The Good Shepherd in the Valley

Amen. And amen. Well, you can find a seat. As you're finding a seat, I want to just uh I want to just talk to you for a second. I'm going to do something that I I I don't ordinarily do. I I think I've only done it once in my life before. Uh, I'm going to do a completely different message than I did the last service. Uh, this happened at Easter earlier this year. I gave one message on Saturday only to wake up on Sunday to feel like there needed to be a different message.

And I just I'm sensing in my spirit uh the same the same thing right now. You see, I woke up today like many of you really not knowing what today held. So many times I prepare for a Sunday and I can predict in my mind what it looks like. Like an athlete that prepares for a game. You go through the what do you call them? The roles the what the plays in your head. I'm not an athlete. So the most I've ever done is run and you just got to run. But uh you don't have a playbook. we just make it to the finish line. Uh, but normally on a Sunday, I know the I know the roles. I know the the playbook. I know what we're going to do. And and and I honestly had a message all prepared for today that was executed and finished before last Thursday.

And then Thursday came and this church gave everything to what happened on Thursday. And then Friday came and it just sat and was surreal. and we as a church staff and our families got together in our home and just had to sit together and eat food and say, "Did that really happen? What's what's happening in our community?" And we were just present for one another. And then Saturday came and I realized that I'm not going to give the same message I prepared. I'm going to adapt and adjust this message for what we need right now. And here's what I'm going to offer to you. It's recorded. So if you want to watch it, you can go on to YouTube and watch the previous service and allow that to minister to you later. But what struck me when we were just singing the song, even though I go through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

And I'm just sensing that we need to go to that scripture because that song is birthed through an ancient scripture that still speaks to us today. I have found this to be completely and utterly true. that when all else fails you, God's word will never fail. That when you don't know where else to turn and when you don't know where else to trust, even if you're not feeling it, you can go to God's word for it's active and alive. I know this as a preacher because I've had to counsel people in the worst hours. I've had to do funerals and celebration of lives and memorial services. And I don't show up with an inspirational message that I came up with. I come with God's word

and I speak God's word and it's all that I have. And there are so many times that I feel in in my my my my being that I am completely inadequate. And yet God speaks despite me. Amen. Because it's his word. It's active. It's alive. And if there's anything I can tell you to trust in right now, it would be this book, God's word, because it will reveal to you who God is. And I know this is completely true. And whether you're new to church today, you're you're visiting, or you've been here a long time, here's what I know is true. The devil is a distractor. He is a liar. And if he can get you to think about anything other than God and the promises of his word, that's what he

will do. He will do it in the form of entertainment. He will do it in the form of drama. He will do it in the form of of self-loathing. He He will do it in many different ways as long as he keeps you from his word. You will not know the power of who the person of who God is. But when you know who God is, you're unashamed of who God is because he's almighty God despite what's happening in this world. So, I'm going to a place that I don't even know where we're going, but we're going to go there together. So, we're just going to flush out a sermon together. And I just texted about two minutes ago uh to our amazing production and behind the scenes team and I said, "Hey,

could you try to find this scripture?" And so, whether we have it or not, I don't know. But if you brought a Bible, you can go there with me. Uh if you didn't bring a Bible, we're going to try to bring on the screens. If you didn't bring a Bible, you probably brought a phone. Uh so you could take pictures or you could take notes on your notes. Uh I won't be offended if you have out your phones. Uh just don't watch football or go to Facebook. Uh so uh then I'm going to jump down there. Uh I want to go to two different places. I want to go to Psalm 23, which is the reference I mentioned of that song. And then I want to go to John 10. And then we might turn to some other places as well. Uh maybe if you could just join with me. Can we invite the Holy Spirit to speak to us? Spirit of the living God, would you fall on every single one of us?

I come before you now in the name of Jesus Christ. And I just say, Spirit God, would you speak to us that we would know you more clearly for who you are and it would shape and change who we are. Lord, we face trauma, but this is not new to you. Jesus, you faced the greatest trauma on the cross. So we turn to you to trust you to say, God, you know what we're going through. So in this hour, would you meet us in this place? Would you lead us? Would you guide us? May may the community of Ben never be the same. May we find our hope in you, the living hope, Jesus. So I just reveal my agenda and I say, I just want yours in Jesus name. Amen. There's one thing that's interesting about the Bible is it's completely relentlessly real.

Doesn't matter where you go in the Bible. If you want to be assured that this is a book not written by man to be a religion because that's not the point of this book. It's meant to reveal God. When you get into this book, you see how honest and real it is. Right from the beginning, by chapter 3, you see that mankind kind of screws up God's perfect plan. God is good. He is perfect. But you see that he created mankind in his image, but he did so with a free will. And with that free will comes a consequence that when you choose not God's ways and you choose your way, you reap the consequences. And in Genesis chapter 3, we see that that God established a way. It was right. It was perfect. But instead, there was a rebellion against God's ways. And the curse of sin came upon the world.

And we still have the same free will in Genesis 3 to choose God's perfect plan or to do things our own way. And and Psalm 23 is written by David, who's still known to this day. His name is still renowned around the world. I just got back from Israel and and you you'll hear his name frequently. The star on the Israeli flag is called the Star of David. And David's name is still known. It's it's it's it's it's famous for who he is and his character because the Bible tells us that David is a man after God's own heart. He wasn't perfect. He wasn't flawless. In fact, this guy made such grave mistakes that some of us would count him out. But when we read about David, it's not even about David. It's about the greater David, Jesus.

One of the titles given to Jesus is the son of David. And that that term son of doesn't mean the way that we understand it in English, which is you're born of. It's actually a title. Because when in the Hebrew culture, when there was a son, that son would carry on the legacy of a name. That son would carry on the the the the the birthight, would carry on the the lineage, would carry on, and and Jesus is the greater David. So whenever you read about David, David slaying Goliath, it's actually not David. is the God that he trusts in. It's Jesus. So, every time we read about David doing anything, leading the nation of Israel, having integrity against Saul, uh when

we read about David, it really shows us the heart of who God is. It's not so much about David, it's about the God in whom he trusted. David was uh the eighth son of Jesse. He was overlooked by his own father when Samuel the prophet came to anoint a king in his household. His dad didn't even think of him. If you've ever had dad issues, David would be somebody you can relate to. And eventually God just peels down the layers that I'm not looking for the biggest and best. I'm not looking for the strongest. I'm not looking for the best looking. I'm looking for the people that are willing to be used. I'm looking for the people that have open hearts to be used by God. I'm looking for people that will repent and trust in God. I'm looking for people that will turn back

to me and trust in me when they've made a mistake. That's who I'm looking for. And that's who David is. So David was a shepherd and he spent a great deal of time working with sheep. Not a glorious job, a laborious job. It's a difficult job taking care of sheep. And he comes to a conclusion of who God is of all the descriptions of God that David could come up with. This is what he says in Psalm 23. I want to just start by reading it and we'll stop. We'll look at some other scriptures then we'll come back. Psalm 23. I want to just start with verse one. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. Can we read that out loud together? The Lord is

my shepherd. I shall not want. Let's just pause there for a moment. He doesn't describe the Lord as a king here. He doesn't describe the Lord as a warrior. He doesn't describe the Lord and many of the postures and the places that we might think about. Instead, he says, "The Lord is my shepherd." Implying then I am the what? Sheep. So if I need something, there's not really anything I can get without my shepherd. I can think I'm smart. I can think I'm strong. I can think that I did it on my own. But the reality is I'm just a sheep. So if I really want to humble myself and recognize the posture and position I am, the Lord is the one that takes care of me. The Lord is the one that provides

for me. The Lord is the one that protects me. The Lord is the one that looks after me. The Lord is my shepherd. And if he's my shepherd, he's going to lead me and guide me. He's going to take me where he wants me to go. I may not understand it, but he does. I don't know if you've ever been in that place before where you didn't know where you were going, but somebody else did. I feel like that's apppropo to the name of this church, journey. Jesus says in John chapter 3 that the Holy Spirit is like the wind. We know not where God takes us. But he he is God.

And there there are times in life that life is truly a journey. It's not a destination. It's not this arrival like, "Hey, I've got this figured out. Let me tell you about this. This is how life works. Let me tell you the formula of how life works." No, it doesn't work like that. I'm just following the shepherd. Wherever the shepherd tells me to go, I'm going. And if he's going to lead me, I'm going to go where he wants me to go. Unless we be mistaken of who Jesus is, if you would jump with me to John chapter 10, I I want to just share with you two verses. I want to look at verse 10 and 11 for just a moment. John chapter 10, Jesus is speaking and he makes a statement that I want us to understand in the in the hour that we're in right now.

in the moment that we have way more questions than we do answers. If I can just recognize that many of us walked in here to church today with questions. Where is God right now? Why did God allow this? I'm not going to pretend to just give you a quick answer, but I I do want to point you to the word of God. And Jesus makes this statement in John chapter 10, starting with verse 10. If I could read verse 10 to you. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came, Jesus said, that they may have life and have it abundantly.

So Jesus speaks of this world and in this life that we're in that we should be aware that there is a thief. I don't know if you've ever had something stolen from you, but it's a very vulnerable thing when someone has taken that which is yours. You didn't give them permission. There's a violation. They've come and taken something that you worked hard for, something that was given to you. It wasn't theirs, and now it's gone. And Jesus says the thief, and he's referring to the devil here, there are demonic forces you can't see. And there are times that the thief comes in and steals and kills and destroys. And he doesn't want you to be naive in this life. You will have times where the devil's going to take things he doesn't have the right to take. He's going to kill things he doesn't have the right to kill. He's

going to destroy things he doesn't have the right to destroy. But be not mistaken. Jesus says, "Me, I need you to know who I am. I came that you would have life and have it abundantly." Not just a little life, not just to get through life. Not just to have life. I want you to have life. And I want you to have it abundantly. Now, what is the context of what Jesus is saying? You've got to go to the next verse. Jesus says in the very next verse, verse 11, he says, "I am the good shepherd, the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." There's a revelation here. When you look at Psalm 23 and you look at John 10,

Jesus is simply revealing to us through Revelation, the one David was writing about is me. So when David says, "The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. Jesus is my good shepherd. I can trust in Jesus. I can turn to Jesus." Therefore, if Jesus is the good shepherd, what does that make us? the sheep. And the shepherd says to the sheep, "This is a spiritual world that we live in and there is a real enemy and we need not be naive to this reality. This week we have encountered this. We can't just live life normally like everyone's just going to get along." Jesus says that's not the case.

the case is he is the good shepherd and he's willing to actually lay down his life so that we can live. Let's go back to Psalm 23. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me besides still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. I just revealed to you the one whom David is writing about. What's his name? Shout it out. Jesus. Now, up to this point in the text, it sounds pretty good.

We could sing this. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He leads me to green pastures. He leads me by still waters. He leads me in righteousness for his name's sake. Everything sounds good at this point. But David doesn't say that life is just easy. Life is full of full of still water. Life is just full of green pastures. Because the very next verse, he says, "Yes, there'll be times of green pastures. Yes, there'll be times of still waters." But verse four tells us, "Even though." Someone say, "Even though." Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. God does not leave us in the dark hour. He does not forsake us in the dark hour.

The very last thing Jesus says is, "I'll be with you always to the end of the age." There's another scripture that says of Jesus, "I will never leave you. I will never forsake you." And David says, "No matter what you go through, no matter how dark it is, no matter what that darkness is saying that you're going to die," the shepherd doesn't say, "I got to get out of here. Sorry sheep, you're on your own in this valley." He says, "Even though I go through the valley of the shadow of death, my God is greater than what I'm going through. Could I fear? Yes. Should I fear? Yes.

Maybe. No. I'm just Eli, you're you're a man of faith. So, what I'm saying is, do you have the right to be fearful? Well, the reality is it's a shadow of death. And if you don't know who's with you, you will be full of fear. you will be afraid. But when you realize that there's someone with you who's going to get you through this, I will fear no evil. You see, if all I know is there's a thief, if all I know he steals, if all I know is that he kills, and if all I know is he destroys, then yes, I will fear.

But Jesus did not leave us in fear. He did not leave us in the valley of the shadow of death. He did not leave us in the hands of the thief. [snorts] Instead, he comes alongside and says, "I'm going to journey with you through this. I I'm not just going to let you go through this. I'm going to be in this with you. I'm not saying it's easy. I'm not saying it's comfortable. I'm not saying that I desired for you to do this. What I'm simply saying is I am right alongside you. And even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

What does God do in the most difficult time in your life? He comforts you. That's who he is. The sermon I gave first service was based out of 2 Corinthians chapter 1. And in verse three, the author Paul is writing this letter and he's describing the personhood of God. And at the end of verse three, he says he is the father of mercies, the God of all comfort. That's who God is. He is a good shepherd who when you are in the valley of the shadow of death, what does he do? He comforts. And if there's one thing our city needs right now, if there's one thing this world needs right now, if there's one thing hurting families need right now, if

there's one thing first responders need right now, if there's one thing teachers need right now, if there's one thing that school administrators who just faced the most difficult day of their life need right now, if there's one thing that this world needs right now is a shepherd that's going to be with them. You'll be with me through the valley of the shadow of death. And when I get on the other side of this, I know that I've been comforted the whole time. Now, a rod and a staff, they don't feel like comfort. In that moment when you're being pushed and you're being prodded to stay here, to stay here, don't go there. Don't go there. Instead, go right here.

I know you want to run. I know you want to turn to the things of this world, but I need you to trust me right now. I need you to go where I tell you to go. I need you to do what I tell you to do. Don't do your own thing. Because I don't know if you've ever seen sheep, but they're not the smartest. They think they are, but they'll go places they shouldn't go. They'll do things they shouldn't do. They'll they'll put their head in things they shouldn't put their heads in. They don't have the ability to understand that they're not the shepherd. And we're living in a time right now that we need to trust in Jesus to be who he is, a good shepherd.

It may not feel like God is with us right now, but that's because we're in the valley of the shadow of death. I don't know where you were last week. I don't know where you were last month. But but but I know that what we have just experienced as a community is a thief has come and it's not time for us to to stay in this place and say this is the end of the story because it's not the end of the story. David doesn't even stop with verse four. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. He goes on to say this. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. Jesus told us in John 10:10 that he came that we might have life and have it abundantly. That is only found when you trust him at the table. Do you do you notice that he says you do have enemies? I wish this world could just be like a big kumbaya where we hold hands and we just hug and uh we all get along and politically we all vote the same and we all do the same thing. But really politics is not the solution right now. Jesus is.

And we've got to recognize who the enemy is. I've only said this once this week to a few people, but I want to just say this. I pray the heart comes out of this. I've been critical of the Ben Leine School District. Uh [snorts] we live in a an age where I don't agree with uh everything that organizations do or school districts do or whatnot. But on Thursday, it was no longer about an organization. There was people. Yeah. So, behind anything I've ever been critical of, there was a real person. There was there was a real soul. And I just got to say that on that day, everything was out the window of any type of divisiveness of what should we teach or not teach or what should be

done or not done. In just a moment, there was a clarity. What does God care about? People. Jesus said it in John 3:16, for God so loved the world. He didn't say, "Oh, I but I don't love the liberals. I I don't love the Democrats or the whoever, you know, I I I don't love those people who are completely not like you, not in your tribe." That's not what Jesus says. For God so loved the world. And our mission is to point people to who Jesus is. Because if you believe in him, it doesn't matter where you came from, you get eternal life. Amen. Doesn't matter what family you were born into. It doesn't matter what church you grew up attending or not attending.

Doesn't matter what you've looked like or what color hair you've ever dyed your hair. It doesn't matter what you've done. What matters is is your hope in Jesus. Because there's only one good shepherd. I I was in Rome, Italy last week and I met somebody and uh he was going to church and he's from Albania and he was in Rome and we're talking about Jesus and I just started to get excited because I love Jesus and he made a statement that just made me sick and want to throw up. He just says, "Well, you know, all roads and paths and religions lead to Jesus." And I was just like, "No." Uh, Jesus was explicit. And this is why again I want to come back to this book and I don't mean any exaggeration here.

Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one." This is not an exaggeration. He says, "No one comes to the father except through me." And if you go to John chapter 10 and you start with verse one and you continue to read through verse one and I realize I'm going all over the place, but remember we're working out this sermon together. Okay? So if you see verses come up and go off, that's because they have no clue where I'm going. Uh I just I want to be really clear on that. But if you go back to John 10 is a really interesting chapter and I'm giving you something that you can study when you leave here. Jesus says verse one, "Truly, truly I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a

robber." So anyone that says, "You know what? You can do this without Jesus." They're lying to you. And I'm not saying that you shouldn't love that person. I'm not saying that that God doesn't love that person. But what I am saying is there's only one way. But he who enters by the door of the shepherd of the sheep, to him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them and the sheep follow him for they know his voice. And maybe the reason that the Lord put this on my heart today is if you don't know the voice of Jesus, today is your invitation to know the good shepherd. I'm so grateful that Jesus didn't make it difficult for us to have a relationship with him.

You do not have to go get your life right first to trust and believe in Jesus. The shepherd doesn't say to the sheep, "Hey, go behave yourself and when you're good and you got it figured out, then you could be a part of my flock." No, he lets you be a part of the flock and he'll discipline you. He'll love you and he'll bring you into the sheepfold. And when Jesus offers to us a right relationship with him, he's saying to you, I want you to hear my voice. Verse 14 says this of John 10, I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the father knows me and I know the father and I lay down my life for my sheep. I wonder, do you know Jesus today? Do you know his voice? Do you know the good shepherd?

When you face trials in this world, and I'm going to go back to Psalm 23. When you have enemies, you can be assured that your enemy doesn't get the final word. I've said a phrase over the last three days. Evil doesn't get the final word. Darkness does not get the final word. Death doesn't get the final word because Jesus gets the final word. And you might be questioning right now, well, it doesn't seem like like that. Well, he is preparing the table and it is a banqueting table. It is the free gift of eternal life that's found in Jesus. If there's one thing I am assured of in this life as a pastor, it is this life is precious. It's short.

And when a child loses their life, we all stand in agreement and say that was too short. But the reality is if you live a whole life apart from Jesus and you live to 80 or 90 or 100, that's too short. Jesus loves children. He said it himself. He brought a child into his presence and says, "I want you to be more like the child." He doesn't say, "I want you to be more mature. I want you to have it figured out. You need to be like a child to enter the kingdom of heaven." Jesus, we know his virtue for children because he said if you mess with a child, it would be better that you have a millstone around your neck and thrown into the river because he cares about the vulnerable.

He cares about children because every child is his. Jeremiah says that that you knit me together in my mother's womb. You you know me. Psalm 139, the Lord, he knows you. He knows you. He made you. You're not your mom's idea. You're not your dad's idea. You are God's idea. So when we talk about what's happening right now and our community is devastated, it reflects the heart of God. And the worst part about being a part of something like this, if you've ever experienced a tragedy, is the world is united that this is a tragedy. But this is the surreal part of loss. Life moves on.

And if we're not careful, we're going to move on and not grieve with those who are still grieving. And and not bring people to the healer, people who are still hurting. The shepherd does not abandon us in our worst hour. Jody, we have a sign out in the lobby and we have said this for 16 years. It's all about Jesus. And if there's one thing I just wanted to point you to in in this particular service at this particular time, it's all about Jesus. When David says, "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows." More than likely, David at this point must have been anointed by Samuel to be

king. There would have been olive oil and a horn that would have been poured on his head to say, "You are set apart. You're no longer the same person you used to be. You're going to be the next king of God's people. You've been anointed. You've been set apart for a purpose." And David's saying, "God didn't just do it physically. He actually filled me up so that I can overflow. My cup overflows." And I am believing right now that what 2 Corinthians 1 says is God comforts you so that you would comfort others. This is the sermon that was preached last service. 2 Corinthians chapter 1. The God of all comfort will comfort you and your affliction so that you wouldn't just be comforted, but that you would comfort others.

This is the plan and purpose of God is that there would be an anointing in your life that you would be set apart for a purpose that you wouldn't just live life like ordinary. That you wouldn't just go back to normal. So many times in tragedies, people will say things like this. I just want to go back to the way that it was. It won't ever be the way that it was. So embrace who God is and let him take you on this journey as a shepherd because he knows where he's going. He knows where where where it's best to take you. And you may not know where it is. And I just want to say that's okay. Faith, by the way, is never having it figured out. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for. You could go read Hebrews chapter 11. It's the assurance of things that you've never seen.

God has taken you into a place that you've never been before. But you could be assured of this that he is God. He's a good shepherd. Let me read the last verse in Psalm 23:6. Surely, someone say surely. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. I may not see it in front of me because God is leading me, but right behind me, my past is no longer defined as it used to be defined. I've got goodness and mercy chasing me the rest of my life because God never stops being good. He never stops being merciful. The Bible says that God is rich in mercy. He's not going to run out of mercy. You wake up tomorrow, his mercies are new every morning.

2 Corinthians 1:3 says, "He's the father of mercies." Surely, I could say, even if I can't see what's in front of me, I could be assured that God is chasing me and he's always good. He's always merciful. And one day, I'm going to be in the house of the Lord forever. God's going to restore me for ever. The problem with coming up with a sermon on the spot is you don't know what the ending is, but when you see the keyboardishers, you know it's time to wrap it up. So, uh, thank you, Paxton. Love you.

I've talked about Jesus today. I've pointed you to the good shepherd in Psalm 23 is Jesus in John chapter 10. I can't assume because you're at church that you've surrendered your life to him. I need to let you know that when you believe in Jesus and there's too many people that call themselves Christians, but they don't live like a Christian. They're still watching movies they shouldn't be watching. They're still doing things they shouldn't be doing. They're still looking at things they shouldn't look at. They're still saying things they shouldn't say. They're still behaving a way they shouldn't behave. When you become a sheep in the flock of God, you no longer are the same. You You got to go all in. And when you do, he's going to lead you and he's going to guide you and he's going to take you to places you never thought he would take you. And I'm telling you right now, even though we're

in a dark place, God is going to comfort us. And in the days to come, he's not going to leave us. He's not going to forsake us. Do do I have answers to all that's happened in the last week? No. But I could point you to the one that does. God's sovereign hand never stops. Sovereign means completely in control. God never stops being in control. And I am not saying God did the acts of evil that were done last week. I am saying God's going to work despite the acts of evil. I am saying that he's going to lead you. He's going to get you through this. Listen, today if you came in here and you've never believed in Jesus fully, sold out, surrendered to him, I want to give you that invitation right now. The

Bible says in the book of Romans, if you would just believe in your heart that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and confess with your mouth that he rose from the grave, you will be saved. It's not a matter of how good can you be to get into heaven. That's nowhere in the Bible. The Bible says if you call upon the name of the Lord, you will be saved. And that name is Jesus. And if you want to be saved today, here's what that means. Jesus died on the cross for every single one of your sins. Not some sins, every sin. And when you believe in Jesus, the Bible says you have now been atoned, which means your sins are gone. God has given you his righteousness. And since you have his righteousness, you've received the free gift of eternal life. You get to go to heaven, not because you were good, but God made you

good. He made you right with him. And today, I want to give you that invitation. You are never too young to give your life to Jesus. But be assured for every person that's walked in here, you're never too old. You've never sinned so greatly or no sin was done to you that God can't heal you of, God can't forgive you of. He can forgive you of anything. Some of you need to release your past today and allow goodness and mercy to start chasing you. receive the anointing of God which is the power in the person of the Holy Spirit. So in the seriousness of this moment, would you close your eyes? I ask you to close your eyes not because you need to close your eyes to pray or to be saved, but I ask you to close your eyes for the seriousness of this.

Jesus talked about a literal hell and a literal heaven. And he offers you the free gift today to spend forever with him. in a place that's perfect, full of love, full of light, no darkness. This life is temporary, but eternity is forever. If you want to trust in Jesus today and you want to receive this free gift, would you in a posture of surrender just raise your hand up nice and high and say that yes, I want to be forgiven. [music] I want that hope today. I want to receive the good shepherd. Praise be to God. Praise be to God. This changes everything. See, the Bible says you go from being an orphan to an adopted child of God, a beloved child of the most high. Praise

God. Praise God. Praise God. Yes. Anyone else today? All over there's been hands. Just raise your hand and say, "Yes, I want Jesus to be my good shepherd, to lead me, to guide me, to provide for me, to comfort me." Anyone else today know that they need this savior. Don't wait for another day. This is your moment. Praise God. Anyone else right where you are? See, we woke up today after sleeping, but God, the Bible says in the book of Zephaniah, he's been singing over you. He quiets you with his love.

Today was a different type of church service. But I want to tell you, God never changes. Nothing catches him off guard. He's never late. He's never early. By trusting in him, it changes everything. Is there anyone that didn't raise their hand that says, "Today, my heart is beating. My stomach is got butterflies." That's the Holy Spirit saying, "Come on, quit doing this on your own." I've seen hands all over and I just don't want to miss if there's anyone else that says, "I want to join the family. I want to be born again. I want to start a new life with Jesus." Is there anybody else here today? Well, to the many who have said yes, and I'm so proud of you for raising your hands, I want to pray with you.

Prayer is talking to God. It's listening to God. He's not asking for you to say the right words or to do the right things. He just He just wants all of you. You could pray anywhere at any time. God's bigger than your questions. He's bigger than your doubts and your your pasts. And he will give you a future and a hope. So, I want you to join with me in prayer right now. I'm going to say some short phrases and I want you just to repeat after me. It's not a prayer that saves you. It's Jesus. So, you have to believe this in your heart. And if you do, from this day forward, you are a child of God. You are saved. Now, you got to keep coming back to the Lord and keep praying for all those that believe.

Let's join with them. Lord Jesus, Lord Jesus, I believe in you. I believe in you. Forgive me of my sins. Forgive me of my s. Today I trust in you. Today I trust You are my good shepherd. You are my good. Lead me. And guide me. Comfort me. Comfort. Give me hope. Give me hope in Jesus name. in Jesus name. Amen and amen and amen. Well friends uh I want to just thank you for coming today. Praise God. [applause] I want to I want to just ask before we leave. I I did this last service and it it seems appropriate today. Uh we we're going to have a prayer team right up here at the altar. If you need prayer for anything, even if you don't know what the prayer is, you're not alone.

Asking for prayer is not failure. It's actually growing your faith. The Bible says we need to encourage one another. We need to build one another up. We need to pray for one another. So, if you need prayer, there's going to be a prayer team right up here. Even if it's unrelated to all that's been happening, if you need a miracle, a provision, God loves you and he sees you. The promise of God is that this world is not the end of the story. God's going to restore all that's wrong and he's going to make it right. And that's why we trust in Jesus. So, if you would stand to your feet, we're going to close with the reading of Revelation 21:4 and 5. I want you to read it out loud with me. It's a promise that when we turn and trust in God's word, we can look forward to a future and a hope where God's going to restore all things and make it right. As we get to [music] end of this verse, if you need prayer, you can come forward. If you don't need prayer, would you join us

this Thursday at pursuit night? It's one hour of power of prayer and worship. It's what we need right now. So let's read this out loud together. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. And he who was seated on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." Also he said write this down for these words are trustworthy and true. God bless you all.