A Different Perspective Official Podcast - Promises, Promises, Promises // It's Time to Take the Promised Land, Part 1

So many things in life are full of promise and then after a while, well, they feel empty. God is full of promises too. He talks a lot about the Promised Land. The question is, how do you get a hold of His promises? How can you actually live in His Promised Land?

There are many, many people in this world who feel that they're wandering aimlessly through life. Sure there have been some good things and maybe there are some more to look forward to and yeah, we all have bad things that happen in our lives, we all do but this feeling that we're wandering is somehow separate or independent of whatever is going on around us. Where am I going? Isn't there some destination other than a coffin at the end of it all?

So many things in life, family and career and possessions, they hold out so much promise and for the most part they're great but where's it all headed? That's why today we're kicking off with a new series called, "It's Time to Take the Promised Land". Maybe it sounds a bit odd but indulge me, it could be one of the most important things we ever do together.

I am really excited starting this new series called, "It's Time to Take the Promised Land". Now what sort of series title is that you might ask, It's Time to Take the Promised Land, well let me unpack what I've been thinking. We live in a world that promises so much, a world of brands and products and experiences and travel and luxury, you know all that stuff that they cram in on us, a world that promises so much.

The marketeers, they talk about the "brand promise", for example my favourite on TV, you see the ads for margarine or breakfast cereal or low fat milk right. Ever noticed them? Here's what they look like, here's the setting.

It’s a trendy, today kind of kitchen; the sun is always streaming in through the window. You ever noticed it's never raining outside, it's never cold and wet and mum, mum's pretty good looking, she's slim, she's happy and she's well adjusted.

She's smiling preparing the breakfast. And all of a sudden a well adjusted teenager bounds in and the teenagers smiling and spreads the margarine on their bread or pours the milk on their cereal whatever. And then, a cool, good looking 40 something dad in a suit and a white shirt strolls in and he grabs a piece of toast and the newspaper and kisses his wife and this is the sort of family at breakfast we'd all like to have but for so many people the reality is so different to the ad. I mean when you think about breakfast, I don't know about you but for us it's always busy, my daughters a teenager, she's racing off to school and its nothing like the ad.

The reality is millions of people watching that ad don't know where their next meals coming from. The reality is, families who are watching that ad are falling apart, the reality is even if they aren't they're bringing up teenagers and that's a tough gig. The reality is that most peoples family's and