Hello hello good morning everybody how we all doing hello that’s nice to have a nice quiet front row that’s what we like we want some hecklers in the building as soon as you get in that’s what we need fantastic now I don’t know if it’s official that we
Can say happy new year yet or is it tomorrow I’m not really sure but I’m sure you’ve all had a good Christmas everyone fully fully full everyone eat enough over Christmas everyone eat too much fantastic well it’s good to start with a fast but we’ll talk about that later
Anyway it’s fantastic to have you with us if you’re a visitor give you a warm welcome if you’re watching online we give you a warm welcome welcome to our very last service of 2023 and whether it’s been a great year for you or whether it’s not been quite
Such a great year I want to tell you today God is still good and he’s got something great for you today isn’t it amazing that we can call and God has a plan for you for this year and whatever’s happened in the past year good or bad God is still God and He
Loves Us and wants to do something great in us today so are we ready for what he wants to do today fantastic have we got a little bit of a Christmas over sort of spill that we’re all still a bit drowsy from Christmas so let’s stand up let’s shake
Ourselves off a little bit we’re going to worship our awesome God today we’re going to give him the praise for everything he deserves so let’s just stand and let’s pray for a second God we welcome you in this place today as we come as we worship you as we give you
The praise that you deserve may we just know your presence in an incredible way awesome God Amen thank you Jack our praise be your welcome let our song be sign we are here For we are here For let your breath come from Heaven fill our hearts with your love we are here for you we are here for you to you our hearts are open nothing here is H you are our one deser you alone Are Holy only you are worthy God that your fire fall Down let I shout be your handle you’re in now fill the skies we are here for you we are here for you let your word moving power let what’s dead come to life we are here for You we are here for You to you are Hearts to open nothing here is in you out our Wanted you alone Are Holy only you are worthy God let your fire fall down do you are heart to open nothing here is hting you are our one desire you alone Are Holy only you are worth God let your fire Fall let your fire fall down we here for [Applause] you we welcome you we praise we welcome you we praise almighty God and Lord be welcome in this place we welcome you with praise we welcome you with praise almighty God Al love be welcome in this let every heart adore let every soul
Awake almighty God Alone be welcome in this place we welcome you with praise we welcome you with praise almighty God In Love we welcome in this Place we welcome you with praise we welcome you with praise almighty God Al be welcomed in this place we welcome you with praise we welcome you with praise almighty God Al love he welcome in this place let every heart adore let every soul the away almighty God In Love be
Welcomed in this place we welcome you with praise we welcome you we praise almighty god of love be welcomed in this Place Guitar String’s just broken but we should be all right I just won’t play that String Bless it Assurance Jesus is mine oh what a for taste of Glory Divine air of Salvation purchase of God B of his Spirit washed in his blood this is my Story this this is my song praising My Savior all the day long this is my story this is my song praising My Savior on the day Perfect Commun perfect Delight visions of rapure now burst on my Side Angels descending bring from above Echoes of Mercy Whispers this is my story this is my song praising my Savor all the day long [Applause] this is my story God this is my song praising My Savior all the day long this is my St God this is my song praising My [Applause] Savior all the day God this is my Story God this is my song praising My Savior all the day long Perfect Sub all is at Rest I am My Savior am happy and blessed just watching and waiting looking filled with his good lost in this is my soul god this is my [Applause] soul Praise My Savior all the day long god this is my story God this is my Song praising my [Applause] Sor all the day Long this is my story Glory this is my song praising My Savior all the day long god this is my Story this is my Song praising my savior all the day long this is my story this is my song praising My Savior all the Day this is my story this is my raising my Sa all the Day Your praise we fix our eyes on Jesus By grace alone somehow I stand where breing Angels Fear to Dread invited by redeeming Love Before the Throne of God of he pulls me close with nails God hands into his ever lasting On when condemnation grips my heart and sa tempts me to I hear the voice that scatters Fe the great I and the Lord oh praise the one who fights for me and shields my soul Eternally 1 2 3 boldly I approach your thr bless now I’m running home by your blood I come welcome as your own into the arms of Mesty holy I approach your throne blameless now I running home by your blood I come welcomed as your own into the arms of Mesty behold the bright and Risen Sun more Bea that this world has known I’m face to face with love himself his perfect spotless righteousness oh a thousand years a thousand are not enough to sing his praise Holy I appro your Throne blameless now I’m running home High over I welcome as your into the arms of mesty boldly I approach your blameless now I’m home by Blood I call welcome as your into the arms of Mesty this is the a cration KN we’re free from condemnation PR the one praise the one who made an end to all my S again this is the art of Celebration knowing we’re free from Condemnation praise the one praise the one who made an it to all My holy I approach your throne blameless now I’m running home by your blood I call welcome as your into the arms Of holy I approach your [Applause] thress now I’m blood in by your blood I come welcome as your into the arms of [Applause] mest into the arm of M Esty into the AR Mesty thank you Jesus thank you Jesus just want to sing that the first two verses in the chorus again there’s some words in here that we need to hear today I just know my heart that someone needs to hear these words today it says by grace alone somehow I stand and at
The end of that first verse he says this he pulls me close with nail scarred hands into his Everlasting Arms and I just know today there in this place today there’s someone that’s feeling condemned they feel condemned they feel as though they’ve messed up they feel as though they could never be
Accepted but you need to know today that Jesus with his nail scarred hands is drawing drawing you close to him today he’s drawing you close to him today a and he says he says I didn’t come to bring condemnation but to bring forgiveness for everything that next one says when condemnation grips my
Heart and Satan tempts me to despair I hear the voice that scatters Fear The Great I Am the Lord is here I’m here today to tell you that the creator of the universe God who sent his son Jesus to you is here today you draw you near
Not to bring you condemnation but to bring his grace upon you today and just as we sing just those two verses in the chorus again please if we could do that I want you to just maybe for the first time in your life maybe for the first
Time in a long time to put your let your defenses down and let this savior with his nail scarred hands draw you close to him today draw you close to him today not so that you’ll feel condemned not so that you’ll feel you’re just not worthy
But you’ll know the love of the father that you’ve never experienced before you’ll know the love of a savior that c to gave his life for you and as we sing this today I just know that through his beautiful Holy Spirit he wants to meet with you wherever you are wherever
You’re at and you’ll experience something that you just perhaps can’t explain but it wants to set you free today from condemnation and let you free to all that he’s made and he’s created you to be thank you Jack I Grace Al I stand where even Angels Fear to dread invited by redeeming Love the Throne of God above P me close with nail scarred hands into his Everlasting Arm when condemnation grips my heart and SATs me to I hear the voice that scatters Fear The Great I Am the oh PR the one who fights for me and Sho my soul Eternally holy I approach your Throne blameless now I’m running home by over lord I come welcome as your own into the arms of Mesty holy I approach your throne blameless now I’m running home by your blood I come welcom as your own into the arms of mesty into to the arms of Mesty How great the chm that lay between us how high the mountain I could not climb in Desperation I turned to heaven and spoke your name into the night then through the darkness your loving kindness to through the shadows of my soul the work is finished the end is written Jesus Christ my living who could imagine so great a mercy what heart could F such power Grace the god of
Ages step down from glory to where my and bear my shame the cross is spoken I am forgi the king of kings call Me beautiful savior I’m yours forever Jesus Christ my hallelujah praise the one who set me free Hallelujah death as lost it SC on me you have broken Every Chain there’s salvation in your name Jesus Christ my living home hallelujah praise the one who set me free
Hallelujah death has lost its all me you have broken Every Chain there’s salvation in your name Jesus Christ my living Holy then came the morning that seal the promise your buried body began to breathe out of the silence the roaring lion declared the grave has no on then came the morning that seal the promise your very body began to bre out of the silence roing lion n the grave has no clame on
Me cuz Jesus yours is the vict oh hallelujah praise the one who set me free Hallelujah death has lost it you have broken Every Chain this salvation in your name Jesus Christ my Liv hallelu praise is the one who said me fre Hallelujah death is lost in great you have broken Every Chain there salvation in your name Jesus Christ You’re My Hope Jesus Christ you’re my living home yes go you are my Living Hallelujah praise the one who set me free Hallelujah death has lost its grave on me you have broken it chain there salvation in your name Jesus Christ my in home hallelujah praise the one who set me free Hallelujah death has lost its GP on me you have broken Every Chain there salvation in your name Jesus Christ my Living Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus we thank you today that death has lost his grip the thing that everyone fears has got no fear for us today Lord because death has lost its grip on me because you overcame it at the cross oh Jesus I’m just so excited we just
Need to sing that then came the morning again I’m sorry we can’t not do it again I lost my voice a little bit yesterday and that was shouting at something else but I’m going to lose it today completely because I want to tell you today there’s something so exciting
Because my savior is alive he’s alive he’s risen today Christmas isn’t this little thing that we think about once a year it’s Christmas every day in my life cuz Jesus is still alive he’s reigning and he’s ruling and he is in control of this thing that looks out of control so
Often and he wants to be in control of your life today so let’s sing it once more let’s give it all we’ve got begin to lose your voice sing and croak and Shout at the Revelation that Jesus Christ has conquered the grave once and for all thank you and came the
Morning that sealed the prise your buried blood began and to breathe out of the silence the Roaring L declared the grave has no claim on me that came the morning that seal the promise your bued body be began to bring out of the silence the roaring
Lion declar the grave has no claim on me Jesus yours is the [Applause] Victory oh hallelujah praise the water you set me free Hallelujah death has lost its gra on me you have broken Every Chain there salvation in your name Jesus Christ my living home Hallelujah praise the one who set me free Hallelujah death is lost in strength all you have broken Every Chain let salvation in your name Jesus Christ my living home Jesus Christ you’re my living home God you are my living oh thank you Jesus thank you Jesus thank you Jesus thank you God Amen
Aren’t you glad that God is our living hope it’s not something that’s dead and something that’s buried he’s alive and he’s risen today so thank you thank you thank you team thank you Jack one string last you still managed It Well Done fantastic amen okay we’re going to take
Up our offering now just really quickly if you’re a visitor again don’t feel obliged we’re just going to turn around and say hi to someone if you don’t know who they are ask him the name if they don’t tell him your name there must be a secret mystery that you don’t need to
Know but P the Bucky around while we do that please don’t feel obliged as we just de with this as part of our worship fantastic Walk Okay fantastic we almost got round let me just give you a few notices really quickly just a bit of sad news to start with um uh many of you’ll know Barbara Smith well she unfortunately passed away on Friday she nearly made a hundred she
Was 99 she was 19 days off a 100 so it would be great for us uh just to someone said R to me this morning I said well she’ll not be worried whether she made 100 or not cuz she’s with the Lord now having a great time not thinking oh if
Only had had another 19 days on Earth that’s not what he’ll be thinking but it’ll be great just to let’s just remember the family in our prayers in fact let’s just pray right now for a moment and we’ll remember them no matter how old you are it still comes as a
Shock and it still has effects on the family so let’s just pray that God’s priest would be with them at this time God yeah we just bring Barbara’s family to you now the whole family yeah all generations God we just pray that your presence would be so real to them may
They know your peace at this time and maybe even just in these moments of something may they just encounter the god that you she loved and she served for her whole life Lord Jesus we pray amen amen thank you that’s the the first one secondly just a big thank you to
Everyone that got involved over Christmas wow this time last week we were full weren we it was sweatier in here than it was did it is now great to see you but thank you so much for everyone that got involved right through from everything right through December
Just want to say a big thank you to everybody whoever that may be and I just want you to continue to in your prayers just pray for every life that came through the doors every person that they would have this encounter in a moment with Jesus that has been my prayer for
The whole time where people come it’s great to do stuff and get Social and and that’s fantastic but we need to have an encounter with the Savior that got born at Christmas and change that so just I please pray you’ll continue in your prayers uh for that as well and while
We’re on prayer it was great to see I thought this I was thinking about this all week it was amazing and I got quite emotional at one stage when everyone we were bringing more chairs out and we’re throwing people out out because our own people out cuz we didn’t have space for
Them it’s a beautiful feeling not throwing you not throwing you out I love you all obviously that’s not what I meant uh but it was just it was exciting but what do you know what I get really excited about when even more excited in some respects if we have to throw people
Out because we can’t fit them in for a prayer meeting then we’ll know we’re really moving somewhere then we’ll know we’re actually going to affect a community a nation and a world with the love of Jesus so I just want to encourage you to get involved in our 21
Days of prayer so it starts next Sunday uh 21 days of prayer and fasting there’s just a couple of bits of things that I can help you with hopefully uh so firstly the we’ve got two lots of booklets at the back so one of them the
First one is is 21 days of prayer and fasting it’s just a little bit of information about fasting maybe you’ve never fasted before maybe you’re just interested in what it’s about maybe you think you just could not survive without any food and you don’t know what else
You could do there’s some in information in there so please take one of those there on the table at the back John and an will help you there and they’ll have all the answers to prayer and fasting as well because they’re at the back and then also what we’ve done as well this
Year is a little bit different we’ve made a little devotional and I’d encourage you even if you’re not sure what you could do with fasting please do take this because this is what we’re going to be praying through for the whole 21 days of prayer and fasting so
It starts it starts today the 7th right through to the 28th I just want to encourage you to get involved in some way whatever little way I just know that this 21 days is going to be absolutely vital for whatever happens from this moment on we’re putting prayer at the
Very center of everything we do from this year definitely more than ever before and we’re trusting God to see something that at the end of the day if we have a great program we can make nice things happen but if we make prayer Our priority we can do something that only
God can do and that’s what we want in this place we don’t just want something to be nice we want something that only God can do change and revolutionize lives and everything else so that’s what we’re going to be doing if you want any more questions about that do it there’s
Also a list at the back if if you want to be on the WhatsApp it’s not a WhatsApp group it’s just a broadcast so you won’t be in a group with thousands of people commenting and sticking the thumb up so your phone goes off 400 times a day it’s just a broadcast where
We’ll send some messages to you and if you’ve not had one from me yet a WhatsApp message about it then you need to just put your name on the back if you want to be a part of that and if you’re in the WhatsApp group you can do that
Not a group broadcast yes fantastic and finally for just for that as well just one for your diary what we’re going to do is uh in fact I decided this morning as well obviously with all my forward planning that I’ve had for Christmas we’re going to launch it next week uh
With a prayer meeting here at 8:00 in the morning be great to see as many people as we’re going to pray I think we’ll probably play in this room I’m not sure we might go upstairs but I only just decided this morning so 8:00 for 34
Of an hour 8 till 8:45 let’s launch the whole day of 21 days of prayer and fasting with prayer if you can make it here that would be phenomenal next Sunday morning before the service and you can stop and hang around and have coffee if you want afterwards before you
Or you can go home and then come back again whatever you want to do um and then also just one other date for The Diary is the 20th of January we’re going to have an encounter night we had one of those we did our week of prayer if you
Remember before or month of prayer uh and this time it’s in Stafford over our friends with Dave Lawrence in his group there so if you want to be involved that please do try and book that in your diary at 6:30 to 8:30 on the 20th on a
Saturday night it’d be great for again so many of us us as possible to go out there so our worship team are involved in that as well it’s not just like we’re not just gate crashing there it’s a joint thing so please please put that in
Your Diaries on the 20th of January I think that’s all my notices there’s nothing else so there’s nothing on this week we’ve got no midweek meetings this week um but as I say we’ll start the prayer of fasting next week on Sunday morning at 7 at 8 o’ okay have I done
That right no one’s looking at me well without any further Ado yesterday was Paul’s birthday isn’t that yes well well done for still being here Paul on the day after your birthday congratulations um he’s here he said it’s his he said it’s the last day of his Christmas socks today I’ve been
Looking at them they’re very exciting uh but so he’s going to come and share an incredible word now thank you Paul let’s give him a warm Round of Applause I think we’re allowed to wear Christmas socks today aren’t we all right look look at them aren’t they great they’re glorious aren’t they you
Just got to love them come on it was my birthday yesterday I did think I was 34 and I wasn’t I was 33 so I’m Ming myself well my mom also thought I was 34 as well so it wasn’t just me but I am we
Did sit down and work it out and I’m 33 so it’s not old enough really to make that sort of mistake is it but there you go there’s a moment of honesty um God is good I was last up here to share a New Year’s uh message kind of a
New Year’s Eve message three years ago 2020 you’ll all remember it for obviously big reasons it was covid wasn’t it and I I went back and I looked at what I shared then and I shared on the Lord being our Good Shepherd and you know he still is he is still our Good
Shepherd but I believe with the sea change of season with Co sort of being in the past now um that what God’s put my heart today is that he’s calling us so I’ve called my message today God’s call and 2024 oo I hear will go oo yeah God’s call in 2024
When we get to the start of a new year we like to think oh New Year’s resolutions so some of you in here might have made a New Year’s resolution and it’s a kind of traditional thing we do where we come up with something to make ourselves you
Know something a goal we want to achieve in the new year has anyone in here made a New Year’s resolution before a few people or a few people yeah a few people not loads a few people have well I I was interested just to look
Into it a bit more and uh I found these statistics online done by forbes.com so he just put those up these are the most common New Year’s resolutions this year and so the top one there 40% of people want to exercise more right and that might be a bit of guilt after
Christmas the next one is lose weight that might be a bit of guilt after Christmas I don’t know the next one’s improved diet I’m starting to see a theme Here uh financial goals reducing stress emotional well-being make time for more hobbies that sounds good Em wants to learn
French this year so we’ve started to do that um improve relationships improve career goals and it sort of goes on like that I like that one near the bottom practice gratefulness 15% of people want to learn how to practice gratefulness I mean that’s a good one that should be at the top
Um now what’s interesting about New Year’s resolutions is we can we can set all these things that we want to do but how many people know that by the time end of January end of February March it’s probably not went quite how we expected this website they say one in
Five people are likely to last with their resolution less than one month that’s quite a lot of people isn’t it one in three only last one to three months one in six people stick to their resolutions for 4 six months one in 10 managed to make it to 6 to n months and
Then only one in 20 managed to make it to one uh nine to uh 12 months so only one in 20 people only could possibly make their resolution last the year which is a really revealing statistic about human nature and our hearts kind
Of thing we kind of go in like I love a start for new year new Leaf let’s make a start let’s do something amazing but we get into January February and I remember doing it one year I thought well I’m going to eat healthy I’m going to cut
Out cake o not easy cut out cake uh January went well and then it was my friend’s birthday in February I hadn’t seen him for a while I went to the birthday party and of course what you having at birthday party cake yes and his his um his I think they were engaged
At the time so his fiance had made him this lovely cake and it looked delicious the icing was that type of icing I really enjoy there’s something about shop brought icing isn’t there where it’s just so good and uh it was it was a beautiful looking cake anyway and uh I
Said oh no I’m not going to have any I’m not going to and everyone else is starting to cut cake and start to eat it and then go he goes oh G Paul you’ve got to have some cake and his partner goes yeah you’ve got to have some so what do
I do I had some cake and I gave into that and that that was that New Year Year’s resolution out the window wasn’t it but there you go I had some cake and I didn’t feel guilty for either because it was delicious there you go so there’s something about our
Resolutions that gets tested and that we can’t always do them out of our own willpower especially when we’ got our friends offering us cake but we’ve got to change our resolutions to convictions to make them stick and that’s what I’m talking about today the call of God and how that can
Become the basis for evictions in our life and it’s not just about eating cake it’s the call of God is so much more than that so much more than some of those ideas up there so much more than just getting a bit more healthy it will Define Our Lives when we get conviction
To follow the call of God now I’ve been thinking about this idea of being consistent and conviction kind of God’s been teaching me some stuff on that this year and um I came across this Facebook quote literally a couple of weeks ago and it says this it’s okay to let go of
Your convictions for one night and I read it I was like wow that is not okay it is not okay to let go of your convictions for one night because if you let go of them for one night I want to say they’re not really convictions are they they’re not really
Convictions they they’re compromised so what are our strong beliefs rooted in what are we convicted about in our lives what what is it that we want to purpose our lives for and it comes back to this idea about the call of God well the Bible uses that language
Of calling many times and I’m kind of going to go to one of the most famous verses there’s lots of verses we could choose but I’m going to look at how God calls us to follow him as his disciples and you’ll know that in the start of the
Gospels Matthew 4 we see these verses one day as Jesus was walking along and a sure along the shore of the Sea of Galilee he saw two brothers Simon and also Peter and Andrew throwing a net into the water for they were they fished for a living Jesus called out to them
Come follow me and I will show you how to fish for people and they left their Nets at once and followed him a little farther up the shore he saw two brothers James and John sitting in a boat with their father Zebedee repairing their Nets and he called them to come too they
Immediately followed him leaving their boat and their father behind so you got two callings there where Jesus says come follow me come leave your nets come and do something and I love their response that they immediately respond to that calling of Jesus and they go and following him I wonder where you were
When you first heard the call of God in in your life when you first heard him call to you say actually I want you to follow me it’s my son my daughter I want you to know me I remember for me I was 8 years old I was at a kids camp probably
Shared this before and they they had a call to to just come and receive Jesus and I remember going forward there and I remember experiencing the love of God for the first time in my life and I know he had called me to follow him to follow
Him so where were you where you first were when you responded to that call maybe you’re still waiting to respond to that call well he’s calling you he’s calling you to follow him as disciples today sometimes we get a bit confused about calling or it means a
Specific purpose or oh I’m just waiting for what he wants me to do he he needs to show me everything about the calling before I make that choice well in these verses he does doesn’t say the whole plan he has for the disciples he just says follow me and I’ll make you fishes
Of men he just says this is the purpose of the calling but he doesn’t explain everything about how he’s going to do that but they leave their Nets and follow him and and there’s something beautiful about that that response that the disciples make about immediately going that really challenges me when I
Have moments where I’m just sitting back and thinking oh God what do you want me to do now I want to hear your voice I want you to to direct me exactly what you want me to do I want you to tell me God why don’t you tell me
Why don’t you answer the prayer that tells me exactly where you want to be and where you want me to go and he has done he just said follow me as a disciple there’s a pastor Oz Guinness he says this the call is the answer stop waiting for God to describe
Exactly want what he wants you to do and just follow him for call that he makes is the answer of what he wants you to do the disciples made a resolution to follow the call of Christ they said yes but eventually that calling that resolution they made became a
Conviction in their lives it became a conviction that they are actually willing to lay their lives down for Jesus had a conviction to come to serve us as Humanity to die on that cross for our sins and it cost him his life but ultimately he’s raised up to life
Because of it and we’re called to do the same to follow him as a disciple and when we get that conviction it will Define our life it will Define our life so today are you Church ready to say yes to God’s call to follow him in
2024 yeah come on we’ll try that again are you ready to follow God’s call in your life in 2024 yes come on when we say yes we start the race now I really wanted to share from these verses some of you might have guessed where I’m going with
This Hebrews 12 about running the race and I was reading these and I think these are such great verses to start a new year with so God calls us to run the race he has set before us as his disciples Hebrews 12 vers verse one therefore since we are surrounded by
Such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of Faith let us strip off every weight that slows us down especially the sin that so easily trips us up and let us run with endurance the race God has set before us we do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus
The champion who initiates and perfects our faith because of the joy waiting him he endured the cross disregarding its shame now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s Throne think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people then you won’t become weary and give up after all
You have not yet given your lives in the struggle against sin wow what amazing verses there’s there’s a word there that’s mentioned a couple of times running with endurance we’re called to run with endurance and it also says that Jesus endured suffering from sinful people he endured it and there’s again that
Parallel between what we could how we’re called to run the race we’re called to run it with endurance we’re called to lay lay aside any burdens that we might carry any sin that we might have that would take away from that running of the race we’re called to lay it down at his
Feet and leave it there so that we can run the race I love the idea of running a race of literally um the picture um that you saw earlier where there the athletes are ready to go they’re set and Ready Ready set go and then there’s a lane that they
Have to run and as they run they have to stay in their Lane and you know we each have a lane in our lives that God’s called us to stay in we all have things that could pull us one way or the other way but we’re called to stay in our lane
We’re not called to look at what the person in the lane next to us is doing we’re not called to to to compare ourselves to them because when we do that we start to Veer off our own lane and runers have to stay in their Lane to win a
Race it’s only possible to stay in our lane to stay focused on the lane when we set our eyes on Jesus we read it there we do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus our champion who initiates and perfects our faith so when we when we’re running
Our race when we’re following him we set Our Eyes Upon Jesus we we’re not looking down at exactly where our feet are going but we’re looking ahead to him that’s our hope that’s where we’re going we’re not looking back at what’s happened in the past that wants to hold us back the
Sin the the things that have been holding on to us we have to leave them there in the past that’s not what God’s called us to Grace calls us forward into hope of what he’s calling us to do in 2024 we have to set Our Eyes Upon Jesus
But who knows it’s not always easy who knows that the lane isn’t always as straight or as easy as we think it’s not a running track exactly in life is it suddenly you’re running and you hit a hill you hit Rocky ground and you have to wave for a stream and it gets
Hard now some of you know here that I’m a cyclist I don’t do a lot of running but I haven’t done any cycling this week so I thought I go out on a run and I went out on a run and there was some heels and I didn’t run very far but you
Know by the time I got to the afternoon i’ done a short run in the morning I got to the afternoon and my legs were starting to feel it it was hard I I started to and EM will know she’ll tell you I’ve been moaning about
It the last few days like oh why don’t I do more running like when you haven’t done it in a while just all your muscles just suddenly go tight and oh in bed and I was said why are you limping around for she said what are you limping around
For I said oh it’s my legs it’s from this run and I said I can’t do it goodness me but it got hard and that’s because I just did it as a one-off I hadn’t built up endurance in my running ability I hadn’t built up that endurance God calls us to run with
Endurance so you won’t like this bit but there will be trials in 2024 it’s not all a feel-good sermon today yes God’s calling us to run and race yes come on let’s do it but there will be trials in 2024 and that’s where endurance comes in that’s where the
Longevity of the Christian walk comes in and it’s so interesting that the following verses after we’ve had those verses 1 to four that talk about running the race and keeping Our Eyes Upon Jesus that verse four verse five goes on to what it means to grow in endurance in
Running our race and these aren’t popular verses to read I’ll just warn you now the first bit is we love that but the next bit isn’t a popular verse but it’s so important for running our race with endurance verse four after all you have not yet given your lives in
Your struggle against sin so the context here is that there’s a struggle against sin there’s there’s our fleshly desire of what I want to do with my life and then there’s God’s call in my life about the race he wants me to to run run he’s
Calling me to go one way my flesh Paul talks about it in one of his letters about how our flesh Wars against God’s will in our lives so there’s a struggle against sin going on and then verse five says this and have you forgotten the encouraging words
God spoke to you as his children so then what follows is encouraging words God spok into to us it might not sound like it but it is he said my child don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline and don’t give up when he corrects you for the
Lord disciplines those he loves and he chastises each one he accepts as his child as you endure this Divine discipline remember that God is treating you as his own children whoever heard of a child who is who is never disciplined by its father if God doesn’t discipline you as he does
All of his children it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all wow there’s a lot to look at there isn’t there but a key word there you’ll hear it again and again is that of discipline and God’s discipline what does that mean well word discipline
There it means to rebuke to correct and it also means in the context of the word is Pia so it would be how a father would teach his child in the Greek and so it’s to do teaching and training so it’s to do correction and and rebuking if needed
But also teaching and training for endurance for for the life of the child so when we talk about discipline and chastisement and that idea of almost almost punishment Associated that we’ve got to be careful when we’re talking about God because I don’t believe God is a masochist he doesn’t take pleasure in
Punishing people that’s so important to say he doesn’t get pleasure out of our pain in fact I believe that that when he sees our suffering it causes him great sorrow and it caused him to send his son Jesus for us it caused him to do something about it and he he sent his
Son to the Cross to endure on the cross we’ve read it earlier to endure the hostility of sinful people so that we can know his love for us so that we can actually be teachable we can have a hope we can actually be able to leave behind the sin that would entangle
Us and trip us up and and things that would weigh us down we can leave those in the past and that we can know his grace in our lives and discipline you know actually is a means to his grace it’s a means of coming to know him
Better in our lives so as we struggle against sin we are to be encouraged because God’s calling us through that trial through those Rocky moments on on the race he makes his love known to us as his children I love the language there of a father and a
Child he only disciplines those he loves he only teaches and trains those he loves and you know he loves each and every one of us today he loves us so much that he would discipline us he would teach us and train us so that we wouldn’t get tripped up on our race on
Our calling he has on our lives goes on to say verse n since we respected our Earthly fathers who disciplined us shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the father of our spirits and live forever I love that we are called to live forever so there’s a purpose to it
That’s the hope we’re called to submit out of Hope of what’s to come he’s calling us for eternal life verse 10 for our Earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years doing the best they knew how but God’s discipline is always good for us so that we might share in his
Holiness so again there’s Grace involved his discipline is good for us so that we might share in his Holiness apart from his discipline we cannot share in his Holiness we can’t know what it is to to know Jesus in our lives verse 11 no discipline is enjoyable while it’s happening it’s
Painful but afterward there will be a peaceful Harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way I love that last bit there will be a peaceful Harvest of right living for those who are trained in his way in this way so for trials the Rocky moments on
The road are for our benefit they’re God’s means to helping us grow and mature in him they keep us on track for the hope we have for eternal life they Pro the discipline proves that we are his sons and daughters and as we journey out as Sons
And Daughters of him he draws Us close to him in those moments of discipline in those moments he actually calls us us to know him and to love him more through it all because we have to rely on his strength and not our own strength Our
Own Strength will give up at the end of January it’s just the New Year’s resolution it will go up but we have to come back to Father God’s strength a conviction that he’s called us to live life in a certain way a conviction can endure any trial that the race might
Have ahead of us a conviction will get us through and mature Us in that thing so that we can the fruit of it is that we can experience a peaceful Harvest of right living I mean that sounds good a peaceful Harvest of right living I want
That in 2024 I want to live in the in peace and a harvest of right living but I know there was a journey to get there as well this year it’s been a journey for me and Emma will testify to this uh this my study so for those of you who don’t
Know I’ve been studying a a masters in Theology and it’s been immensely difficult and I’ve talked to Johnny about it and there’s been moments and Johnny know that I’ve said I want to quit I want to leave it I haven’t got time for it oh it’s so stressful how am
I going to get through this right now there’s been so many reasons to quit but you know what’s kept me in the race of finishing my studies is that I know God called me to do it I had a convi ition that actually I wasn’t in that that
Opportunity by chance but God called me to finish it and to see it through and I came back to that conviction and I decided to see it through and praise God it’s all done and uh I’m so pleased for that but it was a journey and I had to come back to God’s
Strength God’s call in my life God’s conviction that he given me to see it through because I knew I couldn’t do it in my own strength and God used that actually to mature me and to grow me and to train me to go through that tire period of discipline so actually you’re
Going to study for this amount of hours every day and not procrastinate by watching YouTube or playing games or anything like that that was a moment of discipline for me this year but God used that in me to keep me in the race so praise God that was amazing um that was
His strength getting me through so I wonder this year like looking back on 2023 for you what has God sought to teach you or train you with this year yourselves what has he sought to train you with this year what are the moments where you think oh maybe God’s just SE
Uh like teaching me something in this moment and maybe today at the end of year is a good day to just spend some time thinking about what God’s been teaching you um in your life for this year God can speak to you today by his holy spirit he’s prompting you you know
To do something about whatever he’s challenging you on today so as we respond to that call to to hear him to be obedient to his call how do you prepare your hearts to be obedient to his discipline well I believe it comes back to this idea of getting conviction that we need to
Recognize that we need to change we need to do something about our lives that we need him we need his strength just like I need him to to get me through my studies we need his strength to get us through so that we can experience that peaceful Harvest of right living next
Year finally we’re nearly there God calls us to straighten paths the next couple of verses they’re they’re so interesting when we when we talk about running a race says this verse 12 so take a new grip with your tied hands and strengthen your weak knees does anyone
Got weak knees in here today no don’t don’t answer that don’t answer that um Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong so there’s a there’s a parallel here between somebody who’s got tied
Hands and weak knees and then that we are calling to Mark out a straight path so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong we are being called to straighten paths what does that look like there’s an amazing moment some of you might remember this in the
Olympics in 2016 there were two Runners there’s Abby I’ll try and say her name right Abby the austino and Nikki Hamlin a USA Runner and a New Zealand Runner and just put that those pictures yeah there you go so there’s a moment in there they’re doing the 5,000
Meter run and uh there’s a moment where they come together and they Collide and they and one of them falls down Hamblin falls down on the ground and austino I could just call her Abby it’s much easier Abby Abby look turns around in the top picture there and sees that one
Of the other Runners has fallen down now in a in a competitive race what don’t you do you don’t look back you keep running forward don’t you because you want to get the best time you can but there’s a moment where actually there’s something more than competitive racing
Happening Here I think in this scene there’s something of the kingdom of God happening um there’s a there’s a metaphor here that was so helpful so they they collided and one of them falls to the ground and one of them could have continued but what she does she goes and
Puts a hand on Nikki’s shoulder and say and encourages her to get up and finish the race that’s what straightening paths looks like that’s what it looks like she helps her up so that they could finish the race together even though she had a twisted ankle and there’s another
Picture where she’s actually in a wheelchair being wheeled off to see the paramedics and what’s amazing about that story is they actually both go on to end up qualifying for the final race of that Olympic year as well which is awesome and I think great testimony to that
Moment but what an amazing moment to to take a moment to say actually this isn’t about me anymore this is about helping someone else out to help them run their race and to help her up and to run it together and I just find that so powerful that’s what’s happening in these
Verses there are tired hands and weak knees spiritually in this room today I know that I’ve been there this year at moments and we need to get alongside each other as we run our races and encourage each other we need to get God’s conviction God’s call in our lives
But we also have a role to play in that in encouraging one another I give thanks for the moments where Emma has encouraged me to finish my ma this year and finish that and be committed and get it through I give thanks for the moment when Johnny’s come alongside me encourag
Me and and other people as well I give thanks for every moment that’s helped me finish that part of my race so what does straightening paths look like well one thing I think is interesting is that it doesn’t say smooth paths that’s a different Greek word it says the straighten path so
Doesn’t mean the the path isn’t going to be bumpy and easy but straightening past it comes back to this idea of training and equipping and discipline to get through to build endurance out of our conviction to straighten path it’s about teaching training encouraging one another in our
Own race in in others people’s races so maybe in 2024 God’s calling you to be an encourager to others in this church in this church in your family in your workplace next year be open for the voice of God to say actually God’s calling you to be an encourager this
Year amen we’re gonna finish in a moment and I really felt it’d be great to just declare something as a church today to declare a few things so I’ve done some like conviction statements if we can just have those up and it’s a conviction I’ve kind of based this around the Hebrews passage
That we’ve read today and we’re going to say these together uh we’re going to stand and say them in a moment and just as as we do those I want to challenge us that what is God calling you to do this year maybe he’s calling
You to follow him he’s calling you to be a disciple maybe he’s calling you to to say yes to that and and to start your race to say actually God I’m up for that in 2024 I want to start my race for you
I want to stay in my Lane I want to look ahead to what you’ve got for me that peaceful Harvest of right living that you’ve got for me I want to stay in my Lane maybe he’s calling you to run with endurance there’s been moments of testing this year that maybe you’ve just
Not quite got through yet or maybe this year he wants you to to to be disciplined to be taught to be trained by him so you can run that part of our calling with endurance for him or maybe LLY he’s calling you to straighten path for other people to come alongside other
People the weak and the lame and actually to help them up and and as as you help them and get them just like um Nikki and um Abby did in the Olympics you actually help them finish their race you actually come alongside them are God’s healing moment in their lives so
They’re not lame and weak anymore but they’re strengthened and ready to run that race and that’s amazing that we can be called to be part of God’s hand in their lives in those moments as well so I want you to stand with me if you want
To stand and we’re going to say these together that’s great okay so the first one is I know I am surrounded by others who will encourage me to run a race full of Faith amen we’re going to say that together I know I am surrounded by others who will
Encourage me to run a race full of faith and the next one I will cast off anything that holds me back from that race leaving them at Jesus feet amen Jesus is my champion whose example I follow as I run through trials amen I choose to keep My Eyes Upon Jesus as his
Endurance will sustain me to not grow weary and give up amen I will run the race God has called me to with and endurance yeah Lord Jesus I just pray for every person standing in this room as we’ve responded together today Lord that as we follow your call your Holy
Spirit would just come in that this moment that we would be so filled with you that we wouldn’t look back that where sin has weighed us down this year that we would cast off those things that have not benefited our race and we would set our eyes on on you and on what
You’re calling us to do in 2024 Lord I pray for such a conviction to come on us to follow you this year that we would not look to the side we wouldn’t get distracted but we would stay on course Lord that nothing would take us away from that loving Embrace of
A loving father to his son and to his daughter today so Lord Jesus thank you that the race before us is seasoned with your grace that your grace is the flavor of the race we’re called to that as you teach us that we learn about what your
Grace is as you grow us we learn to experience peace and right living so Lord I pray for every person that we would live our lives convict with a conviction based upon the call of God today to follow him as the disciples amen amen great thank you for
Coming today and I hope you have a great Happy New Year and I’ll see you in the new year please do stop for tea and coffee um we’ll have a great time but yeah see you in the new year All