Uncomfortable (Part 1)

Let Go

Philippians 3:7–8 NLT

I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ

Tonight, we’re talking about getting uncomfortable.

If you want to grow closer to Jesus… If you want to worship freely without shame… If you want to actually experience more of God… Then something has to change.

You can’t keep holding on to what’s comfortable and expect to move forward. Paul says in Philippians 3 that everything he once thought was a gain—his reputation, status, image, and achievements—was actually getting in the way of knowing Christ.

Some of you are in that same place. There are things you think are helping you—but they’re actually holding you back. You’re clinging to stuff Jesus is asking you to let go of.

That’s where we start tonight. Not with hype, not with feelings— But with honesty.

1. Identify What’s Holding You Back

“I once thought these things were valuable…”

Philippians 3:7 NLT

I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.

Breakdown:

What’s Paul talking about here? Paul is talking about the things he used to brag about. He’s talking about his background, his reputation, his education, his status. To him, all that was a big deal.

Today, for you, that could look like being liked, getting attention, staying popular, looking spiritual without actually being close to God.

All this may feel like “gains” right now, it may seem like you’re winning. But Paul says, compared to Jesus, its all a loss. Its of no value. Its worthless.

Start by being honest: What are the things that feel like “gains” to you right now but are keeping you from growing closer to God?

Those secret sins

That vape you hide from your teachers

Taking things too far with your boyfriend or girlfriend

The filthy language you use to try and fit in

Pride

Spiritual laziness

Fear of what other people think during worship

Not everything that feels like a gain is actually good for your soul.

Illustration

Imagine someone hands you a gift card. It’s to your favorite store. You’re pumped. You put it in your wallet and start planning what you’ll buy. Weeks go by… then months… and you forget about it. One day you finally pull it out and head to the store, excited to finally use it.

But when you try to check out, the cashier says, “Sorry, this is expired. It doesn’t work anymore.”

You held onto it thinking it was valuable—thinking it was going to give you something good. But when it came time to actually use it, it was worthless.

That’s what some of us are doing with sin, pride, and the approval of people. We’re carrying it around like it’s worth something. Like it’s going to pay off.

But Paul says in Philippians 3:7—“I once thought these things were valuable…” They felt like gains. But the moment he met Jesus, he realized they were expired. Useless.

You’ve got to stop giving value to things that don’t hold value anymore. Not everything that feels good now is good for your soul later.

🟡 Action: Name it. Write it down. Be real about what’s keeping you in your comfort zone

2. Choose to Let It Go

“I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done…”

Philippians 3:7–8 NLT

I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ

Breakdown:

Paul ups the intensity a little here. He’s not just talking about a few things EVERYTHING is worthless when compared to knowing Jesus.

That’s how valuable Jesus is. He’s saying that you could take all the best stuff in his life, and its nothing compared to Christ.

What all does that include?

Comfort

Control

Sin that feels good for a moment

Approval from others

Hiding in the background instead of getting involved with the church

Big Truth: 👉 Knowing Jesus is worth more than anything you have to give up. It’s not just letting go—it’s trading up.

Illustration:

I played basketball in school. I was terrible… I grew 6 inches in 3 months so now all of a sudden I’m 6 feet tall and have no idea how to control my body. I was clumsy, couldn’t walk and chew bubble gum at the same time. My dad was so nervous about me trying out for the 7th grade team, he took off work everyday during the week of tryouts to go sit on the bleachers hoping to console me if I embarrassed myself.

Luckily for me, I made the team. They didn’t cut anyone, but I made the team. I had 5 points my whole 7th grade season. The next season I thought I was hot stuff, I had 9 points in a single game. But that was significant improvement.

I became obsessive with the sport. I have a really addictive personality so when I like something I tend to hype fixate on it for a while. 3-5 hours on school days and even more on weekends, all I did was play basketball. By my freshman year, I was a starter. I had gained some dribbling skills but was still the tallest guy on the team so I got to play guard some and center some. That was my dream.

As y’all know I play guitar. And when I was young I was really good for my age. I made the decision early on I would use my talents to honor God. So I played at church and I sang and played some during the week at revivals and stuff. I also taught guitar lessons at this time too. That was a talent I know the Lord gave me and a calling he had on my life.

But, basketball season was hectic. I dropped all of my guitar students, I didn’t take any more appointments. I only played on Sunday morning and I never practiced. Basketball was all I was interested in.

I improved. Sophomore year I was playing on the JV team and played really well. I was averaging a double double and had more blocks in a game than anyone to come through Fort Payne High School. They moved me up to varsity and I finally scored my first varsity points. The season ended and coach told me I had a spot in the starting lineup next year.

Years… literally years of work and I finally outworked my incoordination and clumsiness and was going to get to start for the basketball team.

We start summer practices, and we’re doing drills where we practice taking charges. I took one, and when I hit the floor I felt my back jar all the way up. I immediately rolled on the ground in pain. It subsided so I finished practice. The next day I could barely get out of bed. My brother helped me put my shoes on and we went to the doctor. They thought I pulled a muscle and should be better in a few days.

3 weeks went by and I eventually lost all the feeling from my knee down in my left leg. 5 doctors later and we finally got a diagnosis at the Birmingham spine clinic. 2 severely herniated discs. You’ve gotta quit basketball. I was crushed to say the least. I told coach, he was upset. All that work for nothing.

Now I had all this free time, so I picked up my guitar. I grew more in the next 2 months as a musician than I had in the last 4 years. I started getting phone calls about coming to sing and play at churches. I got a full ride scholarship for playing guitar. And it was like I heard the Lord say, get your priorities in order. Focus on me and what I’ve gave you instead.

Application:

Paul chose to let go of everything that competed with knowing Jesus.

It wasn’t easy or automatic, it was a decision. He didn’t see it as giving something up. It was making room for something better!

So I’m asking you, what’s in the way of you knowing Jesus? If you’ve already surrendered your life to Him, what’s in the way of growing your relationship with Him? Its not worth it.

🟡 Action: Surrender it. Say, “Jesus, You are worth more than this.” Receive what’s better.

3. Trash the Past

“I have discarded everything else… counting it all as garbage…”

Philippians 3:8 NLT

Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ

Breakdown:

Paul says here that he chose to lose it all. He made the decision to walk away from it, on purpose. Why? Because compared to Jesus, everything else was trash. He literally calls it garbage.

What he once held tightly, what he once saw worth in, he now sees as worthless.

Guess what Paul realized… he couldn’t hold on to both sin and Jesus. One of them had to go.

Stop giving value to things God is trying to remove.

If it’s sin, compromise, or pride—it needs to go.

Big Truth: 👉 You can’t gain more of Jesus if your hands are full of garbage. Let it go. Lose the fake “wins” so you can walk in the real thing.

Illustration

Have you ever seen one of those TV shows about hoarders? These people keep everything—old newspapers, broken furniture, expired food, stuff that should’ve been thrown out years ago. They hold onto trash because they think it might still be worth something. But the truth is, it’s not just junk—it’s dangerous. It starts to take over the house. It smells. It attracts bugs. It makes people sick.

And here’s the wild part— When help finally comes, and people try to clean it out… The hoarder fights them. They cry. They argue. They try to protect the very garbage that’s ruining their life.

That’s exactly what we do with sin, pride, regret, and shame. We hang onto it. We hide it. We act like it’s no big deal. But it’s not just clutter—it’s contamination. Paul says he counted it all as garbage so that he could gain Christ.

If we want Jesus, we’ve got to let go of what’s rotting us from the inside.

You can’t carry Jesus in one hand and trash in the other. One of them has to go.

🟡 Action: Reject it. Stop going back to it. See it the way God sees it—not worth it.

Response Challenge:

Give them time to reflect:

What are you holding onto that feels like a gain but is keeping you from Jesus?

Is it sin, fear, pride, or approval from others? Let them write it down, confess it, or pray over it. Give them a quiet moment to start “letting go.”

What do I need to identify, surrender, and reject? Invite them to physically drop it in a trash can, tear up a paper, or take a quiet moment of surrender during worship.