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PLAY COUNTDOWN VIDEO 9:55

SWITCH TO WORSHIP SCENE

Grace and Peace to you! Good morning! Welcome to another unique online gathering. It’s not the same as being face to face, but at least you can see my face and for those of you I know, I’m picturing your faces right now. I can’t wait until we are able to safely be together again. Today being separated reminds us of how precious it is to be together. But we also remember we are all in the same boat. All dealing with the same uncertainties. All looking to the same savior. All gathered around our phones, our tablets, our computers, our TV’s.

Separated for now, we are coming before God in worship, so let’s really focus on him in these moments together. So turn off other sounds, gather everyone around. You can kneel, or fold your hands or stand. Do something the let your body know this is worship. And kids, maybe Azalia and Aziya and Charles III are out there today. Any other kids, we welcome you too! You are also an important part of our church family as always. We have lessons and videos for you to experience offline as well.

NEXT SUNDAY IS PALM SUNDAY. So please make your own palm branches at home this week so we can all wave them at home at the proper time next Sunday. We can share a link for a pattern with you if you can’t make your own or find a pattern you want to use.

Good Friday is also fast approaching on Friday April 10th. Make plans to join us live at 6:30pm for another special worship experience. If you have a cross in your home be sure to have it nearby to help you focus on remembering Jesus’ suffering for our redemption and healing. Of course Easter Sunday is in two weeks! We look forward to celebrating the Resurrection together as well at 10am, Sunday, April 12th. Look for more details on that celebration next week.

Let’s pray: Heavenly Father we thank you today for life and health and peace. Today we are reminded of all that you do for us, Lord. But we also remember that we worship you because you are God, even when we don’t feel your blessings. Help us to remember you are always good and we can always trust you. You are holy and righteous. You are always faithful to us. Even in times of trial you love us, you are for us, and you help us. We love you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Today we have secured the rights to stream two songs, so let’s sing them together at this time:

SWITCH TO WORSHIP SET

SWITCH TO WORSHIP SCENE Tithes and Offerings At this time we would normally receive the tithes and offerings and pray for the needs of the church. So I want to say that we still need your giving to come in one way or another. I have to get paid and Paula the bookkeeper and we still have bills for the church that need to get paid and the costs of reaching out like this as well. So you have a few options. We now have have a service called tithe.ly that will allow you to give online or through an app on your phone. You can set it up to be automatic, if you give the same amount regularly. Or you can do a one-time gift each time. It can be an electronic check or auto-withdraw, which is the best. Or you can use a debit or credit card. Using one of these options will make life easy for the treasurer during this unusual time as it can all be managed online, including your giving statements for your taxes. I’ve shared this link with most of you already. You can find it anytime on our web page using the GIVE NOW button: fairmeadow.faithlifesites.com You can also sign up for bill pay through your bank where your gift will be mailed to the church and we will have to deposit it and track it manually. But we are happy to receive it that way if that’s what you feel is best. You can also just mail a check to the church if it’s what you need to do we are happy to receive it. Your gifts are more important than ever during this time. We also want to be in prayer for the needs of the church.

SWITCH TO WORSHIP SCENE

If you’re part of facebook you can ask to join the TLC prayer group on our FairmeadowNaz page. Just go to Facebook.com/fairmeadownaz, like the page and request to join the TLC group. There you will see regular updates of prayer needs. Bob Eveland, Carol Dione, and Ryan Radabaugh have all had surgeries cancelled so please be in prayer for them. Norma Goff had her ultrasound test for her neck and now needs an MRI so please remember her. Will Gonzalez needs a smooth transition to new lung medication. Linda Garcia and Jorge Winandy are nurses at a nursing home in the area, on the front lines of this crisis. So please remember them as well. Bob’s great niece Haley and Ellen’s former coworker and husband Jan and Dan McCoy are all battling Covid-19. Please pray for their healing and safety. As always please pray for all of us to keep following Jesus and keeping sharing hope with our world.

Tithes and OfferingsAt this time we would normally receive the tithes and offerings and pray for the needs of the church. So I want to say that we still need your giving to come in one way or another. I have to get paid and Paula the bookkeeper and we still have bills for the church that need to get paid and the costs of reaching out like this as well. So you have a few options. Starting next week we will have a service called tithe.ly that will allow you to give online or through an app on your phone. You can set it up to be automatic, if you give the same amount regularly. Or you can do a one-time gift each time. It can be an electronic check or auto-withdraw, which is the best. Or you can use a debit or credit card. Using one of these options will make life easy for the treasurer during this unusual time as it can all be managed online, including your giving statements for your taxes. You’ll receive more details about this giving option in the next few days.You can also sign up for bill pay through your bank, but this does require extra steps as your gift will be mailed to the church and we will have to deposit it and track it manually. A little more tricky than it used to be right now. But we are happy to receive it that way if that’s what you feel is best. You can also just mail a check to the church but that requires more effort on your end, but again if it’s what you need to do we are happy to receive it. Your gifts are more important than ever during this time.We also want to be in prayer for the needs of the church. If you’re part of facebook you can join the TLC prayer group on our FairmeadowNaz page. There you will see regular updates of prayer needs. Bob Eveland, Carol Dione, and Ryan Radabaugh have all had surgeries cancelled this week so please be in prayer for them. Norma Goff needs an ultrasound test for her neck so please remember her.Linda Garcia and Jorge Winandy are nurses at a nursing home in the area, on the front lines of this crisis. So please remember them as well.As always please pray for all of us to keep following Jesus and keeping sharing hope with our world.Let’s pray...

SWITCH TO PRAYER SCENE- JOY

SWITCH TO WORSHIP SCENE- PASTOR TIM

Romans 12:1–12 NIV

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

The Roman church needed humility

Paul writes about the strong and the weak in the Roman church. They were at odds with each other over rules, guidelines and attitudes. Both sort of looked down on each other. The so-called weak were more sympathetic to strict moral guidelines in daily life. They had a lot of rules to follow and their conscience was easily affected. The so-called strong on the other hand were bold and could be brash. Not always discerning well between Roman confidence of the leading classes and valid freedom in Christ. But either group operating in the flesh would be missing God’s ideal. Life in God is not just about following some written rules. It’s about living your entire life surrendered to God! Everywhere they went in their bodies was a potential act of worship or an act of disobedience. It’s not just checking off a list of your favorite rules and thinking you’ve pleased God or done well.

But also it’s not about proving we are above the rules. Pride of life has no place in the kingdom. Those in the Roman ruling classes tended to really lord it over others. The gospel shows us we are all on equal ground and must humble ourselves before God. You can’t say holy words on Sunday and then treat others like dirt all week long.

Romans 12:1–2 NIV

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Did we think we were invincible?

One of the things that caught us off-guard about this disease we are all battling together is that it came to our shores so quickly. In the past, we have watched and prayed for the 2/3 world as they suffer. We have avoided a serious viral invasion these past 20 years. Did we think we were special? Have we at times felt invincible? We may try to tell ourselves stories like this but just ask the Israelites or old Job, if suffering can affect God’s people or the land they live in. We are not invincible. We live in bodies that will die one day unless we are alive at the moment of Jesus’ return. We better care for them and submit our bodies to God. Ellen and I have been trying to remain as active as ever, if not more so during these days. I get up and walk around at least once each hour during the day and try to plan a 30 min walk several times a week. We’ve even been on several outdoor walks. But we make sure to keep our distance from anyone. We warmly greet anyone we see but we keep moving. Right now we can’t greet the way we want to. But a warm smile, a wave and a hello can go a long ways to encourage others. Even talking from driveway to driveway keeps the distance but can exchange meaning and encouragement.

We’ve got to take this seriously and show love to others with our bodies by keeping them home! Present your body as a living sacrifice. Right now making the sacrifice to stay put and enjoy your living room or your back yard without endangering others. This requires our minds to be transformed by the law of love. Others have to be out: they are required to physically go to work in hospitals, grocery stores, gas stations, some of the mills, law enforcement. Since they have to be out, the rest of us need to stay home to make their jobs easier and less dangerous. This can’t continue forever, but lets not get cabin fever yet.

Romans 12:3 NIV

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.

think of others. be humble. stay home and wash your hands. be willing to share. leave some on the shelves for others.

God empowers people with faith

But Paul reminds the Roman Christians that the people of God can live differently because they are not living on their own. Let’s revisit that verse I just quoted:

Romans 12:3 NIV

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.

By the grace given me. So God’s grace is not just forgiveness. It is a life source. It is the power of God poured out in our lives. That’s how Paul can declare the amazing things he does and how he can keep going on the long days of suffering. It’s how the Romans can come to live as well.

He adds another phrase at the end: in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. So faith helps us as well. And faith isn’t something just for the strong or the weak. It’s something God gives again. God is even more slick than amazon and ups at distributing faith to each of us. We all get enough to help us see what we can do and how we can think. Instead of just thinking of ourselves and pleasing ourselves, the people of God, even the Roman Christians can think of others and have faith to know God will help them. So no need to let anxiety and fear dominate our thinking.

On top of this God gives us gifts.

Romans 12:4–8 NIV

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

This is not a list of every possible gift the Romans could have. But it’s enough to get us started. Everything good and positive that you are good at is a gift from God. So you can use those gifts to serve others. In your everyday walking around life, use your gifts to teach, encourage, bless and give.

Christ empowers our loving service

Let’s look at verse 6 again:

Romans 12:6 NIV

We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith;

It’s God’s grace that provides for our gifts. We don’t have to wait until we have it all together. The gifts we have come from God, not something we conjure up. We can’t take the credit but also we don’t have to conjure it up. God has graciously helped each one of us to have something to offer. So we use these gifts in accordance with our faith. During this time we can and should continue to use every ability and resource we have to encourage one another and strengthen the mission of the church. I’m so pleased at how so many in the church family are checking on each other and offering to help. This is a blessed sign of the kingdom. Check in on your neighbors as well. Make sure they have what they need and help them get connected to resources if they need it. Everyone can be especially faithful in prayer. We have our TLC prayer group Wednesday nights at 7pm for those who are especially committed to praying for others. Let me know if you want to be a part of that group. Everyone can be faithful to give regularly to the church so we can keep serving others. This is extremely important during this time. You can give electronically through tithe.ly, you can use bill pay through your bank, or you can mail your check. If you haven’t been in the habit of giving regularly, take this moment to step up and begin to put God first financially. If you give to God first, you can trust him to provide for your needs...

Romans 12:9–12 NIV

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

These are the final words of encouragement and conviction for us to consider today. Let the walls of pride come down in your life. Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice. So that God can fill you with his grace and empower you to change the world by the way you live and serve others. This is a holiness passage. Everyone needs that moment of coming before God, surrendering ourselves completely and letting God fill us with his holy spirit. But it’s also our marching orders every single day. Share the life and love of Jesus everywhere we go and in every act of our day.

Even caring for our bodies can be an act of worship, so they will be available to God to be a blessing to others. It’s time to get real in our faith. Right now while many of you have a bit more time, redeem it. Let God transform you by the renewing of your mind. Let worship be so much more than these moments we share. Let it be your whole life lived in the presence and power of God—your spiritual act of worship.

Let’s pray...

Remember to make your palms for next Sunday and to plan to be with us online 6:30pm Good Friday April 10th.

And now may the presence of love of God protect your home and when you must go out keep you safe. Whatever happens you are not alone. You have the presence and power of God in your life and you have friends in Christ who care deeply for you. Grace and peace.