1 00:00:00,333 --> 00:00:01,625 Howdy, pastor Mark here. 2 00:00:01,667 --> 00:00:04,125 Let me just take a few moments of your time 3 00:00:04,167 --> 00:00:07,000 before we get into the latest sermon in Ephesians. 4 00:00:07,042 --> 00:00:09,875 I want to tell you about what's coming up for Easter. 5 00:00:09,958 --> 00:00:14,708 We will have 42 services across 14 of our churches 6 00:00:14,792 --> 00:00:20,167 scattered across 4 states and we'll also be live-streaming everything online. 7 00:00:20,667 --> 00:00:24,792 We only do this historically once a year and that's on Easter. 8 00:00:24,833 --> 00:00:27,833 And so I'll be preaching live at Mars Hill downtown 9 00:00:27,875 --> 00:00:32,333 and we'll be simulcasting to all of our locations as well as the internet. 10 00:00:32,375 --> 00:00:36,625 You can go to marshill.com/easter to find out more 11 00:00:36,667 --> 00:00:40,833 and to register to watch what God will be doing on Easter Sunday. 12 00:00:40,875 --> 00:00:43,708 And I know many of you are part of Mars Hill Global 13 00:00:43,792 --> 00:00:47,125 you pray for our chuch, some of you have even given to our church 14 00:00:47,167 --> 00:00:49,917 and the extended mission and ministry of Mars Hill. 15 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:53,667 I wanna say thank you for that and before we get into Ephesians now, 16 00:00:53,750 --> 00:00:55,917 I want to introduce you to Pastor Sutton Turner, 17 00:00:56,000 --> 00:00:58,667 my friend, our excecutive pastor, to let you know 18 00:00:58,750 --> 00:01:02,042 some of the things that your generosity has been accomplishing. 19 00:01:03,833 --> 00:01:05,375 Hi there Mars Hill Church 20 00:01:05,458 --> 00:01:08,375 and the extended family of Mars Hill Global. 21 00:01:08,458 --> 00:01:11,667 I'm pastor Sutton Turner here in Dilla, Ethiopia 22 00:01:11,750 --> 00:01:13,667 and I wanted to take a moment and explain 23 00:01:13,708 --> 00:01:17,667 what the extended family of Mars Hill Global is. 24 00:01:17,750 --> 00:01:21,667 I was a podcaster when I was living in the Middle East 25 00:01:21,750 --> 00:01:25,500 and consuming those podcasts every week, 26 00:01:25,542 --> 00:01:29,500 participating, really one way, from Mars Hill Church. 27 00:01:29,542 --> 00:01:31,292 I was really a consumer. 28 00:01:31,333 --> 00:01:32,833 So what we're doing is setting up 29 00:01:32,917 --> 00:01:36,542 the extended family of Mars Hill Global and saying, 30 00:01:36,625 --> 00:01:42,375 "Come, be a part of what Jesus Christ is doing in and through our church." 31 00:01:42,458 --> 00:01:44,292 So what does Mars Hill Global do? 32 00:01:44,333 --> 00:01:49,500 Well, Mars Hill Global is doing and participating in church planting 33 00:01:49,542 --> 00:01:51,792 here in Ethiopia and also in India. 34 00:01:51,833 --> 00:01:54,750 Also, we're doing church planting in the United States as well. 35 00:01:54,833 --> 00:01:56,958 We're doing all of that because in Mars Hill Church 36 00:01:57,333 --> 00:02:01,833 we believe that Jesus has called us to make disciples and plant churches. 37 00:02:01,917 --> 00:02:05,750 So I want to ask you to be a part. I want to as you to be a part 38 00:02:05,833 --> 00:02:07,583 of the extended family of Mars Hill Global. 39 00:02:07,667 --> 00:02:08,958 Sign up today. 40 00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:11,667 Become a member of the extended family, 41 00:02:11,750 --> 00:02:14,292 start participating online with us, 42 00:02:14,333 --> 00:02:16,833 and let's see what Jesus Christ is going to do, 43 00:02:16,917 --> 00:02:19,833 not only in the United States, but to the ends of the Earth. 44 00:02:20,542 --> 00:02:33,458 [music] 45 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:42,625 [laughing] I'm Joshua. 46 00:02:42,667 --> 00:02:44,417 I'm Spencer. Hey, I'm Jonathan. 47 00:02:44,500 --> 00:02:46,208 I'm a lawyer and I'm a mom. 48 00:02:46,292 --> 00:02:47,917 I'm a colorist in the fashion industry. 49 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:49,625 I don't know how to not smile. 50 00:02:49,667 --> 00:02:51,000 I am a strategist. 51 00:02:51,083 --> 00:02:52,500 I work in commercial real estate. 52 00:02:52,583 --> 00:02:54,208 Yeah, I'm just trying to figure out 53 00:02:54,292 --> 00:02:55,708 how to phrase my work. 54 00:02:55,792 --> 00:02:57,917 People are always coming up to me with, like, 55 00:02:58,000 --> 00:02:59,333 creative ideas. 56 00:02:59,375 --> 00:03:02,375 I carry around a baseball that reminds me of my dad. 57 00:03:02,458 --> 00:03:07,000 I lost my home, my car, my retirement. 58 00:03:07,042 --> 00:03:09,792 Most days look pretty, kind of crazy. 59 00:03:09,833 --> 00:03:12,167 [laughing] 60 00:03:12,250 --> 00:03:14,500 Being a wholesaler, we have a big warehouse space. 61 00:03:14,542 --> 00:03:16,167 I like to think through things. 62 00:03:16,250 --> 00:03:17,875 I got a tattoo of a tree. 63 00:03:17,958 --> 00:03:19,292 I love--I love that. 64 00:03:19,333 --> 00:03:21,917 Who do you think-- Who do you think you are? 65 00:03:24,333 --> 00:03:26,583 Father God, I thank you for Mars Hill Church, 66 00:03:26,667 --> 00:03:31,375 that 17 years ago this church did not exist, 67 00:03:31,458 --> 00:03:34,792 but you saw what you wanted to do. 68 00:03:34,833 --> 00:03:37,833 And Lord God, I thank you that over the years, 69 00:03:37,875 --> 00:03:41,583 you have been exceedingly and continually faithful 70 00:03:41,667 --> 00:03:43,625 to us as a people. 71 00:03:43,667 --> 00:03:46,875 God, you have done more than we have asked for. 72 00:03:46,958 --> 00:03:50,708 You have provided things that we didn't even know that we needed, 73 00:03:50,792 --> 00:03:54,417 and you've brought us leaders at just the right time with 74 00:03:54,500 --> 00:03:58,500 gifts that we did not have so that, through them, 75 00:03:58,542 --> 00:04:01,667 we could do things that otherwise we could not do. 76 00:04:01,708 --> 00:04:03,750 God, I thank you that the times that 77 00:04:03,833 --> 00:04:05,583 we've made mistakes, or we've failed, 78 00:04:05,667 --> 00:04:07,583 or we've had to learn the hard way, 79 00:04:07,667 --> 00:04:10,542 that you've been gracious enough to get us through those places 80 00:04:10,625 --> 00:04:13,583 and help us to continue to learn and to grow. 81 00:04:13,667 --> 00:04:17,875 God, I thank you today that there are 14 Mars Hill churches 82 00:04:17,958 --> 00:04:20,875 that comprise our big, extended family. 83 00:04:20,958 --> 00:04:23,000 I thank you, Lord God, with Easter coming, 84 00:04:23,042 --> 00:04:26,583 we're going to have 42 services, and we pray for over 85 00:04:26,667 --> 00:04:30,667 20,000 people, and we pray for hundreds of people to meet 86 00:04:30,750 --> 00:04:34,375 Jesus, and get baptized while we cheer, 87 00:04:34,458 --> 00:04:37,333 and I pray they would be friends, and families, 88 00:04:37,375 --> 00:04:40,625 and neighbors, and coworkers of the people who call 89 00:04:40,667 --> 00:04:42,708 Mars Hill Church home. 90 00:04:42,792 --> 00:04:44,708 God, I thank you that when we started, 91 00:04:44,792 --> 00:04:46,417 we didn't have any children's ministry, 92 00:04:46,500 --> 00:04:51,208 now we have a few thousand kids every single weekend. 93 00:04:51,292 --> 00:04:55,208 God, I pray for the lead pastors, I pray for their love, 94 00:04:55,292 --> 00:04:58,875 and care, and protection, and oversight of our churches, 95 00:04:58,958 --> 00:05:00,875 and their affection for our people. 96 00:05:00,958 --> 00:05:03,292 God, I pray for Pastor Dave and Pastor Sutton, 97 00:05:03,333 --> 00:05:05,083 the executive elders along with me. 98 00:05:05,167 --> 00:05:08,833 Please send us the Holy Spirit of wisdom continually so that 99 00:05:08,917 --> 00:05:11,500 we might lead the church in the direction that you, 100 00:05:11,542 --> 00:05:13,958 Lord Jesus, have for us. 101 00:05:14,000 --> 00:05:16,750 God, I pray for the other elders, more than a hundred, 102 00:05:16,833 --> 00:05:18,958 as well as all the men in the process. 103 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:22,083 Many of them are unpaid and they're giving a lot of time, 104 00:05:22,167 --> 00:05:24,667 and energy, and effort beyond their job 105 00:05:24,750 --> 00:05:27,958 and beyond their family to serve our church family. 106 00:05:28,000 --> 00:05:31,167 I pray for a lot of grace and encouragement on them. 107 00:05:31,250 --> 00:05:33,875 I pray as well, Lord God, for all the deacons, 108 00:05:33,958 --> 00:05:36,083 the army of deacons. 109 00:05:36,167 --> 00:05:37,917 I pray for the Community Group leaders 110 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:39,500 who, every week, 111 00:05:39,583 --> 00:05:42,333 help us to shepherd the flock, and the Redemption Group leaders 112 00:05:42,375 --> 00:05:45,000 who pour themselves out to help those who are struggling, 113 00:05:45,083 --> 00:05:47,125 and suffering, and hurting. 114 00:05:47,167 --> 00:05:50,167 God, I thank you for the people who serve on Sundays. 115 00:05:50,250 --> 00:05:53,375 They usually work 5 or 6 days a week at their job, 116 00:05:53,458 --> 00:05:56,208 and they come in to serve the church as volunteers 117 00:05:56,292 --> 00:06:00,042 with a smile on their face and with joy in their heart. 118 00:06:00,125 --> 00:06:03,167 And God, I pray for us as a people, that we would never, 119 00:06:03,250 --> 00:06:07,167 ever, ever lose sight of the wondrous grace it is 120 00:06:07,250 --> 00:06:10,667 to have a Father who loves us, and to be part of a family, 121 00:06:10,750 --> 00:06:14,333 and to have an identity in Christ that allows us to talk to 122 00:06:14,417 --> 00:06:17,792 our Dad knowing that his ear is always open for us 123 00:06:17,833 --> 00:06:20,667 and his heart is always inclined toward us. 124 00:06:20,708 --> 00:06:23,333 And God, I thank you that I always have an opportunity 125 00:06:23,417 --> 00:06:25,875 to freely teach the Bible at Mars Hill Church. 126 00:06:25,958 --> 00:06:28,375 Restrictions aren't placed upon me, 127 00:06:28,458 --> 00:06:31,333 and a clock does not in any way inhibit me, 128 00:06:31,417 --> 00:06:33,542 and I get to just teach the Bible, 129 00:06:33,625 --> 00:06:36,833 and I thank you for the people who give me that great honor 130 00:06:36,917 --> 00:06:39,792 of being their pastor and teaching the Scriptures. 131 00:06:39,833 --> 00:06:43,625 And Holy Spirit, I pray for grace on them now as they hear, 132 00:06:43,667 --> 00:06:46,333 and grace on me as I have an opportunity to teach. 133 00:06:46,375 --> 00:06:50,708 And we ask for this in Jesus' good name, amen. 134 00:06:50,792 --> 00:06:53,083 People who love their church, 135 00:06:53,167 --> 00:06:55,833 they get on their knees and they pray for it, 136 00:06:55,875 --> 00:06:59,000 and that's exactly where we find ourselves 137 00:06:59,083 --> 00:07:00,958 in Ephesians today. 138 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:04,958 Paul is on his knees, praying for his church. 139 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:08,792 Like me, he was the founding pastor of that church, 140 00:07:08,833 --> 00:07:12,667 and he loved those people, and he couldn't be with them. 141 00:07:12,708 --> 00:07:16,000 He was in Rome and the church was in Ephesus. 142 00:07:16,042 --> 00:07:19,250 And he was in Rome because he kept talking about Jesus, 143 00:07:19,333 --> 00:07:20,875 and so they imprisoned him. 144 00:07:20,958 --> 00:07:24,042 And I've not been there, it's on my bucket list to get there, 145 00:07:24,125 --> 00:07:27,375 but from what I understand from friends of mine who have visited 146 00:07:27,458 --> 00:07:30,083 what is supposed to be Paul's jail cell, 147 00:07:30,167 --> 00:07:32,500 it's basically a hole in the ground. 148 00:07:32,542 --> 00:07:34,375 You can envision this. 149 00:07:34,458 --> 00:07:37,625 And there's basically grates, multiple men stacked upon 150 00:07:37,667 --> 00:07:40,375 one another in the hole. 151 00:07:40,458 --> 00:07:45,625 No bathrooms, no running water, no fresh food, no light, 152 00:07:45,667 --> 00:07:48,292 and the further you are in the hole, 153 00:07:48,333 --> 00:07:50,875 the worse it is for you because of the obvious. 154 00:07:50,958 --> 00:07:54,125 Anything that happens above you falls on you, 155 00:07:54,167 --> 00:07:55,833 and with no bathroom and such, 156 00:07:55,875 --> 00:07:58,625 it's a pretty grotesque place to be. 157 00:07:58,667 --> 00:08:01,500 Well, it seems to be that that is exactly where Paul 158 00:08:01,542 --> 00:08:03,292 finds himself. 159 00:08:03,333 --> 00:08:07,250 He's somewhere down near the bottom of that hole, 160 00:08:07,333 --> 00:08:11,792 it's dark, it's cold, it's dirty, it's cramped, 161 00:08:11,833 --> 00:08:14,042 his body is broken. 162 00:08:14,125 --> 00:08:16,292 He's a man who's been beaten, shipwrecked, homeless, 163 00:08:16,333 --> 00:08:18,083 left for dead. 164 00:08:18,167 --> 00:08:21,042 You can look at his story as one that it is miraculous 165 00:08:21,125 --> 00:08:22,667 that he's even alive. 166 00:08:22,750 --> 00:08:25,333 He says he bears the marks of Jesus on his body. 167 00:08:25,417 --> 00:08:28,667 He's suffered a lot in his love for Christ, 168 00:08:28,750 --> 00:08:32,083 so much so that on one occasion they actually thought 169 00:08:32,167 --> 00:08:33,792 he was dead. 170 00:08:33,833 --> 00:08:36,458 A mob attacked him, threw him outside of the city 171 00:08:36,500 --> 00:08:38,792 thinking he was dead, and then he was, 172 00:08:38,833 --> 00:08:41,292 in fact, unconscious or God brought him back to life, 173 00:08:41,333 --> 00:08:44,000 and he got back up and came back into the city 174 00:08:44,083 --> 00:08:45,417 to preach some more. 175 00:08:45,500 --> 00:08:46,833 That's Paul. 176 00:08:46,875 --> 00:08:49,000 So you can imagine this man and how hard 177 00:08:49,042 --> 00:08:51,708 it would be for him to get down on his knees. 178 00:08:51,792 --> 00:08:53,917 That's not an easy thing for him to do, 179 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:56,417 but it's certainly a humble thing for him to do. 180 00:08:56,500 --> 00:08:57,917 And he's praying. 181 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:00,792 He's praying for his church, and he's praying for his people, 182 00:09:00,833 --> 00:09:04,792 and he's praying for the forward progress of the gospel of Jesus. 183 00:09:04,833 --> 00:09:07,042 And so as we get into this section, 184 00:09:07,125 --> 00:09:09,792 "I Am Heard" in Ephesians 3:14-21, 185 00:09:09,833 --> 00:09:12,083 it's actually a prayer. 186 00:09:12,167 --> 00:09:15,000 It's a prayer from Paul in jail that he is writing down 187 00:09:15,042 --> 00:09:17,000 and sending to his church, 188 00:09:17,042 --> 00:09:19,667 and a lot of Ephesians involves prayer. 189 00:09:19,750 --> 00:09:21,792 Roughly half of the book is prayer. 190 00:09:21,833 --> 00:09:24,750 It's prayers, prayer requests, prayer reports. 191 00:09:24,833 --> 00:09:26,792 They're woven through the entire book, 192 00:09:26,833 --> 00:09:29,750 and the big idea is that there is no such thing 193 00:09:29,833 --> 00:09:31,792 as a faithful Christian church 194 00:09:31,833 --> 00:09:35,042 without a praying Christian people, that prayer 195 00:09:35,125 --> 00:09:38,792 is what sustains the forward progress of the health, 196 00:09:38,833 --> 00:09:41,000 and growth, and life of the church. 197 00:09:41,042 --> 00:09:43,208 So, Paul's praying all the time for the church, 198 00:09:43,292 --> 00:09:46,625 and I need you to know that I'm praying for you all the time, 199 00:09:46,667 --> 00:09:49,000 that the leaders are praying for you all the time, 200 00:09:49,083 --> 00:09:50,500 that prayer is exceedingly important. 201 00:09:50,583 --> 00:09:52,083 And I would just ask you, 202 00:09:52,167 --> 00:09:55,083 not out of guilt but out of gladness, 203 00:09:55,167 --> 00:09:57,625 would you please be praying for our church? 204 00:09:57,667 --> 00:09:59,667 Would you please be praying for our church? 205 00:09:59,750 --> 00:10:02,167 Pray individually every day. 206 00:10:02,250 --> 00:10:06,083 Pray if you are married and/or have a family every day, 207 00:10:06,167 --> 00:10:08,125 maybe even over dinner time. 208 00:10:08,167 --> 00:10:12,375 In your Community Group, pray for our church and pray for all 209 00:10:12,458 --> 00:10:15,625 of the different locations that Mars Hill Church is in. 210 00:10:15,667 --> 00:10:19,208 And ultimately, I want you to see how Paul prays for 211 00:10:19,292 --> 00:10:22,500 his church, and so I've got an acronym for you, 212 00:10:22,583 --> 00:10:28,208 and we're going to walk through P-R-A-Y-E-R. 213 00:10:28,292 --> 00:10:30,208 I did it, I spelled the whole word. 214 00:10:30,292 --> 00:10:32,208 Okay, so here's where we're going to go. 215 00:10:32,292 --> 00:10:34,083 We're going to start with this. 216 00:10:34,167 --> 00:10:36,792 He says and he teaches us that prayer is, 217 00:10:36,833 --> 00:10:38,667 first of all, personal. 218 00:10:38,708 --> 00:10:41,667 Ephesians 3:14, "For this reason I bow my knees." 219 00:10:41,708 --> 00:10:43,833 So, Paul is saying, "I'm praying." 220 00:10:43,875 --> 00:10:45,333 It's a personal thing. 221 00:10:45,375 --> 00:10:47,833 It's something that you need to decide that you will, 222 00:10:47,917 --> 00:10:49,333 in fact, do. 223 00:10:49,417 --> 00:10:52,125 And sometimes in the Bible, people sit to pray, 224 00:10:52,167 --> 00:10:55,417 sometimes they stand to pray, sometimes they're lying in bed 225 00:10:55,500 --> 00:10:58,208 and they pray, and here we see that the Apostle Paul 226 00:10:58,292 --> 00:10:59,708 is kneeling in prayer. 227 00:10:59,792 --> 00:11:02,875 Kneeling in prayer was actually fairly uncommon in the Bible, 228 00:11:02,958 --> 00:11:05,125 but you think about it, it really is-- 229 00:11:05,167 --> 00:11:08,292 it's an act of surrender. 230 00:11:08,333 --> 00:11:10,125 What happens in war? 231 00:11:10,167 --> 00:11:12,375 If you surrender, you get down on your knees. 232 00:11:12,458 --> 00:11:14,792 Let's say you're a criminal who's caught in the act, 233 00:11:14,833 --> 00:11:16,292 you get down on your knees. 234 00:11:16,333 --> 00:11:19,000 It's an act of surrender, it's an act of humility, 235 00:11:19,042 --> 00:11:21,917 and it shows the disposition of the heart through 236 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:24,000 the direction of the body. 237 00:11:24,042 --> 00:11:26,833 But you can pray sitting down, you could pray standing up, 238 00:11:26,875 --> 00:11:29,167 you can pray walking, you could pray lying down, 239 00:11:29,250 --> 00:11:32,292 you could pray on your knees, but might I submit to you 240 00:11:32,333 --> 00:11:35,417 that it's good sometimes for us to get down on our knees in 241 00:11:35,500 --> 00:11:39,042 a humble position of submission and surrender and pray-- 242 00:11:39,125 --> 00:11:40,833 and pray. 243 00:11:40,875 --> 00:11:43,333 And that's exactly what Paul is modeling here for us. 244 00:11:43,417 --> 00:11:45,417 I'll tell you a couple things about prayer. 245 00:11:45,500 --> 00:11:47,667 Prayer includes silent prayer because God knows your thoughts. 246 00:11:47,708 --> 00:11:50,667 And for some of you, you know this, but some of you, 247 00:11:50,708 --> 00:11:52,042 this is brand new. 248 00:11:52,125 --> 00:11:54,458 A prayer can be silent because God knows your thoughts. 249 00:11:54,500 --> 00:11:57,167 It can be out loud where you're just talking to God. 250 00:11:57,208 --> 00:11:58,917 It can be alone, all by yourself. 251 00:11:59,000 --> 00:12:01,375 It could be in a group with other people. 252 00:12:01,458 --> 00:12:04,000 Prayer can include journaling as you're thinking it out. 253 00:12:04,083 --> 00:12:05,708 And some of you are like that, 254 00:12:05,792 --> 00:12:07,583 you like to journal out your thoughts. 255 00:12:07,667 --> 00:12:10,208 It's a form of prayer; God's there with you. 256 00:12:10,292 --> 00:12:12,208 It's a way of communicating. 257 00:12:12,292 --> 00:12:14,208 Prayer also includes singing. 258 00:12:14,292 --> 00:12:18,625 My youngest daughter Alexie is 9 and she loves Jesus, 259 00:12:18,667 --> 00:12:21,875 and part of her connection with him is singing, 260 00:12:21,958 --> 00:12:26,000 so she's always making up songs, and that's how she prays to God. 261 00:12:26,083 --> 00:12:28,125 And sometimes when she memorizes Scripture, 262 00:12:28,167 --> 00:12:31,292 she'll put it to song so that she can sing it to God. 263 00:12:31,333 --> 00:12:34,417 So for her, I'm convinced that song is a language of prayer 264 00:12:34,500 --> 00:12:37,333 for her, and God accepts all of those, 265 00:12:37,375 --> 00:12:39,833 and he welcomes all of those. 266 00:12:39,875 --> 00:12:43,375 And every time we pray to God, he always answers our prayers. 267 00:12:43,458 --> 00:12:44,917 Now, some people will say, 268 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:47,500 "Yeah, I prayed and God did not answer my prayer." 269 00:12:47,542 --> 00:12:49,417 Yes, he did, he answered it, "No." 270 00:12:49,500 --> 00:12:51,417 He answered it, "No," okay? 271 00:12:51,500 --> 00:12:54,417 Sometimes God answers prayer, "Yes," 272 00:12:54,500 --> 00:12:56,917 sometimes God answers prayer, "No," 273 00:12:57,000 --> 00:12:59,500 and sometimes God answers prayer, "Later." 274 00:12:59,583 --> 00:13:01,083 Those are his three answers. 275 00:13:01,167 --> 00:13:05,000 but God hears and answers every single prayer. 276 00:13:05,042 --> 00:13:08,083 And some things that happen in prayer, number one, 277 00:13:08,167 --> 00:13:11,208 I think prayer is primarily to change us. 278 00:13:11,292 --> 00:13:13,667 I don't think it's always primarily to get God 279 00:13:13,750 --> 00:13:15,417 to do something. 280 00:13:15,500 --> 00:13:17,958 It's not like God's in heaven and resistant, 281 00:13:18,000 --> 00:13:20,250 and if you yell at him, he'll do it. 282 00:13:20,333 --> 00:13:22,250 You don't need to make God be good 283 00:13:22,333 --> 00:13:24,958 and you don't need to move God to be good. 284 00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:28,542 And sometimes what prayer is is prayer is us talking to God 285 00:13:28,625 --> 00:13:31,000 so that our will aligns with God 286 00:13:31,083 --> 00:13:33,458 so that we're the one who changes. 287 00:13:33,500 --> 00:13:37,125 This is why God sometimes tells us in the Bible to pray for 288 00:13:37,167 --> 00:13:40,542 our enemies, so that our hearts wouldn't get embittered toward 289 00:13:40,625 --> 00:13:44,542 them, that we'd still have love and affection toward them. 290 00:13:44,625 --> 00:13:46,833 The prayer there is not necessarily just to change 291 00:13:46,917 --> 00:13:50,667 our enemy, but it's to change our attitude toward our enemy. 292 00:13:50,708 --> 00:13:52,833 And so prayer is oftentimes to change us. 293 00:13:52,875 --> 00:13:54,833 How many of you, there's something you really, 294 00:13:54,917 --> 00:13:56,958 really wanted, you started praying about it, 295 00:13:57,000 --> 00:13:59,542 and you're like, "Gosh, God's changing my heart on this. 296 00:13:59,625 --> 00:14:02,125 "I was hoping that wouldn't happen. 297 00:14:02,167 --> 00:14:04,833 "I was hoping he would just give me what I want, 298 00:14:04,875 --> 00:14:06,708 "but instead he's changing what I want. 299 00:14:06,792 --> 00:14:08,333 He's changing me." 300 00:14:08,375 --> 00:14:11,000 So number one, sometimes prayer just changes us. 301 00:14:11,083 --> 00:14:15,000 Number two, sometimes prayer does cause God to act. 302 00:14:15,083 --> 00:14:18,542 He will hear and in love he will respond and he will act, 303 00:14:18,625 --> 00:14:23,917 and so sometimes, yes, prayer is to have God respond and to act. 304 00:14:24,000 --> 00:14:27,333 And I'll tell you some things that prayer does as well. 305 00:14:27,417 --> 00:14:30,667 It keeps us from grumbling and gossiping. 306 00:14:30,708 --> 00:14:33,750 Grumbling is when we're unhappy and we're just sort of leaking 307 00:14:33,833 --> 00:14:35,458 and talking about it. 308 00:14:35,500 --> 00:14:37,458 I've certainly been guilty of this. 309 00:14:37,500 --> 00:14:40,333 Paul here has a lot that he could be grumbling about. 310 00:14:40,417 --> 00:14:42,417 "I'm in jail again, I'm impoverished again, 311 00:14:42,500 --> 00:14:44,625 there's two guys above me again." 312 00:14:44,667 --> 00:14:46,625 There's a lot he could be grumbling about. 313 00:14:46,667 --> 00:14:48,750 He's not grumbling, instead he's praying. 314 00:14:48,833 --> 00:14:50,708 And so the key is this, friend: 315 00:14:50,792 --> 00:14:53,333 as we hit difficult circumstances in life, 316 00:14:53,375 --> 00:14:56,250 and few of us will hit circumstances this difficult, 317 00:14:56,333 --> 00:14:59,042 we can either be oraying or grumbling. 318 00:14:59,125 --> 00:15:01,417 Grumbling is where we leak, and we complain, 319 00:15:01,500 --> 00:15:04,833 and our attitude is sour, and our disposition is dour. 320 00:15:04,875 --> 00:15:06,708 And prayer is where we're talking about 321 00:15:06,792 --> 00:15:08,292 the exact same things, 322 00:15:08,333 --> 00:15:11,167 but we're talking to God about them and working them out 323 00:15:11,250 --> 00:15:12,833 in relationship with him. 324 00:15:12,875 --> 00:15:15,833 So what I don't want you to do is pretend that everything's 325 00:15:15,875 --> 00:15:17,833 okay, and everything's fine, and you're not struggling, 326 00:15:17,917 --> 00:15:19,833 you're not hurting, you're not suffering, everything's great. 327 00:15:19,917 --> 00:15:21,250 I'm not saying that. 328 00:15:21,333 --> 00:15:23,458 I'm saying be honest, but be honest with him, 329 00:15:23,500 --> 00:15:26,167 because he can handle it, and work it out with him. 330 00:15:26,208 --> 00:15:28,167 And once you've worked it out with him, 331 00:15:28,208 --> 00:15:30,542 maybe then you can talk to other people about it. 332 00:15:30,625 --> 00:15:32,042 And that's what is happening here. 333 00:15:32,125 --> 00:15:34,250 Paul's been in his jail cell talking through his 334 00:15:34,333 --> 00:15:36,667 circumstances with the Lord, working it out with the Lord, 335 00:15:36,708 --> 00:15:39,167 and then he writes this letter to the church. 336 00:15:39,208 --> 00:15:42,208 He allows others to get a window into where his heart's at 337 00:15:42,292 --> 00:15:45,250 after he's prayed it through with the Lord. 338 00:15:45,333 --> 00:15:47,125 Who do you talk to first? 339 00:15:47,167 --> 00:15:48,542 Who do you call first? 340 00:15:48,625 --> 00:15:51,833 Is your first instinct, "Text them, call them, e-mail them"? 341 00:15:51,875 --> 00:15:54,333 Make sure it's always him. 342 00:15:54,417 --> 00:15:56,917 First person we've got to talk to is the Lord. 343 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:01,417 It keeps us from grumbling, it also keeps us from gossiping, 344 00:16:01,500 --> 00:16:04,167 and gossip is when you talk about someone 345 00:16:04,250 --> 00:16:06,333 rather than to them. 346 00:16:06,375 --> 00:16:09,500 And you may be frustrated, not know what to say or to do, 347 00:16:09,583 --> 00:16:11,000 or you're annoyed. 348 00:16:11,042 --> 00:16:13,333 Let God be your lightning rod in prayer. 349 00:16:13,375 --> 00:16:14,917 You read this in the Psalms. 350 00:16:15,000 --> 00:16:17,125 The Psalms are, in large part, about prayer. 351 00:16:17,167 --> 00:16:19,667 And a lightning rod--as you know, when a storm comes, 352 00:16:19,708 --> 00:16:21,542 a lightning rod grounds out the storm. 353 00:16:21,625 --> 00:16:23,542 Otherwise, things blow up. 354 00:16:23,625 --> 00:16:25,917 Let's say there's a storm in your life 355 00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:27,708 and you're really frustrated. 356 00:16:27,792 --> 00:16:29,333 Prayer grounds it out. 357 00:16:29,417 --> 00:16:31,750 Say, "God, I've got to talk to you about this. 358 00:16:31,833 --> 00:16:33,667 I'm really frustrated, this is really hard." 359 00:16:33,708 --> 00:16:36,667 Talk it out, pray it out, sing it out, think it out, 360 00:16:36,708 --> 00:16:38,542 worship it out, work it out. 361 00:16:38,625 --> 00:16:40,458 Let the Lord be the lightning rod. 362 00:16:40,500 --> 00:16:43,333 Don't blow up on your friend, don't blow up on your neighbor, 363 00:16:43,417 --> 00:16:46,458 don't blow up on your kids, don't blow up on your spouse. 364 00:16:46,500 --> 00:16:48,625 Let the Lord ground it out in prayer. 365 00:16:48,667 --> 00:16:51,333 There's a lot here that Paul could be very angry 366 00:16:51,375 --> 00:16:53,250 and frustrated about. 367 00:16:53,333 --> 00:16:56,750 He can't be with his church, he's serving Jesus, 368 00:16:56,833 --> 00:17:00,833 he's not broken the law, he's being punished again, 369 00:17:00,875 --> 00:17:03,833 and he could die in prison for all he knows. 370 00:17:03,875 --> 00:17:06,500 He's single, he doesn't have a wife to comfort him, 371 00:17:06,583 --> 00:17:10,375 he doesn't have children, he's a lonely, broken, 372 00:17:10,458 --> 00:17:16,875 older man who is in prison again facing a potential death 373 00:17:16,958 --> 00:17:19,208 just because of the hardness of his life. 374 00:17:19,292 --> 00:17:22,667 But in prayer, he's grounded it out with the Lord so he can then 375 00:17:22,708 --> 00:17:25,167 have a different attitude and disposition toward 376 00:17:25,208 --> 00:17:28,833 the people that he is writing to and to us today. 377 00:17:28,875 --> 00:17:31,333 So, first of all, prayer is personal. 378 00:17:31,417 --> 00:17:33,250 He says, "I bow my knees." 379 00:17:33,333 --> 00:17:34,708 He says, "I'm praying. 380 00:17:34,792 --> 00:17:37,042 "I'm praying all the time, I'm praying a lot, 381 00:17:37,125 --> 00:17:39,542 "I'm surrendered to God, and I'm talking it all through, 382 00:17:39,625 --> 00:17:41,417 and I'm praying for you." 383 00:17:41,500 --> 00:17:43,750 His second point is that prayer is relational. 384 00:17:43,833 --> 00:17:46,917 Ephesians 3:14-15, "For this reason I bow my knees before 385 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:49,458 "the Father, from whom every family in heaven 386 00:17:49,500 --> 00:17:51,542 and on earth is named." 387 00:17:51,625 --> 00:17:55,125 Two things here: there's a family and a Father. 388 00:17:55,167 --> 00:17:59,500 There's a family and a Father, and the family is the church. 389 00:17:59,583 --> 00:18:02,333 I really need you to understand this, Mars Hill. 390 00:18:02,375 --> 00:18:04,333 We're a family. 391 00:18:04,375 --> 00:18:06,708 We're a family, and what happens sometimes, 392 00:18:06,792 --> 00:18:08,792 particularly in the Western world, 393 00:18:08,833 --> 00:18:11,833 church is viewed as a purveyor of religious goods and services, 394 00:18:11,875 --> 00:18:15,208 and then people treat the church like it's a business 395 00:18:15,292 --> 00:18:16,917 and they become customers, 396 00:18:17,000 --> 00:18:20,042 and consumers, and critics, and complainers. 397 00:18:20,125 --> 00:18:22,208 We're not a business, we're a family. 398 00:18:22,292 --> 00:18:24,958 Now, family has revenue, family has expenses, 399 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:27,000 family has a business side to it, 400 00:18:27,083 --> 00:18:29,833 and we certainly do and want to be good stewards, 401 00:18:29,917 --> 00:18:33,750 but how many of you pray for your grocery store every day? 402 00:18:33,833 --> 00:18:35,833 You all chuckle. 403 00:18:35,917 --> 00:18:37,750 "Lord, thank you for the grocery store. 404 00:18:37,833 --> 00:18:39,333 "I love the grocery store. 405 00:18:39,417 --> 00:18:42,042 "I pray for all the vegetables and the fruits, 406 00:18:42,125 --> 00:18:44,333 "and the people who are both fruits and vegetables 407 00:18:44,417 --> 00:18:46,042 "that go to the grocery store. 408 00:18:46,125 --> 00:18:47,750 "And Lord, I pray for the staff, 409 00:18:47,833 --> 00:18:49,250 "that they would love one another, 410 00:18:49,333 --> 00:18:51,250 "and that they would work hard and long. 411 00:18:51,333 --> 00:18:53,958 "And I pray that they would be unified in their mission 412 00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:56,167 to bring tasty food and snacks to us all." 413 00:18:56,208 --> 00:18:58,167 You don't pray for your grocery store, right? 414 00:18:58,208 --> 00:18:59,667 Why? 415 00:18:59,708 --> 00:19:01,625 Because it's a business. 416 00:19:01,667 --> 00:19:04,417 Church isn't a business, it's a family. 417 00:19:04,500 --> 00:19:07,125 You should pray for your family. 418 00:19:07,167 --> 00:19:09,667 The people you pray for, my assumption is, 419 00:19:09,750 --> 00:19:11,333 they feel like family to you. 420 00:19:11,375 --> 00:19:13,708 Maybe it's your mom, your dad, your brother, your sister, 421 00:19:13,792 --> 00:19:15,917 your aunt, your uncle, your cousin, or your friends, 422 00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:17,333 the people you love. 423 00:19:17,375 --> 00:19:20,333 We tend to pray for the people we love the most, right? 424 00:19:20,417 --> 00:19:22,333 Because they're family to us. 425 00:19:22,375 --> 00:19:24,250 Church is family. 426 00:19:24,333 --> 00:19:26,500 God's people are family. 427 00:19:26,583 --> 00:19:29,958 Be praying for our family, be praying for the whole family, 428 00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:32,667 be praying for more people to join the family. 429 00:19:32,708 --> 00:19:37,250 Pray for the strength, health, well-being of our family. 430 00:19:37,333 --> 00:19:40,250 And I tell you this because if you pray for the church, 431 00:19:40,333 --> 00:19:43,042 you'll see the church as family, and if you don't pray 432 00:19:43,125 --> 00:19:45,833 for the church, you'll see the church as business. 433 00:19:45,875 --> 00:19:48,667 And what happens in a consumer relationship, 434 00:19:48,708 --> 00:19:51,542 a transactional relationship is you're always trying to get 435 00:19:51,625 --> 00:19:53,542 the most by giving the least. 436 00:19:53,625 --> 00:19:55,167 That's business. 437 00:19:55,208 --> 00:19:57,000 Family's not like that. 438 00:19:57,083 --> 00:19:59,542 Family is you give generously so that the whole family 439 00:19:59,625 --> 00:20:01,667 would be blessed, 440 00:20:01,708 --> 00:20:04,542 and so I really need you to understand when he uses 441 00:20:04,625 --> 00:20:07,833 that language of family, it's really important that we all see 442 00:20:07,917 --> 00:20:10,250 our church that way. 443 00:20:10,333 --> 00:20:13,458 And he says that this family is in heaven and on earth, 444 00:20:13,500 --> 00:20:15,667 so some of our brothers and sisters are already 445 00:20:15,708 --> 00:20:17,375 in the presence of the Lord, 446 00:20:17,458 --> 00:20:19,583 so part of the family's up with the Lord 447 00:20:19,667 --> 00:20:22,167 and part of the family's down here on the earth, 448 00:20:22,250 --> 00:20:24,875 and one day there's going to be a great family reunion 449 00:20:24,958 --> 00:20:27,458 in the kingdom of God where all of God's people 450 00:20:27,500 --> 00:20:29,083 are together forever. 451 00:20:29,167 --> 00:20:31,583 It's a family, and it's all held together, he says, 452 00:20:31,667 --> 00:20:34,000 by the Father. 453 00:20:34,042 --> 00:20:36,667 Okay, you're going to see in the--actually the next section 454 00:20:36,708 --> 00:20:38,458 of verses, he mentions 455 00:20:38,500 --> 00:20:40,375 the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ, 456 00:20:40,458 --> 00:20:42,583 so the whole Trinity is here in prayer. 457 00:20:42,667 --> 00:20:45,500 Let me back up and explain a little bit on the Trinity. 458 00:20:45,542 --> 00:20:47,583 The Trinity is one God in three persons. 459 00:20:47,667 --> 00:20:50,375 All Christians have always believed this. 460 00:20:50,458 --> 00:20:54,083 This is the biblical teaching on the nature of God. 461 00:20:54,167 --> 00:20:57,667 What that means is that God has love and affection, 462 00:20:57,750 --> 00:21:02,208 conversation, communion, and union in and of himself. 463 00:21:02,292 --> 00:21:04,833 And so because our God is a God who speaks 464 00:21:04,917 --> 00:21:06,667 and a God who listens, 465 00:21:06,708 --> 00:21:09,333 we're made in his image and likeness to speak to him 466 00:21:09,417 --> 00:21:13,125 in prayer and to listen to him through Scripture, 467 00:21:13,167 --> 00:21:15,125 and that's why we pray. 468 00:21:15,167 --> 00:21:17,750 That's why trees don't pray; they don't bear the image 469 00:21:17,833 --> 00:21:19,417 and likeness of God. 470 00:21:19,500 --> 00:21:21,958 This is why animals don't pray, because they don't bear 471 00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:23,500 the image and likeness of God. 472 00:21:23,583 --> 00:21:26,708 They're not made in the image of the Trinitarian God of the Bible 473 00:21:26,792 --> 00:21:29,500 with the ability to communicate with one another 474 00:21:29,583 --> 00:21:32,125 and with God as we do. 475 00:21:32,167 --> 00:21:35,625 And when it comes to prayer, we are to pray to the Father, 476 00:21:35,667 --> 00:21:38,333 through the Son, by the Holy Spirit. 477 00:21:38,417 --> 00:21:40,167 Let me explain this. 478 00:21:40,208 --> 00:21:43,833 So, the Holy Spirit lives in the children of God. 479 00:21:43,917 --> 00:21:47,250 He brings new life. 480 00:21:47,333 --> 00:21:51,917 He brings the love of Jesus to us and the forgiveness of sin. 481 00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:54,542 Jesus is the second member of the Trinity, 482 00:21:54,625 --> 00:21:56,542 took upon human flesh, came out. 483 00:21:56,625 --> 00:21:59,542 He lived without sin, he died in our place for our sins, 484 00:21:59,625 --> 00:22:02,208 he rose as our Savior, he ascended back into heaven, 485 00:22:02,292 --> 00:22:05,375 and the Bible says that he's our mediator. 486 00:22:05,458 --> 00:22:07,625 He takes away our sin and reconciles our relationship 487 00:22:07,667 --> 00:22:09,208 to God. 488 00:22:09,292 --> 00:22:11,500 So God is in us through the Holy Spirit, 489 00:22:11,583 --> 00:22:14,125 God is mediating for us through Jesus, 490 00:22:14,167 --> 00:22:16,708 connecting us to the Father. 491 00:22:16,792 --> 00:22:20,000 So when we pray, we pray by the power of the Holy Spirit, 492 00:22:20,083 --> 00:22:24,458 through Jesus, to the Father. 493 00:22:24,500 --> 00:22:26,958 So most of the time when we pray, we pray, 494 00:22:27,000 --> 00:22:29,750 "Heavenly Father, Father, dear Dad," 495 00:22:29,833 --> 00:22:31,333 pray like that. 496 00:22:31,417 --> 00:22:33,042 Some people ask the question then, 497 00:22:33,125 --> 00:22:35,250 "Well, can I ever pray to the Holy Spirit?" 498 00:22:35,333 --> 00:22:36,667 What do you think? 499 00:22:36,708 --> 00:22:38,042 Yeah, you can. 500 00:22:38,125 --> 00:22:41,458 Let's say you want to ask for power to obey when 501 00:22:41,500 --> 00:22:43,208 you're being tempted to sin. 502 00:22:43,292 --> 00:22:46,542 "Holy Spirit, please empower me now because I'm tempted to sin 503 00:22:46,625 --> 00:22:49,958 "but I don't want to, and I want you to get me through this 504 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:51,333 by your power." 505 00:22:51,417 --> 00:22:53,333 Sure, you can ask him to do that. 506 00:22:53,417 --> 00:22:55,750 You know that the Holy Spirit gives you spiritual gifts 507 00:22:55,833 --> 00:22:57,167 to serve. 508 00:22:57,208 --> 00:22:58,833 It's totally acceptable to say, "Holy Spirit, 509 00:22:58,917 --> 00:23:00,667 "you give gifts for me to serve. 510 00:23:00,750 --> 00:23:03,667 Help me discover what my gift is so that I can serve." 511 00:23:03,750 --> 00:23:05,417 That's a perfectly acceptable way to pray. 512 00:23:05,500 --> 00:23:07,917 We know that the Holy Spirit inspired the writing 513 00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:10,125 of Scripture, so when you pick up the Bible, 514 00:23:10,167 --> 00:23:11,833 it's perfectly acceptable to say, "Holy Spirit, 515 00:23:11,875 --> 00:23:14,000 "thank you for inspiring the writing of Scripture. 516 00:23:14,042 --> 00:23:16,500 "Please now illuminate my understanding so 517 00:23:16,542 --> 00:23:19,208 "I'd understand what you want me to know from the book 518 00:23:19,292 --> 00:23:20,708 you've written." 519 00:23:20,792 --> 00:23:22,958 Sometimes it's okay to just pray to Jesus. 520 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:27,042 Let's say there's a moment where you've sinned 521 00:23:27,125 --> 00:23:29,667 and you're convicted by that, and you remember, 522 00:23:29,708 --> 00:23:31,958 "Jesus died in my place for my sins, 523 00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:33,958 "and I've always kind of known that, 524 00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:36,667 "but right now I really feel the significance of that 525 00:23:36,708 --> 00:23:38,333 in this moment." 526 00:23:38,417 --> 00:23:41,625 Stop and say, "Lord Jesus, thank you. 527 00:23:41,667 --> 00:23:44,042 "Thank you that when you were tempted like I was, 528 00:23:44,125 --> 00:23:45,917 "you didn't give in like I did. 529 00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:48,958 "And thank you, Lord Jesus, that when you went to the cross, 530 00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:51,958 "you went there to die for this thing that I just did. 531 00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:54,917 "And thank you, Lord Jesus, that you're not going to punish me, 532 00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:57,167 "but you're going to forgive me and help me. 533 00:23:57,208 --> 00:23:59,250 "And next time I'm tempted to do this, 534 00:23:59,333 --> 00:24:02,125 let me remember your sacrifice and your affection for me." 535 00:24:02,167 --> 00:24:04,208 It's okay to pray to the Holy Spirit, 536 00:24:04,292 --> 00:24:06,000 it's okay to pray to Jesus, 537 00:24:06,083 --> 00:24:08,583 but the majority of our prayers are by the Spirit, 538 00:24:08,667 --> 00:24:11,667 through the Son, to the Father--to the Father. 539 00:24:11,750 --> 00:24:13,417 Now, let me unpack this. 540 00:24:13,500 --> 00:24:17,417 He talks about the family and he talks about the Father. 541 00:24:17,500 --> 00:24:21,625 This is the most important thing I'll ever tell you on prayer. 542 00:24:21,667 --> 00:24:25,417 The most important thing I'll ever tell you on prayer is 543 00:24:25,500 --> 00:24:28,625 that God is your Father. 544 00:24:28,667 --> 00:24:30,667 If you understand that God is your Father, 545 00:24:30,708 --> 00:24:35,542 prayer makes a lot of sense and prayer becomes very easy. 546 00:24:35,625 --> 00:24:37,750 If you don't understand that God is your Father, 547 00:24:37,833 --> 00:24:40,208 prayer becomes complicated and difficult in a way 548 00:24:40,292 --> 00:24:42,958 that it quite frankly shouldn't. 549 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:45,667 I can still remember, I was a new Christian in college 550 00:24:45,708 --> 00:24:47,667 and I wanted to learn how to pray. 551 00:24:47,708 --> 00:24:49,167 I didn't know how to pray. 552 00:24:49,208 --> 00:24:50,542 I grew up Catholic. 553 00:24:50,625 --> 00:24:52,750 Some Catholics love Jesus, I wasn't one of them. 554 00:24:52,833 --> 00:24:54,750 I always say it's not the Church's fault, 555 00:24:54,833 --> 00:24:56,167 it was mine. 556 00:24:56,208 --> 00:24:57,833 I don't have anything critical to say, 557 00:24:57,917 --> 00:25:01,625 but we had to memorize prayers of dead guys growing up, 558 00:25:01,667 --> 00:25:04,917 so Act of Contrition or the Prayer of St. Francis. 559 00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:06,500 We had to memorize certain prayers. 560 00:25:06,542 --> 00:25:09,833 So, the only thing I knew was like a short list of prayers by 561 00:25:09,875 --> 00:25:12,792 dead guys, and I didn't know what the words really meant. 562 00:25:12,833 --> 00:25:15,000 You know, "beseech," and "thou," and "for art thou." 563 00:25:15,083 --> 00:25:18,042 Like, I don't know, whatever, just say it fast and hopefully, 564 00:25:18,125 --> 00:25:20,542 you know, it gets delivered to the right address. 565 00:25:20,625 --> 00:25:21,958 I don't know. 566 00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:25,167 And then I became a Christian in college and I went to my 567 00:25:25,208 --> 00:25:27,167 first Bible study where they were all praying, 568 00:25:27,208 --> 00:25:28,667 and they were talking to God, 569 00:25:28,708 --> 00:25:30,667 and I didn't know how to do that. 570 00:25:30,708 --> 00:25:32,833 I'd never heard anybody pray conversationally, 571 00:25:32,917 --> 00:25:35,000 and I never heard people just talk to God 572 00:25:35,083 --> 00:25:39,250 like he was alive and cared. 573 00:25:39,333 --> 00:25:41,667 So I started buying books on prayer--Christian books 574 00:25:41,708 --> 00:25:45,125 on prayer, and every one made me feel worse. 575 00:25:45,167 --> 00:25:47,833 The first one was like, "And this guy prayed every day 576 00:25:47,917 --> 00:25:49,333 for 8 hours." 577 00:25:49,417 --> 00:25:51,000 You're like, "Oh no, I just--" 578 00:25:51,083 --> 00:25:52,417 And the next one is like, 579 00:25:52,500 --> 00:25:54,625 "And this guy prayed every day for 10 hours." 580 00:25:54,667 --> 00:25:56,625 You're like, "Oh now I'm--oh gosh." 581 00:25:56,667 --> 00:25:59,333 "And then this guy wore out the side of his bed. 582 00:25:59,417 --> 00:26:01,375 "He had hardwood floors 583 00:26:01,458 --> 00:26:04,208 "and there were deep ruts from his knees 584 00:26:04,292 --> 00:26:05,792 because he lived there." 585 00:26:05,833 --> 00:26:10,167 I'm like, "Oh gosh, these guys are varsity, man. 586 00:26:10,250 --> 00:26:13,083 "I don't know if I'll ever--wow. 587 00:26:13,167 --> 00:26:16,000 "I've got to go get a hardwood floor, I've got to--you know, 588 00:26:16,083 --> 00:26:17,625 I've got so much to do." 589 00:26:17,667 --> 00:26:19,750 And all I did is I felt bad. 590 00:26:19,833 --> 00:26:22,417 Looking at people's prayer lives, I just felt--I felt bad. 591 00:26:22,500 --> 00:26:28,333 I felt like they're amazing and I'm not. 592 00:26:28,417 --> 00:26:32,000 And then over the years, God in his grace allowed me 593 00:26:32,083 --> 00:26:34,833 to become a dad. 594 00:26:34,875 --> 00:26:38,250 And as soon as Ashley was born, the whole world looked different 595 00:26:38,333 --> 00:26:41,042 to me to be totally honest with you. 596 00:26:41,125 --> 00:26:43,167 I can still remember holding my firstborn daughter 597 00:26:43,208 --> 00:26:45,500 and just thinking, "Wow, I'm a dad." 598 00:26:45,583 --> 00:26:47,750 I always wanted to be a dad, 599 00:26:47,833 --> 00:26:51,750 and I got to be a dad of a little girl. 600 00:26:51,833 --> 00:26:53,750 That taught me more about God, I think, 601 00:26:53,833 --> 00:26:57,625 than any experience in my whole life, being a dad. 602 00:26:57,667 --> 00:27:01,917 "Oh, God loves me like a dad? I know what this feels like. 603 00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:05,417 "God's committed to me like a dad's committed to his kids. 604 00:27:05,500 --> 00:27:09,125 "Whoa, if that's true, that's pretty amazing because I know 605 00:27:09,167 --> 00:27:14,625 how much I love Ashley." 606 00:27:14,667 --> 00:27:19,333 God's a Father, God's a Dad, and so when we pray, 607 00:27:19,375 --> 00:27:23,208 we're talking to our Dad. 608 00:27:23,292 --> 00:27:26,958 So, here's my big idea. 609 00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:31,958 Don't focus too much on prayer; get to know your Dad. 610 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,458 If you get to know your Dad, talking to him 611 00:27:34,500 --> 00:27:36,042 is going to be pretty easy. 612 00:27:36,125 --> 00:27:39,417 You're not going to worry about the--like, my kids don't-- 613 00:27:39,500 --> 00:27:42,333 you know, they don't put together an outline, 614 00:27:42,375 --> 00:27:44,333 and try to get all their points right, 615 00:27:44,417 --> 00:27:48,458 and practice it so they can come and talk to me. 616 00:27:48,500 --> 00:27:51,208 They just, "Hey, Dad?" 617 00:27:51,292 --> 00:27:52,833 "Yeah?" 618 00:27:52,875 --> 00:27:54,833 We just talk. 619 00:27:54,917 --> 00:27:57,500 God's a Father who loves his kids, 620 00:27:57,583 --> 00:27:59,208 and this is a revolutionary concept. 621 00:27:59,292 --> 00:28:03,917 As you read the Old Testament, I found about a dozen times only 622 00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:05,625 that God is referred to as Father, 623 00:28:05,667 --> 00:28:08,792 and it's always nationally, never individually. 624 00:28:08,833 --> 00:28:11,125 Jesus comes along and changes everything. 625 00:28:11,167 --> 00:28:14,833 Some 60 times in the 4 gospels, we hear him refer to God 626 00:28:14,875 --> 00:28:19,458 as Father, very personal, that he is the Father 627 00:28:19,500 --> 00:28:21,833 and that Jesus is the Son of God. 628 00:28:21,917 --> 00:28:25,208 And for those who are Christian, our identity now is he is 629 00:28:25,292 --> 00:28:28,542 our Father and we're the sons of God. 630 00:28:28,625 --> 00:28:31,667 And the result is that as Jesus talks to God as Father, 631 00:28:31,708 --> 00:28:34,917 he actually uses the word "Dad" or "Daddy." 632 00:28:35,000 --> 00:28:36,833 My kids call me Papa Daddy. 633 00:28:36,917 --> 00:28:38,750 It's like that. 634 00:28:38,833 --> 00:28:40,250 It's very loving, very affectionate. 635 00:28:40,333 --> 00:28:43,458 It's the kind of thing that a little kid that had a dad 636 00:28:43,500 --> 00:28:45,958 that they totally loved and the dad totally loved them, 637 00:28:46,000 --> 00:28:49,333 and if Dad got home from work, it's the first word that a kid 638 00:28:49,417 --> 00:28:51,833 like that would say: "Papa Daddy!" 639 00:28:51,917 --> 00:28:55,000 I got home last night from a preaching trip in Missouri, 640 00:28:55,083 --> 00:28:58,833 and on the front door of the home is 641 00:28:58,917 --> 00:29:02,417 a welcome home love letter from Gideon. 642 00:29:02,500 --> 00:29:06,000 The door opens up, all my kids are running. 643 00:29:06,083 --> 00:29:08,125 Alexie and Giddy are the first ones, 644 00:29:08,167 --> 00:29:11,667 and there's love letters all over the wall from my kids. 645 00:29:11,750 --> 00:29:16,792 First word out of all of their mouths: "Daddy!" 646 00:29:16,833 --> 00:29:19,250 Jesus said pray like that. 647 00:29:19,333 --> 00:29:21,125 So, if you want to understand prayer, 648 00:29:21,167 --> 00:29:24,417 don't look at the most religious, devout people. 649 00:29:24,500 --> 00:29:28,208 Look at kids who really love their dad and have a dad who 650 00:29:28,292 --> 00:29:31,958 really loves him, and see how they interact and communicate, 651 00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:35,417 and that's a better example and training for prayer 652 00:29:35,500 --> 00:29:37,917 than anything else I can think of. 653 00:29:38,000 --> 00:29:41,458 Jesus, when he was asked, "How should we pray?" 654 00:29:41,500 --> 00:29:45,458 he says, "Pray like this: Our Father, Dear Dad." 655 00:29:45,500 --> 00:29:48,333 And here, Paul is echoing the Lord Jesus, 656 00:29:48,417 --> 00:29:50,500 reminding us that God is our Father. 657 00:29:50,583 --> 00:29:53,333 Now, for some of you, you're going to struggle with this, 658 00:29:53,375 --> 00:29:57,250 because you had a bad dad, tons of father wounds. 659 00:29:57,333 --> 00:29:59,958 For the first time in the nation's history, 660 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:03,000 we have a fatherless epidemic. 661 00:30:03,083 --> 00:30:06,042 Forty percent of kids tonight go to bed without a father. 662 00:30:06,125 --> 00:30:08,042 For the first time in the nation's history, 663 00:30:08,125 --> 00:30:12,042 the majority of births to women 30 and under are out of wedlock, 664 00:30:12,125 --> 00:30:17,750 meaning the kid doesn't have a dad and perhaps never will. 665 00:30:17,833 --> 00:30:19,667 Some of you didn't have a dad, 666 00:30:19,750 --> 00:30:22,500 some of you had a dad that was a bad dad. 667 00:30:22,542 --> 00:30:25,792 What I don't want you to hear is the language of Father 668 00:30:25,833 --> 00:30:29,667 and then throw all of that onto God. 669 00:30:29,750 --> 00:30:34,667 Start with God and what the Bible reveals about God, 670 00:30:34,750 --> 00:30:38,083 and then judge your earthly father by your Heavenly Father, 671 00:30:38,167 --> 00:30:42,292 but don't assume that there's a correlation necessarily 672 00:30:42,333 --> 00:30:48,083 between your earthly father and your Heavenly Father. 673 00:30:48,167 --> 00:30:51,958 So, for all of us men, and I want to say this to the men: 674 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:54,792 should God give you the grace, the great gift of being 675 00:30:54,833 --> 00:30:58,167 a father, know that we carry a very sacred name, 676 00:30:58,208 --> 00:31:01,167 a title, "father." 677 00:31:01,208 --> 00:31:04,042 And if we love, and honor, and cherish, and bless, 678 00:31:04,125 --> 00:31:07,667 and nurture, and protect, and enjoy our kids, 679 00:31:07,708 --> 00:31:10,500 they're getting a little bit of a reflection 680 00:31:10,583 --> 00:31:13,125 of the Father's affection. 681 00:31:13,167 --> 00:31:15,708 And if we are poor fathers, abusive fathers, 682 00:31:15,792 --> 00:31:19,333 negligent fathers, selfish fathers, distracted fathers, 683 00:31:19,417 --> 00:31:24,042 angry fathers, we're really blaspheming a sacred title 684 00:31:24,125 --> 00:31:28,042 called "Dad," that God in his kindness is gracious enough 685 00:31:28,125 --> 00:31:31,250 to share with those of us who are distinguished with 686 00:31:31,333 --> 00:31:34,125 the great honor of becoming a dad. 687 00:31:34,167 --> 00:31:36,833 Alexie, when she was little, she said it this way. 688 00:31:36,917 --> 00:31:39,042 She said, "I've got two dads!" 689 00:31:39,125 --> 00:31:41,625 She said, "One's in heaven and one's on earth 690 00:31:41,667 --> 00:31:44,333 and they both love me with all their heart." 691 00:31:44,417 --> 00:31:47,333 She's pretty poetic and always happy. 692 00:31:47,375 --> 00:31:49,000 I said, "That's right. 693 00:31:49,083 --> 00:31:51,667 "You have a Father in heaven and a father on earth, 694 00:31:51,708 --> 00:31:54,167 "and the father on earth was sent here by 695 00:31:54,208 --> 00:31:56,250 "the Father in heaven, 696 00:31:56,333 --> 00:31:58,667 "and the Father in heaven adores you, 697 00:31:58,708 --> 00:32:00,833 "and he sent me here with his heart, 698 00:32:00,875 --> 00:32:04,167 and he's given me the great blessing of being your dad." 699 00:32:04,250 --> 00:32:07,625 So men, let's covenant together that by the grace of God, 700 00:32:07,667 --> 00:32:11,708 we'll be good dads who love our kids and show them something of 701 00:32:11,792 --> 00:32:13,583 the Father's affection. 702 00:32:13,667 --> 00:32:16,917 But for those of you who don't have a dad or a good dad, 703 00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:18,833 the Bible says that God is, quote, 704 00:32:18,917 --> 00:32:20,833 "a Father to the fatherless." 705 00:32:20,917 --> 00:32:22,625 Here's your identity. 706 00:32:22,667 --> 00:32:26,333 Here's your identity: you've all got a great Dad. 707 00:32:26,375 --> 00:32:29,167 We've all got a great Dad. 708 00:32:29,208 --> 00:32:31,542 We've all got a great Dad. 709 00:32:31,625 --> 00:32:35,250 One of the most defining features of someone's life is 710 00:32:35,333 --> 00:32:38,042 who their father is, right? 711 00:32:38,125 --> 00:32:41,833 I mean, so much of who you are is really determined by 712 00:32:41,875 --> 00:32:45,250 who your dad is. 713 00:32:45,333 --> 00:32:47,125 We've all got a great Dad. 714 00:32:47,167 --> 00:32:50,333 Better than that, we've all got a perfect Dad who loves us with 715 00:32:50,417 --> 00:32:52,917 a covenantal love and affection. 716 00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:56,250 He's our heavenly Father, and that he adopts us 717 00:32:56,333 --> 00:32:59,917 into his family and we're his sons and daughters. 718 00:33:00,042 --> 00:33:02,875 And his heart is always open, his ear is always open, 719 00:33:02,958 --> 00:33:04,792 his arms are always open. 720 00:33:04,833 --> 00:33:07,333 And once we know that, you know what we'll do? 721 00:33:07,375 --> 00:33:10,292 We'll run to him and we'll talk to him, amen? 722 00:33:10,333 --> 00:33:12,875 We'll run to him and we'll talk to him. 723 00:33:12,958 --> 00:33:16,292 So, the key to prayer, the most important thing I can tell you 724 00:33:16,333 --> 00:33:20,250 about prayer: don't focus on prayer; focus on the Father. 725 00:33:20,333 --> 00:33:23,250 As you get to know the Father, prayer just sort of happens 726 00:33:23,333 --> 00:33:25,292 pretty easily. 727 00:33:25,333 --> 00:33:27,500 Okay, so it's relational. 728 00:33:27,542 --> 00:33:32,042 Prayer is relational and it's with our Father. 729 00:33:32,125 --> 00:33:35,875 In addition, he goes on to say that prayer is asking, 730 00:33:35,958 --> 00:33:38,167 and he's going to make a request. 731 00:33:38,250 --> 00:33:40,333 So it's okay to make requests to God. 732 00:33:40,417 --> 00:33:42,667 The Bible says by prayer and supplication to make 733 00:33:42,708 --> 00:33:44,667 our requests known to God. 734 00:33:44,750 --> 00:33:46,792 Ephesians 3:16-17, "That according to the riches 735 00:33:46,833 --> 00:33:49,292 "of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened 736 00:33:49,333 --> 00:33:53,167 "with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 737 00:33:53,208 --> 00:33:55,667 "so that Christ may dwell in your hearts 738 00:33:55,750 --> 00:33:57,667 through faith." 739 00:33:57,708 --> 00:34:00,458 Here's the big idea: God is independent. 740 00:34:00,500 --> 00:34:03,542 He doesn't need anyone or anything. 741 00:34:03,625 --> 00:34:08,250 We are dependent; we need God for everything. 742 00:34:08,333 --> 00:34:13,333 Here's the big idea: God doesn't need you, 743 00:34:13,375 --> 00:34:16,667 he wants you and he loves you. 744 00:34:16,708 --> 00:34:19,625 That's even better. 745 00:34:19,667 --> 00:34:21,750 It's like a family that adopts a child. 746 00:34:21,833 --> 00:34:24,000 They don't need the child, they want the child, 747 00:34:24,042 --> 00:34:25,875 they love the child. 748 00:34:25,958 --> 00:34:28,458 God's a Dad like that. 749 00:34:28,500 --> 00:34:32,958 So, God isn't looking to take from us, doesn't need us. 750 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:37,167 God's looking to give to us because we need, 751 00:34:37,250 --> 00:34:40,333 and so we bring our requests to God. 752 00:34:40,417 --> 00:34:42,667 We ask him for help. 753 00:34:42,708 --> 00:34:45,083 Jesus tells us, "Pray for food, daily bread." 754 00:34:45,167 --> 00:34:47,958 Here, Paul is praying for his people that they would have 755 00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:50,250 the power of the Holy Spirit 756 00:34:50,333 --> 00:34:52,667 working in them and through them. 757 00:34:52,750 --> 00:34:55,250 And he talks about, "Christ may dwell in your hearts 758 00:34:55,333 --> 00:34:56,667 through faith." 759 00:34:56,708 --> 00:34:59,375 How many of you, when you were a kid, somebody said, 760 00:34:59,458 --> 00:35:01,458 "You need to accept Jesus in your heart"? 761 00:35:01,500 --> 00:35:02,833 You ever heard that? 762 00:35:02,917 --> 00:35:05,042 One time, in the whole Bible, that's ever said, 763 00:35:05,125 --> 00:35:06,958 and it's right here, that's it. 764 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:09,500 Accepting Jesus into your heart, "That Christ may dwell 765 00:35:09,583 --> 00:35:10,917 in your heart through faith." 766 00:35:11,000 --> 00:35:13,417 Now how many of you in reading this, you say, 767 00:35:13,500 --> 00:35:14,833 "It's a little confusing. 768 00:35:14,875 --> 00:35:17,542 "I thought they were Christians and now he's asking that Jesus 769 00:35:17,625 --> 00:35:19,250 would 'dwell in their hearts through faith'?" 770 00:35:19,333 --> 00:35:21,667 And the language here is home. 771 00:35:21,708 --> 00:35:25,083 There's a difference between a hotel and a home, right? 772 00:35:25,167 --> 00:35:26,667 Big difference. 773 00:35:26,750 --> 00:35:29,375 How many of you have checked into a hotel and thought, 774 00:35:29,458 --> 00:35:31,083 "I've got to go to Home Depot. 775 00:35:31,167 --> 00:35:34,167 "I'm going to paint this wall, I'm going to change the blinds. 776 00:35:34,250 --> 00:35:36,167 "The sink is dripping, 777 00:35:36,250 --> 00:35:39,375 "I'm going to have to go get some tools and fix that leak. 778 00:35:39,458 --> 00:35:41,583 "While we're at it, the carpet is very dirty. 779 00:35:41,667 --> 00:35:44,958 I think I shall clean--" Never done that, right? 780 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:47,750 Why do you not do that at a hotel? 781 00:35:47,833 --> 00:35:50,042 Because you're not going to stay there. 782 00:35:50,125 --> 00:35:52,292 It's not your home. 783 00:35:52,333 --> 00:35:54,250 Now what happens when you buy a home? 784 00:35:54,333 --> 00:35:56,667 For those of you that have bought a home, condo, 785 00:35:56,708 --> 00:35:59,042 whatever it is, you buy it, what do you do? 786 00:35:59,125 --> 00:36:00,500 You start working on it. 787 00:36:00,583 --> 00:36:02,042 You notice that? 788 00:36:02,125 --> 00:36:04,042 You keep working on it. 789 00:36:04,125 --> 00:36:05,542 "We're going to paint this room." 790 00:36:05,625 --> 00:36:07,333 Then all of a sudden you're like, 791 00:36:07,375 --> 00:36:09,333 "Well, now it makes the hallway look ugly, 792 00:36:09,375 --> 00:36:11,042 "now we're going to paint the hallway. 793 00:36:11,125 --> 00:36:12,542 "And now the cabinets look horrible, 794 00:36:12,625 --> 00:36:14,042 we're going to paint the cabinets." 795 00:36:14,125 --> 00:36:16,458 You're like, "Oh, now we're going to change the lights." 796 00:36:16,500 --> 00:36:18,167 Let me tell you, once you start, 797 00:36:18,208 --> 00:36:19,917 you'll never stop until you see Jesus. 798 00:36:20,000 --> 00:36:22,917 You're going to be working on that home all the time because 799 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:25,583 you're going to dwell in it, because you're going to live 800 00:36:25,667 --> 00:36:28,000 in it, because it's going to be home to you. 801 00:36:28,042 --> 00:36:30,792 And what he's praying is that the people would understand that 802 00:36:30,833 --> 00:36:35,292 Jesus does not want to live in us like a hotel but a home. 803 00:36:35,333 --> 00:36:38,000 He doesn't want to just check in, 804 00:36:38,042 --> 00:36:41,167 be with you for a couple hours, and then move on. 805 00:36:41,250 --> 00:36:43,750 He doesn't want you to live your life independent, 806 00:36:43,833 --> 00:36:45,750 separated from him, and then just invite-- 807 00:36:45,833 --> 00:36:47,500 "Oh Jesus, I've really made a mess. 808 00:36:47,542 --> 00:36:50,250 "Could you hang out with me for a day or two, 809 00:36:50,333 --> 00:36:52,000 "clean up the mess that I made? 810 00:36:52,042 --> 00:36:54,375 "Could you move in to my life and then move out 811 00:36:54,458 --> 00:36:57,083 "so I can get back to the life that I want?" 812 00:36:57,167 --> 00:36:59,500 What he's saying is that Christ dwells in us, 813 00:36:59,542 --> 00:37:02,167 Jesus dwells in us through the person, and the presence, 814 00:37:02,208 --> 00:37:04,333 and the power of the Holy Spirit, 815 00:37:04,417 --> 00:37:08,667 and that God wants our life to be his home. 816 00:37:08,708 --> 00:37:12,333 Jesus wants to move in to your life, 817 00:37:12,417 --> 00:37:16,042 and he's going to start working on all of it. 818 00:37:16,125 --> 00:37:20,625 Now, he may pick an area of your life to work on first, 819 00:37:20,667 --> 00:37:22,333 and then when he's done with that, 820 00:37:22,417 --> 00:37:24,542 he's going to move in to another proverbial room 821 00:37:24,625 --> 00:37:26,333 and there's going to be another project. 822 00:37:26,375 --> 00:37:28,250 And that Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, 823 00:37:28,333 --> 00:37:30,167 when he dwells, when he stays, 824 00:37:30,208 --> 00:37:33,333 when he resides at the center of your being, 825 00:37:33,417 --> 00:37:36,625 he is doing a renovation project on every aspect 826 00:37:36,667 --> 00:37:38,542 of your whole life. 827 00:37:38,625 --> 00:37:42,208 So for those of you who are in the trades: you're a carpenter, 828 00:37:42,292 --> 00:37:45,667 you're a plumber, you're a brick layer, you're a carpet layer, 829 00:37:45,708 --> 00:37:50,458 you're a roofer, whenever you're working on a project, 830 00:37:50,500 --> 00:37:52,958 I want you to remember this verse. 831 00:37:53,000 --> 00:37:55,333 "Jesus wants to do the same thing in my life 832 00:37:55,417 --> 00:37:58,458 that I'm doing in this house." 833 00:37:58,500 --> 00:38:01,083 He wants to make it a better and better home 834 00:38:01,167 --> 00:38:03,167 for the Holy Spirit. 835 00:38:03,250 --> 00:38:05,167 Every time you're working on your house, friends, 836 00:38:05,250 --> 00:38:08,125 every time you're doing a project, you're cleaning it, 837 00:38:08,167 --> 00:38:10,208 you're fixing something, you're painting something, 838 00:38:10,292 --> 00:38:13,500 you're mending something, you're rearranging something, 839 00:38:13,583 --> 00:38:16,583 I want you to think of this verse. 840 00:38:16,667 --> 00:38:18,875 It's not just that we're working on our homes, 841 00:38:18,958 --> 00:38:21,625 it's that we're the home for the Holy Spirit, 842 00:38:21,667 --> 00:38:25,417 and he's always got a project he's working on in us. 843 00:38:25,500 --> 00:38:28,167 And I don't want you to see this as a discouragement. 844 00:38:28,208 --> 00:38:30,167 And some people see this as a discouragement. 845 00:38:30,208 --> 00:38:31,833 They're like, "Okay, we dealt with that 846 00:38:31,917 --> 00:38:33,250 "and I thought, 'Finally!' 847 00:38:33,333 --> 00:38:34,750 "and then Jesus showed me this, 848 00:38:34,833 --> 00:38:36,750 and now I got a whole 'nother project." 849 00:38:36,833 --> 00:38:39,750 It's because he loves you, and he wants the whole home 850 00:38:39,833 --> 00:38:42,667 to belong to him, 851 00:38:42,708 --> 00:38:45,417 and he wants your whole life to be a good place 852 00:38:45,500 --> 00:38:47,958 for you and he to dwell together as friends, 853 00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:49,958 so don't be discouraged. 854 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:51,958 I was dealing with somebody recently who said, 855 00:38:52,000 --> 00:38:54,125 "I can't believe that this issue has come up." 856 00:38:54,167 --> 00:38:56,833 I said, "You know, that issue's always been in your life, 857 00:38:56,917 --> 00:38:59,667 "and Jesus simply has not started working on it until now 858 00:38:59,708 --> 00:39:02,667 "because he was working on other things prior to this, 859 00:39:02,750 --> 00:39:05,625 "and this was so important that you weren't ready for it yet, 860 00:39:05,667 --> 00:39:08,833 "but you are now, so it should be really encouraging. 861 00:39:08,875 --> 00:39:11,625 "It's the project that's taken a little while to get to 862 00:39:11,667 --> 00:39:13,500 "because it's a very difficult one. 863 00:39:13,542 --> 00:39:15,667 I want you to be encouraged." 864 00:39:15,750 --> 00:39:18,417 And he's praying that, and I'm praying that you would welcome 865 00:39:18,500 --> 00:39:21,000 Jesus into your heart, the center of your being, 866 00:39:21,042 --> 00:39:23,625 through faith, and that the power of the Holy Spirit 867 00:39:23,667 --> 00:39:27,250 would continually be showing you areas and ways that we 868 00:39:27,333 --> 00:39:29,917 can become more like him, amen? 869 00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:32,708 So prayer is personal, it's relational, it's asking, 870 00:39:32,792 --> 00:39:36,250 it's yearning, it gets kind of emotional. 871 00:39:36,333 --> 00:39:39,750 Ephesians 3:17-19, "That you, being rooted." 872 00:39:39,833 --> 00:39:42,167 Roots are important, right? 873 00:39:42,208 --> 00:39:44,000 Roots are very important. 874 00:39:44,083 --> 00:39:45,833 Anybody ever grow anything? 875 00:39:45,917 --> 00:39:48,667 "And grounded in," what? 876 00:39:48,708 --> 00:39:50,542 "Love." 877 00:39:50,625 --> 00:39:52,833 So, the root system of the Christian life 878 00:39:52,875 --> 00:39:54,833 is the love of God. 879 00:39:54,917 --> 00:39:56,542 "May have strength." 880 00:39:56,625 --> 00:39:58,667 Love of God makes us strong. 881 00:39:58,708 --> 00:40:00,417 "To comprehend with all the saints." 882 00:40:00,500 --> 00:40:01,833 That's your identity again. 883 00:40:01,917 --> 00:40:04,667 You're righteous, you're forgiven in Christ. 884 00:40:04,708 --> 00:40:07,208 "What is the breadth and length and height and depth, 885 00:40:07,292 --> 00:40:12,042 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge." 886 00:40:12,125 --> 00:40:16,250 It surpasses--you have to experience it. 887 00:40:16,333 --> 00:40:20,833 "That you may be filled with all the fullness of God." 888 00:40:20,917 --> 00:40:24,250 He's talking about the love of God for his people, 889 00:40:24,333 --> 00:40:28,375 and what he's saying is, "Yes, study the Bible. 890 00:40:28,458 --> 00:40:30,458 "Yes, even do the word studies. 891 00:40:30,500 --> 00:40:32,792 "Yes, read all the theologians. 892 00:40:32,833 --> 00:40:35,583 "But there's even a place where it goes beyond knowledge 893 00:40:35,667 --> 00:40:38,000 "and you have to just accept, and experience, 894 00:40:38,042 --> 00:40:41,458 and enjoy the love of God." 895 00:40:41,500 --> 00:40:44,792 I've been married to Grace now--we're coming up on 896 00:40:44,833 --> 00:40:47,750 our 25th anniversary of our first date. 897 00:40:47,833 --> 00:40:51,333 And when we first got married I knew that she loved me, 898 00:40:51,417 --> 00:40:57,167 and now I know that she loves me because I've experienced it 899 00:40:57,250 --> 00:41:01,333 over, and over, and over. 900 00:41:01,375 --> 00:41:05,125 God wants you to experience his love, and for some of you, 901 00:41:05,167 --> 00:41:11,917 this means you need to sing, you need to pray, 902 00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:14,833 you need to raise your voice, you need to raise your hands, 903 00:41:14,875 --> 00:41:17,208 you need to get a little emotional, okay? 904 00:41:17,292 --> 00:41:20,167 I know that our whole church started in Seattle, you know, 905 00:41:20,208 --> 00:41:24,333 which is--it's a dark place, and people don't get happy, 906 00:41:24,417 --> 00:41:27,667 and we don't even like pop music because it has brightness 907 00:41:27,750 --> 00:41:29,167 to the lyrics. 908 00:41:29,250 --> 00:41:31,583 You know, I mean--and then we go down to Portland, 909 00:41:31,667 --> 00:41:33,000 which is even darker. 910 00:41:33,042 --> 00:41:35,167 And then, you know, it's just like golly, Molly. 911 00:41:35,250 --> 00:41:37,375 And then in Orange County, they're a little happier, 912 00:41:37,458 --> 00:41:38,792 you know? 913 00:41:38,833 --> 00:41:41,542 And over in Albuquerque, well, at least the Hispanics show up 914 00:41:41,625 --> 00:41:44,750 and occasionally bring a bucket of joy with them to try and help 915 00:41:44,833 --> 00:41:46,167 the party get started. 916 00:41:46,208 --> 00:41:48,667 But you need to know that for us, 917 00:41:48,708 --> 00:41:51,667 it really is--it is a demonstration, 918 00:41:51,750 --> 00:41:55,083 it's an affection, it's an overflow. 919 00:41:55,167 --> 00:41:57,083 I would have been really, really, really bummed 920 00:41:57,167 --> 00:42:00,250 last night when I got home if the door would have opened, 921 00:42:00,333 --> 00:42:02,333 my kids would have been, "Hello, Father, 922 00:42:02,375 --> 00:42:05,417 and the Greek word for 'hello' is 'whatever.'" 923 00:42:05,500 --> 00:42:08,458 I would have been like, "Seriously?" 924 00:42:08,500 --> 00:42:11,208 I want, hey, you're smiling, you're running! 925 00:42:11,292 --> 00:42:13,333 "Dad, good to see you, Dad!" 926 00:42:13,375 --> 00:42:15,000 Oh yeah, okay. 927 00:42:15,083 --> 00:42:17,750 I can tell that you love me because there's an enthusiasm, 928 00:42:17,833 --> 00:42:21,042 there's a joy, and it's not manufactured. 929 00:42:21,125 --> 00:42:24,750 It's not Mom behind them saying, "Alright, if you run to Dad, 930 00:42:24,833 --> 00:42:26,167 you get ice cream." 931 00:42:26,250 --> 00:42:28,500 "Hey Dad!" You know, it's not that. 932 00:42:28,542 --> 00:42:31,875 There's a genuine affection. 933 00:42:31,958 --> 00:42:35,958 God wants us to know of his love in a way 934 00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:37,375 that surpasses knowledge. 935 00:42:37,458 --> 00:42:40,667 This doesn't mean that it's contrary to the truth, 936 00:42:40,750 --> 00:42:44,875 but that it's the truth of Scripture exploding in the heart 937 00:42:44,958 --> 00:42:48,667 of the child of God--joy. 938 00:42:48,750 --> 00:42:54,667 So, after the sermon, don't leave. Sing loud, 939 00:42:54,708 --> 00:42:58,875 raise your hands, they're right here, right? 940 00:42:58,958 --> 00:43:01,042 Pray, talk to God. 941 00:43:01,125 --> 00:43:04,708 That there should be a joy that wells up, 942 00:43:04,792 --> 00:43:07,417 and sometimes we can grieve, we can quench, 943 00:43:07,500 --> 00:43:11,750 we can resist the Holy Spirit, so we don't pray, we don't sing. 944 00:43:11,833 --> 00:43:13,833 Well, what we're saying then is, 945 00:43:13,917 --> 00:43:17,250 "I don't want to know the love of God. 946 00:43:17,333 --> 00:43:19,542 "I don't want to know the love of Christ 947 00:43:19,625 --> 00:43:21,458 "that surpasses knowledge. 948 00:43:21,500 --> 00:43:24,750 "I don't want to be filled with all the fullness of God because 949 00:43:24,833 --> 00:43:26,167 "what if I get emotional? 950 00:43:26,208 --> 00:43:28,000 "What if I get out of control? 951 00:43:28,042 --> 00:43:30,583 "What if I'm one of those people who gets happy 952 00:43:30,667 --> 00:43:33,375 and starts praying all the time and sings in their car?" 953 00:43:33,458 --> 00:43:36,875 Please do. 954 00:43:36,958 --> 00:43:40,375 Do you know the love of God in Christ? 955 00:43:40,458 --> 00:43:47,000 If you do, there's a yearning to experience that, 956 00:43:47,042 --> 00:43:53,083 to feel that, to know that, to enjoy that. 957 00:43:53,167 --> 00:43:54,875 So Jesus loves you. 958 00:43:54,958 --> 00:43:57,500 I tell you that, how does that sound? 959 00:43:57,542 --> 00:44:00,333 Do you doubt it because you're suffering? 960 00:44:00,417 --> 00:44:03,750 Do you disbelieve it because you're sinning? 961 00:44:03,833 --> 00:44:05,958 Do you disregard it because it's trite? 962 00:44:06,000 --> 00:44:09,042 You're like, "That's what little kids sing in the song." 963 00:44:09,125 --> 00:44:13,417 Do you dismiss it because you're busy? 964 00:44:13,500 --> 00:44:17,042 Receive it. 965 00:44:17,125 --> 00:44:24,000 There's not a lot of people that probably love you, 966 00:44:24,042 --> 00:44:30,167 and there's no one who loves you as much as Jesus, 967 00:44:30,250 --> 00:44:34,792 and there's nothing as important as knowing that Jesus loves us. 968 00:44:34,833 --> 00:44:37,292 It becomes, as he says, the root that nourishes 969 00:44:37,333 --> 00:44:40,292 the totality of our whole life, 970 00:44:40,333 --> 00:44:42,458 and the Holy Spirit wants you to be filled 971 00:44:42,500 --> 00:44:45,333 with the fullness of the experience of the love 972 00:44:45,417 --> 00:44:47,458 of God, how high, and wide, 973 00:44:47,500 --> 00:44:50,167 and deep, and long is the love of God. 974 00:44:50,208 --> 00:44:53,000 The early Christian church, it was common for them 975 00:44:53,042 --> 00:44:57,667 to actually get a cross and to put these words, 976 00:44:57,750 --> 00:45:00,458 "breadth, length, height, depth," 977 00:45:00,500 --> 00:45:03,333 on each of the four sides of the cross. 978 00:45:03,417 --> 00:45:05,833 They would hang it up as artwork in their home. 979 00:45:05,917 --> 00:45:09,458 They'd go back to this verse in memory of the Lord Jesus, 980 00:45:09,500 --> 00:45:12,250 the greatest act of love in the history of the world 981 00:45:12,333 --> 00:45:15,417 as Christ died in our place for our sins. 982 00:45:15,500 --> 00:45:17,750 God demonstrates his love for us in this, 983 00:45:17,833 --> 00:45:20,333 "while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 984 00:45:20,417 --> 00:45:24,083 "No greater love is there anyone than he would lay down his life 985 00:45:24,167 --> 00:45:26,042 for his friends." 986 00:45:26,125 --> 00:45:28,958 The Bible connects the cross of Jesus to the love of God, 987 00:45:29,000 --> 00:45:32,542 and the love of God has never been seen any more clearly on 988 00:45:32,625 --> 00:45:36,292 the earth than in the sacrifice of Jesus to make enemies friends 989 00:45:36,333 --> 00:45:39,000 and to adopt wayward kids into the family of God 990 00:45:39,042 --> 00:45:42,667 so they'd have a Father. 991 00:45:42,708 --> 00:45:48,083 How wide, and long, and deep, and high is the love of God, 992 00:45:48,167 --> 00:45:51,667 and it all culminates at the cross of Jesus. 993 00:45:51,750 --> 00:45:55,667 Prayer is also expecting, it's anticipating. 994 00:45:55,708 --> 00:45:59,667 He's going to hear and he's going to answer. 995 00:45:59,708 --> 00:46:04,042 Ephesians 3:20, "Now to him who is able to do--" 996 00:46:04,125 --> 00:46:09,458 The next two words, just look at them. 997 00:46:09,500 --> 00:46:11,625 Big statement, right? 998 00:46:11,667 --> 00:46:14,333 Yes or no, big statement? 999 00:46:14,375 --> 00:46:16,542 "Far more." 1000 00:46:16,625 --> 00:46:19,250 Big words. 1001 00:46:19,333 --> 00:46:24,792 "Far more abundantly 1002 00:46:24,833 --> 00:46:28,375 than all we ask or think." 1003 00:46:28,458 --> 00:46:32,542 Some of you are like, "Oh, I've got a big idea." 1004 00:46:32,625 --> 00:46:34,958 It ain't that big. 1005 00:46:35,000 --> 00:46:37,792 "According to the power at work within us." 1006 00:46:37,833 --> 00:46:41,292 So, we pray, we pray expecting. 1007 00:46:41,333 --> 00:46:47,667 Whatever you can ask for, God can do far more. 1008 00:46:47,750 --> 00:46:52,500 Whatever you can think of, God can do far more. 1009 00:46:52,542 --> 00:46:59,167 Not just more, far more. 1010 00:46:59,250 --> 00:47:04,750 This is an invitation to ask. 1011 00:47:04,833 --> 00:47:08,333 This is an invitation to ask, 1012 00:47:08,417 --> 00:47:13,333 because the person who can do far more is your Dad. 1013 00:47:13,375 --> 00:47:17,542 Well, that's convenient, amen? 1014 00:47:17,625 --> 00:47:21,333 That's your Dad. 1015 00:47:21,375 --> 00:47:23,958 It's amazing to think that there's a God out there 1016 00:47:24,000 --> 00:47:28,000 somewhere who can do far more than we can ask or imagine, 1017 00:47:28,083 --> 00:47:32,625 and then to know that he's our Dad, and he adores us, 1018 00:47:32,667 --> 00:47:38,042 and he loves his kids, and he invites us to ask. 1019 00:47:38,125 --> 00:47:41,667 Seems like we should be asking, amen? 1020 00:47:41,708 --> 00:47:46,500 We should be asking 1021 00:47:46,583 --> 00:47:52,833 and expecting that our Dad hears and answers prayer. 1022 00:47:52,917 --> 00:47:55,000 Like I told you, sometimes he answers, "Yes, " 1023 00:47:55,083 --> 00:47:57,042 sometimes the answer is "No," 1024 00:47:57,125 --> 00:47:59,333 sometimes the answer is "Later," 1025 00:47:59,417 --> 00:48:03,208 but the answer is always, always given. 1026 00:48:03,292 --> 00:48:06,917 How's prayer going for you? 1027 00:48:07,000 --> 00:48:08,625 What are you praying for? 1028 00:48:08,667 --> 00:48:10,583 Who are you praying for? 1029 00:48:10,667 --> 00:48:14,583 I'll tell you, Mars Hill, as I look at the people in our church 1030 00:48:14,667 --> 00:48:17,500 and I see you, God has done far more 1031 00:48:17,542 --> 00:48:20,625 than I ever asked for or imagined. 1032 00:48:20,667 --> 00:48:23,625 Recent media interview asked, "So, did you see this coming?" 1033 00:48:23,667 --> 00:48:25,750 Uh, no. 1034 00:48:25,833 --> 00:48:29,333 I saw a church of a couple hundred, maybe. 1035 00:48:29,417 --> 00:48:32,417 He's saved far more people, he's loved far more people, 1036 00:48:32,500 --> 00:48:36,333 he's brought far more people. 1037 00:48:36,417 --> 00:48:40,708 There are far more friendships, and marriages, and children, 1038 00:48:40,792 --> 00:48:44,833 and physical healings, and spiritual deliverances, 1039 00:48:44,917 --> 00:48:49,333 and changed lives than I ever asked for, 1040 00:48:49,417 --> 00:48:54,167 or I ever even thought of. 1041 00:48:56,625 --> 00:48:59,208 Pray big, and part of it is it'll allow you 1042 00:48:59,292 --> 00:49:03,417 to live your life with hope. 1043 00:49:03,500 --> 00:49:07,417 Now, if that's not enough, let me just--let me give you 1044 00:49:07,500 --> 00:49:11,583 one more, since we're all here, okay? 1045 00:49:11,667 --> 00:49:13,750 So here it is. Prayer is expecting. 1046 00:49:13,833 --> 00:49:17,000 "Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all 1047 00:49:17,042 --> 00:49:22,667 that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us." 1048 00:49:26,875 --> 00:49:29,792 God doesn't want to just do things for you, 1049 00:49:29,833 --> 00:49:34,000 God wants to do things in you. 1050 00:49:34,083 --> 00:49:38,708 This power of God unleashed through the Holy Spirit, 1051 00:49:38,792 --> 00:49:43,000 it's not just God at work in the world, 1052 00:49:43,083 --> 00:49:46,917 it's also God at work in us. 1053 00:49:47,000 --> 00:49:48,708 You know what? 1054 00:49:48,792 --> 00:49:52,833 If you're in Christ, you are changed. 1055 00:49:52,875 --> 00:49:55,125 If you're in Christ, you are changing. 1056 00:49:55,167 --> 00:49:59,333 If you're in Christ, you'll constantly be changing. 1057 00:49:59,375 --> 00:50:01,208 Your thinking will change, your desires will change, 1058 00:50:01,292 --> 00:50:02,917 your appetites will change, 1059 00:50:03,000 --> 00:50:06,000 your habits will change because the power of God 1060 00:50:06,042 --> 00:50:07,833 is at work in you. 1061 00:50:07,875 --> 00:50:09,417 Okay, this is your identity. 1062 00:50:09,500 --> 00:50:11,875 Some of you say, "I'm not a powerful person." 1063 00:50:11,958 --> 00:50:14,417 Right, that's why the Holy Spirit's in you. 1064 00:50:14,500 --> 00:50:16,292 There's the power. 1065 00:50:16,333 --> 00:50:19,542 Some of you say, "Well, I only have power to do evil." 1066 00:50:19,625 --> 00:50:21,333 That's right, and then you receive Christ, 1067 00:50:21,375 --> 00:50:24,458 you get the Holy Spirit, now you have the power to do good, 1068 00:50:24,500 --> 00:50:25,833 and to worship God, 1069 00:50:25,917 --> 00:50:27,833 and to act holy, and to love others, 1070 00:50:27,917 --> 00:50:29,250 and to be generous, 1071 00:50:29,333 --> 00:50:31,667 and the power of God is at work in you. 1072 00:50:31,708 --> 00:50:34,167 And I'll tell you one of the most beautiful things 1073 00:50:34,208 --> 00:50:38,042 in this whole life of mine is seeing the power of God at work 1074 00:50:38,125 --> 00:50:40,125 in the people of God. 1075 00:50:40,167 --> 00:50:42,167 It's wonderful. 1076 00:50:42,208 --> 00:50:44,750 People, flat out, change. 1077 00:50:44,833 --> 00:50:50,042 They change because the power of God is at work in them. 1078 00:50:50,125 --> 00:50:53,458 So I don't want you to think that you need to change for God. 1079 00:50:53,500 --> 00:50:58,333 I want you to know that God's power is available to change you 1080 00:50:58,417 --> 00:51:02,208 if you're yielded, and willing, and available, and submissive, 1081 00:51:02,292 --> 00:51:04,208 and you're joining God in the work 1082 00:51:04,292 --> 00:51:05,833 that he's doing in you. 1083 00:51:05,875 --> 00:51:09,208 And I would ask you, what's he trying to do in you right now? 1084 00:51:09,292 --> 00:51:12,792 What's he trying to work on, change, empower, make new? 1085 00:51:12,833 --> 00:51:15,500 I don't know what it is, but you do, 1086 00:51:15,583 --> 00:51:18,833 and I want you to know that the change is possible 1087 00:51:18,917 --> 00:51:23,458 because the Spirit is powerful. 1088 00:51:23,500 --> 00:51:26,625 There's so much hope here, do you get it? 1089 00:51:26,667 --> 00:51:29,042 We live in a day, the number one category of 1090 00:51:29,125 --> 00:51:31,542 prescription medication is anti-depressants. 1091 00:51:31,625 --> 00:51:34,708 Everybody's depressed, everybody gives up hope, everybody tries, 1092 00:51:34,792 --> 00:51:37,542 everybody fails, everybody quits. 1093 00:51:37,625 --> 00:51:41,458 Plan B, Jesus loves you, the Holy Spirit's in you, 1094 00:51:41,500 --> 00:51:45,708 God's your Dad, he's listening, talk to him 1095 00:51:45,792 --> 00:51:47,542 and you're not on your own. 1096 00:51:47,625 --> 00:51:51,500 Good news, good news, right? 1097 00:51:51,583 --> 00:51:55,667 Last one, prayer is revealing. 1098 00:51:55,708 --> 00:51:59,750 Ephesians 3:21, "To him be glory in the church." 1099 00:51:59,833 --> 00:52:03,583 Let me just hammer that-- it's not just a personal, 1100 00:52:03,667 --> 00:52:07,000 individual relationship with Jesus. 1101 00:52:07,042 --> 00:52:10,125 It's that and the family of God. 1102 00:52:10,167 --> 00:52:13,000 Alright, Zac, my 13-year-old son, 1103 00:52:13,083 --> 00:52:16,708 cannot just have a personal relationship with me. 1104 00:52:16,792 --> 00:52:19,667 He's got two brothers, two sisters, and a mom. 1105 00:52:19,708 --> 00:52:22,000 He's part of the whole family. 1106 00:52:22,083 --> 00:52:23,833 He can't just walk in and say, 1107 00:52:23,917 --> 00:52:25,833 "I only have a relationship with Dad. 1108 00:52:25,917 --> 00:52:28,250 It's a personal relationship with Dad." 1109 00:52:28,333 --> 00:52:30,833 No, buddy, you're part of the whole family: 1110 00:52:30,917 --> 00:52:33,542 your sisters, your brothers, your mom, 1111 00:52:33,625 --> 00:52:36,167 we're all in this together. 1112 00:52:36,208 --> 00:52:37,833 You have a personal relationship with God, 1113 00:52:37,917 --> 00:52:40,125 but it's not solely a personal relationship with God. 1114 00:52:40,167 --> 00:52:41,625 You're also, if you're a Christian, 1115 00:52:41,667 --> 00:52:43,042 part of the church. 1116 00:52:43,125 --> 00:52:45,250 You're part of the church. 1117 00:52:45,333 --> 00:52:47,125 And so he's praying for the church, 1118 00:52:47,167 --> 00:52:49,333 he's talking to the church, he's encouraging the church 1119 00:52:49,375 --> 00:52:52,667 to be the church, the family of God. 1120 00:52:52,708 --> 00:52:55,333 "To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus 1121 00:52:55,375 --> 00:52:57,500 "throughout all generations, forever and ever. 1122 00:52:57,583 --> 00:52:58,958 Amen." 1123 00:52:59,000 --> 00:53:01,708 He ends his prayer perfectly with the glory of God. 1124 00:53:01,792 --> 00:53:03,792 He starts it with the Fatherhood of God, 1125 00:53:03,833 --> 00:53:05,833 he ends it with the glory of God, 1126 00:53:05,875 --> 00:53:09,000 and everything is to be directed toward the sum and purpose 1127 00:53:09,083 --> 00:53:11,083 of the glory of God. 1128 00:53:11,167 --> 00:53:12,500 Let me explain this. 1129 00:53:12,583 --> 00:53:15,125 He says, first of all, that the glory of God 1130 00:53:15,167 --> 00:53:17,208 is most clearly seen in Jesus Christ. 1131 00:53:17,292 --> 00:53:19,750 This is where Jesus says, "If you've seen me, 1132 00:53:19,833 --> 00:53:21,208 you've seen the Father." 1133 00:53:21,292 --> 00:53:23,833 This is where Colossians says that he is the image 1134 00:53:23,917 --> 00:53:25,417 of the invisible God. 1135 00:53:25,500 --> 00:53:28,667 Glory is reflected. When the sun comes out, right, 1136 00:53:28,708 --> 00:53:31,167 and then it reflects off of a lake, 1137 00:53:31,208 --> 00:53:33,667 or off of a windshield, or off of a mirror. 1138 00:53:33,708 --> 00:53:36,458 It's reflected glory is what it is. 1139 00:53:36,500 --> 00:53:39,125 Our lives, individually and collectively, 1140 00:53:39,167 --> 00:53:43,542 are to reflect the glory of God, to show the glory of God, 1141 00:53:43,625 --> 00:53:45,833 to show the world the difference 1142 00:53:45,917 --> 00:53:48,333 that Jesus makes. 1143 00:53:48,417 --> 00:53:51,125 And when it speaks of glory-- the Bible speaks of glory, 1144 00:53:51,167 --> 00:53:53,750 in our English Bible, about 275 times. 1145 00:53:53,833 --> 00:53:56,333 It's a massive mega-theme of Scripture, 1146 00:53:56,375 --> 00:54:00,375 and it means the splendor, beauty, magnificence, radiance, 1147 00:54:00,458 --> 00:54:03,583 heaviness, weightiness, prominence, preeminence, 1148 00:54:03,667 --> 00:54:08,500 luminescence, splendor, majesty, holiness, purity, worthiness, 1149 00:54:08,542 --> 00:54:13,167 and superiority of the God of the Bible. 1150 00:54:13,250 --> 00:54:16,333 And so when we pray, what is revealed is, 1151 00:54:16,375 --> 00:54:19,750 what is the glory in our life? 1152 00:54:19,833 --> 00:54:21,625 Who do we live for? 1153 00:54:21,667 --> 00:54:23,042 What do we live for? 1154 00:54:23,125 --> 00:54:24,542 Why are we here? 1155 00:54:24,625 --> 00:54:26,250 What are we doing? 1156 00:54:26,333 --> 00:54:27,958 What's the point of it all? 1157 00:54:28,000 --> 00:54:30,750 And it's to reflect the glory of God. 1158 00:54:30,833 --> 00:54:33,208 Saint Augustine was right, an early church father, 1159 00:54:33,292 --> 00:54:35,333 he said, "Once--" I'm paraphrasing. 1160 00:54:35,417 --> 00:54:37,542 "Once the issue of glory is settled, 1161 00:54:37,625 --> 00:54:40,542 all the issues are settled." 1162 00:54:40,625 --> 00:54:42,750 You don't know what to do in your marriage? 1163 00:54:42,833 --> 00:54:45,500 It's not what does he want or what does she want, 1164 00:54:45,583 --> 00:54:48,208 it is what does the Father want? 1165 00:54:48,292 --> 00:54:50,458 In your business, it's not what do you want, 1166 00:54:50,500 --> 00:54:53,333 what did they want; what does he want? 1167 00:54:53,375 --> 00:54:55,542 In your friendships, it's not what do you want 1168 00:54:55,625 --> 00:54:58,750 or what do they want, it is what does he want? 1169 00:54:58,833 --> 00:55:02,417 Once the glory issue is settled, all the issues are settled. 1170 00:55:02,500 --> 00:55:04,625 You say, "I don't feel like I'm getting glorified." 1171 00:55:04,667 --> 00:55:06,125 You're not supposed to. 1172 00:55:06,167 --> 00:55:07,708 You're supposed to reflect his glory. 1173 00:55:07,792 --> 00:55:09,417 "I'm not getting what I want." 1174 00:55:09,500 --> 00:55:11,625 That doesn't matter, is he getting what he wants? 1175 00:55:11,667 --> 00:55:13,792 "Well, this is not what I want to do." 1176 00:55:13,833 --> 00:55:15,167 That's not the question. 1177 00:55:15,250 --> 00:55:17,625 Is that what he wants you to do? 1178 00:55:17,667 --> 00:55:22,333 We have a massive glory problem. 1179 00:55:22,417 --> 00:55:26,000 The whole world is addicted to self. 1180 00:55:26,083 --> 00:55:28,708 "It's about me, it's about my hurts, it's about my wants, 1181 00:55:28,792 --> 00:55:31,458 "it's about my needs, it's about my income, 1182 00:55:31,500 --> 00:55:34,333 "it's about my convenience, it's about my reputation, 1183 00:55:34,375 --> 00:55:37,333 it's about my, my, my life." 1184 00:55:37,417 --> 00:55:38,958 No, it's not. 1185 00:55:39,000 --> 00:55:43,833 That's why everybody's miserable and it's not working anywhere. 1186 00:55:43,875 --> 00:55:46,167 It's about the glory of God. 1187 00:55:46,917 --> 00:55:50,625 It's about the glory of God. 1188 00:55:54,000 --> 00:55:59,542 And I promise you this: when you live for the glory of God, 1189 00:55:59,625 --> 00:56:03,125 you have joy because that's what you're made for, 1190 00:56:03,167 --> 00:56:09,417 and when you're doing what you're made for, you're joyful. 1191 00:56:09,500 --> 00:56:15,750 Paul here is--he's single, in a jail cell, 1192 00:56:17,792 --> 00:56:23,750 suffering to the glory of God. 1193 00:56:23,833 --> 00:56:26,542 So, whatever your circumstance, don't think, 1194 00:56:26,625 --> 00:56:28,625 "But my circumstances are unique, 1195 00:56:28,667 --> 00:56:30,458 "and particularly difficult, 1196 00:56:30,500 --> 00:56:33,417 and there's a lot of variables." 1197 00:56:33,500 --> 00:56:35,542 Alright, if you pull out the tough card, 1198 00:56:35,625 --> 00:56:39,208 he's got a better hand, amen? 1199 00:56:39,292 --> 00:56:44,042 You're going to lose that round. 1200 00:56:44,125 --> 00:56:46,667 There's always an opportunity to glorify God, 1201 00:56:46,708 --> 00:56:48,750 and even if you're suffering, 1202 00:56:48,833 --> 00:56:52,542 it's an opportunity to glorify God. 1203 00:56:52,625 --> 00:56:56,500 Once the glory issue is settled, 1204 00:56:56,583 --> 00:56:59,250 all the other issues are settled. 1205 00:56:59,333 --> 00:57:02,500 Mars Hill, let us together covenant by the power 1206 00:57:02,583 --> 00:57:06,500 of the Holy Spirit who is at work in us to ask the question, 1207 00:57:06,583 --> 00:57:08,208 "What would glorify him?" 1208 00:57:08,292 --> 00:57:10,125 I had this with a couple yesterday. 1209 00:57:10,167 --> 00:57:13,208 They are fighting, they are registered for divorce, 1210 00:57:13,292 --> 00:57:15,083 they have their attorneys, they're finalizing 1211 00:57:15,167 --> 00:57:17,708 their paperwork, they have little children. 1212 00:57:17,792 --> 00:57:20,208 I was talking to them, just a very brief conversation 1213 00:57:20,292 --> 00:57:23,333 in another state. 1214 00:57:23,375 --> 00:57:24,833 I said, "What do you want?" 1215 00:57:24,875 --> 00:57:26,333 She said, "Well, I want out." 1216 00:57:26,375 --> 00:57:28,000 I asked him, "What do you want?" 1217 00:57:28,083 --> 00:57:29,417 He said, "I want out." 1218 00:57:29,500 --> 00:57:32,708 And I asked them, "Have either of you asked God what he wants?" 1219 00:57:32,792 --> 00:57:35,583 They looked at me like, "No, we probably should have, huh?" 1220 00:57:35,667 --> 00:57:37,333 Yeah, not a bad idea. 1221 00:57:37,375 --> 00:57:39,333 Go ask your Dad what he wants. 1222 00:57:39,375 --> 00:57:41,500 I said, "Well, what do you think he wants?" 1223 00:57:41,583 --> 00:57:42,917 They said, "We don't know." 1224 00:57:43,000 --> 00:57:44,917 I said, "Well, let's ask him right now. 1225 00:57:45,000 --> 00:57:46,333 Let me pray." 1226 00:57:46,375 --> 00:57:48,083 We're praying, boom. "What did he say?" 1227 00:57:48,167 --> 00:57:50,083 She said, "He wants me to forgive him." 1228 00:57:50,167 --> 00:57:51,833 I asked him, "What did he say?" 1229 00:57:51,875 --> 00:57:53,333 "He wants me to forgive her." 1230 00:57:53,375 --> 00:57:56,417 I said, "So, what would glorify God?" 1231 00:57:56,500 --> 00:57:58,833 They said, "We're not going to get a divorce. 1232 00:57:58,875 --> 00:58:02,833 We're going to figure it out," because that will glorify God. 1233 00:58:02,917 --> 00:58:05,250 That'll glorify God. 1234 00:58:05,333 --> 00:58:08,583 If you ask the question, "What will glorify God?" 1235 00:58:08,667 --> 00:58:10,583 you'll end up with a very different answer 1236 00:58:10,667 --> 00:58:13,333 to most of the questions that you ask in your life, 1237 00:58:13,417 --> 00:58:15,167 but it'll always be the right answer-- 1238 00:58:15,250 --> 00:58:18,000 always be the right answer. 1239 00:58:18,042 --> 00:58:20,208 So, here's what I want to do, Mars Hill. 1240 00:58:20,292 --> 00:58:22,417 I want to give you a brief family update. 1241 00:58:22,500 --> 00:58:24,417 Since we're talking about praying for our church, 1242 00:58:24,500 --> 00:58:28,917 how about I give you some stuff to pray for, okay? 1243 00:58:29,000 --> 00:58:30,708 Be praying for Mars Hill Students. 1244 00:58:30,792 --> 00:58:34,000 Yep, Mars Hill Students. 1245 00:58:34,083 --> 00:58:36,542 Adam Ramsey has joined our team, he's a really gifted 1246 00:58:36,625 --> 00:58:38,500 Bible-teaching evangelist. 1247 00:58:38,583 --> 00:58:41,500 My kids love him, and he's got an Aussie accent, 1248 00:58:41,583 --> 00:58:44,167 so it's particularly cool. 1249 00:58:44,208 --> 00:58:47,333 And so we officially started Mars Hill Students 1250 00:58:47,417 --> 00:58:49,333 across most of our churches. 1251 00:58:49,417 --> 00:58:51,833 We now have over 400 students a week coming, 1252 00:58:51,917 --> 00:58:53,708 so it's a good start. 1253 00:58:53,792 --> 00:58:56,333 We've had dozens, and dozens, and dozens of students receive 1254 00:58:56,417 --> 00:58:58,250 Christ and become Christians. 1255 00:58:58,333 --> 00:59:01,000 To be honest with you, I've met many of these kids 1256 00:59:01,083 --> 00:59:04,625 and they have genuinely gotten saved and met Jesus. 1257 00:59:04,667 --> 00:59:06,625 And so be praying for Mars Hill Students. 1258 00:59:06,667 --> 00:59:09,417 It's off to a really good, strong start and we're really 1259 00:59:09,500 --> 00:59:11,958 excited about the future of that opportunity. 1260 00:59:12,000 --> 00:59:14,625 You can be in prayer as well for Mars Hill Music. 1261 00:59:14,667 --> 00:59:17,833 We've officially signed our record deal with Tooth and Nail, 1262 00:59:17,917 --> 00:59:20,125 and the first band out will be Citizens. 1263 00:59:20,167 --> 00:59:23,333 Their album comes out next month, 1264 00:59:23,417 --> 00:59:27,125 and then after that Cam and Ghost Ship from Downtown 1265 00:59:27,167 --> 00:59:28,958 will have the next album, 1266 00:59:29,000 --> 00:59:31,333 and then Dustin Kensrue from Mars Hill Bellevue, 1267 00:59:31,417 --> 00:59:33,250 his album will be the third out, 1268 00:59:33,333 --> 00:59:36,125 and so we've got a whole bunch of our wonderful musicians 1269 00:59:36,167 --> 00:59:38,833 writing songs, recording them, releasing them. 1270 00:59:38,875 --> 00:59:40,833 You should be hearing them on the radio 1271 00:59:40,917 --> 00:59:43,042 and it's an opportunity to serve the greater church, 1272 00:59:43,125 --> 00:59:46,333 so be praying for Mars Hill Music as well. 1273 00:59:46,417 --> 00:59:48,958 You can be in prayer for Mars Hill Rainier Valley. 1274 00:59:49,000 --> 00:59:50,667 One of the things the executive elders 1275 00:59:50,708 --> 00:59:53,042 and I have been doing recently is going to visit 1276 00:59:53,125 --> 00:59:55,250 our churches and see our people, love our people, 1277 00:59:55,333 --> 00:59:57,250 so we went to Mars Hill Rainier Valley 1278 00:59:57,333 --> 00:59:58,667 a few weeks ago. 1279 00:59:58,708 --> 01:00:01,500 I would say--we would say one of the most encouraging times 1280 01:00:01,583 --> 01:00:03,167 we've ever had. 1281 01:00:03,208 --> 01:00:05,250 That's the happiest church we've got. 1282 01:00:05,333 --> 01:00:08,042 I mean, whatever they have, I wish we could export it, 1283 01:00:08,125 --> 01:00:09,500 you know? 1284 01:00:09,583 --> 01:00:12,167 I mean, there's a genuine love for Jesus and one another 1285 01:00:12,208 --> 01:00:13,875 at the church in Rainier Valley. 1286 01:00:13,958 --> 01:00:16,500 And it really is a wonderful opportunity 1287 01:00:16,542 --> 01:00:18,667 in the most diverse zip code in America, 1288 01:00:18,750 --> 01:00:21,500 and there's a ton of single moms that are living there 1289 01:00:21,542 --> 01:00:23,167 at Hope Place getting help from 1290 01:00:23,250 --> 01:00:25,500 really horrible relationships with men. 1291 01:00:25,542 --> 01:00:27,542 Our student ministry there is huge, 1292 01:00:27,625 --> 01:00:30,250 and a bunch of those kids are from first-generation homes 1293 01:00:30,333 --> 01:00:32,583 that are new to the country and/or fatherless homes. 1294 01:00:32,667 --> 01:00:34,292 Wonderful, beautiful things happening. 1295 01:00:34,333 --> 01:00:37,250 And I just want to say thank you because at Mars Hill, 1296 01:00:37,333 --> 01:00:38,958 because we're one big church family, 1297 01:00:39,000 --> 01:00:41,833 some of the churches that have more money give to the churches 1298 01:00:41,917 --> 01:00:43,667 that have less money. 1299 01:00:43,750 --> 01:00:46,250 And Mars Hill Rainier Valley would not exist apart from 1300 01:00:46,333 --> 01:00:48,667 the generosity of the other Mars Hill churches, 1301 01:00:48,750 --> 01:00:51,833 because this is an impoverished, urban area, 1302 01:00:51,917 --> 01:00:55,167 but you are the supply line for Pastor Willy and the team 1303 01:00:55,208 --> 01:00:57,000 that's there on the front line. 1304 01:00:57,042 --> 01:00:59,667 And I can tell you seeing it up close and personal, 1305 01:00:59,750 --> 01:01:01,833 it's beautiful what Jesus is doing, 1306 01:01:01,875 --> 01:01:03,500 and he has a particular affection 1307 01:01:03,583 --> 01:01:05,000 for Mars Hill Rainier Valley, 1308 01:01:05,083 --> 01:01:07,750 so be in prayer for them and know that your generosity 1309 01:01:07,833 --> 01:01:09,333 helps to support them. 1310 01:01:09,417 --> 01:01:11,333 Pray as well for Mars Hill Portland. 1311 01:01:11,417 --> 01:01:13,167 We went down to Mars Hill Portland 1312 01:01:13,250 --> 01:01:16,000 a few weeks ago, we had a big old church meeting, 1313 01:01:16,042 --> 01:01:18,292 a family night with Pastor Tim Smith. 1314 01:01:18,333 --> 01:01:21,500 And some of you may be new to Mars Hill and not understand 1315 01:01:21,542 --> 01:01:22,875 that we're a church-planting church. 1316 01:01:22,958 --> 01:01:25,042 We plant churches, make disciples. 1317 01:01:25,125 --> 01:01:27,750 Portland is now the least churched city in America. 1318 01:01:27,833 --> 01:01:29,250 Seattle used to be, 1319 01:01:29,333 --> 01:01:31,667 but in the grace of God it no longer is, 1320 01:01:31,708 --> 01:01:33,833 that we still have some work left to do. 1321 01:01:33,917 --> 01:01:35,333 And we went down there, 1322 01:01:35,417 --> 01:01:37,333 and the church is just a year old. 1323 01:01:37,417 --> 01:01:38,875 It was really facing persecution, picketing, 1324 01:01:38,958 --> 01:01:41,458 windows being broken by protesters, 1325 01:01:41,500 --> 01:01:44,375 horrible things being said to the children, 1326 01:01:44,458 --> 01:01:47,167 some perhaps even spit on on their way into church. 1327 01:01:47,250 --> 01:01:50,375 I mean, it was a very volatile start, 1328 01:01:50,458 --> 01:01:52,875 but Pastor Tim and the team there weathered the storm, 1329 01:01:52,958 --> 01:01:55,667 they loved well, they've really built good relationships with 1330 01:01:55,750 --> 01:02:00,333 the whole city, and now they're running 700 plus a week 1331 01:02:00,417 --> 01:02:02,333 in a year. 1332 01:02:02,417 --> 01:02:05,333 And the church has exploded, adding a new service this fall, 1333 01:02:05,417 --> 01:02:08,042 and we fully expect it to be 1,000 people 1334 01:02:08,125 --> 01:02:11,542 by its 18-month birthday. 1335 01:02:11,625 --> 01:02:13,833 And so be in prayer for Mars Hill Portland. 1336 01:02:13,917 --> 01:02:17,792 Wonderful things are happening there. 1337 01:02:17,833 --> 01:02:21,375 And as well, you can pray for Mars Hill Downtown Seattle. 1338 01:02:21,458 --> 01:02:23,667 We officially entered into the building, 1339 01:02:23,750 --> 01:02:25,583 the oldest church in Seattle. 1340 01:02:25,667 --> 01:02:28,292 We're still raising, however, the remainder of the money 1341 01:02:28,333 --> 01:02:31,333 to finish the work, like bathrooms, and so it's not 1342 01:02:31,417 --> 01:02:34,292 really luxurious items that we're going for right now. 1343 01:02:34,333 --> 01:02:37,250 It's port-a-potties outside and it's a little cold, 1344 01:02:37,333 --> 01:02:40,167 so there's a strong need to just get some construction 1345 01:02:40,250 --> 01:02:42,083 finished up there. 1346 01:02:42,167 --> 01:02:46,250 But we will be broadcasting live from there on Easter, 1347 01:02:46,333 --> 01:02:49,250 and I'll tell you a little bit about Easter in a moment, 1348 01:02:49,333 --> 01:02:52,000 but that's where we'll be broadcasting from live. 1349 01:02:52,042 --> 01:02:55,375 You can be in prayer as well for Mars Hill Tacoma on the top 1350 01:02:55,458 --> 01:02:57,083 and Mars Hill Everett on the bottom. 1351 01:02:57,167 --> 01:02:58,958 Both got into amazing facilities 1352 01:02:59,000 --> 01:03:01,667 that are very, very, very reasonably priced, 1353 01:03:01,708 --> 01:03:04,000 but they have some work to get them ready, 1354 01:03:04,083 --> 01:03:07,458 so we're needing to raise $600,000 for Mars Hill Tacoma. 1355 01:03:07,500 --> 01:03:11,458 Mars Hill Federal Way will be moving to Tacoma. 1356 01:03:11,500 --> 01:03:13,667 Since Pastor Bubba arrived there, 1357 01:03:13,750 --> 01:03:16,667 it's gone from 600 to 1,000 people in a few months, 1358 01:03:16,750 --> 01:03:19,167 and they're setting up and tearing down in a school. 1359 01:03:19,250 --> 01:03:21,792 The church has exploded and Pastor Bubba's 1360 01:03:21,833 --> 01:03:23,500 doing a wonderful job. 1361 01:03:23,542 --> 01:03:25,583 We love him and Shelly very, very much. 1362 01:03:25,667 --> 01:03:28,500 And so this cool, old building in Tacoma will be a trunk 1363 01:03:28,542 --> 01:03:31,167 to send out branches to the entire South Sound, 1364 01:03:31,208 --> 01:03:34,500 and so we need to raise the remainder of the money for that. 1365 01:03:34,542 --> 01:03:36,500 And also, Mars Hill Everett got the armory. 1366 01:03:36,542 --> 01:03:38,667 We're not currently meeting in either of these buildings. 1367 01:03:38,750 --> 01:03:40,875 The Everett church of Mars Hill is meeting, 1368 01:03:40,958 --> 01:03:43,083 set up and tear down, at a school, 1369 01:03:43,167 --> 01:03:45,500 and trying to get the money raised to finish 1370 01:03:45,542 --> 01:03:47,458 the construction to get into the building. 1371 01:03:47,500 --> 01:03:50,250 And so we've got a lot of fundraising to do there, 1372 01:03:50,333 --> 01:03:52,875 but we believe that both of those will be very, very 1373 01:03:52,958 --> 01:03:54,958 significant churches for their regions, 1374 01:03:55,000 --> 01:03:57,167 and so pray for them as well. 1375 01:03:57,250 --> 01:04:00,125 Coming up on Easter, I don't know if you heard this, 1376 01:04:00,167 --> 01:04:01,750 Jesus is alive. 1377 01:04:01,833 --> 01:04:04,958 I don't know if you heard that, it's good news. 1378 01:04:05,000 --> 01:04:09,667 So our biggest thing every year is Easter where we celebrate 1379 01:04:09,708 --> 01:04:12,292 the resurrection of Jesus from death. 1380 01:04:12,333 --> 01:04:15,250 And let me tell you what we've got going on this year. 1381 01:04:15,333 --> 01:04:17,083 We're broadcasting out of Mars Hill Downtown, 1382 01:04:17,167 --> 01:04:19,167 and we are syncing up live, via satellite, 1383 01:04:19,250 --> 01:04:23,000 all 14 Mars Hill churches, and we'll be meeting concurrently, 1384 01:04:23,042 --> 01:04:25,667 live, across all of the churches. 1385 01:04:25,750 --> 01:04:29,333 And so we'll connect digitally as one big, extended family. 1386 01:04:29,417 --> 01:04:34,042 We're running 42 services in 14 locations across 4 states, 1387 01:04:34,125 --> 01:04:35,792 so pray. 1388 01:04:35,833 --> 01:04:38,250 If it sounds complicated, it's because it is. 1389 01:04:38,333 --> 01:04:41,083 We are praying for, and you could be praying for, 1390 01:04:41,167 --> 01:04:44,292 at least 20,000 people on Easter. 1391 01:04:44,333 --> 01:04:46,875 I'm praying for at least 20,000 people on Easter, 1392 01:04:46,958 --> 01:04:48,667 and we're praying for hundreds, and hundreds, 1393 01:04:48,708 --> 01:04:52,167 and hundreds of baptisms, and that people would meet Jesus. 1394 01:04:52,208 --> 01:04:54,667 We're also going to live stream it all online, 1395 01:04:54,750 --> 01:04:57,292 and so people can watch the services, and the baptisms, 1396 01:04:57,333 --> 01:04:59,000 and hear the testimonies. 1397 01:04:59,042 --> 01:05:02,250 So, if you've got some friends who want to see what we're doing 1398 01:05:02,333 --> 01:05:05,042 for Easter, they're certainly welcome to follow along online. 1399 01:05:05,125 --> 01:05:07,000 Please pray for Easter. 1400 01:05:07,083 --> 01:05:10,500 It's our biggest harvest day of the year and the day that we see 1401 01:05:10,583 --> 01:05:11,875 the most people meet Jesus. 1402 01:05:11,958 --> 01:05:14,083 And so even now, be praying for family, friends, 1403 01:05:14,167 --> 01:05:15,500 neighbors, coworkers. 1404 01:05:15,542 --> 01:05:17,167 Who are you going to invite? 1405 01:05:17,250 --> 01:05:20,292 Lastly, just be praying for the generosity of God's people. 1406 01:05:20,333 --> 01:05:22,167 Here's where we are at. 1407 01:05:22,208 --> 01:05:24,583 We're running about 13,000 people a week, 1408 01:05:24,667 --> 01:05:26,250 which we praise God for. 1409 01:05:26,333 --> 01:05:28,667 That's a lot of people to love and to serve. 1410 01:05:28,708 --> 01:05:30,833 We finished the year okay in giving, 1411 01:05:30,917 --> 01:05:33,667 and we sort of fell off a cliff in January. 1412 01:05:33,708 --> 01:05:36,583 Only about 28% of people across the whole church are giving 1413 01:05:36,667 --> 01:05:39,500 anything, and so we're behind, quite frankly, 1414 01:05:39,542 --> 01:05:42,375 so be praying for the hearts of the people to be generous. 1415 01:05:42,458 --> 01:05:44,667 For those of you who are generous, thank you. 1416 01:05:44,750 --> 01:05:47,542 For those of you who God is leading to give, 1417 01:05:47,625 --> 01:05:50,792 we would ask you to be praying about what that would look like 1418 01:05:50,833 --> 01:05:52,333 for you. 1419 01:05:52,417 --> 01:05:54,167 And this is where we're at presently. 1420 01:05:54,250 --> 01:05:57,792 With our giving being down, we have reduced our cost, 1421 01:05:57,833 --> 01:06:00,958 but to be honest with you we're currently running in a deficit, 1422 01:06:01,000 --> 01:06:04,417 eating into some of our cash, and so we're in a position that 1423 01:06:04,500 --> 01:06:07,500 we need to ask you to be praying for generous hearts 1424 01:06:07,583 --> 01:06:09,917 among God's people for this next season. 1425 01:06:10,000 --> 01:06:13,250 And in God's providence, I've got an illustration 1426 01:06:13,333 --> 01:06:15,083 of what this looks like. 1427 01:06:15,167 --> 01:06:17,667 It really is an issue of the heart. 1428 01:06:17,708 --> 01:06:20,000 So today, I get up and here's what Alexie, 1429 01:06:20,042 --> 01:06:23,875 my 9-year-old daughter has, her tithe to Mars Hill Church. 1430 01:06:23,958 --> 01:06:26,333 So it says, "From: Alexie, To: Mars Hill." 1431 01:06:26,417 --> 01:06:28,667 She even made her own envelope. 1432 01:06:28,750 --> 01:06:32,833 And I don't know how much is in here, but for Alexie, 1433 01:06:32,917 --> 01:06:35,750 it's her tithe to the church. 1434 01:06:35,833 --> 01:06:38,250 And we didn't ask her to do this. 1435 01:06:38,333 --> 01:06:41,000 She does this pretty much every week. 1436 01:06:41,042 --> 01:06:43,083 She prays for the church every day, 1437 01:06:43,167 --> 01:06:45,792 and then she gives to the church every week. 1438 01:06:45,833 --> 01:06:49,375 And so I really appreciate her heart, 1439 01:06:49,458 --> 01:06:51,458 and even though the amount that's in here 1440 01:06:51,500 --> 01:06:54,292 probably isn't a lot if I'm guessing correctly, 1441 01:06:54,333 --> 01:06:56,333 it comes from the heart of someone 1442 01:06:56,417 --> 01:06:58,667 who prays for the church and loves the church. 1443 01:06:58,750 --> 01:07:01,750 And I believe that gifts like this are like fishes and loaves 1444 01:07:01,833 --> 01:07:04,042 that are handed to Jesus by the little boy; 1445 01:07:04,125 --> 01:07:06,750 they get multiplied to feed the multitudes. 1446 01:07:06,833 --> 01:07:10,333 And so what we do is we ask you to pray and to give whatever 1447 01:07:10,417 --> 01:07:13,167 Jesus lays on your heart, and then we trust him 1448 01:07:13,208 --> 01:07:15,833 to help us steward it well and to multiply it. 1449 01:07:15,917 --> 01:07:18,625 And if you want, you can put it in a cool, 1450 01:07:18,667 --> 01:07:20,708 handmade envelope like Alexie. 1451 01:07:20,792 --> 01:07:23,042 So that being said, I love you very much, 1452 01:07:23,125 --> 01:07:25,042 and I'm going to go ahead and pray. 1453 01:07:25,125 --> 01:07:27,708 Father God, I thank you so much for an opportunity 1454 01:07:27,792 --> 01:07:29,708 to teach the Bible at Mars Hill Church. 1455 01:07:29,792 --> 01:07:32,333 And Lord Jesus, as we see the example of Paul 1456 01:07:32,375 --> 01:07:35,500 that he keeps praying for the church, help us 1457 01:07:35,583 --> 01:07:38,833 to continually be praying for the church. 1458 01:07:38,875 --> 01:07:40,958 It's good to pray for ourselves, Lord. 1459 01:07:41,000 --> 01:07:43,250 It's good to pray for our friends and family, 1460 01:07:43,333 --> 01:07:45,833 but it's really important that we don't forget to pray 1461 01:07:45,917 --> 01:07:47,542 for the church family. 1462 01:07:47,625 --> 01:07:50,958 And so Father, we thank you that we can say that you're our Dad 1463 01:07:51,000 --> 01:07:52,333 and that we're a family. 1464 01:07:52,417 --> 01:07:55,167 And help us to have hearts that are inclined in prayer 1465 01:07:55,208 --> 01:07:57,250 toward one another. 1466 01:07:57,333 --> 01:08:01,125 Help us to not see church as a business, but a family. 1467 01:08:01,167 --> 01:08:03,917 And Lord Jesus, I thank you so much that right now, 1468 01:08:04,000 --> 01:08:08,417 the Holy Spirit is in us, that you're mediating for us, 1469 01:08:08,500 --> 01:08:10,583 and that as we talk to the Father, 1470 01:08:10,667 --> 01:08:12,542 our prayers go directly to him. 1471 01:08:12,625 --> 01:08:15,542 And so we thank you for that, and we rejoice in that, 1472 01:08:15,625 --> 01:08:17,833 and we pray now in Jesus' good name, amen. 1473 01:08:19,667 --> 01:08:22,583 Each year, over 10 million Mars Hill church sermons 1474 01:08:22,667 --> 01:08:25,667 are downloaded worldwide for free. 1475 01:08:25,750 --> 01:08:28,292 This ministry is generously supported 1476 01:08:28,333 --> 01:08:30,917 by Mars Hill church members and listeners like you. 1477 01:08:31,000 --> 01:08:34,500 If you'd like to support our efforts to preach Jesus to the world, 1478 01:08:34,542 --> 01:08:37,500 Please consider making a tax-deductible donation 1479 01:08:37,542 --> 01:08:40,375 by visiting marshill.com/give.