Transcription downloaded from https://services.pcumc.org/sermons/27353/busy-busy-busy/. 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. [0:01] This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. [0:20] This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day. [0:32] This is the day that the Lord has made. Good morning. Welcome to Pendleton Church. Fill out your friendship card so we can get to know you. [0:46] We have a gift for our visitors here at the Connection site. I hope you guys have a great day. Enjoy the service. Welcome this morning. [0:57] I have a few announcements for you. I just wanted to let you know that our Niagara Falls Church will be doing Vacation Bible School this week, Monday through Thursday. We're doing it in the evening, 6.30 until 8.30. [1:11] And we can always use a few extra folks to help out. If anybody's available, let me know. We need a couple people to help the kids do some crafts and do some cooking and a science project. [1:21] And so if you're available to help one or two or all four days, just let me know. The parking lot work that was scheduled for this week didn't happen. As you probably noticed, it's going to happen this coming week. [1:34] And so if you come to the church in the midst of the week, please park over on the Bear Ridge Roadside. And that includes the folks that come for the senior luncheon. If you'll park over there, we'll have these back doors open for you. [1:46] Summer Bible study is going on on Wednesday nights at 7 p.m. There's four more weeks if you'd like to jump in. We're looking at John Wesley's five marks of a Methodist. [1:57] What does it mean? What does a Methodist look like? And for any who are in the lay shepherding program, either for Saturday night or for the 1115 service, if you would like to meet with me after the late service, I'd be happy to meet with you. [2:14] I think that's it. And so this morning we'll come before the Lord in prayer. Lord, we're so glad to be here this morning. [2:29] And we're seeking your face, seeking your presence in our lives. We gather together with one heart, with one mind, just longing to know you a little better. [2:41] We pray that you would walk among us and touch us with your spirit, that you would lift us up and help us to praise you and honor you. And this we ask in Jesus' name. [2:53] Amen. Amen. Won't you stand, if you're able, as we join in our opening song? Oh, for a thousand times to sing, my great Redeemer's praise. [3:18] The glories of my God and King, the triumphs of His grace. My gracious Master and my God, assist me to proclaim, To spread through all the earth abroad, be honest of Thy name. [3:43] Jesus, the name that charms our fears, that bids our sorrows cease, Tis music in the sinner's ears, tis life and health and peace. [4:00] He speaks and listening to His voice, new life that can receive. The mournful broken hearts rejoice, the humble born believe. [4:18] The peace of the Lord be with you. Won't you greet your neighbors? The peace of the Lord be with you. [4:52] Yes, I invite you to come up at this time. There's one. We got any more that want to come up? Here comes another one. [5:05] Come on. That's it. I just wanted to talk to you guys a couple minutes and ask you, have you ever been really, really, really, really busy? [5:19] Oh, here's some big kids. All right. I like big kids, too. You've been really, really busy sometimes. Have you ever been so busy that you forgot to take time to talk with God? [5:33] Yeah, sometimes we do that, don't we? We get so caught up in all the fun things of life. We get so caught up in our work sometimes, right, that we forget to stop and talk to God and to listen to his voice, don't we? [5:46] And sometimes we get so darn busy that maybe we don't even remember to talk to our friends. Have you ever had a friend call and you said, I just can't talk right now. [5:58] I'm too busy. Yeah. Well, you've never had that happen. Good for you. Because it's important to stop and talk to your friends, isn't it? Yeah. And how about if you were walking along the street and you saw somebody that needed something, but you were really, really busy, did you sometimes walk by and you didn't stop? [6:17] Yeah. But we really need to stop and see what's going on with people and see if they need some help, don't we? Yeah. Sometimes we just have to slow down. That's why I'm in vacation mode today. [6:30] Dressed for vacation, right? Casual. Summer's more casual. We slow down a little bit and we stop and we listen to God's voice and we listen to the voices of our friends and sometimes we even get to listen to the voices of complete strangers and we get to know them and then they become friends, right? [6:51] So as you're going about your busy summer, take some time to stop and listen, okay? Do you have things you're thankful for today? My mom and dad. [7:08] Pastor Gene and our church family. Our wonderful father, Abba. Amen. Amen. Let's pray. Dear Lord, we thank you that you love us so much and we're so glad that you're always listening, always ready to hear us. [7:26] Remind us, Lord, to stop and to talk to you and to hear your voice and remind us to take the time to be with friends and remind us to take the time to meet strangers and make new friends. [7:41] And this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Pastor Gene asked me to share a thankful moment today and it was really funny because I said to myself, okay, what am I going to share? [7:54] Because there is so much been happening in my life lately. It was difficult for me to choose one. But one of the things I am really thankful for was, and you might have seen this on the news, Tuesday NASA had a probe fly by Pluto and it was a very interesting pictures that were coming from there. [8:15] And I was really thankful for this one picture. In fact, Adrian just put it up here. I don't know if you can notice it, but on the lower part of the planet here, there's like a heart-shaped object there. [8:25] It's in white. And it was really interesting because I was feeling kind of down that day. And sometimes I tell God, you know, please remind me that you love me. And I just thought that was a message coming from space from God, telling how much he loves us. [8:41] And I just wanted to share that with you. So. Remember me in a Bible cracked and faded by the years. [9:14] Remember me in a sanctuary filled with silent prayer. Remember me in a sanctuary filled with silent prayer. [9:52] Remember me. Remember me. Memory When the color of the sun Sets in the sky Memory When your praying tears Of joy fall from your eyes Engaged days In heart to heart Bound by grace and peace Child of wonder Child of God [10:53] I've remembered you Remember me Remember me When the children leave their Sunday school with smiles Remember me When they're old enough to teach Old enough to preach Old enough to leave Even age to age And heart to heart Bound by grace and peace [11:55] Child of wonder Child of God I've remembered you Remember me Remember me When the children leave their Sunday school with smiles And heart to heart Child of wonder Child of God Remember me When the children leave their Sunday school with smiles And heart to heart Child of wonder Child of God Child of wonder Child of wonder Child of wonder Child of wonder Child of wonder Child of wonder [12:58] Child of wonder Child of trend Child of wonder General of wonder Child of wonder Heavenly Father, we thank you for the chance that we can return a portion of what you have given us to you. [13:37] Please use these gifts to glorify your name and further your kingdom here on earth. In Christ's holy name we pray. Amen. Please be seated. [13:57] There are a number of prayer concerns and joys on our list this week. In particular, we want to lift up Wes and Sue Terry. Wes's dad, Robert Terry, passed away on Thursday. [14:10] For those who would like to attend, the calling hours are on Wednesday from 4 to 7. And this is at the Freethold Funeral Home at 1241 Oliver Street in North Donawanda. [14:24] Sandy Masterson and Jim Schlemmer are both recovering from surgery. And Christy Fell and Bob Dimming are facing surgery soon. So if we could keep those in your prayers. [14:35] And also, as you know, the youth have been on a mission trip this week. And Pastor Tom and Pastor Sherry are with them. They should be returning sometime today. [14:46] So please keep them in your prayers for safe travels and returning home. Now let us offer our prayers to the Lord. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time that we can come together and be with you this day. [15:07] We thank you for all that you've been doing in our lives. Lord, sometimes we take for granted some things that we do, you know, every day. [15:19] And Lord, we just thank you for those things like jobs, work, family, and whatnot. Father, we thank you that you're here with us today. [15:32] And Father, we know there are many people with many different needs out there. And Lord, in particular, we pray for those that are just mentioned. We also lift up the families of the five Marines that were killed in Chattanooga, Tennessee earlier this week. [15:50] We pray, Lord, for comfort for those who have lost possessions and goods and the floodings in the southern tier this past week. And also for those who have been suffering through tornadoes and floodings in the Midwest. [16:04] And for those who are suffering from the drought in California. We pray, Lord, for our persecuted brothers and sisters all throughout the world. Lord, sometimes we don't understand why people are suffering. [16:19] But Lord, we just ask that you would comfort, console them in their time of suffering. And we ask that you would deliver them from the hands of evil and wicked men. [16:30] In particular, Lord, I lift up to you Pastor Saeed Abedini. He and four other Americans are imprisoned in Iran. And there was a treaty made this week with Iran. [16:41] But these folks were not included to be brought home. And Lord, I just pray that you would encourage them and strengthen them. And be with their families, Lord. And bring them home to us soon. [16:54] Father, we lift up to you this congregation here at Pendleton Center. And for those at First Church Niagara. And ask that you would bless the peoples of these congregations. [17:06] And that they would glorify you and serve you in everything that they do. And Father, I now ask that you would please bless the message that we are about to hear. [17:18] Open our hearts to receive it. Bless Pastor Jean as she presents this to you. And may, Lord, we go out and be better witnesses to those around us. [17:30] Because, Lord, we know the world is in much troubled shape. But if we would go out and share that gospel, Lord, we might just bring a light to this world. [17:41] And we ask all of this. In Jesus' holy name we pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. [17:51] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. [18:03] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. [18:14] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Good morning. This morning's scripture lesson is from Luke chapter 10, verses 25 through 37. [18:28] On one occasion, an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. Teacher, he asked, what must I do to inherit eternal life? What is written in the law, Jesus replied. [18:38] How do you read it? He answered, love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself. [18:51] You have asked correctly, Jesus replied, do this and you will live. But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, and who is my neighbor? In reply, Jesus said, a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho where he fell into the hands of robbers. [19:08] They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. [19:20] So too, Levi, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was. And when he saw him, he took pity on him. [19:33] He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day, he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. [19:48] Look after him, he said, and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expenses you may have. Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? [19:59] The expert in the law replied, the one who had mercy on him. Jesus told him, go and do likewise. This is the word of the Lord. Thank you, Jim, for sharing scripture with us this morning. [20:20] Over these last few weeks, we've been talking about sharing our faith a little bit and some of the things that block us, that build up walls so that we can't share easily with other people. [20:32] And I wanted to explain the pens to you, first off. You all got a pen when you came in, did you? Do you see what it says on it? It has our website, pcumc.org. [20:44] But it also says miracles. Do you know that miracles are still happening today? They're happening in this congregation. They're happening in the congregation in Niagara Falls. [20:56] You want to know more about miracles? You can look on this website. But we didn't give you this pen so that you can keep it for yourself. Sorry. Instead, you're supposed to take this pen out and leave it somewhere where someone else will pick it up and get curious. [21:14] So when you go to the bank and you're filling out your deposit slip or something, just lay it there on the counter and leave it. Or if you're going somewhere else to pay a bill or to do something, you're going out for dinner, pull out your own pen here and fill out your credit slip and then leave it for the waitress or whoever might come next. [21:38] We want to see these pens spread all over Western New York and maybe beyond as well. And if you want to take two pens to do that, go ahead. [21:49] But don't keep it for yourself. It's something good that needs to be shared like the gospel of Jesus Christ. We've seen how embarrassment and selfishness and pride and rejection and indifference can sometimes block us from sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. [22:11] But one of the blocks that I hear most often from people today is that you are just too busy. I don't like that noise, but it reminds me of the busyness. [22:29] We're like busy bees. We have things swarming all over us, making us distracted, keeping us from wanting to connect with other people sometimes. Do you feel like you're being swarmed by all your duties and all your activities? [22:44] Are you too busy? I know I am. I am. It seems like there's always something or someone demanding a piece of my time and my attention. I was especially feeling it this past week. [22:57] Last Friday, my day off, I had a wedding rehearsal to perform. And it was at the home of the groom's family because that was where the wedding was going to be. [23:09] So I showed up at 3 o'clock all ready to do the rehearsal. And then they said, oh, we thought it was at 5. And I said, oh, my note says 3. Well, okay. I can go away and come back in a couple of hours. [23:21] Means another trip to their house. I'm my day off. But it's all right. I'm cool. Right? I can do this. While I was at home, I got a call from the funeral home up in Niagara Falls near me. [23:34] And they asked me to conduct a service the very next day, that Saturday. And I was wondering, boy, how am I going to cram another thing in? I've got, you know, the wedding and I've got worship and all this other stuff going on. [23:46] How am I going to put one more thing in? I get a lot of calls from that funeral home asking me to do funerals for people I don't know. And I try to say yes most of the time. [23:56] But once in a while when my schedule is really hectic, I have to decline. And I was going to do that. I almost did that. But then I found out that the service was for a family that's connected to First Church. [24:09] And I thought, no, I have to do this one. I really want to do this one. And so I said, okay, yes, I will do this. And so there I am preparing a funeral service on my day off. [24:22] Saturday dawned and I did the funeral in the morning and that went well. And then I went on to perform the wedding in the afternoon. And that was lovely because I've known the couple for a while now. And we've been working on this wedding for like two years. [24:35] But it was a delightful afternoon and we had good weather for an outdoor wedding. But I was tired by the end of the day. In the meantime, I was preparing for Sunday morning worship. [24:45] And I already knew that I had another funeral on Tuesday. And so I was getting ready for that. You know, two funerals and a wedding as well as worship in the midst of a pastor's week is not unusual. [24:57] It's just that we wish we could set aside all the other stuff we have to do as pastors. There were people in the hospital to care for. There were folks who just needed to talk to somebody. [25:10] There were practical problems here at the church that I had to help solve. And the usual mound of paperwork that never quits. Did you know pastors have a lot of paperwork? Yeah, we do. [25:22] Well, anyway, we worshiped Sunday. And on Monday, I headed to the office to take care of the routine stuff. And then in the afternoon, I went down to the funeral home to be with the family as they went in to see their loved one for the first time. [25:35] And then after that, I went back to the office up there and finished the sermon for the funeral. Tuesday was long. And it was emotional. Because we laid to rest Doris, who was one of my favorite 94-year-old ladies. [25:52] And afterwards, I was really booked. And so I went home, took a short nap, got up. We went grocery shopping. We did the vacuuming. We did the dishes. We did the laundry. [26:02] Yeah, I got housework done. Wednesday, it was back to the routine, preparing summer evening Bible study. Because I led the first session of that. And then I made some visits. [26:13] And I did some phone calls. And Thursday, I spent writing the sermon and helping with the community dinner up in the falls. And Saturday was the rummage sale. And this week, we have VBS coming up. [26:26] And here I am. And I'm glad to be here. And I'm not complaining about any of that stuff that I have to do. It's all good. It's all good stuff. [26:37] I love it. I love what I do. But it can get busy, busy, busy. In the midst of all that busyness, I sometimes wonder if I'm really doing what I'm supposed to be doing to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. [26:55] Sometimes I wonder how much I'm letting that busyness help to build up the wall that blocks me from really having those important conversations one-on-one with the people who need to hear the message of salvation. [27:13] And I want to knock that wall down. And I want to get rid of all that busyness so that I have time for people. What can I do? What can I do to make that happen? [27:26] What can any of us do when we're so busy all of the time? Maybe you are even busier than I am. [27:38] Maybe you're so busy you just can't even sleep at night. Maybe you've only got one or two things that keep you up at night. But if you don't believe that one small thing can keep you awake in the middle of the night, then you've never spent the night alone in the dark with one of these. [28:00] You know, that annoying little one that buzzes in your ear and you swat at it. And you think it's gone. And you just start to drop off to sleep. And there it is, biting your arm or biting your ankle and you're swatting yourself and thinking, ah, annoying. [28:16] Annoying. Isn't that how it can be when we have a problem bugging us? Something that's keeping us awake. We need to hand that over to God, don't we? [28:28] We always seem to be too busy. It seems to be the nature of the human beast that we keep ourselves too busy. It was going on long before our modern age. [28:39] If you think back, I was reading in the book of Haggai. And 400 years before Jesus was born, the Jewish people were conquered. [28:50] And they were taken off to exile in Babylon. When they were finally released and told to go back to their homeland, they were told that they were supposed to rebuild the temple of God in Jerusalem. [29:03] God had sent them into exile to give them a wake-up call because they had failed to be truly faithful to God. And so he turned them over to their enemies to learn a lesson. [29:16] Now God wanted to reestablish that relationship that he had with his people. And they needed to rebuild the temple so that they would have a place to worship God and be in touch with God on a regular basis. [29:29] But they weren't doing what God wanted them to do. And so God sent his prophet Haggai to remind them. He said to them, This is what the Lord Almighty says. [29:43] Give careful thought to your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored, says the Lord. [29:55] You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why, declares the Lord Almighty? Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. [30:12] You see, the people were so busy building themselves nice houses, planting crops, reestablishing trade. They were just too busy to do what God wanted them to do. [30:25] They were too busy to stop and talk with God. Now in all fairness, they had a lot of work to do when they came back home. Their country was in ruins. Their houses needed to be rebuilt. [30:36] They needed to reestablish their farms, their crops. They had to completely rebuild, but they went above and beyond that. They had paneled houses, it says, while God's house remained a pile of rubble. [30:53] God was not pleased with them because they had become so obsessed with their busyness that they didn't take time to be with God. God even kept their crops from yielding all that they expected and needed. [31:07] And when they did earn money, it was never enough. Their purses seemed to have holes in them. Everything they put in just sort of leaked out. [31:18] That ever happened to you? Yeah. We often are guilty of being too busy to take time with God. We're so preoccupied with working to pay the bills, laboring to take care of our houses, that we forget we're supposed to be helping to build the kingdom of God and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. [31:42] And then we wonder why God isn't blessing all our efforts. Our priorities have gotten out of whack. It wasn't much different in Jesus' day. [31:53] In his parable of the Good Samaritan that Jim read, he was trying, first of all, to teach that expert in the law about the true meaning of loving our neighbors. Who is my neighbor, he asked. [32:04] And Jesus explained it to him with this parable. Most of us know this story about the man traveling alone down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. It helps if you understand that this was a very steep and treacherous road. [32:18] It drops 3,600 feet in the space of 20 miles. So there's a lot of twists and turns. The terrain is rocky. And there's plenty of blind spots to stage an ambush for anybody who was unprotected. [32:35] And that's why most people traveled in groups down this road. In Jesus' story, the man is traveling alone. And that's when he was attacked by thieves. [32:47] They beat him up. They robbed him. They left him for dead on the side of the road. And along came a priest. And everybody thinks, okay, here's the hero of the story. He's going to help this man. [32:58] Surely this man of God will stop and help this man who's hurt. But no, the priest crosses over to the other side of the road so he doesn't have to look at him. He certainly doesn't want to touch him. [33:09] And then along comes a Levite. And a Levite was a man who helped the priest in the temple, helped him with worship, helped him to take care of the temple. And that man also kept on going, passed on by on the other side of the road. [33:24] And we shake our heads and wonder, what kind of a priest, what kind of a Levite would do this, that they wouldn't even stop and help somebody in trouble? What is it that would motivate them to pass on by? [33:39] Now, I've heard it explained lots of times that the priest didn't want to contaminate himself by touching a man who was quite possibly dead. In touching a dead man, the priest and the Levite would make themselves ceremonially unclean and therefore unable to celebrate worship in the temple. [33:58] They were so caught up in keeping the letter of the traditional law that they had lost the spirit of God's compassion. And that's just so wrong on so many levels. [34:09] But was there more to the situation than that? When you're driving down a deserted street in a bad section of town, and you see somebody who appears to be having trouble on the side of the road, do you want to stop and help them? [34:28] Especially if you're alone driving. Haven't we all been warned that this could be a trap? We've been told that there might be thugs waiting to attack us when we stop to help somebody on the road. [34:41] The person in trouble might be a decoy. They might be luring us into an ambush, and so sometimes we pass on by. Hopefully we at least call 911 and get them some help, right? [34:55] The same sort of thing happened on the road from Jerusalem down to Jericho. Very often there were ambushes, and it's possible that the priest and the Levite were just being extra careful, being very practical. [35:09] But I propose there's one more possibility. Maybe the priest and the Levite were so busy that day that they just didn't feel as though they could stop. [35:21] Why would either of them set out on that dangerous road unless they had circumstances that were pressing them to go alone down a dangerous road? [35:33] You know, we can't really judge someone else's motivations. We don't know what was in their hearts, but we can understand busyness. [35:44] It can overwhelm us at times. So what can we do to overcome this busyness that robs us of compassion and keeps us from taking time to share the love of God and the good news with other people? [36:02] I find in my life I have to be really intentional about it. I don't know how many of you do this, but I still keep a paper calendar. I know some of you keep your calendar on Google or some other device. [36:14] I still have a paper calendar where I write everything in pencil in case I need to change it. And then when I'm pretty sure it's set, I highlight it. You'll see the pink stuff is for Niagara Falls. [36:27] The yellow stuff is for Pendleton Center. And down at the bottom, you'll even see a little bit of purple there. That's me time. I penciled in some me time. And I marked it with purple marker to remind myself that I'm taking time to go away for a few days and go on a retreat and just spend quiet time with God. [36:49] You have to mark it out sometimes. You have to block out the space on your calendar. How else am I going to learn to recognize God's voice unless I spend time listening for it? [37:06] How else am I going to know the direction that he wants me to go in the ministry for this church unless I stop and listen and ask for direction? [37:17] That's why I have that retreat schedule. I want to know that I'm doing the right thing. I want to be able to hear God and just enjoy his presence. And even on a weekly basis, all of us need to schedule in some time for God. [37:32] I have to block that out on my calendar too. Two to three on Tuesday. Time that is taken up, already preoccupied. Nobody else can come in. [37:43] That's time with God. Have you thought about doing that? I know you're busy. But you need to take time, whether it's first thing in the morning, last thing at night, somewhere in the middle of the day. [37:59] You need to take time. When you do, you'll find that your life is a lot less hectic. You're a lot more in focus. And then we're less likely to pass by that person on the side of the road because we're feeling less worried. [38:17] We're feeling less busy. Now besides spending intentional time with God, another thing that we can do to combat busyness is to simply learn to say, no. [38:32] Can you say that with me? No. Sometimes we have to say, no, to things that people ask us to do. [38:43] Whether it's good things or whether it's chores, sometimes we have to let it go. We want to do it all. But we have to learn to prioritize. [38:56] We have to learn to make choices. Makes us feel guilty when we refuse, doesn't it? But it's not a selfish thing. It's not about being selfish. [39:09] It's deciding not to do something that shouldn't be on our agenda in the first place. It takes strength. It takes maturity to say, no, at times. [39:24] We even have to say, no, to our children, our kids, our family sometimes. That's probably the most difficult of all. But I think our children and even our families sometimes need to hear us say, no, I can't do that today. [39:40] It'll have to wait. It's hardest of all for us to take something out of our schedule that we really love to do. I mean, I love to work. [39:51] I won't deny that. It gives me a feeling of purpose and a feeling of worth. But sometimes, I just need to stop. In the midst of all that busyness last week, I took time to go to not one, but two little local concerts. [40:07] Just fun things. But I went to them, and partly because friends asked me to go with them, and I thought, I want to just spend a little time with a friend or two. [40:18] Time to kick back, relax, take a break, breathe in, get replenished, and then I'm ready to go again. So often, time is the very best gift that we can give to a friend, isn't it? [40:35] It allows us to share what's really important in life, and it may even allow us a chance to share the love of God. Now, do you think that that Samaritan who was traveling down the road from Jerusalem down to Jericho, do you think he was any less busy than the priest or the Levite? [40:55] I expect not. I mean, he was going alone on this trip also, and yet, he took time to stop and to help the wounded man. [41:06] He looked, and he really saw what the man's need was, and he took pity on him. He washed the man's wounds, bandaged him up, placed him on his own donkey, took him to an inn where he could be cared for, left some money for the innkeeper, and promised to pay whatever else he owed above and beyond that amount. [41:26] And of course, the scandal, the real scandal of the story to the Jews who first heard that story was that the man who was merciful was a Samaritan. Imagine that, a Samaritan. [41:40] You know, the Jews truly despised the Samaritans. They had opposing histories, and even though they were related, they had this ongoing disagreement, sort of like the Hatfields and McCoys. [41:51] They probably couldn't even remember the real meaning of the disagreement in the first place, but they were determined to remain enemies. And so, Jesus threw in this little surprise, and he was good at throwing surprises into his stories. [42:07] He said the man was a Samaritan, and it made the Jewish people sit up and take notice. How could a Samaritan be merciful? In Luke 10, Jesus asked the teacher of the law who had first questioned him about the greatest commandment, which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? [42:32] The expert in the law replied, the one who had mercy on him. Jesus told him, go and do likewise. Did you notice the expert in the law, this lawyer, couldn't even bring himself to say the word Samaritan. [42:47] He said, the one who stopped and helped. That third man who stopped and saw the injured one and treated him was the real neighbor. [42:59] We all know that. He didn't just feel sorry for him, he actually got off his donkey and did something about it. We can pass by people who are hurting all the time and feel sorry for them, but it doesn't do much good unless we actually help them. [43:18] The Samaritan knew what God wanted from him, and he did it. He didn't let his own busyness block him from sharing the love of God in a really tangible way. [43:30] Do you feel like busyness is blocking you from sharing the good news of Jesus Christ both in your words and in your deeds? Yeah. You can be crazy sometimes. [43:43] I don't like that sound at all. but I would suggest first of all, slow down a little. Summer's an excellent time to do that. [43:55] Take some time to talk to God about it. Talk to him about your busyness. Put space for God on your calendar. Don't forget. God will give you direction even in the busiest of times. [44:08] and learn to say no once in a while. Learn to say no to those things that are less important in life. Learn to say no when it stops you from helping to build God's kingdom here on earth. [44:25] When our lives are feeling so busy that we don't have the time and the energy to share Christ with others, we need to stop and lay our burdens at the feet of God. [44:36] We need to let God fill us up again. And then we'll have the strength to share God's love with others. Amen? Amen. All right. [44:47] I'd like to invite you to join with us in singing some praises to God. explanation of nine ardent track sunday номal dildi here as you fill me equ appreciating My will, my burdens behind All I want, all I need Is just to be with you [45:51] Just to be with you Here I am at your feet Just to be with you Just to be with you I have come to the end of me And there's nothing I have to bring But you said I'd be wrong This day I am yours Nothing compares to knowing you all All I want, all I need Is just to be with you Just to be with you Here I am at your feet Just to be with you [46:53] Just to be with you You made a way for me Oh, I'm the Savior I'm yours forevermore You made a way for me Oh, I'm the Savior I'm yours forevermore I'm yours forevermore All I want, all I need Is just to be with you Just to be with you Here I am at your feet Just to be with you Just to be with you Just to be with you Just to be with you. [47:53] All I want, all I need is just to be with you. Just to be with you. [48:04] Here I am at your feet. Just to be with you. Just to be with you. [48:21] Our God is so good. So good. You are good. [48:50] You are good. There's nothing good in me. You are love. You are love. I'm displayed for all to see. You are light. [49:01] You are light. When the darkness closes in. You are hope. You are hope. You have covered all my sin. [49:12] You are peace. You are peace. When the fear is crippling. You are true. [49:22] You are true. Even in my wandering. You are joy. You are joy. You're the reason that I sing. You are light. [49:33] You are light. When the death has lost its sting. You are love. [50:08] You are more. You are more. When my words will ever say. You are Lord. You are love. Our creation will proclaim. [50:19] You are here. You are here. In your presence I may hold. You are God. You are God. Of all else I'm letting go. [50:30] You are love. You are love. You are love. You are love. I'm running to your arms. I'm running to your arms. [50:41] The riches of your love. You are always love. Nothing compares to your embrace. I love the world. [50:53] Forever. All right. No other name. [51:04] No other name. Jesus. Jesus. My heart will sing. No other name. [51:17] Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. My heart will say no other name Jesus, Jesus My heart will say no other name Jesus, Jesus And oh, I run into your arms I run into your arms The riches of your love Will always be enough Nothing compares to your embrace Light of the world forever I run into your arms I run into your arms The riches of your love Will always be enough Nothing compares to your embrace [52:20] Light of the world forever Oh gracious God, you are everything to us Help us never to forget That you are number one That we need to turn to you first of all We need to clear our calendars And listen for your voice We need to say no to the busyness And then you will fill us So that we can go out And share your love with others Bless us this morning, Lord Bless us as we come to your table We know, Lord, that we are sinners And so we offer up to you this prayer Dear Lord I know I've made mistakes Sometimes I've been too busy I haven't listened for your voice I haven't sought your direction [53:21] I haven't praised you as I should I've ignored the needs of others Forgive me, Lord Help me to do better Fill me with your spirit And help me to be a faithful servant Through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen Hear the glorious good news Even though we are sinners God loves us And proved his love for us When he sent his son into the world To live and die And to be raised again For each one of us And so I can say to you with confidence In the name of Jesus Christ Your sins are forgiven In the name of Jesus Christ Your sins are forgiven Glory to God Amen Sing ye first the kingdom of God [54:29] And his heart just blessed And all these things shall be added unto you Alleluia Alleluia As can it shall be given unto you Seek and it shall bow Alleluia Knock and the door shall be opened unto you Alleluia Alleluia You may be seated Shall we join together in the great thanksgiving The Lord be with you The Lord be with you And also with you Lift up your hearts Lift up your hearts Lift up your hearts [55:29] Lift up your hearts Lift up your hearts Let us give thanks to the Lord our God It is right to give our thanks to the Lord It is right and a good and joyful thing always and everywhere To give thanks to you Father Almighty Creator of heaven and earth You formed us in your image And breathed into us the breath of life And when we turned away and our love failed Your love remained steadfast You delivered us from captivity Made covenant to be our sovereign God And spoke to us through your prophets And so with your people on earth And all the company of heaven We praise your name and join their unending hymn Holy, holy, holy Lord God of power and might 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 and blessed is your Son, Jesus Christ Your Spirit anointed him to preach good news to the poor [56:30] To proclaim release to the captives And recovering of sight to the blind To set at liberty those who are oppressed And to announce that the time had come When you would save your people He healed the sick Fed the hungry And ate with sinners And by the baptism of his suffering Death and resurrection You gave birth to your church Delivered us from slavery To sin and death And made with us a new covenant By water and the Spirit On the night in which he was to give himself up for us Jesus took bread Gave thanks to God Broke the bread And gave it to his disciples And he said to them This is my body Which is given for you Eat of this In remembrance of me And after the supper He took the cup He gave thanks to God He gave it to his disciples And he told them This is my blood The blood of the new covenant [57:31] Poured out for you And for many For the forgiveness of sins Drink of this As often as you will In remembrance of me And so in remembrance of these Your mighty acts in Jesus Christ We offer ourselves in praise And thanksgiving As a holy and living sacrifice In union with Christ's 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 gathered here And on these gifts of bread and cup Make them be for us The body and blood of Christ That we may be for the world The body of Christ Redeemed by his blood By your Spirit Make us one with Christ One with each other And one in ministry to all the world Until Christ comes in final victory And we feast at his heavenly banquet Through your Son Jesus Christ With the Holy Spirit In your Holy Church [58:32] All honor and glory is yours Almighty Father Now and forevermore Amen And now as his faithful people Shall we pray The prayer which he taught us Saying 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 Will those who are helping To serve communion Please come forward Thank you. [60:14] Thank you. [60:44] Thank you. [61:14] You'll come down the aisle and you'll be given the piece of bread and you can dip it in the cup and partake right away. If you need gluten-free elements, they'll be over on your right-hand side. You can stop by the rail for prayers or to light a candle to represent your prayer. [61:28] Won't you come and receive of God's grace this day? Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. [61:43] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. [61:53] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. [62:03] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you. [62:35] Thank you. [63:05] Thank you. [63:35] Thank you. [64:05] Thank you. [64:35] Thank you. [65:05] Thank you. [65:35] Thank you. [66:05] Thank you. Thank you. [67:05] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. [67:17] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. [67:55] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. [68:07] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.