And yeah, you had to 00:23:50,799 she ask you said no. 00:24:18,799 Um No, no, I, so you have. Yeah. 00:24:43,470 this one. Ok 00:24:54,900 to be. That’s true. 00:25:11,630 Yes. Yeah, 00:25:28,730 you can you think? 00:25:50,799 Yeah, but it’s no, I thank you. So that like a of where? Wow. 00:26:16,730 Right. Great material. Ok, 00:26:28,099 four is fine. Thank you. But it was 00:26:41,900 people. What? 00:27:05,200 Ok, thank you, Hannah. Good morning and welcome to worship. Um Please do read through all the announcements in your uh worship folder. Um I want to highlight three quick announcements. Operation Christmas Child bags are due today. Uh They’ll be packed on Tuesday. So uh please get those in ASAP. Um Next Saturday the children’s ministry is hosting, hosting a pajama party movie night. So, um this is a great time. There’ll be pizza and popcorn. Um We’re asking you to bring a new pair of children’s pajamas to donate to foster box, uh which is a ministry that supports foster Children and their families. Uh So you can read more about that. Um And that’s next Saturday. And then uh how many of you have ever played a musical instrument? Yes. How many have you ever sung in a choir or a band or some group, maybe sung in the shower. Excellent. You’re all invited to join the choir. Uh We’re, our music ministry is preparing for the Christmas concert on December 14th. And so we’re inviting high school, young adults, adult adults to join the choir uh for this uh season. Uh rehearsals are from 715 to 815 on Thursdays and then middle and high school students are gonna be doing a bell choir and those rehearsals are starting November 8th on Fridays. And then Children from second grade to fifth grade are doing a little uh children’s choir that will be a of this as well. And those rehearsals are right now on Fridays at 630 to 730 you can read more about that, but we’d love to have as many involved, feel free to invite neighbors to join and sing as well. Um It’ll be AAA great time and, uh we’re gonna make beautiful music um for Christmas. Um Finally, I want to invite up Ken Robinson to share about another opportunity to get involved and to give uh through the life Share Dresser project. So, come on up, Ken. Good morning, 00:31:13,400 Jesus said I have come to give life with joy and abundance. This verse is at the heart of the Dresser project. This is the fourth year that the life share group has sponsored the Dresser project. You may have noticed a children’s dresser downstairs, uh with a poster on top on your way to church this morning, hanging from the poster are tags with the names of baby items on them. There’s a little tag right here. Can you read it? You can see it a lot better downstairs. You may choose a tag, buy a gift and return it unwrapped to the dresser along with a tag after Sunday, November 17th. Your gifts along with a dresser will be delivered to mom and baby. A letter from our church sharing the message of the gospel and the love of Jesus for mom and child. We’ll go with it. Each recipient of the dresser project has been unique but they have two things in common. Their need for help and their gratitude for the gifts that you provide. The first year of the dresser project. You blessed the mom with her precious baby girl. Two years ago, you filled the dresser that was brought to a couple who had immigrated to America with two young boys leaving their extended family behind. They were so grateful for all the wonderful gifts they received and the love that was shown to them through you. Last year, the family who received the dresser had a beautiful baby girl. The mom wrote a note to us all saying thank you so much for everything. It was just unbelievable. All the love for Emma God bless you. This year, you can provide gifts to celebrate the birth of a baby boy. Due around the middle of November. Thank you so much for your generosity in giving to the dresser project. You are a blessing to these young families. Thank you. Thanks, Ken. That’s just downstairs in the, in the hallway. And if you want to get involved with life, share and other aspects of their ministry, you can uh find out information in the worship folder as well. Uh We just want to extend if you’re new or visiting this morning. We’re so thankful that you’re here. Um There’s a QR code on the back of our worship folder if you want to scan that and uh you can fill out some information. We’ll send you email updates, everything that we’re going through. Also uh downstairs after the service, we have a welcome desk. We’d love to greet you. Um And there’s a coffee area just to meet you and, and say hi and answer any questions that you have. Thanks for being with us and uh we’re delighted you’re here before we begin worship. Take a moment and greet those around you. Go. What it 00:34:33,730 I feel he’s in and I barely use it. I 00:34:45,500 sorry. 00:35:10,130 Restaurant. Yeah. Was 00:35:21,929 ok. I was there. 00:35:42,469 It’s cool. Good morning. My name is Brad. Um Please notice the call to worship this morning and involves a me, a men’s part and a women’s part. So you may want to be aware of that. So please stand for the call to worship. Now, what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach, I jealous. 00:36:22,000 Nor is it beyond the sea that you have to ask across the street? Claim it to us. And so we may obey it. No, the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart so that you may obey it. Please continue to stand for that song 00:39:34,030 and that 00:41:13,570 that was so good. Let’s pray together. It was so good Lord. It was just, just a foretaste of uh our souls being expressed fully to you. How good you are, how beautiful little moments that capture our heart like this are are pale in comparison to when we will see you face to face and yet you give us these good gifts to come into your presence by your spirit, to join our hearts with Christians around the world. We think of those that have already worshiped uh this morning before us and those that will follow after us and we praise you. We thank you that we can do this part to tell the world that you are good beyond all measure. We love you. We thank you for your love, for us. We thank you for your forgiveness. We thank you for your wisdom that guides us. We pause now to confess our sins to you silently. 00:42:26,170 Mm We love that line. Lord, our sins, there are many but your mercy is more. What a tremendous blessing to know that because of jesus’ sacrifice, our sins are completely forgiven. We’re unburdened from their weight, free to live a life that expresses love for you. Our creator, free to live and extend our love to our neighbors. Bless us. Fill this place with your presence through the Ministry of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Let’s continue singing together 00:43:28,130 and to 00:43:50,099 my myself. 00:44:04,469 Oh, I see. 00:44:58,730 that speed. 00:45:45,730 I see. 00:45:56,500 We, you may be seeing 00:46:07,929 what a beautiful reminder, the joy we have in Christ. Well, Children, it is our delight to invite you on up for our children’s message with Mrs Clay. So, come on up. Good morning, friends. Come on up. I like that shirt. Small but mighty. Yes, indeed. Very nice. Come on my friends. Good morning. I see you guys have your sweaters on that time of year. I went down in my basement and got my sweater out this morning. All right. So the last couple of weeks we have been learning about who is God. And one way we talk about who God is, is what is God like? That helps us kind of understand what he’s like, what he’s like who he is. Um Last time I shared with you guys, I brought a big lantern and we talked about how God is a light. He’s a lamp to us, especially through his word, the Bible. So today we’re gonna talk a little bit more about that. But first I wanna tell you a story and then we’ll see what’s in the bag. OK? So we’re gonna be talking about a story from the book of Daniel. Now Daniel was a young man and he lived in Israel and that was his home country where he was born. That’s the language he spoke and the food he ate. But this, this king, this warrior came in King Nebuchadnezzar and he took Daniel and some friends and took them back to his country. All right. And so Daniel was living in a different country with different language, different foods and you know, they even they worshiped other things. And Daniel had three friends and you may have heard this story before he had three friends, Shadrack Meshack and Abednego. And um they like Daniel. They, they worshiped God, they worshiped the true God. But King Nene, he, he felt he was pretty important, like a lot of people in power do. And he had this huge statue belt like taller than the steeple on our church. And it kind of represented him because he felt like he was pretty important. And he told everybody, you have to worship the statue, you have to bow down and worship the statue. Oh girls, girls. Can you listen? Can you listen, please? Yeah. All right. So he said you have to bow down and worship the statue. Um And so the people were like, oh, ok. And he was like, if you don’t bow down and worship the statue. See this big fiery pit. I’m gonna throw you in the fiery pit and you won’t come back out because that’s how hot that fiery pit is. But Shadrack Meshack and Bendigo said, we’re not gonna bow down and worship that statue no way because we worship God. So they did it. And so King Nebuchadnezzar found out and he said to them, I said, worship my statue and they said, you can throw us in that pit, but we’re not gonna worship that statue. We love God. And so he said, all right, that’s it. You’re going in and they said, ok, God can rescue us and maybe he will, maybe he won’t, we don’t know for sure, but we’re not gonna worship. So he threw them in that pit with all. Yeah, with all the fire. And you know what he said? All right, I’m gonna try and look in there. It was really hot. So he couldn’t get really close. And when he looked in, how many people went in, do you remember? Do you remember there was Shadrack Mehak and a Bed Nego. You’re absolutely right. The king expected to look in there and see three people and he saw four and he said, and that doesn’t even look like a person. They look really different, they look really special. You guys come on out and they came out, Shadrack Misha and Abednego, that fourth mysterious person didn’t come out and and he looked, they didn’t have any burns, they didn’t even smell like smoke and he goes, whoa, your God is the true God. Ok. Everyone needs to understand that your God is the true God. What do I have today? Well, something that Mr Clay made to help me out, it’s a shield. That’s right. Do you know what the Bible says about God? Many times in many ways? He is our, he’s our shield. That’s right because you know, there are some really hard things in life that happen, but God, he shields our hearts. So even though things might be difficult. Um And I think it’s hard to think of something more difficult than a fiery pit. He is our shield. Now, sometimes we may really get hurt and Shadrack nak and a Bendigo. They didn’t know if God was going to rescue them, but they knew that whether they lived or died. God would stay with them. He was with them in the fiery pit and he would be with them to be with Him in eternal life. Now, how can we know for sure that God is our shield because of Jesus because Jesus died and rose again through happy times, hard times in this life through death. God shields us so that we live with Him forever. Will you pray with me dear God? You thank you that you are our shield in hard times or happy times. You never leave me. 00:52:37,769 Thank you. For shielding me. Amen. All right, boys and girls, you can go back and sit with your parents or you can go to little people’s church. 00:53:03,900 The scripture lesson this morning is found in First Thessalonians 213 through 20 reading from the ESV. And we also thank God constantly for this that when you receive the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as what it really is the word of God, which is at work. And you believers for you brothers became imitators of the churches of God and Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and drove us out and displease God and oppose all mankind by hindering us from speaking to the gentiles that they might be saved. So as always to fill up the measure of their sins, but wrath has come upon them at last. But since we were torn away from you brothers for a short time in person, not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face because we wanted to come to you. I Paul again and again, but Satan hindered us for what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming. Is it not you for you? Are our glory and joy. Please stand for our song of worship 00:55:03,369 is not my one or so 00:55:14,099 of the best. Mhm When 00:55:27,570 mhm 00:55:59,630 Pass four, 00:56:47,570 it is five 00:58:40,170 It’s really, 00:58:54,829 hey man, you may see it. Let us pray together, 00:59:07,469 loving God. We come to you on this chilly fall morning seeking you desiring to know you deeper, to grow in holiness. We thank you for this church and the ways that you are working in and through each of us in this room, stir our hearts towards greater affection for you and a passion to serve those around us, help us to walk worthily. The call that you have put on each of our lives individually and as a church body, thank you for the many ways you are working in our church. Thank you for the many ministries and missionaries and people that are serving your gospel mission. This morning, we specifically pray for our youth ministry. Thank you for the many youth that come to our church and the gift that they are to our church family. We pray that you would continue to work in their lives to grow them in their faith, protect them from the spiritual attacks of this world and the powers of darkness, empower them with your holy spirit to live out their faith wherever you go. And we also pray for the parents of our youth who seek to care for and disciple their Children. Well, you have given them such a unique and special role in fostering and discipling a new generation of Christ followers. Lord, we ask that you would give them strength and wisdom to know how to best support their Children and their faith in this hyper busy culture or guide them with your holy spirit. We thank you for our many adult youth leaders who give up their time to serve our youth. Each week, we ask that you would sustain them and strengthen them as they seek to model and teach the gospel. Lord, we pray for our church family. This world is broken and brings many burdens as we live here. Each day. We ask that you would give strength to the weary hope to the downcast, peace, to the anxious, help us as a church to support one another. Well, reflecting the generous love of Christ that we have each received. We pray specifically for Anne Christina, Anna Carlene Kim’s father, Robert, pray for Doug Jane, his niece Mary Christine and Freddie Alice Darcy Shirley, Josiah’s brother in law and the villa’s grandson, Teddy. We thank you for heather surgery going well and Zoe’s continued recovery, we pray you would continue to help both of them heal well. And Lord, for the prayer requests that are unspoken this morning, we know you hear them, we know that you are near and we pray that you would bring peace and healing restoration to each of these situations by the power of your holy spirit and the victory that we have in Christ. Lord, we ask your blessing upon Pastor Jeff as he shares your word this morning, we pray that you would empower him with your spirit to speak the words that you have put before him. Lord, we pray that you would speak to our hearts, open our hearts and minds to hear the good news of the gospel. Though it being familiar to some Lord, we pray that it would just strike us an new and that you would grow us into a deeper love and motivation to know you more. Lord, we pray for our offering. Lord, we pray that it would be a reflection of the generous love that you extend towards us. We pray that we would give of our time and our resources willingly for the ongoing work of your kingdom that many would come to know you as we look forward to the day that every people from every tribe Tonga nation will gather before your throne singing worthy is the lamb. We pray us all in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. Ushers invite you now to receive the offering 01:04:59,000 come just where that 01:05:12,469 will not. He cannot say but sure I want to making 01:05:24,130 or five him foreseen 1000 its virtues. How 01:05:36,500 you’ll take the inter I from 01:05:47,800 is 01:06:26,369 I love treaties 01:06:39,130 is that 01:06:51,730 and for 01:07:41,030 mhm and breeds and 01:08:00,230 oh mm 01:08:14,469 You may be seated. I greet you in the name of the Lord Jesus, my name is Jeffrey Arthurs and I’m serving as interim pastor at this very fine church. I came to the Lord when I was 14 years old and I was uh immersed and amalgamated into a cul church culture, a very evangelistic. It was just part of what we did. We shared the gospel, our neighbors, our friends are with strangers. There was training in the church on how to share the gospel as part of the, the uh the culture of that church. Well, when I was 15 years old, maybe 16, I don’t remember I was handing out uh gospel tracks, like little pamphlets that explain the gospel. And I went into a laundromat and I was just handing these out and I gave one to a fellow big guy. He had big bushy hair and uh, and he took it and he looked at it and he came real close to me. I kind of held my ground but he came in and he went and he, he, he crumpled it up in front of my face and he said, get out of here and in the strength of the Lord, I got out of there. I, I was really shaken. Uh His whole countenance was transfigured. I went to uh my friends kind of my mentors and I said, is, does this happen, is, uh is this what I can expect in gospel ministry? And they said, um, you know, sometimes, and I think the thessalonians were asking something like that. Is this what we can expect in gospel ministry? It was a young church. You can read about the circumstances of uh the founding of that church. In acts chapter 17, Paul and his team were there apparently for a very brief time and people were saved and they were, you know, getting founded uh in the faith and probably they appointed elders and deacons. But very soon, we don’t know exactly. But very soon uh because of opposition and persecution, Paul had to leave Paul and his team. And so he left these this fledgling church and he was very worried about them lest. He says the temp could have shaken you from your faith because they were being persecuted just as Paul and his team were it, it continued with those he left behind. And so he writes to them first Thessalonians and one of the big things he talks about is opposition persecution trials uh less today uh fall away from the Lord. And so today he’s talking and we’re thinking about what can we expect in gospel ministry. Paul says we can expect two things. The first one is opposition when the word moves, it produces friction. Satan opposes and hates God and his word and the good news of the gospel and God’s people, opposition accompanies Gospel Ministry. You can see that in verses 14 and following for you brothers became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea for you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and drove us out and displease God and oppose all mankind. Paul is speaking with the tone of an old testament prophet. He’s laying on one phrase after another. And how did they oppose all mankind? Verse uh 16 by doing this by hindering us from speaking to the gentiles that they might be saved. Opposition accompanies Gospel ministry. Same thing in verse uh 18, we wanted to come to you. I Paul again and again, but Satan hindered us. Do you see that word hinder used twice? Uh the countrymen, the, the peers of the uh thessalonians hindered the gospel word. And here in 18, Satan hindered us, Satan means enemy or adversary and the word hindered is an interesting word in the, in the ancient day in Paul’s Day. It was a bit of a technical term. It was a military term. And here’s the idea uh as an advancing army was coming this way and a retreating army is retreating, going that way. They would um chop up the road behind them. So to slow down, to hinder the advancing army, the word the Greek word means to cut into or to chop up. And Paul says, Satan hindered the flow of the, of the Gospel. How did he do that? Well, we don’t know he doesn’t give any details, maybe sickness, maybe Paul and his team didn’t have any money. Uh, maybe there were governmental regulations but behind uh this human activity of his countrymen, he saw uh Satan at work uh hindering the progress of the gospel today. The road system of modern warfare is uh are the runways, airport runways and today they have uh tools and weapons to chop up and to crater and to destroy runways. One of these is a bomb called the Duran doll. It’s manufactured by the French and it’s released from an airplane and it has a little uh a parachute so it gets it going down at a certain angle. And then right before it hits the runway, there’s actually a rocket engine straight into the runway, it explodes and makes a big crater and then there’s a second charge almost immediately after the first. While the the bomb is in the runway, a second charge goes off and it just ripples and chops up the runway. Satan chopped up the road for the free flow of the gospel. He hindered and our Lord Jesus said this, this is part of gospel ministry. He said this happens uh remember the uh the parable that he told about the sower who was uh sowing seed and he’s broadcasting and some seed falls on this ground and some falls over on this ground, some and some falls and uh actually takes root in springs up, but then it’s choked you remember this by thorns and weeds. And then Jesus explains uh what he means in this parable. He says, when tribulation or persecution comes, that’s like the thorns. When tribulation comes on account of the word immediately those new believers uh fall away. So Satan tries to use persecution and tribulation and hard times and social pressure and whatever governmental regulations, whatever to hinder, to cause individuals to fall away, to cause uh the general flow of the gospel to uh to be hindered. The opposition came from countrymen, fellow fellow citizens, people there in the Northern Greece, Thessalonica suffering from our peers, peer pressure. If you want to see this, what this looked like uh uh outside of the Bible. Uh Do a quick Google search. Look in Wikipedia, look up uh Alex Aino, Alex, like the name Alex and then the letter A all one word Alex uh Alex A Menos. Here, here’s the, here’s what uh you can see if you look it up. Uh This was uh a, a simple scratchy line drawing that was uh uh unknown for about 2000 years on the Palan Hill in Rome. And then in the 18 hundreds, they discovered that they were doing some archaeology and they discovered it. And here’s the line drawing, it’s very, very crude, very cartoonish, but it has a man who’s kind of like in this position, kind of like honoring and acclaiming, worshiping. And what is he facing across? And on the cross is a man crucified and the man has the head of a donkey 01:19:09,500 and there’s an inscription just scratched, can hardly make out what it says. But here’s what it says. Alex Aino worships his God. That’s a good one because in the ancient world , the idea of a, a God being crucified was ridiculous. It was repugnant. Give me a break. Alexander, come on, social pressure. Call it persecution. If you will. One issue today that jesus’ followers may face deals with his own claim. Jesus own claim to be the only way to the father that doesn’t go over too big today. It just, just feels so, you know, intolerant Jesus said, I’m the way the truth and the life. No one, no one comes to the father except through me. And if we believe that and hold that and, and uh and love that, that, that truth. Uh hm You may face some, can I illustrate that this is I, I wanna read to you a transcript from a uh television talk show. This was 2002. So it’s a, you know, more than 20 years ago from the Phil Donahue show for you young people. Phil Donahue was kind of a pioneer of daytime talk uh programs. Uh He won all kinds of Emmys real important cultural figure. He died just a couple of months ago, I think. But this is from uh 2002. The Phil Donahue show Donohue’s guests were rabbi SMU boutique or bout teach. And Doctor Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville. He’s still the, the president there today. Donahue says, uh to Moer, do you believe Jews can go to heaven Muller Southern Baptists along with other Christians believe that all persons can go to heaven who come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And there’s no discrimination on the basis of ethnic or racial or, or national issues. Donahue, you cannot possibly look a person in the eye and say, if you don’t come to Jesus, you’re not going to heaven. This reeks of prejudice. Rabbi Boti Reverend Moller, however intelligent of a scholar he may be is a spiritual Neanderthal with repulsive revolting views moller. Well, all I know is that the only way to heaven is through Jesus Christ and that all who come there come by his grace and mercy alone. There’s nothing in us to merit salvation. So humility has to be the Christian posture. Donahue. There is nothing humble about telling me I’m not going to heaven. If I don’t believe in Jesus, that’s not humility, that’s arrogance, Mueller. Well, it would be if this were our message, but if that is what the Son of God said himself, if that is the truth, then it would be hateful and it would be intolerant not to tell you what we believe, to be the truth. I can’t compel anyone to believe in Christ. But I do have the responsibility with gladness and joy to share the good news of the gospel. Donahue. You can tell me about it, but you can’t stand there and righteously tell me that, you know what’s good for me and you sure can’t tell me that there’s only one way to get to heaven. Nobody is that smart nobody rabbi bout teach. You should be ashamed of yourself and it’s time you finally change. So what can we expect in gospel ministry as our Western culture continues to move into a post Christian uh society and world view, we can expect similar um experiences that Paul and the Thessalonians had uh to our gospel ministry. And this is consistently taught throughout the New Testament. I had a whole list of scriptures to say Jesus taught this and the apostle Paul and the others taught this. I this is very consistent that opposition accompanies gospel ministry. Can I give you just one verse? Um Our Lord said no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or Children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive 100 times as much in this present age, a long list persecutions and in the age to come eternal life . Well, we can hardly use the word persecution to describe our own kind of social pressures, tense conversations and rolling of the eyes, maybe financial consequences. But the principle still stands Thessalonians. And throughout the scripture. That opposition is part of gospel ministry. And that’s the first thing we can expect and we can expect something else encouragement because some will receive and believe and accept and be transformed. And there is joy in gospel ministry. Verse 13, we also thank God constantly for this. That when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as what it really is the word of God, which is at work in you believers. And if we jump ahead to chapter three, we’ll get there in a couple of weeks in our series. The chapter three verses eight and nine, the apostle Paul says, now we really live. If you are standing fast in the Lord, for what thanksgiving can re we return to God for you, for all the joy we feel for you. So there’s also acceptance and transformation and joy in gospel ministry. The Apostle Paul said in second Corinthians chapter five to some people, the gospel is a fragrance of death but to other people, it is a sweet aroma like incense. Some people hear the gospel and they, they hear good news and they realize that God is for them, not against them, that smells good. And some people hear the good news and they realize that their sins and their mistakes and all their moral failures are forgiven, cast into the depths of the sea. Oh, that smells good. And some people receive the good news of the gospel and they, and God works in their hearts, the hope of eternal life and they no longer fear death. It’s like incense. 01:28:36,729 So that’s part of gospel ministry, acceptance and transformation joy. Last week in the uh Sunday school class in this room right over here video series called Dispatches from the front. Uh They showed believers in another culture. I don’t even remember where it was and they were singing in their own language. I have decided to follow Jesus. No, turning back though none. Go with me. Still. I will follow and they added a verse. We don’t have it. It doesn’t scan very well in English. I guess it works in their language. But they added a verse though there be chains and prison still I will follow because this is what the gospel does. It transforms us. It conforms us into the image of Christ who he himself was persecuted and we stay with it and the seed is not choked by the thorns. So opposition. Yes. But also God gives some people ears to hear the good news. He opens the heart to receive Christ and to all who receive him, who believe in his name. He gives the power to become Children of God. I wish you could have been with me on Tuesday morning. I was at Gordon Conwell Seminary early in the morning and I was meeting with a small group of men. Uh there were four of them, plus me, five of us. And it’s still early in the year and we’re just getting to know each other. We’re just telling our stories and I heard a story on Tuesday morning. I wish you could have been there. This fellow uh is from a southern state. He grew up in the bible belt. He attended church and when he was 12 years old, he uh walked the aisle in a, a public invitation. He says, I didn’t know what I was doing, but this is what everyone did. And he walked the aisle and he went forward in a church and uh people were there surrounding him, congratulating him. Congratulations. And he’s like, like, what did I do? I don’t even know. And they said, well, now you, now that you’ve come forward, you need to be baptized. And so they baptized him and he didn’t even know what he was doing. The shallow uh the, the soil was shallow, the roots, the roots were there. But uh you know, not very deep. He comes from a very dysfunctional family, uh his extended family. Uh there’s a, a history and a, a culture of alcoholism. His parents, both parents, his stepparents, both stepparents, his uncles, his, ah, he said, I never took a drink all the way through high school. And then uh immediately after high school, I took my first drink and he said that first drink of Southern comfort gave me more comfort than I had ever received through this shallow experience of Jesus. And for 13 years, he said I was on one bender after another. He said I lived for the next intoxication. I worked in a factory. I just wanted to get enough money so I could, uh, get drunk again. He smoked pot three times a day. He said breakfast, lunch and dinner and at tea time and then God broke through again. It was strange circumstance. He was actually, it was a beautiful fall evening and uh it was night time in the crystal uh shining moon. He actually was looking at the moon. He didn’t have like a vision or something, but he started thinking somebody made that I didn’t make that where that come from. And that put him on a path of seeking God and seeing God. He got into rehab. He had excellent counselors. He, he gave up the substances. He came to know Jesus in a deeper a AAA more real way. You should have heard him describe soul satisfaction. He’s in his forties now and he doesn’t even know what he wants to do when he grows up. He’s at seminary because he might become a counselor because the counselors were so helpful and influential. He might do that. But he really believes in the power of the words and maybe he’s gonna be a preacher or a pastor. But he does know this. He wants to follow Jesus with heart and soul and mind and strength. No, turning back. 01:34:17,670 What can we expect individually and corporately in gospel ministry, opposition. It’s par for the course. But encouragement, acceptance, transformation, joy. So share the gospel, share the gospel with your kids and share the gospel with your cousin and share the gospel with the person that’s in the same club as you and share the gospel with your teammate and share the gospel with the kids at V BS and share the gospel. Oh, here and there and everywhere. Our job is just to be faithful. Just to witness, we witness by our lives. And with our words for our conclusion, I’m going to pray and kind of bless this congregation asking God to help us in gospel ministry. Musicians feel free to come forward as we conclude. May our God and Father clear the way for gospel ministry. May the Lord remove hindrances which Satan, the road cutter has manufactured? May God enable the word to flow from this church. May the Lord help us share not only the gospel but also our lives. May God, our heavenly father make us like his son who came to seek and save the lost amen. And a man let us sing Jesus. What a friend for sinners hymn hymn number 99. Thank you. 01:39:32,399 What 01:41:53,829 um if you would like someone to pray with you and pray for you, come on up this ramp and there’s a room back here, people will be ready to receive you. And now may God, our heavenly Father clear the way for gospel ministry through Christ. Our Lord. Amen. 01:42:24,569 Yes, I so 01:42:39,130 yeah, that 01:42:58,100 c Yeah, you sick, right? But take your time, 01:43:09,000 right? Sounds nice. 01:43:21,670 Who? Uh Yeah. OK. Three. 01:43:56,270 Yeah. Not OK. I love you. 01:44:09,800 Yeah. Box. 01:44:19,869 Right.