Jesus has said that there are times in life where everyone's going left, and you just know you need to go right. That's what it takes to be a kingdom person.
Everybody holds grudges, true; but everybody is leading their life to disrepair. That's a broad road. If everybody holds grudges, chances are, a kingdom person is choosing to forgive. Everybody has a car payment. Everybody's making payments on something going down in value. Everybody's doing that. Is that true? Yeah, pretty much true, but if everybody's going right, it's probably pretty good evidence that we should go left, left.
Everybody does business dodgy. Everybody cheats on their taxes. Is that true? Pretty much, but if everybody's going right, chances are a kingdom person is going left, yeah. Everybody does this, everybody, everybody, everybody - I know, yeah, you're right.
I had a teenager one time tell me: everybody sleeps around. Is that true? Statistically yes, 87 per cent of teenagers are sleeping together, sleeping around. 87%, 9/10 - is that true? Yeah, sure - but if everybody's going right, chances are that the kingdom and the best life is found by going left. Are you going to be a crowd-follower, or are you going to be a Jesus person? That's a massive decision we have to make.
Now this has huge implications alright. One, when we live intentionally pursuing the narrow gate, we are more grounded, and less anxious. There's something about living with a clear intended purpose and dream that keeps you from worrying about other things.
My friend Kyla Alexander, she's a 39 year old lady, who's my hero. She's given up her dream to be married and have children, because God has called her to restore dignity to mentally-handicapped orphans in China, and she's given her life to that instead.
Kyla doesn't sit around worrying about: oh, where's the next man going to come from? No, she's given her life to 140 children; and the power of yes has helped her beat this.
When we live intentionally, it takes away anxiety. The cure for anxiety is not prayer, although it might help. I'm not against prayer. The cure for anxiety, long-term, is living with intention toward something else; and when you put all your energy into something that is focussed and intentioned, that when you live for your dream, it actually takes care of the anxiety on its own.
It's the same with anger. People with an anger problem, they don't have an anger problem, they have an energy problem. People with an anger problem, they have too much spare energy. They're not giving their life to something beyond themselves, so they're all just stoked up with all this energy, and have to do something with it. People who are living with full intention and purpose, they don't have anger problems.
Can you imagine if I had Kyla here today, and you started telling her the things that stress you? She works with mentally handicapped children, hoping to have enough money to feed them, every single month; and what's stressing you? You were born in New Zealand? I know. Your road system still sucks? I know. I know. I've been coming here seven years, they're still fixing the same road. I don't understand. Kingdoms have risen and fallen; you guys are still fixing one road. I know! You drive to a store, that pre-packages food for you, and you have a hard time finding a park? I know. That is so stressful. You get your trolley full of food, that was pre-packaged for you, and you wouldn't believe how slow the cashier in the store is. I know.
Kyla would be like: what? You have roads? You have a car? So you get into a motorised vehicle, that takes you to a store, that pre-packages food for you, and you live in one of the top five greatest nations in the world, and you're stressed? What is wrong with you! Is it that you're bad? No. It's just that we don't live with full intention. Full intention cures that.
Number two, because we're intentionally pursuing our purpose, we're not concerned about, or in prison to: worry, discontentment, and most importantly comparison.
When you're living on full purpose for what God's called you to do, you will not be concerned with what other people have. It doesn't matter what they have, because you're pursuing what God has YOU to do.
Comparison's a killer man, it's a killer! We get so wrapped up in 'er', how can I be rich-er, smart-er, thinn-er, pretty-er, talented-er, more important-er. We spend money, and energy, and time, and resources, doing nothing but trying to be better than the other person.