JOE: Welcome to FJM TV. I'm Joe Jordan with Fred Jordan
Missions. And, you know, there's not a better place in my mind
than being on the roof here at Fred Jordan Mission. As you look
behind me, you see the City of Angels. Yes, that's Los Angeles,
a great city that has been here for hundreds of years, and this
building has been here about a hundred years, because Fred
Jordan Mission has been serving those in need in Jesus' name for
nearly that amount of time. And, you know, today, as I share from
the rooftop, I want to share with you our viewers, something
that we all struggle with, a troubled heart. Today my
question to you is, do you have a troubled heart? Do you have a
spouse with a troubled heart? Do you have a child with a troubled
heart? Or maybe you're past it, but you had a troubled heart?
You know, a troubled heart can be one that comes and goes. In
fact, throughout our life, I don't think any of us are immune
to a troubled heart, something that stresses us, something that
hurts us, something that comes against us, something that isn't
good because it's troubled. You know, I wanted to share from
God's Word today, from John 14:1, what Jesus says. Jesus
says, do not let your hearts be troubled. Simple. Don't let your
hearts be troubled. Trust in God and trust also in me. That's
what Jesus said. It's so important. And the good news
there, the good news there is that Jesus and God Himself are
there to take us through troubled times and get rid of
those troubled hearts. God's love, His peace. It's not
contingent upon what happens in this world or what comes at us
or whatever. Jesus has made it clear that we should trust in
Him and also in God, and don't be troubled. The Word of God
also says that even though we'll go through trials and
tribulations and storms and all the troubles of life, that God
is with us, His love will be there with us. His Holy Spirit
will be with us through it all. We can count on that and be
certain of that. The Bible says that Jesus Christ is the same
yesterday, today, and forever. And in this ever radically
changing world and city and place that we live, wherever
that may be for you, we can count and trust that God will be
there in all of our times, good, bad, and different, and
especially in those troubled times. We don't have to hold on
to pain and fear, sorrow, insecurities. We don't have to
hold on to all of those things that grip us and hold us and
keep us back, and keep us in a constant state of being troubled
in our heart because we can find peace, peace through Jesus
Christ. In John 14:27, it says this, peace I leave you, my
peace I give you. I do not give it to you as the world gives. Do
not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. That's
straight from God's Word. I want that to encourage you. It
encourages me. Every time I'm troubled, I can look to God's
Word. I can trust in God's Word and His promises to comfort me,
to deliver me, to sustain me or keep me or take me through those
troubled times so I can have victory over them. And as the
Word says right here, I don't give as the world gives. No, God
doesn't give like the world gives. He doesn't do things to
stir us up, to take our focus off him. He doesn't do things to
trouble our hearts. No. He does things to bring us comfort and
peace and joy as only He can. He takes us through those troubled
times. And as it says, do not let your hearts be troubled and
also do not be afraid. There's no reason to be afraid. I've
shared this with you many times, I'm sure I'll share it many
more. It's one that I think of all the time from God's Word
where it says, fear not for I am with you. And I'm not talking
about Joe being with you or your pastor being with you or someone
else to comfort you. No, the Lord Jesus Christ is with you.
God is with you. His Holy Spirit is with you for those of us who
know, who believe and who have placed their trust and faith in
Him, Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of their sins. We
can always count on knowing that Jesus is with us. God's Word
gives us an answer for everything and especially a
troubled heart. And I want to share this with you. If you
believe and trust in Jesus to take you through it all, perfect
peace comes from that relationship with Jesus. It can
calm every storm, every circumstance you're in, every
situation that you face, He will give you the courage and the
strength to face, no matter what you face, with Him on your side.
You can always count on God. You can always count on Jesus. But,
you know, we have a part to play. We must allow God to work
in our life. We must allow God to bring peace in the stormy
waters. We must allow God to take that troubled heart and to
work us through it to get through it. You know, sometimes
there's things that we have to learn when we're in troubled
waters. Sometimes there's things that we have to grow from when
we're having trouble in our lives so that we can become more
like Jesus. The thing that I love most about Jesus, aside
from dying from my sins, giving me eternal life, I know I'm
going to heaven if I don't even make it, you know, home tonight.
I know I'll be with Jesus. And all those things are awesome,
and I love it so much. And I'm so grateful in my heart. But the
one thing that just gives me so much peace is no matter what I
face, no matter what the devil, the enemy, this world or anybody
tries to harm me with, no matter what tries to distract me or
hurt me or harm me or my family, Jesus is always with me. Jesus
is always there. I can count on Jesus no matter what I face in
this life. And for me, when I'm troubled, when I'm hurt, when
someone's hurt me, when a situation is overwhelming and I
just don't know what to do, I can always call upon the name of
the Lord, Jesus Christ, and He will help me through it. He will
take me through it because the Word of God says that perfect
love cast out all fear. God is perfect love. The Bible also
says that the peace that passes all understanding comes from
God. And sometime you guys, we just need that perfect peace.
When we don't have peace in our hearts... You know what I mean.
You might not be going through anything right now. I'm actually
in a really good place right this minute, and today, and this
week, but, you know, a week or a month ago, I was probably in
some troubled waters. It doesn't mean you're on drugs or alcohol
or you're running from God. There's just things that hurt
and harm us or try to come against us regularly. That's
this world we live in. It's a fallen and broken world, a
sinful world. But no matter what, whether you're struggling
today or you struggled yesterday, or maybe the trouble
will come tomorrow, just know that you know, that you know
from God's Word and His promises that He is there for you and for
me through it all, and He will never leave us. He will never
forsake us. And that's just a certainty that I have that I'm
so grateful for. God's got an answer for every troubled heart
I'll ever have. And if I just believe in Jesus, trust in Jesus
to take me through it, that perfect peace will come from Him
every time, and He will take me through it. It doesn't matter
the circumstance, the situation, or how long it lasts, He will
take me through it. Stay tuned and I'll share the rest of this
and how to get through those times of having a
troubled heart.
ANNOUNCER: Life is busy. It is easy for the little things in
our everyday routines to get lost in the shuffle. Even when
everything is going good, there are still things that get
overlooked. At Fred Jordan mission, we strive to help those
we serve on skid row with the little things, such as having
access to a bottle or even just a cup of clean water when
they're thirsty. How about a cup of coffee and a donut just to
get your day going? Or taking for granted having shelter from
the weather? Hot in the summer, cold in the winter. Did you know
a high percentage of those here on Skid Row who we call homeless
are not drug addicts or alcoholics or even mentally
unstable? No. They are fellow Americans who maybe a few months
ago were paycheck to paycheck from eviction or recently laid
off from their job or just down and out on their love. Your act
of kindness through prayer, through your financial gifts
today, help those who come through our doors for socks,
toothbrush, soap, a lunchtime snack, and yes, even water. So
let this be a reminder to be thankful for the little things.
ANNOUNCER: Join the conversation by connecting with us on social
media. We are on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more.
Visit us at social.fjm.org.
JOE: Welcome back to FJM TV. As I was sharing just a minute ago,
when our lives are filled with those troubled times, trust in
Jesus and He can bring the peace that passes all understanding.
In John 14:2, Jesus says this, He says, don't let your hearts
be troubled. Trust in God and also in me. In my father's house
there are many rooms. If it were not so, I would not have told
you. I am going there to prepare a place for you, and if I go
there and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take
you with me there so that you may also be where I am. You know
the way to the place where I am going. It's so awesome to know
that Jesus sharing with His disciples in John 14:2, that He
was letting them know that, just trust in God and also in me. And
then He talks about in His father's house in heaven that
there are many rooms and there's a place for you, for me. But He
was talking to His disciples, but it's for us too. He went to
prepare a place for us and for the disciples to go one day and
spend eternity in heaven with the Lord Jesus who died on the
cross for our sins with God, our creator, the creator of the
universe. And it says, I will come back and take you with me
there, so you may be where I am. Jesus is in heaven right now,
the Word of God says, at the right hand of God the Father.
But one day He'll come back and take us, the church, the
believers, those who have trusted in him, or like my dad,
well, he got to go home early. That might happen for some of us
that are even viewing and watching today, maybe even me.
Before Jesus comes back and takes us all with them, we may
die of old age or an accident or who knows, things happen. But we
can always count on and trust that if we're absent from this
body or your body and we know Jesus, we will be present with
the Lord in heaven. That's a promise that we will be with
Jesus. We won't be floating somewhere, we won't be under the
ground and then picked up out of the dirt. No. If we're not here
and we know Jesus, we will be with Jesus in heaven. But it's
so awesome to know that He's preparing a place for us in
heaven. Then after He says, you know the place where I am going,
He says that to the disciples, right? And then in verse 5,
Thomas says this... and it's funny, I have a brother, Tom,
Thomas. But this is why in the Word of God, you hear sometimes
doubting Thomas, because Thomas was kind of a doubter at times.
He didn't really get it. So Thomas says this to Jesus, Lord,
we don't know where you're going, so how can we know the
way? And after Thomas said that, because Jesus is such a good
savior, such a great Lord and master, and He just said this...
He didn't, like, put him down or say, you're a knucklehead. He
said this, He said in verse 6, Jesus answered, I am the way,
the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father except
through me. Jesus told the whole story right there. There's only
one way to heaven, there's only one way to God, and that's
through Jesus and what He did when He died on the cross for
our sins. The Bible says Jesus came to this earth to be born,
to grow up and hang on a cross and die. That's why we celebrate
Good Friday when we get around Easter time every year. Good
Friday is the day that Jesus gave His life and died on the
cross. And then of course, the reason why we celebrate Easter
every year is because on Easter, He rose from the dead and He's
alive today so that He could give us life. He paid the price
for our sins, for yours and mine, so that we could have
life. And so He told Thomas, I am the way, I am the truth, and
I am the life, and no one's going to come to the Father and
get to heaven except through me. That's the way to heaven. And
the gospel message of the cross and what Jesus did on it, it's
simple. All we have to do is believe and receive, the Bible
says. This is one of the simplest yet most important
passages in all of the Bible. How can we know God? The Bible
tells us clearly, only through Jesus Christ and having that
personal relationship with Him, and the forgiveness of our sins,
only through Jesus. By uniting our life with Jesus's life,
we're united with God. Trust Jesus and what he did on the
cross for you and for me, and you can have eternal life. It's
very simple. If you want go to heaven, all we have to do is
just acknowledge that we're sinners and that we need a
savior, and Jesus died on the cross to be the savior of the
world, and He'll forgive you of your sins, He'll wash you white
as snow, the Bible says, and you will have eternal life. Don't be
troubled, because Jesus is with you. But Jesus also shared with
His disciples during this time, two troubling facts, two
troubling facts that I'm sure were troubling for the
disciples, especially two of them. He said, I will be
betrayed and I will be denied. And think about it. If you were
Jesus' followers, the disciples, like, yeah, we're on your side,
Lord. Yeah, we love you. Yes, you're the King of kings and
Lord of lords, you're the Messiah. We believe you. And
then Jesus says, yeah, well, one of you is going to betray me,
and one of you is going to deny me. How would you feel?
Especially if you were the one that was going to betray Him or
deny Him? And so it goes on to where Jesus said that not only
is He going to be betrayed and denied, but then the Word of God
says how Judas betrayed Him and how Peter denied Him. So sad.
But you know what? We all make mistakes. We all miss the mark.
We all mess up. And that's why grace, God's grace is so
important. Jesus's answer for a troubled heart is to trust in
Jesus and what He did on the cross. Don't be troubled. Let
Jesus take you through it all. As the apostles must have felt
when they heard that disturbing news; afraid, fearful. Is it me,
Lord? I won't deny you. I won't put you down. I won't disobey
you. I won't deny you. I won't, you know, do bad things. But
they must have been disturbed by all of that. But Jesus's answer,
again, for a troubled heart is just to trust Him and let Him
take you through it all. You know, for the two that betrayed
and denied Him, it was rough, but we know that Jesus of grace
is sufficient to take us through anything, even if we've turned
our back on God at some point in our life. And for me, I
remember, and I've shared this story, and if you're new
viewing, you might not know it, but I share the story of
accepting Jesus at eight, really loving Jesus and accepting His
forgiveness for my sins. Even at eight, I knew I was a sinner.
But then through my teens and through high school and into
college even a little bit, I did my own thing. I ran. I partied.
I tried to escape God and His calling. I didn't turn my back
on God, because I always knew God was real and Jesus was the
savior of the world. I didn't deny Him, but I definitely
didn't follow Him. And I lived in a lot of guilt and a lot of
shame. And if that's you today, just know that God's grace is
bigger than your failures. God's grace is bigger than your
faults. And God's grace is bigger than everything you fall
short in because God loves you and His grace can cover you if
you trust Him. Don't let your troubled heart be troubled any
longer. Look to Jesus. Remember what He said when He said, in my
Father's house, heaven, Jesus said He's preparing a place for
us to go to be with him where we'll spend eternity. A
permanent home, a permanent place with no more lying,
cheating, stealing, drugs, alcohol, homelessness, hurting,
heartache, betrayal. There will be no more of any of this. No
more weeping. No more crying. It will be a perfect place,
paradise, with God, our creator, Jesus, our Savior, and the Holy
Spirit. I don't know about you, but I look forward to heaven.
But until I go to heaven, I'm going to keep sharing the hope
of the world, Jesus, because I want you and everyone I meet to
receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. Not to join FJM, because
we're not a church or something to join, not to give a gift,
because you don't have a gift to watch, to view, to be a part of
our ministry. I just share Jesus because I love Jesus and what He
did for me, and I want you to know Him and what He can do for
you. Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God. Remember
what Jesus did, and always know that Jesus is the way, the
truth, and the life. And no one, not one is going to get to
heaven or get to God except through Jesus.
ANNOUNCER: If you ever visit the streets of Skid Row in Los
Angeles, you will see ragged tents, compromised easy ups,
which is someone's home. If you walk down the streets of Skid
Row, you'll pass dirty blankets or old newspapers lying on top
of broken wooden palettes, which is someone's bed. If you come to
the corner of Fifth and Town, you will see people lined up to
join Team Jesus for a hot meal in our dining room or a time of
song and worship in our chapel. What you also see at Fred Jordan
Mission is smiles and hugs and hear wonderful stories of love
and care, serving those on Skid Row for 80 years, feeding
millions of meals, caring for the saint and the center by
declaring the goodness of God through love and action. Please
continue to give right now while it's fresh on your heart. Pick
up your phone or your tablet, go to your computer and type
fjm.org. It is there you can give a generous gift to help us
continue what we have been doing for 80 years.
JOE: Well, thanks for joining FJM TV today. It's been just an
honor and a privilege as it always is, sharing with you
about a troubled heart. If you have a troubled heart, I just
ask you to do a few things. One, go to Jesus, of course, but the
second thing, we care about you, our viewers, those partners,
those who watch this show, whether you've never watched
before or not, maybe this is the first time. But I want you to
know, I care about you, and our ministry cares about you. We're
here on this earth, we're placed here at Fred Jordan mission to
serve those in need. And it doesn't mean they have to be
homeless or hungry or helpless, drugs, alcohol, no. It could be
anyone that needs Jesus, anyone who has a troubled heart. Will
you write us today? Call us, email us? Go to fjm.org. Reach
out on one of our social media platforms. Go to mine at Joe
Jordan on any of the Instagram, Facebook, and just say, hey,
Joe, I need prayer. Hey, FJM I'm struggling, and let us pray for
whatever is troubling your heart. Yes, we love the homeless
and the hungry and the hurting here on Skid Row. Just six
floors below me, there's the largest homeless population in
our country, and we serve them every single day. We declare and
we demonstrate the love of Jesus. We declare by sharing
with them that Jesus loves them. There's a God in heaven that
loves them, and He sent his son Jesus to die for them. And we
demonstrate His love by meeting their needs, whether they're
hungry, and we feed 'em a hot meal, whether they're thirsty,
and we give 'em a bottle of water, whether they need a
jacket or a coat. Whatever they need, we demonstrate God's love
as well. It's not enough to just say, Jesus loves you, and forget
about their situation. No, we share, Jesus loves you, and
Jesus cares about your situation. He cares about your
situation as well. But, you know, it's going to be getting
hot soon. California in the summer is an awesome place, but
not everybody has the luxury of being up in the mountains or at
the beach hanging out For those who live on Skid Row, it gets
hot. Not just lonely, but hot and lonely. And so we want to be
here to serve them, but we need you because together we can
serve Jesus by serving our guests here at Fred Jordan
Missions and see their lives changed for eternity with
accepting Jesus, but then see their lives change every day by
meeting their needs and helping them out of their struggles.
God bless you.
ANNOUNCER: Join the conversation by connecting with us on social
media. We are on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more.
Visit us at social.fjm.org
FEMALE: (Singing) When the night comes and there's no one, and
you feel hopeless and abandoned, just take my hand and lift your
eyes, change is coming, love has arrived. We will overcome this
sorrow. We will see the dawn tomorrow. We will soldier on
down this road as we reach for hope, reach for hope.
ANNOUNCER: Please will you join us in feeding hungry children
and their families by phoning today, 844-FJM-FOOD, or donating
online fjm.org, that's fjm.org. Or mail your check to Fred
Jordan Mission, PO Box 12345, Covina, California 91722.
Please, will you help?
FEMALE: (Singing) Reach for hope.
ANNOUNCER: The proceeding program was sponsored by
generous friends and partners of Fred Jordan Missions.