Romans 12:3-8

We're going to be in Romans chapter 12. I've got myself here and speaking online and then over in the acoustic service, high acoustic service, over in the venue there. And we've got Pastor Joe at North and Pastor Jim, our guest services pastor, is preaching. At Benson today, and we're all in Romans chapter 12, verse 3 to 8. I'm going to give you a little bit of context.

I encourage you to have your Bibles with you and either have an old school. How many of you have the old paperback? How many bring a printed Bible? All right, how many people have it on their phone? How many of it on your phone or your tab?

How many people are on Facebook right now? You just bought something on. How many are on Amazon? You just remembered and you bought something. Anybody in here?

I know you're doing it. All right.

So our church app, Cross Assembly's church app, our app, pardon me, not our church app, actually has the Bible on it.

So if you don't have it, you can download that. You can also, I recommend the U-Version app. But I encourage you to have a Bible and be in the Bible as much as you can be. You know, the Bible is 66 books. And there are 39 in the Old Testament under the Old Covenant of Abraham, and in the 27 in the New Testament.

And there are about 40 authors. And in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul wrote about 13, some say 14, because they attribute Hebrews to him, but about 13 books. And uh, and he wrote the letter, it was really a letter to the church in Rome, uh, sometime around AD 57 is when we date it. And they've got a map they're going to put up here behind us. And Paul was in Corinth.

Which was this crazy party town. It was like the Las Vegas of the Roman world. And he had planted a church there. And Paul was this interesting character because he was a Pharisee, which meant he was a religious zealot. He really, he probably had memorized, if not the entire thing, large portions of what we call the Old Testament.

And he had heard in the early 30s and 80s, 2030s about these Christians, these people who were now following Jesus instead of really sticking to their Jewish heritage. And he had persecuted them and had even been there when Stephen, the first martyr in the church, had been killed. He was watching over the garments of those who were stoning him. And so this is a guy that really felt that these people are blaspheming and he was chasing down Christians. And he was on his way to Damascus to persecute more Christians from Jerusalem.

And Christ appeared to him. He became a follower of Christ. And then around the late 8050s, he began to travel around the Roman world, mostly in what is now modern-day Turkey and modern-day Greece. And he began to plant churches. And he would typically go to synagogues and teach.

But he also began to reach Gentile people, people who are not Jewish. And he'd heard about a group of formerly Jewish believers in Rome, and he had not met them. He wanted to meet them. And so the reason why Romance is so theological, it's so doctrinal in nature. Is because he didn't know what they truly were believing.

He didn't know what their faith was founded on completely. And so he wanted to make sure they had a sure foundation. And so he wrote Romans this way. In fact, there's a picture here of ancient Corinth. And this is probably where Paul was at, somewhere in this vicinity when he wrote this letter and sent it.

over to Rome and then There's a chart they're going to put up behind me, and it's got a breakdown of Romans and what it covers. And you can see that Paul is very methodical in what he's writing about. And I won't go through all these categories, but if you look at the very top category, he wrote about sin, about what sin was in the first part. In the second part, he wrote about salvation, what it means to be right with God by faith in Christ, not by works. Then he wrote about sanctification, a fancy word that means becoming more like Christ, in the third part.

In the fourth part, he wrote about God's sovereignty in saving the Jews and the Gentiles. And then, in the last part that we're starting right now, he wrote about service, about God taking our gifts and our abilities and our time and our talents and using them for the Lord. And that's where we are today. And so we're going to be reading Romans 12 here. And what he begins to talk about is the fact that not only have we been saved for eternity, but that God has also saved us to use us in this life.

And so he begins. To talk about how we have spoken. Spiritual gifts, right? Gifts that God has ordained and given to us, that God has called us to use for His glory. And he tells the people, don't get too proud.

Don't let it go to your head that these gifts you have, but use them for the benefit of the church, of others, that the gospel may be proclaimed. And so we're going to read this. Would you please stand one more time with me? Romans chapter 12, verse 3. I'm going to reading from the English Standard Version.

If you don't have a Bible with you, they'll put the words right up on the screen. And even if you're at home online, would you stand if you can as well? For by the grace given to me, And Paul was given a lot of grace. Remember, he was formally murdering Christians. I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.

But to think with sober judgment. Each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body, Paul uses a lot of times the human body as an analogy for the church. We have many members and the members do not all have the same function.

So we, the church, though many, are one body in Christ. and individually members of one another. having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us. Let us use them. If prophecy, proclaiming God's word in proportion to our faith, if service in our serving, the one who teaches in his teaching, the one who exhorts, encourages in his exhortation, the one who contributes in generosity, the one who leads with zeal, the one who does acts of mercy with cheerfulness.

Thank you. You may be seated. May God bless you in the reading of his word. If I was to summarize this passage, I would say it this way: if you're a note-taker, and I encourage you to be a note taker because studies have actually shown you remember things better when you write them down, even if you don't keep the notes, is that every follower of Christ. has gifts to give To bless the body of Christ.

So turn to your neighbor and say, You are gifted. And then say Don't let it go to your head. Every Christian has gifts that God has called them to use for others. Every believer. has a part to play in the body of Christ, but What is a spiritual gift?

What is it? you know is Is being double-jointed a spiritual gift? You know, some people can make a U shape with their tongue, and some can't genetically. Is that a spiritual gift? Yeah.

What is a spiritual gift? What does it mean to have a spiritual gift? A spiritual gift is. is a God-given ability used To edify the body. Of Christ.

The Greek word charisma. It meant something graciously given.

Somebody freely give an account of favor and kindness. In fact, Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, He wrote in 1 Corinthians 12 verse 4, On the same idea of gifts. And he said, now there are varieties of gift, charisma there, but the same spirit, that pneuma word. And there are varieties of service, but the same Lord. And there are varieties of activities, but it's the same God who empowers them all in everyone.

To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits. To another, various kinds of tongues, to another, the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered. By one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

For just as the body is one, And it has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. Christ, every follower of Christ, pardon me, has gifts to give to bless the body of Christ. And a spiritual gift is a God-given ability used to edify the body of Christ, right? I remember years ago, there was a woman, I don't know, anybody here remember Aggie Vaughan? Aggie Vaughn was somebody in our church a long time ago.

A few of you may remember Aggie. Her and her husband, Jim, they retired and moved away to be in their family. I saw them not long ago. And Aggie served for at least 20 years in the nursery. In the nursery, she chose to hang around with little snotty kids every Sunday, right?

My worst nightmare, right? If I serve in the nursery, I don't like it, the kids don't like it, the parents don't like it, you know what I'm saying? And all the kids want to say is make the bad man go away, you know, kind of a thing. But Aggie loved Kids and kids loved her. And in fact, all three of my kids used to make Aggie mad, but I thought it was hysterical.

All three of my kids, when we pull into the parking lot on Sunday, would say, Aggie's house. Aggie's house, and I used to make her mad. She's like, it's Jesus' house, but but she had this gift of being able to serve and connect with children, it was her ministry, right. And everybody has different gifts and different abilities.

So, what are your gifts? We'll talk about that in a moment, but remember, all of us are gifted, and we all have gifts to give to bless the body of Christ. But there are some rules to give by. If God has not only saved us for eternity, But redeemed us for this life as well. How are we to give our gifts?

And there are some rules, and if you're a note-taker, rule number one: remember, no matter how gifted we are, we are all just crucified servants of Christ. Pastor Ad sold the story, something I shared with him a long time ago. Early when I was much younger, I traveled for about seven years as an evangelist. I was a guest speaker in churches and camps, and I would travel, I began to even travel overseas a little bit. And during that season, I had been working hard at it.

In fact, I had a second job because it's very difficult to really provide for your family in doing that.

So I had to work and minister. Of course, most people in ministry are bivocational.

So I was bivocational for a season. And I had this leading from the Lord, a very, very strong leading, that I was supposed to go to a certain country in Asia for about six weeks and work with a friend of mine. You had like an open-air Evangelist Crusade ministry. And I didn't want to go. You ever have something you felt the Lord leading you to do, you didn't want to do?

You ever have that? It just me And I fought the Lord, you know, which is like a headbutt and a steel beam. You know, I just. I I really wrestled. I I did not want to go.

And I thought that God cared about my opinion. I really did. I thought he cared about my opinion. And I remember. thinking, well, thanks Lord, but no thanks.

And I didn't want to go, and much to my consternation. The Lord provided for us to go. All the money we needed, all the time, even my part-time job. They said, sure, go ahead and take six weeks off. And I didn't want to go.

In approaching that season, I was in Florida preaching, and I was close to where I went to college, which is a school called Southeastern in Lakeland, Florida. And it's where my wife and I met. And there was a new president there at the time, he's not there now. And I heard great things about him, and I just wanted to meet him. And so I called his office and said, Hey, I'll be in town.

Could I meet with Dr. Rutland? And they said, Sure. And so I went in to meet with him. Sat down and he said, What do you want to talk about?

I said, Well, I've just heard great things about you. Can you just tell me your story?

So he told me he had a really cool story of how God saved him, redeemed him, and used him. And so it was really cool. And then he turned to me and he said, Well, what's your story?

So I told him my short, boring story. And then he said something to me that really intimidated me. He said, Chris, what are your dreams? And And I guess that's not a really big deal to ask that question, but I really wanted to impress them. You really feel like I really wanted to impress them.

So I thought of two evangelist friends of mine that had great ministries, and I thought, ah, this will impress them. And so I said, I'd like to be like so-and-so and so-and-so. And he looked at me and he said, Huh, I don't know who they are. And then he said. He said, Chris, your dreams aren't big enough.

And I thought, I should have said Billy Graham. I should have said, I just want Billy Graham to eat my ministry dust. That's what I want to do. And he said something, and the whole time I've been sharing, I specifically did not share with him about this leading to go to this country in Asia. specifically did not on purpose.

And he looked at me, and it was like the Lord put his finger in my chest, and he said, Chris. Why don't you dream of being a crucified servant of Christ? And I knew right in that moment I was going on that trip. I knew it. And I didn't tell him about it.

I left his office. I went to the chapel on the campus that was open that day. Got my nose in the carpet, and I just said, Okay, Lord. If this is where you want me to go, and I don't know why you want me to go, and it's not a ministry that I want to be a part of. I'll go.

You know, in the end, just as a side note, it was one of the greatest adventures and blessings of my life. And I found out God knew better than I did. Right. And I share that with you to say this. No matter how gifted you are, You're just a crucified servant of Christ.

Yes, your children. Yes, you're loved. But your servants are even Doula slaves in Christ. In the New Living Translation of Romans 12:3, says this, Don't think you are better than you really are. I love the way the J.B.

Phillips translation says it. It says, Don't cherish. Exaggerated ideas of yourself are your importance. You see, I think fundamentally Being a follower of Christ means that I don't know what's best for my life. Right?

I thought I knew what was best, and I didn't. Right? So That idea of thinking more highly than we ought, hyperphoneo in the Greek, it meant to be arrogant, right? Nobody likes arrogance. In fact, Paul wrote to the church in Philippi, and he said this in Philippians 2, verse 3.

He said this about the way we should think about ourselves. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit. But in humility Count others. More significant than yourselves. Oh, didn't that warm your heart?

Turn to your neighbor and say, other people are better than you. Doesn't that Just do your self-esteem good. Don't you feel Better already. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, so now.

Paul is not comparing us to other people. He's saying, look at Jesus, who had a right. but denied himself. Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count a quality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself. By taking the form of a servant, Greek doula, slave, Being born in the likeness of men and being found in human form, he humbled himself.

By becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross, right? God's will for you isn't always easy. And pride is the exaggeration. Of one's own importance, or can I be guilty of that? Humility is having an attitude.

Accurate estimate of one's worth. Yeah. Christ. John Calvin said, it is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he has previously contemplated the face of God. and come down after such contemplation.

To look Into himself. Humility is honestly assessing ourselves in light Of God's holiness. And our sinfulness. You see, our value Is based on something real. It's based on who we are in.

Christ. It's not based. on what we do. It's not based on what we own. It's not based on how talented we are.

It's not based on how much money we have. It's not based on how much influence we have, or how much popularity we have, or how big our properties are, or what kind of car we drive. It's not based on any of that. When we become followers of Christ, our value. is in Christ.

And how he values us.

So, we don't need to have pride in ourselves or in our talents and gifts because we've been forgiven of so much. And so, our value is simply in Christ and how He, by God's love, values us.

So, we shouldn't let our gifts and abilities go to our head because they were a gift to us. Anyway. Right? Humility is the acceptance of who we are in Christ. Christ.

It's having a biblically Accurate estimate. of one's own worth. Bayan said that humility is a voluntary inclination of the mind grounded upon a perfect knowledge of our own condition. A virtue by which a man, in the most true consideration of his inward qualities, makes. The least account of himself Humility is a solid foundation.

Of all the virtues. And humility is something God desires. Remember, no matter how gifted we are, we are all just crucified servants of Christ. And every follow of Christ is gifted, and those gifts are called to be given to bless the body of Christ. Psalm 51:17 says, The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart of God, you will not despise.

Micah 6:8, he is. Pardon me, told you, O man, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God. To walk what? Humbly. Right?

In fact, 2 Corinthians 10.18 says, for there's not the one who commends himself. See, our culture tells you to do that. A culture tells you promote yourself. Scripture says deny yourself. For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.

It is God's opinion that really matters. You see, to himself, every man is, in a sense, the most important. person in the world. But our true self-worth is fundamentally regulated by humility, for no one has anything that he has not received. Humility is, in fact, who God is.

Jesus, I love this passage, Matthew 11:28 through 30. Jesus describes himself and he says, 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.

So reference to humility. Not only is humility who God is, humility is a choice. Jesus said in Matthew 18:4, whoever humbles himself like this child, he brought a child among the disciples to make this point, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus said in Luke 14:11, for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

So there is a choice in our humility. Humility fundamentally is others' Focused, right? Humility means putting Christ first. Others second. And self-last.

In fact, the word joy, J-O-Y, if you made an acronym out of it, joy would be J for Jesus. Oh, for others. And why finally Yourself. No matter how gifted or talented we are, we're just crucified servants of Christ. That's rule number one.

Rule number two to give by is: you are, I am, responsible for the gifts God has given you. Right? Matthew 16, 27. For the Son of Man is coming with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.

Now, is that a reference to our earning our salvation? No. Being right with God was done through Christ on the cross. But God is fair and just. And according to scripture, He judges our life.

and looks at us And repays us according to our faithfulness in eternity. How he'll pay us? I don't know. In fact, Jesus said in Revelation 22, 12, Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me to repay each one for what he has done. Yeah.

Life's a gift, and God has called us to be accountable to what we do. In fact, in Matthew chapter 25, verses 14 to 30, Jesus. Gives a parable about the kingdom of God and how it operates. And he says, It's like a master. Who had slaves, servants, but it would have been slaves.

And he went away. And he gave Three servants talents to manage. And a talent was about a one year's wage. It's about 70 to 75 pounds of silver. And it says he gave one five talents, five years' wages.

He gave one two talents two years' wages, and he gave one one talent one year's wages. And he left.

So they came back about a year later. And the one that had five had multiplied it and earned five more and invested it. The one had two had done the same thing, and there were two more. He had four of them now. But the one that had one had taken it and buried it in the ground and kept it safe.

And gave it back to the master, and the master rebuked him. and told them he'd be cast out from heaven because He had not taken what God had given him and used it. for God's glory. You and I are responsible for the gifts God has given you. We are not responsible for someone else's gift or the fact we don't have certain giftings.

I had a friend of mine several years ago want to teach me how to play golf. And so I like golf, I like being outdoors. I discovered I'm really bad at it. Like, I'm super enthusiastic, but I'm good at driving the cart. I'm pretty good at that.

And he taught me and when I played and after playing with him for a while, he literally told me one day, he said, I'm not gonna play with you anymore. I said, is it 'cause I've gotten you know good? He said, No, no. He goes, Your game is making me worse. Silly analogy, I know, but.

My point is. We don't choose the gifts we've been given. Right? That's really up to God. You just need to be who you are in Christ.

You don't need to be somebody else. And you don't need to be jealous of somebody else either. You don't need to compare yourself to somebody else. God's not going to hold you accountable for somebody else's gifts. You're just responsible for your own.

In fact, 1 Corinthians 12:14, Paul goes on to say, For the body does not consist of one member, but of many. But in this idea of comparison, he says: if the foot should say, because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body. That would not make it any less a part of the body. If the ear should say, Because I'm not an eye, I do not belong to the body, that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the whole body were an eye, Where would the sense of smell be, or hearing be, pardon me?

If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But just as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as He chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it were, there are many parts, yet one body. Don't stress.

About what other people have and their gifts and abilities, that's none of your business, none of my business. Only worry about this, not worry, focus on this. What God has given you. That's what He's going to hold you responsible for, right?

So. Everyone has gifts to give in the body of Christ to bless the body. No matter how gifted we are. We're all just crucified servants of Christ. Don't let it go to your head.

And you are responsible for the gifts God has given you, not someone else's gifts. Finally, gifts were meant to be given away. I'd like you to welcome to the stage Dylan O'Shell, our intern from Duke University. Would you please welcome him? We're trying to get Dylan saved.

We're trying to get him saved. There are safe people at Duke. You didn't know that, right? He's even Pentecostal. He's a Pentecostal person at Duke University.

Look at that. God even loves people who love do. Can you believe that? You know, This Gif this tool is in a box. Rule number three on gift giving is that rules are meant to be given away.

Some of us are like this. We've been given gifts and talents and abilities, and we've just left them In the box. Like the servant who had one talent. And no, somebody asked, I'm not giving this away. The Oprah Winfrey of DeWalt Tools.

Everybody gets a drill. You get a drill. You get a drill. That'd be fun to do though, wouldn't it? This is not how God meant for us to live.

You see, some of us Some of us struggle with joy and peace and purpose, and sometimes the reason is. is that we're keeping our gifts to ourselves. And you're never Going to find purpose and meaning, spending life on yourself. The self will never be satisfied. Never.

The way God wants us to live and use is like this drill of mine that I've had forever. And I've injured myself several times with this. It's worn out. The batteries are starting to fail. Uh It's got scratches and dents all over it.

But this is how God wants us. to operate. He hasn't called us. to spend life on ourself. And keep it in the box.

He wants us to use it for. Four. His glory. Gifts were meant to be given away first peter 4 10 As each has received a gift, use it. to serve one another.

as good stewards of God's varied Grace.

So Every fall of Christ Has gifts to give to bless the body of Christ. And there are rules to give by. Rule number one, remember. No matter how gifted we are, we are all just crucified servants of Christ. Number two.

You and I are responsible for the gifts God has given us. He calls us to account. And rule number three. Gifts were meant to be given. away.

One question I'd like to ask is Have you received The greatest gift ever given. I would say that gift is salvation as God's Son. And I believe That when someone is born, that gift is there ready for them to open. From the day they're born to the day they die. You see, religion tells you.

that you must do certain things To be right with whatever God that religion says you're serving. And if you do enough of those good things. They'll outweigh your bad things. And you'll be right with that guy. Religion says do.

Christ comes along. Christianity is not a religion. to relationship with God in Christianity is spelled D-O-N-E done. It's about what Christ has done for us.

So we don't use our gifts So God will love us more. He already loves us as much as he can. He gave his son for us. We use them Because we're obedient to him. And because we want to fulfill his call upon our lives.

and be a part of his work. And by the way, It's pretty satisfying. Because usually God gifts us in things we like to do. But maybe you've never received the gift of salvation. Is being a follower of Jesus easy?

No. No. There's death to self. You gotta deny yourself. Doesn't mean you're miserable.

No. But being a father of Jesus means that you Accept him as your forgiver. The word we use in church is savior, the forgiver of your sin, because through Scripture teaches that all of us have fallen short of God's standard. We are sinners, and the punishment for sin is death. Christ paid that punishment for us.

But to receive that gift, we have to accept Christ as Savior, but also submit to Him. as Lord, as the leader, as the master of our life. And so he's in charge. The good news is, he knows what's best. for our lives.

So to receive that gift, is there something you have to do? No. No. In fact, the Bible says that Abraham is a father of all those who are righteous by faith. by trusting in God.

That's why we call it New Testament, New Covenant, New Contract in Christ's blood. And you just simply Pray a prayer. If you just talk to God and you just say, God, I know I'm a sinner. I know I've messed up. And I need your forgiveness, and I ask you to to come into my life.

I invite you in. And I ask you to forgive me of my sin. I repent of that sin, I turn from it, ask you to forgive me of it. And to be my Lord, be the leader of my life, take over. I submit my life to you.

And And I believe that when I die, You'll take me to heaven with you. It's a simple, simple prayer. And that's the beginning step. Maybe here in this room. maybe over in the acoustic service, maybe online.

Maybe you've never received that gift. I want everybody to just bow their heads for a moment, close their eyes. And I'm not actually gonna lead you in a prayer. I'm just gonna do this. If you've never received the gift of salvation, I want you right where you are.

to talk to the Lord. With your own words. And just right now, you do it right now. Just ask him to forgive you. Ask him to come into your life.

Sounds good. Just submit your life to him. Ask him to be your Lord and Savior. Ask him. to fill you with his Holy Spirit.

You can be empowered to be the believer has called you to believe. Ask him. for eternal life. Ask him to take you to heaven with him when you die. Just ask.

You you might feel something.

Sometimes you might not feel anything. It's okay, you don't have to feel something. It's faith, it's trust. If you just receive that right now. Christ will come into your life.

and it'll transform you from the inside out. Give you a new life. You can look up now. If that's you. You've never received that gift.

We want to help you in your decision to follow Jesus. Because I think the enemy, there's a devil, is going to discourage you in every way possible. And we want to strengthen you and teach you how to read the Bible and pray and walk with the Lord and know the Lord.

So there's a booklet called I Said Yes or You Said Yes. And if you're online right now looking at you, You can click I said yes. And if you'd like to be followed up with, We will send you a booklet and someone will contact you if you want that. If you're here in the room, there's a QR code behind me and then it also says text cross to 919-551-3036. We want you to make that decision and look Not as a scare tactic, just reality.

D don't wait. Don't wait. You don't know. If God's going to give you tomorrow, make a decision today. Receive that gift.

For those of us who are followers of Christ, The question is this. Are your gifts still in the box? Are they still in the box? Pastor Chad has said several times that the church is like a professional football game. 22 men who desperately need rest.

being watched by 50,000 people who desperately need exercise. This message is not about getting you to serve at the church. But because this passage is on that, we're going through Romans, I am going to say this. If you don't know where to serve, Pastor Vickus created a whole thing called the next step process. And we'd love to have you serve.

And because of our growth here, particularly at Yonkers Road, Coming the first Sunday in September, which I think is the 7th, but don't quote me on that. We're going to have three services here at Yonkers Royum: 8, 9:30, and 11:30. And I think the acoustic service, you all will be going to the 9:30 time slot. And we need Parking team members, and serve team members, and guest services members, and children's church workers, and all those things. And if you don't know where to serve for your own sake, I encourage you.

Don't burn yourself out, right? Don't give more than God's called you to give, but you can simply sign up today to serve. Don't keep your gifts in the box. You're going to be miserable if you do that. Learn to give them away for the Lord's glory and honor.

Remember? Would you please stand with me? The worship team is going to Lead us out in a song for a moment and I'll come and close us out. While they're worshiping or leading us, Why don't you take that as an opportunity? to recommit Your life to the Lord and your gifts and abilities for His purposes.

Perfect submission. All is at rest I my Savior. I'm happy and blessed watching and waiting, looking above, filled with his goodness, lost in his love. This is my story. This is my song Praising my Savior All the day Lord This is my story This is my song Praising my Savior All the day Lord This is my story This is my soul This is my song Praising my Savior This is my song Praise in my Savior all the day long for your life that God wants to use you and be a part of His work for His kingdom.

Isn't that good to know that? It's good. Amen. Life's not just about sitting and waiting for heaven. He's got purpose in the plans for you.

Would you lift your hands when you see this blessing from the Lord? Father, I pray on this church's behalf that out of and according to the glorious riches of Christ Jesus, Pray that you would strengthen them with power through your spirit and their inner being.

so that Christ would dwell in their hearts through faith. That they, being rooted and established in love, would have power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. and that they would know this love that surpasses knowledge. That they may be filled to the measure of all the fullness that is in you. In Jesus' name, everybody said.

Hey, love you guys. Have a great week. Uh