How to Have REAL Security

I think today's topic may be the most important topic you ever hear in your entire life. I know I'm saying a lot, but you'll understand as we go. Today's topic is how to have real security.

Think about that. Everyone wants to feel secure, but we feel secure many times in things that actually are not going to last forever. For example, people talk about financial security and they are working hard to save their money in order that they can one day have financial security.

Welcome to becoming wiser with Dr. Robert A. Rohm, author and world renowned public speaker, as he shares stories involving his experiences and lessons learned in a good spirited, positive and fun way. Here's Dr. Robert A. Rome.

I think it's important that you handle your money wisely. I do think it's important that you stay out of bad debt and that you have good cash flow. Someone once said the formula for making sure you're okay financially is whatever it takes you to live. For example, let's say it takes you $5,000 a month to to live. And that would cover your food and your rent or your house note or your car and your insurance. That on the minimum you should have three months. But more carefully, you should have six months in reserves in order to be secure. So three months would be 15,000, simple math. And six months would be 30,000. So if you have somewhere between 15 and $30,000 in savings or in reserved.

Or stuffed in your mattress somewhere, you should be okay for three to six months. That's not perfect. That's just a guess. It's a guesstimate. It's a formula that many people rely on. I think that's pretty wise guessing. However, may I remind you that no one knows for sure what the future holds. I love the saying, yesterday's history, tomorrow's a mystery. The only thing we have today is the present. And that's why it's called a gift. Today is a gift. It is the present that we have just for today. But may I tell you something? Sooner or later you will not be able to to find real security in your money because you can't take it with you. Someone wisely said. I've never seen a U Haul trailer behind a hearse at a funeral. No one's able to take anything with them. We brought nothing into this world. We'll take nothing out. Money is a commodity. Money is something that we simply use on a daily basis. And it is important. But it's not everything. I love what Art Linklater once said. He said, I've had everything And I've had nothing. Everything's better. Well, even then though, you can't count on your finances to give you everything. Money can buy a house, but it can't buy a home. It can buy a bed, but it can't buy a good night's sleep. It can buy.

Details and information.

But it can't provide peace of mind. So let me just encourage you to realize that if your security is wrapped up in your finances, then you've wrapped up your security in the wrong thing. Then there are relationships. You might have a mom or dad or a brother or sister, a wife or husband. Relatives. May I tell you something? Just want to remind you they're not going to live forever. And neither are you and neither am I. I've lost both of my parents. If my security had been wrapped up in my parents, I wouldn't have any more security because they're gone. All my aunts and uncles loved them growing up. Aunt Merle and Uncle Chuck, Aunt Charlie and Aunt Nell. Grab my grandparents. Granny and grandpapa. We all have names that we call them. Sis and Frank, Aunt and uncle, Uncle Everett, Sarah.

They'Re. They're all gone. I'm next in my family.

You say, oh, doctor, that's so scary to talk about. Well, do you think it's not going to happen? Do you think I'm going to live forever? 100 billion years from now, I'll still be around, but everybody else in my family will be dead. I'm 74 years old. I'm going to live to be 88. I at least have that as a target date. I'm planning on living to be 88. That was my football number in high school and college. So that's what I'm shooting for. Do I know I'm going to make it? I do not. So you see, my security is not wrapped up in my age, my health or my family. My security is not wrapped up in anything that I can tangibly touch. Let me tell you a story as to how I woke up to this years ago. There's a story in the Bible and you've heard of King David. You know the story of David and Goliath? David was the one that was a shepherd boy. Well, when Samuel. Samuel was the local preacher or the local prophet. Samuel was told by God, go to the house of Jesse. Jesse has eight sons.

One of his sons will be the next king of Israel. Saul had been the king, but Saul was pretty hard headed. And Saul would not listen to God. Saul would not listen to Samuel. Saul didn't Listen to anybody except Saul. I know you and I have never been like that, but you could just imagine Saul was pretty self centered and had his mind made up about this is what I want to do and I'm going to do it. Well, that didn't work very well, especially when it came to learning to follow God. Because sometimes God leads us down roads that we've never been down before and we're unsure of. And I want to add just one more thing before I continue with this story. When I say the word God or when I say the word Father, please don't let that scare you. You see, our earliest formation of who is God and what is our Father, our heavenly Father, we pretty much get from our earthly father. Even when we begin to form some kind of understanding about who God is, we sort of superimpose our earthly father. If you had no earthly father, God may seem distant to you. If you had a very controlling father, God may seem controlling to you. My wife had the most loving, kind, gentle, highest, supportive father. She sees God as loving and kind and supportive. Well, is there any, is there any wonder that's what she grew up with as her father? So then we have to find out, well, who is the true God? Who is the true father? This is so powerful if you'll get it. So Samuel was sent to the house of Jesse to anoint one of his sons, the next king of Israel. Samuel got to the house and he started looking over the sons and he looked at the first one and the second one and the third one. And he kept looking at them.

And none of them were the one that he had been sent to anoint and to appoint.

After going through seven of them, he started counting. Wait a minute. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. He looked at Jesse and said, are these all of your sons? I'm just double checking. Jesse said, well, no, there is one more. He's the youngest, but he's not here. He's out keeping sheep. Now. Don't miss this.

Jesse, the father, thought so little of his son David, he didn't even invite him to the event. When's the last time your family had an event and they left you out? They invited everybody. You didn't get an invitation. That's pretty harsh, isn't it? Jesse thought, well, it's not him. He's the youngest. He's the runt of the litter. Couldn't be him.

Jesse said, go get him. We will not sit down until he arrives. They went and got David. Perhaps you know the story. They brought him into the house. Samuel took one look at him and said, this is the one. And he took the oil and poured it on his head. It was a sign of God's anointing on his life. And he said, you will be the next king of Israel. Now he was just a young kid when that happened, probably a teenager. And he didn't actually take the throne.

For 20 years. During that time, he had to learn a lot about how to be a king. It so happens that he served under King Saul. I used to wonder about that. Why did he Serve Saul for 20 years? Finally I learned. As I was growing in my faith, he was learning what not to be like. Remember what I said earlier? Saul was very much self centered, self reliant and hard headed. David was God. I want to follow you. I want you to lead me. Show me how to live my life. Show me what to do. He was very compliant. He was very moldable and makeable. That's why we know David was a man. You've heard it. After God's own heart, David's attitude was, yes, yes, yes. What was the question? Guide me, teach me. Later in his life, he wrote Psalm 27. In Psalm 27, he says this. Even if my mother and my father forsake me, the Lord will lift me up. May I tell you where you get your real, true identity? You get your real, true security. It's from God. It's knowing that you have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You put your trust in him. He knows you. He created you. He knows you. He has birthed you. You've heard the expression, you need to be born again. You have been born one time physically. If you're looking at me and I'm looking at you, we've been born physically. But when you put your trust and faith in Christ, you're born again spiritually. Someone wisely said, if you're born once, you'll die twice. You die physically and then you die when you're separated from God forever. But if you are born twice, you'll only die once. When you've been born once physically and once spiritually, then you'll only die once. And that's your physical death. Because you'll never die spiritually. Jesus said, verily, verily, I say unto you, he who believes in me has eternal life and is passed from death unto life. So where do I get my real security? I have a little sign. Please feel free to do this. Create your own sign. I taught this to a group of high school kids in the 1980s. One of them, his Name was Reagan Smith. Reagan was a artist as well as a great student. Reagan made me a sign. I have it. It says, I am Robert Rome. I am God's child. All my needs are met in Christ. I'll say that again. Do you have that? You ought to write that down. I am. And just put your name there. Mine says, I am Robert Rome. I am God's child. All my needs are met in Christ. Just a simple 3 by 5 card. Please write that down and keep it somewhere. I am. Put your name there. I am God's child. If you've put your faith and trust in Jesus to be your savior, you're God's child. All my needs are met in Christ. So where is true security found? It's not found in money. It's not found in relationships. And as I have alluded to in this podcast, I'm not going to live forever and neither are you. So it's not found in our health. Do you realize how much time, effort and energy people put on trying to make money, trying to find good relationships, trying to develop good relationships and trying to grow a business and trying to make money and trying to find out, how should I eat? I need to eat in a healthy manner. I need to take vitamins. I need to exercise.

Are you going to live forever? Are you going to have relationships that last forever? Are you going to have money that will take you throughout eternity? The answer to all those is a big fat no. You're not going to live forever. Your relationships will come to an end. If you have the greatest marriage in the world and I am happily married, one day it'll end. Either I'll leave the stage or she will. One of us will pass away and then the other one will no longer have the security of a marriage. It doesn't matter. And I'm not trying to scare you. I'm trying to encourage you. I'm trying to wake you up, put the emphasis on the correct syllaba. It's not your health, it's not your wealth. It's not your relationships. It's not your business. It's something that will last forever. You see, a hundred billion, trillion gazillion years from now, I'll still be Robert Rome. I'm God's child. All my needs are met in Christ. That's the one thing that will last forever. And that's where I get my true security. Now, just a couple of heads up. I realize in growing up and being part of a family, there are bumps along the way. Sometimes somebody in the family Mistreats you. Sometimes your mom or dad say something. You do not have perfect parents because they don't exist. I have four grown daughters. I'm not a perfect parent. I'd like to be a good dad. A little grandfather. It doesn't last forever. One day it'll be over. You'll hear the big quote. Elvis has left the building. Well, that's true of all of us. What am I trying to say to you? Listen carefully. There's only one person you will ever have to give account to.

I know you may get sued. You may have to go to a court and there may be some kind of judgment. I've seen that I've been involved in that that comes to an end. The one that will last forever is when you stand before God and the one question God's going to ask you is why should I let you into heaven? I trust that you understand the answers. I put my faith in Jesus, that he died and rose again. My identity and who I am was wrapped up in him. And you'll be able to say, like me, I'm Robert Rome. I'm God's child. You'll just insert your name there. I'm God's child. All my needs are met in Christ. I hope that's been helpful for you today. I hope you'll take the time to think about this. I want to say this in a humble manner. I'm probably the most secure person you'll ever meet in your life. I just. I just love me. I love life. I love you. I love what I do for a living because I have my moorings.

Tied up correctly in things that will count for eternity. Who I am and who you are and what I do is not wrapped up in money. It's not wrapped up in an eternal relationship. We just live on this earth a certain period of time. It's not my health. It's none of those things. Make sure you keep the main thing. The main thing I am. Put your name right there. I am God's child. All my needs are met in Christ. Write that down. Say it several times today. Look at it on the three by five card. One day you'll start believing it and you'll find the greatest security that is possible in this lifetime. Hope this has been helpful. Look forward to seeing you on our next podcast. Thanks for joining us. I'm Dr. Robert Rome. Hope you have a great day. God bless you.

For more information about this podcast, please visit www.becoming wiserpodcast.com.