Who’s Driving Your Life?

We ask a blunt question that exposes where our control, pride, and worldly desires quietly run the show. Using James 4 and everyday stories, we talk about surrendering the wheel to God so peace starts inside before it shows up outside. 
• James 4 as a mirror for fights, selfish motives, and unanswered prayers 
• The GPS lesson on ignoring direction then blaming everyone else 
• Envy and conflict starting in the heart before it spills into relationships 
• Loyalty and allegiance, what it means to be a friend of the world 
• Attention as a compass for affection, what truly consumes us 
• Submitting to God before resisting temptation, closing the “open door” 
• Slander, judgment, and social media turning opinions into weapons 
• Cleaning the window as a picture of checking our own lens 
• Planning with humility, treating tomorrow as a gift not a guarantee 
If you have not visited the website, www.forechristministry.com, and um just opened up a new business called uh Get Right Family Services, and um we do spiritual counseling, we uh we offer life insurance, annuities, and um other fun things. 
If you're in the state of Georgia or South Carolina, I will be licensed in more states soon. 
And if you want to get on the podcast or you simply want us to pray for you, please shoot me a message or give me a call, 706-267-1467. 
So make sure that uh I mean, you can get in as a founder and member and make a bunch of money and take your supplements. 
but you can visit my website www.tranont.com/berob 
Check it out.

Transcript

Salute To The Misfits

SPEAKER_00 0:00

It is to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the ones who see the world differently, who don't fit neatly into boxes, and refuse to live by someone else's script. You can quote them, you can disagree with them, you can glorify them or vilify them, you can shake your head at their ideas or be inspired by their courage. But the one thing you cannot do is ignore them. Because they change things. They disrupt what's comfortable, they challenge what's normal, and they push the human race forward. Sometimes with loud revolutions, sometimes with quiet persistence that changes everything over time. They see possibility where others see limits. They dare to dream out loud when the world tells them to be silent. They take risks, they stumble, they rise again, and they keep going. Not because it's easy, but because they can't imagine doing anything else. These are the ones who remind us that every great leap forward was once considered impossible. So here's to them: the ones who won't sit down, won't be quiet, and won't stop until the world is different. Because they're the reason it will be.

Sponsor Message And Welcome

SPEAKER_04 1:51

Taking care of your body matters. That's why I've partnered with TrayNot. Traynaut offers high-quality supplements designed to support your energy and overall wellness. So if you want to feel better and stay consistent, go to traynaut.com forward slash B-rob. That's traynaught.com forward slash B-rob.

SPEAKER_01 2:19

Hello, we would like to welcome you to the Food for Thought FaceCast with my husband, your host, B-Rob. So without further ado, here's B-Rub.

Who’s Driving Your Life?

SPEAKER_02 2:54

Y'all hear that?

SPEAKER_04 2:57

Y'all hear that? Y'all hear that? That's my Ben Ben. He's home. He had him surgery yesterday. He had his man hood cut off. But he's home and he's doing good. He's sleeping. Um God is good. God is good. How y'all doing today on this Saturday morning? I'm doing blessed. I got an appointment to write up some insurance, some life insurance at 1 o'clock in Jackson, South Carolina, South Kakilacy. And it's a beautiful day, and I'm just gonna tell you, we got a good one for you today. We got a good one for you today. I got a question for you. The question is the title to the episode. Who's really driving your life? Let me let me ask you again. Who is really driving your life? So, guys, whether you're driving to work, whether you're just sipping on some coffee, chilling on your porch, lunch break, whatever. I'm just grateful that you're here listening. Because today's episode is one that doesn't just encourage us, it's gonna confront us. We're gonna look at uh James chapter four today. And in this chapter, James doesn't just tiptoe around our issues. He's gonna ask questions that uh make us uncomfortable. Like, why do we fight? Like, why aren't your prayers being answered? Like, who are you really living for? And the biggest question, who's sitting in the driver's seat? Who's sitting in the driver's seat of your life? So, guys, let's jump in. If you have your Bible, uh turn it to James 4. And let's just start from the beginning.

James 4 On Fights And Motives

SPEAKER_04 5:36

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet, but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and you fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive. Because you ask with the wrong motives that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. Man, that's that's calling it out, right?

The GPS Story And Blame

SPEAKER_04 6:25

So let's go back to my GPS, right? Imagine getting in your car and you type in your destination, right? Into your GPS or your phone or whatever. It immediately tells you you're going down the street, you need to take a left. Well, what happens if you take a right? Well, the GPS recalculates. It says to make a U-turn. What happens when you ignore it? And you keep ignoring it, and you just go your way. Eventually you get lost, eventually you get frustrated, you're gonna be late. And then what do you do? You blame traffic, you blame construction, you blame everything else, or everybody else except yourself. Maybe it was your spouse calling because they needed to ask a question and interrupted the GPS, and then you failed to listen to the GPS. You see, the moral to that story there is the GPS never stopped knowing the directions or the way or the destination. But you simply stopped listening, you got distracted. That's how James 4 starts out. Because many of us blame everyone else for the chaos in our lives while we ignore God's direction, while we ignore God's spirit. And the funny thing is, is we ask God to bless roads, He never told you to travel on. You know? Because sometimes our biggest battle isn't with other people, it's with our own worldly, fleshly desires. James says the war starts inside of us before it ever shows up outside of us. Think about that. So it's not everything else's fault. It starts within you. James says it right here in the scripture. It starts because selfish desires are fighting inside of our hearts. I mean, think about it. How often we think, well, if my spouse changed, or if my boss changed, or if this world changed and politics changed, or if my church changed, then I'd have peace. But that's not the moral to the story. James says no, peace begins when you surrender your heart. I remember back when my kids were small.

Desires Start Wars Within Us

SPEAKER_04 10:11

Like toddlers. Let's say Mackenzie was four, and Brooks was one because he basically came out a toddler. He was a big old boy. They had everything they ever wanted. They had toys, toys, more toys. And I remember they had all these toys. But they always fought over one toy. You want to know why? Because all these toys laying around, none of them were playing with it, right? But then the moment one picks one up, whoever it was, Brooks or Mackenzie, say McKenzie picks something up to start playing with it, Brooks automatically wanted it. And vice versa. Do you see? And we as adults, we're no different. You see somebody else playing with it, oh, I want that. Look at adults, look at us. That toy becomes bigger, it becomes money, it becomes attention, it becomes recognition. A lot of times it's it's just about being right. Same toys, they just get a lot more expensive. Same concept, same moral. Now let's go back to scripture. Look at James 4 through 6. You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world means hostility towards God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. But he gives us more grace. That's why the scripture said God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

Kids, Toys, And Adult Envy

SPEAKER_04 12:32

Those are some strong words. That's a strong scripture. That's some of the strongest words James uses in the entire scripture. Because if you look at it, it's harsh at first, right? But James is not talking about whether you own nice things or enjoy life. He's talking about allegiance, loyalty. Who has your heart? What kingdom are you building? Because this world says to promote yourself. God says to humble yourself. This world says to get even. God says to forgive. This world says you're enough. God says without me you can't do anything. Let's go back to the GPS. You cannot follow two different maps that are going in two different completely directions and expect to arrive at the same destination. Now you can take different routes to get there, yes. But if you want to go east, you can't go west to get there. If you want to go north, you can't go south to get there. I mean, for the guys, think about it this way. I know some of some people out here like think about fantasy football. They spend hours, hours managing a fantasy football team. They study statistics, they watch injury reports, they listen to podcasts, they change their lineups, they trade players, they're basically coaching on paper. Why? Because they want to win. They want to win. Now take that same amount of energy and manage your soul with it, manage your spirituality with it. Imagine checking your heart as often as you check your notifications or your lineup. Imagine praying before every decision you make or every post you make on Facebook. Imagine asking God before making a decision

Worldly Loyalty Versus God

SPEAKER_04 15:28

instead of asking social media or chat GPT. You see, James doesn't condemn your hobbies. He's condemning what consumes you. He's asking a simple question. Because I keep saying it, whatever consistently gets your attention often gets your deepest affection, right? I just say it differently. Whatever's in your mind, your heart will follow, right? Where your treasure is, your heart is.

Managing Your Soul Like Fantasy Football

SPEAKER_04 16:20

So whatever consistently gets your attention is going to get your deepest affection as well. Let's move on.

Submit First, Then Resist

SPEAKER_04 16:30

James 4, 7 through 10. Submit yourselves then to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up. You see, there's an order there. James doesn't say go fight the devil first. Nope. What does he say first? He says, Submit yourself to God. You see, that's the most important thing. You see, a lot of believers spend all their energy rebuking darkness while obeying obedience. But you don't realize the greatest weapon against temptation, it's not louder prayers. It's not deeper surrender. Think about something. Think about something. I want you to think about this story, okay?

Close The Door On Temptation

SPEAKER_04 17:43

Think about if you had mosquitoes filling up your house every single night. It's summertime. You buy bug spray, you buy bombs, you buy fancy traps, you buy all kinds of crazy stuff. Nothing works. Then a friend, maybe I come over. And I'm like, dude, the back door's wide open. And you're in here fighting mosquitoes. You're but you got back doors wide open. You see, sometimes we fight symptoms when God is telling us to close that door. Maybe that door is bitterness. Maybe that door is pride. Maybe it's pornography. Maybe it's gossip. Maybe it's unforgiveness. Maybe it's a relationship with something you know is not healthy. Maybe it's an addiction. But James says, come close to God, not because he's moved. Not because he is moved. Not because he took off, he went on vacation. God didn't move away. Guess what? Reality is there. God never left, we did. God never left, we did. We got so consumed with the things of this world that we forgot what was important. The most important thing. Now let's carry

Slander, Judgment, And Social Media

SPEAKER_04 19:46

on. Verses eleven through twelve. Brothers and sisters do not slander one another. It's amazing how easy it is to evaluate everybody else, right? We become professional everything when the subject comes up. It don't matter if it's something to do with a law. We become professional lawyers. We become professional everything. Society makes us that way. Isn't that crazy? How easy it is to evaluate everybody else's life. Like we become professional critics. I mean, we judge people from 30-second clips. We do. It's wild. You see, social media has made people's opinions feel like spiritual gifts. I'm gonna say that right now. That's why I don't get on it much anymore. But people actually think they have gifts of intuition because of social media. And it's not about that. Because James reminds us right there in the scripture. He reminds us that there's only one lawgiver. Let me let me let me read it. Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but you are sitting in judgment on it. There is only one lawgiver and judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you who are you? To judge your neighbor.

SPEAKER_03 22:09

That's rough. That's rough. That's seriously rough.

SPEAKER_04 22:19

You want to know why? Because every single one of us is guilty of this. And if you say, oh, that's not me, then you need to check your arrogance and your ego at the door. Every single one of us, including myself, is very guilty of that. Let me give you, let me give you a story.

Clean The Window, Change The Lens

SPEAKER_04 22:44

Let me give you an example. There was a woman, she looked out her window, kitchen window, every morning while she was doing the dishes and complained that her neighbor's laundry and how it was never clean. Every day she criticized it. Every morning. Let's say it's hanging up, right? That's how she's saying it. So you young kids don't know about that. It's hanging up in the yard. And believe it or not, country folk still do this. I've seen it recently. Hanging up in the yard, right? She sees it every morning, complains about how dirty it is. One morning she looked through the same window and suddenly they were bright, white, clean as they can be. She ran to tell her husband. He smiled. He simply said, I cleaned the window this morning. You guys see, sometimes the problem isn't what we're looking at. Sometimes the problem, it's the lens that we're looking through. Where we are coming from, that lens, it changes everything, right? You see, God wants you to clean your heart before He changes your perspective or lens sometimes.

Planning Without Leaving God Out

SPEAKER_04 24:38

Verses 13 through 17. Now listen, you who say, today or tomorrow, we will go to this or that city. Why you don't even know what will happen tomorrow. Instead, you ought to say, if the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that. You see, James isn't saying don't make goals here. Don't make plans. He's saying, don't leave God out of your plans. You ever looked at your schedule, your calendar, and thought, man, I'm booked for the next three weeks. Meetings, appointments, vacations, birthdays, projects, everything is in place for three weeks. Sounds like a typical summer, right? For a typical mother or dad or, you know, family. Everything's planned out. That one expected phone call happens, changes everything. It could be a diagnosis, it could be a death, it could be a layoff. It also could be an answered prayer. I guess what I'm getting at here is life reminds us every day how little control that we actually have. You see, we plan like we're guaranteed tomorrow. The scripture, James says tomorrow's a gift. It's not a guarantee. Does he say that to scare you, put fear in you? No, no, no, no. It's meant to free you. Think of that. Every day is a gift, then every day is worth living. If every day is a gift, every day is worth living. And if every day is a gift from God, every day is worth living for his name and his glory. Right? So James 4 asked one simple question. And that question is life changing. Who is really in charge

Let God Take The Wheel

SPEAKER_04 27:24

of your life? Who is really in charge of your life? Is it your ambition? Is it your emotions? Is it your pride? Is it your schedule? Is it your business? Is it your comfort? Or is it God? You see, where we get it twisted is a lot of times we think submission is weakness, but it's not. Submission is not weakness. What submission is is trust. Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking of yourself less and thinking of God more. You see, there's a promise to this as well, a promise from God, and you know he keeps his promises. It's tucked right into this chapter, and a lot of people read right over it. It says, Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. This is food for thought. This is life lessons. This is wisdom. This is knowledge. Listen. For those who have ears to hear, let them hear. It doesn't say get your life perfect first. It doesn't say go fix yourself. What does it say? It simply says, come closer, draw near. You want to know why? Because every step that you take toward him is met with grace. And John reminds us right here in the scripture, he gives more grace. Not just once, more. He gives grace for your failures. He gives grace for your doubts. He gives grace for your fears. He gives you grace so you can take that next step. So, guys, here's today's food for thought. I want you to look at one area in your life where you've been holding the wheel, the steering wheel, so tight that you forgot that you had a driver. You forgot God. I want you to look at that one area. It could be your finances, it could be your family, it could be your self. It could be your career. Maybe it's a dream you had. Maybe it's pain and hurt that you refuse to release. I want you to look at that. Let God take that steering wheel. This week, don't just pray for God to bless you. Ask Him to shape you. Don't just resist temptation. Don't just resist it. Submit to God first. Don't just criticize and judge others. Ask God to clean your windows. Peel those scales back over your eyes. And please do not wait to draw near to him. Because today is the day. If you don't have a relationship, you need to get right. Let's go to the Lord in prayer.

Prayer And Final Invitations

SPEAKER_04 31:48

Dear Heavenly Father, dear Papa, thank you for just loving us enough to slap us upside the head and confront us, Lord. Thank you for giving us grace, Lord, that we deserve. Thank you for the times that we've chased everything of the world instead of your presence, and you reminded us. You taught us to humble ourselves before you. Thank you for those teachings, those blessings, that wisdom. Thank you for helping us submit every area of our lives to you. We pray that you continue to do that and work on all of us. Lord, thank you for showing us doors that need to be closed. And thank you for the courage to actually close them. Lord, we pray that you give us strength to speak life into someone instead of death. Speak goodness instead of judgment. Speak trust instead of fear. Lord, we trust you with tomorrow because we know that we are not promised that. Because, Lord, we know that when we seek you, you are faithful to meet us where we are. We thank you for your grace. We thank you for your mercy. We thank you for your love. We ask all these things in the mighty, matchless name of Yeshua, Jesus the Christ. It's in his heavenly name wash us by the blood. Amen and hallelujah. Well, guys, thank you for tuning in today. If you have not visited the website, www.forechristministry.com, and um just opened up a new business called uh Get Right Family Services, and um we do spiritual counseling, we uh we offer life insurance, annuities, and um other fun things. If you're in the state of Georgia or South Carolina, I will be licensed in more states soon. And if you want to get on the podcast or you simply want us to pray for you, please shoot me a message or give me a call, 706-267-1467. And if you're into peptides, uh my business, Tranat, is launching Bell MD on July 1st. So make sure that uh I mean, you can get in as a founder and member and make a bunch of money and take your supplements. I mean, that's up to you. I don't do the synthetic thing, but I I love our supplements, our holistic one. So that's a good thing, but you can visit my website www.trainot.com forward slash B Rob B-E-R-O-B. Check it out. The NAD Plus is amazing, the Mojo coffee is amazing, the daily health system is amazing, and I'm only 163 pounds because of it, and I feel great. So get right, get healthy, and um get right with life, but most importantly, get right with God. I love you guys. God bless you guys. Have a safe and blessed weekend. God bless.