I'm In A Hurry To Get Things Done

This Last Week

Anyone here listen to country music? I love the group Alabama. They have great hits like “40-hour Week,” and more. But one of my favorites is the song:

“I’m in a Hurry”

Play or Sing Song

I'm in a hurry to get things done Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun All I really gotta do is live and die But I'm in a hurry and don't know why.

Don't know why I have to drive so fast My car has nothing to prove It's not new But it'll do 0 to 60 in 5.2

Oh I'm in a hurry to get things done Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun All I really gotta do is live and die But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Can't be late I leave plenty of time Shaking hands with the clock I can't stop I'm on a roll and I'm ready to rock

Oh I'm in a hurry to get things done Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun All I really gotta do is live and die But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

I hear a voice That say's I'm running behind I better pick up my pace It's a race And there ain't no room For someone in second place.

I'm in a hurry to get things done Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun All I really gotta do is live and die But I'm in a hurry and don't know why.

If everyone here couldn’t tell, the last few weeks for me and my family have been…hectic. I mean, let’s take a look at my sermon last week. During Cam Broken Arrow Ranch, God gave me some amazing abilities to speak extemporaneously, with preparation of course, but with few or no notes, for a morning and evening worship, and I thought that I could do it again, and without checking with the Lord first. It was easily the worst sermon I have ever given, and I know for a fact that I’ve given at least one other with minimal preparation, something that I absolutely HATE doing. I mean, you all, when I am here, have an expectation that I will meet certain standards, and last week…well, the only real excuse I can give is that I had a whole heck of a lot on my mind, namely the fact that I was living out of cardboard boxes (not that I was housed in one, understand, but that practically everything I owned was in one. Also, I was worrying about getting into the new home, worrying about how I was going to get my furniture over there without a U-Haul truck, worrying about Stacy overworking herself with getting an entire home packed up, moved, and then unpacking in less than 72 hours. And if anyone is curious, yes, we are totally unpacked, and all boxes have been broken down and taken to the dumpster. We began moving Wednesday morning, and I got the last of everything IN the house yesterday, as well as cleaning the entire apartment with the help of Sabbath and David. Holy smokes. I had to get it done so that tonight, after Sabbath is over, I can go over to the apartment and meet Stan, our Landlord, and show him the clean loft and hopefully get my deposit back. I’m worried that it isn’t clean enough. I’m worried about David and Chase and Ashlynn (my niece) and her mom getting back to Wichita okay. And oh, am I worried about tomorrow!! Stacy packed us up last night (yeah, we unpacked so we could repack yesterday!) so the girls and I head to Omaha for the Mid-America Union Pastor’s Conference. And there is so much in my life to stress out over and/or worry about! And the worst part of all of this is the simple fact that every one of you here knows exactly what I am talking about, as each and every one of you have worries and stressors of your own. I don’t need to tell any of you about your worries and stress! And even more so, can we say “First world problems?!” There are people who are genuinely wondering where their next meal is going to come from, or where they are going to lay their heads down tonight, or how they are going to get to see a doctor for the cough they’ve been battling for months.

What Do We Do?

Well, aside from Jesus coming back in all His mighty glory, what is the solution, and why do we worry about this? It’s really easy, and extremely complicated all at the same time: We have GOT to let go of control of our lives and give it to Jesus. Control is the single most prevalent problem with Christianity today. We want to decide what we do, when we do it, and how to go about doing it.

You know, as I said before, Stacy is, in every way, a worrier and a planner. I mean, we didn’t find our apartment until two weeks before getting here. And as I said last time, when we were planning to head out this direction a little over a year ago, Stacy had a spreadsheet with plans A through H…or maybe J…anyways, she had plans upon plans and contingency upon contingency. But her worries are a drop in the bucket on my own. I worry for each and every member and attendee of each and every church in this district. I worry about all of your hearts, and if they are right with Jesus, and I worry that the message or word of comfort or word of correction that I offered at the behest of the Holy Spirit had the effect He wanted. I worry about what God has in store for the district, I worry about what He has in store for ministry for me, and I worry about whether or not I am doing as much as I can to be as good a pastor as you all deserve. I worry about my family, especially David and Chase, who are, in a very real sense, heading back to Babylon, but not of their or my will, where they will face an uphill battle in dealing with their unbelieving mother. I worry about my girls and what the future has in store for them.

But despite all my worrying, God has it all covered, doesn’t He? He has it all figured out from the beginning to the end. And we are hardly the first people to worry about our lives and living on this broken world. But there is good news!

Our Scripture reading today takes us back to the Sermon on the Mount, and as you’ve probably been able to tell from my sermons lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time in it. I love the Sermon on Mount, because Jesus is a better expositor and better speaker than I could ever hope to be, and as someone who loves to preach the Word, this sermon is the example to follow. Our Scripture reading comes right after Jesus talks to the crowd about money and its importance. It’s okay to have it, but it’s not okay to love it or put it before God. But you have to understand that Jesus wasn’t talking about just money, but about anything that can be categorized as a possession. He then says “THEREFORE,” indicating that he is making a conclusion. And His conclusion? Don’t worry about what you eat, what you drink, about your life at all! He says that life is more than food and the body is more than clothes! He points the crowd to the birds of the air and the grass in the field, explaining how the Father clothes and feeds them. Then he asks the best question (and lets be honest, aren’t all of Jesus’ questions the BEST questions?): aren’t you more valuable than they are? We previously talked about how we who put our faith in Christ have become co-heirs with Him in Heaven, and therefore can apply the words of the Father to us: We are His children, we are loved by Him, and we are pleasing in His eyes. He says, then, why worry? What good will it do to worry when there’s nothing you can do to affect the outcome? Sure, we are to do what we can. But beyond that, we are to have faith that God will take care of the rest, and He always does, although in His own time. O you of little faith! Don’t be anxious about what you will eat, where you will live, or how you are going to get through retirement. Unbelievers look after and for all these things, and does it bring them an ounce of real happiness? And more to the point, who knows what you need better than God? I’d even argue that He knows your needs better than you do...

So, what is the solution? What do we do to alleviate all of this needless and pointless worrying? Jesus says we are to “see first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,” as the solution…hmmm. What in the world does that mean? As I said before: it is both very easy and extremely complicated:

Talk to God honestly and sincerely daily and throughout the day to find out what He wants from and of you

Study His Word daily.

Let God break you, daily, and let Him take control of your life.

Talk to God Honestly and Sincerely, and DAILY!!

Let’s start with Talking to God honestly and sincerely. Remember my sermon on prayer? Remember what it is and what it isn’t? In case you are confused, go back to , otherwise known as The Lord’s Prayer.

English Standard Version Chapter 6

9 Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

10  Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

11  Give us this day our daily bread,

12  and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13  And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

Jesus makes prayer easy to do. It just takes some discipline. Make your actions a habit and your habits will become a lifestyle. Of all of the spiritual disciplines, I often wonder at how difficult this one is. To wake up and your first thought is to talk to the Father, and ask the Son to intercede on our behalf, and to ask for the Holy Spirit to guide and protect me. See what I mean, though about being easy and hard? Therefore, seeking the Kingdom of God is speaking to Him daily and throughout the day.

Jesus makes prayer easy to do. It just takes some discipline. Make your actions a habit and your habits will become a lifestyle.

Study His Word Daily

Now, you’d think that, as a pastor, this one is easy, as it happens to coincide with my vocation and calling. Well, that’s not the case. The message God gives me to give to you is inherently different than the one that He gives for me personally. That’s not to say that God didn’t preach this sermon to me already, as my illustrations clearly showed, but each and every one of us has waiting for us some kind of thought or inspiration or correction, or other some such thing that God wants to give us for the day. The Sabbath message is to give you a starting point or a thought or idea to explore throughout the week while you are walking with God. And if God has revealed Himself in the Written Word, how will you know what He wants if you don’t study it? God’s will for your life is found in prayer and study of His word. And if you struggle, well, that’s why I had the Pastor’s Bible studies to help you know how to go about doing just that: studying the Bible and God’s word!!

Paul tells Timothy in :

English Standard Version Chapter 3

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

I’d like to point out that the word “man” is actually “ανθρωπος” which in this case means “person” or “someone,” as in “that a person of God” or “one of God.” In other words, we need to study Scripture to be complete, and equipped for God’s work for us. Therefore, seeking the Kingdom of God is also studying His word daily.

Let God Break You Daily, and Let Him Take Control of Your Life

I’ve preached that sermon before. All of you should know what I’m talking about here. You HAVE to let go. It’s not easy, and yet it is so easy. To let go and have the faith that God is there to catch you. Here’s the deal: people will let you down. Your spouse, your kids, your government, and yes, even your church will all let you down, but God is none of those things. He will never leave you, nor will He forsake you. He will always be by your side, and if given the chance, will lead you to the paths of righteousness. Remember that covenant we made with God? The plastic cup that represents our own will and wants and worries? Remember that we put it on the ground and stomped on it as a symbolic gesture of letting God break us of those things and letting Him have reign? Well, that’s where this comes in. Therefore, seeking the Kingdom of God is letting go of your control on your life and letting God have at it. Nothing irritates me more than seeing those bumper stickers that say “God is my copilot!” Hogwash, shenanigans, and poppycock I say! He’s not my copilot! He’s at the wheel, and I’m sitting in First Class where He put me as His beloved and pleasing child, and I’m reading an in-flight magazine waiting to hear His voice over the intercom telling me that we are arriving at HOME. As the verse RIGHT AFTER our Scripture reading for today says:

English Standard Version Chapter 6

34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Let me ask you all something: Ain’t that the truth?!

AMEN!

Pray, Study, and Let Go. That’s what it means to seek the Kingdom of God. So, what are you waiting for? God is waiting to hear from you. Maybe you haven’t had a lot to say to Him, or maybe He’s not been a priority in your life. Make Him one, and talk to Him! God’s also waiting to reveal to you something from His Word. Scripture is His love letter to us. When’s the last time you read it? It’s there calling to you. Dust off the Bible and remember: don’t just READ Scripture, STUDY it!! Lastly, if you want to find the Kingdom, you have GOT to just LET GO!! Jesus can’t take over navigation if you are desperately holding on to the wheel! Let go of the steering wheel of life and let Him take over. Trust me, it’s way better this way, for you and for Him. And what is the end result? What does all this seeking get us? Well, its the best: “all these things will be added to you.” When you seek after Him and His Righteousness, well, how can God NOT provide for you?

Let us pray.