Ep 68: The Only One Left

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Well, good morning, I'm Daniel
Dalp and this is for your Sunday

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Morning drive, the short podcast
with the goal of providing some

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motivation, some drive and
encouragement on your way to

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worship and helping you recenter
your mind on those spiritual

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things on a hectic Sunday
morning.

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Let's go ahead and get the show
on the road this morning.

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This is episode 68, the only one
left.

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Let's go to church.
Are we there yet?

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The call that you're hearing is
that of the Hawaiian Kawaii 00,

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and if it strikes you as a
melancholy sound, I would have

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to agree with you.
You see, that recording was the

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last known male of the species
recorded on the Isle of Kawaii

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in 1987, and it hasn't been
heard since.

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It's a sad and haunting relic of
an extinct species that was

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driven to its demise by the
introduction of non-native

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predators and habitat loss.
And it was the last one, and now

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it's just gone.
But the reason I bring this up

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is because sometimes it seems as
if we think that God's people

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are just as endangered as that
Hawaiian bird.

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That we are an endangered
species for whatever reason.

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Sometimes we think that
Christians and Christianity is

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on the brink of extinction, or
maybe on a personal level that

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we are the only ones left.
Now, first of all, let's

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highlight the lack of faith in
that line of thinking and maybe

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even the arrogance.
But of course, I don't want to

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discount how dark the world
around us is and how sometimes

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the devil likes to trick us into
thinking that he's won.

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And it reminds me of Elijah and
the way that he felt even at his

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great victory over the prophets
of Baal.

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It seems that the threats of
Queen Jezebel threw him into

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such a great deep despair that
he thought the same thing he

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says in First Kings 1910.
I have been very zealous for the

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Lord, the God of hosts, for the
sons of Israel have forsaken

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your covenant, torn down your
altars, and killed your prophets

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with a sword.
And I alone am left and they

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seek my life to take it away.
I alone and left to me it feels

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like he's saying, God, I've done
so much in your name and for

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your cause, but no one else
around me is faithful.

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I'm the only one left.
This is it.

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God, however, gently rebukes
Elijah in verse 18.

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He says, yet I will leave 7000
in Israel.

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All the knees that have not
bowed to Baal and every mouth

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that has not kissed him.
Not so alone after all, it seems

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and friend, do we need that
reminder from God today?

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Let's say for just a moment that
in a hypothetical world our

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fears of being the only one left
are realized.

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What's the worst case scenario?
I think we can find some wisdom

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in the last words that Moses
spoke to the Lord's people and

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they gave comfort to them, and I
think they can still ring true

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to us today.
Deuteronomy chapter 31, verse 6,

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Moses says be strong and
courageous.

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Do not be afraid or tremble at
them, for the Lord your God is

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the one who goes with you, and
he will not fail you or forsake

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you.
We serve that same God, and He

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still loves his people just as
much.

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But what does this mean for us
practically?

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Well, maybe we don't just blast
our swan song out into the ether

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like the Kauai 00 and just hope
that others hear it.

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Perhaps we are more purposeful
than that, more strategic.

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Maybe we're more attention
oriented to build up those

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relationships to bring others to
Christ.

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Maybe we don't let fear have a
place in the presence of our

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God.
Maybe we trust in God a little

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more and take a look around us
at all the good, faithful

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Christians that we are
surrounded by.

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And instead of discounting them,
we talk to them, we encourage

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them, we grow close to them.
Because, friends, while we need

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to take the work of the church
seriously, this arrogant

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attitude of fear and this
alarmist thinking when it comes

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to the God that we serve and the
church that Jesus died for, that

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kind of thinking, well, it's for
the birds.

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Well, those are my thoughts for
your Sunday morning drive.

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Now it's time to hear yours.
You can always leave responses

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to our discussion questions on
our website at for Your Sunday

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Morning dr.com.
Our discussion questions for

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this week are why do we so often
feel alone?

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Are we taking the call to build
up believers seriously?

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How close are you to your
brethren?

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If you're not as close as you
want to be, why is that?

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And are we thankful that God is
faithful?