Sunday September 8, 2024

How you doing? My name is Mike and if you might remember me, yes, know how many years I was always concerned about just a couple of things for you. I had my own list for myself, but for the people who came to church, I was always concerned about just a couple of things. One would be what? Tell me what was that concerned about? I know that your zipper self, but that's not we're going to stay here. Okay? Okay, good. What was that concerned about as a pastor coming to worship service? What was one of the big things that I was concerned about for you, people? What would it be? Salvation could be in there. Anything else?

Each each other had a Sheriff a you've got a guy coming. Next week was going to be highlighting that. She don't want to really miss that next. What else is concerned about? That's all you got. That you'd understand what the pastor is saying. Engage, did you engage with the pastor, not because of zippers opens. If we just because you're engaged with the pastor, because you're interested in what he's saying, speaking on the word of God, I was always concerned about these couple of things that you enjoyed warship, but partook in it. That's what I mean by enjoy. No offense. But David this morning and I'll probably speak to the guy. I'm traveling with today. David this morning, hit a bunch of Clunkers in the songs and when he did, I I just couldn't worship because he just wasn't good. So I didn't worship that's invalid or I get in the car with my friend. And do you know what, amazing every known? All the films were just perfect. I really worship this morning. Australian either. I worship during the prayer I worship during the scripture reading and I definitely worship over the great choice of songs this morning, if that's what I heard. By the way, I'm concerned about that.

Most of everything else. The thing my life revolves around and that is the word of God. I am very concerned that you clearly hear the word of God this morning, but very concerned that you interact with the word of God. And if I can get you to interact with each other, about the word of God, that's a good morning. Letting the Holy Spirit, speak to not me. Nobody wants to listen to me or David. No offense but it's what the holy spirit is speaking through them that you hear in the word of God. That makes the most impact. The fact that you will remember that this week, especially the scripture, this morning is absolutely Dynamics this morning, David. And I working on this together have gotten to this point. We're going to do a workshop style sermon and you might see in the world. Is that explain it in 20 seconds? We've got 34 in this room right now. I got to tell you that they are David and David. I'm going to ask you to be over there. Somewhere. So you can decide that and then you stay right there. Middle room, okay? You have the priority spot when I speak you get wet. So you should just watch yourself. Okay, over here on this side room at Pastor David's going to be, I'm going to ask you in just a minute to do. The unthinkable to get up and move your seat during a church service, who would ever do that and a pick out one of those leaders that you want to study a couple of verses of scripture with. Okay? So you're, you're going right now is to pick out which leader you want to be with the study the scripture with that. Everybody could not sit around Joel. So you have to pick somebody else but make sure the groups are kind of balance your big and adults. Right now, I trust you so we will see how well you can do this exercise when I say three. Over here, David's going to be this David. This Joel is going to be right here, and this Pastor David is going to be all the way over there. The chairs unhinge. You can make a half a circle or whatever you'd like to do later. That's up to you. I'll be giving you directions from here to what you're going to be doing. As you study the scripture together in these groups is everybody got it. I was on 21.

The money. Okay, this is taking a lot longer than it should come on folks. In the group Matt is walking around and Matt is giving you copies of the scripture so you can have your Bible with you but also a copy of the scripture is coming. Some 23 verses 1 to 3, that is coming your way. Now listen, we've got some great leaders here who just happened to be teachers. We're not asking him to teach their leading the group but they're not teaching the grouper say, here is your chance to pick up your rightful role in fellowship and teach the word of God. Matt, David. You got enough. Okay, well here's some more. If you want them. Thank you, buddy. Okay, everybody, listen up. Here's what we're going to do. I know this doesn't sound right, but let me say it, I would like you to introduce yourself to each other. Just now, look around your group. Don't look at me. Look around your group. What a group of people do you honestly know all of their names? All right, stop right there later. Start to your left later and have the person to your left introduce themselves with their full name, which includes all their middle names, okay? Later, make sure it starts to your left. It goes around back to you go.

How old are you?

You need to go ahead.

Noble.

Okay, by now you should have gotten throw with name. Name not bio name only name only waiting for the slow group to my right.

Okay, thank you. I think everybody's completed the name game. Okay, now you may look up here for further instruction. Here we go. You're going to notice that the scripture was handed out to you, we're going to interact on a few items took a deal. Practice one right now, a practice one. Notice, when you look at your scripture, it says this first line and, you know, this point which is why it's so perfect for this morning. You sing the song over and over again. It's on plaque, it's been burnt in two would it's been done in concrete? This is been over and over, and I wonder if you've thought about it before, you going to think about it this morning, listen up, I would like you to just noticed the first line here up some 23. It says, the Lord is my shepherd. They're the Lord is my shepherd, you see it on the screen, you see it on the sheet, you see in the Bible, you might have opened. The Lord is my shepherd is a practice in a warm-up group leader. Make sure your group. Now, shares that you don't have to go around. We're not here to put anybody on the spot and make you answer. But if somebody would like to share your couple people, what does it mean for the Lord? To be your Shepherd short, answers, phrases, one, or two sentences, think these are thinking times to kind of stuff. You do privately, you're reading the word, the Lord is my shepherd and then you conned her. If you meditate, which means to turn it over and over in your mind, what does it? And it may mean something different this week and next week or last week there we go. The Lord is my shepherd. Think for a moment that impact me, what does that mean? The Lord is my shepherd. I can write it this way for me. The Lord is my shepherd or hate to do this to somebody, pick on somebody, but let me pick on somebody. The Lord is Knoebels Shepherd.

I was just waiting to do that. I didn't know when I was going to do it, but there it is. Okay, the Lord is Noble Shepherd, by the way, have you thought about a little bit? What does it mean for the Lord? My shepherd, are you thinking short phrase, one sentence, share with your leader. Get back.

Just another thirty seconds and we're going to hear from you. This is a warm-up question by the way.

Okay, we're going to stop right there and ask you to listen. Stop right there or going to stop right there and ask you to listen, okay, good, good listening, here we go. Every listening this Direction, please David, could you stand up maybe and just report to us, what you may have heard from your group? That was just an interesting take on the Lord being my shepherd. They didn't have fences back then. So the Lord is our defense comforter leader strength. Like that? That's excellent words. I had not thought of for that. Later over here. Or did you hear anything of interest? That might challenges here you go. Mr. Noble, but a provider

The girls are good for fish.

We reasoned in, on the my shepherd, we talked about briefly, how personal God is Not Just infinite, but that he really wants to be personal to eat sheep or each one of us and we briefly got into. If, if he's a Shepherd that means we are the sheep and sheep like the scatter. So there's there's a bonding agent and corralling agent that goes on there. Okay, you should take some notes, I thought it would go a reader who can read, or maybe somebody would volunteer and in your group have somebody read out loud. Psalm 23, verses 1 to 3 in your group have somebody read it out loud to the group.

Stillwater.

Very good and everybody saw that. Now, do this, if you would now, personally, put your head down and read that scripture, look up at me.

Personally, read it to yourself.

I'll tell you what. I firmly believe that one of the marks of a good worship services. That is that you met God and worship, no matter what element of the service you're doing and that you got in the word of God about time you leave here. Today, you're going to own this scripture with new meaning, just from what we're hearing so far. Okay, later, here's the discussion. If you look up at the screen or look on your, on your paper, you'll see, these were the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. I shall not want. Here's the question to talk about for the next couple of minutes and this is a head-scratcher easy 101. Questions that we doing grammar school. The question is this, how am I not in one? Or how am I not in need? Because that's what the word means. How am I not in the? I got needs all around me, you got an hour, I can make a list, but it says, here, the Lord's, my shepherd, I shall not want how is it that I'm not in want or not in need This'll. This is going down the deep end of the pool. Pretty quick. Got leaders have your folks react on that. How am I not in need?

You got about 30 seconds about 30 seconds before I interrupt you for responses.

Okay, if I can have your attention please, I'd appreciate it down this direction right now. I got played something. I'm standing there, Jones group, and I think I want to sit with you people, disgust of stuff, you can move some great great answers, you are so on target with that. So thanks for saying that, that was really well done. And I'm going to start over here, but I'm committed to you. Cuz I was listening to you guys and it was that good. Okay. David could you come stand over here with me and just give me a couple highlights from your group, just a few things that would tell us what your group talked about.

I guess, two things that we really went for one was, I think we have time cuz late wants with.

The type of thing that the Lord taught us to pray for, which is today's Daily Bread. So are our needs Our wants are actually quite simple even though we sometimes have a long list of what we think our needs, and our wants are, so he does provide for us. Faithfully, but the other was also ultimately once once this shell does crack apart. I mean, what what greater provision has he given us? Then, ultimately, providing forever for all of our needs. Wow. You folks went up pretty deep pretty quick.

And if you got a good crew, what more do you need? I mean honestly let's talk about it. Okay here we go sir that you needed favorite provided and he's got the leads that we need. Not the one that we look for. So you're saying my list of wants might not be my list of needs for you, folks, in here that no description of read the scripture, I think there's a major problem that we don't get. And that's this, this illustration in the scripture Old Testament and New Testament of the Lord is Our Shepherd, Jesus saying, I am the Good Shepherd. I think what we do is Miss the analogy because we just don't see Shepherds and don't know what they doing all that they do and it's a big deal to say that sucks that somebody is a Shepherd who, what do you do? If there's a big list of stuff you do and we don't resonate around that at all and you really have to study to understand all that the shepherd did for the Sheep by the way. It's everything. Okay, cool.

We saw the text says, I shall not what we're driven to the needs cuz that's where we try to justify it but it says I tried that once. So what then and then one of them said that we have to let God do the one thing for us. Wow, like the shepherd knows more about my needs than I do.

Or shame and true, okay? If you've got your s*** in front of you, look on down, look on down at the Scripture. It says that he makes me lie down in Green Pastures, he leads me beside Still Waters, I don't get that as much as I would have had Shepherd's around. He restores my soul. He restores my soul. I'm planning on restoring my soul this afternoon about 1 because you give do you know what happens at 1 today, anybody? Football football gets going in Earnest. I'm tickled about it. It will restore my soul yes or no. No, not even close the right to phrases. He restores my soul. I want you to answer this question your group leaders. Facilitate this discussion again. Another not easy. When they answer. What specifically does he do to restore my soul? So, answer, personally, Mike, what specifically does he do to restore my soul? Books talk about it. What does the Lord Duna specifically restore your soul go?

Creative.

Bring him home.

Okay, about 30 seconds to get it out of your soul right now.

Okay? If I could ask you to give your attention down this direction, Pastor David, can you stand and give us a synopsis of some kind? Forgot to restore our soul. We need to look at what it is. That our soul is a thing that he made and his workmanship. And we try to fill it with everything else, but when we let God to find our soul, we find ourselves and then find the restoration. Put the next one inside by the way you stand, so we can maybe see you and then hear you with this.

actually we can be a very interesting point is that if you read all of what is provided in the first few verses security, and we could feel comfortable with him wherever we are,

We I think we took this a little bit towards what we were and David kind of touch on this. What we were initially designed for what we were initially created for and to have a restored Soul would be going back to the Eden relationship. I mean, a lot of this song sounds like picturing almost a neat and environment, but included in that is Walking with God and being in a restored relationship with God and and having Having a restored relationship with God. I think really is what are stole. Our soul is hungry for very good place.

Stay where you are Steve if you get to the slide.

Play Joel. Thank you all for showing God's word in you to each other. That's what it is. To be the church, the holy spirit in us and God's word.

I pray, Lord. These words are a comfort. But even more, let us know you. I'm so sure it's now in your work in Jesus Christ name, amen.

I shall not want. Do these words one more time?

The Lord is my shepherd.

I shall not want, he makes me lie down in Green Pastures, he leads me beside Still Waters, he restores my soul. He leads me in Paths of righteousness, for his name sake. The word of Our Lord. Thanks be to God.

I shall not want. Why is it that I shall not want?

If David Ruth were to do it, he would say the Lord is building the up. The Michael would do it. He said the Lord is pestering me.

Your calling is part of what God is doing in your life. These words and I want just to give you a nugget to chew on these words are incredibly comforting, but they don't come out of comfort. There's a thing in trauma called disassociation. When you hit something so hard that you cannot deal with it anymore, you imagine yourself apart from the trauma. David is having a disassociation here. I need is anchoring himself to all he has left. The Lord is my shepherd.

I shall not want.

I totally have.

That's all he needs.

You can try to Define things in a whole bunch of directions and and figure it out and box your life in and Define your life by what you want it to be in. Give yourself a huge final hurrah there for God. I'd serve you Instead of sitting down and quiet, the Lord is my shepherd. That's all I want. That's all I need. All of my life is shining that out. I think it went you to get from this text today because God is my shepherd, who cares for me and every area of my life. I shall not want. We often change that to me, but that's not what it says. Our desire of sin gets redefined The living in his Holiness in life and you find yourself there, even as we go through, trauma to get there.

Let's pray.

Lord Jesus. Thank you, that you would be our Shepherd.

Lord Jesus. Thank you even more that you would take these words and Be Our Shepherd and pray. The Lord is my shepherd as you died on the cross for us. You the Passover Lamb. We look to the father to be the shepherd for us. Thank you.

In Jesus Christ name. Amen. If you would be making your way back to a semi-normal chair setup, I'll be introducing communion and there's some beautiful Titans. To be listening as we approach this. This.