Today we are going to talk all about pressure. And pressure simply put, as something pressing on something else. But not all pressure is seen as bad pressure. Right? You need blood pressure, right? With the the force and the flow of a heartbeat. Right? You need air pressure in your tires, right? If you have flat tires, like if there's no pressure, you're not going anywhere. But then there's also all kinds of pressure that we experience in life. I think about the dads in the room, about the different hats we have to wear. Right? We are a provider, right? We're pressured to earn enough to save enough, to be successful. Uh, we have the mentor hat to pressure to guide, instruct, and lead. We have the fix it hat to pressure to have all the answers and to solve every problem. We have the disciplinarian hat to pressure to walk the line between loving and being firm. We have the protector hat, the pressure to shield our family from harm. We have the husband hat, the presser to sacrifice and to serve our spouse. We have the spiritual leader hat, the pressure to pray and to teach and to model faith. We have the jokester hat, the pressure to tell dad jokes. And we, do you think we want to tell these jokes? No, we do it for you. We do it for you, right? You put the word dad in front of things, and why is it that it, it, it feels worse? That's not fair, right? You have jokes and then you have dad jokes. You have bod and you have dad bod. Right? We carry that weight for you. I want you to know that, OK? And so we try, we try, no. This morning's message is entitled, Be faithful. Because when we talk about pressure, I don't know the kind of pressure you're under, if it's financial, if it's relational, if it's health. If it's recovering from being betrayed, if it's shame or guilt from committing a sin that broke the relationship. What whatever pressure you might feel, whether spiritual or emotional, I want you to know this truth. If you're taking notes, you can write this down. That God's presence is greater than life's pressure. God's presence is greater than life's pressure, and the reason that's important is because you don't have to walk through this life alone. We're studying the seven letters to 7 churches in the Book of Revelation. And yes, the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible is a book of prophecy that predicts the future. But not only does it predict the future, it was actually written to 7 physical churches in Asia Minor that were there to offer encouragement for that moment. In other words, the letters were written to them, but they were also written for us. And so these prophecies, these predictions and things happen. Yes, they give us security about what's to come, but also to give us strength and endurance for today. And so last week we looked at the first church. A letter written to the Church of Ephesus that they abandoned, they walked away from their first love, and we talked about how we have to remember that God loves us, that in response, we're called to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love others the way that he has loved us. Well, in the second letter, Jesus is gonna talk to or speak to the Christians there in in Samyrna, in Samyrna. And Samyrna was this town that was about 30 to 50 miles north of Ephesus, but who were the Samernians? Who was, who were the believers in the town of Samyrna? Well, it's a present day city, Izmir, Turkey. It it's at the time was the 2nd largest city of Asia Minor next to uh Ephesus. And so, if Ephesus was described as the gateway to Asia, Sammyrna was described as the ornament of Asia. And so it was beautiful. There was these rolling hills. In fact, there was this mount uh Pagos there there was public buildings on the top of these sloping hills that almost shaped that of a crown. And so they call it the crown of Samyrna. Now the name Samyrna really came from the spice that was exported from there of Myrr. And myrrh was really a crushed spice that when you crush it or you turn it into an oil, it releases a fragrance. Now, myrrh itself was actually most associated with death. It's what they would do to wrap a body or sprinkle a body to prepare a body for burial. In fact, Jesus's body in John 19:39 was prepared with myrrh. Now if you think about it, if you're thinking, well, wait, I thought Myrr was part of the Christmas story, it was, it was actually one of the gifts from the wise men to Mary and Joseph, so gold, frankincense and myrr. So it's it, but Murr is described as the spice of death. That's, that makes it a little morbid if you think about it as a baby gift or maybe a murbid, but um, see that was a dad joke. That was for you. I didn't want to do it. But I offer it for you. No, so Myr had other uses, but it is fascinating though that even at the birth of Jesus was given a spice to represent the death of Jesus, and then it's wrap. And so now we have a city that's named after the spice, that's also interesting that the way you get the fragrance is by pressing and crushing it. Another fascinating thing about Smyrna is that it was known as wine country. They worshiped a a goddess of wine and they created wine. So think of it as like the Napa Valley of the Asia Minor. And so how do you, how do you create wine? How do you make wine? Well, it's the crushing of grapes, the pressing of that to create this drink. And so there's this incredible picture here of this wealthy, this beautiful, this cultured area, but the city itself has gone through its own pressing and rebirth. At around 600 BC it was destroyed. By this uh Lydian King and then rebuilt again in the 300s by Alexander the Great. So it's, there's a heavy tie to history. Another random fact is that the author Homer, the guy who wrote the Iliad and Odyssey, this is this is his hometown. And so then the city after being destroyed and rebuilt, when ultimately got taken over by the Roman Empire, they com they offered complete allegiance to the Roman Empire because they didn't want to be destroyed again. And so they actually practiced something like emperor worship. And so they, they worshiped even a Roman god like Roma, so that they practice this idea of where you have to acknowledge Caesar as Lord. So this is fascinating. This is gonna set up our passage today, that you have a city named after a spice that represents death that you create by crushing and pressing. In a culture that's described as the wine country of the area that you again you create by pressing and crushing in a city that's almost shaped visually like a crown that practices emperor worship that so you have images of the crown all over the place. And so here it's gonna write to these believers. Now, believers in these Roman province and provinces could actually still worship God. So there's an initial freedom, however, people didn't like that. So you would lose jobs, you would lose titles, you would get persecuted for your faith, and a lot of people would get killed for their faith. And then people, I would call them almost fake Jewish people, meaning like they would claim it by heritage, they wouldn't live it out by practice. They were losing their religious power and so because they didn't have any political power, they wouldn't, they couldn't do anything to the quote unquote Christians, but they could, they could tattle on them, so to speak, to the Roman Empire and say, oh, they don't worship Caesar as God. And so they would, they would be attacked. You're going to see this description in here. And so it'd be almost described as a synagogue of Satan, not that they worship Satan, but it's not even these people doing the work. It was Satan working through these people to try to bring down the people of God. And another interesting fact here is actually Smyrna plays a large part in the history of the Bible as we know it. And the reason I say that is because one of the early bishops or leaders of that church was a guy named Pollycarp. Pretty sweet name. Any Polycarps in the room? No, not, that wasn't on the baby trend book for baby name trends for 2025, maybe, maybe next year. But there's a guy named Pollycarp, and the reason he's important is that he lived a long life. He was actually a disciple of John, so the one who wrote wrote this book. John lived a long time. Disciples this guy named Pollycarp who leads this church in Samyrna, and at the end of, and then he disciples a guy named Ahenius, who actually lives to the year around 202 AD. And so we actually have direct lineage. Uh, from Ahenius back to Polycarp back to John. So really like a grandparent type association, a spiritual grandparent, all the way back to Jesus. They take us into the 200s to validate the writings of scripture. That's kind of cool, right? Well, when he gets to the end of his life at 155 AD before he is martyred for his faith, he, he actually says this, he says this quote. He says, uh, 80 years and 80 and 6 years I have served him. And he has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my king who saved me? And so here is this guy, who at the end of his life is killed, he is pressed, he is killed for his faith. But what's really cool to think about because of his age. and because he was the disciple of John. He was most likely one of the guys that literally read the letter in its original form. In Revelation 2, read the words of Jesus through John to the church in Samyrna. Live them out and at the end of his life is able to stand faithful for him. What is it? What were the words that were written and read to the early church and most likely Polycarp, that gave him the strength to stand strong for his faith for 86 years and die as a martyr for him? What were those words? Let's read them together. Revelation chapter 2, starting in verse 8. To the angel of the church in Smyrna, right. The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. Remember, every letter is, uh, starts with a picture of Christ and ends with a promise to those who overcome. And so he's re-quoting the Revelation chapter one and describes Jesus as the first and the last. Now, the first and the last was the description in Isaiah, Isaiah 41, Isaiah 44, Isaiah 48, and really was tied to a picture of God the Father. So Jesus is described as God, as the Son of God, but also God. So this high view of Jesus, the book that we have is not revelation it's plural, it's revelation of Jesus Christ. It's the purpose of the book. And so, describing Jesus as the alpha and the Omega, the first and the last is connecting Jesus, Savior, Son of God, with the heavenly Father. So this first and last, this beginning, it says in Revelation 1:17 that Jesus holds the keys to death itself. And it's important to know that he is the beginning and the end because of what we're facing in the middle. Let me say that again. It's important to trust that God is the beginning and the end because of what you're facing in the middle. And so now we go to verse 9. He says, I know your tribulation and your poverty. But you were rich. And the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested and for 10 days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear led him here. What the spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death. This is a complicated passage. And, and you might miss it in the first read through. I mean, I, and I feel OK at that because I'm a pastor of 20 years and I missed a lot of stuff the first couple of times I read through this. But there's some incredible imagery here. And so it starts off and says, I know. The tribulation and poverty that you face. That word tribulation is ellipsis, which literally means to be pressed or crushed. And so I want you to think about this. That really 3 things here, is that number 1, Jesus knows what you're going through. Awareness is actually really important of suffering, isn't it? It's hard to suffer and then feel isolated, right? And no one knows what you're going through. Some of you today are walked through these doors. You put a smile on your face, someone says, how are you doing? I'm fine. In reality, you're a wreck. We don't know, like, it, it's hard to share. It's like I just can't open that door to that room. I'm not gonna dump everything and so I'm just like, yeah, I'm fine, but in reality we're struggling. The first thing we see here is that God knows what they're going through. The second thing we see here is that God sees them for who they are. He knows them and then he sees them. But the third part is that he's actually with them in the moment. And so he says, I see that you're getting pressed. In the city that's named for a spice that represents death that is achieved through pressing. That in the pressing, you can actually give off a fragrance, an aroma, an act of worship, if you will. Because I know you, I see you, I see it. I hear the slander. I, I see that it looks like you're, you're poor, but you're not. You're so unbelievably rich. And I love that. Since things are not what they seem. I see it. And you're so rich. Why? You're rich because trials are temporary and eternity is forever. Trials, no matter how tough they get, it's temporary. But eternity is forever. This idea of alpha and Omega plays through in the life of Christ Himself. For example, in John 11. His friend Lazarus dies. He waits long enough to where they they fully believe he's dead and not asleep. And when questioned by Mary Martha, where were you? What's going on like here he claims, he says, I am the resurrection and the life. And he says, I have a greater power than you even know. And then it says you believe this, say yes, but guess what, as people are hurting. So what does Jesus do next? The shortest verse in the Bible, John 11:35, it says, Jesus wept. When you think about making a promise to someone who has a problem, you need a few things, OK? First, you want, you need to be aware of the problem, right? Then you wanna have affection for the problem. Right? You gotta have affection for it. Then you gotta have the authority to do something. And then lastly, you need to have the ability to do something. It's a little extra stuff for service didn't get so bonus stuff for you today. OK? You need, you want, if you have a problem, no one knows. Think about if you've ever had a problem at a store. What do you do? You, you go to customer service, right? You're like, first, are we, are you aware of this? Right? But then you want the person to care about your problem, right? You need to have affection. Have you ever gone to customer service with an hourly employee who really could care less about your problem? Right, like, oh this broke, this didn't work. I paid this fee. I got overcharged and they're like, Yeah, it's tough. I was at a breakfast joint one time. And uh and the person in like I was, I mean I had horrible service, but before I could complain, someone was going off in front of me. Have you ever been there? Have you ever seen a public spectacle go down but you're not a part of? It's awesome. I mean, it's not good, but you know what I'm saying though? Let's be real, like if, if you like, come on. So I was there like I was gonna say something like, hey, my order's wrong, but this person was not having it. was going off and the person was just like going like, this is the worst, this is awful. And the person was going, yeah, I know this is awful, it's terrible, you're right. Yeah. And then, and then the person goes, I want to speak to the manager and the person goes, I am the manager. So it was there. It's like, it's just totally aware, had the affection, had the authority, seemingly had no ability to change it. It was like, yeah, this is bad. You shouldn't come here. I'm like, this is not a good, like yeah. For their sake, I won't say what business it was. Here's the thing, God is aware of whatever you're going through. God is affectionate and cares for you and whatever you're going through. Because he's the alpha and Omega Omega, and defeated death itself, he actually has the authority. To take care of the problem, right? And then he actually has the ability and the action to actually do it. He knows you, he sees your situation. And he, he, that's why he came. So he's able to say, hang on. These trials are temporary. This pain is temporary, but I'm with you in your pain. I am with you and give you purpose in it. He sees you in the valley in the trench and he jumps down into the trench with you. It says, hang on. This isn't just Samyrna's experience. We actually see this experience of endurance and perseverance all throughout Scripture. First, let me share with you uh Paul's experience. He's writing to the letter to the church in Corinth. Now, the Corinthians, uh, they, they love to brag. They love to be successful. I like, if you're religious, like, we're the most religious. If they were pagan, they're like, we're the most pagan. Like it was like they're either super successful or they were like the ultimate victim. Kind of sounds like our culture a little bit, right? Right? Like cause on social, what do we do? We love to portray like how successful and how great we are, or if we've been oppressed or hurt, we're like, well, I've, I've been the most victim. And someone says, yeah, I shared this happened to me. Oh yeah, well this happened to me. And like we try to out victim each other and it gets weird like for those nodding your head, you you're tracking with me, if you're not nodding your head, you might have posted something. Anyway, um, just, I'm kidding, I'm kidding. But you know what I'm saying though, right? Like the culture is just like we're either like fake and uber successful or, or we're Uber victim and and Paul's like, what are you, what are you talking about? We are not victims, we are victorious. So the church in court like you you really wanna go victim route, you wanna go, you wanna compare resumes right now? You wanna do that church in Corinth? OK, let's compare resumes. I, I love, I love Paul's little anger here, um, but just notice the tone. He's like, you really wanna go down that route? You wanna say like, oh, you've been like, it's almost like when couples like the, the, the wife has the baby and the dad's like, yeah, she squeezed my hand really hard. It was tough. It's a tough pregnancy for me, you know. And I was like, your wife gave a baby. Like it was like here and like, and we complained like Paul's like, you really wanna go down that route? Listen to just listen to all that Paul's gone through, OK? 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verse 23. Are they servants of Christ? Am I a better one? Am I talking like a madman? Like with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. You, you wanna talk about difficulties? Let's go there. 5 times I received the hands of the Jews, the 40 lashes, less one. OK, so 5 times 39, you're just under 200 whippings, OK. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned, 3 times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day adrift alone at sea. On verse 26 on frequent journeys in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles in the city, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers, and toil and hardship through many sleepless nights, and hunger and in thirst, often without food and in cold and exposure, and apart from other things, there was daily. Pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Uh, look, that last verse I love as a pastor, you know why? Just like track that train of thought for a second. He goes, I was beaten over and over again. I was stoned. I was in prison. I was shipwrecked. I almost died. I was cold. I was hungry. I was thirsty. I almost lost my life and I had to deal with church people. No, you guys are great. But why did he go through all those things? For the glory of God. It wasn't just Paul's experience, it was Jesus's experience too. In Hebrews chapter 12 verses 2 and 3, it says, look to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame. And is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. For joy, he endured the cross. How is it possible? That joy and suffering could go in the same phrase. Because he had the power of God with them, the spirit of God with him, but also the purpose of it. He understood there was purpose to his pain. He understood that pain as excruciating as it was, was temporary and that ultimately he would be reunited with his heavenly Father. Right, on the cross, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? would die a sinner's death. But defeat death itself so that you can experience eternity with him and understand that you can have perseverance. Now, he went through all of those things so that you will not grow faint hearted. He's like, I see you, I know you, I'm with you. I've experienced it. Hang on, be faithful. It's not over. We have Paul's experience, we have Jesus's experience, but Paul writing to the church a little bit nicer in the earlier chapters. Actually he says these words in 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verses 7 to 12. He says, but we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed. We are perplexed but not driven to despair. We are persecuted but not forsaken. We are struck down but not destroyed. Always carrying in the body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life is in you. If the early church suffered, if Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith suffered, you and I cannot and will not escape the pressures of life. But With all the pressure that comes our way, we handle it differently. Because the presence of Christ is greater than the pressures of life. And by having the presence of God with us, we understand that these trials are temporary. That we can tell a greater story, that we can tell a story that influences others. Because when you have faith and you seemingly have money and wealth and all those things, again, there are neutral things, they're not anti-God, but when you see somebody that is quote unquote successful, you're not, well, of course they have God. But when you talk with somebody, Right Who's been through it. And has joy Like, how is that possible? On the mission field at different places and orphanages. And the joy people have. I've shared this before, but it, it impacted my life, so I'll share it again. We were doing work in in Guadalajara in an orphanage, and a girl stood up the most joyful kid you will ever see. Sharing this story and saying, you know, uh, my mom was a drug addict and left us. My dad abused us an alcoholic and so, uh, 11 day I grabbed my siblings and we escaped in the night, my two younger siblings, and we had to live on the streets for a year and then I turned 8. I was like, wait, what? I mean someone who had everything, every possible reason to deny hate character her away, but she said, but no. And then I found this place. And they said God saved me. And now I get to tell my story and help God save others. See, having Jesus in your life, the presence of God in your life changes your perspective completely. You are perplexed, but you're not overtaken. You're in despair, you are pressed, but you, you're not, you're not crushed. The the harder life presses on you, the more sweet the fragrance of God's testimony in your life, understanding that God sees you, God knows you. And he's done something about it, that you are reminded every day that there is an e eternal place in mind. CS Lewis in his book, The Problem of Pain, wrote these words. He says, God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience. But shouts in our pains. It is the megaphone to rouse the deaf world. When you see somebody overcome the worst of odds, it's inspiring. It's not ignoring what happened, it's not saying it's not difficult, it's not saying it's like, no, actually it is difficult, it is bad, it is hard. But in that God meets us there. And we have a God who's experienced the worst of the worst, and offered the best of the best, and saying, now I'm gonna give that to you. See, God's presence is greater than life's pressure. And I don't know what you're walking through, uh, but I want you to know. That God's bigger. The God is better. That God is stronger, that God is greater. These are the moments we need faith. You don't need faith when everything's going right. You ever think about that? Yes, we need faith every step of the way, but I'm just saying, like, our faith was made for the tough times. It was made for the trials. That's why Christ can write a letter. Through an apostle who was in exile. Experienced 90 years of persecution to a church that in a city that's named after a spice of death that means press in a culture of wine that's created through press in a city that's shaped like a crown that worships the king and said, no, no, no, no, no, let me give you the crown of life. Cause the second death is the ultimate judgment of God at the end. It's saying no, no, no, these trials are temporary. You got, you are not poor. You are so unbelievably rich because you have a God who loves you, who saves you and offers eternity. Let's get practical here as we wrap up this morning. Just 3 closing thoughts on trials. And whatever you're walking through, I don't know, again, I don't know if it's relational or financial or physical or emotional or mental, but I, I don't know what it is you're walking through, but I do know there's pressure. And one, I hope you handle that pressure. So 3 closing thoughts. Number 1, lead with faith, manage your fear. Lead with faith, manage your fear. Uh, if you've got young kiddos, if you've ever taken a road trip. Like you, you, you gotta manage the kiddos in the car, right? Like you got the backseat, there's goldfish everywhere, you got a time out the bathroom breaks saying, uh, guaranteed as soon as you pass a sign that says next next rest stop like 50 miles, that will be when someone has to go, right? Like it doesn't matter how many devices. As you have in the car, they're gonna want the other one, right? You're gonna go through and then you're gonna get repeated, are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? like going through like and and all that stress and that you're managing because you love them, right? You're going through, um, at any point, do you ever go fine toddler, you drive. No. Never But we do that all the time with fear. We do. We let fear drive. We let fear take the wheel, take, get on the bus here, you take us. So now we pull out our devices and we see like, oh my goodness, that happened? Oh, they said, what? That this is going on? What happened? Oh my goodness. And now, like we're being driven around by the latest stressful situation of other people. Stop letting fear drive. You're gonna have to manage it. But God's word tells us, God did not give you a spirit of fear but of power, love and self-control. So if there's a lot of things in your life that you don't know. Go back to what you do know, and more importantly, who you know. I don't know what the diagnosis is gonna be. But I know the God who does. I don't know how I'm gonna get over this loss. But I know a God weeps for me. I don't know what's gonna happen, but I know that God's love is bigger and better and stronger and greater than anything this world has to offer. And he's gonna tell a story. That the church is smart, you know, he's one of the few churches in those letters that doesn't get a rebuke. So you've been attacked, you, you've been hurt, you've been persecuted. Hang on. Let faith drive the bus. And then figure out how to manage the fear stuff. Don't flip it. Right, we let fear drive us and went, well, I guess I gotta go to church. I guess I should read, check this box and we try to manage our faith. And checklist our faith, and we let fear do all the driving. We flipped it. Second thing, You have to look and listen for God's voice in the valley. Psalm 234, I won't be on the screen, but it says here, it says in the verse, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For you are with me, says your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You say though I stay in the valley, right a reminder that it's temporary. What is it that helps us get over fear? Looking and listening for the voice of God. See, shepherds. They had a rod and they had a staff. Sometimes we think of it as the one long stick with a hook. Typically it was two things. And the rod for a shepherd with sheep was used for protection, it was used for inspection, it was used for discipline. So protection to fight off the wolves, inspection, they would use it to kind of comb through the wall to look for bugs and stuff, and then discipline, like when they weren't paying attention, wow. Right? We love the picture of Jesus holding the lamb. That was a disobeying lamb. Probably whapped him on the leg and said, no, no, no, you're not going anywhere. OK. The rod and the staff. The staff had that hook. Well, what was the purpose of a hook? hook did two things, OK? A hook guides the sheep where they're supposed to go, and then draws them closer to the shepherd. What do we have as believers? We have the word of God. The rod of God in our life, to protect us, to inspect and for discipline when we need it. And we have the staff, we have the Holy Spirit. that God uses to draw us to Him. And to guide us where we're supposed to go. When you're struggling, look and listen for the voice of God in the valley. His word and his spirit, and you're gonna find comfort, I promise you that. Last thing here At the end of the day, we're called the live for the crown, not the crowd. Live for the crown, not the crown. The church in Smyrna didn't have possessions. They didn't have the titles, they didn't have quote unquote success. They were being attacked, they were being mocked, they're being made fun of. They didn't have money, they didn't have like. I said, no, no, no, no, don't, don't miss it. You are rich. You think Simyrna's got a cool looking crown? How about one that lasts forever? That's the crown we're looking for. Meaning, our focus is not simply on our pain, but on our purpose. Meaning that our focus is not just on the problem, but the person of Jesus who's with us in that. Meaning That we're not just simply focused on the pressure of life, but ultimately focused on the presence of God, whose love is bigger and better and stronger and greater than anything this world tries to throw at you. Be faithful. Be faithful. If you continue to show up. God's gonna continue to show off. Not only will pull you through this trial, but one day for eternity. Tell a story. That we're telling of this church 2000 years later. That's how we know they didn't give up. Keep the fight, keep the faith. God loves you and God's with you. Let's pray. Dear onlyly Father. Whatever people are walking through right now, whatever pressure life throws their way. I pray that we could experience your presence like never before. That you can encourage and change our hearts. That we can humble ourselves before you, that ultimately, God, you can receive glory. Whatever is pressing on people today, may they not be crushed under the weight of expectations or struggles, but rather they can be lifted up and encouraged that one day they will receive that crown of life through His Son Jesus. Whose love is bigger and better and stronger and greater than anything this world has to throw our way. Let us hold fast to you. We lift you up today and your says we pray.