0:00Episode 3939, man shall not live on bread alone. Mom's, it's time to rediscover, rejuvenate and renew whom you are in mind, body, and spirit. Welcome to Create Your Now, Your Best Selfie, the show that help you do just that. Here's your host, Certified Life Coach, Personal Trainer, and Nutritionist, Christian Wargo. Happy every day, get excited because this is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. It is a brand new week. So whatever happened yesterday, bye-bye. And I have to worry about it. You can create your now right now with your Heavenly Father. And you got to remember always, man shall not live on bread alone. For those of you who are brand new to Create Your Now, welcome to this incredible family. I'm so delighted of your presence. If you already even have the opportunity, you'll want to head on over to CreateYourNow.com where you can learn more and sign up for the Kids' Newsletter. They keep its simple strategy, everyday solutions, to live, love, and impact.

1:01Well, how was last week for you? First full week of January. Now you're in your second full week of January about ready to branch off in the craziness and can you believe it? It's almost mid-January. Where does time go? You know, I always remember my grandma saying, man, just time flies. I can't get it to slow down. The problem is there's been a rhythm to time since the very beginning. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. From that point, He set time into motion. It hasn't changed. The sun comes up and goes down. The moon comes up and goes down. We circle around, right? And we see the stars come and go and all of the stuff of life that we live. But yet somehow, we still want to control it. What didn't work for you last week, seriously? What do you wish you could have a do-over all over again?

2:02I know I have a few of those. Maybe you shared some words with a child or a spouse. You're like, ah, if I could just take that back. Oh, but once what it's out there, it's gone, right? You can't change it. But I do think we look at our lives and we think I can do this. I'm strong enough. I know what to do. And yeah, it makes sense if you're going to school, right? And you have to get a certain certification. You have to take certain classes or if you want to go to med school or law school, right? You have to go through certain things in order to get to that next step. Those things, yes, you can control those. But you can't control what God gives you or what God takes away. You know, one of the most powerful moments of Jesus' life when he was tested in the wilderness. And you can find this in Matthew 4 verses 1 through 10. We're talking about this today. He faced raw human hunger. The devil tempted him with a straightforward challenge. Turn these stones into bread.

3:02After all, Jesus is hungry after fasting for 40 days and 40 nights. Wouldn't you be? Of course you'd be hungry. Have you ever done a 30-day fast or longer fast I have? Non-actuality for me personally, I felt a lot better. But that doesn't mean that there's not that hunger, that desire of I want something of sustenance. The need was real. The desire immediate. Yet Jesus' response cut deeper than physical need. It is written, he said, man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. My friend, that reply is not just about hunger or sustenance. It's not about just feeding your tummy. It's a declaration about the source of true life. You see, physical bread near sustenance will not sustain us fully. We kind of think it does. I mean, we can make homemade bread or go down to the bakery or worse. We go into the grocery store and pull out some bread, right? That's on the shelf. That's not going to sustain us.

4:04It's going to fade. It's going to go, whether we excrete it, whether we serve our body with more energy or whether we store it for fat later. You see, life itself draws from something higher, something eternal. God's word. And I've been really thinking about how I have been paying attention to my Heavenly Father. I have this desire to be in the word more. I want to hear Him more. And I'm not one that claims to be a pastor, that claims to be a theologian. I'm not any of those. I'm a person who wants to have God's heart and lead my life with God's heart. His intention's not mine. And there are moments I get it spot on, and then there are many other moments that I fail. And so I begin thinking and digging deeper. I'm actually reading the Jewish Bible.

5:05I'm reading the NIV, the King James. There are many different versions. I compare them. Make sure that whatever Bible you're reading, that it is actually translated appropriately. There are Bibles out there, including online, that are not the Bible. They're changing them. So just beware. I just caution you. But what happens when we demand our own bread, the way we want it? How often do we approach God like that temptation? We come with our desires. Our stones. Hoping He'll just turn them into bread for us. What we want. We ask for answers that fit our timetable for blessings that suit our preferences and for control over our circumstances that comfort us. But living by bread alone is a hollow existence. And it's easy to confuse God's promises with our own plans. Oh, I know God wants me to do this. It's my purpose here on life. Okay, your purpose here on earth, for your life, what does that really look like? What does that mean?

6:05How did that come to you? I think we need to ask harder questions and dig deeper. Because honestly, we want the quick fixes. We want the drive through fast food answer. We want the easy wins. Or we want this sign, like strike me with lightning, but not exactly, that confirm what we've already decided. Like, yes, I got this. Now, I'm not saying God doesn't leave breadcrumbs. Right, this one thing I have always called God's Godwinks is that they're breadcrumbs from heaven. And if you're looking for them, you'll see them. But it's not just because, oh, this is what I want. And that's all you're looking for. The breadcrumbs from heaven come in all shapes and sizes. And it's in these moments where we get confused of what we want and what God desires for us. Where we ask him to say, well, wait, we want you to serve us

7:06the way we want to be served. Not what you want, Lord, which I know is going to grow and stretch us accordingly. But what if we asked for God to give us the desires of his heart and mean it genuinely? Not just kind of be like, oh, you know, Lord, yeah, if it's your will, I mean, that comes out a lot in prayers. And I'm not saying don't say that. I'm not saying that at all. I'm challenging you to dig deeper because I'm challenging myself. You see, God wants us to grow. That's why He created us. We are creators ourselves. He wants us to learn. He wants us to be stretched. We're His creation. And we are created to create. I mean, imagine flipping the script, asking God not to bless our own agenda, but to birth His divine desires. He places on our hearts.

8:06I mean, now, I know it sounds risky, doesn't it? Because you're like, well, I really want the $2 million power ball or whatever it is right now. But yeah, I don't know that I'll really get it because it's kind of quote unquote a gamble. It's just kind of risky to go and spend $1,000 on that to up my, you know, possibility of being able to win it all. And it would change my life forever. Yeah, but it's risky, isn't it? But see, God wants us to risk our life with Him differently. Not placing a gamble might go in and buy in a power ball. But releasing our control and giving it to Him, meaning surrender. And we don't like that. Because honestly, we want control. And that's a hard thing to do.

9:07And to a degree, control is good, but not in the manner that we most of the time utilize it. So, you know, this whole surrender, what does it mean? It means stepping into uncertainty and being patient. But it also means aligning yourself with the source of wisdom, right? With God Himself, His purpose, His plans for your life, and the peace that only He can give, not because you win the power ball, not because you have a better job or a promotion, not because your kids are perfect. No, because He is. And when we pursue God's desires, not just our hunger, life begins to shift. Our decisions become less about control and more about trust. Our actions grow out of faith, not fear. Walk by faith, not by sight. And our hopes align with His promises and our struggles gain meaning beyond temporary pain.

10:13But a lot of times we're just trying to do it all by ourselves, our own strength, our own control, our own knowledge. We look to what somebody else has done and we think, oh, I can go do that too. There are some things, yes, we can learn, but let me tell you everything that you need to know is in the Bible. Breaking bread with God will change your life, not crafting it out of control and trying to do everything out of your own strength. So as the New Year unfolds, I want you to ask yourself this tough, essential question, and it is, and it's when I'm asking it myself. So I'm not asking you to do something that I'm not doing. Will you break bread with God, spending time in His Word, resting in His promises, and embracing His timing, and to what degree? Or are you just going to try to make your own bread, forcing solutions out of desperation,

11:16control, and frustration? See, Jesus modeled something so rare, and you could even say revolutionary too. In the wilderness there, despite hunger and hardship, He chose obedience over expedience. God could do anything He wanted, right? So could Jesus, right? God the Father, God the Son, who's Jesus, God the Holy Spirit. Jesus could have turned anything He wanted. If He was hungry, He could have taken those stones and made them bread. He didn't ever have to be hungry, but you see, there was something bigger there. And later in Matthew 4, verse 10, Jesus says this, worship the Lord, your God, and serve Him only. That choice isn't about perfection, but commitment, dedication, to trust God even when the easier path beckons.

12:19I know there's temptations out there. And Satan is so good at stringing us along. And it's a spiritual battle we fight. But one thing we can do to change the path that we're on is knowing who we look to. Like I said, I don't have all the answers. This comes from my experience, me living out and trying to walk with God, and letting Him be the leader of my life. Creature now didn't come from me, it came from Him. Because everything I do, I want to come from Him. Creature now, it's being in step with God. Walking with what Jesus did, and what He commands us to do, knowing that the Holy Spirit resides within us, God is with us, Emmanuel. Just because the holidays are over, don't forget who reigns.

13:23But we have a tendency. We put the Christmas tree away, and we also put God in a box. And we're like, oh, this was great. Now we don't say that, but our actions speak that. We try to go back to the old ways. I'm like, oh, this feels good. I feel good about this decision. I want to know, and more importantly, I want you to know, what are you truly hungry for? Ask yourself some of these questions, as I've been doing with myself. And let me tell you, I wrestle with them. Have those hard conversations with God. What desires drive the prayers you bring before God? What are you asking for? Is it only based out of what you think you should have? Are they merely for comfort and security? Or are they for the deeper calling God has placed on your life?

14:24And where do you need clarity about your purpose, your decisions, even your faith, what you really believe? Proverbs 3, verses 5 through 6, trust in the Lord with all my heart, and lean not into thine own understanding. And all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Most of the time, what are we doing? We're holding God by our reigns. And saying, take me here, Lord. You're kind of putting it into Apple Maps or Google Maps going, this is where I want to go right here. Take me to this point, Lord. Instead of saying, Lord, where do you want me to go? I was sitting down doing some study, and as I told you before, I'm reading the Jewish Bible in conjunction with the NIV and the King James,

15:25and I go, and it's interesting. It fascinates me, and I'm looking at some words going, like, what does this mean? I got to dig into it. And it may be only a verse or two, and I dig in more. But you see, God is revealing that my home is the home that I think I'm supposed to have. And the word home here is being used as a greater word, not the house that you have. It could mean that too. But a lot of times, they're trying to create this home. This is what I want to feel like. This is what I want to look like. This is who I want to be. This is who I want to be known as in my community. This is how I want my children to see me. This is how I want my family to recognize how awesome I am. But are you really giving what you're supposed to be giving and surrendering all of yourself to God, which means your whole heart?

16:27Trust in the Lord with all thine heart. Don't give him just a piece or two. Don't let him try to kind of fit in these nooks and crannies going, okay, I'll give you this part, Lord, but I'm going to hold this here. Because, well, I just don't trust you. The home you're creating, it may be great. But what if God's home is better? Well, I'm here to remind you I guarantee you it is. And it may not be what your earthly heart desires, but let me tell you anything that God gives your heavenly heart will desire soon. But you have to be willing. Living by every word from God's mouth means more than memorizing scripture or reciting verses. Yeah, that's good. I get it. But there's more to that. It means letting his truth sculpt your desires, shape your choices, and to stain you when the stones of life look scarce and hard.

17:34This year, my friend, break bread with God. Let him feed your soul first and watch out every other hunger that you have, that hunger for your home you're trying to create, it'll all fall into place. Because you just don't need bread to live. You need God's word to create your now and truly live. Go in peace, be present, be incredible, be you. I love you so very much. I cannot wait to see you on the other side, blessing tags and lots of love. We'll talk to you real soon. Have a glorious blessed week. Love you. Bye-bye.