Sunday Service

Map to come forward for the offering fleas spray.

But also to get back to you something of what you've already give it to us blessings in this oh Lord Our God in Jesus name.

Thank you, Keith.

Thank you, Gary.

Well, some of the Prairie first of all, the reading from Acts chapter 9 will look at a little bit as we go along. But remember and Acts chapter 9, we have the conversion of Paul from his terrible wrecking of the church to following Christ says but the Lord said to ananias go, this man is a chosen instrument to Proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel, I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.

The command to go. We're going to take a look at that because we are going through the challenge to change. Our, we looked at Abraham last week this week, we'll look at Moses and the challenge he had to change his life.

But get your mind kind of thinking in that direction. Some prayer requests that we have yesterday, Rosita, Rosita and face-planted their self. She's got a few bruises and everything. Fortunately, they took her to the hospital and she's didn't have a concussion, but she is in recovery right now. So be praying for her. Mark goes in for hip replacement tomorrow and so we need to uphold him in prayer. And pray that everything works out. Well, as I'm certain it will we just got some information. Some of you know him he had is been suffering from cancer in the treatments. Have not been going very well, he's been struggling. Got some information about the struggles yesterday but we don't know the extent of it but need to keep him in prayer. Also Dickie Baldwin has been going through some recovery from it appears to be a flu bug, but keep him in prayer and then Jan,

Has been suffering from back pain and is recovering, but slowly as a couple of weeks of that, so we need to lift her up. Anyway. Let's go to prayer.

A precious father how we do? Thank you and praise you as we come before you with our desires and requests father a help us to remember that you're the Mighty God. The one who is able to take care of the situations that we lay at your feet, you are Not unable in any way to perform all of these functions, in whatever way, you deem the best, and we know that each one of them will be responded with goodness and like, because that is the promise you have given us. We do pray that you would be with us as we are ministers of the gospel of Christ to our community and we are demonstrating that more and more and I thank you for that and pray that you would give us the courage and the strength to continue to reach out to a community that is in desperate need. We are the people in the Lifeboat and we're rescuing the lost. Help us to be faithful and true to the task. Father, we also pray that you would be with the needs that have been mentioned and we think of Rosita, she's just come home after enjoying a vacation, a month away with her family in Kentucky, and then gets back and almost immediately Falls. Father, only pray for your hand of healing and restoration for her body and strength to be able to move as she desires, we think of Mark, is he heads towards this operation even today? Heading up to Eugene? We pray for wisdom and Clarity for the doctors in all of they do, and that the operation would go well. And then as he goes through the cut recovery process, we pray for wisdom and guidance for him. And each step that he takes, may he be restored, Father, we also pray for a Bart. As he is battling this disease, we know it's a struggle, but we pray that you would touch his body and his life, we pray for restoration and strength healing for him. We also think of Dickie as he's going through a healing from this flu bug that attacked him. We pray that you would strengthen, and heal him and restore his body. We also pray for Jan. Lord, sometimes we go through these struggles and Jan is certainly faced enormous number of them in her life. And yet, you brought her through and may she Rejoice once again in the healing of her back restoring and giving your recovery and energy once again. Father, we do pray for the unspoken request because I know a number here. Have request that they haven't laid before us and we want to remember and we want to lift up their lives in whatever Direction. You're taking them whether it's healing or whether it's a financial difficulties or family struggles. Father, you know where they are. I helped him to realize that it is your Mighty hand that truly makes a difference, whether it is healing or not, whether it is recovery from financial difficulties or not. Whether it is. Healing family, relations are not father, you are still to be blessed and honored. So maybe we do that. May we praise you today as we continue to Worship You. In Jesus, precious name, we ask these things. Amen.

Where you taught my soul, to sing Amazing Grace. This, I know.

Storm rushes in. And here I am again. Decided

So take me up to where I was.

Give me up to feel your charge. It wouldn't be that much.

Back and he's grown. Since I do and here I am again. This, I know. Whoa, so take me up. I was but I never wanted.

speeded up to where I was, when I got there p.m.

Yes, I do. Yes, I do.

Is jealous for me.

Love's like a hurricane. I am a tree bending the The way that is win, then Percy.

When I am unaware of these afflictions, eclipsed by glory, and I realize just how beautiful you are and how to make your affections off for me and O. How he loves us. So, Oh, How He Loves Us, he loves us. So,

Is jealous for me. Love's like a hurricane, I am a tree, finding the mean the weight of his wind and mercy.

All of a sudden. I am unaware of these papers by Glory.

Origami.

How how he loves us. He loves us. So.

I don't have time to be babies regress when I think about

Oh, How He Loves?

Let's go ahead and pray. Our Father in Heaven. How thankful again, we are for your Mighty presence because you dude, guide and direct Our Lives, you're a spirit is working inside those who have called upon your name and active in this endeavor because you want us to change, you want us to be more and more like you And so father as your spirit Works in each of our hearts, may, we listen, carefully to what you have to say to our lives this day. Father, may your spirit guide me that as you have laid, these words upon my heart, may you give wisdom. How to how they come out of my voice out of my heart. You are the light, the Hope in the strength and we love you. We ask all these things in the Name of Christ, Our Living savior, amen. Well, we've been looking at challenge to change and that is kind of the focus of what is happening in our lives. I hope because each of us should consider the change, the God's Desires in our lives. Today, we're going to look at an individual that I think my challenge Us in different ways. Have you ever felt lost in your walk with Jesus Christ? Have you ever felt like you've done something for him? And it just didn't turn out the way you thought it should and somehow you thought that God had deserted you in that effort and Did it spoiled your? Ideas of who, e w. Or have you ever go on a long and felt like you were just simply? Unconnected with God that he really didn't care about your life and he just was let you go and flow is so you went that he didn't really care. You know in as we examine the life of Moses we're going to see some of those things that came out and you know, Moses was born a Jew but raised an Egyptian. Can you imagine that? I don't know if you've ever thought about it but I certainly have and merry as we have been involved with missions, kids overseas, many of them born in America. but raised overseas in the nation that wasn't theirs. And they found themselves not really being American and not really being of the nation they existed in and what they call these people is third culture kids. Because they're in a culture that is totally different from any that we know of no about you know what, I think that that's kind of where Moses was. Remember he was raised in Egyptian, he could have been part of the Egyptian. Royalty is mother was the sister of Farrell

The ruler in Egypt. Any could have been royalty in Egypt, but he also was a Jew and he felt a need to be part of that culture.

And so, he's wandering off looking at the people of Israel and there's an Egyptian beating an Israelite and he's angry and he takes the life of the Egyptian. The next day, he's wandering around in these these two Israelites complaining, and he goes to them and says you don't stop that. You're, you're the same tribe and why are you arguing together and they say, what are you going to kill us? Like you killed the Egyptian? You know, he's rejected by his own People Israel.

He's now rejected by Egypt because he killed one of their own and he knows his life is in danger. He has to flee, run away, you know how are you old? He was then 40 years old at that point. And then he runs off. end of the Wilderness and he finally meets these ladies and helps them out and eventually marries one of them has a couple of children and he becomes a Shepherd here. He is a guy who was raised in the palace and now he's out guarding sheep. Wandering around the desert.

And so with 80 years old, I think about that, you say well I'm pretty old for God to really want to change me. He was eighty years old. God can change people who have a heart that's willing to change. And that's where we're going to meet him today. He's 80 years old leading, a few sheep way out in the wilderness. Close to the Mountain of God. and we see him Exodus chapter 3, will read the first four verses Says No Moses was tending, the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law the priest of Midian and he led the flock to The Far Side of the Wilderness and came to Horeb the Mountain of God. They're the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a Bush. Moses all that though. The Bush was on fire. It did not burn up. So Moses lot I will go over at to see this strange sight. Why the bush does not burn out. When the Lord saw that, he had gone over to look, God Called to him within the Bush. Moses, Moses and Moses said, here I am You see? Here's this lost soul who has been wondering about God. I'm certain, I'm certain his mind went. Okay, here I am. I'm a guy who finally realize that I am a Jewish and I want to serve God there and I start to do it. And it doesn't work. God wasn't there with me, when I try to help the Israelites out, you know? And sometimes we feel that right. Just wasn't with me. So I'm going to Runaway. I'm going to find my own way, go off and try to do my own thing and just live a Whatever life. and here he is watching, sheep out in the desert, I don't know how many she pee was watching, but he's gone to the far side of the Wilderness, which means he's LED them a long way away from where he had been And I don't know where his mind was. None of us. Do you know what was he thinking about will certainly there was something there and he looks up and sees that burning bush. Now, how many of you would like God to come to you in a burning bush or something like that? And just say, okay John. Here's what I want you to do when that be great. Yeah, we all like that wouldn't wait what God does come to you? And he gives direction to your life, just as clearly. As he does formosus here, but sometimes we don't think about God, actually knocking on the door of our life, but that's what he was doing to Moses. He was knocking on the door of his life and he was demonstrating who he was coming to him. We have the advantage of having the word of God, that does guide and direct our pads. When we choose to seek it out. It's so much better guide. When we can think about, because it's God's guide for our lives. Anyway, I thought about this whole idea and it led me to thinking through the idea of the prodigal son and how much Moses was like The Prodigal Son, the son, he knew he was Jewish. He knew it was to follow God and yet he chose to take his inheritance and run off to a different country. Just like Moses ran off to a different country.

Wasted all that. He had grown up and learned, and that sort of thing and Erie is wandering in the desert, in here, the prodigal son was just wandering around thinking. Oh, maybe if I get back to my father, And I'm kind of wondering if Moses wasn't thinking well, how could I ever restore relationship with God? And here. The Sunday has Luke 15:20. It says so the son he got up and went to his father but while he was still a long way off his father, saw him and was filled with compassion for him and he ran to his son. Threw his arms around him and kissed him. I think about that in God's terms. God, saw Moses coming and said, alright. He's coming to me. Because it was in Mount Horeb. Did God, did his mighty work and revealing the Ten Commandments to Moses and the law and all of those things that happen in that area. And so Moses is coming here, just like the prodigal son was coming home in the father looked and saw him a far way off. So God was looking for Moses to come and Moses. Did he came to him? It isn't it interesting that God often reveals himself Through Fire, you know, we see the fire when the Holy Spirit came upon the Earth. What did he come? As flames of fire, that laid itself on the disciples. When we think of Elijah, the god of the prophet of fire, you know, and he called down fire from heaven and it consumed the offering, and he called down fire from heaven and consumed fifty soldiers twice.

The god of Isaiah prophet of Fire. We see fire often when Christ revealed himself to John and Revelation fire was there. Well in Ezekiel 127, it says. And he is calling I saw that from what appeared to be appeared to be, to his waist, up to up. He look like glowing metal as it if full of fire. And then from there down, he look like fire and radiant, light surrounded him. You know, God often reveals. Why why fire? Why is it so important? What fire is cleansing? It purifies it refines an individual and that's why fire is so important when we see Moses coming and recognizing the fire of the burning bush, it is a process of cleansing is life of restoring him and bring him. Back to the very purpose that God called him to remember, he was that little baby. That was it, you know, I saved from Death 80 years before and finally He's being called to change his being called to change. And in some way that cleansing fire purified, him and made him ready to do. What God wanted him to do. It's an unusual call and yet each and every one of us is called in different ways. And often their unusual. I came to know Christ as a young young child. I had parents that love the Lord and followed him, and I was in church. And and I was connected to Sunday school and everything else. So it was an easy transition to come to know God. And each of you has a different story of how God has touched your heart in your life and changed you. And this happens. Well, We have different instances in the Bible, where some of it is relatively easy in the transition, some is difficult member, Paul. He's this Pharisee, who is out killing people in the church, trying to destroy the name of Jesus Christ. Think about that. And all of a sudden he's going to Damascus, ready to capture people there and take him back to Jerusalem and Shane's and have them condemned.

But on his way something happens x93, as he near Damascus on his journey suddenly a light from Heaven flashed around him a light from Heaven, a cleansing light. A cleansing light that took away his sight. You caused him to have to be dragged to Damascus, rather than dragging people away, and he was taken there and had to sit for a few days before ananias came to him, who didn't want to go to him, but he had the call of God, to, and God said go. And so he went

We all have a call and we need to respond to that. Jesus, wandering by the lake of Galilee. There's two fishermen down there Paul, and, and a Peter Peter, and Andrew scuse, me, Peter and Andrew are mending Nets by the side of the sea. And Jesus says these words come follow me, Jesus said and I will send you out to fish for people and they got up from those men. Didn't from mending the Nets and followed Jesus Christ. The great picture of just God's different call on people, and God is calling you and he's calling me to change. Sometimes it's not as dramatic as Moses or Peter and Andrew or Paul. But it is a call to change. Change our lives because God doesn't want to leave you as you are. He wants to build Perfection into your lives, and continue the change you into the being. You are supposed to be and will be one day when you stand before even Glory, Cleansed in. Holy but he wants to do the process here on Earth to think about that. You are being molded. Now, the question is, am I willing to be molded? Because that makes a difference because it means that I'm willing to obey What is called me to be? Know what are the things that we need to recognize as? Moses recognized here in this. We ought to is. When we go before the Living God we should Revere him. We should honor him as we come before him. Then God makes sure Moses understands this because ultimately is going to lead more than a million people, to this very a mountain. And have them worship God but he wants them to Revere him and so God says to him do not come any closer verses 5 and 6 of Exodus 3. God said, take off your sandals for the place where you are standing is Holy Ground. When you come into the presence of God is Holy Ground. And then he said, I am the god of your father, the god of Abraham, the god of Isaac. And the god of Jacob, those dead people that aren't really dead. At this Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.

Not uncommon when we truly come before the Living God. You know. This is a reverence, we need to have when we come before God. And as you go in prayer before the Living, God, we need to remember that we're going before the almighty who created all things including ourselves.

And we need to Revere in Revere him.

Later on as I said, Moses brought all these people to the mountain and he went up to talk with God and God said, hey you know, before we get things going here, I need you to warn the people why the people were still wandering and sin. They hadn't really come to the place where they were really willing to yield themselves over to God. And so they were not clean and holy, people ready to Revere God. And so he says these words to Moses, Exodus 1921 and the Lord said to him, go down and warn the people so that they do not force their way through to see the Lord and many of them perish. You'll see when you and I eventually stand before the Living God we will be fully clean and holy and ready to stand and see the Eternal God. But you and I are really ready yet. We're not really ready yet. When he was speaking to Moses he wanted Moses to realize he's the god of those. Who have loved him and going on like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He wanted them Moses to know that they're still living. Bill still worshipping me. They just aren't doing it here on this Earth and he did the same thing. You know, when Jesus was Going to his the cross. He was meeting with a difference, religious leaders in the Sadducees came up. And if you know anything about the Sadducees, they didn't believe in life. After after death, I believe that this world was all that you got. And that was the oven when she died that was over. You were completely disappeared. Imagine that. How can you worship a God? Who is eternal and still not believe that he would do something for your life? Well, that's what they believe. And that's why they sought gold so much. They says riches in this life because that was God's blessing. That was all yet. And so, you understand why they chose to seek God, that way. And they came to him and they had some questions about this and Jesus response was I am the god of Abraham, the god of Isaac, and the god of Jacob. In other words, I'm a God of those people that you still look back and Revere. I'm still their God. he is not the god of the dead but of the living,

And that's the way we look at it.

You know, when Moses isn't the first one to turn away from God because of the reverence he had there were others who did. So you might remember the story of Elijah. He's done this amazing thing and against the prophets of Baal and he's called down fire from heaven and done some great things and then he's challenged by Jezebel and that woman of Satan who wanted to destroy his life. And he goes running out of the Wilderness runs for 40 days, guess where he comes Mount Horeb. That's where you went. He comes to Mount Horeb and he finds God, they're waiting for him, okay? Elijah. What's the problem? And God gives him a new assignment, but serious. He's come before him and he wants. And God, he wants to see God. And God says, I'm going to show myself to you. Here. It is in the 1st Kings. 19 13. It says, when Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave and then the voice said to him. What are you doing here, Elijah? What are you doing here? But notice he pulled the cloak over his head because he knew that he could not look on the holy God. As a sinful man, just like you and me. Just like you and me, but he was given a new assignment. They redirected his life in a different way. A powerful way to be said, but God. Even as we get older can redirect our lives and change us. Okay. So there's a work that Moses had to do but what you and I need to remember is that when God calls you to change, he doesn't say Don. I want you to change you go out and do it. I'll watch and make sure you do it right? No, he doesn't do it that way. Go out and do the work, but I'm with you and I'm going to help you and I'm going to guide you through that work. In fact it's my work. You're just doing what I've asked you to do. In other words, God wants you to obey its call. Exodus 3, 7 to 10, says, the Lord said, I have seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers and I'm concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey. The home of the Canaanites Hittites amorites, perizzites highlights in jebusites and now the Cry of the Israelites as reach me, and I've seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now go, I am sending you the pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites out of Egypt. Okay. Pretty clear message. Here's what I want you to do. I want you to go and leave them out. Well, as John mentioned this morning and Sunday, school Egypt was the most powerful Nation at that time. In the world.

And here he was assigned to go and bring his people away from them. I think about that. Has God called you to do something. As massive as that never. He has not. But you know even if he calls us to do something as dramatic and massive is that we have to know that he is going to be there with us, helping us guiding us, giving us the wisdom, the courage and the strength to do what he's called us to do. If we obey the call. And do what he's called us to do. God does not give up on us, you know, the people of Israel.

They rebelled and rebelled and rebelled and finally got sent them off to a slavery in Babylon. And they were sitting in slavery for 70 years. But God didn't leave them. He was still there. He just wanted them to recognize their need. Jeremiah 30 verse 3. It says the days are coming declares the Lord. When I will bring my People Israel and Judah back from captivity and restore them to lie and I gave their ancestors to buzz es says the Lord. You know, and as far away as you might feel, you might feel that God has just not going to listen to you, and all that you're doing. You might feel that you've tried to serve God. But he hasn't responded and somehow blessed whatever you tried to do. You might feel like, you're just simply alone.

As the people of Israel, probably felt and as Moses probably felt in that desert, but God is there. He hasn't left. The only person that's going away, is you? But God is always there.

God's work is done through people. You know, we have a work to do here in powers and that's what I mentioned earlier, is that we have a job to do the idea of praying for people, the idea of gathering together, and, and demonstrating our walk with God to others, who just look at us and wonder, you know, his God really there. And then, if we demonstrate that he is by the power of our words and our testimonies about him, we begin changing life, and that's what God wants to do. But the work that is being done, is not your strength in my strength. It says, we yield to him and allow him to do the work in us and be willing to Step up when he says Don, it's time to speak. It's time to say something that we do and step up and you can put your name in there. God's work Deuteronomy 929.

Here Moses is, the people are ready to enter in the land and Moses, the one who led them out of Egypt, the one who led them through the desert for 40 years is saying these words.

He says, but they are your people. Talking to God your inheritance that you brought out by your great power and your outstretched arm. You're so people look at Moses as being probably the ultimate prophet of God, okay? And here, the ultimate prophet of God says, You really wasn't my work. I just did what you told me to do. I just followed you through all this. It was you who brought the people out? All the glory belongs to you and it always does God's work well in the goal. Remember when he talked to Moses at the Rock? Hey I want you to bring the people out and take them into the promised land, right? Leviticus 2024, but I said to you, you will possess their land. I will give it to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey. I am the Lord, your God, who is set you apart from the nation's? You see, the plan was for Moses, to lead the people out and bring them into the promised land, Willie, missed out, on that a little bit, not because he got too old. He passed from this life and 120 years and he was still walking strong. It was just God said, you're not enduring into the land. Why? Because he chose not to A Beka. Think about that. He didn't get to leave them in the land simply because he chose not to obey God at one level instance. Are we going to choose to obey gone or not? That's a huge choice for each and everyone of us. But when God says go, when God says, I want you to be involved in something, I think it through Because he has to work that he wants to do in your life, we had one Prophet who was said it was told go and he chose not to go, you might remember the story of Jonah, Jonah, 1:2 go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it because its wickedness has come up before me. What did he do? He jumped on the closest ship. That was hitting the farthest away and he sailed off because he didn't want to do what God called him to do. Whatever his reasons and we can think of his reasons. But we all have reasons, why we don't want to do what God wants us to do. But when God says go and he really means he will disturb your life. Until you really choose to do what he's called you to do. You'll struggle as he did eventually, you know the story. He got thrown into the sea swallowed by a fish and vomited out on the land. Imagine that. Yeah. But then he did what God called him to do. The blessing, the blessing, for all of us is not whatever God has called us to do the change that it brings, but the fact that we choose to do with God's called us to do, because sometimes we step up and we do what God has called us do in our imagination. Takes us as a places of the way that on a change, other people's lives and change our own lives and it isn't changing the way we think it should. So it was all wrong and we walk away from God because okay I obeyed God, nothing happened. no, leave the results in God's hands, and praise him for that, Praise Him for whatever he take it, wherever he takes you, but trust him when he says go,

And if God says go, I want you to read through the Bible. This year, read through the Bible this year. If God says, I want you to start going to a Bible study, go to a Bible study this year. If God says, I want you involved in prayer, more in this year, get involved in prayer more this year.

God is calling us to a lot of different things, we need to seek Him, and understand what he's calling is to. He wants to change our lives.

And as God benchley change Moses life, it doesn't matter how old you are. You can be 80 years old and he still has a lot of going, a lot going for you. To change and make your life, exciting and adventurous because I found it, when you choose to do what God calls you to do, it isn't boring. It's exciting stuff. Let's pray.

Our gracious father how we thank you that you give these challenges like Moses, a man who is a Wanderer and all of a sudden called to be the greatest, prophet in Israel history. Wow. Father, we don't know what you have for us but you do desire is to change and so help us to respond to that by saying. Okay Lord I'm going I'm doing what you called me to do because it will make a difference in my life. Bless us. Oh Lord. Our God in Jesus name. Amen, for closing.

We've been done.

We turn our eyes from Evil things. Oh Lord, we cast out to give us clean.

Give Us Clean Hands.

We band. O Spirit, Kennesaw.

Rita Skeeter.

Give Us Clean Hands.

Give.

Let us know.

Scarred from Love.