What am I here for 5

Working in our Why

I’ve got a word for you guys tonight. Tonight we’re going to close out our Series “What am I here for”. we’ve been looking at what our purpose is here on earth. Why we were made, created by God.

Tonight we’re going to take some time and I’m going to teach on a topic that a feel at times we as Christians kinda forget about. and I get it we’re all so busy all the time that it’s hard for us to find the time to maybe go out of our way to do something nice for someone else. to volunteer at a shelter, or do landscaping duty like we all did yesterday. I know we all have a thousand different things going on.

and if you ask me is a tool of the enemy all in it’s self. to get us soo overly consumed with doing life that we can’t find the time to serve the one who gave us life, the one who GAVE HIS life amen!

if we want to change the world. if we want to bring people to share in this good news. to share in his glory what better way to show them who Jesus is than by serving the one thing he loved so much that he sacrificed all for it you, one another, your neighbor, your church, your community.

come on if we want to see a massive turning back to God in our schools, and in our homes, and in our jobs then we need to be the hands and the feet of Jesus and go out, get our hands dirty and SERVE HIS PEOPLE!

We were literally MADE FOR THIS!!

if you have your bibles go a head and turn to Deuteronomy 10 12

tonight were going to talk about serving others. serving this Church. it’s my hope that maybe something tonight stirs in you and God starts tugging at your heart and maybe you get the little bit of courage you need to step out of your comfort zones and come ask us about where you can maybe serve in this church.

Deuteronomy 10:12 NLT

“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases him, and love him and serve him with all your heart and soul.

Pray

dear heavenly father, lord we are so blessed to be in your house tonight. thank you for your holy sprit. and right now father I just pray that you let the holy spririt move and work amounst this group of students. I pray that whatever word you have tonight for them father that you put me on like a glove and use me. that I may only speak what you want them to hear lord and anything that is of just me and my efforts lord let it fall to the wayside and forgotten. I pray for soft hearts and open minds in Jesus name amen.

When I was say in probably 4/5th grade I loved getting to rent video games on Friday's from movie gallery. for like 5 bucks on Friday's I could go up to the video store pick out the video game i wanted to play and rent it for the week. by the next friday i was ready to swap it out for a different game.

My mom and Dad thought it would be a good idea for me to start to earn that game every Friday so my mom created a chore list. it was legit to. like she didnt just write down things for me to do with a check box, no she found these pre-made chore list with cool stickers and I think they had like Power Rangers or something on them. I was really excited to do the work.

So my chores to earn a trip to movie gallery on Friday would be to clean my room, take out the garbage, 2 nights I would do dishes, and every night set the table. In all honesty it really wasn’t a lot to do. (although back then we would go to school for 6 hrs a day and still come home with 3 hrs of home work)

So over the week I’d crush the chores, on Friday we’d go to the movie store, I’d get my game and get to play all week until it was time to do it again.

Life in 1995 was good.

but here’s the thing at some point I noticed that even when I didn’t get all my chores done I would still get to go get a game or some movies on Friday.

For me. The Chore’s, they were a means to an end. I didn’t care if my room was clean, I hated dishes, most often my Dad would take the trash out anyways. I just had to do them cause I wanted something and once I figured out I didn’t really have to do them I just didn’t any more. so you guys can imagine me chilling all weekend long playing Crash Bandicoot in a completely destroyed room.

I didn’t see the lesson I was being taught. The lesson that when we’re handed things or blessed with things Its important to actually take care of those things. that we nurture it. mend it when broken. to maintenance to maintain it. to treat it with care, respect, and most of all love.

and let me say now that we live in that house there’s things we’re fixing today that had I just learned to take care of them when I was younger I wouldn't be fixing them today. come on.

guys i don’t know if you know this our not but just like how we were given grace and salvation because somebody else paid the price for it. this church this build these people are here today because someone before us through sweat, and tears, and prayers, and a lot of no joke hard work made sure this church would continue to serve in this community.

It’s my prayer that we continues to serve in this community for another 4,5 10 generations AMEN.

A few months ago a guy that works for me and I were in a conversation (and I’ll touch on this deeper in a bit) but he asked me. why do you do this. why to care to take so much time to volunteer all this time to all this church stuff that you do.

and I said to him point blank because I want people to know Jesus.

and let me tell you guys if you want to win souls for christ if you want to reach your friends and your families and coaches and teachers you guys are going to come across questions like this all the time. why believe, why have faith, why serve. a lot of times it’s like my toddler trolling me with that questions why, why, why, why, why

and i want you guys to be prepared because “or else you’ll go to hell” I don’t have ever won anybody over to Christ.

So as I got deeper into this conversation I remember a book a read by a man named Simon Sinek. He’s a consultant, author and motivational speaker. he usually spends a lot of time work with companies like google and amazon, and other large corporations to look at how they can do things better.

several years ago he recognized the shift in culture from just going and doing what we’re told to a lot more people asking why. so he writes this book its called start with why.

in the book in the concept of selling he says this “people don’t buy what you do. they buy WHY you do it.” “people don’t buy into what you do, they buy into why you do it.”

Guys I’m making this a challenge and call for you to step up and serve with me.

Here’s WHY

Number 1: Serving directly increases our faith.

If you ever feel God calling you to serve some in some compacity I can almost promise you it’s not going to be in something that comes natural for you. THIS IS ON PURPOSE!!!!! WHY God will always push us out of our comfort zones.

Ephesians 3:20 NLT

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

God Increases our faith by revealing new potential. Its about who he is and how HIS power can work within us. through us.

Guys if we’re serving and performing within our own strength and talents then we’ve lost something somewhere. We’ve made it about us.

God will put us in positions that when we see the miracles come, the healing come, the radically changed life. we can never take credit for it because it was ALLLL him.

Number 2: Serving others helps us see and understand what we were made for.

Ephesians 2:10 NLT

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

we’ve all been given gifts from God. certain talents. something that will help steward his Church. serving others will help establish what that is.

In Ephesians chapter 4 we see the importance in the unity of the church.

how we all have a part to play. using those gifts, skills, and abilities to train others up.

Like straight up this is one of the MAIN reasons we’re doing this tonight is because I would be a terrible youth pastor, I mean terrible is it wasn’t my heart to disciple you guys, and train you guys, to help you figure out what your spiritual gifts are and one day you guys come and take my job.

Thats the whole point in why we do these worship nights why we eventually want this to be mostly student led is because it is our job to pour into you and grow the next church!.

Number 3 Serving draws us into closer community.

when you get on a team and start volunteering with people man that will change your life. it will. there’s something to be said about shared experience. That team will become like family. God has always used the people I sever with to encourage me, pray for me, and to teach me. Guys this will totally change your relationship with Jesus.

in John Chapter 17 Jesus actually prays that we be protected, to become one just as He was one with God. We have to have unity in the Church and that oneness is best experienced by participating and service with other people.

Finally number 4: If I can get some music playing behind me I’ll start to land here.

We serve because Jesus Served.

When we break it all down. and we try to maybe over explain our why to someone else. maybe sometimes simple is best.

like I don’t want to take away from anything that was said before this but when everything boils down to it. I serve because Jesus did.

going back to that conversation I was having with this guy at work he said something to the effect of.

See this is one of the reasons I can’t get into Christianity. You guys like to go around and talk about this free gift. salvation. love. and once people get into your churches you tell them like you have to do all of these good things to go to heaven and you can only get there buy checking these boxes.

I had that Luke Skywalker moment and I looked at him and kinda chuckled and smiled and said “everything about what you just said. is wrong.”

I said I give up my time, I get up early on my days off to come into church. I spend time preparing lessons and allll the other things that goes into all of this not because I’m checking a box. not because I’m adding another Power Rangers sticker to my spiritual chore list.

I do this because of everything he’s done for me. Because Jesus died for me. Not just died was beaten, mocked, torn, his skin shredded. A crown of thorns placed on his head. spit on. hung on a cross. laid in a borrowed tomb. stormed the gates of hell and the grave. rose again 3 days later having covered all our sins by the outpouring of his blood.

and you want to know the crazy part. nothing that I do in service to him makes any difference in my salvation.

Heaven Doesn’t work on rewards points. there’s no “would your like to use your app to earn points today” system to get into heaven.

THE PRICE HAS BEEN PAID!!!! IT’S FREE!!!! IT IS FREE!!! *****

You can’t do anything to earn it because it was never a transaction, there was no bargain it was a GIFT

I serve why? BECAUSE of all of that. because I love him so much that my faith literally would not all allow me NOT to.

I ended our conversation with this. I said

Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe I’ve got this whole christianity thing wrong maybe I’m wasting my time with all this volunteering and serving. But even if I’m wrong then I’ve still helped people. I’ve still witnessed someones life change because of an act of kindness. I’ve still brought smiles to someones face. I’ve accomplished something noble, something that warmed my soul and gave me comfort in hard times.

Maybe I’m wrong, but if I’m not, and this is all real and I never allowed his love to change me. allowed his example to influence my life, my actions then I don’t know if I could say he was ever in my heart. And if he was never in my heart than I can probably bet I never had a relationship with him. and If I never had a relationship with him it doesn’t matter how many amazing things I’ve done he’ll still say “depart from me I never knew you”

And there friends is why I serve him. Not for my gain but for his glory.

Guys its nice to get a pat on the back, it’s nice to have people tell you you’re doing a good job but as we begin to ask you guys to serve in areas of this church I need to tell you straight up. Serving can be really hard. It’s going to be uncomfortable.

every major event in the bible happened because God found someone sitting in comfort and asked them to move.

but go read Hebrews 11

thats your home work. Go read it for real do it. If you need help remember what I told you to go read DM Britt or I or reach out on one of the C3 YTH social pages, or i dunno call Faith in her office on Tuesday but seriously go read it.

every major event in the bible took a giant leap of faith. God found some one he needed to use and put them in uncomfortable situations.

trust in him. pray for the holy spirit to always guide you and give him the glory in all things and it’s my prayer for each and every one of you that when you stand before him he’ll say

“well done my good and faithful servant.”

Pray