I usually um start off with the scripture but I tonight I'mma do like the new school I'm going start off with the subject tonight my subject is the Turning Point tell somebody it's about to turn around it's about to turn around tell somebody it's it's a really about to turn around I know it doesn't look like it look like it's still headed in the same wrong direction but trust me it's about to turn around it's about to turn and tell somebody it's turning in your favor it's turning in your favor Hallelujah you're not saying it like you believe it if you're a skeptic I promise if you say it out your mouth tonight it will start turning and turning in your favor my my my my my my my my and my my subtopic is live through it tell somebody to live through it come on come on I don't know what it's going to take for you to do it but live through it don't let it get you down don't let it stop you but live through it whatever it takes whatever you need to do tell somebody to live through it oh y'all ain't excited enough for me that's all right I'm going to enjoy myself you can get whatever you want in the process but live through it however bad it is live through it cuz it's going to be all right my scripture tonight is job 42 and the 10th verse Hal Hallelujah and the Lord turned the Captivity of job when he prayed for his friends also the lord gave job twice as much as he had before the turning point you may be seated God stand up and me tonight cuzz I need you and I thank you in advance Dr Amy Round Tree assistant vice president for research at UT auson writes a turning point is a moment of decision and change of situation in life events are considered turning points when they Mark the moment when things begin to change turning points are important to how we understand the stories that we tell turning points are important moments of interpretation it is how we make sense of a story and what matters to that society and time how we understand moments of change and departure says as much about us the receivers as it does the subject matter of the story now living through something means embracing uncertainty in the Harvard Business review it said when the strategy is uncertain even the best acknowledge what's unknown but also look ahead to what is known Katherine Chan who is a senior executive in aviation that manages operational risks by initiating strategies in response to disruptions her key function functions in her role are safety compliance and resilience she says most of her work resolves around resilience she writes in an article titled the turning point in times of Crisis everything that we do has to be rethought and the strategy has to be relevant it is crucial to build a strong Foundation amongst the most difficult challenges ahead for the future of my family for the future of my community that I'm serving and in society in general we need to understand that not only the superficial issues are important but most importantly how to overcome challenges that go deeper this is the best time to learn how to survive through a downturn and strategize like a futurist now a futurist is someone who looks at the future with an eye towards change and how they can emerge from the present condition that sound sounds a lot like Hope and Faith in our context a futurist by the name of Lindsay Angelo writes futurists are often called Visionaries because they see things that others don't and can't they have an ability to look at the world around them and identify patterns that others might miss patterns Beyond on the status quo one thing I teached my doctoral students at JDS shout out is how to read the matter of a book you read the front matter you read the back matter which includes the acknowledgments the preference the table of contents the introduction about the author the publisher the epilogue the bibliography the appendices and everything else and in doing so it will help you to see things that others may miss by just reading the chapters in the book you will discover the mind of the author and what is to come in the ensuing chapters in the course I'm instructing right now the doctoral students are required to give presentations and hold discussions over the required text so the January book or the first assigned reading was one of my most intriguing conversation partners and his name is Jeff Ashley who wrote A fascinating piece of work called Ordinary theology Jeff asley is an honorary lecturer in the University of Durham he's an honorary Professor fellow in Practical theology and Christian education and he is an honorary professor in the department of Theology and religion he is also an ordained minister in the Church of England he's British he represents the British School of theological thought and he is part of the Anglican Church which in the British culture is the state church now the British School of Theology thought theological thought determines that Theology and religious studies can benefit from emerging with each other for the health of the religious community if it's information and knowledge-based culture alone they are impoverished Ashley asley sorry is a clergyman who works in churches with Congress ANS he is also an academic and he hosts discussions around his work now these four students that had to make presentations in the last couple of weeks did a phenomenal job they did some outstanding presentations they did scholarly work they had critical analysis of the material and they had competent Reflections however you could tell that they didn't take seriously the matter of the book they went so deep into the trenches that they missed the simple lesson that the author was trying to convey they overlooked the one thing that the book was really about the book was about the development of ordinary theology Ashley stated stay with me that the book was an essay to provoke discussion and not a definitive study the main theme of the book makes the case for the important understanding that ordinary theology is the theological process of believers who have not been theologically educated or ordinary theology is a form of theology that is connected to one's personal faith for believers it is a theology to live by and die for as it heals restores challenges and makes them whole ordinary theology is overlooked by academic Christian Theology and non theologically trained believers are the denom or the are the dominant population in the church most academic and professional theologians forget that they started out ordinary Ashley's definition of ordinary theology comes from his anotal experiences in Ministry with ordinary people explaining their beliefs once he was teaching a class on Christian doctrine and he asked the students what shaped their faith and the students did not respond as he anticipated but instead they spoke about people and sermons and services and significant events and periods in their own lives what ordinary theology does is reminds us that Believers are shaped by the stories that rise out of scripture that they can relate to because it is a part of our life's experiences so when you leave Bible study or when you leave a Sunday morning service the believer can leave with something that empowers them to say somebody else went through this and I'm not alone it is at this point that when the sermon the message the word Rises off the pages of scripture and become life in a dead situation that change is being made so if I could summarize up all I just said I would say a turning point happens when you have lived through something and survived it you survived it because the stories of the Patriarchs and the ancestors told you that you could although you may not know the outcome you know that the battle will end just like it should when life seems to be unfair and more complex than you think you can bear live through it because you are assured that there will be a turning point if you live through it change is inevitable it is living through the shifts that you will find that God will teach you strategy give you a support system and sustain you in the process you see God is shaping you so that the story you tell will help somebody else so what does all this have to do with job I'm glad inquiring minds want to know job is often considered a theological Paradox or a theological exploration of the nature of suffering and divine justice and human Faith his story delves into some of the deepest questions in theology especially Regarding why a righteous man suffers some of the themes in job represents a theological challenge to retributive Justice a theological exploration of the sovereignty of God a theological reflection on faith in suffering and a theological Dialogue on Divine Justice and theoy in these ways job stands as a theological figure who in invites readers to reflect deeply on the nature of God scholars believe that job's job's story doesn't provide easy answers but instead pushes for a deeper more complex engagement with these core theological issues but if it's in the book it can't be so complex that the non theolog iCal trained congregate can't comprehend if it's in the book there's a story to be told and a message for Anyone who reads it to understand may I submit to you that it is a discourse in ordinary theology ordinary theology because we get to read about or hear about someone's life that is not sugarcoated or glazed over it talks about a man who was up one day and down the next not just a man but an upright man not just an upright man but a man with a social status not just a man with a social status but a rich man not just a rich man but he was a family man that had everything going for him God was proud of job he was so proud of job that he invited Satan to take a closer look at his servant he believed in job so much that he told Satan he could test him but don't take his life one of the theological themes the book of job is concerned with is can God be trusted but if you would allow me to challenge that perspective because I see something else could it be that the question really is can God trust you with trouble could it be that the question is can God trust you in trouble God won't test you with something you cannot handle it may not feel like you're handling the test but God knows you can handle it the truth is if you are in it he can trust you with it in fact the next time you're in deep don't measure the test measure the trust the greater the test the more God trusts you reach over and say he trust me girl he trust me man he trust me chapter one starts off like this one day the members of the Heavenly Court came to present themselves before the Lord and the accuser Satan came with them where have you come from the Lord asked Satan answered the Lord and said I've been patrolling the Earth watching everything that's going on and the Lord said to Satan or asked Satan have you noticed my servant joob he is the finest man in all the Earth he's blameless he's a man of complete Integrity he fears me and he stays away from Evil and then Satan replied to the Lord and said yeah but job has a good reason to fear you you have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property reach over and tell somebody you got a wall around you uh-huh tell somebody you surrounded it may look like yeah yeah yeah but you're surrounded by God uh-huh he has a reason to fear you you have made him prosper in everything he does look how rich he is but reach out and take everything he has and he will surely curse you to your face the Lord said all right you can test him do whatever you want with everything he possesses but don't harm him physically God trusted job so much that he told Satan everything that is in his hands is in your power just don't touch his life so Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord and this is what happened one day when job's Sons and Daughters were feasting at the oldest brother's house a messenger arrived at job's home with this news I don't want you to track with me like PT you track with him but I want you to rock with me in this would you rock with me a minute because when you going through something sometimes all you can do is rock and I want you to rock steady Rock Steady baby just Rock Steady walk with me through this cuz I promise we going somewhere tell somebody Rock Steady yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah one day when job's Sons and Daughters were feasting at the oldest brother's house a messenger arrived at job's home with this news your oxen were plowing with the donkeys feeding beside them and when the seans raided us they stole all the animals and killed all the farm hands and I'm the only one left to tell you about it and while he was talking another messenger arrived with this news the fire of God fell from heaven and burned up your sheep and all your Shepherds and I am the only one left to tell you about it and while he was speaking a third messenger arrived with some more news three bands of Chalan Raiders have stolen your camels and killed your servants and I'm the only one left to tell you about it and while he was speaking the fourth one came with some more news your sons and your daughters were feasting in their oldest brother's house and suddenly a powerful wind swept in from the Wilderness and hit the house on all sides the house collapsed and all your children are dead and I was the only one left to tell you about it and then job stood up and he tore his robe and he shaved his head and he fell to the ground in worship and he said naked I came from my mother's womb naked it shall I return the Lord gives and the Lord take us away blessed be the name of the Lord through all of this Joe maintained his Integrity just in the last few days hundreds of people who worked for an independent government agency were headed to a normal day on the job but when they arrived they weren't allowed to enter the building and without warning or notice these people have lost their livelihood just in the last month tens of thousands of people have been displaced because of the California fires they've lost everything and countless numbers of animals were killed or displaced because of the Calamity just in the last week almost a hundred people died in three plain Cates that doesn't even account for the ones we don't know about just in the last two weeks a certain race of people have begun losing their rights because of the way a bill was written and it has affected more than one capacity of freedom but that's not enough chapter 2 says one day the members of the Heavenly Court came came again to present themselves to the Lord and the accuser of the Brethren came back to meet with Lord and he said Lord I've been patrolling the earth watching everything that's going on and the Lord said have you noticed my servant job and he is the finest man in all the Earth notice he's repeating the same thing he said before he lost the first things he said he's blameless and he's a man of complete Integrity he fears God and stays away from Evil and he has maintained his Integrity even though you urg me to warn him without a cause Satan said skin for skin a man will give up everything if he has to save his life but reach out and take away his health and he will surely curse you to his face all right then the Lord said do what you see fit to do but spare his life so Satan left the Lord's presence and he struck job with terrible boils from his head to his foot and job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape his skin as he sat among the ashes I Can Only Imagine job sinking into a deep depression as he reflects on all he has just lost he's lost his livelihood he lost his properties he lost his children and now he has lost his health that's enough to throw anybody into a deep depression the emotions the tears the anguish the wishes he had never been born the loneliness and the isolation the pain this depression made his feelings vacillate back and forth up and down sometimes he felt like God was right there and other times he thought God was so far that he couldn't find him in chapter 17 it says job said his Spirit was broken you in a bad place when your spirit is broken what was worse that his wife said to him are you still trying to maintain your integrity why don't you just Curse God and die so her solution to this issue was to curse God and die what is that going to do how is that going to make things better Your solution is to die ask somebody why oh y'all don't get it ask tell somebody why do you want to die joob said you crazy you don't sound like my wife he said should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad etymologically job's name was related to the Hebrew word enemy which possibly describes his response to his suffering it's not clear whether or not job knew who put this suffering on him was it God or was it Satan either way he said nothing wrong when he surmised that this suffering could have been brought on by God and if God be the enemy his response was still integral he said though he slay me yet will I trust him if it is God I'm going to stand in full Integrity if it's not God I'm going to stand in full Integrity job's situation was so bad that when three of his friends heard about the tragedy he had suffered they got together and they traveled from his home to comfort and console him when they saw job from a distance they scarcely recognized him crying loudly they tore their robes and they threw dust over there over them in the air to show their grief and then they sat on the ground next to job for seven days and seven nights no one said a word for they saw that his suffering was too great wait for words have you ever just sat with some who was going through something you don't have to say a word you don't have to try to find something to say just sit there and be quiet sometimes that's all somebody needs can you not just carry with me one hour sometimes all I need is for you to sit with me you don't have to make me laugh and you don't have to tear me up sometimes all I need is your presence your presence in silence lets me know that you care when Jesus found out that Lazarus had died and he went to the tomb with Mary and Martha the Bible says he didn't try to fix it he didn't try to make it get better he cried with them he sat and cried with them do you know how powerful it is to just sit with somebody that's going through something and just sit there and be quiet can you do that can you sit I know some people have to say something all the time they got to say something because they can't stand quietness but if you can find it in your heart to just sit with me while I'm going through I don't need you to hug me I don't need you to touch me just sit with me tell somebody sit with me just sit with me I don't need you to try to make it better I don't need you to try to make it good I just need you to sit with me it was then when job's friends started talking that they got in trouble they started started trying to deduce while job was in this condition they couldn't after seven days and nights stay quiet it was all right until they opened their mouths and started blaming him for his condition one of his friends basically told him that he deserved D worse than this job's socalled friends came to comfort him with a human attempt to resolve what required a divine intervention this is a job for God you just sit and be quiet Jo stood up in his righteous indignation and responded to their buffery with this statement he said all my appointed time I'm going to wait until my change come we don't always know why we suffer it's not always about Sin it's not always about the devil sometimes it's just God showing you off tell somebody God's trying to show you all so the next time you're in a crisis and somebody tells you to give up and die or to repent of your sins or you will die not even die literally but they tell you to let go of your dream give up on your hope don't expect to be healed stand up in your righteous indignation and tell them no no no I'm going to live to see it happen live live live live live I'm going to live to see it happen I'm not going to die but live to tell What the Lord Has Done God didn't bring you this hard for you to die in it or die out of it God expects you to live through it tell somebody live through it uhhuh tell somebody like you believe it live through it let me pause and encourage somebody right here whether it's you online or in this building if you have declared this is your year you're going to commit suicide take your life whatever because the test is too much to hand I besee you not to give the devil the satisfaction instead give the devil a black eye and tell him live live live live live I'm going to live to watch it happen remind yourself when you're going through that God trust you with this trouble so don't let God down tell somebody don't let him down and live live live live live oh y'all scared to sing just in retrospect what ordinary theology does is reminds us that Believers are shaped by the stories that rise out of scripture and they can relate to it because it's a part of their life's experiences when they leave the service they leave with something that is empowering and says if job went through it and lived on the other side of it then I can surely go through this and live here is the Turning Point here is the Turning Point the book starts out in Job 1 and5 with job praying for his children it says so was when the days of feasting had run their course that job would send and sanctify them and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all for job said it may be somebody say it may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts so job did this regularly but then the book ends in job 42 And1 with joob praying for his friends it opens with him praying for his children it ends with him praying for his friends sometimes we spend too much time praying for the wrong thing sometimes our prayers are too selfish they are pointed inward to me my four and no more and we wonder why things are not getting better yes yes job was an upright man yes he was a Godly Man yes he walked with Integrity there was nothing wrong with him praying for his children but job's world was bigger than that he was responsible for the lives of others he was not just the priest of his house but he was also a judge he was an advocate in the city gates for the widows the fatherless and The Afflicted but all we read about is him praying for his children he had servants and dignity dignitaries that reported to him and when you are the head of the house whether you are a patriot or a matriarch or as you by yourself you got to remember that God has you and everything connected to you covered when you make the Declaration you make it for for your house as for me and my house we will serve the Lord your covered your family is covered everything connected to you is covered say we're covered we covered job prayed for his children all the time but it didn't stop what happened maybe just maybe he could have spent his time praying differently here is the Turning Point the Turning Point happened when God redirected his prayer and the Lord turned the Captivity of job not when he prayed for his children but when he prayed for his friends in addition to that the lord gave job twice as much as he had before when job prayed outside of his house when he he prayed outside of his children when he prayed outside of himself his body was healed and everything he lost was restored double you mean to tell me that all I got to do is redirect my prayer you mean to tell me that all I got to do is get out of this situation by changing the way I pray you mean to tell me that all I got to do to turn this point is to pray outside of my circle stop searching for profound Revelation and embrace the small embedded opportunities for God to show up all you have to do is get outside of yourself stop stop being selfish in fact as God got you covered if you want to see something happen pray for somebody outside of your circle the turning point will happen when you change the way you pray job was a priest and we are priests what is the role of the priest the priest is a mediator between God and the people not just God and your house priests are intercessors I like the way Dr Joel tman put it he said you enter into someone else's session my sister and my brother I may not know you but I want to pray for you cuz if it's going to have effect on how my point turns then I want to pray for you I want to be able to enter into your session and pray God's will over your life and knowing that he's going to bring me out of mine cuz if I'm taking care of God's business he's taking care of mine let me show you what happened and I'm almost finished let me show you what happened when his prayer changed the Bible says in 42 and 11 it says Then There came unto him all his Brethren and all his sisters and all they that had been of his acquaintance before the mess and they came and ate with him in his house and they boned him and comforted him over all the evil check this out that the Lord had brought up on him every man also gave him a piece of money and a gold earring so the Lord blessed the latter end of job more than his beginning for he had 14,000 sheep he had 6,000 camel and he had a th000 Yol of oxen and a thousand she asses he also had seven sons and three daughters wait wait wait wait wait he had seven sons and three daughters in job the first chapter he had seven sons and three daughters but he told me here a few minutes ago that he doubled everything but it says here he got seven sons and three daughters if you drop down to verse 16 it says after this job lived 140 years and saw his sons and his son's Sons to four generations so he got more than double for his children he got seven times whatever it was that for Generations could populate and after this he lived 140 years and then he died being full of old age a turning point is a moment when A Change Is Made in a situation of Life events are considered turning points when they Mark the moment when things begin to change turning points are important to how we understand the story turning points are important moments of interpretation it is how we make sense of a story and what matters in that society and time how we understand moments of change and departure helps us to receive the subject matter in our context now living through something means embracing uncertainty in times of Crisis everything that we do has to be rethought and the strategy must be relevant this is the best time to learn how to survive through a downturn and strategize like a futurist now a futurist is someone who looks at the future with an eye towards how they can emerge from the present condition they have an ability to look at the world around them and identify patterns that others can't see a futurist is a Believer who looks to the author and the finisher of their faith and what ordinary theology does is reminds us that Believers are shaped by the stories that rise up out of scripture that they can relate to because it is a part of their life experience when you leave Bible study when you leave Sunday morning service the believer leaves with something to empower them that says this is my story this is my song praising My Savior all the day long this is my story this is my song praising My Savior all the day it is at that point when the sermon the message the word Rises up off the pages of scripture and become life in a dead situation so when life seems to be unfair and more complex than you think you can bear live through it because change is coming if you live through it the turning point is inevitable it is living through these shifts that you will find that God will teach you a a strategy give you a support system and sustain you in the process because God is shaping you so that your story can help somebody else and if you live through it you will realize that your story will change the way you pray somebody give God a praise