Grow

We love you. We love you. You’re beautiful. We are people that are bound by the trappings of earth, which though at times is beautiful and we see the glory of your presence among us. We hear the news.

We watch with horror at things happening around us. Some take us to the East Coast and the dear people. Millions in number suffering and being immeasurable suffering today. God, we’ve prayed that Florence would leave, that she would realize she’s not welcome. And yet, God, there’s a plan you have for your people to pull together, to draw close to you, to see in the midst of this groaning, as you describe in Romans 8, the world and its people are groaning, longing for the day when we will be in your presence.

Celebrating your glory and seeing your perfect beauty, being healed and whole, being delivered and free. God, when that day comes and the tears are done, it’s no longer. It’s no longer a part of our day today. It’s over. I just can’t imagine except to tell you how much I love you.

And we tell you together, we love you, God. And we choose in spite of the evidence that there’s darkness and difficulty and struggle and pain and sorrow. And we tell you, in spite of all of that, we’re rising above it as your people. And we seek you. We seek you today.

We seek you in days to come. We want to be people who have been so powerfully touched by your presence that we reflect and radiate something of the beauty that we’ve just sung about. Beautiful Lord. And we belong to you. And we want to leave here like people that belong to a holy God and we live like it.

For your glory, Jesus, until we enter eternity’s shore, we will live for you and you alone. And you’re wonderful, irresistible grace we pray. God’s people said, Amen. Have a seat this morning. Wow.

Where are my new best friends? Thank you so much. What a wonderful and powerful time to be together. I have a friend like many of you do. That’s a weird thought.

That lives in the middle of harm and in the middle of harm’s way on the east coast. And I would ask him throughout the weekend, how are you? Myron’s his name and what’s the latest? And he found a way to find humor in it all. I almost threw up some images he sent me, but have you ever seen the silly picture of a guy clutching a pole horizontally?

And he goes, yeah, it’s getting a little breezy here, you know? And I’m like, bro, it’s a tough time there. I’ve had a great dislike for Florence from before she hit land. And we probably shouldn’t call her a she because all the ladies are going to get feeling bad. So before this monster hit land and hurt a lot of people.

So we have more to pray about, don’t we? And I was thinking of bad things that could happen here in Oregon. And there would be a lot of people outside of our region, outside of our immediate reach that would say, yeah, we’re covering you, we’re caring for you. And if you’ve got friends or family or you do Facebook or some kind of social media, let the world know we’re praying for some people. I just don’t know what I do walk in a house or swim into a house that is, I mean, it’s just incredible.

So in the midst of all that, we sing about a truth that’s really a truth. It’s not wishful thinking to say he is beautiful. And the Bible is not, you know, unrealistic to invite and encourage people that belong to Jesus to affirm and to live out on a daily basis, his beauty. Amen? I mean, that’s a good thing.

That’s a really good thing. In fact, it’s so surprising sometimes that you and I are able to be people that reflect the glory of God, that in fact, it causes people to stop and look. Garro said something earlier that I just wanted to become more and more the language of grace point. And that’s that we love each other. I went to lunch with a good friend of mine and he said why he goes to grace point this last week.

He’s fairly new to our church. And he says, because you’re living out, John 1334 and 35. And I went seriously, you see us living out the love. And he says, yeah, and it’s being talked about. And John 1334, this is new commandment I give to you that you love what, it doesn’t say that you tolerate each other.

You know, that you go along to get along, that you put up or shut up or throw up or something. I don’t know. No, it says that my how, you know, a new commandment that you love one another and verse, I said, verse 35 showing. He says that it absolutely is. You know, verse 35, by this shall all people know that you belong to me, Jesus said, by the love you have one another.

So turn to a total stranger right now and say, Hey baby, I love you. I want you to know that. Just go for it right now. Don’t be shy. Don’t be shy.

Give some love. That’s right. That’s good. Okay, there’s a couple of people getting carried away here. I saw them.

They kissed before they said a word. They were like, Hey baby, you know, okay, that’s good. That’s good. All right, last week we began a new series called healthy. And you can tell it in my voice and see it in my countenance.

I’m excited about it. I’m excited because I want to be healthy. I want to be more healthy than I am. And we talked about this being the beginning of a series this fall on what’s involved in becoming healthy people. People according to God.

And you’ll recall that we began last week by sharing with with each other some really amazing. I don’t think you can improve on these words. So I’m going to show them to you again. They come from Ezekiel the prophet and he along with Jeremiah seemed to drill down into this idea that it there’s a beginning place when it comes to healthy. We’d all agree with that.

My son is heading into a medical field physical. It’s physical therapy. And he sees somebody walk in and when they walk in they’re sometimes hobbling or limping or bent over or whatever it might be. Anybody relate to that? Well, my son will see you soon.

But here’s the deal. There’s a starting point. It’s an assessment. It’s a evaluation of where you’re at. Well, in this series, series, healthy, last week was our starting point where we looked at the start is really the heart.

And this is what Ezekiel had to say. He’s quoting God. 700 years before Jesus came, I will give you a new heart. He said, I will put a new spirit in you. That’s an important preposition.

It’s not around you near you. It’s say it with me in you. That’s a big deal in you. And I will remove something from you that can’t be improved. It cannot be fixed.

Why else would he say? I got to get rid of this heart that’s like a stone. It’s a rock. It’s rocks don’t grow. Rocks don’t.

There’s no feeling. There’s no, I got to get rid of this heart of stony calls it. And I’m going to give you a different heart, a new heart, a heart of flesh. And when I do that, then I’m going to put my spirit. There’s the preposition again in you.

And then leave you. Good luck. No, I’m gonna actually move in you at that moment through my spirit now in you. I’m going to move in you to do some things you couldn’t do. Carry out my commands.

You’re going to be a person that goes, you know, doggone, that truth didn’t make sense to me before. And then when I started to read it again, I realized, that’s a tall order. How can you possibly do that? And all of a sudden you’ve got an answer for it, right? That’s the answer that says we’re now able to follow and keep the laws and decrees of God.

Isn’t that cool? So that’s what’s ahead for you. If you’re not yet with a new heart, that’s where it starts. And then every week this fall is going to build on that. I want to retreat though for a second to a very impactful experience.

My wife Debbie and I had, as we were waiting to board a flight, flight recently. And I told you about it in much more detail last week. But there was a man about the board, the same flight who suffered sudden cardiac arrest. I mean, I’m talking from me to about the fifth row in this room this morning. He was out and he was, I’ve talked to medical people since and you had a feel of it then.

He’s over. He’s dead. And whatever plans he had, he may have had in the last goes where we were heading. Those plans shriveled in importance to the life and death medical need that this man had at that moment. I assume he was going there to fish.

We weren’t, but almost everybody else around us on that flight where they smell already like fish. And here’s a guy that was probably going to go and have big dreams. And none of that mattered at that moment to that man. And I told you last week, you can hear last week’s sermon again if you want online, but he survived. And the relief that all of us felt at the gate, including Debbie and I, we just interrupted an applause in that moment.

You can imagine that emotion that was just so pinned up for an hour and Debbie and I over here praying for, we’re not making a scene. No one is. We’re focused on this man and what he needed to survive is a big deal. Measures that were taken to save that man’s life. Now I got to go a step further.

I don’t have a clue who he was. Of course the airline would not reveal that. I didn’t ask have no clue who he was, but I can almost guarantee the beginning that day in an airport. His life would never be the same ever. He would likely.

Differently exercise differently. And let’s just make it big. Live differently, wouldn’t he? How many would do that if that was you that if you’re that man? That’s how I thought.

I hope it doesn’t take that to cause me to change. And I’ve just described the theme for this message this morning and really the rest of the message in this fall series called healthy. Jesus gives people who come to him by faith. A new heart and from that day forward, he teaches and trains them and I got something for you to write down. So grab your outline if you if you haven’t already and a pin and write this down.

He teaches and trains us on what a healthy Christian is. Has and does with a new heart. Okay. So that’s what Jesus is up to. He starts by changing the heart, getting the heart right.

And then he and the series is going to try to track what a healthy Christian according to God’s definition is. What she has. What he does because of a new heart. All right. You’re with me.

All right. But one thing we can guess about the man back to him a minute in that airport and I could say this with a high degree. I think of certainty and you’re you’re this is not you’re going to sense. No, that’s not exaggeration at all. Is that living differently was not optional for that man.

Any cardiologist worth his salt or her salt is not going to meet with him after he’s stable and starting to progress and say, you know, looking at your chart and this incident in the airport, it seems to me that you might want to lose a few pounds. Okay. I told you last week. I didn’t tell you this week. He was was two of me, at least.

He was very big man. And I doubt if a cardiologist ever approached it softly like that. Like, you know, you might want to give some thought to cutting back portions. I’m certain that was not the council. That’s ridiculous council.

And it’s ridiculous because the cardiologist would say, bro, you’ve been given a new heart. Okay. Your heart stopped. It was over. And the time is now for you to change it up.

If I’m that cardiologist, that’s exactly what I’m saying to that man. I’m not going subtle going, Hey, bro, don’t want to offend you. You know, two scoops, not three. You know, no, no, it’s serious business. So I have something else for you to write down.

Would you write this down? When the heart is right, the feet are swift. That principle will apply to what we’re talking about this morning in every message. The rest of the way in this series until December 16th. Okay.

So today, of course it relates to grow or growth. When the heart is right, growth is swift. Okay. Now, let me show you by sharing with you this morning briefly, just two principles. And the first thing I’m going to do is, I’m going to do one of the first principles in a, in a one testimony.

Okay. The first principle, is found in where my Bible’s turned to in first Peter. Would you turn there? If you haven’t already, there’s a Bible near you. You take your app out.

You can reach for a Bible under the chair rack and turn to very late in your Bible. There’s not much room. Then not many pages left. You’ll find your way to first Peter, one of two letters Peter wrote. So we got Peter here and here’s the first principle of the two that I’m going to share.

Would you write this down? Babies don’t just grow older. They are supposed to grow up. Okay. Babies don’t just grow older.

They’re supposed to grow up. Look at verse three early in his writing. By his mercy, we were given new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never spoil, perish, or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of of that salvation we just sang about that is ready to be revealed in the last time. So we’ve been given new birth.

He’s getting it right here by, he calls it out, God’s mercy. Okay. And the resurrection of Jesus. So there’s power there. There’s authority to grant you things that are incredible like a brand new life.

So this miraculous moment that we’re talking about is what the Apostle Paul in his own writing over in 2 Corinthians chapter five would say, if anyone is in Christ, they are a brand new baby. They are a new creation. A new creation has come and the old is gone. The new is here. So I want you to picture a brand new baby.

I’m half tempted to ask somebody with a baby. Just stand up and let’s have some fun, but I won’t do it Phillip. Okay. So just hang in there. But enjoy this moment.

Okay. As the baby makes squeaks and squeals, we didn’t plan it this way, but you’re beautiful. Don’t leave. Even if she really has a fit. I didn’t mean that completely.

If she really goes crazy, you can. Okay, I got you. All right. So picture a brand new baby. All right.

And you’ve either been there as a parent or as a grandparent or a great grandparent, maybe all of the above. And everything is new. And you notice the hair color and quantity. Okay. Go to the birthing room.

If you were there or right afterwards. And you’re noticing things. I see Pam. Good for you, Pam. Good.

So proud grandma there. And then you start to notice things like eye color, if you can. And then, I don’t know, dads do this. Maybe moms too, but you start doing a quick count of hands and fingers and toes. And then you recount just to make double sure, you know.

And some are really smiling because we have about to have several babies in our church. So it’s really cool. And then you wonder, at least I did. I’m taking myself back to this. And you start to wonder, what are they going to become?

How tall were they? They’re little, little little people. How tall are they going to get? I’m real tall. My wife’s not real tall.

How’s this going to look someday? And you wonder, are they going to be funny? Are they going to be smart? And will they accomplish something? What kind of intellect?

And you know what? No one knows. Except God. And across the page, come back to me. Peter now.

Peter gives us a sense of what God sees in a baby. Got your attention? Let’s go to 14. What he wants his babies to, I love this, to be, to have or to become, verse 14. Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed, it is coming.

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as you were called to be holy, so be holy in all you do. There’s a practicality here, is there not? This is not, no, that’s not, no. It’s in what you do, be holy.

Because he says, it is written, I am holy. So his plan for his babies is to become like his son in every way. Every part of who you are, who I am, is in play here with these words. Holy, it means a lot of things, but the most basic definition of holy when you read it here, by the way, four times in those words I just read. When you read holy, it means different.

The world in this day when Peter was writing was polytheistic, meaning there’s a whole bunch of gods. And that’s been true for a long time. It’s still true today. A lot of people, but no, there’s all roads lead to heaven and all this. No, Jesus said, no, I’m the only way.

Okay? There isn’t another way. I’m not one of many, I’m the only way. And he is truly God. Here’s, if you’re, if you’re, if you’re struggling through questions like, who is this Jesus anyway?

Got an assignment. It’s not part of my sermon. Here’s the assignment. Read the Gospel of John and notice that in every single one of how many chapters, a lot. Okay, that’s good.

We’ll stick with a lot. Every chapter in John affirms Jesus as God. Every chapter, the theological word is his deity. He’s not just a good guy or a cool dude or a great teacher or a super example. He is God in the flesh.

Every single chapter is 21. Says, Jesus is God. That will help convince you. In fact, it was written that way to help convince you. Okay?

So that’s just the sidebar, but grab hold of it. So every part of who we are is in play when he says, be holy and I’m getting that from in all that you do. Differently. And we are to live differently. And this is a complete statement, verse 15.

In all you do. So how does that happen? One more turn. In some cases, just across the page, I got to turn the page. Look at chapter two.

And, and some really great words. Therefore, how does that happen? To be holy in all you do. They got to get rid of some things. Read yourself of all the malice and deceit and hypocrisy and envy and slander of every kind of every kind.

We could go deep in every word and we should. Hopefully you will, but just think of this as darkness. Read yourself of darkness. Read yourself of the stuff you were packing with you when you encountered Jesus. And you know what?

I know I can say that looking at every one of you and I’d take time to get eye contact because 100% of us are dead junk. When we came to Jesus, he said, well, no, no, I was really young. No, actually you were a bad baby. Okay, you were, you were. The Bible says so.

If you weren’t here last week, listen to the podcast. You were born that way. Thank you, Adam. Thank you, Eve. It’s part of that infection you were born with.

All right. So we got to get rid of stuff. And then verse two, like, I love this. I want you to hear words this morning that are important words that defined God’s interest in growing you and me. The word maturity is on God’s heart when it comes to his people.

He doesn’t want to leave you babies and we’ll get to that in the second principle in just a minute. Milk in the process of maturing his people. Milk is necessary. That’s why he says in verse two, like newborn babes, crave spiritual pure spiritual milk. Now think of what you know of a baby that’s just been born.

He or she craves breast milk. That’s how they, that’s how God made babies. It’s the right and perfect food for a baby. Okay, and we have formula today in some cases where, you know, breastfeeding isn’t working and all this isn’t a statement on breastfeeding. This is just to say there’s a craving in a brand new baby for something that’s incredibly pure, but it’s meant for a finite time.

It’s not forever. It’s a finite time to grow during infancy only with me so far. It can’t be hurried. You can’t say after a week of nursing your brand new baby. Hey, get over it.

Let’s roll on. Can’t be hurried nor would you want to hold it up. It has a defined temporary purpose in the life of a brand new baby. The very first time I took care of our baby, our first baby. I was a pastor in Southern Cal and Debbie for some reason who nursed our babies.

She had to be away for a couple of hours. I forget what it was. We’re brand new parents. We’re just learning. I had a wedding rehearsal and I said, “Hey, I’ll take her.”

Let’s put her in the car seat and I could just cruise to the rehearsal. It’s a garden, wedding in Southern Cal. I’ll just bring her because I know at every wedding rehearsal I’ve ever had is there’s moms and there’s grandmas and there’s all sorts of these wonderful women that are just going, “Let me hold it baby. Oh, no, don’t precious.” And so, sure enough, it turned out that way and everything was good but I could see her squirming a little bit.

Let’s get this rehearsal over with. I talked faster and got it done and by the time I went over and retrieved her and went toward my car with this car seat, she was starting to fussing like a baby. All of this is new. I have no idea where this is going. I looked at my watch because it was getting louder and I realized I’m still about an hour from seeing Debbie and so I get home in haste and by the time I get home, have you ever stood near a jet engine when it was revving?

Yeah, it was revving and so I’m like, “Frank, what do I do? What do I do?” Serial. No, no, it wasn’t Wheaties. There was something growing up.

It was baby. I saw a box in there. Somebody gave it to us at a shower or something. I said, “Sereal, it’s got to work. I’ll read quick quick.”

And so I mix up a bowl of the cereal in a rubber spoon. It was good and it was cool. It was not hot or anything. And then she’s just now this engine is still revving, right? And I’m just…

And I get through an adult ball. Yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah. And I thought, “Okay, perfect.” And then… She’s screaming again so I fix the second bowl.

And I get it already and only this time I’m thinking, “I gotta get it in quicker.” So I hold the bowl up to her bottom lip. Spooning it into her mouth and she… And then silence and peace. And then a second look came across her face.

Have you ever stood close to a volcano as it erupted? Boom! Here’s the deal, folks. Milk is necessary. And don’t hurry the fat food.

What do you call that? Solid food. Don’t hurry that, okay? Fat food. Maturity can’t be hurried up.

Here’s the deal. It needs to happen. If I told you and you know what, she just fell in love with that baby cereal and she actually… She still enjoys it today. You’d laugh and then you’d pull me inside later and go, “Bro, that’s messed up, man.

That’s not good.” So you gotta fix that. So before I share a second principle, the first principle is obvious. Babies don’t just grow older. They’re not supposed to just grow older.

They’re supposed to grow up, okay? Forest share second principle. I gotta invite my friend who’s growing up. I mean that very reverently when I invite Nancy Sorensen to join me right now. And Nancy, is this good enough for you and me, sister?

I’m gonna press a button for you. There you go. Have seat. Ready? Nancy Sorensen right here, right here.

Yeah, baby. All right, baby. I just called your baby twice. So anyway, here’s the deal. I got a couple things.

You and I talked in more depth this week. You can hold that up a little higher. Perfect. And not too long ago, you made a decision because a pastor stopped you and talked to you about a concern that he saw. You were going to church, but a concern a lack of commitment it was.

Remember that? And just recapture what that pastor was talking to you about. I had just started working as receptionist at Village Baptist where I was going and he, the pastor came up to me and said, “Let’s talk.” We went into his office and he said, “I look at your resume and I listen to things that we’ve talked about. You know, you’ve been married and divorced four times.

I think you might have a problem with commitment.” And he was right. He asked me to please commit to working there for one year. And I’d never done that before. I didn’t even know how to do commitment.

And I did. I worked there for a year. And then he asked me to commit for a second year. And I began to realize that I hadn’t committed myself to the Lord. And after him, my life was changing, but I needed to make a commitment to get to know him better and get to know who he was and how to be like him.

So that’s where the, call it the seeds of growth began to take place. And then you find your way to a little boy named Eugene. And you were asked to do something that you felt incredibly inadequate for, which was involved Eugene. Tell us about that. Eugene was in the second grade and he had Tourette’s syndrome.

And they were looking for someone to sit in the classroom with him and just comfort him because he would have outbursts and he’d say, “Notty words.” Or he’d make strange noises and he had some body ticks. And I decided to volunteer for that, not because I’m a wonderful person, but because I figured if I started sitting in a, in a second grade class, I would learn about Jesus the way children do because I didn’t know him. I didn’t know who he was. I was totally unchurched.

And I sat with him for three years and drank milk for those three years to learn about the Lord. Awesome. Awesome. So sign up for children’s ministry, y’all. But here’s another.

Was that three years ago? Five years ago? Starting in September of 1992. So do the math. That was a long time ago, okay?

And that sets up something that you and your daughter, Heather, who’s in our church and the Jordan’s are part of our church. And here’s a daughter, coaching, teaching, training for mama. In what way? Because God worked in you in ’92 and here it is a few years back. Senior in high school, she had just accepted the Lord.

I hadn’t yet. And she came to me and said, “You know, mom, you’ve got a problem with finances. You don’t pay your bills and you spend money. You don’t have a budget.” She was taking a lot of finance classes and said that she wanted to take over the bills, that she would take over my checking account and she would pay me.

My first response was not favorable. I’m a little stubborn. But I thought about it. And I thought, you know, maybe this is a good idea. So I went back to her and said yes.

And for three years, she got my paycheck. She made it to deposit it. That was before they did auto deposit. She paid the bills. I received an allowance.

And then we talked about it some more. And she started weaning me off of being a kid, getting an allowance, to being an adult, paying bills. But that didn’t cure me. And so from time to time, I’ve kind of been in debt shortly after I came here. I became debt-free and then I went out and spent money like a moron.

And now I am fully committed to being out of debt. My goal originally was by December 31st, 2020. But I’m going to make it quicker than that. All right. All right.

All right. One more for you. And you don’t have to. There’s a lot more to this answer, I’m sure. But it would be wrong to say, well, that was the last growth step for Nancy because she is the daughter of a 92 year old father who’s frail and and fading.

And you have been called to do extraordinary things. And that’s my word, but because you’re too humble to say it like that. But you really have been. And tell us how God continues to grow in you through the care of your dad. When I realized I was the only option to kind of take over and take care of him.

He was in the beginning of demanding and he has some health issues. And actually his physical therapist looked at his computer when I was out there the other day. The physical therapist looked at his own computer and said, slam. He likes to be called slam even though he isn’t anymore. He said, slam.

You know, it says here in my computer and in your chart that you’re diagnosed with extreme stubbornness. And it fits. And I’m I’m doesn’t fall far from the tree. So when God made it clear to me that I was going to have to take a role in this, I stomped my foot at him and said, this is not fair. And I struggled with it and struggled with it and Heather kept saying, Mom, you know, why are you fighting it?

This is what God has given you. And finally, I spent an entire weekend in the word. It was during your prayer series. And entire weekend in the word and in prayer, no television. I had some worship music on and and God started to work in me because I knew that I had to stop being angry and frustrated at my dad all the time.

He couldn’t help what was going on. And he has made changes in me that that are amazing. I’m beginning to love my dad again. I’m beginning to show compassion. I prayed for three things in that weekend.

I prayed for perseverance, wisdom and pat and compassionate to be compassionate with him because I didn’t want to pray for patience. But he’s he’s made big changes and I I really like those changes and I like who I’m becoming in him. Amen. Praise God for. You’re awesome.

Hey, girl. All right, sister. So here’s the deal. I’m not going to have a stroke trying to squeeze in a second principle. I’m done.

That’s that’s really cool. And we’ll get to the rest starting next week. Okay. So it’s a powerful point to leave things on right now because that was all unrehearsed. Y’all I had I had questions and thought it was just the Lord saying, you know, Nancy is for real.

She’s the real deal and many, many, many of you are. And and you said yes to Jesus a while ago. You got the new heart we talked about. And that’s a that’s the only acceptable start because you try to do the thing she just described. You’ll give up and then you’ll blame God that this didn’t work for me.

And God is saying, no, give give me access to your heart. And I’ll start there. And then I’ll begin from that moment to make you new and I’ll grow new heart from your new heart. I’ll grow new quality. And the ability to do those things you just said in this is real time now with your dad is God is evidence that God is still working.

Here’s another thing to write down. And then I’m going to invite the team back up and we’re going to have just a little more worship and rapida. The work you have in me begun will buy your grace be fully done. One, write that down. It’s good.

Comes out of Philippians one, six. He who began the good work in you will complete it. We’ll carry it on to completion until when until we’re at eternity. Sure. What we sang about earlier.

So you don’t have to do it yourself. You have to say yes to Jesus. I got a bad heart. That’s how we all started. God fixed that.

He says, okay, let’s change it out and let’s start new. And I will begin that. Let’s pray together. Lord, thank you that the work you have in us begun will buy your grace be fully done. It’s a work of growth.

It’s a work where sometimes you have to use blasting caps and knock off chunks of darkness from our lives. And then there’s other parts of it where it just seems to kind of happen. And we’re in this growth track and we’re moving on. But then it comes with a setback or two. So God, thank you that not only are you up to that work in our lives and every story in this room is different.

But thank you that you will stay on the job until it’s done. You’ll stay on the job of making me like your son until it’s done. So God, have your way. Make us people who are holy in every way like we read this morning in 1 Peter. And I pray that as people around us at work and when we go back home and neighborhoods and wherever, they’re going to go, hold on.

What’s up with you? I’m seeing new. Talk to me about it. And Lord, I pray that we would be gracious and courageous in sharing that. So we give to you now.

We’re going to take an offering God and it’s an offering really of praise to you. It’s a practical offering. We’re going to sing a final song. And I pray that as we leave here, people would say, gosh, they love each other there. For your glory, we pray these things.

Amen. Let’s stand together and sing and worship as we conclude our time.

Transcript machine-generated from the sermon audio, so it may contain errors. 6,200 words.