Nothing to say, yet
Transcription
The speaker is discussing the importance of having an unwavering commitment to God. They emphasize that God cannot trust individuals whose commitment to Him is inconsistent. They explain that while the love of God is unconditional, trust must be earned through consistent obedience. They use the example of Daniel, who refused to eat food offered to idols despite being in captivity in Babylon. They highlight the need for Christians to have unwavering commitment like Daniel, as it shows trustworthiness and consistency in serving God. The speaker also mentions that being a child of God does not mean being at the same level, as trust and commitment vary among individuals. and all we have. So I'll be discussing with you on the topic I titled unwavering commitment to God. Unwavering commitment to who? To God. There are people whose commitment to God are wavering. They are here today, tomorrow they are there, today they are standing, tomorrow they are sitting. So they are not dependable and God cannot trust them. They are not consistent and God cannot trust them. But the Lord is challenging us this evening to have unwavering commitment to Him, Almighty God. That what we are doing towards the Lord, our commitment to Him, just as we are committed to Him today, in the next 10 years when I see you, when you see me, when we meet ourselves, we have the same zeal and commitment towards God. There are people that have years by years experience, they quote from their years by years experience of when they were serving the Lord many years ago. Some of them will say when they newly got born again, they were always coming to church, they were always going out for evangelism, they were always preaching and praying. And you would think that that was the same way they continued until you meet them and you discover that what they were sharing with you was a different experience from their present reality. The Lord does not want us to be Christians that serve Him just what happened years by years. But He is looking for consistent, continual Christians, Christians that continue in His Word. And Christians that are diligent to be consistent in serving the Lord. I say it and I will say it again. The love of God, you may not earn it, but what I mean is that you don't need to do anything for God to love you. Are you with me? Yes. When it comes to the love of God, you don't need to do anything for God to what? To love you. But the trust of God, you must earn it. I repeat, the love of God, you don't need to what? Earn it. The Bible says while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. So even in your sin, He loves you. God doesn't love you because you repented. It loves you because it is the love of God that even constrains you to what? To repent. But when it comes to the trusting of the Lord, you have to earn it. God does not trust you because you come to church. Neither does God trust you because you are a preacher. For God to trust you, number one, God must see your consistency in obedience to Him. So if God must trust a man, He must see that man consistently what? Obeying Him. Both in rainy season, in dry season, in winter and in summer, the Christian is consistently obeying God. And when God sees that about you, that you are always obedient to Him, even though it's almost costing you your life, even though it's almost costing you, you know, your job, and you are serving Him despite the challenges around. And when God sees that you are consistent for long, you are going to earn the trust of the Lord. And that is why because we are all children of God does not mean that we have the same level. Praise the Lord. Yes, we are all children of God does not mean that we are in the same what? Level. You can be a child of God, God loves you, He loves all His children, but God may not trust you. So now we are talking about unwavering commitment. Commitment that is not wavering, that is not waving. Not commitment that is not inconsistent. When we talk about unwavering commitment, we are talking about commitment that God cannot depend on. Hit and run kind of commitments. The people that are not truthful, sincere towards God. Everyone cannot bring them into plans. God cannot discuss His plans with them. Because today they are serving the Lord, tomorrow they are serving the devil. Today they are serving the Lord, tomorrow they are serving flesh. Today they are serving the Lord, tomorrow they are serving the world. And Jesus told the apostles revealed to us, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. For if any man loves this world, the love of whom? Of the Father is not in him. And if you decide to still love this world, you are not dependable. So when God says He is looking for Christians that have unwavering commitment, God is actually looking for someone that will be good like Daniel. Daniel chapter 1 verse 8. So when God is talking about unwavering commitment, we must consider the person called Daniel. You must have an unwavering commitment like who? Like Daniel. In Daniel chapter 1 verse 8, the Bible says in verse 8, He proposed in his heart that he would not defile himself, portion of whom? Of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank. Therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuch that he might not defile himself. Now here is Daniel in Babylon. Daniel in Babylon at this time had not his parents with him. He was from the royal family and they were captured into captivity. Already there was a prophecy about the division of Israel that the Israelites as one body, the twelve tribes of Israel will experience a division where ten tribes will be separated and then the other two tribes will be separated. And the two tribes is what we call the house of Judah. And the twelve tribes we call them what? The house of Israel. And their capital city is Samaria. While the two tribes, their capital city is what? Jerusalem. Now the ten tribes, there was a prophecy that God gave to them that they would go into captivity for a long time. And they were taken into captivity by the Assyrians. But the two tribes which is the house of Judah, there was a prophecy that they would also go into captivity too because they turned against God and their captivity were in Babylon. So Daniel happened to be in the captivity in Babylon. Despite that Daniel was in a country that never has God and the laws of God in their lives. And these people, they worshipped idols. But they had a great advantage over the people of Israel. What advantage? They had university. And at that time Babylon appeared to be, the University of Babylon appeared to be the best world we known university of that time. Everyone from every country would want to go and study in Babylon. And their university period was just about three years. If you were to study in Babylon, you would study for three years. When you come out from Babylon, possibly every other company will be looking for you as the most wanted person. But now look at Daniel, privileged to be in Babylon. While he was in the University of Babylon, they served him food. It was like a hotel, like a boarding house. So they do serve them food. But those food that was given to them was first offered to the idols. They would kill the animals and they would sacrifice the animals to the idols. And then they would carry the food and put that animal, put inside their food, as they go and give to the students. When Daniel discovered that the law of Moses was against eating food offered to idols, Daniel proposed in what? In his heart. You know, it was not a thing that Daniel needed to seek for cancer. Because sometimes when you want to stand for God, and you decide to discuss with some few friends, you may be discouraged. Daniel told himself, he said, I will not eat of this food. All through my years in this university, I will never eat the king's worth meat. And Daniel proposed in his heart that he would not defied himself with what? With the king's meat. You see, any body God will use. Daniel at this time was a young man, possibly a teenager at this time. He was not an adult, just a teenager. Because I just wanted to shake off something that the person God will use must have a track record of consistency with who? With God. When you are a very young man and you are able to stand for God at that time, you will shake that. Because you stood for God when you were teenagers, there was certain grace that will enlapse you into your twenties. And you keep standing for God. A time will come where God will reveal himself to you. A time will come where God will what? Appear to you. Daniel stood for God. Just like we have young ones here who will stand for God. Daniel stood for God and said, I will not defy myself with portion of what? The king's meat. Unwavering commitment. So the decision said nothing defy will enter my mouth. Daniel, a young man, Daniel in Babylon, he had opportunity to enjoy everything. The meat, the chicken, the cow meat, the beef meat, any kind of assorted meat. Daniel had the privilege to eat. But he said, well, I love to eat. But as long as it comes to my commitment towards God, I'd rather eat just vegetables for three years. And Daniel was feeding on what? Vegetables for how many years? Three years. Some of you would be like, well, it's too bodisome, I beg. Must I do it like that? God understand. You see, those little, little disobedience you are doing towards God, when it is time for you to come to church, you know, something will tell you just stay at home throughout and something will tell you that, okay, don't even come to Sunday service. Maybe you just woke up on Sunday morning and then the Spirit of God say, come to church on Sunday. And you say, well, I can't come. Those little, little disobedience to the Spirit of God has made God not to trust you. Those little what? Disobedience. When, when God will tell you, okay, you have woken up before you go out, why not just pray? And the voice of God came very, very quietly to you. Why not pray before you go out? And you'll be like, wow, I beg, I beg, I beg, I beg. Then you come up with excuse. Well, I was so, I will labor yesterday so much. You know, those little, little disobedience to God's instruction is what makes God not to trust you. So you will discover that when you are in the time of danger and you call upon him, he will not answer you because he doesn't trust you. But when you decide to say, I will be obedient to God, even in little what? Instructions. It is a little, little instructions that is compiled together that you trust. That is the consistency we are talking about. Hallelujah. That a young boy is coming to you as a young lady and the boy is telling you, well, let me sleep with you. I'm giving you money. And you need money at that time, but you say, no boy, no man will know my what? My nakedness. And that young lady decided to say, I will keep myself as a virgin till I get married. That little commitment, little obedience, that is what heaven will see. And God will what? Will trust you. Because you see, we have many virgins in Israel at the time that the angel visited Virgin Mary. But why was it Virgin Mary? Because every one of us can be coming to church, but not every one of us have the same level of commitment to God. When God wants to do serious business, you really look for the sisters and the few brothers and the few sisters and the few children who have consistent commitment to him. So you discover that you come to church every time, but whenever God wants to impact people, use people for nation, you are not enlisted because God has checked and discovered that you are not committed. You are not consistent with your commitments. You were only consistent December, but you are not consistent January. You were consistent February, but March you are not consistent. And let me say this to you. If you cannot be consistent in your commitment towards God, heaven cannot trust you. But heaven will not send you to nations. Heaven will not trust you. Even God will not elect you to use you because you are not what? Consistent. So when we are talking about commitment, number one, it's not the absence of challenges. It's not the absence of what? Yes, because when people say, well, why won't they be committed? If I were like them, I would have even do better than them. And they say, okay, why are you talking like that? You say, well, people like us cannot be committed now. Do you know what I'm doing? Do you know what I'm going through in life? Are they going through the same challenges in life? No, no. You are going through challenges and it's the reason you are not committed. It's the reason God will not what? Trust you. They say, don't mind them. Why won't they be committed? What about me? Me that is struggling for my life. There is no father, there is no mother, there is no brother, there is no sister, nobody caring for me. Why won't they be committed towards God? You see, because nobody's helping you is the very reason you should be what? More committed than them. But when we fail to be committed to God, when we fail to have unwavering commitment towards the Lord, even God will not trust us. Hallelujah. Even God will not trust us. And this is why you must be committed in little, little things. Look at Joshua. Anytime Moses wants to go and pray on the mountain, Joshua will be with him. Joshua was a married man. As of the time Joshua met Moses, Joshua was I think 40 years. Moses was about 80 years. Are you getting me now? And you see Joshua following who? Moses. Well you know that Caleb was a wonderful man too, but God didn't pick Caleb because it is the little commitment of Joshua that made God who? To trust Joshua. Moses passed the baton to the one. You see, everybody can be in charge, not everybody God wants. Trust. There are levels that God will use some of us to, and there are certain levels that God will use others to. Are you getting me now? Yes. So because you are a Christian does not mean that God will take you deeper. If there is no food today, will you be coming to church? If there is no water to drink, will you be coming to church? If there is no money in your bank account, will you go for evangelism? If you are sick in the body, will you push to anybody? Because some people don't know that in the commitment of God, even death cannot separate us from God. Hallelujah. A man of God in Nigeria was going to push, and while he was on his way getting to the venue, they sent a message to him, they said your wife just died. And he saw the message, he just kept the phone on, he wanted to push. What comes first? God. Yes, my wife is good, my wife is nice to me, but my wife will do the same thing to me, because me and my wife have entered the same commitment. That is what happened. Even if he was the person that died, his wife would have gone and pushed too. Because in their home, they have made it clear that God is what? Faith. The man now, I think he is one of the fathers of taking nations now. I think that God will not trust such a person. Do you know the level of test that God has tested these people? And that is why when you insult them behind, God fights against you. God becomes an enemy to you for speaking against them, because the level of test you have tested them, if he gives you one test, they will not see you again. Or imagine God tested Job. Praise the Lord. And you see that the end of the life of Job was better than what? The beginning. God blessed Job, because he has tested him. If God will trust you, you must be committed and consistent in your commitment. You are a Christian, you are a Christian forever. Hallelujah. Daniel proposed in his heart that he would not divide himself with what? The Kingsmith. The other person is the person of Joseph, because of time. Joseph was another man that had unwavering commitment towards who? God. I was having a conversation with my wife on Joseph, that was two days ago. It is not yesterday, okay, two days ago. Oh, yesterday evening, sorry. I said, do you know that when Joseph was taken to Potiphar's house, he was 17 years old. How old was Joseph? 17. When he stood before Pharaoh, he was 30 years old. It means that he was in prison for how many years? Minus 30 years. Minus 17 from 30. How many years? 13 years. But when you read about the story of the prison, you think Joseph did this. A man that God said that your brothers will bow down to you. 17 years old boy was put in prison. In the dungeon of the prison, where they keep the king's prisoners. And he was there for how many years? 13 years. Inside there, not one day, he stopped trusting God. You think that if God wants to test you, he will take you to America? Do you think that it is everyone of us that will get the same level to America? Do you know people that are perseverative and they are close to their breakthrough and you are still coming far far behind? Or do you think that it is everyone of us that will have the same breakthrough? Of course not. Then when you see Joseph in the prison, or when you see Joseph becoming a prime minister, you will not know that he went through 13 years of imprisonment. But when we are talking about Joseph, you will think that what happened in the prison was one day. You never knew that that man spent 13 years. He was 30 years old when he stood before Pharaoh. It was 30 years old when he became governor of Egypt. At the age of 17, he was sued by his brother to the Ishmaelites. At the age of 17, Potiphar bought him. At the age of 17, Potiphar's wife tempted him. At the age of 17, he was put in prison. But the promise of God that came to him, he trusted in God and he was committed towards the Lord. The Bible says that Joseph was in prison and God was with him. The Bible says that a man can be trekking all over the streets of Lagos. And the man you are seeing is a man that is going to become great in the next five years. That even nations and kings will stand for him. But when you see, the Bible talks about Jesus, that even his likeness is not something you wish to watch. Some of us think that when Jesus was on earth, he was somebody that we loved following. Let me say to you, if Jesus was to be in our time, if he comes to you and says, follow me, you will not follow him. Because the Bible says, even the way he appeared, he was something not to be desired of. Guys, that means anytime you see Jesus, you will not desire to be like him, the way he appeared. Because when you read about Jesus, you thought that he was, maybe he kept a very, he kept bunk and wore high glass and wore jeans and wore t-shirts and is walking like this and say, Peter, follow me. They will follow him. But when you see a man that, think of a man that says he doesn't have where to lay his head. That means that man does not have everything. He does not take his bed to what? Everything. Because he does not have where to lay his head. And the same man will come and say, follow me. But when God blessed him, he said, for God has highly exalted him and given him what? A name. It is your consistency in the days of your prison that prepare you for the palace. The period when you are eating with bonger fish, you can't even afford the one that they sell for, is it 500 Naira? So the one you afford is the one that says, that's most likely to put the price of the fish is 150 Naira. And you are eating, but as you are eating, you are saying, Lord, I know tomorrow is bright. I will keep obeying you. Because some of us don't know how we join into destiny. So when somebody rise up tomorrow, you start becoming envious towards that person. But the same process you will never go through. Your consistency in hard time, that determines whether you will stay long in there or you will come out very soon. Hallelujah. Your consistency what? Hard time. In the period when nobody is coming to buy, you open your shop that, from morning to evening, nobody is coming to buy market. And time for sure, still which you lock up that shop and take off. And everyone is looking at you. They say, well, let us give him that. Maybe this is like just doing it because it has not entered the budget. Let us give this to him sometime. Or let us give the brother sometime. And they haven't tested it for one year. And that one year you are still consistent. And God highly exalted you. And suddenly you observe that such a sister is now a big entrepreneur. Having businesses across nations. And you start saying that, why? You start becoming envious. But the process, she trusted in the Lord. She was consistent with God, even when the business was not doing what? Fine. So God cannot trust us if we are only looking for comfort to express our love for God. They say it is not comfortable to serve God. That is why I am not serving Him well. He cannot trust you. Unwavering commitment. Joseph was consistent in serving the Lord. But let us think of it. Why would God allow 13 years? Why would God allow, how many years? 13 years. So as far as it concerns God, you can be in your hadulam for 20 years. You are the one that, you are the one conceiving time. You think God is moved by emotion. You can be in your hadulam crying. It is 13 years is what? It is 13 years. Your tears will never make Him to reduce it. It will remain there for 13 years. If you do not want to do it with Him, just go. Let Him know that you have failed the test and you go. Raise up another person in your replacement. A young man was speaking with me yesterday night. They newly made him a pastor over his church. Hallelujah. So he was discussing with me about the church somewhere there. The church is about 29 years old. He said when they passed the church, he said the church is still like the same. No growth. Are you with me? He said no expansion. I said what do you mean by expansion? He said 29 years old church should have been having a flowing crowd with canopy outside. I said okay. I think you said I just make you a pastor. After that one year, I will call you. I will take you to a particular place again and give me an understanding of how you see the situation. You know someone that has not tested ministry, who thinks ministry is what? It is the same man of God you are talking about. I told him that man was the first man of God I saw perform a miracle before my very eyes. His church is 29 years old this year. His church is 29 years old this year and their members do not go up to 50. And to you, you will judge that man as what? As faith. You don't know whether that man is what? Because you see social media has made us to think that there is no process of development. Anybody who rises up to start a church, immediately he applies all the human effort, human strategy and draws a crowd outside the perfect will of God. So the training meant for spiritual development and wisdom development is skipped. After I become popular, you start yelling, teasing, tea about him, sleeping with members because he was not able to go to that training that we think is what? It is flesh. So when he starts having a crowd and people start coming and they are paying tight, they start using the money to build houses, to buy cars and the sheep he should have taken care of because he skipped that class of what? Training. So God cannot trust them. Anything that makes you to skip your training season, God cannot trust you. And I made a note to him yesterday, I pray he gets hold of this message. I made a note to him yesterday, I am going to make a note to you. And even our pastor that we newly ordained here, that without you going through process, God can never what? Trust you. And if God sees that my presence here is hindering the training you needed, he knows how to take me out. If a pastor has not yet cried and become to the point whereby he does not, it is as though he should just lose his dignity, he has not yet been tested. Don't put yourself in the pinnacle. What my wife has experienced with me, none of you have also, has what? You have not yet developed the thick skin my wife has. Even those that are not here, those that come on Sunday, the level of my wife, what my wife has gone through emotionally, you are still, you are still quaking. And that is why when you see ministers who have made themselves, they communicate from a dimension of understanding. That in ministry, you must cry. If you don't, if you have not come to the place whereby you cry and you feel like to give up, you have not yet started. You are not yet to be trusted yet. It is that process whereby you have all the opportunity to shut down everything and yet you still say, I am not what? I am not giving up. It is that, it is that you bear a thick what? Skin and God trusts you. You think that God sent everybody? So that some anointing you get based on your what? Commitment. You don't need to pray. It's just you have been consistent in it. God will just give it to you. Hallelujah. That as a worker, the people that have left the workforce, they are sitting there calling your phone to tell you that you need to leave what? Leave that. And you see they have a little bit thick what? Skin. So the trust of the Lord is earned. It's what? It's not, it's earned. It is, if it is love, God loves everybody. Whether you are even saying God, you are, you are insulting God, He still what? Loves you. But when it comes to God trusting you, you must earn it. You must earn it. And it takes unwavering what? Commitment. Unwavering commitment. My generation, my generation, they don't want to suffer. My generation don't want to what? Suffer. I'm looking for the sisters that will, when they are looking for a job, when they tell you that before we give you a job, we have to sleep with you, I'm looking for the sisters that will say take your job away. You will never know my what? Nakedness. These are the people we are what? Looking for. So there is a level of commitment that makes God what? To trust you. Romans chapter 8. I think we will end off with that please. Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter what? Chapter 8. Let us go to verse 35. Romans chapter 8, verse 35. Who shall separate us from what? The love of Christ. Shall what? Our distress, our persecution, our famine, our nakedness, our peril, our what? Our sword. Or as it is written, for thy sake we are killed all day long. We are accounted as sheep for what? For the slaughter. May in all these things we are more than what? Conqueror. Who aimed and loved us? Verse 38. Let us read together. I want to go. That neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. That is unwavering commitment. When you come to that point you say nothing can what? Separate. One of the commitments I made. Hallelujah. When? Hallelujah. You know it is more easy. I was speaking to someone yesterday. I said I will hardly leave a church for a single pastor. Maybe that was what made him to be offended at me. Because he was not too fluent when I was talking continually. I said I will never leave a church. The person can be a pastor under a pastor. But for me to leave a church for him as a single brother, I will not do that. Do you know why? The level of commitment I had when I was what? Single. Would be threatened by what? Marriage. So many people that were born in for the Lord, when they were single, the moment they married, the fire gets quenched. That is why I say I cannot. Because that brother that eventually married, you may discuss that why they married is commitment to what? To the work of God without suffering. So it is better he is born in for the Lord. Are you with me? Why he is what? Why he is married? Then I will not make him what? Pastor. It is better. Because if you make him pastor when he is single, there is no sanctity. So one of the things I told my wife when I wanted to marry, I said I am against divorce and what? Marriage. As we are getting married, you know that is holy death. But I have a bottle. If you are trying to separate me from God, I will separate from what? From you. I told my wife. I said if I see that you are trying to inter me from obeying God, I will just call your father, call your mother. I will not do it again. We are not divorcing, but just let me go my way. I said because when you are coming to my life, I asked, I want you to meet me. She took God in her mouth. I said okay. You knew I would be working with God. Before I fell in love with you, I have a lover before you. Hallelujah. I know she will never do that. But I just have to what? Let her know. I said this man you are seeing, and I gave another thing again. I said do you want us to grow old? She said yes. You don't want me to die young whereby you will not be a widow. She wants us to what? Grow old. She doesn't even like me to be talking about death. Are you getting me now? I said the covenant I made with God was the day my love for you started reducing and I started having idols for the hearts and I am not seeing you as God again. Take my life away. So if you want me to die young, just become my God. You will just hear that pastor slept and never woke up again. Because the only way you can be consistent with God, whereby when you are not 70 years of age, we can talk about your biography of when you were very young, of your consistent working with God, is for you to make some covenants. Covenants. For you to make some history in what? Covenants with God. Hallelujah. For you to remain unwavering, covenants must be what? Established. A sister was about to be married. When the sister was about to be married, he called the brother. So the brother came to the family house and the sister told the brother, I will submit to you. Are you with me? He said, but there is a but. Because the brother loves God but is this kind of brother that goes to work. Are you with me? He is not a worker in the church but he loves God. So he told him, I do go to choir parties every Saturday. God has blessed me with a voice. My pastor has organized a program whereby he will put me as a singer. Never you interrupt my service towards God. And that was an agreement. And that is the agreement you are seeing between these big guest artists that you are seeing, female artists. So when you see me going everywhere, as long as they are coming for the work of God, dear, I have work to do, please God, can I go? Even though I say can I go, you should understand that I say yes. Because it is an agreement before marriage. Because there are some women that the moment they got married, their ministry died, their calling died. They become burdened. Because anything that is dead becomes what? But every guy is a dead person. And you know that they have wit more than they were alive. So it is an agreement. If you will last in Christianity, convent must be established. Without convent, there is no pastor in Nigeria today that God is using mentally that doesn't have a personal convent with God. And the convent for you that are single, it is even when you are single you should establish what? Because I establish most of my convent when I am what? When I am single. Convent you should not tell anybody but when your spouse is coming, you let your spouse know this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this. So when you see me behaving like this, when you see me like this, when you see me that I am not eating this and that, know that I am responding to what? Convent. So that is what makes God what? To trust you. So when God sees that you have bound yourself towards him with convent, he will start giving you what? Because you cannot run away. Convent has tied you down. So God will never trust you if your Christianity is up and down. You are prayerful today, you are not prayerful tomorrow, you love God today, you don't love God tomorrow, evangelism today, even in the church your pastor does not know what to trust you. You think that your pastor, is it God that will trust you? Even man does not know what to trust you. Anytime I come to church, they think that God will not trust you. No, God will not trust you. That our Bibles are still neat and clean. No, he will not trust you. For Daniel proposed in his what? In his heart. It is a hard thing. It is a hard what? It is a hard thing. I have lost friends because of what? Commitment. I have lost good, good what? Friends. But when they are coming inside my commitment, I what? I let go. I let go. And I am still willing to let go more. As long as my friendship with you are not invading my commitment, speaking against my Jesus. You cannot be cracking jokes with Jesus. I will laugh at you. I will stand up and leave you. You have touched my where? My commitment. I am not serving God because I am a pastor. I am serving God because I am a Christian. I am born again. I love him. So you must have that kind of Christianity that will make heaven to recognize you. As Agbede is, not everybody in Agbede is serving who? God. But God should be able to say, I have Emmanuel in Agbede. That angels will be visiting you occasionally because in Agbede you are one of the people that God knows to be what? His child. You think going to heaven is popularity? Ah ah. You think it is everybody that works with God? Do you think as Nigeria is much and we have many churches in Nigeria and many Christians in Nigeria, do you think it is everybody that is working with God? So for God to trust you, you must have unwavering what? Commitment. You are not shaking, you are standing. If you lose friends, lose friends.
