I Will Make Room for You

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Today we are continuing what is for now the new normal. I want to thank all of you for joining us and encourage you to continue to invite your friends to our on line services.

I also want to thank those who are dong there best to continue being the Church in new ways during this very trying time. Keep up the good work.

Prayer

READ (NLT)

I WILL MAKE ROOM FOR YOU

I have gotten a little bit of a laugh out to the meme that I have seen around that says I didn’t plan of sacrificing this much for lent….

We are indeed living in a moment where some if not all of us are at a place where we can truly understand what it means to sacrifice. We have found ourselves discovering just how much we can do without.

Before this day many of us may have thought of Sacrifice as an option or something to avoid. Even when it comes to lent some have take this time to give up something in an effort to become healthier…or we fast something brings minimal disruption to our lives.

a bit of an archaic word I mean we don’t bring animals into the temple or build an altar in the wilderness to atone for our sin anymore. Sacrifice has really been an academic pursuit at best.

Fasting, or giving up something, is a form of sacrifice. It is a practice that is not something we do well. The reason we sacrifice is so we can create space to hear God more clearly. We remove things that might be hindering our walk with God so we can learn more about our dependence on God.

It could be asked why? Why is sacrifice so important?

I have heard some say that we don’t need to sacrifice anymore because Jesus already paid the price for us…so there is no need to to continue this act. While Jesus did come and die for us providing the ultimate sacrifice so we do not have to sacrifice animals and such any longer the importance of sacrifice is still there.

The reason we sacrifice is so we can create space to hear God more clearly. We remove things that might be hindering our walk with God so we can learn more about our dependence on God.

Sacrifice is a practice that makes room for God to do whatever He wants and needs to in our lives.

We are in a time of forced Sacrifice so what if instead of wishing it away we decided we would develop a life of intentional worship? What if we decided we would make room for God now in such a way that He would continue to be our focus when things get back to normal?

What if we decided we would make room for God now in such a way that He would continue to be our focus when things get back to normal?

Paul appeals to the believers in Rome to go beyond that inner reality to a conscious act of surrender and a “renewing of [the] mind” (12:1–2). The inner transformation now becomes an outward witness to others.

This outward witness will set one apart from the world’s way of thinking and behavior. A Christian is by nature a nonconformist. Their conformity is defined in terms of being shaped by the pleasing and perfect will of God, not “the pattern of this world” (12:2).

How does this nonconformity express itself?

In acts of humility and love.

In we discover how the inner presence of Christ becomes the outer life of Christ for the person who lives by faith.

He then goes into how this is played out in the life of a believer. Now I want to let you know that this passage deserves a lot more time than I can give it in our current time frame so I am going to focus on 2 broad concepts

Discover and practice the gifts God has given you to build the kingdom.

New Living Translation Chapter 12

6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Paul is very clear that everyone has a part to play in building the kingdom. If your gift is preaching...preach if your gift is serving…serve....If your gift is leading…lead.

Not only is he telling to discover and do he his encouraging us to do it well…

Part of the reason this suffers for some is people are often too busy using their God given gifts to accomplish more worldly pursuits than they are in building the kingdom of God.

Think about it all the gifts that Paul talks about here can be used to build a great business, coach a team, live your best life....all of them are transferable to the secular…And we should use them for those things.

We use these abilities in our everyday life for everyday living and have trouble using those same gifts to build the kingdom.

You should build great business and use them in you employment but we must not be so focused on those things that we forget the reason why God gives you these gifts to begin with.

God gives you and I these gifts to build the kingdom…the secular pursuits are and should always be secondary. When we make secular pursuits as our primary reason for our gifts we run the risk of using so much energy there that we do not have any energy left for kingdom work.

The only way to remedy this is not to surrender our routine long enough allow God to help us think more on the eternal and less on the right now.

This is number one reason we do not use our God given gifts…we don’t have a plan to do so. This can only happen if we take time away from the business we create for ourself.

You might say we need to surrender our gifts and our time in order to make a plan with God on how to use them for their primary purpose. Which is to Go into all the world making disciples and baptizing them in the name of The Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

As I say this I know how hard it is right now to take that time to focus of something other that our own well being. I too get caught up in this tension. I wonder when I will be able to go to a store and not see bare shelves? I wonder if people will ever get past the idea that they have to hoard to survive…I worry about my son…brother and his family…and yes I from time to time worry about my own family.

We should be prudent and do what needs to be done during this time but also understand that the world need Jesus now more than ever. This will require us to take time right now to take the time we have available to pinpoint what are gifts are and how we can use them now and how we can use them in what will certainly be a different future to bring glory and honor to God as well as bring hope and love to the new world we will find ourselves in.

Actively and authentically love good and hate evil.

New Living Translation Chapter 12

9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10 Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. 11 Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. 12 Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. 13 When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.

The second broad concept Paul give us is to Actively and Authentically love the world.

In order to Actively and Authentically love is to remain a people of Mission. Looking for ways to be the church in the best way we can for this moment in time. That is what I am seeing from many right now.

The best example I have of this is in what I am seeing through you and through many other churches in our world during this time of uncertainty. It would have been very easy for the church in general to just give up during these times.

I am seeing the Church mobilize in innovative ways…Drive by prayers…Zoom Small Group, Bible Study and prayer meetings, intentional contact by phone, checking in on people in need, delivering groceries, Online Church services, Children’s lessons, and Youth lessons. These are just a few of the things I am seeing not only in our Church but in others.

Instead of giving up on Children’s programing and youth we are seeing including us people taking time to bring not only video programing but supplies for the family to learn about Jesue together.

People like you could have decided to just take a break instead of watching on line but instead you are awake gathered with your family, having facebook watch parties and inviting your friends and family to watch with you.

I have seen the numbers and in some cases we are seeing more people watching service than actually came to that church previously.

Instead of giving up on Children’s programing and youth we are seeing including us people taking time to bring not only video programing but supplies for the family to learn about Jesue together.

Is it what we prefer? No…but it is Active and Authentic expressions of love.

I have seen the numbers and in some cases we are seeing more people watching service than actually came to that church previously.

Instead of giving up on Children’s programing and youth we are seeing including us people taking time to bring not only video programing but supplies for the family to learn about Jesue together.

As I have been doing drive by prayers and talking to some of you I am overwhelmed by your kind words and the way most of you are dealing with this time of forced isolation.

These things are important because this crisis will end…there will be a day when things get back to normal or most likely a new normal will emerge.

Those of us who have stayed connected to God and each other and used this forced sacrifice to take stock of what is really important and make a plan to use the gifts God has given us as well will continue to make a difference and come out of this closer to God and each other than every before.

It will not happen on accident…it will happen because we intentionally drew closer to God opened our ears and made room for Jesus.

I don’t believe that God caused this to happen so we can learn a lesson... But I do believe that this could be a time where instead to filling up all our time with honey do lists, or all kinds of other busy work maybe we should spend that time in asking the serious questions.

But I do believe that this could be a time where instead to filling up all our time with honey do lists, or all kinds of other busy work maybe we should spend that time in asking the serious questions.

What do you want to say to me?

How do you want my life to change when it goes back to normal?

What are the things I have been forced to sacrifice that should stay on the shelf?

How do you want me (us) to do this? Plan it! You have time

Close with the youtube I will make room for you if possible.

Lets Pray

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