Ep 92: Stranger Things

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What are some things we can work
on to turn the world upside

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down?
Let's talk about that.

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Welcome to the show.
I'm Daniel Dalp, and this is for

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your Sunday morning drive.
We're the short podcast with the

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goal of providing some
motivation, Dr. and

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encouragement on your way to
worship or whenever you listen

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and helping you recenter your
mind on those spiritual things

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when life gets hectic.
Today is episode 92.

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That means, if my math is
correct, which it may not be,

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that we're only 8 episodes away
from the big 100.

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Wow, that seems hard to believe.
But I'm thankful for those of

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you that have listened for so
long, or maybe you've just

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joined us this year.
I'm happy to have you along for

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the ride.
And if you don't mind, the best

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way to help us keep growing is
for you to take a moment and

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share the show with a friend.
Word of mouth is the best way

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that podcasts grow, and that's
the only reason I'm still here.

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So thanks in advance.
Let's go ahead and get today's

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episode on the road.
This is episode 92, Stranger

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Things.
Let's go to church.

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Are we there yet?
Recently the 10 year Netflix

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cultural phenomenon known as
Stranger Things came to a close

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and regardless of how you feel
about the series and it's in my

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opinion, lackluster final
season, it made a huge impact.

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So much so that fans have been
pouring over every detail of the

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finale looking for clues that
they hope will point to a secret

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episode being released.
I'm not going to get my hopes

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up, but who knows?
The creators like to keep us on

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our toes.
Culturally, it certainly shook

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things up.
Much like the adventures of the

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main characters, each season
seemed to turn the entertainment

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world upside down.
And if you aren't familiar with

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the show, here's a very brief
and oversimplified explanation.

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A small town in Indiana is
besieged by the work of a secret

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government lab that accidentally
causes an alternate dimension to

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begin to leak into our own, and
the characters soon name this

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alternate dimension the Upside
Down.

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Why?
Because it's a place that

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doesn't make sense to those in
the normal world, a place that

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upsets expectation, a realm full
of the weird and the out of

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place.
And as I was reflecting on the

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show coming to an end in the
last few weeks, the phrase

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upside down reminded me of Acts
chapter 17 in verses 5 through

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7, where Paul and Silas and
other Christians in Thessalonica

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were being persecuted.
The Bible says.

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But the Jews, who were not
persuaded, becoming envious,

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took some of the evil men from
the marketplace and gathering a

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mob, set all of the city in an
uproar and attacked the House of

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Jason and sought to bring them
out to the people.

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But when they did not find them,
they dragged Jason and some

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brethren to the rulers of the
city, crying out.

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These men who have turned the
world upside down have come here

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too, and Jason has harbored
them.

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And these are all acting
contrary to the decrees of

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Caesar, saying there is another
King Jesus.

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Do you see what the accusers
were so upset about that

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Christians were turning the
world upside down?

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Other translations use the
phrase upsetting the world.

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And just as Paul and Silas were
said to have turned the world

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upside down with the preaching
of Jesus, we should be doing the

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same.
And you might ask, why did their

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teaching upset the world?
Because it was contrary to the

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decrees of Caesar, the
government of that day.

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It was contrary to
understanding, and it was

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contrary to expectation.
Friends, we as Christians should

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be proud, guilty of defying
expectation and turning the

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world upside down, not in a
malicious or destructive way,

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but by living like Jesus and
spreading his story.

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You see, in the world we live
in, where people are Even so

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calloused as to look for ways to
justify the taking of a life

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rather than to mourn its loss,
maybe there are some things we

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should all turn upside down.
But how do we do that?

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Well, maybe we flip those
tendencies of the flesh into

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tenants of a Christ centered
life.

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We go from being self-centered
to caring for others, from

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holding a grudge to abundantly
offering forgiveness, from being

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critical to showing grace, from
telling others about the

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meaningless to spending our time
telling them about Jesus, from

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praising politicians to
proclaiming the King of kings,

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and from living for ourselves to
living for Christ.

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And don't get me wrong, I'm not
perfect in any of these areas

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and I can tell you it won't be
easy.

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But we are called to live like
and live for Christ and change

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is possible.
Groundbreaking, life changing,

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world flipping change is
possible and not only that, it's

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required and it's made possible
through Jesus.

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First Corinthians chapter 6 nine
through 11 says do you not know

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that the unrighteous will not
inherit the Kingdom of God?

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Do not be deceived.
Neither fornicators nor

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idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor

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thieves, nor the covetous, nor
drunkards or revilers or

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extortioners will inherit the
Kingdom of God.

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And here's the good news.
And such were some of you, But

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you were washed.
You were sanctified.

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You were justified in the name
of the Lord Jesus and by the

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Spirit of our God.
Change happen in a world that is

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so, so, so far from God.
Know that you can upset the

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world for Him.
Turn it upside down in much the

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same way.
And if we think it's impossible,

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understand that it's been done
before.

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You see, it's kind of a running
theme with our God.

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The Creator, it seems, likes to
keep us on our toes, likes to

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break expectations and from
creation to the cross and

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everything in between, It should
come as no surprise that with

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God all things are possible,
even turning the world upside

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down for Him.
And perhaps the more we work at

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turning the world upside down,
the more it will begin to look

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right side up after all,
stranger things have happened.

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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.
Our discussion question for this

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week are what are some things
that we currently practice or

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subscribe to that we need to
completely turn upside down?

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How can we turn the world upside
down for Christ?

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And do we really want to or are
we really satisfied with how

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things are?
Hey, I hope you have a great day

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of worship.
I hope you have a great week.

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Thank you so much for listening
and I'll see you Sunday.