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Congratulations, your gift of

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a new day is here. Ready to

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live it big? You're

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listening to the Big Life devotional

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podcast. Now, here's Pamela to

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get you fired up for all God

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has available for you today. Well, good

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morning, beautiful. Welcome to

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a brand new day of

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life. Happy Wednesday, my friends.

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Here we are, the final

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day of April, 2025, ever.

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Ever! This is it, the

0:32

last day of April. And

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isn't it good to get to be alive,

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to wake up today? I

0:38

bet you are surrounded by

0:41

blessings. There are so many

0:43

things that are truly good and right

0:45

and working and coming together. And

0:47

then there's their share of hard

0:49

things, things that you

0:51

don't understand, things that you cannot

0:54

see getting better or coming together.

0:57

And God says, my girl. I

0:59

hold you in the palm of

1:02

my hand. You can

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trust me. Doesn't that feel

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good today? All right, well, we're

1:08

gonna do something a little bit different for today's

1:10

devotional. I really don't know that I've ever done

1:12

this before. So we're

1:15

actually just going to open

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up our Bibles and we're going

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to read an entire chapter of

1:22

scripture together. This

1:24

morning here in North Bali,

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I was sitting around this

1:28

beautiful table having breakfast with

1:30

a few of my big

1:32

life sisters and we are

1:34

high atop a mountain in

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the jungle looking out over

1:38

the Indian Ocean. And

1:40

we just kind of had a Bible

1:42

study time together, and it was so

1:45

beautiful. And the Bible

1:47

app actually took us to a

1:49

scripture in Romans chapter 12 today,

1:52

and it was so good. We decided

1:54

to read the entire chapter together, looking

1:56

at a couple different translations. And

1:59

it was just so good. There was

2:01

really nothing I could add to it.

2:03

Certainly didn't want to take away from

2:05

it. And it just felt right to

2:07

share with you today. So

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we are going to together read

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Romans chapter 12. I'm going to

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read from the message translation today.

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And then every couple of verses,

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maybe I'll stop and take a

2:21

look at a different translation, the

2:23

passion translation to maybe go a

2:26

little bit deeper on the teaching.

2:28

But here's what I would recommend you do today.

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As you listen, get yourself in a

2:33

place where you can just be quiet,

2:36

you can be still and you can

2:38

focus. and let

2:40

God's living Word speak to

2:42

you. You do understand that

2:44

His Word is alive and

2:46

it is moving. It

2:49

is not still and stagnant and

2:51

old. It is alive and God's

2:53

Word wants to speak to you

2:56

today. So be in a

2:58

place where you can focus, but also be in

3:00

a place where you can make a note. I

3:03

want to challenge you as you listen

3:05

to this entire chapter in the Bible

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and it's really not going to take

3:09

that long to just listen for what

3:12

God wants to point out to you.

3:14

maybe listen for three different areas of

3:17

your life. God wants to speak to

3:19

you and help you, guide you, change

3:21

you, work on you. Oh my goodness,

3:23

I know that's what he's doing in

3:26

my life right now. Maybe that's what

3:28

he wants to do for you as

3:30

well. So again, I'm going

3:32

to be reading from the message translation,

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the entire chapter 12 of Romans. This

3:38

is Paul writing and

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I'm going to stop and pause

3:43

a couple times and add in

3:45

the passion translation just to go

3:47

a little bit deeper. Are you

3:49

ready? If you have the ability

3:51

to actually open up. the scripture

3:53

in the message translation. Maybe

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pause right now and do that.

3:58

Grab another device and open that

4:00

up. If you have a message

4:02

translation Bible, fantastic. Or you could

4:05

even just look at the transcript

4:07

of today and it will include

4:09

the writings. So did you know,

4:11

by the way, the transcript of

4:13

every devotional is on biglifedevotional .com.

4:16

Like you can go back over,

4:18

you know, almost 2000 episodes and

4:20

actually read the transcripts. Again, that's

4:22

biglifedevotional .com. A lot of people

4:24

don't realize that's there for your

4:27

resources, but if you're a person

4:29

that you learn better by reading

4:31

as you listen, that's me as

4:33

well. That resource is there

4:35

for you. Okay. So let's read together. Romans

4:38

chapter 12, starting in verse one and two.

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Paul says, so here's what I want

4:43

you to do. God helping you, meaning

4:45

you can't do this on your own,

4:47

God's going to help you, take

4:50

your everyday ordinary life. You're

4:52

sleeping, you're eating, you're going

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to work and walking around

4:57

life and place it before

5:00

God as an offering. Embracing

5:03

what God does for you

5:05

is the best thing you

5:08

can do for Him. Don't

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become so well adjusted to your culture

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that you fit into it without even

5:15

thinking. Instead, fix

5:18

your attention on God and

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you will be changed from

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the inside out. Is that

5:24

your story? As you focus

5:26

on God, is he changing you from the

5:28

inside out? Oh girl, me too. It

5:32

says readily recognize what he

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wants from you and quickly

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respond to it. Unlike

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the culture around you, always dragging you

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down to its level of immaturity, God

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brings the best out of

5:46

you, develops well -formed maturity

5:48

in you. It's

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already good, isn't it? I know. Now,

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let's look at those same verses,

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just a piece of that in

5:58

the passion translation. Get this, it

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says, experiencing all

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that delights God's heart.

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becomes your genuine expression of

6:09

worship. So think about that.

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What is it that delights

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God's heart? I

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think what delights God's heart is

6:18

loving one another. Of

6:21

recognizing the beauty of

6:23

his creation. Of looking

6:25

for his fingerprints around

6:28

you. That delights God's

6:30

heart. And that is

6:32

your most genuine expression of worship.

6:35

That's what God wants from you. It

6:38

says, stop imitating the ideals

6:40

and opinions of the culture

6:43

around you, but be inwardly

6:45

transformed by the Holy Spirit

6:47

through a reformation of how

6:49

you think God wants to

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change how you think my

6:54

sisters. And

6:56

this will empower you

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to discern God's will

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as you live a

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beautiful life satisfying. and

7:06

perfect in his eyes. Does

7:08

that hit you? Is that one

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of the points you wanna remember? God

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wants to work on that. Okay,

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so here we go. Back to the message

7:17

translation, Romans chapter 12, verse three now. It

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says, Paul says, I'm speaking

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to you out of deep gratitude for

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all that God has given me and

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especially I have responsibilities in relation to

7:28

you. Living then as

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every one of you does

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in pure grace, It's important

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that you not misinterpret yourselves

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as people who are bringing

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this goodness to God, meaning,

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girl, it's not about you.

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No, God brings it all

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to you. This is

7:48

actually about God. He

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says the only accurate way to understand

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ourselves is by what God is and

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by what God does for us, not

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by what we are and what we

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do for Him. Let's

8:02

understand that a little

8:04

bit better. The passion

8:06

translation says a warning

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about pride Be emptied

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of self -promotion and

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don't create a false

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image of your importance

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That's that's powerful, right?

8:20

Get get rid of that self

8:22

-promotion It being all about you

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and who sees you and who

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likes this and who comments this

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this false image of our importance.

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Instead, honestly assess your

8:34

worth by using your God -given

8:37

faith as the standard of measurement.

8:40

And then you will see your

8:42

true value with an appropriate self

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-esteem. An

8:46

appropriate self -esteem. Alright,

8:49

verses four through six now it says,

8:51

in this way we are like the

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various parts of a human body. Each

8:55

part gets its meaning from the body

8:58

as a whole. not the other way

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around. The body we're

9:02

talking about is Christ's body of chosen

9:04

people. Each of us finds

9:06

our meaning and function as a part of

9:08

his body. But as a

9:10

chopped off finger or a cut off

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toe, we just wouldn't amount

9:15

to much, would we? So

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since we find ourselves fashioned

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into all these excellently formed

9:22

and marvelously functioning parts in

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Christ's body, let's just go

9:26

ahead. and be what we

9:28

were made to be. Oh, that

9:31

is powerful, huh? When

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you recognize how God created you to

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fit in as a part of his

9:37

body, then you can just be what

9:40

you were made to be. It

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says without enviously or pridefully

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comparing ourselves with each other

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or trying to be something

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we're not. Isn't

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it exhausting comparing Trying

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to be like them like

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that God's word says no

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be who I made you

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to be Verse six is

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six through eight again. We're

10:06

in the past the message

10:09

translation It says if you

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preach just preach God's message

10:13

nothing else if you help

10:16

Just help don't take over

10:18

if you teach stick to

10:21

your teaching If you give

10:23

encouraging guidance, be

10:25

careful that you don't

10:27

get bossy. Oh, if

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you're put in charge, don't

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manipulate. If you

10:35

are called to give aid to people

10:37

in distress, where are my helpers at?

10:40

You are a helper by design. You

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just, you help people. I love people

10:44

like you. But here's the warning, if

10:47

you're called to give aid to people in

10:49

distress, keep your eyes open and be quick

10:51

to respond. If you work with the disadvantaged,

10:55

don't let yourself get

10:57

irritated with them or

10:59

depressed by them. Keep

11:02

a smile on your face. Verses

11:07

nine and 10, love from the

11:09

center of who you are. Don't

11:11

fake it. Run for

11:13

dear life from evil and hold on

11:15

for dear life to good. Be

11:18

good friends who love deeply.

11:21

Practice playing second fiddle. What does

11:23

that mean? You don't have to

11:25

control the conversation or make it

11:27

all about you. Verse

11:30

11 through 13, don't burn out.

11:33

Keep yourselves fueled and aflame.

11:36

Be alert servants of the master. Cheerfully

11:39

expectant. Don't quit

11:41

in hard times, but pray all

11:43

the harder. Help

11:45

needy Christians be inventive in

11:48

hospitality. Let's

11:50

read that in the Passion translation,

11:52

verses 11 and 12 says, be

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enthusiastic to serve the Lord, keeping

11:57

your passion towards Him, boiling hot.

11:59

Do you still have a passion

12:01

for God, or have

12:04

you gotten burned out? He

12:06

says, radiate with the glow of

12:08

the Holy Spirit. Girl, there should

12:10

be something different about you. And

12:13

let him fill you with

12:16

excitement as you serve him.

12:19

This comes back to your energy, your

12:21

face. What are you bringing?

12:24

He says, let this hope

12:26

burst forth within you, releasing

12:29

a continual joy. Don't

12:32

give up in a time of trouble, but

12:34

commune with God in all times. Now,

12:37

verses 14 through 16, bless your

12:39

enemies, no cursing under your breath.

12:42

Laugh with your happy friends when

12:44

they're happy and share tears when

12:46

they're down. Get along with

12:48

each other. Don't be stuck up. Make

12:50

friends with nobodies. Don't

12:53

be the great somebody.

12:55

Isn't that powerful? Stop

12:58

being The the great somebody in

13:00

the circle stop trying to be

13:02

the best the one everybody looks

13:05

at and sees Make friends with

13:07

no buddies, but don't you try

13:09

to be the great somebody? The

13:13

passion translation puts it like this

13:15

celebrate with those who celebrate and

13:17

Weep with those who grieve Live

13:20

happily together in spirit of harmony

13:22

and be as mindful of another's

13:24

worth as you are of your

13:27

own Let

13:29

me say that again. Be

13:32

mindful of another's worth

13:34

as you are your

13:36

own. Don't

13:39

live with a lofty mindset

13:41

thinking you are too important

13:43

to serve others, but would

13:45

be willing to do menial

13:47

tasks and identify with those

13:49

who are humble -minded. Don't

13:52

be smug or even think for a

13:54

moment that you know it all. And

13:59

now our final scripture,

14:01

17 through 21. Don't

14:04

hit back, but discover beauty

14:06

in everyone. What if that

14:08

were your mission? To

14:10

discover beauty in everyone. I

14:13

mean, maybe you gotta dig deep, but girl,

14:15

grab your shovel and dig. Look

14:17

for that beauty in everyone. If

14:20

you've got it in you, get along with

14:22

everybody. Don't insist on

14:24

getting even. That's not for you to do.

14:26

I'll do the judging, says God. I will

14:28

take care of it. Our

14:31

scriptures tell us that if you see your enemy

14:33

hungry, go buy that person lunch or if he's

14:35

thirsty, get him a drink. Your

14:37

generosity will surprise him with goodness.

14:40

Don't let evil get the best of you.

14:43

Get the best of evil

14:45

by doing good. the

14:48

passion translation, that final verse

14:50

says, never let evil

14:52

defeat you, but

14:55

defeat evil with

14:57

good. God's

15:00

word is so powerful, isn't it? I

15:03

bet it met you right where you are

15:06

today and spoke to you in all the

15:08

ways you didn't even know you needed, because

15:10

that's what His word does for me. And

15:13

there's power in just reading his

15:15

word and letting it get down

15:18

into you. You don't always need

15:20

something more than that. Like God's

15:22

word is the best thing you

15:24

can read or listen to. So

15:27

let's just say a quick prayer together today

15:29

and get out there and live the way

15:31

he's asked us to live. Well,

15:34

good morning, God. We

15:36

are just so grateful for your

15:38

word that's alive. that

15:41

is speaking to us right here.

15:43

It's so perfectly timed and we

15:45

receive it God and we thank

15:47

you for it. Lord, we

15:49

are looking to you for help in living

15:51

better. We need your help.

15:53

We cannot do this on our

15:56

own. We do want to take

15:58

our ordinary life, our regular life

16:00

and we want to place it

16:02

before you as an offering. Lord

16:05

would you just show us what

16:07

we need to change what we

16:09

need to do different where we

16:11

need to slow down what we

16:13

need to stop what we need

16:15

to start God we just want

16:17

to fix our attention on you

16:20

and Allow you to change us

16:22

from the inside out We want

16:24

to seek you hear you and

16:26

be obedient in our response to

16:28

you I just

16:31

thank you for what you're doing in each

16:33

of our lives. It's so exciting to see

16:35

you working in such a real and powerful

16:37

way. God, I pray over every family represented

16:39

listening today. I pray for your blessings. God,

16:42

I pray for your provisions. I

16:45

ask for your protection. It

16:48

is in the name of Jesus. Amen.

16:52

Well, my friends, I am enjoying

16:54

my final day in Bali and

16:56

I'm going to be traveling home.

16:59

Day on Thursday very very very

17:01

long flights. I'm actually heading to

17:03

the west coast of the US

17:05

gonna be in Southern California for

17:08

a couple days Before packing up

17:10

again to head to Italy So

17:12

there will not be a new

17:14

episode of the devotional for Thursday.

17:16

So I would encourage you there's

17:18

about 2 ,000 episodes here Maybe

17:20

scroll back to one that you

17:22

need to listen to again, one

17:24

you've never heard, one that just

17:26

has a title that grabs you.

17:29

See what God has for you. Just

17:31

do something old or, hey girl, open

17:34

your Bible. Check out his

17:36

word for yourself. Okay, I'll

17:38

plan to meet you again on

17:41

Friday where Lord willing, I'll be

17:43

in Southern California meeting you bright

17:45

and early Friday morning. Everybody have

17:48

a fabulous day. I love you

17:50

wildly. Goodbye, my friends. Big

18:00

Life devotional podcast. If you're

18:02

ready to dive into the

18:04

Big Life way of living,

18:06

visit our website at biglifehq

18:08

.com.