Beyond the Altar Moment: The Danger of Spiritual Complacency

• Awareness and Spiritual Maturity [00:29:19 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor introduces 'awareness' as the central theme, contrasting it with the limited perspective of focusing only on the first item on a to-do list.
• The 'First Thing' Syndrome [00:30:52 ▶️ 📄]
  > He explores the psychological tendency to feel accomplished after completing the first task on a list, often mistaking it for the most important or only necessary task.
• Biblical Illustration ([Acts 3](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+3&version=KJV)) [00:36:34 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the story of Peter and John healing the beggar at the Beautiful Gate, specifically focusing on Peter's decision to address the crowd afterward rather than stopping at the miracle itself.
• Continuity of Faith vs. Checklist Christianity [00:38:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts Peter's decision to address the crowd with the modern tendency to treat church attendance as a 'good day' or a list item (like '13 year old Brandon completing the list') without continuing the engagement or relationship.
• Stewardship of Time and Evangelism [00:41:26 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that Peter 'coveted his own time' but chose to stop and speak to the crowd, illustrating that investing extra time in others is crucial for spiritual impact and witnessing.
• Personal Illustration of Listening [00:43:00 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal story from his time as a youth pastor in Kishocton, Ohio, where he stayed late to listen to an elderly couple, resulting in a profound connection and a gift, illustrating the value of not 'coveting' one's own time over listening to others.
• Spiritual Complacency vs. Expectation [00:50:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor challenges the congregation to move beyond being 'content' with past greatness (financial, health, church growth) and instead actively seek and expect continued divine intervention.
• Evangelism and Witness [00:52:24 ▶️ 📄]
  > Using the example of Peter and the beggar, the pastor argues that believers must share their experiences with others rather than just 'living in the moment,' as this opens doors for miracles in others' lives.
• Holy Communion [01:00:40 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor leads the congregation in the ritual of communion, connecting the physical elements (bread and cup) to the spiritual reality of Jesus' sacrifice and the call to remember this gift daily.

• Sermon Illustration [00:30:07 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about his teenage years where his mother put chores on a list. He would cut the grass (the first item) and feel accomplished, thinking he was done for the day, only to realize later that it was just the first task, not the biggest or only one.
• Sermon Illustration [00:35:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > He tells a story about his grandfather who used an electric turkey carver at Thanksgiving. The grandfather would claim he 'made a big meal' while actually just carving a pre-cooked turkey, illustrating how people often take credit for a single visible action while ignoring the rest of the work.
• Sermon Illustration [00:43:00 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts a story from his time as a youth pastor in Kishocton, Ohio. He would stand in the foyer to talk to adults leaving service. One Sunday, he stayed to hold the door for an elderly couple who left early. He ended up talking to them for over an hour (until 1:45 PM) instead of going to Taco Bell. The husband thanked him, saying they had attended for 30 years and no one had ever listened to them that long. The pastor felt a 'gut punch' of shame for initially wanting to leave. On his last Sunday there, the couple left a card with a $2,000 check that said 'Thanks for listening to us.'
• Sermon Illustration [00:40:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of '13 year old Brandon completing the list' to describe how many people treat their faith: going to church, having a good service, eating, watching football, and delaying devotions until 'later' or 'next Sunday,' effectively treating the relationship with Jesus as a checklist rather than a continuous engagement.
• Sermon Illustration [00:50:54 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts a personal anecdote about highlighting a specific Bible verse on 4-20-16, the week after an encounter in the church foyer, realizing there was 'more for me' and a desire not to miss future opportunities.
• Sermon Illustration [00:51:50 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor references the biblical story of the beggar at the gate called Beautiful, noting that while it is a 'cool' moment to live in, staying there prevents seeing the next miracle, whereas Peter stayed to share the experience.
• Sermon Illustration [00:51:32 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a humorous anecdote about a former church member who complained that the pastor always said 'God does cool things,' to which the pastor replied that the member had never experienced it.

• Pastoral Charge [01:05:16 ▶️ 📄]
  > To actively seek and search for God, to not miss opportunities, to live for future encounters, and to maintain an attitude of expectation.

[00:06:17] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:06:17] The start of fall for some people in August. Anybody? No? The stores are, let me tell you, there's some stores that already have signs for Christmas. They want, they want your money tomorrow, please. Or today. But hey, hello? There. I'm cutting in and out. That's all right. We are glad to be back from camps. Uh oh. I am shorting out today. You stay right here. Okay.
[00:06:54] Anyway, camp was great.
[00:06:55] Thank you guys that prayed for that and were thinking about us while we were there.
[00:07:00] One story for that, and I'll hop into announcements.
[00:07:03] The last night of camp, I had a little boy come up to me and he handed me a glow bracelet because they were going to play glow-in-the-dark dodgeball after the service.
[00:07:13] And he says, I want you to have this so you can see tonight.
[00:07:16] I'm like, thanks, man.
[00:07:17] And he started crying.
[00:07:18] He gave me just this big hug.
[00:07:20] He had to be like seven, eight years old.
[00:07:22] And he just said, thank you so much for being our pastor this week.
[00:07:26] That's why you do it right there.
[00:07:28] That's awesome.
[00:07:30] And here's what's great about that.
[00:07:33] I talked to his counselor.
[00:07:34] He came from a church that his family doesn't attend.
[00:07:38] He attends on Sunday mornings through their bus ministry.
[00:07:41] They pick up 40 kids every week.
[00:07:44] Their bus just runs until it's time for service to start.
[00:07:47] And they brought 15 bus kids to camp this year.
[00:07:50] And that's over in Cherryville.
[00:07:51] So give the Cherryville church a round of applause.
[00:07:53] That's awesome.
[00:07:54] So anyway, it was a wonderful time.
[00:07:58] So if you see Salah, she's singing today still.
[00:08:01] She hasn't stopped singing since we got back from camp.
[00:08:03] And if you see Weston back there, uh-oh.
[00:08:07] Everybody ask Weston how camp was today.
[00:08:10] He'll love it so much.
[00:08:11] He loves talking to people.
[00:08:12] All right, let's go into some announcements today.
[00:08:15] He won't look up the rest of the service.
[00:08:18] Prayer and praise cards.
[00:08:19] Pray for me.
[00:08:20] Weston, don't punch me after service today.
[00:08:22] But if your prayer and praise cards, if they're in the seat back in front of you or on your seats, feel free to fill out one of those with any prayer requests you have or a praise for the good things that God's doing in your life.
[00:08:34] And hand them to Luann or Brenda on your way out, or you can drop them in the offering plate, and we'll make sure our prayer team gets those.
[00:08:42] Next.
[00:08:44] All right.
[00:08:45] So there's no food drive in August.
[00:08:48] Is there?
[00:08:48] Yes or no?
[00:08:49] No.
[00:08:49] Okay.
[00:08:49] But here are the needs.
[00:08:52] Not.
[00:08:52] what's not pasta nor okay as a resident chef i've never heard okay pasta and rice we're just gonna say that um ramen paper towels um a big bag of white rice another pasta uh so we really need
[00:09:16] pasta uh tuna and cereal so uh if anybody would like to uh donate to the pantry or lord's put that on your heart and you have the means to do so please see gene or any of the pantry team
[00:09:27] get with them next all right so we have had now six people contact us that are interested in helping with the prison ministry and so we will get together this month and meet with you
[00:09:41] and we know when that is i'll send you a message but if that's still you you've still been praying about what this could look like for you and how you can be involved please let me know after
[00:09:50] service today so we can start getting the ball rolling with that. Next. All right. The plan is to walk tomorrow if we're not rained out again. If you look at the weather this week, it says
[00:10:04] rain every day, which I can tell I'm getting older. We need that. Right. So but at the same time, no one wants any more rain. We're done with that. So hopefully the plan is to walk tomorrow
[00:10:15] night at seven o'clock in Bellingham Park. We'll meet in between the playground tennis courts and start from there.
[00:10:20] So if you are available and want to walk, pay attention to our Facebook post or reach out to me tomorrow to see if we're walking.
[00:10:28] Next.

[00:10:32] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:10:32] We're going to have a craft and a luncheon for the ladies.
[00:10:39] What this is going to be, we're going to take, we're going to be making these little, and they're just cute little, you can decorate however you want.
[00:10:50] We're going to meet here, we're going to have a day of fellowship together, fun making.
[00:10:54] these can be journals these can be prayer journals they can be scripture journals they can be sermon notes they can be whatever you want but we're going to make them together and then we're going
[00:11:06] to have lunch and we're going to what we're going to do for the luncheon is we're going to ask you to bring your favorite summertime dish whether that's chicken salad or regular salads or whatever you like your favorite summertime dish to bring together to as a potluck for everybody
[00:11:25] to share so we want y'all to come we want you to enjoy i'm going to have a sign-up sheet that'll be out in the back so i know how many people to plan for and to have supplies for all you need
[00:11:37] to do is bring yourself and your lunch to share with other people if you have questions you can see me, you can see Marissa, you can see Jean Clark. So if you have any questions or if you want to see my little journal that I made quickly, but this was my first one, so no judging. So just point out doing that. I'll have a sign up sheet. We're looking forward to spending the time together. And it is August 29th at 10 o'clock.

[00:12:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:12:15] I think the perfect summer dish would be not pasta.
[00:12:18] So go ahead and bring it.
[00:12:21] I'm glad she wasn't paying attention.
[00:12:23] So, all right, next.
[00:12:26] All right, so I think this is kind of fun.
[00:12:29] Our preschool, we've announced sometimes some of the fundraisers they do at different establishments in town.
[00:12:36] But I think it's the first Monday of every month.
[00:12:39] First Friday of every month, sorry.
[00:12:41] They've signed up with Jeremiah's Ice to do a fundraiser from noon to close.
[00:12:48] That is, if you don't know where that's at, that's out near Lake Norman High School beside Harris Cedar.
[00:12:52] If you're looking at Harris Cedar, it's all the way to the right.
[00:12:55] And so our preschool is doing a fundraiser there the first Friday of every month.
[00:13:00] So if you want to take a picture of that, write it down.
[00:13:03] Just another way to help support them.
[00:13:06] And next, and I think our last announcement for the day, there are this is a long-winded short answer there's a lot of things happening right a lot of growth happening a lot of moving pieces some of you have asked where's the the sermons on
[00:13:22] facebook well we run through a system called subsplash it kind of operates the whole thing and it's not been going well and so that contract is up in september so we're moving things over to
[00:13:35] something called planning center and so over the next couple months you'll see some next couple well hopefully just a couple weeks um you'll see a couple like little hiccups on the online side of things but marissa's been working her tail off to get everything fixed and switched over
[00:13:51] to have everything on planning center ready to launch the same time that our subscription was sub splash ends um so that's one thing if you're looking for like our services online that's part of what's going on there. Second, there's a lot of moving pieces going to be happening
[00:14:06] around our building. This whole hallway, this is a blessing, this whole hallway is about to become our children's section of the church. They're taking up every room we get.
[00:14:17] And so we're moving all our kids' classes, including an additional class, over to this hallway. And then we're going to be starting to use this big classroom on the side over here as a preteen or teen Sunday school class, and then the classroom in the corner will
[00:14:33] become a second adult class, so we'll get more info on that as well, so yes, a lot of things are happening, and that is a great problem to have, right, and so Marissa told me, she said, are we done already, we're on, we're live, Tom just showed me, okay, the
[00:14:52] video's working for now, pray it continues, so Marissa said, hey, I added a slide this morning it just says updates i'm like okay she said so update them okay so um so that's kind of
[00:15:04] what's happening if you see some moving pieces or or people where you don't typically see people that's what's happening and that is all a good thing um so be in continued prayer for these ministries to expand in september we're launching our youth group uh so our teen group so that's
[00:15:21] kind of awesome too where or what that looks like we don't know yet but we're launching it because That's what we do with our kids, and now here we are.
[00:15:28] So, you know, stepping out in faith all over the place.
[00:15:31] So we're asking you to step out with us and continue to pray for these ministries as these doors open.
[00:15:36] So, all right, we're going to ask our ushers to come forward this morning as we take our tithes and offerings.
[00:15:43] And I'm going to ask you to pray with us today.
[00:15:47] Hey, God, I just ask right now that your spirit just join us today and that we feel it in a mighty way.
[00:15:55] through our worship, our fellowship, our giving through the word in the halls and the kids' classes.
[00:16:04] God, may your presence just be felt.
[00:16:07] May we continue to step out in faith and do what it is you call us to do as a church and individually.
[00:16:14] Right now, God, let's pray for this offering that we multiply it to the many needs of your kingdom.
[00:16:20] May the words we sing bless your heart today.
[00:16:24] In everything we do, let us make you happy.
[00:16:26] It's your name I pray. Amen.
[00:16:28] For her as well, she is a doctor's appointment.
[00:25:51] I think don't want to get so then we want to continue to pray for Tina Poskey and her journey and pray for their family as well and pray for Gail Johnson this morning she's not feeling so well under the weather
[00:26:11] and a praise report John Williams texted me this week that he went to the doctor this week and the cancer is still gone so praise the Lord for that If there's any unspoken prayer requests or praises in your life, I just encourage you at this time to go ahead and take those to the Lord as we pray together today.
[00:26:36] So let's pray.
[00:26:39] God, we come to you now.
[00:26:41] We lift up these requests today.
[00:26:43] You know the ins and outs of every single one of them.
[00:26:48] For Ginger and her last two treatments coming up.
[00:26:52] For Tina Brown, her upcoming appointment tomorrow.
[00:26:56] and then later down the line.
[00:26:59] I pray for Tina Foskey as she continues to journey through this trial season.
[00:27:07] God, I just pray for steadfast encouragement through it all.
[00:27:12] I pray for her family as well.
[00:27:15] And God, for Gail this morning as she's dealing with, you know what it is today, God.
[00:27:22] And I just pray that you put your hand on her and heal her today.
[00:27:29] God, we thank you for the praise that John's cancer is gone.
[00:27:33] We just thank you so much for that.
[00:27:35] God, there are people that came in here today with other unspoken requests.
[00:27:39] People that maybe bounced in here today with praises.
[00:27:43] So God, all across the room like this, there's a mix of both.
[00:27:47] And so I just pray that today we just feel your presence no matter what we came in with.
[00:27:52] and that we can all leave together knowing who you are and fully trusting and believing in that.
[00:28:00] We love you today.
[00:28:02] In your name I pray. Amen.
[00:28:04] Alright, we're going to invite our kids to come up.
[00:28:06] Let's come over on this side today.
[00:28:08] One, two, three.
[00:28:46] Excited to go play with sand.
[00:28:53] Go for it.
[00:28:58] Oh man.
[00:29:00] The joy of those kids and the joy they bring. After being in a kid's camp, I can fully say that I was engulfed in that for about a week.
[00:29:11] It can also be exhausting, but also as soon as you think you're tired, you get some of that joy and it's just like, alright, let's go.
[00:29:19] So today we are going to be talking about being aware and that's something that if you've driven around Charlotte a lot, you realize that people were more aware when they're on the road.
[00:29:32] But awareness, I remember, I don't know, anybody here do lists now, like a chore list or like grocery list?
[00:29:44] Marissa, I know you're handsome.
[00:29:45] Yeah, I've learned to live off, Jonathan's a list guy, I've learned to live off lists.
[00:29:51] Tim's got lists in the back right now.
[00:29:55] And so I remember being, I was an early teenager, and my mom realized that if there was going to be a way for me to like do the stuff she's asking me to do, if she put it in a list and put it on the
[00:30:07] fridge, because she knew how often I visited the fridge, that I would see the list.
[00:30:14] And this changed from being a young teenager up until having a driver's license, the list changed, the responsibility changed.
[00:30:21] And so let's say going like 14 years old, here's the chores for the day.
[00:30:26] During the summer, cut the grass, dry the dishes, take the dirty clothes down to the basement where the washer and dryer are just all the lists right i don't know if it's a guy thing
[00:30:38] or if it was a young teenager thing but i would like do the first thing on the list and i was good i did it anybody else is that just a guy thing is it just a no like yeah what not that
[00:30:52] you know you know you're not done but there's a sense of accomplishment with that first thing It's like the thought to yourself, if I can do this one thing, I know I'm not done, but we're good.
[00:31:09] And maybe that was something with younger me, making sure that if I did the one thing, maybe I thought that whatever mom put as the first thing was the biggest thing.
[00:31:18] So if I got that all the way, maybe she'll be nicer the rest of the day, right?
[00:31:25] That was the thought.
[00:31:27] So cutting the grass.
[00:31:28] I remember cutting the grass was a big deal.
[00:31:30] go outside in my tiny yard cut the grass come in all sweaty and chug a Mountain Dew it's good to go take a pen, a red pen I always found the red pen anybody have the cup of pens at your house
[00:31:44] you'll only ever use like two of the pens but all the pens are there I found the red pen grass cut close the red pen go sit down and watch an episode of Law and Order
[00:32:00] because what else is on in the middle of the day in the summer mom would come home from work and we'd always use the back door to come in i'm sitting on the couch i hear the door close and like five steps it would take to get to the fridge
[00:32:15] followed by silence for some reason and then uh i immediately jumped up i was like i was getting ready to do that get ready to do that cut the grass she's like when did you cut the grass
[00:32:33] around 10, but I left for work at 9. It's 6.
[00:32:39] Yeah, I was getting ready to do the rest. Have you ever cut the grass?
[00:32:42] Really tired. But that first thing, I was like, I did the big thing. She's like, no, I put that first, because if you do that early in the day, it's not as hot.
[00:32:53] It doesn't mean it's the biggest thing.
[00:32:55] I need to do laundry when I get home. Are the clothes downstairs?
[00:32:58] Well, no, I can do that real quick. Just shook her head and walked in. And then I felt terrible.
[00:33:04] only to do the same thing the next time there was a list you guys made me feel pretty alone on that this morning so i've i have grown up a little bit marissa do i complete lists now usually okay
[00:33:24] that's better than not not really so but i did learn over time that just do the list so maybe it's it's not list i'm going to carry this like this today because i think there is a short so
[00:33:37] So maybe it's not lists, but there are a ton of people in this world that if they accomplish one thing in their day, they can't do anything else.
[00:33:49] Or if there's one thing on the calendar that starts at 6 p.m. on a Saturday, you can't do anything the rest of the day.
[00:33:56] So you guys laughed at the list, but I know some of you either are that person or know the person I'm talking about now.
[00:34:03] All you've got to do is work in youth ministry for a little bit and find out that people can't help you out on a Saturday because they have something at 7.
[00:34:10] Like, but I needed you at noon.
[00:34:13] Yeah, but you've got to get ready.
[00:34:15] You're taking your kid to see Toy Story.
[00:34:18] Like, what?
[00:34:21] And now as a parent, though, I kind of understand that a little bit more.
[00:34:24] There's that one thing, and you want to make sure everything else is kind of in order before you do that thing.
[00:34:29] Anybody know anybody like that?
[00:34:32] Anybody like that?
[00:34:35] Okay, a couple of honest people.
[00:34:37] Yeah, it happens.
[00:34:38] And I'm not bashing that person today.
[00:34:41] But I'm saying that that whole idea that I talked about in the beginning of doing the thing on the list, it creeps into our life in other ways.
[00:34:49] And some of us like to laugh at the other ways that people do it.
[00:34:52] But I guarantee there's something in our life that that is it too.
[00:34:56] Whether you help with Thanksgiving dinner and your job was to carve the turkey, but you told somebody you made the dinner.
[00:35:02] that was my grandpa the electric turkey carver the only time a year it gets used is that turkey I remember every time we'd get to their house we're about half way through the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
[00:35:18] on the TV and I walk in I hear

[00:35:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:35:20] and I go in and I try to reach in

[00:35:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:35:24] it's like clockwork and he'll come over with that knife and I'm like don't touch it only to turn around and turn it off and wink at me so I can grab one before my mom saw
[00:35:34] But I remember, like, later in the day, I'd hear him on the phone, like, yeah, made a big meal today.
[00:35:40] I'm like, you didn't cook anything.
[00:35:43] Grabbing it from the oven or cutting it with the electric knife, you didn't make it.
[00:35:48] So there's something in our life that that first thing on the list that we're excited about, it creeps in time after time or over time.
[00:35:56] It just happens.

[00:35:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:35:57] I want to read a story today in Scripture that it could have happened.

[00:36:09] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:36:09] And if it was modern day, it might have happened.
[00:36:13] But the thing is, it didn't.
[00:36:14] So the first part of this scripture today is not necessarily the message.
[00:36:20] And I know I've preached this part of the scripture here at least twice.
[00:36:24] It's one of my favorites, but it's what happens after.
[00:36:29] So in Acts chapter 3, starting at verse 1, Peter and John were going.
[00:36:34] They're walking around and encounter a beggar at the gate called Beautiful.
[00:36:38] You guys know that story.
[00:36:40] Most of you should.
[00:36:41] Like I said, I know I've preached that twice here.
[00:36:45] He's begging.
[00:36:46] He asked him what they have.
[00:36:48] He said, silver and gold we don't have.
[00:36:49] What we have is a bed.
[00:36:56] I can give you what Jesus has.
[00:36:59] Take it and get up and walk.
[00:37:01] So he gets up and he walks.
[00:37:03] And he goes into the temple courts with them.
[00:37:06] And he's running and jumping.
[00:37:09] I just imagine high-fiving.
[00:37:10] And he's just all kinds of excited.
[00:37:13] And the people that have seen this beggar at the gates for a long time, all of a sudden see him up and excited and happy walking around and again i'm just saying high five to people because i think i would be and they're thinking what happened here and then peter and
[00:37:29] john get a chance to say what happened he talks he's kind of hanging all over him but it's what happens after all that i think we need to focus on today and it's actually the the scripture that
[00:37:42] out of all my bibles that it's probably the only scripture in all my bibles that i've highlighted in every single bible it's something that i always want to be very aware of as it is about awareness
[00:37:55] acts chapter 3 verse 12 acts 3 verse 12 when peter saw this and by this it was the crowd that had gathered when peter saw this he addressed them he talked to him so what's so important about that
[00:38:13] everything you know peter could have stopped at helping the beggar at the gate called beautiful get up and that miracle in and of itself that he went with them that was a good day. Some of us would say
[00:38:33] that's a good day at church but then it just stops.
[00:38:39] You had a good service this morning as you stay at the restaurant as you don't leave the tip for the waiter. And a good Sunday as you tell your family after you cussed out their mom
[00:38:51] because she didn't do something on the list say pastor that's pretty harsh I'm just trying to be real I'm not saying that to you But that is some people on Sunday morning, they see something great or they experience something great and then they leave it there.
[00:39:07] They forget to carry that with them.
[00:39:10] And it just, do you realize your relationship with Jesus continues?
[00:39:15] It goes beyond the moment you had at the altar with him.
[00:39:18] Who knows how long ago?
[00:39:22] At kids camp this week, I heard one of the counselors praying with a kid that last night.
[00:39:29] And he was telling her, he said, hey, this is for right now.
[00:39:34] and it's for tomorrow and it's for next week and it's for next school year it's when times are good it's for when times are bad and that's how he's helping her pray through this and I was like oh I've never heard that's good
[00:39:47] Peter and John did this amazing thing for this beggar that nobody else was able to do it's because they encountered he encountered Jesus because of them and they could have just stopped hey you tell them what happened
[00:40:04] we gotta keep going you guys have a good day we might see you again see you next Sunday Peter noticed the crowd started to gather because they noticed something was different about this beggar and they saw and heard
[00:40:20] the commotion and they wanted to come see what was going on. When he noticed this, he addressed the crowd. Far too many of us when it comes to our relationship with Jesus it looked like 13 year old Brandon
[00:40:37] completing the list.
[00:40:41] First today go to church.
[00:40:46] Good service today.
[00:40:47] Let's go eat. Let's go home.
[00:40:51] Let's watch football.
[00:40:53] Yeah, we'll do our devotions later tonight, for sure.
[00:40:56] Oh, you're going somewhere?
[00:40:57] That's cool.
[00:40:57] Yeah, I'll just fix dinner.
[00:40:59] No, we can do it in the morning.
[00:41:00] In the morning, we go to school.
[00:41:02] That's okay.
[00:41:02] You know what?
[00:41:03] We'll be back at church next Sunday.
[00:41:04] We'll get it then.
[00:41:05] That's fine.
[00:41:07] And it is kind of funny, but it's also kind of not, because far too many people are like that.
[00:41:13] We experience something amazing that we intend to follow up on, and the only follow-up is whatever it is next Sunday.
[00:41:26] Peter easily could have left this area.
[00:41:30] He just said, I've got other things to do.
[00:41:32] I've got to get in here.
[00:41:32] I've got to go over there.
[00:41:34] John and I are pretty busy today.
[00:41:36] We'll catch you next time we're back in the area.
[00:41:40] But he saw the crowd and decided to address them.
[00:41:46] And he told them what had happened here.
[00:41:55] He told them what happened to the beggar, how they could experience it.
[00:41:59] And he used different words.
[00:42:01] Peter was always like that.
[00:42:02] He always had a lot of words.
[00:42:05] But he took the time to do it.
[00:42:09] Time's a precious thing to us all.
[00:42:13] It is. I know that.
[00:42:14] If I'm honest with you, I hate asking for volunteers because you're volunteering your time which you already don't have enough of.
[00:42:22] If there's a big pastoral character flaw in me, it's I hate the idea of asking somebody else to do something because I'm asking you to take your personal time, which I know in this day and age we already probably don't feel like we have enough of.
[00:42:38] But truth be told, that's probably how it's been for generation after generation.
[00:42:41] everybody covets their own time i'm sure peter coveted his own time here when he saw the crowd he decided to address them i was a youth pastor in kashopton ohio and i did something at the end
[00:43:00] of every sunday morning service again sunday morning youth pastor life is pretty easy when you don't have to do sunday school wednesday night friday nights those things that was that was busy part of the week sunday mornings you'd be there you answer questions about any fundraisers
[00:43:16] any teens that are there you sit there and make sure they shut up during service That's kind of the expectations of a youth pastor on a Sunday.
[00:43:25] Especially one with no musical ability.
[00:43:26] I didn't have anything to do on stage that morning.
[00:43:30] So I would do something at the end of every service.
[00:43:33] I would get up because I also did like talking to the adults.
[00:43:36] But I didn't get too much because Sunday morning youth pastor didn't teach Sunday school.
[00:43:41] Basically I had to babysit the teens that are in the church that skip Sunday school.
[00:43:44] So I didn't get a chance to talk to a lot of the adults.
[00:43:46] So I would get up as the worship team was doing their final song in the day.
[00:43:50] and I'd walk to the back and I'd go in the foyer and I'd stand there and I'd wait for adults to leave and I'd be able to catch them and talk.
[00:43:57] One Sunday morning, I did that very thing.
[00:44:01] I walked out there and this was a great time, honestly, for me to get to know some of the parents of some of the teens in the church.
[00:44:07] And I stood in my same section.
[00:44:09] We had seven, yeah, seven doors because one was singular, that exited the sanctuary and went out to this foyer.
[00:44:15] And I always stood right in the middle so I could catch the biggest crowd that came out and catch the people.
[00:44:21] That Sunday morning, we had another person who came out and said, hey, I'm going to wait out here.
[00:44:26] I've got some family here.
[00:44:27] I'm just going to stand.
[00:44:28] I wanted to meet somebody.
[00:44:29] So I said, okay.
[00:44:30] So I moved down to the door.
[00:44:32] This was Kishocton Sanctuary.
[00:44:34] It would be right behind where Tom's sitting.
[00:44:36] It's a double door on the far, I guess, left if you're up front.
[00:44:41] I'm standing there.
[00:44:42] I'd never stood at that door before.
[00:44:43] It's just a totally new crowd.
[00:44:46] Before the song's even over, before the pastor gets up to pray, an older couple walks out the door.
[00:44:54] And I guess I did know that they left early.
[00:44:57] But their thing is, it takes us longer to get to the car.
[00:45:00] We don't want to feel like we're in people's way at the end of service.
[00:45:03] They were moving an extra slope that day, so I went over to hold the door and asked if they wanted me to hold the other door for them.
[00:45:11] That question, I got more than I ever bargained for.
[00:45:15] I ended up getting the whole life story, the week's story, the morning's story.
[00:45:21] I am sitting there talking to them as the janitor's turning off all the lights.
[00:45:25] and in the moment can i tell you i have to be honest with you i just kept thinking i'm missing so many people over here i kept seeing other people that were leaving i was enjoying this
[00:45:40] conversation but i was also feeling like i was missing out on dare i say the people i wanted to talk to that morning shame on me they kept going our services ended at 12 30 it is 145 and
[00:45:55] We are still talking.
[00:45:57] I think they knew I was a single youth pastor.
[00:45:59] What was I going to do on a Sunday afternoon?
[00:46:01] I was going to go to Taco Bell and then take a nap.
[00:46:05] We're still talking.
[00:46:06] Did I get an amen from that?
[00:46:08] Yes.
[00:46:11] We're still talking.
[00:46:12] And he puts his hand on my shoulder and he looks at me and he says, thank you so much for listening to us today.
[00:46:19] He said, we've attended this church for 30 years.
[00:46:21] No one's ever talked to us this long.
[00:46:24] All of a sudden, all those thoughts I had went just straight gut punch, man.
[00:46:29] It's like, wouldn't you know, every Sunday after that, that was my door.
[00:46:35] Those are my people.
[00:46:38] Marissa, you know what I'm talking about now?
[00:46:39] I say my people.
[00:46:43] My last Sunday there, as I announced that we were moving to Cambridge, Ohio, become a lead pastor.
[00:46:50] I got this card.
[00:46:51] There was, you know, the basket of cards, wish for the pastor well, whatever.
[00:46:54] Got this basket of cards.
[00:46:57] Card on the bottom.
[00:46:58] Because, of course, they left first to try and beat everybody out.
[00:47:01] And they put the card in there first.
[00:47:03] last card on the bottom was from my people and it said to my person from your people in there was a check for two thousand dollars and all it said was thanks for listening to us
[00:47:18] i had every excuse to want to go that morning that was a nothing excuse i just coveted my time over listening to somebody else and i stayed and i talked there's something i couldn't just go away
[00:47:37] At any point, I could have just looked at my phone and said, you know, I've got to head to lunch or I've got to meet somebody.
[00:47:42] And there was something that just kept telling me don't.
[00:47:45] And so I stood and talked.
[00:47:46] And finally at 145, it was just a really good conversation.
[00:47:50] And I'll never forget Fred's hand on my shoulder just saying, thanks for listening to us.
[00:47:58] I could have been anywhere else.
[00:48:00] And in the moment, I almost wanted to be anywhere else until finally I just said, you know what?
[00:48:06] God placed me here.
[00:48:07] I'm going to talk to these people.
[00:48:11] Peter and John did something pretty incredible with this beggar, or the Lord did, but their faithfulness allowed it to happen.
[00:48:18] That's a pretty mountain high experience.
[00:48:21] God does something great.
[00:48:25] And sometimes it's hard to come down from that and just explain again after you've already explained twice.
[00:48:30] Now you've got to explain to more people what happened.
[00:48:32] They probably wanted to go anywhere else and do something else because, well, they probably had another miracle to do somewhere.
[00:48:40] Because I'm sure, if they were honest, that felt cooler than just talking to people.
[00:48:45] Can we be honest about that?
[00:48:46] Like, you saw somebody get healed.
[00:48:48] That's pretty awesome.
[00:48:50] I could tell you about it, but maybe I'm missing out on something else amazing that could happen.
[00:48:54] But by them taking the time, by Peter seeing that people were interested, wanted to listen, wanted to talk, he took the time to do it.
[00:49:02] Who knows what crazy miracles happened in that group of people because he took the time.
[00:49:10] So in your relationship with the Lord, how much time, extra time, do you put in outside of the scheduled time?
[00:49:25] Start with that question.
[00:49:26] Second, when God does something great, are you content with that greatness or do you want to see it continue?
[00:49:37] It's the same question as the church.
[00:49:39] Marissa and I talk about it all the time.
[00:49:43] It's really cool to see on Sunday mornings He said, Tim, thank Tim for keeping the attendance and the numbers.
[00:49:50] And it's really cool to see the average number go up.
[00:49:53] And it's cool to see the church grow.
[00:49:55] It's cool to see classrooms starting to get used again.
[00:49:58] And that's all great.
[00:50:02] But are we content with that?
[00:50:04] Or do we want it to continue?
[00:50:06] Do we want it to go on?
[00:50:08] It's the same question with the Lord.
[00:50:09] He does something great.
[00:50:12] Financially, something happens.
[00:50:14] We didn't have that money, and now we do.
[00:50:17] Health-wise.
[00:50:18] We were sick and now we aren't.
[00:50:21] God did something great.
[00:50:22] Are we content with what he did there?
[00:50:23] Do we want to continue to see more things?
[00:50:28] What do you want?
[00:50:32] That's why that verse is highlighted in every one of my Bibles.
[00:50:35] Because I never want to miss that opportunity.
[00:50:42] So in my Bible, I highlighted it on 4-20-16.
[00:50:54] It was the week after I had that encounter with the people in the foyer.
[00:50:58] That I was just sitting in my office one day and I was just reading.
[00:51:01] And it was one of those, all right, God, shut my eyes and open it and do what you want.
[00:51:05] I came across that and it made me realize that, man, there is more for me.
[00:51:10] I don't want to miss it.
[00:51:12] I want to be aware of what the Lord is doing.
[00:51:16] And I want you to be aware of it too.
[00:51:18] For your life individually, for us as a church, I don't want you to miss what God still wants to do even after he's already done something cool.
[00:51:29] Can we just say sometimes God does cool things?
[00:51:32] I heard somebody say, Pastor, it wasn't you guys.
[00:51:35] in my last church, why do you always say God does cool things? I was like, then you've never experienced it.
[00:51:41] Because sometimes it's cool.
[00:51:43] That's my word I use when I can't find words.
[00:51:47] God does cool things.
[00:51:50] And I think what he did with the beggar at the gate called Beautiful was pretty cool.
[00:51:54] And it's a moment you kind of want to live in.
[00:51:57] If anybody's ever several of you have talked to me about this, you grew up in a church where there was services where the altars were lined. Do you remember that?
[00:52:07] the prayer services and it was just great and you want to live in those moments and God did something awesome. If we stay there, we'll never see the next one.
[00:52:18] Peter stayed in the moment and realized, okay, I'll share with you too.
[00:52:24] And I pray that you have that faithfulness as well that when God did something great, you're going to continue to share that with others because you never know what it might do for them.
[00:52:33] I'm going to ask our worship team to come up.
[00:52:36] We're going to do our closing song. After we do our song, we're going to have to take communion this morning but as they come up i'm just going to go ahead and pray pray that god
[00:52:50] continues to open our hearts and our minds for even when something great happened that we're still ready for something greater so why don't you pray with me today hey god thank you again so much for what you've done and what you'll continue to do thank you for the great things
[00:53:14] that we've experienced through you and the greater things that we'll still see.
[00:53:20] Help us be aware and alert and attentive to all those around us that are watching, that are waiting.
[00:53:32] God, let us be bold to stick around those moments, to share with them, to listen, and to continue to spread your word.
[00:53:42] We love you today.
[00:53:44] Amen.
[00:53:45] Why don't you stand?
[00:53:46] If everybody's been served, I'm just going to pray for the moment.
[01:00:40] God, again, we thank you so much for this day as we pray to partake of the Holy Communion today.
[01:00:45] I just ask that you prepare our hearts and minds to accept and receive this beautiful gift.
[01:00:55] Thank you for the gift of your Son.
[01:00:57] It's your name I pray. Amen.
[01:00:59] Sometimes part of the reason that we miss out on that second moment after the amazing miracle is because some of us are still shocked that we saw the first one, right?
[01:04:30] I don't think a lot of times we maliciously mean to miss out on what's next, but we're so excited, rightfully so, for the amazing thing that God did. I think maybe we should live a little bit more expected. We've heard
[01:04:48] stories, we've read stories, we've seen videos, we've read scripture, we've heard sermons about how good God is, and yet there's so many times that we still doubt that anything like that could happen for us.
[01:05:05] But it can. How many times do you think the beggar thought that not me until it was?
[01:05:16] So keep seeking. Keep searching after what the Lord has.
[01:05:22] Don't miss it.
[01:05:23] When you experience it, don't just live in that.
[01:05:29] Live for it.
[01:05:32] Expect again. God sent His only Son down to earth to suffer, live a life that we live, but for a purpose. That night Jesus took the bread and he broke it.
[01:05:58] This was my body broken for you.
[01:06:17] Then he took the cup and said, and this represents my blood shed for you. Drink.
[01:06:38] We've been given the greatest gift that is Jesus.
[01:06:44] And may we not forget that.
[01:06:47] Through even the most mundane boring day of our lives and even on the most exciting exuberant day let's not forget that either Jesus came for you and for me let's be thankful and live in that
[01:07:03] let's pray together God thank you so much for this day for this opportunity to be in your house worship together thank you for your son thank you for the good things that have happened in our lives
[01:07:20] thank you for the good things that will continue to happen and when they do may we not miss what's next keep our eyes open may we remain focused we love you God, it's your name I pray
[01:07:34] everyone said Amen