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[ Silence ] [Music] [Music] [Music]

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I love the Lord, the end of my life, and give Him thanks for all. ♪ Long as I live ♪ ♪ And God Almighty ♪

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♪ Awaits me to prove ♪ ♪ Is gone ♪ ♪ I love the Lord ♪ ♪ He heard my cry ♪

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♪ And did His hair ♪ ♪ As long as I live ♪ ♪ And trouble rise ♪ ♪ I'll haste unto ♪

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♪ Oh ♪ ♪ He's strong ♪ ♪ I love the Lord ♪ ♪ He bows his ear ♪

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♪ Listen for your ear ♪ chase my grief away. Oh let my heart no more despair. While I I have breath to pray. I love the Lord.

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He heard my cry. ♪ Oh, and he pitted, pitted every, every grove ♪ ♪ Long, long, long as I live ♪ ♪ And so come on, come on ♪

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♪ Oh, I'll haste ♪ ♪ I'll run on ♪ ♪ I'll go to my gosh law ♪ ♪ Amazing, amazing grace ♪

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♪ How sweet the sound ♪ ♪ It saved, it saved a wretch ♪ ♪ That I meet ♪ ♪ You know, I once was lost ♪

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♪ I was wandering in the wilderness ♪ ♪ But now I'm found ♪ ♪ And I'm glad about it ♪ ♪ I was blind ♪

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♪ But God, thank God ♪ ♪ Thank God ♪ ♪ He abled me to see ♪ ♪ Yes, he did ♪

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♪ I love, I love the Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Because he heard my cry ♪ ♪ When I called him ♪

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♪ Church, he did it ♪ ♪ Every year ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ And Lord, Lord ♪

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I don't care what happened. [MUSIC] I'm going to run home. I'm going to run home.

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I'm going to haste. I'm going to haste to my God's throne. I'll haste to my God's throne. [MUSIC]

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♪ I'll hasten ♪ ♪ I'll hasten ♪ ♪ I'll hasten ♪ ♪ To his throne ♪

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[Chorus of angels] [Chorus of angels] This is the closing words of the Sermon on the Mount. is recorded in Matthew, the seventh chapter, in the 24th verse, through the 29th.

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Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice, was like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house. Yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock.

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But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams arose, and the wind blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash. When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowd were amazed at his teaching, because

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he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teacher of the law. The subject, "Facing the Rainbow Through the Rain." "Facing the Rainbow Through the Rain." You'll notice in this passage the word "the rain came."

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"The rain came." And we challenge every day of our lives to chase rainbows through the rain. When we were children, and we had occasion to be out playing, and a few raindrops would fall, we would often say, "Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day."

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There is something about rain that makes it welcome at certain times by certain people, and it's unwelcome at other times. But rain is a part of the economy of nature. Sunshine and rain.

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Sunshine and rain. The Arabs have a proverb, All sunshine and no rain makes the desert. Your umbrella is upside down.

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Looking for a package of... "Wonder, don't run on a tree, you'll be pennies from heaven for you and me." This story that Jesus tells about two houses and the concluding words of what we traditionally refer to as the Sermon on the Mount involves a wise builder and a foolish builder.

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Each one had possibly what was considered good material, but they had different foundations. and rain fell upon both houses. So make no mistake about it, it's gonna rain.

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It may not be exactly when we predicted and we may not have the number of inches that we look forward to having in a certain period of time. For when it's all said and done, it's gonna rain.

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In fact, God speaks to Noah in the book of Genesis, telling him, "Noah, it's gonna rain." Fill yourself an ark in which you'll have refuge, you'll have shelter. It's gonna rain. So, the word comes to not only Noah's generation, but the word comes to every generation under

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the sun. It's going to rain. So prepare for rain. I say to those who are young, prepare because it's going to rain.

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Advertisements to be here day by day tell us to prepare Get a good education Do not drop out of school Because it's gonna rain

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For those who are entering the marriage bond To have the right Understanding of what is expected in which you to do what's required

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Because it's gonna rain Those who are senior citizens, who are a little further along in years, the message to you today is it's going to rain. Doesn't matter what house you live in, whether it's the house that's built on the rock, or whether it is the house built on sand. saying the truth of the matter is it rains on both houses it's going to rain

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so this Noah is told they laughed at Noah when he's out sun shining not a single drop of rain no why are you building this out well the Lord said It's gonna rain It's gonna rain and to pair a

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Building make yourself an art and every one of us needs to have an art Place of safety I used to hear the Old folks say I didn't understand what they were talking about it at the time when I was a boy

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But that's so and so doesn't have sense enough to come in out of the rain Because it's gonna rain It's gonna rain And what kind of experiences constitute the rain what kind of will

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Disappointment If we live in this world, there's gonna be some disappointment. It's gonna rain reign of disappointment, things that you expected to happen in certain ways, at certain times, and the like. And many times, these disappointments can be crushing, crashing experiences.

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Rain. The rain descended upon the house that the foolish man built, and the rain descended upon the house that the wise men built. Foolish or wise, it's going to rain. There is a rain of disappointment, discouragement,

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and we have to learn how to deal with the rain. When I was a boy, they often would take a tub and catch the rainwater, something else, because they thought that it could be used in advantageous ways, and it was a precious possession. But it's gonna rain! It's gonna rain.

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Persecution will come, disappointment will come, but make no mistake about it, it's gonna rain. No one's out there working. There are those around who don't believe it's gonna rain. They don't believe it. And that, that often happens. One story I always like to tell about preaching in the relationship, Kierkegaard tells a story about a man who did not have the

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patience, or who did have the patience, and he was telling the people to get out of the theater because it was on fire. "Come at once, get out." And they laughed.

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They said, "He's such a wonderful actor." And so, again, he came on the stage and told them that the building was going to fall in. It was on fire. Get out quickly.

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And they said, "Isn't he wonderful? He does it in such a magnificent way as an actor." And he goes back and comes from behind the curtain again and pleads with them, this time with tears running down his eyes. "Get out! Get out! Get out! Your life is in danger." and they laughed and applauded him all the more. And Kierkegaard gives that as an example

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of the preacher and an audience. Many people don't believe the word, but it's going to rain. It's going to rain. So what do we do when we know it's going to rain? Well, we try to, If we have a raincoat, we use to take it with us, an umbrella, old-wish shoes used to be when I was a boy.

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All of those things were to help us be prepared for the rain. So the day is cold and dark and dreary. It rains and the wind is never weary. The vine still clings to the moldering wall,

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but at each gust the dead leaves fall. And the day is dark and dreary. My life is cold and dark and dreary. It rains and the wind is never weary.

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My thoughts still cling to the moldering past, but the hopes of youth fall sick in the blast, and the days are dark and dreary. Be still, sad heart, and cease repining

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Behind the clouds is the sun still shining. Thy fate is the common fate of all. Into each life some rain must fall. So to be prepared for the rain,

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take all of the necessary steps that enable us to survive in the rain. Some rains are fast, blowing wind, and others are rather slow. And you can have a leak in your roof and some of the fast blowing rains will miss it. But one, then there comes the days when the rain just keeps coming slowly and they find all those places

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and you find it and you see signs of it in your ceiling. So what, what, what happened? What happens to the person who hears the word, "It's gonna rain"? I can I can tell you what Noah did. He went about building an ark. He used not just shoddy material, no, no, but he used the best material. orders from God. Prepare yourself, Noah, because it's going to rain, and the rain is going

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to fall, and you need to be ready." So he made an ark of gold for the world. That's Noah in the Old Testament. In the New Testament, we have another, the Son of God, who comes And he closes his sermon from the mountain, and he says to them, "Whoever hears these words of mine is like a man who built his house upon a rock, and the rain came, rain came, and beat upon that house. Wind blew, floods surged against it, but it stood.

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Steadfast and firm, that house stood. But he who hears these words of mine and doeth them not is like a foolish man who built his house upon the shifting sand. The same rain came. In other words, the rain fell on both houses.

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And the rain comes from above. Both houses. It falls on the just and the unjust. The wonderful thing about it is God sends the rain. You know, if you were a farmer and you're depending upon rain, some people control that

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you wouldn't get any. But God controls it. And it comes down from above. fearful saints fresh courage take. The clouds you so much dread are big with mercy and shall

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break with blessings for your hate." God sends the rain. So since God sends the rain, it's a wonderful thing to listen to God and let him give directions as to how we are to behave in preparation for the rain that he sends. God blesses us with rain.

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And not only does he send rain as far as means of providing moisture for plants, but he sends the rain for renewal, refreshment, recreation. He sends the rain. And since he sends it, let's thank him for it, and let's make our lives ordered by his

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direction when the rain comes to survive. So the rains came, the rains came, the rains came. No matter what we do, no matter how good we are, there's going to be some rains, some rains of disappointment and discouragement that will come.

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And no matter how good we are, there will come the reign of persecution. Persecution. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward. When people talk about you, say all manner of evil against your soul, rejoice.

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In other words, that takes special preparation. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad for into each life Each life some rain

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must show up Sometimes we want to say why is it happening to me? Well, it's happening to you because you are in this world

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and in this world The rain's gonna fall. I heard one person who was facing difficulty and his response was, "We'll let the rain fall on his head."

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Well, that's the attitude many people may have toward other people in regard to rain. But God equips us for the rain.

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I have an umbrella in the back of my car just in case, just in case it rains. Because over and over again we see evidence of the fact that it's gonna rain. Prepare for it. Do everything you can. Listen to the orders that come to us from headquarters. It's gonna rain. It's gonna rain.

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"Chill out!" when the rain comes, because it's according to God's plan. Newscasters don't always know. They were somewhat ambiguous about what was going to happen today, whether it's going to rain or whether it's not going to rain. But the truth of the matter is, while the date may be uncertain as far as our calendars are concerned,

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But the reality, the reality is sure to come, it's gonna rain. It's gonna rain. It's gonna rain. Prepare for it. It's gonna rain. Parents tell their children, "Do the best you can, prepare all along the way, because it's gonna rain." It's gonna rain. I've seen the lightning flashing.

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I've heard the thunder roll. I've felt sin breakers dashing, trying to conquer my soul. Because I know, I know, I know for these more than 80 years, I know for sure that if you live, it's going to rain.

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It may not have come to you yet, but your address will come up. It'll come up after a while. It'll come up because it's gonna rain. It's gonna rain. The wonderful thing is when you're a child of God, when you follow His orders, that you can float. You can float on the water, the flood water. You can float.

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No, no, build it up. But what do we want to do with it, Lord? I don't see any sound of rain. Well, build it up, Lord, because the rain's gonna come, and those rains will produce floods. But if you have an ark built according to my directions, you'll be able to float. You'll be able to float on the water. And that's good news. Good news.

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won't drown you'll be able to float no matter how hard the rains may be you'll be able to make it so good news is God prepares a way for his children he was faithful to his word because it's sure to rain sure to be rain so get ready get ready for the rain. Sometimes you may walk in the rain, you may ride in the rain, but

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whatever method it is, you'll be prepared for the rain. And the way to get prepared, as the older people used to say, is when the blood is running warm in the veins. This is the time when you can prepare and you can be striven in the midst of the serene. In other words, this man who built his house on the rock, when the rains came, when the

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rain descending when the wind the fierce winds beat against the house when all of this happened and the floods were pushing against him I can just imagine that he's in his living room so to speak he's calm and secure because he has prepared for the rain. He's prepared for the rain, I tell you. Oh, I hear the sound beating against the

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pain. I see large balls of hail falling all around, but I'm secure because I am prepared. Yes, I am prepared for the rain. So I say to you, all of us need to prepare for the rain. Doesn't matter about loud the winds may blow. Doesn't matter about how fast the waters may beat against the wind of pain. If you're prepared you can sleep, you can sleep

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even in the storm. Sleep in the storm. So my brothers and sisters we come now to the invitation to take Jesus Christ as Lord of your life, to be with us in sunshine and rain, to be with us all through life. You come now, fast, you'll hook up with him as your eternal companion.

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He will go with us all the way through the valleys, over the hills, with the level places, the way, sunshine or rain, we invite you to come by letter, by Christian experience. But there is a hymn, I think it's hymn number 268. I want all of us to turn to that hymn because it has a message for us. Because every one of us is called upon

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to chase rainbows. Maybe you haven't reached the objective you had set years ago, but you're still chasing rainbows. And this song is born out of an experience of a man, George Matheson, who was preparing for the ministry in school And in the midst of it, he went to the doctor and he heard these words, "You'd better prepare

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to see everything you want to see as soon as you can because the darkness will soon settle and you will be blind for the rest of your life." So what did he do? He went to his fiancée, the girl that he was expecting to marry shortly,

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and suggested to her that they would break off the engagement, hoping that she would say no. But to his surprise, she agreed. He said, "Yes." It broke his heart.

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And he went into hiding just to be alone, he wanted to be. And he came out of that experience with a song, and this is the song, "Oh love, Oh love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in you." He's so quick to say I'm worn out with this and that, but I rest, he takes rest in him.

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I give thee back the life I owe, that in thine ocean depths my life may richer, fuller be. Would you sing that? That first stanza, would you sing it? First and second stanzas?

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At first stanza, would you sing it? First and second stanza. [Music] Door of the church is open. [Music]

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I lift my voice. Door of the church is open. You may come. [Music] I give thee back the life I owe,

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that in thy motion this might grow, with each death to the grave. [Music] [Music]

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[Music] [Music] ♪ My heart is yours in full array ♪ ♪ And in my heart's magical space ♪

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♪ May my love never fail to be ♪ ♪ Oh joy that seekest me through pain ♪ ♪ I cannot close my heart to thee ♪ ♪ I trace the rainbow through the rain ♪

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And feel the promise is not vain, that morn shall be the day. All of us at last dancing. [MUSIC - "THE LAST DANCE"]

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(SINGING) Oh, come all ye faithful, come ye. ♪ I am the one who lives ♪ ♪ I am the one who lives ♪ ♪ And from the ground that was to live ♪

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♪ I shall be ♪ [Prayer] As you bow your heads, O Lord,

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we are chasing rainbows throughout this life. We thank you that you provide the rain, and you provide security in the midst of the rain, and that you will give also a rainbow, a rainbow of hope for us all, hope that is eternal.

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The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord cause his face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord cause the light of his countenance to be with you now and forevermore. Amen. [Music]

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