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Welcome, I'm Leanne Friesman and this is Restoring Word.

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Are you having trouble getting into the Christmas spirit?

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Well, I certainly am and I think millions of Americans are as well.

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It's a hard time of year.

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It's probably going to be a difficult Christmas, but there are things that you and I can do

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to make that season just a little bit easier.

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This is Restoring Word and I am Leanne Friesman.

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There's a beautiful scripture in 1 Corinthians 10 and let me see if I can find it for you.

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This scripture talks about strongholds and taking thoughts captive.

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When I say that, taking a thought captive, if you've never heard that phrase before,

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you might not know what to do with it.

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You know, not every thought that we have is something that we have to receive.

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Someone can give you something and you can make a decision about whether or not you want

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to receive that.

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Well, there are times where I have very difficult thoughts that come into my mind and I have

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to make a decision.

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Do I want to receive that or do I want to take that thing captive and focus on Christ?

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And especially I think at difficult times of year, like Christmas, let's just be honest,

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it's a difficult time of year.

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Those are things that are helpful.

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Had a difficult year this year.

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We had three deaths in four months and this is going to be a kind of maybe a more somber

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Christmas for us.

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I'm going to miss my father and my father-in-law and my husband's brother.

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It's difficult.

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But you know, I want to focus on the future.

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I want to focus on the beautiful things that are ahead of me and in my life.

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When I was getting up at bed and I knew I was going to record this this morning and

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it suddenly occurred to me, you know, Leanne, maybe why you're being bombarded with some

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of this negativity is because you're going to share something that might help someone.

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I never know where these broadcasts go.

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I learned long ago, but probably most importantly, last summer in July, I had recorded, it was

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actually when I was just starting the channel, it was one of the first messages that I put

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out and I had a student of mine that was struggling in her thought life and she was thinking about

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hurting herself in a very devastating way.

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She was going to commit suicide and she ran across my channel and made a decision to listen

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to a bunch of these messages and did not commit suicide that day.

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In August, when I met with her, she said, you know, you saved my life and I said, what?

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She said, yeah, I found your channel on YouTube.

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You know, it's funny, I'm a professional and I don't share Christ with my students.

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When I meet with my students, I teach, but often my students know how to find this channel

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and every once in a while, I'll have one of them that will run across this and it will

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be something that gives them hope.

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And I learned that day that it didn't matter who these messages got to, I needed to be

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obedient to share the word with people that were hurting, knowing that the Holy Spirit

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would use the words to get to someone that was in desperate need.

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And I think this is going to be a difficult season for many.

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So instead of focusing on those thoughts this morning, Leanne, who do you think you are?

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Why are you going to waste your time putting these messages up?

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People don't listen to these anyway.

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Really they listen more to them on Facebook and on the podcast than they do on YouTube.

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Yes, I'm on nine podcast channels and I have no way of knowing who listens to those.

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And I thought, well, why are you wasting your time?

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And I thought, well, that's like, where is that coming from?

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Why?

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And then I began to think about it.

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You know, the word of God is the only hope that many have.

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It is the hope.

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It is your anchor.

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It is the life raft that is thrown to you in life when things are difficult and you

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think you're drowning in despair.

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Mom's all over this country are going to be preparing for Christmas this year, and it's going to be a hard one

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You know there's probably food on the table and presents under under the trees, but there might not be something for you

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I I promise you I've seen God do it in my own life

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Love your family love your children do the best you can and God has ways of making it up to you

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I promise you

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There's great joy in focusing on others and putting others first

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Focus on the good things that are happening in your life

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Look at the progress that you've made this year. Don't feed the depression don't focus on a sad

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Somber movie put on a comedy listen to some praise and worship open some scripture

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think about the good things that God has done for you this year and

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Focus on going forward because you can do all things through Christ who gives you strength

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It's not that we have strength. You know I found that when I am my weakest and my most broken and

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My most humble that that is when he uses me the most

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It's the days in school where I was so exhausted. I couldn't even think straight those were often the days

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God would move why didn't have anything to do with me

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Had everything to do with him and my ability to get out of the way so that he could use me

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God wants to use you

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He wants to use your children. He knows the sacrifices that you're making and

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He is going to turn it all for good

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Take the negativity captive

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Don't don't focus on those thoughts

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Focus instead on what the Word of God says about you

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about your life

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about your children and

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about your future

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It's a decision

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That you can make you can make the decision

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to take the negative thoughts and feed on them or

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You can put those negative thoughts aside, and you can go back into the what into the word

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and

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You can renew your mind

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What does that mean? Well, we all have a carnal nature. We all have this fallen

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You know sinful depressed nature, but that isn't the Holy Spirit that was born inside of us when we gave our lives to Christ

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He dwells in us, but you know what it's sometimes. We just got to fill ourselves back up. I liken it to

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Charging your cell phone. I mean you don't use your cell phone for a week and not plug it in and charge it

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You have to do the same thing to your spirit

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You have to make a decision and say

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Okay, I know all of this looks bad

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But I'm gonna charge my spirit, I'm gonna change my focus

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I'm gonna focus on the answers instead of the problems and

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That bah humbug attitude

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That you might be having this year because it it looks like it's gonna be a rough Christmas

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It can actually be

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one of the best Christmases ever

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Thank you for listening. I

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Appreciate it, and you know if you know someone out there seriously that

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Is struggling and needs to hear some encouragement. Would you forward this to them?

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Like and share the channel because that helps me grow the channel I

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Appreciate your help, and I appreciate your support and

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Together we can help others

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Grow in God

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Trust God and learn to love his word

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Have a great day