[0:00] A memo of the new time, good to have you here this morning at our 9 o'clock service for 4th of July weekend. This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.
[0:13] Kids are welcome to come up and sing if they want to. This is the day that the Lord has made.
[0:30] Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made.
[0:45] Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made.
[1:00] Hi, welcome to our church. I'm Mike Maciejewski. And I'm Julie. Please fill out your friendship card to get on the mailing list, to sign up for any activities, any prayers or concerns, and any notes you want to send for the staff.
[1:14] And if you're new to our church, please be sure and pick up a gift that we have for you in the back of the church at the Connection site after worship. Thank you for coming today, and welcome to Pendleton Center Church.
[1:25] And we are glad to have you here this morning. We have one opportunity for ministry going around on our clipboard, and that's the rummage sale for Niagara Falls, which is a little bit different of a rummage sale. It's to help people get things they otherwise might not receive.
[1:39] So if you want to bring your stuff to church, you're welcome to do that. They'll get it over to Niagara Falls. And if you can help with some other part of the process, there's a clipboard to work on that if you'd like to going around.
[1:49] Also, I want to mention that you and I, our adult fellowship group, is going to Silo City Tuesday night. Sounds kind of interesting, so you can put that on your calendar if you'd like to.
[2:00] The office is closed Monday, and I think that's about all I've thought. So let's take a moment for prayer, shall we? Dear God, we do thank you for the blessing you give to us this morning of just being able to be here and worship you.
[2:12] Fill our hearts, fill our lives, fill our souls with all that you can be and all that you will be for us. For it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. I'd like to invite you, if you're able, to stand as we're going to sing together America the Beautiful.
[2:48] For beautiful, most spacious skies, for amber waves of rain.
[3:15] For purple-mountain, prajuseties above the fruited plain.
[3:27] America, America, God shed his praise on thee.
[3:38] And proud thy good with brotherhood from sea till shining sea.
[3:50] Oh, beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife.
[4:01] Who more than self, their country loved and mercy more than life.
[4:13] America, America, may God thy good refine. Till the success be nobleness and everything divine.
[4:34] Oh, beautiful for patriot dream that seems beyond the years.
[4:46] Thine heaven, the master, cities gleam undimmed by human tears.
[4:58] America, America, God bend thine every floor.
[5:10] Confirm thy soul in self-control. Thy liberty in love.
[5:21] The Lord be with you. Take a moment to grill and greet your neighbor with the peace of the spirit. I'd like to invite any kids who want to come up and join us, they're welcome to come on down.
[5:49] Come on down. Our kids disappeared. All right.
[6:03] Our kids seem to have disappeared for some reason. So if there's any kids who'd like to go out to church school, they could go with Pastor Sherry at this time. This morning, I'm thankful for America.
[6:16] You know, sometimes we look at our country and we think of it as having this flaw and that flaw and this problem and that problem. Even that song talked about it. And yet, for me, I don't know about you, I'm glad to live in this country.
[6:30] I'm glad for the opportunities, freedoms, the wonders of this nation. So to not be thankful for this country, you just don't understand this country. It's a great place to live and a great place to be able to be a Christian.
[6:41] So I thank God this morning for our nation and all it offers to us and gives to us. And as we thank God for all the good things he gives to us, let's return our Thanksgiving with our morning tithes and our offerings.
[6:52] Absolutely. Thank you, everyone. Thank you.
[7:11] Okay. Amen. Amen.
[8:12] Amen. Amen.
[9:12] Praise to them all creatures here below. Praise to them all of the heavenly hosts.
[9:25] Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen. Dear Lord, we thank you and praise you for all the gifts you give to us.
[9:41] All of life that you share with us. Now receive these gifts back, Lord, that they might be used for the wonders of your work in this world. Be a blessing to the givers. In Jesus' name we pray.
[9:52] Amen. Please be seated. This morning I noticed that they've had a lot of concerns come into the office that people shared with us that are confidential.
[10:05] So I can't share with you what those concerns are specifically. But just be in prayer for your church family. For the various things that have been coming across our attention lately.
[10:17] I did also want to mention that they asked for prayers for our mission trip, which is leaving this Saturday. You know, they always want us to pray for the mission trip. Pray for the leaders, especially your pastor.
[10:28] You know, I'm going to get old for this sort of thing. Also, they're still looking for a trailer. If anybody has a trailer that they could loan, an enclosed trailer or something, just let Pastor Sherry know.
[10:39] They're trying to work that out. All right? Shall we take a moment and offer all our prayers, our concerns, our joys and wonders to the Lord this morning in prayer? Dear God, we pray that you'll breathe into this place the very breath of God.
[10:57] Touch us, Lord, and fill our souls. That all the things that we've brought here to share with you, to share with each other, might be filled with your power, your wonder, and your answer to our prayers.
[11:16] We have thoughts, Lord, of our family and our friends and the concerns in their lives. We have worries about our own lives, our health and our finances and just the struggles of day-to-day living.
[11:33] We're worried, Lord. I have many things. And as those concerns rush through our mind, we lift them up to you that you might receive them, Lord, and pour out your blessing upon them.
[11:49] Help us in our needs, Lord. Help us in everything we've brought for you. Listen as each of us prays this morning. And, Lord, we pray for our community, our church, community, and family.
[12:22] We pray for this community we live in. We pray for this country we live in. That you might guide the leaders that seem to be moving in directions we have almost no control over.
[12:38] Help them to do what you would have them to do. Help them to be what you want them to be. Breathe your Holy Spirit into the leaders of all the nations, Lord, and guide them to bring your will on earth as it is in heaven.
[12:57] And, Lord, help us to be mindful of all the things we're thankful for this morning. Our family, our friends, our homes, our livelihoods. We thank you for this country, and we thank you for this church.
[13:11] Lift us into the joys and celebration of the blessings we receive. Touch us as we turn to the scripture, this ancient word, that it might open up a new meaning, a new blessing for our lives.
[13:23] Fill us, Lord. Help us to learn what you'd have us to learn. And to be what you'd have us to be. For we offer all our prayers. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
[13:34] Amen. And now shall we listen to the word of God. Good morning, everybody.
[14:07] Good morning. And happy Fourth of July. And we do have a lot to be thankful for. Okay, our scripture reading this morning is found in the New Testament, the book of Mark, chapter 6 and verses 1 through 11.
[14:24] Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples. And when the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue. And many who heard him were amazed.
[14:37] Where did this man get these things, they asked. What's this wisdom that has been given him that he even does miracles? And isn't this the carpenter?
[14:50] Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us? And they took offense at him.
[15:02] And Jesus said to them, only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own house is a prophet without honor. He could not do any miracles there except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.
[15:17] And he was amazed at their lack of faith. And then Jesus went around teaching from village to village and calling the twelve to him. He sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits.
[15:34] These were his instructions. Take nothing for the journey except a staff. No bread, no bag, and no money in your bouts.
[15:48] Wear sandals, but not an extra tunic. And whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave as a testimony against them.
[16:11] And this is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Barbara. Barbara. Last night I went to my wife's 40-year reunion from high school.
[16:24] And there was a fellow that I've known over the years. And I said, think of a name of somebody who's definitely not going to be here. And so for the night I became Tom Larkin.
[16:35] Hey, Tom Larkin, how you doing? Good to see you again. I was getting hugs and greetings from all kinds of people. Because nobody had any clue who the guy was or where he had gone and what was going on. Half the crowd actually believed I was Tom Larkin.
[16:50] Some figured out I was Jackie's wife's husband. Reunions are funny things, aren't they? Because we look at people and they don't look the same. They don't act the same.
[17:00] They don't talk the same. And they're doing things that are very different with their lives. My 40th reunion is coming up soon. I've been told because of Facebook.
[17:12] Otherwise I would have no clue. It's an interesting invention, isn't it? And so I've had these people who've been sending me messages saying, Hey, Tom, are you coming? By the way, I live like a mile away from you.
[17:24] I didn't know we were so close. I'm like, seriously, dude, you're a mile away? We haven't talked in 40 years? Interesting relationships. You don't even know how to react. What will it be like?
[17:36] Will it be like a wonderful homecoming where everybody will be happy to see each other? Or will it be sort of uncomfortable and odd as you walk around trying to figure out who's who? And whether we're even still back in high school playing those games that used to be played.
[17:52] Going home. It's not easy. Especially after a number of years. And especially if your life has changed radically. And Jesus' life is very different than when he was a carpenter in Nazareth.
[18:04] He showed up in his home synagogue. Preaching a sermon. I did that once in my home church over in Christ United Methodist Church in Snyder.
[18:16] It was very strange to be on that side of the pulpit. I was used to being on the other side of the pulpit. And I still had some people there that called me Dick and Lorraine's little boy Tommy. Life is interesting, isn't it?
[18:30] And you have a certain nervousness when you're around the people that you know and you care about. You wonder what their opinion is going to be. When they listened to his message.
[18:41] And they saw his miracles. It says that they were impressed. But then the idea of the messenger started to get in the way of the message.
[18:52] Sometimes what we are affects our effectiveness. It changes how people react to what we say and what we're doing and what we're being.
[19:09] They're amazed. Because they had a very different picture of Jesus. He was the carpenter from down the street. He was Mary's son. Remember the one? There were the rumors about him and his father, sort of Joseph.
[19:20] Maybe not quite his father. We're not sure. We know it really wasn't quite right, whatever it was about his birth. Something was a little off there. And after all, who the heck is he to tell us anything?
[19:31] Didn't he grow up in Nazareth just like us? He doesn't know anything more than we do. It's hard. It's hard. Where does wisdom come from?
[19:43] Where does he get this knowledge? They said, well, our obvious answer is God. But it's not always that way in life. People give authority to folks who have certain attributes.
[19:56] So the guy who pulls up to his 20th year reunion from high school in a limousine and gets out and all of a sudden doesn't look like he used to in high school. And he's all different in the way he comes across.
[20:09] Everybody's going, who's that guy? They're impressed by this. Wow. What happened here? The popular guy who shows up and, well, maybe he's put on a lot more weight than anybody expected.
[20:22] And, well, he's losing his hair and doesn't look quite like the athlete that he did in high school. Everybody's saying, what happened to Joe? Joe. Joe. Why do we give people authority?
[20:35] Why do we give them authority? It's a fascinating thing. We give people who are older more authority than people who are younger. If you're young, people don't listen to you as much.
[20:47] But if you're too old, they won't listen to you either, by the way. So it's just a little bit of gray, not too much. We give authority to men more than women.
[20:57] We give authority to tall people more than short people. We give authority to people who are white compared to people who are not in this culture, in this nation. We give authority to people who have money as compared to people who don't have as much money.
[21:14] We give authority to people who look more appealing to us. And we give authority to people who have deep, booming, bass voices. A lot more than people who are squeaking out of voices like this.
[21:28] It's just the truth. We grant authority based on things that almost have nothing to do with anything we're saying. And it's hard, especially to listen to somebody teach us who we came up with, who doesn't seem like they should have anything special about them more than us.
[21:51] It's much easier to listen to a stranger that we know nothing about. And so they rejected Jesus in his hometown. You know, in another gospel, it says they actually got so angry at him, they tried to throw him off a cliff.
[22:06] There's a homecoming for you, isn't it? We're so upset that you think you can talk to us and we're going to toss you off a cliff. Rejection hurts. Even more so when it's somebody you have a history with.
[22:21] Imagine throwing a great big Fourth of July party. And you've invited all the people you love the most to come. And you've got everything prepared and the food is there and everything's, you know, ready and the fireworks are going.
[22:39] And it's an amazing party except nobody comes. And you're sitting there by yourself. The fireworks are just as spectacular as they'd be if there was a whole group of people you loved with you.
[22:56] But somehow, watching fireworks alone just isn't very fun. Do you know what I mean?
[23:07] I saw some fireworks Friday night. They went up in the sky and then they came down on the lake and it was like they had 10 or 12 little flames dancing around on the water for like about a minute or so.
[23:20] Never saw anything like it. And all of us are going, cool, did you see that? It's just no fun to say, hey, cool, did you see that? Yeah, of course I saw that. I'm you. Rejection is hard.
[23:33] If you've ever thrown a party where people don't show up. If you've ever had a celebration that nobody cares about. If you've ever experienced trying to share something you love and you feel strong about and people say, who cares?
[23:45] You know rejection hurts. We're talking about the things that we build up as walls that keep folks from God.
[23:57] We're talking about how and why and why we don't share about Jesus. And one of the reasons we don't is because we don't want to feel rejection.
[24:09] It hurts. So we build it up and put it on the wall as a way to keep ourselves safe from that hurt. We're going to talk about how to tear the walls down.
[24:21] These weeks. So that people can come to Jesus. How do you deal with rejection? First of all, we can avoid a lot of rejection by being a little better prepared.
[24:37] Jesus didn't go to his hometown alone. He took his disciples with him. In fact, when he sent people out village to village, it said, go with a partner. Don't go alone. Life is not good for people that are alone.
[24:49] Find somebody to walk through life with. Find somebody to be with. It makes a difference just having someone. To walk through these issues with together.
[25:01] Celebrate what's happening that's good. Instead of focusing on the failures. It's fascinating how good we become at being critics. I was talking about that in my thankful moment about the country, right?
[25:15] It's so easy to rip everything down now. So what it said in this story is Jesus went to Nazareth. And he didn't do very many miracles. He only healed a few people. Seriously, he only healed a few sick people.
[25:28] So like today, if there were several sick people in the church and I walked by and just, you know, laid my hands on them and they all got well, we wouldn't be going like, whoa! And instead they're going, yeah, it wasn't much.
[25:38] Just a few miracles. Nothing important. Nothing like that. Focus on the positive things that are happening. The good that's occurring. Stop worrying about the things that don't go right.
[25:51] It's just Jesus gave authority over unclean spirits, over demons, over the ability to knock evil out of people's lives. Wouldn't it be amazing to be simply able to take evil out of every situation you enter into?
[26:08] God has given us that authority. Celebrate the good things. Another one he says is to mind our motive.
[26:20] Don't go door to door trying to get a better deal. Don't go looking around to see how you can work this angle or that angle to make it about you. Talking about God and sharing about God.
[26:33] It's not about us. It's about God. Yeah. Pretty easy, huh? It's about God. So we should mind our motives.
[26:44] We don't do this for what it does for us. We do this for what it does for God. We're just amazed at their lack of faith. Faith is important.
[26:57] People are impressed by who we are. I said they don't even hear our message so much sometimes as they see what we are and what we do and who we are.
[27:09] Go without any money. Go without any suitcase. Take along no extra clothes. And just rely on God. Really?
[27:20] Really? Not going to happen. That's just crazy stuff. Could you imagine if you met someone with enough faith that they trusted God to take nothing?
[27:34] No wallet. No change of clothes. Nothing. But a trust that God would provide for them. Wow.
[27:46] That's something people would be attracted to. Even if they didn't agree, they'd be astounded by the person themselves. Because what we are matters. So working on our reputation is essential.
[28:00] If we want to be heard as Christians, we need to be the kind of people that people not only respect, but people actually like and want to be around. And reputations take a long time.
[28:12] Proverbs says, A good name is more desirable than great riches. It's to be esteemed better than silver or gold. If I go back to my high school reunion, it'll be interesting.
[28:29] Because eventually somebody's going to say, So what do you do? And I'm going to say, I'm a pastor. And they're going to say, Yeah, yeah. What do you really do? I know they are.
[28:40] Because I wasn't exactly what you would call a good kid. In fact, I was what you'd probably call a bad kid. We were talking to my wife and I about our grandson at his age.
[28:52] And I was saying, Well, you know what I was like at that age? I was running with gangs. I was a guy who should have been arrested and thrown in jail. I just got away with stuff.
[29:02] And it wasn't just that I did stuff that was kind of like pranks and that kind of stuff. It was hurtful. I hurt people. I don't know why.
[29:13] I don't know why, but sometimes you feel an anger inside or a frustration about life. You want to take it out on other people. That's kind of what I was like. I was sort of mean.
[29:24] I wasn't sort of mean. I was mean. I was the guy who when the kids were walking up the stairwell, I would toss a water balloon over from the third floor just to see what would happen.
[29:36] It's just some nice stuff. So my reputation would follow me if I were going now to be with people that knew me when I was young. Working on our reputation matters.
[29:52] Who is this guy? We know what he was like. Who is this person? We know what she did. It takes years to change your reputation. Sometimes you have to move away from your hometown and find a whole new crowd of people.
[30:08] And it can be gone in an instant. Reputation is essential. And then finally, be patient.
[30:21] It doesn't all happen right away. If you want something good to happen, often it takes time. We have people who are way too much in a hurry to try and change other people's lives.
[30:38] When really what we need to do is take time to work with them. Do you have any idea how long it takes to set up a fireworks display? It takes a long time, doesn't it?
[30:49] Hours and hours. And then in about 15 minutes, boom, the fireworks are all going off, right? Right? Just like that.
[31:01] It's the same thing with people. If we're kind and gracious and take our time and are patient with people, we might even change the way they think.
[31:12] Many of you know that for years I would brag about my dumb phone. I now have a smartphone. Not smart enough to know where it is, but I have one. It took years for people to convince me that a smartphone is better than a dumb phone.
[31:31] Smart, dumb. Better, worse. This doesn't take a lot to figure out, does it really? It wasn't even the cost. Do you know how much my smartphone cost me? It cost me an extra buck and a half a month.
[31:44] It wasn't even the cost. I just refused to take a smartphone. Because I was going to hold on to my dumb phone.
[31:56] Which was? Dumb. Yeah. Exactly. What we might think is absolutely clear and other people see and can understand completely might not be so easy for them to grasp.
[32:15] The Bible talks about sharing our faith like planting seeds and watering and being patient and taking time. Not being hard and difficult and pushing too hard.
[32:28] And finally, look for people who want Jesus. Because some people don't. Any of you ever own a dog?
[32:39] Anybody here? Do dogs like fireworks? No. They're too loud. They hurt their ears.
[32:51] They run away. Because fireworks are not something they're comfortable with. I had someone last night telling me they took their dog to the fireworks display. And when the dog saw the bright lights and stuff and could at least associate with it, and they were with their owners, they were calmer.
[33:06] Rather than leaving them alone in their house, wondering what is that crazy noise going on. Some people want to accept things and some don't.
[33:19] Fireworks are not something most dogs want. Not everybody wants Jesus. Even his home synagogue didn't want him.
[33:33] A lot of people accept the concept of God, the idea of a God, but they don't want a God that's going to react with their life. And the truth is, that's the power of the Christian faith.
[33:46] The power of the Christian faith is not in some idea. The power of the Christian faith is in God. Amen? Experiencing, living with, talking with, relating with.
[33:56] A God that actually enters into our life. It's not a religion. It's an experience. But some people, they just don't want that.
[34:09] They're not rejecting us. They're rejecting Jesus. They didn't have faith. Some miracles didn't occur in their lives.
[34:19] Some people reject God. And then wonder why their lives seem to be falling apart. It's not that miracles and faith are put together as if you have faith, you'll have miracles.
[34:34] But they're related. They're related. God uses them to prove his existence. To prove his power. God gives them to those who are his people. Faith and miracles.
[34:45] They go together. Some people, they reject God. They reject him for a lot of reasons. They don't want to give up control. They like to be the center of the universe.
[34:56] They don't want a God. Some people don't feel that they're worthy. They think somewhere along the line they did something wrong so that they're not worthy to be with a perfect God.
[35:10] Some people think that they'd have to give up their fun. That life would be boring if you did Christian stuff. I don't live a boring life. I have a lot of fun.
[35:22] I'm not exactly sure what I would be giving up. Except for things that were broken. Some people are simply too busy. Because we become a world that's so busy.
[35:36] We're always so busy. We don't have time for anything. And by the way, you do realize you're busy doing a lot of stuff that is your choice. They're good things.
[35:49] But too much good stuff can get you sick too. Right? I had that experience last night. Too much good stuff. So, you know. It happens. Find people who want God.
[36:05] To talk about God. Find the tribe who want God. And the other people. Jesus says. It's like shaking the dust off your feet.
[36:15] Don't worry about it. Don't carry around some kind of guilt. Or some kind of burden. You realize that you may not be the person who is going to help somebody understand about God.
[36:27] The hardest ones are our own friends and family, aren't they? And maybe we're not the right person. Maybe God has somebody else in mind. The most amazing conversion in the Bible, I think, is the conversion of James and Jude.
[36:48] Does anybody know who James and Jude were? Jesus' brothers. I'm going to tell you. If all of a sudden somebody told me one of my brothers was the son of God, I'd say, yeah. I don't think so.
[37:02] That's not happening. Like, they're still wrestling with the problem of trying to conceive that I'm actually the pastor of a church. They've had to come here and watch it to see if it's real, you know? Seriously?
[37:14] I don't think so. Even if you read the Bible story, you'll find that Jesus' brothers thought Jesus was nuts at one point.
[37:29] And yet, somewhere along the line, they changed what they believed. And I don't think it was all Jesus doing. I think they saw how it changed other people and responded to that.
[37:41] Sometimes, we're too concerned about being responsible for everything and everyone. Plant some seeds and let things develop.
[37:52] And search for the people that want to be with you. You know, that's true about sharing your faith. That's just true about life, too. Jesus was asked about his family one time.
[38:03] And in the book of Mark, it says, Who are my mother and my brothers? And he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, Here are my mother and my brothers.
[38:14] Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother. The people who are with me, this is my family. This is my tribe. These are the people that I'm going to be with.
[38:27] You know, one of the fascinating things about our congregation is over the years, I was talking to someone the other night, it's grown quite a bit. There was a time when the entire congregation would be no more than who's seated over in that little section of chairs.
[38:42] One service. But what you may not realize is, Far more people came to this church and decided not to stay than came and decided to stay.
[38:54] Lots of people don't like us. Lots of people don't like our congregation, what we do, what we're about, how we are. They leave. That's okay.
[39:06] Because if they stayed, you know what they would do? Try to change us to be what they want instead of letting us. Let's be who we are. And that would just create trouble.
[39:18] They need to go find where they belong. Because we found where we belong. Amen? So the point is, you need to find the group of people that belong with you.
[39:31] The ones who want to live where you live. Who want to love what you love. Who want the God that you have. Because there's people out there that are hungry for that, and they're just waiting for somebody to offer it to them.
[39:44] Jesus didn't get discouraged because his hometown rejected him. It says he went out from village to village to village where the people received him, and were glad to have him.
[39:56] Because not everybody thinks and does things the same. We had two dogs, Alpha and Omega. They loved fireworks.
[40:09] Actually, they'd go out in the middle of a thunderstorm and sit in the yard in the ring going, Hey, cool. Did you see that one over there? Oh, look. There's another one. Wow. Neat. They would watch the fireworks from our backyard at the town park up here.
[40:22] Hey, look at that one over there. Hey, I like that. Wow. Oh, look over there. They were dogs that liked fireworks. Weird. Strange dogs.
[40:33] Maybe it's because they lived outside all the time. I don't know. Maybe it's because they got used to it. I have no idea. Maybe because the gun club makes all kinds of banging noise down the road all the time, and they were used to the loud banging noise.
[40:44] I don't know. Some people like something. Some people don't. Some people accept something. Sometimes they don't. Because a lot of people want to receive grace.
[40:56] Those are the ones we need to share with. Because they're hungry for God. And not let the few that reject it keep us from doing what God wants us to do.
[41:10] Rejection hurts. It really does. I understand it. And especially when you're sharing about something so personal and so important as your belief in God.
[41:22] And somebody sets it aside like it's nothing. Like it doesn't matter. Or actually treats you like somehow you're deficient because you have a belief in God.
[41:33] And especially if it's people that we love and care about. It makes us want to just pull back and keep life shallow. All my friends will be Facebook friends.
[41:46] I'm not going to get deep with anybody. I'm not going to talk about anything to anybody. I'm just going to watch the fireworks in life. And stay safe.
[41:57] I suppose that would be okay. Except the problem is there's a whole world of people out there who need God. And what God can do.
[42:09] If you receive 20 tickets to that circular tower up in Niagara Falls. You know where they have dinner. Free dinner on the 4th of July when they're going to fire fireworks up at you.
[42:24] Has anybody ever been there during that? It's cool. You see them Disney style. Fireworks from the top. It's cool. Could you imagine you got 23 tickets for a limousine to pick you up.
[42:38] Take you over to the tower. Feed you dinner. And watch a fireworks show. Who would you want to give those 20 tickets to? Strangers you've never met?
[42:49] I mean they would be happy to get them right? Would you just walk around and pick out anybody on the street? Or would you go and find the people you care about. And you love the most.
[43:03] Of course we would. Because we'd want to share such a great show. Oh, these are fireworks. It would be amazing to experience this. We have something even more amazing than that.
[43:18] We have the amazing grace of God. Which is like an incredible experience that transforms our lives. Changes it. Turns it around.
[43:29] I was headed in the wrong direction as a young person. Now don't misunderstand. My parents took me to church. I went to Sunday school. I learned all about God. But I was still headed the wrong way because I didn't know Jesus.
[43:46] Somewhere along the line. Different people. Sunday school teacher here. A pastor there. A pretty girl over here. My mother and father.
[43:59] My grandmother. Folks who didn't push it down my throat. They just kept offering it and offering it and sharing it and sharing it until finally I went from the dumb phone to the smart phone.
[44:15] And said, hey, this is a better life. I love to tell the story.
[44:37] Because I know it is true. It satisfies my longings. As nothing else can do.
[44:52] I love to tell the story. Will be my theme in glory. To tell the old, old story.
[45:07] Of Jesus and his love. I love to tell the story.
[45:17] More wonderful it seems. Than of the golden fancies. Of all the golden dreams.
[45:32] I love to tell the story. It did so much for me. And that is just the reason.
[45:46] I tell it now to thee. I love to tell the story. It will be my theme in glory.
[46:01] To tell the old, old story. Of Jesus and his love. I love to tell the story.
[46:16] For those who know it best. Seem pondering and thirsting. To hear it like the rest.
[46:30] I love to tell the story. For some have never heard. The message of salvation.
[46:44] From God's own holy word. I love to tell the story. I love to tell the story. It will be my theme in glory.
[46:59] To tell the old, old story. Of Jesus and his love. You know, imagine if Jesus would have said, I'm not going.
[47:13] They're going to be mean to me down there. They're not going to listen to what I have to say. I'm not going to go down to those people. Because they're not nice. They probably would even hang me on a cross and kill me. And well, none of us would have a chance.
[47:27] God took the chance on us. So that we might take a chance on them. In Christ alone, my hope is found.
[47:56] He is my light, my strength, my song. His cornerstone, his solid ground.
[48:07] When we the forces crowd and storm. While lights are found, the death's the beast. In ways are still and stridently seems.
[48:22] I come with earth, my all in all. Here in the love of Christ I stand.
[48:34] In Christ alone, who do not flesh. Fullness of God in helplessness.
[48:46] His gift of love and righteousness. He's born by the ones we came to save. Till on the cross that Jesus died.
[49:01] The Lamb of God was satisfied. For every sin on Him was laid.
[49:12] Here in the death of Christ I live. His body lays allowed, the light of the world in darkness.
[49:26] This one or, the dust we pass. His body laid up, the light of the world in darkness.
[49:46] In darkness slain And bursting forth in glorious days Upon the grave He rose again And as He stands in victory He's blessed and loved its grip on me For I am His and He is mine Rock with the precious blood of Christ No guilt in life, no fear in death This is the power of Christ in me From thine first try to final breath Jesus commands my destiny No power of hell, no speed of man
[50:48] Can ever run me from His hand Till He reclars and proudly O Here in the power of Christ I stand In the power of Christ I stand In the power of Christ I stand These are the days of Elijah Declaim the word of the Lord
[51:50] And these are the days of your servant Moses Righteousness being restored And though these are days of great triumph Of famine and darkness and sorrow Still we are the voice of the desert Lying for faith, the way of the Lord The only cross, riding on the cloud Shattered like the sun And from before Lying for your voice Heareth to release Dad of Zion's hill, salvation comes These are the days of Ezekiel The dry bones becoming as flesh And these are the days of your servant
[52:51] Came and rebuilding the temple of praise And these are the days of the harvest The fields are as white in the world And we are your neighbors In your millions Declaring the word of the Lord The only cross, riding on the cloud Shattered like the sun And truly God, lift your voice The year of Jubilee And at Zion's hill, salvation comes The only cross, riding on the clouds Shattered like the sun And truly God, lift your voice The year of Jubilee And at Zion's hill, salvation comes Please be seated You know, I think back to all the times
[53:56] Running into people that you knew Before you knew Christ You just think What they must think Oh, I'm so embarrassed You know, you can think Okay, I've come a long way But boy, I've got a long way to go yet And there's not one of us Who can claim to be perfect And as much as we say That our lives are supposed to be The beacon of truth They're supposed to be able to look At our lives and say Hey, that's where God is I want that I know for myself And probably for you There have been times When I've not lived up to that Times when I have fallen short And not done the right thing But I am thankful and grateful That we have a God of grace and mercy That each and every time We realize and come to that conviction That we need God We've been going in the wrong way We can come to Christ And He does forgive us And we can start fresh
[54:57] And we can start new And all that is past And it's open for everyone And so as we reflect On just how good God is And just how broken we are I invite you to Prayer of confession before Him O Lord, our Redeemer O Lord, our Redeemer We pray for Your grace We pray for Your grace We pray for Your mercy We pray for Your mercy We are broken We are broken We are sinful We've not always loved We've not always been A healing power In people's lives We've broken Your laws And we've gone astray Help us to do the right thing Fill us with Your healing power Heal the brokenness within us That we may be a beacon to others
[56:00] Fill us with Your grace Help us to feel Your mercy That we may be a beacon of Your love In Jesus' holy name we pray Amen That's my favorite part Hear the good news Christ died for us While we were still sinners And this proves God's love For you and for me In the name of Jesus Christ Your sins are forgiven In the name of Jesus Christ Your sins are forgiven Glory to God Amen Come to the table of mercy
[57:03] Prepared with the wine and the bread All who are hungry and thirsty Come and your souls will be fed Come at the Lord's invitation Received from His name Eat of the bread of salvation Drink of the blood of the Lamb The table is set All those who seek Jesus Christ Are welcome to come to the table This isn't our meal This is God's meal If you wish to have Jesus Christ In your life You're welcome to come And receive the table This morning The Lord be with you And also with you Lift up your hearts
[58:03] Lift up your hearts Let us give thanks To the Lord our God It is right It's a good and joyful thing Always and everywhere To give thanks to God In the joys and celebrations In the rejections and the pain In the struggles And in the blessings We give thanks to God Because God is our victory God is our joy God is our hope In the midst of all of life And so with all the people on earth And all the angels in heaven We praise his name And join their unending hymn Saying Holy, holy, holy Lord God of power and money Heaven and earth Are full of your glory Hosanna in the highest Blessed is he who comes In the name of the Lord Hosanna in the highest Holy are you Blessed is your son Jesus Christ Who gathered in this place with us He did not consider The darkness of this world Worth forgoing So that he could remain
[59:05] In the safety of heaven But reached into our brokenness To bring us hope And bring us life On the night when he faced His crucifixion On the night in which he knew He would be betrayed He'd be denied He'd be rejected He offered this meal To the very people Who would do that He took the bread And he gave thanks to God He broke the bread And he gave it to his disciples And he said Take and eat This is my body Which is broken for you For the forgiveness of sin Eat of this Remembering me When the supper was over He took the cup He gave thanks to God He gave it to his disciples And he said Drink from this All of you This is my blood Of the new covenant It's poured out For you and for many For the forgiveness of sin Drink of this Remembering me And so in remembrance Of these mighty acts In Jesus Christ
[60:05] We offer ourselves In praise And thanksgiving As a holy And living sacrifice In union with Christ Offering for us As we proclaim The mystery of faith Christ has died Christ has risen Christ will come again Pour out your Holy Spirit On us Lord Pour it into our lives Pour it into our very beings Pour it into us Lord Like a soaking rain Help us to experience The wonder of God Be our majesty And be our strength Be our guidance And be our power Be our conviction And be our love That we might go to this world Of brokenness and pain And be the very body And blood of Christ For the world Sharing his wonder His grace His hope His possibilities With the broken world That the glory of God Might come to earth As it is in heaven Bless us this day Lord In all the prayers We offer As we offer them up In the name of the Father And the Son
[61:06] And the Holy Spirit Amen And now as Jesus Taught his disciples To pray Let us join together In praying Our Father Who art in heaven Hallowed be thy name Thy kingdom come Thy will be done On earth As it is in heaven Give us this day Our daily bread And forgive us Our trespasses As we forgive those Who trespass against us And lead us not Into temptation But deliver us From evil For thine is The kingdom And the power And the glory Forever and ever Amen We will be serving Four stations Will those who are Assisting with communion Comfort at this time Please Thank you.
[62:17] Thank you.
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[67:17] Thank you. Thank you.
[68:17] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
[69:23] Thank you. Thank you.