We're turning back to 1 Peter chapter 1. 1 Peter chapter 1, continuing with our study in these verses. 1 Peter chapter 1, and we'll read from the third verse, just reading down to the end of verse 7. 1 Peter chapter 1, verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. The trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though betried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. amen we'll finish at that seventh verse we trust the lord will bless his word to our hearts it's the words of the sixth verse that i want to come to this morning wherein you greatly rejoice though now for a season if need be you are in heaviness through manifold temptations we'll come back to these verses next lord's day verse 17 or verse 7 on the same theme the theme of understanding trials understanding trials but we'll consider verse six uh this morning and then verse seven god willing next time so let's unite our hearts together in a word of prayer our heavenly father we thank thee for thy presence already here lord we're glad that we're in thy house on thy day and now around thy word and lord we pray that i will speak to our hearts still us in thy presence Think of the psalmist saying, Be still, know that I am God. We ask, Lord, today that that may be our experience. That thou wilt come and still our hearts. That we'll come, Lord, and open our hearts to thy word. Give us understanding. Speak to us today. Speak for thy servants here. We ask, Lord, thou wilt bless thy word to all of our hearts. and thou wilt teach us. Lord, thou wilt bless us, and thou wilt strengthen us in our walk with thee. So put thy hand upon us. Bless both preacher and hearer alike. Fill me, Lord, with thy spirit. And bless as we consider thy word, now we pray. We ask in Jesus' precious name. Amen. When the apostle Peter preached in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, He quoted extensively from one of David's most impressive and instructive Psalms, Psalm 16. In the central part of his message that day, Peter dealt with the person and the work of Jesus Christ. He spoke of Christ being the Savior appointed and approved by God. He spoke of the sacrificial death at the hands of wicked and cruel men. He spoke also of Christ's glorious resurrection and his ascension back to heaven. And in the midst of that sermon, he also spoke of the fact that Christ was now exalted and seated at the right hand of God. What Peter was doing that day was very simple. He was pressing home both the value and the victory of Christ's death. He was emphasizing that Christ had not been defeated or destroyed, that Christ had not been overcome overwhelmed by events. That he had not field or fallen short of his eternal purpose. But rather Peter was emphasizing that the Lord Jesus Christ had been triumphant over death, over hell, over the grave, and over sin. And therefore he was the only true Savior of men. And it was in order to underscore that truth that Peter quoted the words of David in Psalm 16. He said, and I'm quoting from Acts 2 verse 26, part of Peter's message. He said, for David speaketh concerning him concerning Christ. I foresaw the Lord always before my face. For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved. Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad. Moreover, also my flesh shall rest in hope. Now what did David mean by all of that? He simply meant that he had looked on to the risen Christ by faith, and as a result of God's salvation, he had a living hope, a sure inheritance, and that his heart was filled with joy and gladness. Now those are very important words, both in Psalm 16 and in Acts chapter 2. Important because they reveal the true message of the gospel, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They are important words because they reveal the necessity of saving faith. David looked to Christ by faith and was saved. They're important because they reveal that salvation is both eternal and unchangeable. Christ was at God's right hand and therefore his saving grace was sure. The words are also important because they reveal the vital connection there is between the experience of true salvation, the faith, the hope, the life that comes to a believer through Christ, the connection between true salvation and real joy. Why do I mention all of that? For this reason, when Peter wrote to the saints who were scattered throughout Asia Minor, he drew their attention to the very same set of truths. Look closely there at 1 Peter 1, verses 3 through to 5. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you. who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. Then verse six, wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season it may be, ye are heaviness through manifold temptation. Verses three through five, he deals with the wonder of salvation. And the wherein of verse six, deals with the fact that they enjoyed that salvation, the new birth, the promised inheritance, the eternal security. And they states, or Peter states, that the people of God, in the light of those things, greatly rejoiced. They rejoiced in those things. In other words, they rejoiced in their salvation. The interesting thing is that the word Peter used in Acts 2 When he quoted from Psalm sixteen, the word glad is the exact same word that Peter uses in first Peter chapter one. Only this time it's translated rejoice. But the thought is the same. The truths of salvation, the experience of salvation through the risen Christ is something that fills the Christian with gladness and joy. Now that fact ought not to surprise us. For as you read through both the Old and the New Testament, you will discover that salvation and joy are inseparably linked together. Take, for example, the threefold parable Christ told in Luke chapter 15, the story of the lost coin, the story of the lost sheep and the lost son. And one thought links all those parts together. When they were found, there was great rejoicing. And the point that Christ was making was that there is great rejoicing when a sinner is converted. Their salvation is a joyful thing. Remember the words of Psalm 144, verse 15, happy is that people that is in such a case. Yea, happy is that people whose God is the Lord. Or take the words of Christ in Matthew 9, verse 2, be of good cheer. Thy sins be forgiven thee. Or the words of Isaiah chapter 12 verses 2 and 3, Behold God is my salvation. Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. Now note the truth in all of those verses. True salvation Salvation through the person and the work of Jesus Christ. Salvation that involves a new birth, a living hope, a sure inheritance, eternal security. That salvation leads to the greatest joy. Now just stop and think about that for a moment. There are times when we reduce the doctrine of salvation to a series of carefully worded statements. We know the theology. We can repeat the doctrine. We can quote the confessions and the creeds. And it's good that we know those things. Would to God people would have a greater understanding of the doctrines of God's Word. There would be less confusion. less despair, less drifting here and there, less being blown about by every new fangled idea that appears on the world stage. We need to know the Word of God, we need to know the Gospel, we need to know it doctrinally. But alongside of that, let us never lose the joy of our salvation, of all the people in the world. The child of God has the greatest reason to rejoice, and as we know the doctrine of salvation, that will inspire the joy, that will strengthen the joy in our hearts. But let's rejoice. Let's rejoice in what we have in Christ. That's what Peter focuses in on in verse 6 of that chapter, wherein, or in this, she greatly rejoiced. That word does not refer to a mild happiness. It's a very strong word. It has the idea of something that's lively. It's translated differently throughout the New Testament. For example, in Matthew 5 and 12, it's translated by the phrase, exceeding glad. Luke one forty-seven. It's used to describe Mary whose spirit rejoiced in God her savior. It's used again in Luke ten and verse twenty-one where it's recorded that Christ rejoiced in spirit. There's an intensity of joy here. A real gladness, a lively rejoicing, a fullness of joy. I mentioned this on Wednesday night in our prayer meeting. But some commentators speak of the word joy or greatly rejoicing referring to jumping for joy. When you think of Peter. that man who was always fiery and excitable, the man who was the fervent disciple, the man who was jumping in with both feet at times, here he is and he's jumping now for joy. He's speaking of that delight, that excitement, that rejoicing in what he has in the Lord Jesus Christ. And believer, that's the privilege every one of us have. There is a joy in knowing that our sins are forgiven. There's a joy in knowing that Christ is our eternal savior and our effective mediator. There is a joy in knowing that we have been chosen in Christ and justified by Christ. There's a joy in knowing that we have been adopted and accepted in the beloved. There's a joy in knowing that it's well with our souls, not just for time, but for eternity. There's a joy in knowing that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. And the more we know of those things, the greater our joy will be. We have joy unspeakable and full of glory. There's a gladness in being a child of God. In this, we greatly rejoice. But there's another side to this. Another side to the Christian's experience. On one hand, there's joy. through Christ. But on the other hand, there is heaviness through the great trials that we face. Look at verse six carefully. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. Those words introduce us to the subject of suffering. Trouble, tribulation, distress, and trial in the Christian life. That's what makes the Christian life seem such a paradox. We have joy and trial at the very same time. Now, there's one theme that troubles the Christian, one theme that causes the child of God to wonder and question And at times be dismayed, it is the subject of trial. And so this morning, I want us to look at this subject. We'll come back to it next, Lord's Day, because verses six and seven are very closely connected. I have no desire to complicate what Peter is saying here. I just simply want to set forth some basic, simple truths to help us understand trials. Notice here that the people of God often experience intense personal trial in life. When Peter spoke these words, spoke of people being in heaviness because of manifold temptations or manifold trials, he was not referring to the chaotic or troubled lives of the ungodly. Rather, he's speaking of the people of God. He's referring to those who had been born again, who were looking forward to their inheritance, to those who had this promise of eternal security. He was speaking of believers. And what he was referring to was very simply that believers will face trials and troubles in this world. They will suffer. They will be tested. They will not always have it easy. They will face temptations. They will face hardness. There'll be times when they will be brought into great heaviness. Between their justification and their glorification, they will encounter times of tribulation. Of course, that is at odds with the charismatic message of this age. During the 1990s especially, there was a great advance in what became known as the prosperity gospel. The prosperity gospel suggests that when a person is saved, God will favor them with material prosperity. If their faith is strong enough, if their lives are holy enough, then God is going to bless them financially. There'll be a radical transformation in their health, in their wealth, and in their family situation. The idea, I suppose, really, if you take it to its extreme, is that the Christian will have a relatively trouble-free life on earth. That's not the teaching of the Word of God. It's not the message of the Gospel. And it's certainly not the experience of the saints of God. The very best of God's people have very often found themselves in the deepest possible trial. That's not unusual. It's not a strange thing. It's not something unique. It's not something unprecedented. A life of faith in Jesus Christ will be a life that includes trial. Let me note some things here. The trials the Christian faces and the Christian experiences are sent from God. Everywhere in scripture, everywhere in scripture, God is presented as a sovereign and ruling God. He is the great creator of this world. He is the one who rules and reigns in the kingdoms of men. He is the God of heaven and of earth. He is the judge of all things. He is omnipotent, all-powerful. He is omnipresent, everywhere present, and he is omniscient, all-knowing. In a word, God is in perfect control of all things and at all times. He orders everything according to the counsel of his own perfect will. He is a sovereign God. And that sovereignty extends to the trials of his people. When Peter speaks of manifold temptations, and the word temptations is simply the word trials, he is speaking of things that are ordained and ordered by God. God does not tempt his people as Satan does. Satan tempts us to sin. He acts against God. He tempts us to defy God's word and to live in disobedience to the gospel. God doesn't send temptations like that, but he does send trials. He does send trials. The psalmist said in Psalm 11 and verse 5, the Lord trieth the righteous. And Job understood that when he said in Job 23 in verse 10, when he hath tried me, when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as pure gold. Now you think of the circumstances of that statement made by Job. Job had lost almost everything. by wind, by war, and by fire. His earthly possessions had been stripped away. His children had been crushed to death when one of their homes collapsed upon them. His servants had been killed as they looked after his stock. His animals had been either stolen or burned by fire. And then his health broke down, and his body was covered with boils and blisters. From a purely human point of view, Job suffered one calamity after another. It looked as if things for poor Job were out of control. It had been a devastating few hours, a devastating period in his life, and things just seemed to be against him. But Job did not look at it that way. beyond all that had taken place in his life, he could see the sovereignty of God. And he recognized the hand of God in all that had happened. That's why Job could say, the Lord gave. And the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord. Here is Job, and he looks beyond the earthly scene. He looks beyond the earthly and he acknowledges the hand of God. God has given me these things. God has taken them from me. That's important. Psalm seventeen verse three, David said of the Lord, thou hast tried me. It is the Lord who sent the trial. I've thought of the You look through the path of Joseph's life, hated by his brothers, sold as a slave into Egypt, lied against by part of his wife, thrown into prison on a false charge, forgotten by the butler. It's one trial after another, one apparent setback after another, one disappointment after another, one trial after another for for Joseph. And it lasted for years. It lasted for years. But how did Joseph interpret those things? How did he view them? When he said to his brothers when they were eventually reunited, he said to them in Genesis 50 verse 20, as for you, ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good. He linked his trials to the hand of God. And believer, let us do the same. We face trials that we cannot understand. There are mysteries. Mysteries to us, but not to God. We face mysteries. We can't see the end from the beginning. There are times when we don't know why or how or when they're going to end. We can't reason the trials we face out in our minds. We are sometimes at a loss as to how to understand them, how to explain them. We can't understand how we ever came into such a situation. But let us never forget the overruling providences of God. In the ultimate and final analysis, Our trials are from him. We're told to cast our burdens upon the Lord, Psalm 55. The word burden means gift. Gift from God. The trials that we face, sometimes we don't view it that way. But God is in control of them all. And that truth should make a difference. Because God is love. God delights in his people. He cares for us with an everlasting care. His thoughts toward us are always thoughts of peace and grace and mercy. That means our trials are from a God who has our best interests at heart. We may not see it that way at the time. We may not be able to explain it, but God knows what he is doing. and our God does all things well. Manifold trials. But those trials are from God. Let me say to you that the trials we experience are many and varied. They are many and varied. God doesn't try every Christian the exact same way. Verse six speaks of manifold temptations. Those words in fair, a number of trials, many trials. But they also speak not only of the great number, the great quantity, but also of the great variety of trials that come to a Christian. The word manifold there is used to describe the spotted skin of a leopard, or the different colors in a piece of marble, or the various threads that are used in embroidery. different things, different things coming together. And God sends trials to his people in different ways. Sometimes he sends sickness. Sometimes he sends affliction. Sometimes he sends disappointment. Sometimes he deals with us secretly. within the thoughts and secret chambers of our hearts. Sometimes his trials involve persecution or pain or poverty. Sometimes the Lord tries us by giving us blessings. Sometimes he tries us by withholding those blessings. God's not limited. Our God is not confined. to working the same way with every Christian at all times. He takes Joseph down to Egypt. He takes Job down into the depths of bereavement and bodily affliction. He takes David into the palace where Saul tries to take his life. He takes Daniel down into Babylon. He takes the three Hebrew children into the fiery furnace. He takes John to an island in exile. He takes Mary and Martha and their family down into the valley of sickness and death. He gives Paul a thorn in the flesh that he refuses to remove. God has many ways. Believer, God has many ways to try his people. And he will use one way with one person. He will use another way with another person. Some of those trials are private. Some of those trials are public. It got me thinking, why does God use one method with some and not another? Why do some believers endure very hard times and others don't? I can't explain that except to say that just as a loving father will deal with his children individually and will deal with them and do with them what is best for each of them as he knows them, so God deals with his children individually and he does what is best for them also. And remember this, he will never try them, never try his children above or beyond what they're able to endure. Paul speaks of that in 1 Corinthians 10, 13. He says, there is no, there hath no temptation taken you, but such as is common to man, but God is faithful. He will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape that you may be able to bear it." What does that mean? Very simply, it means that God knows what trial to give to each of His children. He knows. He knows exactly what we can bear. He knows exactly what to do with us. And as he is perfect in his knowledge and his power and his grace and his mercy, he does all things well. Trials come in many various ways. But you notice from verse 6 also that the trials we experience are for a limited time. They will not last forever. Peter says in verse six, wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. Though now for a season. That word season is translated elsewhere with the word few, or by the word small or little. It has the idea of something that's puny, something that's tiny. In other words, our trials will not last forever. They are for a limited period. They aren't only for a season. Now that can mean one of two things. It can mean that our trials are short on earth. They're just for a short time of our lives here. They come and they go quickly. They are not prolonged trials, something for a few days, something for a few weeks, something perhaps for a few months. but they're short. It's just for a season of our Christian experience. Or it can relate to the fact that trials can only affect the Christian throughout the short span of life. It's interesting the word season in 1 Peter 1 and 6 is the same word used by James in James 4 and 14, where James speaks of life as a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. So if we take it that way, that trials only last for a season, either for a short time of our Christian life here on earth, or they last for the short span of life itself. Either way, they're only for a season. Our trials cannot last longer than our life here on earth. They are limited to time. and they cannot extend into eternity. That has to be of immense comfort to those who are facing ongoing trials now. Is it not true, and you know circumstances like this just as well as I do, there are some who endure trials for years. some of God's people who endure sickness for a long time. It seems that they endure hardness and hardness and hardness that's taking them to the grief. but let those in that position remember that their trials are but for a season, that time will come, Christian, if that's the circumstances you're in, or you know some other believer who is in a circumstance like that, where it seems they've had long years of trouble, that time will come when that trial, that hardship, that sorrow, that suffering will be over. It will pass. Our trials are just for a limited period. Whether that means short time in our lifetime, short part of our lives, or from now to the day we die, the trial is still just for a season. It will come to pass. How often do you read that little phrase in scripture, and it came to pass? And it came to pass. You can write over every trial. And it came to pass. It came to pass. Let me say, too, from verse 6 that the trials we experience often result in great distress. 1 Peter 1 and 6 not only speaks of the certainty and the variety and the brevity of our trials, it also speaks of despondency. Ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. sorrow, grief, distress. When that word heaviness is used in this context, it's making the point that trials can and often do lead to the greatest distress or despondency in a child of God. A Christian can be in real anguish real anguish because of the trials that they face. Now that's a truth that some believers really struggle with. They face trial, they face sickness, they face bereavement, they face hardship, and they feel it. They feel the pain of those circumstances in life, and they get down under it, and they feel the weight of the problem, and they're distressed by their circumstances, and there's a heaviness in their heart and in their soul, and they begin to think that they shouldn't feel that way. Let me say this. This is a common result of trials. By their very nature, trials are painful. They are hard. They're difficult to bear. And they could leave a child of God being in the depths. Look at Job. Job was a godly man. He had spiritual characteristics that were very obvious. A man who feared God. A man who eschewed evil. A man who lived uprightly. A man of prayer. A man who had a great spiritual concern for his family. But when Job was tried, He came into the depths of sorrow. You read his statements in Job 8, or Job 3, and the chapter opens with the comments that Job cursed his day. He never cursed his God, but he cursed the day he was born. And then he went on to say in Job 3, Let the day perish where I was born. Let that day be darkness. Let not God regard it from above. Why died I not from the womb? For now I should have lain still and been quiet. I should have slept. Then had I been at rest, for the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was of is come unto me. What was happening to Job? He was in distress. The thing that I feared come upon me.' And he was in the depths of despair. The trial that man was experiencing filled him with despondency. He was almost overwhelmed by it. He was a man who was broken. He could only sit and weep and mutter and scrape his body. There was nothing Job could do but sigh from the depths of his soul and cry out onto God. The trial that man was facing, and it was a prolonged trial. That trial filled him with despondency. And who hasn't been there in some degree or another? It's Christian. hasn't reacted that way to trial. Have we not longed for the trial to go away? Have we not prayed for a different path? Have we not cried unto God, why me? Why this? Why now? Have we not felt like running away? Have we not fallen into the state where we barely want to rise from bed and go to work? or do anything useful. Our hearts are in the depths of real despair. But notice verse six carefully. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be ye are in heaviness. The need be there relates to the heaviness. Sometimes we have to be in that place. Sometimes. And believer, it's not unusual. It's not unusual. And the thing to keep in mind is that just because we face trials, just because we face troubles in life, doesn't mean that Satan suddenly backs off and shows some measure of sympathy towards us. He doesn't. He doesn't. And he will come against a Christian. and he will suggest to you that God has forsaken you. He will come along and he will suggest what kind of Christian are you that you feel this way? What kind of believer, what kind of faith do you have? That when trial comes you feel heavy and you feel sorrowful and you feel in despair. That's often what the devil does. That's often been the lot of God's people. Trials, bring us into heaviness. Notice also that the trials we experience are not able to rob us of our joy in Christ. Look at verse six again. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. Though now. The rejoicing and the heaviness of verse six are at the same time. They're at the same time. You see, this joy in Christ that Peter is speaking of when he says we're in you greatly rejoice, he's speaking of the truth that I had mentioned from verse three through to verse five. In this you greatly rejoice in what you have in Christ. So our joy, our rejoicing is in Christ. It's not in our circumstances. It's not in our health, it's not in our position in society, it's not in our prosperity, it's in Christ. And the joy that we have in Christ is a strong joy that comes to us because of Christ and through Christ and in Christ. And therefore, though the storms of life come, and though the trials of life beat against us, Although we find ourselves in despair, that joy that is ours because of Christ, that joy remains. Because that joy is not something that we have outside of us by way of our circumstances on earth. It's something that we have because of Christ, that joy remains. It's like when the storm comes on the ocean, whips up the waves. crashes the waves against the rocks. But you go down into the depths of the ocean, and there's calmness there. It's not troubled by the storm that's raging up on the surface. There's a calmness. There's a deep calmness. So it is with the Christian. Yeah, there's times we'll weep. There's times our hearts will be heavy. There's times we'll wonder what's taking place, there's times we'll sigh and groan within ourselves, and yet, with all of that, with all of that, when we sit down and start to ponder it, sit down and start to think about it, start to think back on what Peter is saying in verses three through to five, there's still that joy in Christ. Though now for a season we're in heaviness, Though now we're going through trials, the joy is still there because the joy does not depend upon us. The joy comes from Christ. And when everything else is stripped away, we realize that our feet are planted on the solid rock. Then there's joy. Joy that's real. joy that's true, joy that's genuine, joy that's full, when we realize what we have in Christ. You see, that's the difference between the saved and the unsaved. When difficulties come to the unsaved, what do they have? There's no solid foundation there, but there is for a child of God. Notice just briefly, and we'll come to this again next Lord's Day, the trials we experience are for a reason. They are for a reason. Look at verse 6 again. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be. Ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations, if need be. You have the brevity, the variety, the despondency of trials. That little phrase, if need be, outlines the necessity of trials. There's a purpose. There's a purpose in God bringing his people into trial. And it's found in verse 7, that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. We are tried that our faith might be proved. That's a vital thought. It's a vital truth. There's a purpose. There's a purpose in the trials that we face as God's people. And it's to do with the proving and the strengthening of our faith in Christ. Now, if we can get a hold of that truth, and we'll come back to it, as I said, next Lord's Day, if we can get a hold of that truth, here's the reason why we are trying. And I trust we'll view our trials on a completely different light. God is at work for his glory and for our good. And therefore, though we are in heaviness, though the trials we face are hard, we can still greatly rejoice. And remember, Peter writes this to believers who are persecuted, yet they're still able to rejoice because their God This is true of us. Our God is in control. And whatsoever He does, He does well. Though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations, yet we can greatly rejoice. May the Lord bless his word to our hearts. May he write these things upon our souls even today for his own name's sake. Let's unite our hearts together in a word of prayer. Our heavenly father, we thank thee for thy mercies to us today. We thank thee for thy word. Lord, I pray thou will bless it to our souls and help us, Lord, to learn much from these things for thy glory and for our good. We thank thee today we serve a sovereign God. And our father, we pray that we might trust Thee in every circumstance of life. We might have that strong confidence in Thy ways and Thy will for us. And though it is hard, help us to remember that God moves in mysterious ways, Thy wonders to perform. We ask, our God, that we might trust Thee in every pathway, We might rest upon thee in every time of trouble, that we might rejoice in thy never failing mercy to us. Bless thy people here. Bless those who are in the midst of trial. We ask, Lord, thou will give strength and grace. We pray for any who are not saved in this meeting, that thou would have mercy upon them, that they might come to know Christ as their Savior too. So Lord, bless us today, put thy hand upon us, write thy word upon our hearts, and do us good, we ask in Jesus' precious name. Amen.