Saulik downTime June 15, 2026

What would be worse? Called the wrong name or ignored. 

Israel’s Only Savior

43 

1. But now, this is what the Lord says—

 he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel:

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

    I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

2 When you pass through the waters,   I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,   they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

    you will not be burned;    the flames will not set you ablaze.

3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

I give Egypt for your ransom,  Cush[a] and Seba in your stead.

4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight,    and because I love you,

I will give people in exchange for you,    nations in exchange for your life.

5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you;

    I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.

6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’  and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’

Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—

7 everyone who is called by my name,

    whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind,  who have ears but are deaf.

9 All the nations gather together    and the peoples assemble.

Which of their gods foretold this    and proclaimed to us the former things?

Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,

    so that others may hear and say, “It is true.”

10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen,

so that you may know and believe me    and understand that I am he.

Before me no god was formed,    nor will there be one after me.

11 I, even I, am the Lord,    and apart from me there is no savior.

12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—

    I, and not some foreign god among you.

You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God.

13     Yes, and from ancient days I am he.

No one can deliver out of my hand.    When I act, who can reverse it?”

I always get asked what I want to be called. Or I have people that call me whatever the want. Think about it. I have a family, I own a company, I do ministry, and I am a part of a community. There are a lot of different roles I play and a lot of people I come into contact with. 

People get it wrong all the time. 

I usually just say I have been called worse if they ask. 

43 

1. But now, this is what the Lord says—

 he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel:

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

    I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

God didn’t do this on accident. Here are the next few verses. 

2 When you pass through the waters,   I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,   they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

    you will not be burned;    the flames will not set you ablaze.

3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

I give Egypt for your ransom,  Cush[a] and Seba in your stead.

4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight,    and because I love you,

I will give people in exchange for you,    nations in exchange for your life.

5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you;

    I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.

Does this sound like a God who knows you? Does it sound like God cares about you? 

6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’  and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’

Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—

7 everyone who is called by my name,

    whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind,  who have ears but are deaf.

Does this sound like God is confused about the path they are on? 

God is in control if you will let him be. 

Should the blind worry? Should the deaf worry? God knows them and made them in his image. God is taking care of them and their path. 

9 All the nations gather together    and the peoples assemble.

Which of their gods foretold this    and proclaimed to us the former things?

Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,

    so that others may hear and say, “It is true.”

10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen,

so that you may know and believe me    and understand that I am he.

Before me no god was formed,    nor will there be one after me.

11 I, even I, am the Lord,    and apart from me there is no savior.

12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—

    I, and not some foreign god among you.

You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God.

13     Yes, and from ancient days I am he.

No one can deliver out of my hand.    When I act, who can reverse it?”

God himself challenged them to prove that he is not the only God. God has shown them who he is and will show them who he is. 

Things we learned. 

1. Verse 1 - God has called you and you are his. 

2. Verse 5 - Do not be afraid I am with you. 

3. 6-8 - Leading you in your life no matter your circumstance. 

4. 9-13 God is God 

Think about this: 

Closer than I was yesterday, and if I don’t make it to tomorrow this is the closest I’ll ever get 

Do not do tomorrow what you can do today 

Are you doing everything in your life to be as close to God as possible? 

That is my prayer for you.

What do I need to own?

What do I need to own? 

God has called you to something in your life. What is it for you? 

What is keeping you from doing that? 

Your actions on a daily basis. 

Maybe it is you. 

Guilt in the Bible

Guilt - sell your possessions, Judas, prodigal son. Any other stories?

I was going into Ollie's with Callie. 

A guy on a bike approached us pretty aggressively, so I was kind of in protective mode with Callie. He asked if I had money. And honestly, I didn’t have any cash on me. My car was 20 feet away, and I know I had cash in it. My excuse was that I gave a good tip at the restaurant, so I used it there. 

What's the point? 

Shortly after I felt guilt. Like from God. It was weird. I hadn’t felt that before. 

What did we just get done talking about for 4 weeks here? 

Love - 

So am I showing love or not? What do you think when I said no to a homeless man asking me for money - directly? 

So guilt in the bible. Let’s talk about it. 

Judas. Did Judas feel guilt? What's the story of Judas? 

Judas Iscariot was one of the 12 disciples of Jesus Christ. He is best known for betraying Jesus to the religious leaders for 30 pieces of silver. Judas identified Jesus to the soldiers with a kiss in the Garden of Gethsemane, leading to Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion.

Afterward, Judas felt deep regret. He returned the money and later died tragically. His story is often used as a warning about betrayal, greed, and turning away from truth, but also shows the weight of guilt and the consequences of choices.

What about the guy who was asked to sell all of his possessions?

 Jesus Christ met a wealthy young man who asked what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus told him to obey God’s commandments, and the man said he already had.

Then Jesus said, “Sell everything you have, give to the poor, and follow me.”

The man became sad because he had many possessions and walked away with his head down. 

What about the prodigal son? 

Jesus Christ told the story of a younger son who asked his father for his inheritance early, then left home and wasted all his money on reckless living.

After losing everything, he became poor and hungry, working in a pig field. Realizing his mistakes, he decided to return home and ask to be treated like a servant.

But when his father saw him coming, he ran to him, hugged him, and celebrated his return. The father said, “My son was lost and now is found.”

So what do you think about guilt? 

I have been struggling with this myself. I wanted to show you, through a biblical example, that if you feel guilt, it's real. 

Listen to how you feel. God is talking to you. 

Abraham and isaac 

Jesus at dinner.

How is your relationship with God?

What are two things you should not see at the same time? 

Jeans and ties 

Alligators and swimming pools. 

We finished our series on love last week. Now we will get into some practical thoughts and ideas on real life. 

How to move forward. 

Real-life examples. 

A little about me. 

No one talked about God or Jesus in college. 

Have any of your professors talked to you in class about God? Or Jesus? 

It's our job individually to share our lives with others. That's my challenge to you. 

My second challenge to you is to live a life that someone else might want. 

Not your car, your job, or your house. 

I am talking about the joy that comes out of you. 

James 1:2-3 (ESV)

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”

So what's next in life? 

A little more about me. 

The preacher didn’t need to tell me to repent. I know what that means. And so do you. 

You get to make a choice each and every day. A choice to admit when you fail or turn your head and continue. 

You know the fruit of the Spirit.

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) represents nine visible attributes of a Christian’s life shaped by the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, forbearance (patience), kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

At 18, I recognized my need for a savior 

At 36, I committed my life to sharing God's love with everyone. Not perfect, but committed.

The last 4 have been better than the first 36 years. 

If you had six months to live, what would you do? Anything you wanted? What would it be? 

Write it on this card. 

Why are you here at SIU? 

If you are an athlete, why are you here? 

You get to choose how you spend each day. 

Some of you need to quit being athletes and get your lives in Christ started. 

Some of you need to quit playing games with this world and commit your life to Christ. 

Some of you need to choose God’s love and share it with the world. 

Whatever it is that you would be doing if you only had 6 months to live, 

You should be doing that now.

Do not wait for your life to be right. Do it now. 

I wish I had chosen my life right now 20 years ago. 

I was 18 years old in college, playing basketball. October 17, 2004, when I realized I needed God more than ever. Now I realize I need God every day more than ever. I also now know that I need to be sharing that relationship with anyone and everyone. 

God does not call the equipped. He equips the called. 

If you get bumped and have coffee in your hand, what would you spill? 

Why did you spill your coffee? 

Because you had coffee in your cup 

Whatever is inside of you is what will spill out. 

Remember the cup being half empty or half full? That's a myth. Your cup needs to be overflowing, so that you can give what you have away. 

Stop asking people for directions from people who have never been where you're going.

Ask someone who has been there. 

If you want a career in accounting, who should you ask? A doctor? 

If you want to be a nurse, who should you ask? A lawyer? 

If you need help with your car? Who should you ask? 

Get the point? Get more from someone who has been there. 

The bible is clear when it comes to getting wisdom. 

James 1:5, if you lack wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault. 

Proverbs 4:5 commands: "Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them." 

Do you want chocolate or vanilla? 

How quickly you answer is key. 

Confidence in who you are. Every day. The best version of yourself. 

You have no obligation to the person you were next to 5 minutes ago.

You are not a tree 

You can change. 

Be whatever and whoever you want to be

None of us knows who we are. We decide who we are. I created this Chris Duckworth. Tried many different versions and failed often. 

Getting closer to God and listening to God is the best way to find the best version of yourself. 

I pray for those that no one ever apologized to you for. 

I am praying for you. I am praying for the best version of you. 

God loves you. God wants to be a part of your life. 

Only you can choose whether to have a relationship with God. God isn’t going anywhere. 

This summer, focus on your relationship with God. 

saluki downtime April 27, 2026 - You have to Love

Saluki downTime April 27, 2026

Love Series - #3 Love others. 

Games: 

Ping pong - keep it in the air the longest. 

Card game - highest pick wins. 

Rock paper scissor - 1 time. 

1. jesus loved the people around him

2. Jesus loves you

3. You have to love others. 

Love thy neighbor as thyself

You have to love others. 

Why? Because Jesus said so. 

❤️ Tough Questions About Loving Others (With Scripture)

🧠 Mindset / honesty

1. Why is it harder to love difficult people?
   👉 Because real love requires patience and selflessness
   📖 1 Corinthians 13:4 – “Love is patient…”
   
   

2. Can you say you love someone if your actions don’t show it?
   👉 No—love is shown through what you do
   📖 1 John 3:18 – “Let us not love with words… but with actions and truth.”
   
   

3. Why do we take people closest to us for granted?
   👉 Because love becomes comfortable instead of intentional
   📖 Philippians 2:3 – “Value others above yourselves.”

🔥 Hard truth

4. Can you love someone and avoid them?
   👉 No—love sometimes requires truth and action
   📖 Ephesians 4:15 – “Speak the truth in love.”
   
   

5. Can you love someone and still correct them?
   👉 Yes—love includes accountability
   📖 Proverbs 27:6 – “Wounds from a friend can be trusted.”
   
   

6. Why do some people only love when it’s convenient?
   👉 Because real love requires sacrifice
   📖 John 15:13 – “Greater love… to lay down one’s life…”

👥 Relationships

7. How do you love someone who doesn’t treat you well?
   👉 Love them, but set boundaries and don’t repay evil
   📖 Romans 12:17–18
   
   

8. When someone hurts you, what does love require?
   👉 Forgiveness
   📖 Colossians 3:13 – “Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
   
   

9. How do you love someone you don’t agree with?
   👉 With humility and respect
   📖 Romans 12:10 – “Honor one another above yourselves.”

💭 Self-reflection

10. Who is hardest for you to love—and why?
    👉 (Personal)
    📖 Matthew 5:44 – “Love your enemies…”
    
    

11. Do you love people based on how they treat you?
    👉 Real love goes beyond that
    📖 Luke 6:32 – “If you love those who love you…”
    
    

12. Where do you fall short in loving others?
    👉 (Personal)
    📖 1 Corinthians 13:5 – “Love is not self-seeking…”

💥 Challenge (your style)

13. Do you love people—or just what they do for you?
    👉 Real love isn’t selfish
    📖 1 Corinthians 13:5
    
    

14. Are you patient with others like you expect them to be with you?
    👉 That’s what love requires
    📖 Colossians 3:12 – “Clothe yourselves with… patience”
    
    

15. If your actions defined your love, what would it show?
    👉 (Personal reflection)
    📖 James 2:17 – “Faith without works is dead” (same idea applied to love)

🔥 Strong closer

👉 “Do you love people when it costs you something?”

📖 Luke 6:35 – “Love your enemies… expecting nothing in return.”

13 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

You don’t get to choose who you love. 

End of verse 3 - 

But do not have love, I gain nothing. 

Verse 4

Love is patient. 

Ever been around someone that says they love you but are not patient with you? 

What about you? Been around someone you say you love but aren’t patient with them? 

Love is kind - You do not have the right to not be kind to everyone. There is no reason or any excuse to be unkind in this world. 

It does not envy. Ever wanted someone elses stuff? That is not love. 

1. Do not covet (desire) your neighbor's house, spouse, or their stuff. 

It does not boast, it is not proud. These two go together. You have what you have and are what you are because of God. Thats the fact. Did you do something to get where you are. Of course. But God is the ultimate reason. God wants you where you are using what he gave you. 

It does not dishonor others. It is not self seeking. How do these two go together? 

Love is not easily angered. How does this work in real life? 

Whats the limit? Is Anger a sin? So what line do we need to not cross? What line is ok to cross? 

It keeps no record of wrongs. Who does this? Honestly. 

6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 

7 It always protects, 

always trusts, 

always hopes, 

always perseveres.