Find Your Place Sunday

▸ Today is Back to Church Sunday. Some may be here for the first time, including those joining us online. Others may be returning after a long time away. Wherever you are coming from, we are glad you are here.

▸ Church should not be a place where people pretend to have everything together. It should be a place where real people encounter a real God.

When I was in school, one of the worst feelings was walking into a cafeteria and not knowing where to sit. You carried your tray, looked around, and wondered, “Is there a place for me?”

That feeling does not disappear when we get older.

Deep down, every person wants to know: “Is there a place for me—a place where I am accepted and truly known?”

▸ Yet we often feel like belonging has to be earned.

Prove yourself.

Perform well.

Have everything together.

▸ That kind of pressure leaves us emotionally and spiritually tired.

▸ That is why Jesus’ words in Matthew 11 are so powerful. He was speaking to people who were worn down by expectations and religious burdens. Into that weariness, Jesus offered a different invitation.

Matthew 11:28–30 ESV

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

▸ Jesus does not say, “Fix yourself first. Prove yourself first. Get everything together first.”

▸ He simply says: “Come to Me.” Come to Me just as you are. You do not have to clean yourself up first. You do not have to get everything right before you come. Let Me do the work in you.

▸ Because Jesus has something He wants us to experience that we cannot create for ourselves: rest.

1. Jesus Invites Us to a Place of Rest

▸ We live under constant pressure.

Students feel it.

Adults feel it.

Social media adds to it.

Sometimes even church can become another place where we feel like we have to have everything together.

▸ But Jesus says: “Come to Me, and I will give you rest.”

▸ Christianity is not about checking religious boxes to impress God. It is about walking closely with Jesus.

▸ We do not earn our place with Him through performance. We find our place through grace.

▸ We cannot save ourselves. Jesus has already done for us what we could never do for ourselves.

▸ So we work from His grace—not for His acceptance.

▸ Rest does not mean doing nothing. Jesus still says, “Take My yoke upon you.” But there are also times when we simply need to stop.

Last year at our Pastors and Spouses Retreat, our speaker said something that really stuck with me:

Pastors often seem to end up in one of two places—burned out, or learning to take Sabbath seriously and rest in God.

That challenged me because ministry is never really finished. There is always another call, another visit, another sermon, another problem.

So I started creating a Sabbath every Saturday.

For me, Sabbath means intentionally stopping. I step away from ministry, housework, and the pressure to always be doing something. I turn my phone off but leave my watch on for emergencies. I spend intentional time with God and family. I read for enjoyment, and sometimes I play college football on my Xbox.

Right now, I am up to about six hours each Saturday. I have had to build it little by little, but my goal is eventually to make the whole day Sabbath.

And I am learning something important:

When I stop working, God doesn’t.

The church, the people, and the mission all belong to Him.

Sabbath is becoming my weekly way of saying:

“God, this is Yours. I trust You with it.”

Key Line: Rest reminds us that our relationship with Jesus is built on grace, not performance.

2. Jesus Shares the Load

▸ A yoke connected two animals so they could walk and pull together. So when Jesus says, “Take My yoke upon you,” He is not saying:

Carry every burden yourself.

Meet every need alone.

Add more pressure to your life.

▸ He is saying: “Walk with Me.” Let Me carry this with you.

Galatians 5:25 ESV

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

▸ We find our place by staying close to Jesus and keeping in step with the Spirit.

Daily surrender.

Daily obedience.

Daily dependence.

Daily willingness.

▸ As we stay close to Jesus, our attitudes, relationships, and decisions begin to change. We notice people and needs differently. Serving becomes less about pressure and more about faithfulness.

▸ Remember something I say often because I want it to stay with you: “Busyness is not holiness.” Being busy for God is not the same as walking closely with God.

▸ It is possible to become so busy doing things for Jesus that we stop walking closely with Jesus. And God has been teaching me that personally.

Last summer, I sat down with a chart and put what I was doing into four categories:

Must do.

Must do, but flexible.

Delegate.

Eliminate.

That little exercise exposed some things in me.

I realized I had gotten used to carrying too much.

Sometimes I held on because it seemed easier to do things myself.

Sometimes I treated things as urgent that really were not.

And if I am honest, letting go has been hard because I care deeply about this church and want things done well.

But God has been teaching me that I do not have to carry everything to be a faithful pastor.

My responsibility is to love you, guide you spiritually, disciple you, equip you, and help you discover where God has gifted you to serve.

That is one reason Find Your Place Sunday matters to me.

I am still learning to release things I have held too tightly, trust other people, and make room for others to serve.

Sometimes faithfulness does not mean doing more. Sometimes it means letting go.

Healthy ministry means each of us faithfully carrying the part God gives us and trusting others to carry their part too.

Key Line: Jesus never asked one person to carry the whole ministry of the church.

▸ When everyone faithfully carries a part, no one person has to carry the entire load.

3. You Have a Place and a Part in God’s Church

Ephesians 2:19–22 ESV

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

▸ Paul was writing to people who understood what it felt like to be outsiders. Because of Jesus, they were no longer strangers or foreigners. They belonged to God’s household.

You Have a Place to Belong

▸ The Church should feel like home—a place where broken people are welcomed, grace is greater than shame, and no one has to pretend.

▸ God did not design us to follow Jesus alone.

We worship together.

We grow together.

We struggle together.

We pray together.

We serve together.

▸ That is why gathering matters. That is why relationships matter. That is why showing up and serving matter.

You Have a Part to Play

▸ Being fitted together means more than having a seat on Sunday.

God has given each of us abilities, experiences, compassion, and opportunities.

He can even use the difficult places He has carried us through.

We are not simply invited to attend the family gathering. We become part of the family and share in its life and mission.

▸ Serving does not only happen on the platform.

Someone welcomes the person walking through the door.

Someone helps a child learn about Jesus.

Someone notices the person who feels forgotten.

Someone prays, works behind the scenes, fixes something, or simply meets a need.

Every act of service matters when it is offered to Jesus in love.

▸ And sometimes your place of service becomes the place where someone else discovers that they belong.

▸ So maybe the better question is not: “What does this church have for me?” But: “Jesus, where can You use me?”

Takeaway for the Week: Because I belong to Christ, I can faithfully serve where He places me.

Conclusion

▸ The invitation today is not: “Do more so God will love you.” God already loves you and this will never change. You do not have to serve more, give more, or prove yourself to earn His love.

▸ The invitation is: “Because you are loved by Christ, take your next faithful step.”

For some, that step may be coming to Jesus and receiving the rest and grace He offers.

For others, it may be finding your place in the life and ministry of the church.

Maybe you are not sure where you fit yet. That is okay.

Just be willing to ask: “Jesus, where can You use me?”

▸ You received this form last week, and we talked about it earlier today. Before you leave, take a few moments to prayerfully fill it out and ask: “Jesus, where can You use me?”

▸ Don’t just think about it and set it aside. Take the step today. Fill it out before you leave, and be willing to follow where God is leading you. The form is also available on our website.

▸ Your first step does not have to be perfect. It just needs to be willing.

▸There is a place for you here.

A place to belong.

A place to grow.

A place to serve.

▸ We do not serve so that Jesus will love us. We serve because He already does. And because I belong to Christ, I can faithfully serve where He places me.

Prayer Following Sermon

Jesus, thank You for inviting us to come to You just as we are. Thank You for giving us rest, welcoming us into Your family, and reminding us that we do not have to carry life alone.

Help us keep in step with Your Spirit and recognize the place You have prepared for each of us. Show us how our gifts, experiences, time, and compassion can be used to serve others.

Give us willing hearts and the courage to take our next faithful step. Build us together into a church where people are welcomed, loved, strengthened, and pointed toward You.

Amen.

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