Fearfully & Wonderfully Made

Crossing family. Are you good man?

I hope so. I am so excited to be with you

guys this weekend. We have an incredible thing

playing for you. I told you at the very beginning

of this sermon series that at the, towards the end of it, we

are going to bring in one of our dear friends, to talk to you

guys for two weeks and whether you're joining here at 48th

Street, one of our different locations or online.

I am so excited to have to have dr.

Wes Beavis with us this weekend, fun fact through our partnership

with the Salomon Foundation during the pandemic, we had a

met with pastors all across the country every single Tuesday.

And the first thing that the salmon Foundation did, is they

put dr. Wes on retainer to help pastors

and navigate the stresses of leading through a challenging

season and he meets with pastors all across the country and helps

them try. To navigate the weeds in the

garden. In fact, here at the Crossing

we've spent, we've sent between 10 and 15% of our own staff to

go and get some help. Because even when your super

spiritual, you could still have some weeds in your garden.

And so Crossing family, I cannot wait for you to be blessed this

weekend and next weekend. So, would you please give a warm

Crossing Welcome to our friend, dr.

Wes Beavis. Thank you so much. it is so good

to be at the Crossing, Well, not only am IA doctor of Clinical

Psychology but I have been for decades a pasta and I love to

stand at the Nexus of faith and Science and especially now

because we live in a culture which says that if you're a

Christian, you are anti science and particularly for the young

people in the house, I want you to know that is an absolute lie.

Christians make great scientists and tonight I want to bring a

message to you. That is going to incorporate

some scientific research but it's also going to go to reveal

just how wonderful God has made you and you are going to be

encouraged and you're going to be encouraged to pull even

closer to Jesus knowing just how good he has made you by

scripture reading. Tonight comes from Psalm 139.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Let me stop right there, fearfully.

You know, sometimes we get the impression.

Just reading that word at face value that, that God is in

heaven going. Oh, my goodness.

I hope this works out. I'm kind of scared of this one.

Clayton Hensel. You know, I disappoint like you

to a little bit risky, this one. No, that's not what the Bible is

talking about. Fearfully the way the Bible

defines it is made with reverence and or now being an

Australian we say or just like that.

So on the count of three, I want you to say or in Australian, all

right? So God has made us with

reverence and one, two, three are you are awesome yourself.

Your works, are wonderful. I know that full well I want to

tell you a story of something that happened to a friend of my

wife Ellie and myself, her name is an yella and Anne and her

friend Debbie Nichols on this one day in Southern California.

Whiting Ranch, they're Avid mountain bikers, they decided to

go for a mountain bike ride and as an was relaying her

experience to me. She said I was ahead, Of Debbie,

by some distance. And as I came down this hill, I

startled. Something and I noticed

something reddish brownish in my peripheral vision, and I thought

I had startled a deer. But she said, moments later, I

realized this was no dear. It was a mountain lion and It

pounced on Me, Knocking me so hard off my bike.

It grabbed me by the left side of my face and started dragging

me down into a Ravine. And in that moment, I was in the

fight for my life. Debi Nicholls came just Nano

seconds. After she saw what?

It was happening and she went down into the Ravine and grabbed

ands ankle. And started pulling her up the

Ravine. Now these girls were you know

very fit girls like girls you know, I would say around 115

pounds and this mountain lion was weigh in excess of that.

So here's Debi Nicholls pulling and up yelling at the top of her

lungs and I am not going to let you die.

I'm not gonna let you die. And she's pulling and up by her

ankle pulling both and and the mountain lion.

My question is how How does a 115-pound woman able to do that?

Well, I'll tell you why. Because in that moment, God

released something that he has designed within us called a

hormone called adrenaline. And what adrenaline done is is

is shocks our, our muscles into action and Then followed by

adrenaline is a hormone called cortisol that is known as the

stress hormone and that is released by our adrenal glands

into our System to help to help us harness, our energy and stay

focused very much on the task at hand and so it can give us what

seems Supernatural strength. But it happens that way because

that's the way God has designed us because we are fearfully and

Wonderfully made and so something happened in that

moment as Debbie's trying to drag this this mountain lion and

her friend and up the ribbing. And it was a hopelessly lopsided

battle. But the mountain lion was

winning. But then the mountain lion

backed itself into a tree at the very same time that some other

mountain bikers came along. So what is happening and started

picking up rocks, and throwing and screaming to startle the

mountain lion. It released its grip.

In the only reason, That Anne was not instantly killed was

when she fell off that bike, her helmet skewed off her head.

Protecting her neck. And so the mountain lion was

trying to to get a purchase on her neck to snap her neck, but

the helmet was stopping it from doing so and eventually the

mountain lion released its grip. Somebody called 911.

There was a emergency helicopter that came in a medical flight

and then there was Medics and paramedics and and fireman and

an said I noticed one thing before I black down I looked at

the paramedics hand trying to put an intravenous needle in my

arm and his hand was shaking so much because the mountain lion

was About 15 feet away waiting for another opportunity.

And then she blacked out, they were able to survive that

because God put within them, something that God has put

within us some hormones, some brain chemicals that help us to

perform under strenuous circumstances.

I always have to put this slide in here because I forget to give

the back of the story and survived.

That's my wife, Ellie to the right of an she went on to

recover. She had countless surgeries, and

she's an amazing. Believer in Jesus and she has

gone on to tell her story a myriad of times.

And so just want to let you know and is alive and well and she

lived to tell, praise God. Okay, so let me tell you, let me

take some, take you on a little bit of scientific Journey.

I'm not gonna drag you into the weeds, then there are our

adrenal glands its place on top of our kidneys which is right in

the middle of our back and our adrenal glands went under when

When we are under stress, our adrenal glands, release

chemicals that fuel certain functions, and that is to help

us focus. And so what it does is it turns

sugar and fat into energy, it also improves the ability of

your body and brain to use that energy.

And all this happens in nanoseconds, why?

Because we are fearfully and Wonderfully made, what cortisol

also does, is it suppresses some biological functions that are

less important during stress? Some of those biological

functions are digestion. Now you know if guys if we're

out there being chased by a bear we're not thinking well I'm kind

of hungry right now. You should have eaten that

sandwich, all all the energy is taken from our digestive system

at and redeployed where it's needed the most.

Another section about lives. Our anatomy that shuts down in

that moment is our reproductive system.

And so it's probably one of the only times in the life of a In

Godly married, man. That when not, and even some

adolescent boys that we're not thinking about sex. but, Sex is

okay that's the way God wired us and particularly men.

There's a few wives in the house are going honey.

Maybe we need to get a pet bear. But there's, there's another,

there's another chemical that our adrenal glands secrete

called dehydroepiandrosterone. Let's everybody see that in the

count of three, one, two, three, see Hydro EPI and roster own,

and that's why they call it DHEA for short.

And dehydroepiandrosterone is a neuro neuro, steroid hormone

that helps your brain to grow. And it helps us to grow in

response to stressful situations.

So we're talking about mental health and so depression,

anxiety, and a myriad of other psychological.

Dilemmas that we met challenges that we might face.

Could be all under the umbrella of stress.

And so dehydroepiandrosterone has been put in Us by God to

perform a certain function to help our brains to grow.

Now I'm going to ask Cory Cory. Come on up here because I want

to get your help here. Cory.

I I have I've noticed your physique, these guns.

Were you born with these? Come on, man.

I'm they were just there just formed David Von telling you.

I'm a bitch. This is what you've got going on

there. How do you get those?

Lots of hard work in the gym. Lots of hard work.

Lots. So let me tell me get this

straight. I mean, is it fun being in the

gym kind of working your muscles like that?

I mean, depends on the day. All right, depends on the work

out alright but mostly no. That's right because it actually

feels much better the sitting on the couch eating some Doritos

followed by some Ben and Jerry's ice cream, right?

Right cereal. But yes, yes, yes, cereal would

be better. But yes.

Yeah, there we go. So so you're in the gym and

you're working your muscles. You're working these guns and

you know, like those guns just kind of naturally form because

you go into the gym or you know, is it something that you subject

your muscles to that? Make them like that?

Yes. So there is a lot a lot of hard

work that goes in the gym. All right.

And I there's a lot of Stories on there but Overexerted myself

because of particular workout because I wanted to this

physique, doesn't just happen by accident and we can film and

it's just study can hear it. That's a testimony.

Ladies and gentlemen it just said you think that's my wife.

So so I've heard That the day after really strenuous workout,

when you've just been pumping a lot of iron that the next day.

Your muscles are hurting. Yep.

Why is that? Well, I can tell you what, it

feels like it feels like there's just some muscles just ripping

apart, that's what I feel like right now, I work it out a

couple days ago. Two days later is always the

worst day right now. It feels like my muscles are

currently ripping, right? And that's because they, when

you're in the gym, you actually did.

Your muscles to the point where you call his little rips, little

micro tears and your muscle. Yeah, yeah.

I would assume you're the doctor, you tell me about tell

you, that's, that's what happens.

You put your muscles under stress, it creates little micro

tears, and then then afterwards, your there's a hormone in your

body called testosterone which helps rebuild your muscles and

you end up with guns like that until you never thought that

Jesus would be able to use. Use those in to demonstrate and

a spiritual issue but you could tell it was hard finding a guy

to do this. That they brought a guy like me

to stay true that diesel. You are you are a red brick.

I think it's time for you to go Thank Corey.

You're a good sport. So just as testosterone helps

your muscles to repair, after you've put the muscles under

stress, dehydroepiandrosterone causes your brain to repair, and

not only that causes neurogenesis, that means the

formation of new brain cells. So stress, In response in

response to stress dehydroepiandrosterone can be

released into your system and it can cause new brain cells to

grow sea for a long time. There was this belief that the

amount of brain cells that you're born with, that's all you

got and you spent your life time basically burning those brain

cells out. But what we've discovered

because we are fearfully and wonderfully me.

God is releasing this dehydroepiandrosterone in

response to the way we respond to stress all the time.

So in the week, leading up, to the time that Jesus calls us

home, we can be experiencing new Brain cells being generated in

our bodies. It's quite exciting.

I tell you I so which is better. So we've got two chemicals here.

Both release excreted from the adrenal glands, cortisol and

DHEA. Well you know, we're probably

thinking, well, you know, dehydroepiandrosterone, I want

more bread. Neither a better.

They are purpose-driven chemicals.

They are specific for whatever you're facing.

So if you're being chased by a licensed by it bear or or being

attacked by a Life Lion, then cortisol is what you want in

your system. What scientific research has

discovered is. It's the ratio that's important.

Higher ratio of cortisol is associated.

So if you're, if you've got a lot of cortisol running through

your system, and not much dehydroepiandrosterone that is

associated with harm to your immune function, and it's also

been associated with depression. Now, this is the interesting

thing. We've just been through a global

Panic pandemic, and I know that there's a section of society

that, you know, is is vested and keeping that going and what was

happening during that. I'm we were fearful and there

was a lot of there was a lot of media activity pumping us with

with fearful data and this is where, you know, they were just

following the science folks, they're not following the

science. If they were following the

complete science, they would realize.

The more they are pumping Society with fear the more that

the immune system is being suppressed.

The more that we become The more that pathogens out there, can

invade our bodies and make us sick.

My son is a medical doctor, and he said dead.

These are called opportunistic. Pathogens.

That's what when our immune system because we've got

pathogens all around us all the time.

And our immune system generally, when it's high, it fights them

off all the time, but when our immune system is depressed, then

we become more susceptible. Able to catch whatever is going

around. So if you're high in cortisol

and low in dehydroepiandrosterone, then

your immune function is somewhat compromised, and you're also can

be predisposed to depression. Now, if you flip that, and you

have high dehydroepiandrosterone and low cortisol, that has been

associated with reduced anxiety, reduce depression, reduced heart

disease, and reduced brain cell deterioration, Duration.

So what we want, most of the time is to have our system set

up where we are high in dehydroepiandrosterone and low

in cortisol. Now, there are specific times

where that needs to be flipped when we when our lives are under

threat in very, very unusual circumstances.

But for the majority of time, this is where God wants us to be

high and dehydroepiandrosterone low in cortisol and they That

the growth index and who do I mean by they call that this

research comes out of Stanford University led by dr.

Kelly McGonigal PhD who has a great research team and they

have termed. When you've got high

dehydroepiandrosterone in your system and low cortisol, they

call that the growth index. Why?

Because when you're in that configuration, you've got

greater persistence, you've got greater resilience you, you're

able to perform at higher levels.

You've got greater Focus Superior problem solving skills.

It's like that's the configuration we want to be most

of the time because we are going to be less susceptible to mental

health struggles when we're in that configuration.

So the question is and let's all ask this question together,

shall we? How do you activate the growth

index? And this is how change your

view. About stressful events.

Change your view about stressful events.

Let me let me give you an example of that.

There is a fear and worry view of the stressful event.

And it can be vocalized in ways such as this.

I can't handle this. This will do me in, I'm done.

Another one is 0, this will be the death of me.

And so when you speak those words over your life, what

you're doing is you're flipping from being high

dehydroepiandrosterone to high cortisol, you're reinforcing the

object of your fear. Now, a growth oriented view of

stressful events. Could be this.

This looks like a setback. But God's going to use it to

increase my resilience and I can guarantee you whatever stress

you're facing. If you decide, you're going to

view the stress that way. This looks like a setback and I

wish this didn't happen. This is tough.

But God's going to use it to increase my resilience, God's

going to use it to help me become a better leader.

God's going to use it to make me stronger.

God's going to use this stressful situation in To cause

dehydroepiandrosterone to flood through my system, which will

stimulate the formation of new brain cells and then God's going

to deploy those brain cells for his purpose.

And that's sound good. Here's here's another way of a

growth-oriented view of stressful events.

I believe regardless of what I faced God is with me and he will

bring good out of it. I believe regardless of what I

faced God is with me and he will bring good out of it.

Come on Church stand with me I Believe come on let's Stand

Together. And that's a great practice run.

Now, what kind of dig deep and we got to give it all the guests

to. So on the count of three line by

like, just speak it out, like you believe it.

All right, one, two, three, I believe.

Regardless of what I faced God is with me and he will bring

good out of it again. I believe regardless of what I

faced God is with me and he will bring good.

Out of it, come on I believe regardless of what I faced God

is with me and he will bring good out of it one more time I

believe. Regardless of what I faced God

is with me and he will bring good out of it.

Did you hear? Did you feel anything?

Did you feel anything in your body when you're speaking that

out? You got goosebumps, that's your

body chemistry changing, that's dehydroepiandrosterone being

released into your system. That is called having a growth

oriented view of stressful events as a result of speaking

that out when we're facing stress, when we're experiencing

depression and anxiety and whatever has got us in the

wrapped around the axle in that moment when you speak these

words out I believe regardless of what I faced God is with me.

And he will bring good out of it and that's going to release

chemicals in your body to be able to create new brain cells

that God can deploy for his kingdom purposes.

Just, doesn't that sound great? Awesome.

Yeah. Go ahead, relax.

You've been fantastic. So the great thing is the Bible

is full of promises of God. Be strong and courageous, do not

be afraid or terrified because of them for the Lord, your God

goes with you. He will never leave you nor

forsake you when you speak that over your life, whatever stress

whatever depression. Whatever anxiety you may be

experiencing, you are releasing the right chemicals.

The way that God intended, the right ratio, lots of

dehydroepiandrosterone and you're keeping it the cortisol

at Bay, another passage do not Fear for I am with you do not be

dismayed for I am. Your God.

I will strengthen you and help you.

I will uphold you with my righteous hand and we speak that

over our lives. It helps us to keep the ratio

right of that neuro steroid that God puts within us.

And in that ratio, you will have greater capacity for persistence

in your ministry. Leadership, regardless of what

your face, knowing that God's going to bring good out of it.

You'll be more resilient. And I, you know, I've got to say

I think Christians can be the most resilient people on the

planet because of of the the fact that we've got so many

promises of God that helps us keep the ratio, right?

And we can turn off the news because we can You know that is

just going to suppress my immune system that is just going to

throw wood on the fire of my worry.

I'm just going to speak the promises of God of my life.

You have greatest Focus Superior problem solving skills.

It's much better to be in this orientation now.

Does it mean the the other orientation with cortisol is

high and dehydroepiandrosterone Angelo is the wrong?

No. It's just wrong to be there all

the time and we live in a culture that wants us to be

there all the time. You know, the me Tia, I don't

believe the media is necessary nefarious.

I think they just business people, they just have picked up

on the psychological psychological orientation of

humans that we are attracted to to fearful events, unusual

events novel events. So they're pumping out stuff all

the time to keep us and and and here's the key, whenever you

read a headline, you know, some dramatic headline if it's got

the words may or could in it, that's Signal because this this

met this depression could be the worst thing that we've ever

gotten. This whatever could be.

Maybe that's that's a site. Just turn it.

Turn it. Turn the volume down.

Turn the news off. You're not buying into that.

And this is where I love the the intersection of God's word and

scientific discovery. And before before I share this

point, I'm just going to hydrate for a moment.

Right. Do not be anxious about anything

but in everything by prayer and petition with Thanksgiving,

present your requests to God and the peace of God, which

transcends all understanding will guard your hearts.

And your minds in Christ, Jesus. now, for many, many years

decades of my life, I looked at this and I interpreted through a

metaphorical lens, it's like and the peace of God, which

transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your

minds, you know, your hearts, the core of your soul, your

spirit, you know, the core of who you are, your hearts and

your minds, your thinking process, he will guard your

hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. and then I read the

research that says when you have high dehydroepiandrosterone,

When you get the ratio in the way that God intended, the ratio

to be, most of the time, it is linked to reduced heart disease.

And reduced brain cell deterioration.

In fact, when you get this rate show the way God intended it to

be, most of the time you stimulate the formation, the

birth the beginning of new brain cells.

And so I read that scripture differently.

And I encourage you to read it differently to because it says

in the peace of God, which transcends all understanding

will literally God, your heart. People who have the ratio and

the right way most of the time it's been linked to less heart

disease reduced heart disease. And when you let the peace of

God, which transcends all understanding, it will guard

your minds. It will literally guard your

brain, your cognitive processes. When you get the ratio around

the right way, the got that God intended, most of the time.

Then that will God. Your brain.

And I'm telling you as we discover more about Alzheimer's

and Dementia and Parkinson's, I don't know about you but I want

my cognitive capacity to be guarded and God saying, you've

got a part to play in all of this.

Just make sure you keep the ratio.

The way I intended most of the time and use my scripture, use

my words to help you stay there. Be people of, I believe.

Regardless of what I faced God is with me.

And he will bring good out of it.

I praise you. because I am fearfully and your works, are

wonderful, and I know that full well We're moving in to a time

of decision. You know, I did this on Thursday

night, I want to do with you guys this morning.

If you could just reach under your chairs, grab a piece of

paper and the pin that's located there.

There's a quit. I'm just kidding.

There's not a quiz. You guys were reaching down your

like I felt like when I was listening to the sermon There's

some words thrown out there. There is some science thrown out

there and it took me back to high school science class and I

was like, is there a Scantron afterwards Maybe I'll do that

for a second service and put a real quiz there, but listen.

Each and every single one of you it if you don't catch anything,

I hope you catch this that you are fearfully and wonderfully

made that. You would also take the truth

that you are God's Masterpiece. You are his workmanship created

in Christ. Jesus to do good works which

shows me and tells me that you were created on purpose As an

individual, and for a purpose, all of you in here.

And it talks about, we're going to be dealing with stressful

events. Those things are going to

happen. Some of you are in the thick of

it right. Now you came in to church, And

you have a life event happen or or something was thrown at you,

or you're in a conflict right now.

You're in a stressful event and one of the things, dr.

West said, is, when you gotta change your perspective, you

gotta change your way of thinking a little bit.

Well, I would like you to consider this in this time of

decision. Change your point of view.

In order to do that, we need to go back to the beginning for

some of us. So real quick, what I want to do

in this moment is I want to talk to those of you who have started

an intimate personal relationship with Jesus, you

have declared that he is Lord and savior of your life, you've

stepped over the line, you got in that water and you were

washed your sins away and you're walking in a new life in Christ

right now. Just just you real quick.

I need you to go back to the beginning.

Change your perspective, I want you to go back to that moment

where it happens for some of you who is it was last week you made

that decision for Jesus for the first time for for some of you

it was a couple weeks ago or a couple months ago or last year

or man it was right in the beginning of the pandemic.

Maybe it's 20 years ago, I don't know what it was for you, but go

back to that moment. Remember that moment?

Remember when your heart was just so broken and you realize

that you couldn't do it by yourself and that you needed a

God, who can save you, who could rescue you, who could take your

place, who took your place on the cross, maybe for you, you

got on your knees and you pray to prayer.

You ask God to take over your life, go back to the moment.

You got in that water, whether it was here, maybe it was for

me. It was down in our gymnasium.

The it was up top through a window.

We had our baptistry up there. I can go back to that moment.

I can go back to walking out after youth group night at 17

years old, declaring Jesus, Lord, and Savior, my life and

going out in the parking lot. And just seeing all the stars in

the sky was a last one to leave the parking lot and I've never

felt closer to the Lord then that night on February 17 2006.

It changed me because it went from a moment of trying to do

life By myself to understanding that, I have a God who created

me to be fearfully and I'm wonderfully made to know that I

was his Masterpiece that he called me.

His son. Are you there?

Can you go back to your moment? In this time, wouldn't it when

the music starts maybe for you, your response is just to come

forward to get on your knees and just reflect and give God thinks

that he's brought that perspective back to you that.

Yes, life events are happening. Conflicts are happening, stress

is happening. But go back to the beginning and

say thank you, Jesus for rescuing me.

Thank you for saving me and just worship him.

For some of you can be on your knees, for some of you, it's

going to be at your chairs and you Your hands and worship and

you just declare thanks to God for the rest of you in this

room, maybe you haven't. Had that moment yet.

You can't go back to that moment because you've never stepped,

over the line. You to be honest, you're still

trying to do it on your own. And you're tough, you may be

strong. You made me not be as fit as me,

but you're strong. I'm telling you, you can't do it

on your own. It's impossible.

I'll just need to give you the end of the story.

You can't do it on your own. You can't do it on your own

strength. And so in this moment, maybe

today this Sunday in September is the day that you come back to

later in your life or your perspective changed where you

realize that you're not alone that you are fearfully and

wonderfully, made that you are his Masterpiece.

Listen, created in Christ, Jesus.

Today's the day you step over the line today's the day you get

in that water and you say it's not me.

I Lay My Life down and I come out of that grave.

Just like Christ did because he rescued me on the cross, he paid

the penalty of my sin and I can live in Freedom.

I would ask that you would consider that in just a little

bit when the music starts and you've never made that decision.

But today you want to do that. Brett scharnhorst is going to be

right there next to the baptistry today and he would

love to talk talk with you. I'm going to be right up there

next to him, because I think he's getting ready for a couple

baptisms this morning. So if you're like, hey, I don't

want to be alone. Listen, you won't be alone

because there's baptisms happening this service.

Where someone saying, today's my day, I go back to Church.

I pray that we're always a group of people that come in here and

we learn, we take new things in, but then we put it into action,

we walk out in faith, we walk out, knowing that we are not

alone. That Christ Jesus is with us.

He's got plans for our life. Those considered as you stand

your feet. Let's pray together.

Heavenly Father God, I give you. Thanks and praise for the son of

suffering. I give you.

Thanks and praise and The name of Jesus Christ that because of

him man are our weaknesses can be picked up, we can lean on

Jesus, we can lean on him in these situations that were going

through. Whether we just came out of a

stressful event whether we're in one or whether ones coming, we

know it's coming but God I pray that we can man just change our

mind, change our perspective let us go back to that moment where

you rescued us and you saved us. Maybe encourage us through that.

Lord, I pray for those who are walking in their own strength.

I pray got today that you would just impressing their hearts

that you have fearfully and wonderfully, made them, you've

created them and you and I pray Jesus, they have an experience

where they just say enough's enough, not doing this on my own

anymore, God that they would respond during this time in

Jesus name, I pray, amen.