Transcription downloaded from https://services.pcumc.org/sermons/27613/its-never-too-late/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] and Amen. Amen.

[1:03] Amen. Amen.

[2:03] Amen. Amen.

[3:03] Amen. Amen.

[3:35] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[3:46] Amen. Good morning, church. Welcome to worship for Pendleton Center and First United Methodist Churches. This is the day that the Lord has made.

[3:58] We will rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made.

[4:19] Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made.

[4:33] Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day. This is the day that the Lord has made.

[4:47] Let us pray. Holy God, you are worthy to be praised. As we worship you, reveal yourself to us. Speak to us boldly and fill us with your spirit.

[4:59] For it's in Jesus' name that we pray and we praise. Amen. Amen. Now I'd like to invite you all to stand up if you're able. So we're going to worship together singing, O worship the King.

[5:10] O worship the King. O worship the King, O glorious above. O gratefully sing God's power and God's love. Our shield and defender. The Lord has made. Our shield and defender. The Lord has made. the Lord has made.

[5:23] ц of his son. O worship the King, O glorious above. O gratefully sing God's power and God's love. Our shield and defender. The ancient of days.

[5:37] A Whoa. God's power and God's love, our shield and defender, the ancient of days, a billioned in splendor and good and with praise.

[5:55] The earth with its store of wonders untold, almighty thy birth and founded of old, hath established it fast by a changeless decree, and round it hath cast like a man to the sea.

[6:19] I mount it full care, what tongue can recite, it breathes in the air, it shines in the light, it streams from the hills, it descends to the plain, and sweetly distills in the dew and the rain.

[6:43] The Lord be with you. Please be seated. We do welcome you this morning. It is wonderful to be able to worship with all of you. I mean, I know we're all doing this separately, but we're all here together.

[6:55] We are all together as the body of Christ, worshiping God Almighty, and that is such a blessing. So welcome! We'd love to know if you're here with us. And so we have a friendship card link, so if you could click on that, take some time, and let us know you're here with us so we can celebrate that we're worshiping together.

[7:14] And if you have any prayer concerns or you want to proclaim what some blessings are in your life, God is pouring out blessings with each and every one of us, and we'd love to hear how you are being blessed at this time.

[7:26] So lift those up so we can praise along with you. Fill out that friendship card. For the children, again, there's an activity sheet link there, so you can download that, and they can do all of the activity things during worship.

[7:39] And again, we have children involved in worship because they are part of our church family, so we're going to incorporate all of that, and we're all excited about having children and youth.

[7:50] Everybody together is the family of God worshiping. And so we actually have an idea. What we'd love for you to do is, as you are worshiping together with your family, we'd love for you to take a picture.

[8:02] Take a picture of whatever, and if you're a family of one, take a picture of yourself. Take a picture of all of you together worshiping God and send it to us. And we're going to have a slide that's going to tell you how to do that.

[8:13] Somehow, we're going to do that. And we also want to know if you have any praises in your own Facebook. You can shoot that in the chat room as well.

[8:24] Now, we also have an offering button that you can give in that way. Or if you'd like, you can mail in a check, whatever works for you. But we want to give back to God because God has blessed each and every one of us so much.

[8:38] And we want to make sure that we are giving back with grateful hearts for all that God has done for us. And we'll see you next time.

[9:15] tactileNINGHAM Thank you.

[9:46] Thank you.

[10:16] Thank you.

[10:46] Thank you.

[11:16] Thank you.

[11:46] Thank you.

[12:16] Thank you.

[12:46] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Amen.

[13:01] Good morning, friends. Welcome to Junior Church. Do you know, I can't believe this is the fifth Sunday that we have not been in the same place worshiping together.

[13:12] I'm here in the ark worshiping God. I'm here in the ark worshiping God. I'm here in the ark worshiping God and you're at home with your mom and your dad and all of your other folks in your house. You know, it's been kind of hard, you know, it's been kind of hard, hasn't it?

[13:25] It's been kind of hard being away from our friends that we usually see at church and that we usually see at the playground and at school and wherever are the places that we usually go.

[13:36] But do you know what I want to make sure you remember today? We have the best friend in the world. We have the best friend in the whole world. And I know you know his name. I bet you can say it with me.

[13:46] His name is Jesus. Jesus. Yes, that's right. It's Jesus. And Jesus loves us so much that even when we're apart and we can't get together, we still have love in our hearts for him.

[14:01] And we still have love in our hearts for our family that we're with right now. And we still have love in our hearts for all of those people that we can't be with right now.

[14:13] So let's remember all about how God's love is in our hearts. Ready? Make your heart. I know you know how. Say it with me. When God's love is in my heart, I can love everybody.

[14:30] That's right. Ready? When God's love is in my heart, I can love everybody. And so we do.

[14:41] We love God and God loves us and we love everybody because his love is in our hearts. And you know, God gave us a special way to talk to him.

[14:52] It's called prayer. Everybody say prayer. That's right. I knew you knew that word. Well, one day Jesus disciples asked him about prayer and I'm going to read it to you from Luke chapter one.

[15:06] Chapter 11, excuse me. In verse one, it says one day Jesus was praying. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, Lord, teach us to pray.

[15:21] And so Jesus said, when you pray, say, Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread.

[15:34] Forgive us our sins for we also forgive everyone who sins against us and lead us not into temptation. Now, that's the way Luke decided to write it down.

[15:47] And other writers who wrote about Jesus wrote it down a little differently, too. I bet you remember. Remember, I brought in these hands holding this book.

[15:59] And you remember we talked about how the artist wanted these hands to be like God's hands and God's hands holding. What book is what book is God holding for us?

[16:11] That's right. The Bible. And in this Bible carving, it says, our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

[16:22] 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.

[16:42] Now, it's a little bit different than the way we read it in the Bible. And when we say the prayer a little bit later on during our prayer time, it's even a little bit different than that.

[16:54] Because God has led us to be able to pray in all kinds of ways. But whenever we pray, we're praying to God and God will hear us.

[17:05] God will answer our prayers. Here's what we want to think about about our prayer today. God is wonderful and God loves us so much and we love him.

[17:18] He is holy. He is hallowed. But what he wants us to think about today is that his kingdom come, his will be done on earth.

[17:29] When we pray to God, God shows us how to be in this earth. We're supposed to be in this earth just like it already is in heaven.

[17:43] God wants us to bring heaven into our families, into our own lives. God will bless us with that. Now, when we pray, remember, I want you to practice.

[17:55] Sometimes we pray with our hands like this. Can you practice that one? I know some of you are already deciding how you want to hold your hands. But let's let everybody else have a chance. And sometimes we pray like this.

[18:07] Sometimes we pray with our hands like this. Sometimes we raise our hands way up in the air. Sometimes we bow our heads. Sometimes we kneel down.

[18:18] But however it is that we hold our hands to pray, we know that God always hears us. We have such a wonderful friend.

[18:29] Jesus is our friend. And he is such a good friend that he listens to us and he speaks to us. We know that we can take everything to him in prayer.

[18:41] So today, I want you to hold your hands in some way that you like to hold them to pray. And I want you to think about what a friend we have in Jesus.

[18:53] What a friend we have in Jesus.

[19:12] What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege to carry. What a privilege to carry.

[19:24] Everything to God in prayer. Oh, what peace we often forfeit.

[19:36] Oh, what needless pain we bear. All because we do not carry. Everything to God in prayer.

[19:51] Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

[20:02] We should never be discouraged. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Take it to the Lord in prayer.

[20:16] Can we find a friend so faithful? Who will all our sorrows share?

[20:28] Jesus knows our every weakness. Jesus knows our every weakness. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Take it to the Lord in prayer.

[20:43] Take it to the Lord in prayer. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Take it to the Lord in prayer.

[20:57] I love you. Thank you. As we move into our time of prayer, prayer we want to remind you that we'd like you to fill out a friendship card online you want to go to pendletonchurch.org friendship card and on that friendship card you can let us know you were here include any notes for the staff and also your prayer requests we do share unless your prayer requests are marked confidential we share them with the prayer team and not only the pastors and staff but also the prayer team is praying over them all week long so please do include your prayer requests and your prayer team has prepared an ongoing prayer vigil for all of us as a church as we go through this time of being a part and of dealing with the coronavirus today's prayer station comes from prayer team member mary ellen schutz she shares with us from matthew chapter 6 therefore i tell you do not worry about your life look at the birds of the air they do not sow or reap or store away in barns and yet your heavenly father feeds them are you not much more valuable than they who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life therefore do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself each day has enough trouble of its own as reflection mary ellen writes during the fall and winter i bought several things that i did not need at that time i argued with myself about buying them even as i put them away i questioned my purchase it was not on sale and not even a good price now that covid19 has shut the world down i know why god led me to buy those things that i need now so this week let's be in prayer about god leading us to do what god would have us do and when god would have us do it that the wisdom of doing things god's way will be something people notice in us and wonder about so that god's grace will be seen by everyone around us and everyone will respond keep those um prayer needs coming to us and as we enter into the time we're going to go to the lord in prayer we want to lift up arlene morong who was in the hospital and is now healing at home ed gemeinder and his family ed is betty gemeinder's husband and he is in the hospital we want to lift up gary duchere's son eric who is a health care worker and we want to pray for his health and well-being and for the health and well-being of all health care workers and we have a couple of families who have had family members pass on we want to remember mary zupo's family and the putney family since this was recorded we have learned that ed gemeinder has been sent home from the hospital but continue to pray for him and also we want to pray for the patrick family for donna and her whole family as donna's husband keith passed away this past week the lord would have us pray for those who are separated from loved ones as well those who are grieving in isolation it's a very difficult time to have to be alone so with these concerns and those that are on your hearts let's turn to the lord in prayer

[25:02] gracious heavenly father we come before you as your church knowing that you are the one who hears and answers prayer we are so blessed lord god to be called to come before you in this way we are blessed lord god to know that you want to work through us by your mighty power to change things in the world to transform your people to transform all of the ways of this world that are troublesome and wrong lord god we pray in jesus name now for all of those who are sick and infirm we pray for an end to the plague of this coronavirus we ask in jesus name lord god that you would touch people in their bodies drive that thing out in a way heal with your healing power and lord god keep this from continuing to spread give wisdom to the doctors to the nurses to the researchers lord god that those who are being cared for would be cared for well and that those who are looking for a vaccine who are looking for ways to help us heal in our physical beings just let them do it lord let them accomplish that help them lord father we pray in jesus name for all of those who are working who are exposing themselves to the possibility of becoming infected who are exposing others to what they may be carrying unaware we pray especially lord for people like postal workers and those who work in grocery stores and the people who are working in health care for everyone lord god people who are driving buses and and operating subways and all the things that have to happen so that essential services can continue we pray father that you would protect and guide them and keep them that you would remind us all to take care with when we go out let it only be at times when it's necessary lord and keep us from harm even as we seek to keep others from harm and father we pray for those who are grieving losses right now it's so difficult to be grieving a recent loss and especially more so when we cannot receive the embrace the touch of loving family members and friends who seek to bring us comfort father in jesus name we just ask that you would come alongside them by your spirit bring comfort bring peace bring the hope of eternal life that is in you for each and every one father we pray in jesus name that you would continue to help us to grow in our faith that wherever we have to go we would be a witness of your love and your mercy that when we call one another on the phone or connect through skype or zoom meetings or on facebook or whatever it is that we're doing to stay connected lord we ask in jesus name that you would show the love of christ through each one of us and make us to be an encouragement to one another we pray in jesus name for those who do not know you we pray that your spirit would draw them

[29:04] draw them into your presence and somehow get them connected with other christians who can share with them the message of salvation and now lord we come to you using the words that your son jesus taught us and lord we're going to pray a little at a time so that the young ones among us will be able to join in the young ones who are in heaven and we pray 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 now we pray lord god as we continue in our worship worship that you would bless us and transform us even as we hear your word spoken as we sing songs of praise as we continue in prayer we pray lord god that you would bless pastor tom as he delivers the message that you have for all of us this day make all of our worship to be a blessing to you lord that is why we gather in jesus name we pray amen amen good morning today's scripture lesson comes from matthew chapter 18 verses 1-5 chapter 19 at that time the disciples came to jesus and asked who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven he called a little child and had him stand among them and he said i tell you the truth unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven therefore whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven and whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me this is the word of the lord thanks be to god wind blowing on my face sidewalk flying beneath my bike a five-year-old's first taste of what freedom's really like you can let go now daddy you can let go

[33:06] your little girl is ready your little girl is ready to do this on my own your little girl is ready to do this on my own it's gonna be a little bit scary but i want you to know i'll be okay now daddy everlasting love pass it on you can let go a message from the foundation for a better life someone asked me i said okay to show a video like that in a time like this dolom amen here i said Messiah, go to the cross and die. I don't understand, God. I don't understand.

[34:06] We've been crying that out for thousands of years to God. When I was a little child, I didn't understand a lot of things. I didn't know how a car worked. I didn't know how the food got in my house. I didn't know where the water came from. I had no idea where my parents came up with money. I remember when my daughter was a little girl, my wife said something about running out of money, and she said, that's okay, you can just go to the bank and buy some more.

[34:35] Little children don't understand. They trust their parents to know how these things work and that they'll take care of them. Jesus, in verse 3 of this passage, said, truly, I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you'll never enter the kingdom of heaven. We're talking about kingdom living, and kingdom living, according to Jesus, is to become like little children. Little children are vulnerable. They're open. They love freely.

[35:14] They're weak. They're dependent. And they really don't even know what evil is. God wants us to be more like that. Now, as I got older, much like you, I learned. I learned how these things worked, and I also learned not to trust so easily. People disappointed me. They let me down. They hurt me.

[35:40] Sometimes even our parents fail to live up to the expectations we have of them. Jesus told a parable about the kingdom of heaven. He said, the kingdom of heaven is like a man who owned a vineyard. And at the beginning of the day, he went out and hired some people to go into the vineyard to work for the day for a denarius, which was a day's wages. So they went into the vineyard.

[36:05] About three or four hours later, he saw some other people standing, not doing anything. He said, do you want to work? They said, yeah. So he said, go into the vineyard, and I'll pay you what's right at the end of the day. Same thing happened about three o'clock in the afternoon, and then happened at five o'clock. At six o'clock, they all came out of the vineyard. And the owner of the vineyard paid the people in reverse order to the way they went in. So the ones who came out last, he gave them a denarius. And the ones who came out at three, went in at three o'clock, he gave them a denarius.

[36:37] And so on and so forth, until he got to the people who had worked all day long, and they got a denarius, and they said, this isn't fair. We worked all day long. And we get the same as these people who barely worked at all. And the owner of the vineyard said, didn't you agree to work for a denarius?

[36:56] You got your denarius. Why do you begrudge me? Because I'm generous with other people. It's just not fair. We don't like that. That parable just irritates us. That's not how our world works.

[37:16] We're supposed to get more if we do more, right? Interestingly, right after that parable, the mother of James and John, two of the disciples, said to Jesus, Jesus, when you come into your kingdom, I'd like to have one of my sons sit on your left and the other on the right.

[37:39] I want them to have the two highest positions, basically, in the kingdom. This whole passage started out with a question very similar to that.

[37:49] The disciples came to Jesus and asked, who then is the greatest in the kingdom of God? Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Why do we want to be greatest?

[38:02] It's good to be king. Why? Why do we feel that way? Because we can have control. Ultimately, we are so afraid of being vulnerable, of being broken, of not being able to keep ourselves safe, keeping the ones we love safe, that we want control.

[38:26] If this virus has taught us anything, it shows us just how fragile, just how vulnerable, just how afraid and out of control we really are in this life.

[38:41] Kingdom living is different than the kind of living in many ways we grew up with. In a kingdom, each person in the kingdom has their role.

[38:53] It often is something that they were born with. If you were in a prosperous family, the first one would inherit all the wealth. The second son would go to work in the church, and the third one would go to work in the army.

[39:07] They didn't have a choice. They didn't do what they wanted. And if you were born to work in the fields, you worked in the fields. If you were a stonemason's son, you worked as a stonemason.

[39:18] It's just how it worked. In fact, a lot of our names are like that. They refer to the son of somebody who did a craft.

[39:34] Because they knew that their part, their place, was to be a contributor to the whole. That's how it is in a family too, right?

[39:44] Each family does their part. The littlest ones do the least. The bigger ones who've been around longer do the most. They're like the ones working in the vineyard. So we don't have one this high try to drag in the garbage cans or mow the lawn.

[39:59] We find some task that fits who they are. But in our culture, everything is about the individual. Everything. Individual success.

[40:11] Individual accomplishment. We even have an individual religion. Me and my Jesus. As if all that really matters is me and my Jesus. It's never been me and my Jesus.

[40:23] It's been we and our Jesus. It's been us together. That's why this experience is so wrong. I know we have to do it for safety right now.

[40:35] But God wants us together as the body of Christ. Like a family. Individualism just cares about what I get. Who cares about the person next to me?

[40:47] Who cares about my brother? Who cares about my sister? Who cares about the people down the street? If I gain the power, the success, the control, the money, the pleasures. Then I've arrived.

[41:01] But this virus has leveled everything. It doesn't matter if you're wealthy or poor or who you are. Anybody can get sick. We all face the same vulnerability. Now some I understand more than others.

[41:13] And that's why we need to care for those who are hurting more in some ways than those who have the opportunities. I was talking to somebody just earlier today.

[41:26] And I said it's fascinating that some of us complain because we have to work from home. Others have to go out into this difficult world for $12 or $13 and work in a dangerous situation.

[41:41] And we're complaining because we have to work at home. We have that luxury. What a blessing. They're doing their part. We desire privilege.

[41:52] We desire power because we want control. But we don't understand that with great authority comes great responsibility. The mother talked to Jesus and said, I want one of my sons to sit on the right hand and one on the left hand.

[42:07] And Jesus said, You don't know what you're asking. You have no idea what you're asking for your sons. The sacrifice they will go through if they sit on my right and my left.

[42:22] Because we somehow have got the idea that authority gives us some ability of privilege.

[42:36] In a family, the parents sacrifice the most. Not the children. The ones who have the most power are the ones who give the most. And they don't sacrifice just for whatever reason.

[42:49] They do it because they love each other. They're not an individual-focused group. They're a family. Luke chapter 12 verse 48 says, For everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded.

[43:04] And from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked. Spider-Man even quoted that. If you want great responsibility, you have to expect great expectations.

[43:18] In the Bible, there's a story about a woman named Esther. Esther. I won't tell you the whole story. I might do it as one of my Bible studies. Esther was a very poor Jewish woman. And through the ancient equivalent of a beauty contest, basically, she became queen of the entire empire of Persia.

[43:36] She had everything. But unfortunately, her people, the Jewish people, were being threatened with extinction. Now, the emperor didn't know that Esther was Jewish.

[43:48] And her uncle Mordecai came and said, she had to talk to the king. She had to go and speak to him and save the people.

[43:59] Esther didn't want to do it. And he said to her, you know, you're not only not going to save yourself, in the end, this will all come around and God will take care of his people. But you need to understand, you were probably born for this very purpose.

[44:16] God didn't make you a queen so you could have luxury. He made you a queen to save your people. The queen bee in a nest is the most powerful creature in a bee colony.

[44:30] But the queen bee never gets to go out of the hive. They don't get to fly around in the air and visit the flowers and enjoy the cool breeze on their wings. The queen bee has to stay in the hive, always in a dark little corner.

[44:47] Do you think the president gets to go out grocery shopping like you do? Do you think that he gets to go and take a walk in the park? Do you think governors can just go do whatever they feel like? The truth is, great power is great responsibility and great restrictions.

[45:06] The greatest. Who will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? The greatest is the one who's going to have the most pressure, the most responsibility, the most expectation. In fact, the greatest in the kingdom of heaven is Jesus the Christ who had to sacrifice and die on a cross.

[45:20] Do you hear? Matthew chapter 23 says, The greatest among you will be your servant, for those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

[45:34] We don't become parents so that we can love and be loved and become the most vulnerable creatures on the face of the earth.

[45:50] You see, we have to ask ourselves, what's the main purpose of our lives? Is it to be served or to serve? This mother asked, I want my sons on the right and the left-hand side.

[46:06] And Jesus said, you don't have any idea what you're asking. It's not fair. The people who worked the hardest in the parable got the same.

[46:21] They're complaining. When they should be rejoicing and they should be saying, Hallelujah, we had some people come by at the end of the day, and because of it, we got the harvest in. Because of it, all the work that was expected was done.

[46:34] But they don't see the need of the vineyard. They don't see the need of the kingdom. They just see themselves. But the fact is, because workers kept coming in at noonday, at three o'clock, at five o'clock, they were able to bring in the whole harvest.

[46:50] And the owner was pleased. And that owner, of course, is God. What's the wage we work for in the kingdom of God? It's not money.

[47:01] It's not our pleasures. It's not so we can be famous. But it's to bring in the harvest. To help people who are broken out there know that there's healing.

[47:15] To help people who have never met Christ to meet Christ. To bring the whole harvest home on that day. So that we can rejoice.

[47:27] And be blessed as a fellowship of God together. Our goal is to be there for the people in the kingdom. The people in the vineyard. Look at our grocery store workers.

[47:40] Look at these people who are going out and working every single day. Driving trucks. Whatever you want to call it. I know the hospital workers too, of course. But just people who are working security. Or doing all these different things.

[47:51] To keep our lives going. Most of them get paid less than the average income in America. And yet they give.

[48:04] They give. So that the whole kingdom can do better. The measure you see of a great kingdom. The real measurement of whether a kingdom is great or small.

[48:15] Is how do they treat the least people in their kingdom. How well off are the least of the people. In verse 4 of this passage, Jesus said, Whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

[48:34] Again, he says, Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. You see, there were children. They were on the periphery of the gathering.

[48:47] Nobody cared about the children. They weren't talking to the children. They pushed them aside. This is what we do. We put our children on the edge of everything. They can sit at the children's table.

[48:57] You remember the children's table? I do. I've sat at the children's table when I was an adult. I remember even going to a wedding one time. And it was odd. It's that story of the banquet in the Bible.

[49:10] Where I found myself sitting at the children's table. And the host and hostess of the banquet came to me and said, You're at the wrong place. You're not supposed to be over here.

[49:22] I said, No, it's fine. I'm happy to sit with the children. I actually like sitting with the children. But we think that the children are unimportant.

[49:35] Even though they give us a glimpse into heaven, they're people just like we're people. And God cares about them. He cares about the least in the kingdom.

[49:46] He cares about those who are struggling. He cares about those who are vulnerable. He makes a space for them. And he asks us to make a space for them too. We're always ready to make a space for those who are the leaders.

[49:59] Those who seem powerful. Those who seem to have something to help us feel less vulnerable. But God wants us to make a space for those who are struggling the most. He told the people coming into the vineyard, Go ahead and work.

[50:18] I'll pay you what's right at the end of the day. How many of us would take that bargain? Go to work and you have no idea what you're going to make. You might get nothing. You might get a buck. You might get a reasonably insulting amount of money.

[50:33] They had no idea what to expect. But they were vulnerable. They had no choice. They had no other place to be. No other place to go. And even though I'm sure they've been disappointed in the past, I'm sure they've been hurt.

[50:46] They felt betrayed. They went into the vineyard anyways. All of us have felt that betrayal. All of us have felt that hurt.

[50:58] That disappointment. That sense that somehow life hasn't been fair to us. People have hurt us. We can't trust. We've put up a wall. We put up our guard.

[51:08] We put up our guard. Jesus knew what that was like. He loved everybody. He forgave them. And they hung him on a cross. What our faith tells us is you will be hurt.

[51:22] You will be disappointed. You will be discouraged. But go out and love anyways. Go out and be what kingdom living Christians are supposed to be.

[51:34] And help the ones that are struggling even more than you. When I was a child, I believed in heroes.

[51:46] I believed that our leaders were great and wonderful people. And I believed in God. I find that most children are the same way.

[51:56] When I ask them if they believe in God, they say, of course. To them, it's not even a sensible thing to not believe in God. We have to work very hard becoming adults to try and convince ourselves that the one who absolutely created us and provided all of this for us doesn't exist.

[52:12] That takes a lot of work. God says be like little children. Trust God. Trust God enough, as my grandmother said, to let go and let God.

[52:28] Believe that God still has you in the palm of his hand. And he will carry you through this life and to the next. And not even the virus can defeat the power of God.

[52:43] Because God has control of all of this. Matthew chapter 16 says this. Jesus turned and said to Peter, Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him and said, Never, Lord.

[53:06] He said, This shall never happen to you. Jesus turned and said to Peter, Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me. You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely the concerns of humans.

[53:23] You don't have in mind the things of God. How can you expect to be citizens of the kingdom of heaven when your mind is trapped by the concerns of earth?

[53:37] Like a child. We need to learn how to trust. Even if that trust means becoming vulnerable. Even if that means that we may have to sacrifice. Because it's through that risk of being vulnerable, of taking a chance, that we'll have the best way of experiencing love in the kingdom of heaven and even here.

[54:05] Like this. Will it be, boys? I need to get rid of some hair. You're going to look so good. I hope so.

[54:21] What do you think? Shorter, please. Ouch. More like him? Shorter. That would be a shave. Go for it.

[54:32] Can't believe he's doing that. I will help you. When you've got all you can do Our work here is done, gentlemen.

[54:46] I will dry your eyes. I will fight your fight. I will... Being there. Pass it on.

[54:58] Please. I have to say, I felt so confident before this virus.

[55:14] I had everything planned out and figured out. I knew just how to handle everything. I even knew how to pastor a large church. Now nothing is certain.

[55:27] Everything's changed. And I'm not even sure day to day what I'm supposed to be. But I know who holds me in his hand.

[55:39] And I know what my purpose in life is to be. In 1 Corinthians, it tells us we have gifts. We have possibilities.

[55:50] We're all dysfunctional. We're all broken. And the way we become unbroken is by remembering we're a part of a family. And God gives us each other to make up the parts in us that don't work.

[56:05] And God gives us his grace to take the brokenness in us and pull it away. And it starts by confessing.

[56:19] Lord, I have sinned. I have broken your rules. I've been concerned about selfish things.

[56:31] I forget why I'm here. I forget about you. Forgive me, Lord. Transform me.

[56:44] Change me. That I will have the confidence of a little child in the kingdom of heaven. In Jesus' name we pray.

[56:58] Amen. We come to confession because we realize just how vulnerable and broken we are and in need of God. And God offers grace to demonstrate just how much we are loved and just how much he's a heavenly father that will never let us go.

[57:21] In the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. Glory to God. Amen. You know, how do we become like little children?

[57:34] Well, the first thing we have to do is we have to empty who we are. That's what confession is all about. It's us reminding ourselves of who we are not and who God is.

[57:51] My life is not defined by what I accomplish because even all the accomplishments I might attain in this world, even if I became king, they're nothing compared to God.

[58:04] When I empty myself and fill myself with God, then God becomes the power of my life, the direction of my life.

[58:18] So our goal is not the accomplishments of this life, but to live forever in the kingdom of heaven and just to be with our God now and always.

[58:30] Lord, my life is an empty cup.

[58:50] Close my heart, would you fill me up? I'm faced to the ground forsaking my pride. leaving my will, my burdens behind.

[59:08] All I want, all I need is just to be with you, just to be with you.

[59:19] Here I am at your feet, just to be with you, just to be with you.

[59:33] I have come to the end of me, and there's nothing I have to bring. But you said I belong, you say I am yours.

[59:49] nothing compares, nothing compares, to knowing you more. you more. All I want, all I want, all I need, all I need, is just to be with you, just to be with you.

[60:07] Here I am, at your feet, just to be with you, just to be with you. Just to be with you.

[60:19] Just to be with you. You made a way for me, oh Savior, I am yours forevermore.

[60:32] You made a way for me, oh Savior, I am yours forevermore. I am yours forevermore.

[60:48] All I want, all I need, all I need, is just to be with you, just to be with you.

[61:01] Here I am, at your feet, just to be with you, just to be with you.

[61:13] All I want, all I need, all I need, is just to be with you, just to be with you.

[61:24] Here I am, at your feet, just to be with you, just to be with you. Just to be with you.

[61:45] Oh Lord, you've searched me, Oh Lord, you've searched me, you know my way.

[62:17] Even when I fail you, I know you love me.

[62:29] I know you love me. I know you love me. I know you love me.

[62:44] I know you love me.

[63:00] At the cross I bow on me, where you've loved my shame for me, there's no greater love than me.

[63:13] You have overcome the grave, Your glory fills the highest place, What can separate me now?

[63:24] You go before me, You shield my way, Your hand upon me, You shield my way, Your hand upon me, I know you love me.

[63:47] Your hand upon me, I know you love me.

[63:58] I know you love me. And when the earth face, I know you love me. And when the earth face, falls from my eyes, And you stand before me, I know you love me.

[64:20] I know you love me. I know you love me. I know you love me.

[64:34] At the cross I bow my knee, Where your blood was shed for me, There's no greater love than me. You have overcome the grave, Your glory fills the highest place, What can separate me now?

[64:50] You toy the veil, You made a way, When you said that it is done.

[65:07] You toy the veil, You made a way, When you said that it is done.

[65:19] At the cross I bow my knee, Where your blood was shed for me, There's no greater love than me.

[65:32] You have overcome the grave, Your glory fills the highest place, What can separate me now?

[65:44] I know you love me. I know you love me.

[65:57] The Lord be with you. Lift up your hearts.

[66:10] Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It's right to give our thanks to God. It is right. It's a good thing always and everywhere to give thanks to God. He blesses us in an incredible way.

[66:23] He is our heavenly father who takes care of us, who nurtures us, even in these times of struggle and difficulty. And so we come to God to respond to what God has given to us.

[66:36] Some of us do it through our offerings, which we talked about earlier. Some of us do it through our actions. I was talking to a woman on the phone this week, and she said, I love this idea of calling people.

[66:49] I can't get out of the house. But I can call people. Well, maybe you'd like to call some people too. Pastor Sherry Mehar would love you to contact her at the email address below because we have people that really need to be called, and people love to have a phone call.

[67:04] I've been talking to them too. We also have people who are in need and need help. Or maybe you're somebody who has a difficulty or something we could help you with.

[67:15] Contact Gidget Meeland. There are many things that we can do to help people. If you have a problem, I helped a family this week who needed food, basically. Different people have different needs.

[67:27] One of the things that you could do, and I know some of you could do this, is you can find some material and you can make some of these masks. Now, you may not know this, but back in the 1900s, I ran a tailor shop.

[67:39] I probably could make some of these masks. I actually had those skills at one time to run sewing machines, but I'm not really good at it. Some of you are. Take some cloth. Make some masks.

[67:51] Get them to us because I know there's a whole lot of people who are going, where am I supposed to get a mask from? We could use them. We'd love to have you provide that opportunity for people.

[68:01] This morning, we actually had a birthday parade. We had someone who stopped by and they arranged it. Now, they called us and let us know, and so they arranged it in our parking lot.

[68:12] They all social distanced and stayed safe and just took their cars out and drove by a little girl's house for a birthday party. We want you to be able to come by. You can make a chalk drawing if you want to in our parking lot, or you can ride your bicycle.

[68:26] We had one family come by to show their child how to parallel park. We don't mind you using our property. Just please follow the rules that we have. Be safe.

[68:37] Stay safe. God has many blessings for us. Starting July 1st, we have a new addition to our pastoral staff, the Reverend Dr. Scott Johnson, who's coming to us.

[68:48] He's also the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Buffalo, and he's going to be working with us as well. He's looking forward to the opportunity of working with the Pendleton and the Niagara Falls congregations.

[68:59] And if you check our website, you can see his full resume and his welcome to get to know him. We're looking forward to Scott. I think he's going to be a great addition to who and what we are.

[69:11] God calls you to respond to your faith. Do something. Do anything to help to complete God's kingdom. Maybe you feel like you can't do much.

[69:22] Well, remember, you're like the people who came into the vineyard in that last hour. We still need you. Believe it or not, every little bit helps. So we want God's kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven.

[69:36] Shall we pray? Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done. On earth as it is in heaven.

[69:47] 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.

[69:58] But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom. And the power. And the glory forever and ever. Amen. What a fellowship.

[70:27] What a joy divine Leaning on the everlasting arms What a blessedness What a peace of mind Leaning on the everlasting arms Cause we're leading, leading Safe and secure from all our arms Leaning, leading Leaning on the everlasting arms Oh, how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way Leaning on the everlasting arms Oh, how bright the path grows from day to day Leaning on the everlasting arms Cause we're leading, leading Safe and secure from all our lives

[71:30] Leaning, leaning Leaning on the everlasting arms What have I to dread?

[71:42] What have I to fear? Leaning on the everlasting arms I have blessed peace with my Lord so near Leaning on the everlasting arms Leaning, leaning Safe and secure from all our lives Leaning, leaning Leaning on the everlasting arms The Bible says that we're joint heirs with Jesus Part of the family of God And Jesus referred to his heavenly father as Abba, Father or Daddy Daddy God says that just like a little child When you're feeling vulnerable When you're feeling broken When you're not sure When you're frightened and afraid You can lean on the everlasting God The everlasting Daddy

[72:44]  That we believe in That we trust in from now and into eternity Go in the peace of God And may God give you a faith like a little child So that you can soar to the heavenly kingdom Now and forever Amen Amen