecution?” NO
“Can famine or being so poor we only have the clothes on our back?” NO!
“Can danger or sword?” NO
Here’s the BIGGY. “CAN sickness—surely DEATH itself can separate us from our all-powerful loving Lord?”
OH NO it can’t!!!
As Paul says, “In ALL THINGS we are more than victorious through Him Who loved us….because JESUS is our ‘ROOK card.’ He trumps everything that comes our way. Nothing has the power to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!” The comforting, encouraging fact is that, as Psalm 27:1 says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid.” And one more. Hebrews 13:6 says, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” Like the BRIGHTEST light imaginable—Jesus drives away the darkness of fear. He trumps ANYTHING that would cause us to be afraid.
As I said earlier, the Jews had been waiting for the Messiah for hundreds of years. Those people had walked in darkness for a long time—but when the Light finally came—most of them missed it. This morning some of you may be walking in darkness like they were. You are living—but not really. Your life is more empty than full and you long for more. You want direction—you want help to deal with the fears of life—and death. If that describes you, then please hear me. Don’t miss this opportunity. You don’t need to walk in darkness any longer. You don’t need to be afraid any more. You can begin a NEW life today—a life of purpose. All you need to do is confess your faith in Jesus—the Light of the World! We would love to talk to you about that. Some of you may feel God’ guiding you to join our church family….or you may have something you’d like us to pray with you about. Come as God leads.