Loving God

In: 1. Thank you for allowing us to be your pastors

a. I am more excited today about where we are than ever before

b. I believe we are living in the last days

c. I believe God saved the best for last- Water to Wine

2. 2023 highlights

-Grown across our campuses- +101, kids +48, youth +14

-Campuses- +110, gave over $100,000 to missions

-Added several new groups

-Spanish- small group 9:45, service 11am

-Remodeled our Coffee Shop

-Added space at Piedmont- sanctuary & youth/kids area

-Both campuses starting discipleship groups on Wednesdays

-Revamped Day Care- Ryan, Kendall, Peggy (160 kids)

-We have Kingdom Coop meeting 98 kids

-Paid off outstanding school lunch bills for the school system- $6,200

-Gave a Million to missions

3. We take this time of the year to set goals, dream, challenge ourselves

4. The hardest person I will ever pastor is me

a. The most difficult person any of us will ever lead is ourselves

b. 21 days of prayer & fasting

1) This is a time to reflect, listen, to make changes

2) Fasting is restraining the flesh to help our spirit be more in tune to hear better

5. Five goals for every person this year

a. Read the Bible through

1) The Bible is alive

2) The Bible changes people

3) Bible reading plan, small groups that study it

b. Plug in to a group

1) Bible, Serve, Interest, Support, developing relationships

c. Find your place

1) Ministry through the church

2) Ministry through your job

d. Experience the joy of giving

1) Return tithe, give Bridge Builders

2) Simplify giving

3) January 21- Missions Sunday, setting goals

a) Stephen & Bailey Kuert- 47 churches in 3 African countries, ($20,000) 52 graduates at our Church Planting School in Burundi and Eastern Congo

b) Bishop Oleg- planting a Georgian church in NYC

e. Disciple/mentor someone

1) Win someone to the Lord, help them grow, get involved, repeat it

6. Theme for 2024- Faith Expressed through Love

a. Galatians were struggling with the balance between the law and grace

1) Galatians 5:6 The only thing that matters is faith expressed through love

a) Common theme through the New Testament

b) 1 John- Cyclical idea of faith produces love produces actions/obedienceproves faith

2) Our Faith is expressed through the way we love God, others, lost

b. 2 Thessalonians 1:11 We pray for you, that our God will give you His power to fulfil every act prompted by your faith

1) What is your faith prompting you to do this year?

a) Faith prompts us to do something

b) God gives us the power to do it (wisdom, energy, plan, people)

c) If we are willing to go along for the ride

7. How will your faith express your love for God?

I. SEEING THE NEED FOR GROWTH

A. Becoming like Jesus is a lifelong journey

1. 2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit

a. We are being transformed into the image of Christ little by little

2. It only happens through the process of listening, hearing and obeying

B. Allow God to work

1. Jude 4- people who deny the Lord Jesus, try to stop Him

a. We tend to think of that in negative ways

1) Recant under persecution

2) Rejecting salvation opportunities

b. Sometimes we deny Jesus by not being who He wants us to be

1) 2 Timothy 3:5 Having a form of godliness but denying its power

2) Like the Rocky Soil in the parable of the sower. Only let it go down so far

2. We value God’s leading

a. The way he interacted with people in the Bible is the same way interacts with us

b. Wednesday- Just as the oils flowed as long as there were vessels he will flow through us as long as we are available- 2 Kings 4 Elisha

c. It is exciting when we find our purpose, excitement, life, energy

3. God doesn’t push us into things by guilt or manipulation, but He calls us to something greater

a. He is always calling us or inviting us into something bigger than ourselves

b. The word church means “called out” We are a group of people that have answer the call from God to salvation and become like Jesus

c. Philippians 3:12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be (Lay hold of that reason he laid hold of me)

C. Kilroy was here

1. Became a popular marking by American GI’s in WW2 (Picture)

a. One theory identifies James Kilroy, an American shipyard inspector. He worked at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy during the war checking the work of riveters paid by how many rivets they installed. Usually, inspectors made a small chalk mark which riveters used to erase, so that they would be paid double for their work. To prevent this, Kilroy marked work he had inspected and approved with the phrase "Kilroy was here" in more durable crayon

2. Bandshell in Bartlesville

a. We were here but now we’re gone. We left this here to carry on. Those who know us know us well. Those to don’t can go to H*#l.

b. We don’t know you we don’t care. You don’t know us you go there

3. People graffiti, write names for people to know they were there

a. Maggies Ouray (picture) Wild Horse BBQ- business cards (picture)

4. I want it to matter that I lived

5. What mark will we leave behind? What kind of a difference will we make?

* We express our love for God when we see our need for growth

II. TAKE THE NEXT STEP

A. Helping people get to the other side is the next step in our journey

1. Lost - salvation

2. Bound – freedom

3. Bad relationship – healthy relationship

4. Surviving - thriving

5. Good Christian – better Christian

6. Being a Christian is a life-long journey

a. Anything that is alive is growing and changing

b. Galatians 6:15 The only thing that matters is a new creation

B. Discipleship is the next step of obedience

1. Putting ourselves in an environment for the Holy Spirit to speak to us

a. Prayer, Bible, quiet, church, podcast, small group

2. 2 Thessalonians 1:11 That God will give you His power to fulfil every act prompted by your faith

a. Faith prompts us to take the next step

b. May be something we start, may be something we stop

c. Having the courage to do it

C. What is your next step?

1. Connect

2. Grow

3. Serve

4. Baptism in water

5. Baptism in the Holy Spirit

6. Finding a group- know and be known

7. Starting to give- just start, Tithing, Missions (Bridge Builders)

8. Investing in someone’s life

9. Sharing your testimony with someone

10. Forgiving someone

11. Letting go of the past- windshield instead of rear view mirror

12. Volunteer

* We express our love for God when we take the next step

Cn: 1. The Other Side

2. Where are you?

a. If we aren’t careful we might end up where we are going

3. Where are you going?

4. How do you get there?

a. Luke 8:22-25 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and started out. 23 As they sailed across, Jesus settled down for a nap. But soon a fierce storm came down on the lake. The boat was filling with water, and they were in real danger. 24 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and the raging waves. Suddenly the storm stopped and all was calm. 25 Then he asked them, “Where is your faith?”

1) Jesus said let’s go to the other side, not let’s go half-way and drown

2) Jesus was with them but they probably thought they knew how to boat across the lake better than Him

a) They grew up on this lake, first job, made a living on this lake

3) Somewhere it got bigger than them, they couldn’t do it on their own

4) They asked Him for help

5) Got saved, doing your own things, it’s bigger than you, marriage isn’t any better, still got habits and addictions, ask for His help

Al: 1. Salvation- let Him into your boat and start the journey

2. How is your faith promoting you to love God? What is your next step?