Faith in the Storm: Hope Through Life's Trials

Transcript

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Coming up on Renewed Mindsets.

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Life can feel a lot like sailing across the ocean.

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Sometimes everything's peaceful, the water's calm, the sky is bright, but sooner or later the storm shows up.

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They're unpredictable, they're overwhelming and they can knock you off course.

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How we handle those storms makes all the difference.

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It's what decides if we come out stronger or end up feeling completely lost.

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Let's talk about that.

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Let's go, boys.

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Hey, welcome to Renewed Mindsets, bringing you God's truth from a Gen X perspective, with a mix of humor and a dash of nostalgia.

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Remember when life was simpler and all we needed was a good mixtape.

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Well, we're here to make your spiritual playlist even better.

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Join us as we explore scripture, laugh a little and rediscover the power of a renewed mindset.

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Don't conform transform.

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Welcome back to Renewed Mindsets, where we explore how God's Word transforms our lives and equips us to handle life's storms.

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I'm Rick and I'm so glad you're here.

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Today we're going to be tackling a topic we all face unexpected events and trials.

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Now, right here in the South, as I speak, we're preparing for a severe winter storm.

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I'm not even sure if this podcast episode is going to get uploaded or not.

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That storm, to me, is a reminder of how life can be so unpredictable.

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You might be dealing with your own storm.

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It might be a financial crisis or some health issue or a family struggle.

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Whatever form it takes, these challenges test our resilience but, more importantly, they reveal our foundation.

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Today we're going to talk about how to prepare for life's storms and how to stand firm during them, right and trust that God's purpose is in the midst of all of it.

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Section 1, the Nature of Life's Storms.

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So life's storms come in many forms.

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Life's storms, so life's storms come in many forms Losing a job, sudden illness, a broken relationship, even a global crisis.

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Storms can be unexplained.

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They disrupt our routines, they mess up our plans.

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But Jesus warned us in John 16, 33, in this world you're going to have trouble, but take heart, I've overcome the world.

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Trouble isn't an option, it's a guarantee.

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But let's look at Matthew, chapter 7, specifically 24 through 27, where Jesus tells the story of the two builders, one built on the rock, the other built on sand.

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Both experienced the same storm, but the outcome was vastly different.

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The house on the rock stood firm, while the house on the sand fell with a great crash on the sand fell with a great crash.

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Now what's that rock?

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What's the rock?

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It's God's Word, people, it's His truth, it's His promises.

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Building our lives on the rock means living according to God's teachings and trusting Him as our foundation.

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When these storms come, they expose the foundation of our lives.

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Are we relying on Christ, or are we placing our trust in things that can be easily shaken, like our finances or our achievements, or in a relationship?

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Let's bring this closer to home.

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Let's talk about this winter storm Now.

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We've known that it's been coming for days and there's people rushing to prepare.

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I say that because I spent the last two hours driving around the state looking for propane, or else I'd have no heat.

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Now imagine if we treated our spiritual lives like these people that are rushing to prepare that didn't plan for a storm in January, so they didn't have enough propane Big dummy.

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Are we spiritually prepared for those storms that we know we're going to face?

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Yes Right, storms are equalizers.

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It doesn't matter who you are Rich or poor, young or old.

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They're going to affect everybody.

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But our response rooted in faith makes all the difference.

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When we trust God, we don't just survive storms, we grow through them.

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Section 2, preparing for Life's Storms Row through them.

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Section 2.

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Preparing for life's storms.

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Now, preparation is the key.

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But now, ladies and gentlemen, we finally have a working tractor beam, which we shall call Preparation H, forgive me.

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Preparation is the key, both physically and spiritually.

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Just like you'd stock up on food and water and batteries for the winter storm, you need to equip yourself spiritually for life's challenges.

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But how do we do that?

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Well, first, let's talk about prayer.

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Prayer is our lifeline to God.

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Philippians, chapter 4, and 7 tells us Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds.

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In Christ Jesus.

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It's that simple.

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When we face these potential storms, prayer prepares our hearts to trust in God's sovereignty.

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It shifts our focus from fear to faith.

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Second, we need to be grounded in Scripture.

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Psalm 119.105 says your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light to my path.

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God's word guides us when we can't see the way forward.

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It equips us with promises that we can hold on to in tough times.

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Another essential is community.

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Ecclesiastes 4.9 10 reminds us that two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor If either one of them falls, one can help the other one up.

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So surround yourself with believers who can encourage you and pray with you.

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And finally, preparation means trusting God to be our refuge, psalm 46.1,.

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God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

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Before that storm hits, decide to run to God, not away from him Now.

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Practical steps also matter Now for this storm that's coming up.

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People are preparing their homes, they're checking their heat, they're protecting their pipes, they're stocking up on supplies.

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Spiritually, we should be doing the same thing.

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Are we taking time to invest in our relationship with God?

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Are we practicing spiritual disciplines that are going to sustain us during these trials?

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Section 3.

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Finding Hope Amidst Trials.

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Now, when these trials hit, our immediate reaction a lot of times is fear and frustration.

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That's normal.

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But as believers, we're called to respond differently.

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James, chapter 1, verses 2 through 4, says Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance, produces perseverance.

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Now, pure joy doesn't mean pretending to be happy.

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It means recognizing that God is at work in the storm, refining us and building our character.

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Now let me share a little story.

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You know I like stories and this is actually a story of mine.

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A few years ago, during another winter storm, my family and I lost power for about a week Now.

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At first it was chaos.

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We were cold, we were uncomfortable, we were frustrated.

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We were in each other's way.

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But something unexpected happened.

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Without electricity or distractions, we spent time praying together, talking and reflecting on God's provision.

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Now, what felt like a trial turned into a blessing.

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Now that reminds me of Joseph in the Bible.

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He was sold into slavery and later he was imprisoned.

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Joseph endured incredible trials, but in Genesis, chapter 50, verse 20, he tells his brothers you intended to harm me, but God intended it for good, to accomplish what is now being done the saving of many lives.

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God uses trials to grow us.

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God uses trials to grow us, but he also uses them to impact others.

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When we respond with faith and hope, we become witnesses to his goodness.

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People notice when we have a peace in the middle of a whole bunch of chaos.

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They do Remember the storms don't last forever.

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Psalm 30, verse 5, reminds us Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

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Hold on to hope, knowing that God is working for your good.

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Section 4.

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Trusting God's Sovereignty.

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Trusting God's sovereignty means believing that he is in control even when life feels out of control.

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Proverbs 3, verses 5 and 6.

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It says Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

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Sometimes we try to understand why things happen, but God doesn't always give us answers.

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Instead, he gives us his presence and his promises.

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Look at Job.

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Job faced horrible and unimaginable loss.

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Yet in Job 19, verse 25, he says I know that my Redeemer lives.

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Job trusted God's goodness even when he didn't understand his plan.

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Another example of that is Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.

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He was facing the cross and he prayed Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done.

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That's Luke 22, 42.

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Jesus modeled ultimate trust in God's plan.

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When we trust in God's sovereignty, we release the need to control everything.

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We acknowledge that His ways are higher than our ways.

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This doesn't mean that the storms won't hurt Trust me they will but it means that we can have peace, knowing that God is with us and he's working for our good.

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Now, as we prepare for this winter storm, let's also prepare our hearts for life's storms.

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Anchor yourself in Christ, trust his sovereignty and remember that trials are opportunities to grow closer to God and witness to other people.

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Take some time, do that.

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Take some time, yeah, take some time to reflect on your past trials.

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How has God shown his faithfulness in those moments?

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Share those stories.

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They could be a source of encouragement to somebody else.

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How has God shown his faithfulness in those moments?

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Share those stories.

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They could be a source of encouragement to somebody else.

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Thank you, thank you.

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Thank you for joining me today on Renewed Mindsets.

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Stay safe, stay warm and stay grounded in God's Word Until next time.

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Keep renewing your mind and trusting in God's promises.

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And now some dad jokes to help you weather that storm.

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Why did the snowman go to the doctor?

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He was getting chills.

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Why is Frosty always early?

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Because time waits for snowman, sorry.

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Well, that's all for this week's show.

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You know the name of this show speaks my hope for you.

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It's taken from the words of Romans, chapter 12, verse 2.

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Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

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If you enjoyed what you heard, do me a favor, please and tell someone you know about it.

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Send them a link in a text you know you may even need to download it to their phone and show them what a podcast is.

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If it was valuable to you, it will be to them.

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If it was valuable to you, it will be to them.

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Visit renewedmindsetscom to hear past episodes, read the blog and check out the new merch and, as always while you're there, send me a voicemail by clicking the button at the bottom right corner of the main page.

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Tell me what you think about this show.

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I just might play it on a future episode.

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Until next week, I'm Rick.

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I love you.

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See, ya.

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The intro and outro music for the Renewed Mindsets podcast is Are you Ready?

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By Floodgate From the album Are you Ready?

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Copyright 2002, offbeat Ministries Incorporated.

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Floodgate can be found on Apple Music and iTunes.

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Music used with permission.

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Happy birthday, hey, I said my first words.

Faith in the Storm: Hope Through Life's Trials

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