Standing Firm: Unshakable Faith in a Shifting World

I want to start today's show with a really simple question. Do you feel like the ground beneath your feet is just constantly moving? Do you feel like values are just constantly shifting?Truth is becoming blurred. And that pressure, that very real pressure to just go with the flow is just weighing heavily on us every single day.Maybe you're at work and you're standing for your convictions, but it makes you feel like the odd man out so many times, and maybe even at home, you feel like you're a relic and you're the only one standing and holding on to that firm belief that you've had for so many years. That feeling right there, it's exhausting, isn't it? And if you're like me, deep down, you start to wonder this.Can I really stand firm in a world that keeps changing? And you know as well as I do this world is constantly changing. Well, that's what I want to talk about on today's show.How do we stand firm in a world that keeps changing?

Feeling lost in today's headlines. Seeking God's truth for our chaotic culture. Welcome to Truth Unveiled with Ralph.We'll cut through the noise guiding you to biblical discernment for your faith, your finances, and your life. Now here's Ralph Estep Jr.

Welcome to Truth Unveiled with Ralph. This is the show every week where I try to uncover the lies of modern culture, and we are surrounded by a ton of lies.But more importantly than that, I shine the light of God's unchanging truth. My name is Ralph. I'm an accountant. I'm a business coach, believe it or not. I'm a cattle rancher. I'm a follower of Christ.But more importantly than any of those things, I'm a fellow traveler, just like you on this journey of faith.And my goal every week is to bring you biblical truth, some practical insight, and some encouragement to help you stand firm in a world that keeps on shifting. Because right now, you know it as well as I do. Culture keeps saying, well, Ralph, truth is relative.How many times I've heard in the last few days, truth is relative. Do what feels right. Do what feels good to you. Don't rock the boat, Ralph. But here's the problem with that feeling.When everything is constantly shifting around, nothing is secure anymore. And I've read this statistic from the American Psychological Association. This is truly a sobering statistic.72% of adults say the future of the nation is a significant source of stress to them. The Gallup Organization, huge polling company, says that global stress and worry are at record highs. And listen to this one.And among young adults, those people that they call Generation Z, more than half, more than 50% report feeling anxious or depressed on a weekly basis. Like I said, those are truly sobering statistics. Today you might be asking, okay, Ralph, why is that? Well, here's the answer that I truly believe.This is the answer. Because they're building their lives on shifting sand. And see, the truth of today's show is God's word says something completely different.It's actually kind of radical if you think about it. God's word says that truth isn't shifting. It's eternal. And it also says this faith isn't fragile. It's unshakable.And the world keeps changing, but God never does. So let's get into the scripture and really unveil what we're talking about today. I want to go right to the Book of Hebrews, chapter 13, verse 8.And this just absolutely clarifies what I'm saying today. Just Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. The scripture can't get any more clearer than that. Jesus Christ is not changing.The rock of our foundation is not changing. And I love what C.S. lewis wrote. This was a guy, believe it or not. CS Lewis was a former atheist.This dude denied Christ, denied God from the very basics of it. And C.S. lewis said this. He said he is the fixed point in a changing world. C.S. lewis got it.And if we're being honest with ourselves, we see these things all around us. Jobs change. How many jobs have you had? I know I've had a bunch. Culture changes.You know, what you're wearing this month might not fit in with next month's culture. You listening? You're watching this right now. You know very well technology changes and even friendships and family shift over time.Those are just realities of where we are. But Jesus, he never does. Let's look at the Book of Matthew, chapter 7, verses 24 and 25.Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is 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 fail because it had its foundation on the rock.Let's talk about Charles Spurgeon. Charles Spurgeon was who they called the Prince of Preachers. He said this. He said, christ is the same and no change can touch him.Your faith may shift, your feelings may waver, but Christ never changes. And see, Jesus didn't say, if the storms come, there's a Lot of people want to say, well, you know, why am I dealing with these storms?Ralph, Jesus never said if the storms come. What did he say? He said, when the storms come, and if you're like me, life is full of storms at their very core. What do storms do?Storms test the foundation of us. It's not like a pink color. It's not the landscaping of it, but it's the foundation. It's what you're really standing on.Let's look at the book of Isaiah, chapter 40, verse 8. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of God endures forever. And there's a fellow named A.W. tozer.He was a 20th century pastor and prophetic voice. He said this. The man who comes to a right belief about God is. Is relieved of 10,000 temporal problems.I first read that, I was like, okay, where's he getting here? Why? Because when you trust in the eternal, when you trust not on those shifting sands, you stop panicking over those temporary situations.So what's the big takeaway today? So let's get into this today.Some points to talk about today, which I think really are going to reinforce this whole idea of where do you put your faith? What are you standing on? First thing I'm going to encourage you to do is you've got to build on the rock, not on sand.Listen, I'm gonna be honest with you. 100 honesty right here. No reason not to be transparent. There was a time in my life when I thought my own plans were secure.Ralph, you got the plans, you got the idea, it's going to work. I had the career, I had the house, I had that fat savings accounts. But then, like most people, life threw a storm I didn't see coming.And suddenly what felt stable, the things that I was relying on, that rock of. I got it figured out. I've got the career, I got the house, I got the money in the bank. It started crumbling and I realized something very quickly.When I looked down at my feet. I had been standing on sand in some areas of my life. And here's the truth.A house built on sand can look picture perfect, look great from the outside. But when that tide rises, it just crumbles. Think about beachfront mansions, if you will. You've seen these on tv, you've seen them in magazines.Picture perfect. Million dollar views. You think to yourself, man, there's a house that's gonna withstand things. And then you start hearing about a hurricane.When at hurricane hits, what's left? Only what's anchored. So the first thing I want to encourage you to do this week, check your foundation. Do a foundation check.Ask yourself, are you standing on shifting trends? Are you standing on money? Are you standing on your own reputation?Because I'm going to tell you right now, those things are going to shift underneath of your feet. Or on the other hand, are you standing on the eternal word of God? That's the first thing. Do a foundation check. Let's talk about those storms.As I said a few minutes ago, we all are going to have storms in our life. If you're a human being, you know very well there are storms. I can think of dozens of storms I've been through in my life, stuff that.Well, how did you get through that, Ralph? And here's the thing I've learned. Faith is proven in the storms. See, trials don't create faith.A lot of people think, oh, I went through this trial and that created faith. That's not what they do. They reveal faith. Think about this. Daniel didn't suddenly become faithful when the decree went out.His daily prayer life had already set up that foundation. And that's why Babylon bowed to baal. Daniel stood. And I know of a Christian business owner who faced a significant financial downturn.This dude went from high to completely low. His revenue was dropping. On paper, things looked terrible.And I remember him telling me, he said, ralph, during that time, tithing made absolutely no sense. Everybody was saying to me, my own family was saying to me, stop tithing, dad. You don't need to do this right now. Focus on your business.And he says, no, my foundation is in Christ. And he stayed faithful. And he said to me, he said, ralph, it was during that test of my faith that God was able to really reveal something to me.And God provided in ways that he could never have predicted. Person named Corey 10. Boom. This is a person who survived Nazi camps once said this.You never know that Christ is all you need until Christ is all you have. I just think that was an amazing quote there. You never know that Christ is all you need until Christ is all you have.And so many of us feel that storms are punishment. Storms are these things that come about because of things we've done. But I want to change your view of that. They're not punishment. They're proof.They're proof that roots run deep. So I'm going to encourage you right now, this week, and this is going to be very counterintuitive. This is certainly countercultural.Thank God for those storms. You might be saying, ralph, you've lost your mind. I'M not going to thank God for storms. Yes, I want you to. Not because it feels good.Storms do not feel good. But because it reveals where your faith is anchored when that storm hits. And your faith is anchored in Christ.Think about that multi million dollar mansion when that hurricane hits. What stands? Only the things that are anchored. Only the things that are anchored in Christ. So this week I'm going to challenge you.Thank God for the storm because it reveals your faith. And here's another thing I want to talk about today. Courage comes from knowing who holds tomorrow. The very nature of instability.It's that fear of what's to come. It's that not knowing what's going to happen. And fear comes from that uncertainty. But courage at the same time comes from trust. Think about this.Picture a child gripping their father's hand crossing a busy street. Go to any big city in the United States or anywhere in the world for that matter. Father and son, you can picture this in your own mind.Standing on the side of the road, busy street, cars are zipping back and forth. The cars are real. The danger to both of them is real. And peace doesn't come from the traffic being safe. The traffic is not safe.Where does the peace come from? It comes from dad's hand. I can still remember as a child, my dad grabbing my hand. We were in New York City. I'll never forget this.We were in New York City and we were crossing. I think it was Fifth Avenue and a big. There were cars going everywhere, horns all over the place. I never understood about New York City.Everybody blowing a horn just for the sake of blowing it. I remember my dad reached down and grabbed my hand and instantly I felt safe.Billy Graham, one of my favorite preachers of all time, he preached to people all over the world, said this courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spine of others are stiffened. Wow. Think about that for a second. Billy Graham had a way with her. He could nail it.He nailed it here. Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are stiffened.So let me ask you right now, as you listen or watch this right now, what busy street are you crossing right now? Maybe you're in the midst of a health crisis. So many people are dealing with those things. And I just pray for you, I pray for your complete recovery.Maybe, like so many of my clients, you have this financial burden you're living in, this financial shame. You're trying to get past that.You're trying to make up for the Things that maybe the mistakes you made in the past, or maybe you're like so many people right now that you're dealing with a broken relationship. Not sure how you're going to get past where you are right now. You know, something needs to be fixed.But you're like, ralph, this relationship is broken right now. And I just want to encourage you right now, don't stare at the chaos. Don't stare at the traffic going crazy, the horns all over your place.Just reach out and grab your father's hand.I want to encourage you to say this out loud right now and repeat this as often as you feel that fear, as often as you feel that sand just moving around your feet. Say this out loud right now. Lord, I trust you with tomorrow. Listen carefully. The winds are always blowing, the waters are always rising in our lives.And if your life is built on sand, I'm going to tell you right now, you might not want to hear this, but collapse is coming. You will collapse if that is where your life is built. But on the other hand, if your life is anchored to Christ.Yeah, you may bend because what did he say? He said there will be storms. He guaranteed it to us. There will be storms. So you might just bend. You might bend farther than you think, Ralph.There's no way I'm going to be able to withstand this. But the promise of Christ is that you will not break because Jesus Christ is steady, Jesus Christ is strong, and Jesus Christ is sure.One of the things I talk about on this show all the time is let's compare culture and biblical truth. We talked a lot about biblical truth for the last few minutes. What are we talking about? These shifting sands?Let's get in the culture, because culture says this. Adjust your beliefs to fit the moment. That's what culture really saying. Oh, listen, things are changing. You got to go with the flow, Ralph.That's cremagen old time talk. Nobody thinks like that anymore. Your own family might be saying this to you. That's a culture saying, adjust your beliefs to fit the moment.But what is God saying out loud and upright when you grab that hand? Cling to the truth.That never changes because that's really how you stand anchored in what will withstand the storms that are coming our way, the storms that are coming your way, the storms that are coming my way on an everyday basis. At the same time, culture says, stand strong in yourself. You're an individual. You're a rugged individual. You can stand strong in yourself.You've got the power within yourself. Let me just tell you Right now, God's word says something completely different. God's word says, stand firm in me.Now that's countercultural, isn't it? It's not about being strong in yourself. It's about standing firm in him.And see, the truth is, and I've seen this so many times, you watch the news, watch any kind of social media. When you follow culture, if you try to live in culture, if you try to make that your reality, I'm going to promise you something right now.You will always be anxious. You're going to always be anxious because there's no stable ground underneath you.That ground keeps on moving, it just constantly flowing with the tides. But when you root yourself in Christ, I mean, truly anchor yourself in the Lord, you can stand in peace even when the storms rage.So let me ask you this right now. Where are you tempted to compromise right at this moment? Let's brainstorm here for a second. Where are you being tempted to compromise?Because if you're like me, you see it all around you. And then the next question you've got to ask yourself, what sand are you standing on today? Is it of your own doing? Is it the sand of money?Is it the sand of fortunes? The sand of something that culture is telling you? What sand are you standing on today? But then I want you to think about this.What would it look like if instead that sand that you've been standing on your entire life, maybe. What if instead you planted your feet firmly on the rock? You know what the rock is, right? The rock is Christ.I want to encourage you this week, write down one verse.Maybe it's Hebrews 13, 8, or Matthew, chapter 7, verses 24, 25, or Isaiah 4, 18, and put it where you see it every day and let that anchor you when the storm hits.And maybe you're listening right now, you realize you've been standing on your entire life and you're admitting to me right now, you're saying, ralph, look, dude, I've been trying to keep up with culture. And honestly, Ralph, it's left me weary. It's left me completely anxious. It left me completely empty, Ralph. But I've got good news for you today.You don't have to do this alone anymore. God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to be that rock for you. He'd sent him to be that anchor for you.And through his death and resurrection, he offers forgiveness for your sins and a brand new foundation. And if you've never surrendered your life to him, or maybe you did a long time ago, but you just need to Come back because you're.I kind of drifted away. The culture caught me, the tides caught me, kind of pushed me away. I was living in my own reality. I want to encourage you right now.Pray with me right now. Whether you've never accepted Christ or maybe you need to come back to him, I'm going to encourage you right now. Pray with me right now.Just say this, Lord Jesus, I know I'm a sinner and I know I've stood on shifting sand. But today, Lord, I turn to you. I believe you died for my sins and I believe you rose again. And I believe you are the only true foundation.So Lord, right now in this humbleness, I ask you to forgive me. I ask you to wash me clean, Lord, be my Savior. Be my Lord.From this day forward, I choose to stand on you, my rock, my redeemer and my unshakable hope. In Jesus name I pray this Amen. And friend, if you prayed that prayer, I just want to welcome you to the family of God.There are celebrations all over heaven because you made that decision. But more importantly than any of that, you step from the sand onto the rock and your life is now anchored in Christ. That is the rock to you now.And if this message today spoke to your heart, I want to encourage you. Don't keep it to yourself.One of the ways that we can expand the kingdom for Christ is to share this episode with other people who need to stand firm and have courage and stop living in that shame and that fear of on that shifting sand. And I want you to know this, you could be the very person that changes the dynamic of their life forever.So I'm encourage you share our website with them.Send them right to truthunveiled withRalph.com let them see that there is an anchor, there is a truth, there is a rock that they can stand on in the midst of life's storms. So until next time, I want to encourage you, stand firm, stay rooted and keep your eyes on the one who never changes. Make sure you join me next week.We're going to talk about another great topic on Truth Unveiled with Ralph. We're going to talk about the God of growth.We're going to talk about cultivating spiritual and financial stewardship to talk about how God grows us not just in faith, but in how we handle the resources he's entrusted to us. We're going to talk about it and I believe it's going to challenge and inspire you.So as I let you go, make sure you come and join me again next week and go to our website. That's truthunveiledwithRalph.com God bless you and you have a blessed day today.