Don't Begrudge That Nudge

February 26, 2023

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Scripture referenced 6 passages

The passage this message was preached from, in full, with every other passage it reached for.

Psalm 32 read as an encouraging word to lead the congregation into worship

1 Blessed is he whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man to whom Yahweh doesn’t impute iniquity, in whose spirit there is no deceit.
3 When I kept silence, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me. My strength was sapped in the heat of summer. Selah.
5 I acknowledged my sin to you. I didn’t hide my iniquity. I said, I will confess my transgressions to Yahweh, and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah.
6 For this, let everyone who is godly pray to you in a time when you may be found. Surely when the great waters overflow, they shall not reach to him.
7 You are my hiding place. You will preserve me from trouble. You will surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you shall go. I will counsel you with my eye on you.
9 Don’t be like the horse, or like the mule, which have no understanding, who are controlled by bit and bridle, or else they will not come near to you.
10 Many sorrows come to the wicked, but loving kindness shall surround him who trusts in Yahweh.
11 Be glad in Yahweh, and rejoice, you righteous! Shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart!

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2 Corinthians

read as a good word about God's promises being fulfilled in Christ with a resounding yes

Read 2 Corinthians

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Jeremiah 17

read as a word about those who trust in the Lord being like trees planted by the riverbank

1 “The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond. It is engraved on the tablet of their heart, and on the horns of your altars.

2 Even their children remember their altars and their Asherah poles by the green trees on the high hills.

3 My mountain in the field, I will give your substance and all your treasures for a plunder, and your high places, because of sin, throughout all your borders.

4 You, even of yourself, will discontinue from your heritage that I gave you. I will cause you to serve your enemies in the land which you don’t know, for you have kindled a fire in my anger which will burn forever.”

5 Yahweh says: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man, relies on strength of flesh, and whose heart departs from Yahweh.

6 For he will be like a bush in the desert, and will not see when good comes, but will inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, an uninhabited salt land.

7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in Yahweh, and whose confidence is in Yahweh.

8 For he will be as a tree planted by the waters, who spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes, but its leaf will be green; and will not be concerned in the year of drought. It won’t cease from yielding fruit.

9 The heart is deceitful above all things and it is exceedingly corrupt. Who can know it?

10 “I, Yahweh, search the mind. I try the heart, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”

11 As the partridge that sits on eggs which she has not laid, so is he who gets riches, and not by right. In the middle of his days, they will leave him. At his end, he will be a fool.

12 A glorious throne, set on high from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary.

13 Yahweh, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you will be disappointed. Those who depart from me will be written in the earth, because they have forsaken Yahweh, the spring of living waters.

14 Heal me, O Yahweh, and I will be healed. Save me, and I will be saved; for you are my praise.

15 Behold, they tell me, “Where is Yahweh’s word? Let it be fulfilled now.”

16 As for me, I have not hurried from being a shepherd after you. I haven’t desired the woeful day. You know. That which came out of my lips was before your face.

17 Don’t be a terror to me. You are my refuge in the day of evil.

18 Let them be disappointed who persecute me, but let not me be disappointed. Let them be dismayed, but don’t let me be dismayed. Bring on them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction.

19 Yahweh said this to me: “Go, and stand in the gate of the children of the people, through which the kings of Judah come in and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem.

20 Tell them, ‘Hear Yahweh’s word, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates:

21 Yahweh says, “Be careful, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem.

22 Don’t carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day. Don’t do any work, but make the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers.

23 But they didn’t listen. They didn’t turn their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, and might not receive instruction.

24 It will happen, if you diligently listen to me,” says Yahweh, “to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but to make the Sabbath day holy, to do no work therein;

25 then there will enter in by the gates of this city kings and princes sitting on David’s throne, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city will remain forever.

26 They will come from the cities of Judah, and from the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the lowland, from the hill country, and from the South, bringing burnt offerings, sacrifices, meal offerings, and frankincense, and bringing sacrifices of thanksgiving, to Yahweh’s house.

27 But if you will not listen to me to make the Sabbath day holy, and not to bear a burden and enter in at the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem. It will not be quenched.”’”

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John 8:32

cited by Buster as the team scripture for the Freedom Fighters group at the retreat

32 You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

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John 15

mentioned twice as the passage two different preachers had recently preached on regarding discipleship and abiding in Christ

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the farmer.

2 Every branch in me that doesn’t bear fruit, he takes away. Every branch that bears fruit, he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

3 You are already pruned clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.

4 Remain in me, and I in you. As the branch can’t bear fruit by itself, unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you, unless you remain in me.

5 I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

6 If a man doesn’t remain in me, he is thrown out as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

7 If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, you will ask whatever you desire, and it will be done for you.

8 “In this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit; and so you will be my disciples.

9 Even as the Father has loved me, I also have loved you. Remain in my love.

10 If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and remain in his love.

11 I have spoken these things to you, that my joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be made full.

12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you.

13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

14 You are my friends, if you do whatever I command you.

15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant doesn’t know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you.

16 You didn’t choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain; that whatever you will ask of the Father in my name, he may give it to you.

17 “I command these things to you, that you may love one another.

18 If the world hates you, you know that it has hated me before it hated you.

19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not of the world, since I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his lord.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.

21 But all these things will they do to you for my name’s sake, because they don’t know him who sent me.

22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have had sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.

23 He who hates me, hates my Father also.

24 If I hadn’t done among them the works which no one else did, they wouldn’t have had sin. But now have they seen and also hated both me and my Father.

25 But this happened so that the word may be fulfilled which was written in their law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’

26 “When the Counselor has come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me.

27 You will also testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.

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Isaiah 55

read as the benediction, calling the congregation to seek the Lord while he may be found

1 “Hey! Come, everyone who thirsts, to the waters! Come, he who has no money, buy, and eat! Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

2 Why do you spend money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which doesn’t satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in richness.

3 Turn your ear, and come to me. Hear, and your soul will live: and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander to the peoples.

5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you don’t know; and a nation that didn’t know you shall run to you, because of Yahweh your God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he has glorified you.”

6 Seek Yahweh while he may be found. Call on him while he is near.

7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to Yahweh, and he will have mercy on him; and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways,” says Yahweh.

9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain comes down and the snow from the sky, and doesn’t return there, but waters the earth, and makes it grow and bud, and gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater;

11 so is my word that goes out of my mouth: it will not return to me void, but it will accomplish that which I please, and it will prosper in the thing I sent it to do.

12 For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace. The mountains and the hills will break out before you into singing; and all the trees of the fields will clap their hands.

13 Instead of the thorn the cypress tree will come up; and instead of the brier the myrtle tree will come up: and it will make a name for Yahweh, for an everlasting sign that will not be cut off.”

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Recap

The message in order, in a few minutes of reading.

This Sunday's service centered not on a sermon in the usual sense but on a report from the men's retreat that had just wrapped up. A group of men shared what God did in them over the weekend, and Pastor Karl closed with a word about obedience and mercy.

What was said

Matt Litzelman, an elder at First B, opened by thanking the congregation for supporting the retreat through meals and prayer. He described the retreat's structure as built around two things: men sharing their testimonies of how God had rescued them, and men committing to walk alongside each other in ongoing discipleship. He connected that directly to First B's own push toward life groups and real community.

Several men then came forward to describe what the weekend meant to them. Buster noted it had been seventeen thousand and seventy-one days since Jesus pulled him out of a drunken stupor, and he reflected on how hearing other men's stories brought him to tears and helped him see something he needed to work on in his own marriage. Corey said his one expectation going in was to grow closer to God, and that happened faster than he anticipated.

Cole Gardner gave the most detailed account of where he had been spiritually before the weekend. He described living in a kind of no-man's land, one foot in and one foot out of faith, wanting conviction one way or the other. Hearing the testimonies of men who had been through genuinely hard things, and watching God be the only path that saw them through, settled the question for him. He said for the first time he feels like he can speak honestly about his faith without feeling like a fraud.

Glenn Owings, a new elder at First B, spoke about vulnerability as a powerful tool when it is exercised in a safe and God-honoring space. He also shared that about two years ago he had prayed and asked God to show him someone he could pray for and encourage, and that person came on the retreat and God showed up for him. He called those kinds of moments touch points, a North Star you can return to when doubt creeps in.

Matt closed the retreat report by announcing that Tiernan Schultz had made a decision for Christ over the weekend, and he honored each man who attended by giving him a cross to wear as a reminder that they are part of something larger than themselves.

Pastor Karl then gave the benediction, drawing from Isaiah 55. He admitted that he had not wanted to go on the retreat and had told people he would rather take a public beating. But a good and merciful God nudged him to take a step of obedience anyway. The word he left the congregation with was this: don't begrudge that nudge, because when you take a step of obedience, everybody who comes after you benefits from it.

Doing a Bible study?

Here is a guide we have prepared for you: the passages in order, questions for the group, and room to write.

Buster shared that he signed up simply to drive, and ended up being invited along to the retreat. When have you found yourself somewhere you did not plan to be, and what did God do with that?
Cole said he had been living in a spiritual no man's land, one foot in and one foot out, and that he wanted to come out of the retreat with a sense of conviction one way or the other. What does it look like in your own life when you are trying to pick and choose which parts of following Jesus you want?

and 3 more questions in the guide

Open the study guide

Read the full transcript 4,620 words

Find in this transcript

Hey, man. How are doing? You got a guitar.

I was like, okay. Like, hey, man. I was like, I'm just bringing my guitar in. Don't I'm cold. Yep.

They're like, oh, so you can play. I was like, what? Oh, yeah.

Ten k. Right? And they slept on my floor last night. Did that

Alright. Good morning, everybody. How are we doing? Yes. I love that enthusiasm.

Thank you. Thank you. Hey. As people are walking in the door, let's, what do you say we we stand and worship together in song? Here's an encouraging word from Psalm 32 to lead us in worship.

It says, I will instruct you and I'll teach you in the way that you should go, and I'll counsel you with my loving eye on you. Let's start by singing morning by morning.

Daily, daily, I surrender. Morning by morning. Morning by morning

Amen. Wow. Y'all can have a seat. Oh, it's good to see you this morning. I don't have the clicker in my hand right now, but Monday nights are happening.

Monday nights are happening. What's happening, Carl?

We're on tomorrow at 06:00. Meal, music message. It's the transfiguration of Jesus, a mountaintop experience.

Hey. That goes right along with coming back. We had a men's retreat this weekend that has been pretty awesome. I was on it. I haven't been on one of those.

I was trying to think it's the last time if I've ever been on one, it's been at least a long time, eleven years, fifteen years maybe. And amen. We're not announcing that it's happening this week. We're announcing that it happened and it was great. Connect hours between services.

We try to do this to keep the services together. So they're a little different bit of music style. But in between, we meet together down the hall and have coffee. Next week, we're doing something new. This is a little bit of a new slide.

We're bringing it's almost a whole potluck. It's a share a dish Sunday. So bring something next week for the connect hour between. Ladies fellowship is happening down the hall. Sisters Saved by Grace, Thursday, six p.

M. In the Fellowship Hall. All ages are welcome. It is a great Bible study, but it's also a place where we get together. They get together and eat and they pray for one another and they take the time sitting around the tables.

It's really good. There's a women's retreat. This has been changed from being at the Moss Avery Lodge where this men's retreat just was. It's going to be a one day event. Stay posted.

We'll keep you posted. Stay tuned. We'll keep you posted for when that's going be. It's going be a one day event here at the church. Student Ascent is our high school ministry.

It's happening in, alliance with other churches in town. So they will, meet Thursday evenings at 06:30. Student Ascent is the name of it, and it's pretty awesome. So three or four churches have banded together. They're high school ministries, and that's happening.

There's a young adult Bible study. We're bouncing through these things today. Got a lot of sugar to put in this bag. Young adult Bible study happens on Sunday evenings. They don't have a permanent home for that Bible study, so they bounce and they go from place to place.

06:30PM location changes. You can contact Erin Anderson if you want to know where it's going to be, but the time is 06:30 in the evenings on Sundays and she'll tell you. The IF gathering is coming up. So this is a women's event, March three and four, which is right around the corner. Is somebody else going to fill in more details for that?

Nope. If it's a gathering, it's happening this week, right? So sign up this week, make it happen. March three and four, you can sign up at jhwomensbiblestudy.com. And we are one of the churches that is and actually a couple of guys here are also part of some churches in Idaho Falls.

Will Graham is coming to Idaho Falls in September. Musical guest is Crowder, like Dave Crowder Band, it's now known as Crowder. And, we're doing some church prep briefings before that, 03/03/2010 right here and a few other Christian Life and Witness courses are happening here at the church before that event happens for follow-up after that event happens. So, that's happening. Anything else, Blake?

Black screen. We get to praise the Lord again. Would you stand up and welcome to all of y'all. This is amazing. It's really good.

I see some faces I haven't seen in a while and it's just awesome. Welcome. Speaking of Crowder.

Defender, deliverer, king of kings, helper and leader forevermore, savior and shelter through every storm, our refuge, redeemer, who lord of lords, he is child of heaven and son of man, the protector, the great I am, alpha will make a beginning

God, how true. And we say that. We say that right now. All that we're needing, you are truly comforter, counselor, prince of peace, author and maker of everything, defender, deliverer, king of kings, and so much more. Thank you God for being what we need.

We come to you God just humbly, just as we are, as we are, because that's how you take us. Amen. But God, you do the work. You do the good work in us. Thank you.

Amen. Here's a good word from second Corinthians. For all of God's promises have been fulfilled in Christ. In Christ, those promises have been fulfilled with a resounding yes. And through Christ, our amen.

Ascends to God for his glory.

You can have a

seat for a moment here. We're it's the worship through giving part of the service. I'll invite the ushers to come come on forward. And from Jeremiah 17, here's a good here's a good word to us. This has been bouncing around in my my mind this week.

It's blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They're like trees planted along the riverbank. With roots, they reach deep into the water. Such trees, they're not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.

That's a good word to us. And Ray, would you pray?

I will.

God almighty, I'm thankful to be here this morning, gather with the family of God. Thankful, overwhelmed, Lord, with gratitude. In Jesus' name, Lord, I ask for your for your blessing, not to rest just during this service, just on this service, but that you would go forward, Lord, from here, that you would be carried out from here that we would reflect a good and glorious, loving God by the way we live our lives, the way we use our words, by the

way

we act. In Jesus name, lord, I pray that you would do whatever it is that you want to do with this offering. If people place financial resources in the plates, Lord, do whatever you want to with them. If people say, I'm gonna give you my time. I pray, Lord, that you would show them how productive time can be.

Nothing that's done for the Lord is ever in vain. God almighty, I pray that whatever's placed metaphorically in these plates would be blessed and multiplied to do your kingdom's work. Lord, we long to do your will and your way. Would you do that? Lord, here among us and as we go forth to the rest of the world.

In Jesus name, amen. Amen. Alright. Y'all can have a seat. It's time for children's church downstairs.

So there goes the cavalcade. It's fun. If you're sitting in the back and you want to come forward, some of those children just left some empty seats, you're welcome to fill them in. And Matt? Matt Litzelman is an elder at the church, has been for some time, a good good guy.

God has said so. Right? Amen. Amen. I'm going invite Matt up and he's going to grab a mic and he's going to leave.

So, love you, brother.

Looks like I'm hot. You guys can hear me. I'm overwhelmed. I need to dry my eyes here so I can see you all. In the song we just sang, I'll make room for you, I just want to honor these guys for making space for this weekend.

Everybody that came, if you don't know anything about a word retreat, we really don't tell you what we're gonna do. It's kind of a mystery and the things we experience are all part of a way to encounter Christ and have a just really a moment where he can break through in our lives and change us for his good. For our good. And so I just want to thank you guys for taking time out to It costs you. It costs you time.

It costs financially away from work and many other ways personally that I'm probably not aware of, but I know it's expensive. Also wanted to share my very deep gratitude for all of you that supported us over the weekend with meals and just your prayers, which I believe I believe were instrumental in what God did in many of these men's lives, in my life. The other song, guys sang, Carl, thanks for choosing, my confidence is in your faithfulness. And that's my testimony of God's goodness in my life that he always comes through. Always there every moment, Even when I don't want him there or can see him there, he's there.

And his faithfulness came through this weekend in really, really, really powerful ways. The main thrust of what a word retreat is is that we overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. In the process of that, selecting the guys that are gonna share their testimony, the team, which I'll introduce to you in a minute, is a group of guys that, by God's grace, I got to choose. I handpicked them and invited them to be a part, and and many of them volunteered before I even asked brothers that came from Wenatchee and Oregon and Idaho lead and support and and bring Jesus. So in the process of sharing those testimonies, guys just got wrecked.

Literally. And God just showed us showed himself true and faithful. The other main part of this retreat is to make disciples. It's about men coming alongside each other and loving one another, taking the time to ask the hard questions, to pour their lives out, and then after the fact to make a determined decision to continue and to stay together and reach out to one another and bring that accountability. And that's part of I'm just going to want to hit first B a little bit as an elder, thrust towards life groups and community where we can live life together and encourage one another in Christ to grow together and disciple one another.

You guys gotta do that. I'm gonna have a few guys come up, share their experience of this weekend, and kinda give you a little peek in the window of what we did and how they were impacted. And I'd like to invite up Buster Bruce to share with you guys first.

Buster, the last

you. Yeah. I'm gonna give it to you, man. Really? I'm trusting you.

You

gotta do Buster, does anybody know what a paladrome is? This is like a number that goes the same forward as it does backwards. If you flip it, it looks identical. I just thought I'd share with you that today is seventeen thousand and seventy one days since Jesus rest me out of a drunken stupor. So I just signed up to be a driver.

You know, I just drove a 150 miles out of the mountains that I lived in to pick up a couple of guys in Idaho Falls, and I just got invited along by my brother Steve over here. You know? So why don't you come too? So I was grateful to be there. Really an awesome experience.

You know, every couple times a day, some of the men would give their testimony about how their life was shattered and torn and ripped apart and how Jesus rescued their lives out of the pits of hell and brought them to salvation and turned them into men of God today. And it was really touching, you know, that I mean, it bring tears to the eyes of most of us in the audience listening to their testimonies. There were several incidences where we went for walks in the snow. You can see one of them in the picture here. After we sat around the campfire, we all went for walks.

And it was the idea was walk with Jesus where we could share with one another like we were sharing with the Lord. And there was, you know, the the little group of guys that I was with, you know, we got to unload some stuff that had been burdening our heart and interfering with our our walk with God. And, you know, we got to pray with each other, you know, for healing, and it was really awesome times. They put us at tables with teams and, you know, I was probably the oldest guy there. And I was real fortunate, you know, that I got to sit with the lions of Jackson, the young men.

Stand up, please. You three guys, stand up. And these these guys are absolutely awesome, you know, and the fact that at their age, you know, they're taking a stand, you know. We we had to do a little portrait with that related to a scripture, and we had to name our team. So our team was the Freedom Fighters.

You know? And we had a scripture that John eight thirty two, if any of you know it. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. And these guys drew a really nice representation of the truth as opposed to the father of lies on a scale of justice and the truth wins every time. Yeah.

It was just really great time fellowshipping and getting to know these men. And I look forward to our continued contact. The last group session that we had, we were posting a bunch of feelings that or the basic feelings that God gave us on the wall. And then how if we don't deal with them appropriately, how they can turn into all kinds of other things, like criticism, sarcasm, depression, and there's a whole list of other feelings. And it it really kinda brought to light to me something, you know, an area that I was struggling with with my wife.

And, you know, hopefully, you know, in realizing that and with the support that I've got with the team of guys that I'm hooked up with now, I'll be able to go home and be a better husband for my wife. And I just want to thank you all for inviting me along.

Thanks. Thanks, Buster. If Corey would come up and share just for a minute what he has for us.

Obviously, by design, I had no idea what I was getting myself into this weekend. So, at the beginning, they had us share expectations and my pure one expectation was to just go grow closer with God. And I couldn't have asked for a better group of men to do that with and to help me achieve that goal fairly early on. So, therefore, throughout the rest of the weekend, I was figuring out new goals for myself and I'm glad to say that I achieved most of them. So gotta thank all of you.

Matt, thanks for the invite. Really appreciate it.

Thanks, Coy. Cole Gardner, would you come up please and share your heart? Cole, Cole, Cole, Cole.

Well, I would say that standing up here talking about this has to if it's not the most improbable event in my life, it's top five. And so was so was attending this retreat. And and coming into this thing, I was coming from a place of a spiritual no man's land, trying to live in this place where I had one foot in and one foot out, trying to pick and choose what parts of this thing I wanted to have and which parts I didn't. And I knew that didn't work. And so I decided that if I was gonna come into this thing, I wanted to come out of it with a sense of conviction.

I said I want to stop living in this place of, is this real? Is this legitimate? Is this complete hogwash? What like, I want to come out of this one way or the other. And it was through largely through hearing the testimonies of these of these men who've been through, like, legit struggles, like, stuff that I just couldn't even fathom.

And I'm and I'm hearing largely hearing what these guys are going through going, what I'm going through

is not that bad.

And and also just hearing their conviction and going the only path that saw them through it was God's path. And it didn't take long for me to go, nope. This isn't this isn't BS. I think I'm into this. And so I've come out of this for the first time in my life being able to look in the mirror and go, I can be an authentic promoter of this and not feel like a fraud anymore.

So that is pretty cool. And none of that happens, by the way. And this is the last thing I'll say. None of that happens if I wasn't encouraged to come to this by my friends. And these guys built up equity over a long time for that to happen.

And that's what I would leave everyone here with. Like, real human connection is there's no substitute for it. And there's no shortcut for it. Actually caring about somebody and investing the time and energy that it takes to do that, the dividends that get paid out from that are immeasurable. And that's the only reason that I get to stand up here and talk about it, is these guys put that effort into me.

Thank you, guys. I love you all so much for that.

Cole and you know, I'll say something that I thought was kind of funny earlier. I was thinking to myself and there was a really handsome guy about, oh, don't know, two months ago that preached on John 15 about discipleship and and what that means and how to abide and and live for Jesus and be a disciple. And then about four weeks, five weeks later, another really handsome guy preached on John 15. And talked about discipleship and I think God's saying something about discipleship to us. And we encourage you to lean into that.

The last guy I'm going to share have share is Mr. Glenn Owings. He's a new elder here at First B. And I want to give him

a chance to talk. Yes.

Had a handful of takeaways from this experience. I think all of us were humbled by the servant's heart of the leadership team. And just they build instant credibility. I think it's a good example of how we build credibility with our friends and neighbors we serve. And that's a great example to us.

You've heard the testimonies mentioned. I think that was a very powerful thing for all of us. And it reminded me that vulnerability in the right context is a powerful tool. And it's something that's difficult, you know, difficult for all of us and to be vulnerable with one another. Pretty much independent of background or age, it's just difficult.

But in the right place, in a safe space, and under God's umbrella, it's beautiful and it's perfect. And that's an amazing tool. Just as a specific example of of something that I'll always remember from this this experience was that about two two years ago, I was just spent some some time in prayer asking for God to show me like, what's this Who's the Who's a person that I can can pour into prayer for and encouraging Christ? And he put a specific person on my heart. And that person joined us this weekend.

And God showed up for him. And I think that goes along with kind of the theme of a lot of the testimonies is God puts these touch points in our lives that we can go back to and rely on. They're kinda like a North Star. Know, these points where you know just beyond the shadow of a doubt. You know more than you know anything else that that God orchestrated this thing.

And those are priceless. And there's nothing that can take those away. And so that's my encouragement to all of you, is be looking for those in your lives. And be praying for those in your lives that those God would provide you with those and he will. Those touch points that you can go back to.

So that's that was a big takeaway for me. I would encourage, you know, some of us are local here. You know, as you see one another and you see some gentlemen who were trip, that you just asked them what their experience was, what they learned, what God showed them. And just, you know, hold all of us accountable for remembering what we've, you know, what we've learned and grown in our faith. We'll try to, to share with you those important things that we learned.

Like anything, this is not meant to be a one time thing. This is growth. And that goes from here. So I hope that's the case for all of us.

Wow. I want to honor a friend. And Glenn alluded to that touch point experiences that nobody can take away from you, that you just know that you know that that was a God moment. And one of our brothers experienced that. Tiernan Schultz made a decision for Christ over the weekend.

I just want to honor you. Well done. I'm going to introduce my team. And I'm just going to have them come up, and we'll just line up across the front right here. I want to have Mark Bovard come up first.

Mark's a close brother to me and has really been instrumental in mentoring and discipling me. And was on board from the very beginning of this retreat. And Dave Miller, the same. These guys are from Mnatchee, twelve hours away, came to be with us. Art.

Art Ivan Enco. My brother. Rob. The man. Rob came from Memphis to be with us to serve.

My good friend Steve McLean from Idaho Falls, pastors in Idaho Falls. And the guys in my life group that supported me and were all in in ways that I really can't explain because they've never done this before, and they just gave it just a 150. Jim? Hans. Hans York.

And

Mr. Dan Tolleson. So the best part about having a team is you have guys on your team that are type A guys that are great leaders, and they remind you of things that you forget. And last but not least, Mr. Jeremy Walker.

So I just want to take this opportunity to honor Matt. He came to Wenatchee back in 2019, and I was able to pray for Matt and pray with Matt and just get to know Matt. And from that point, he'd said, Man, I'd sure like to take this back to Jackson. And so it was just like the door was opened there. And so, Matt, I just want to honor you and all you've done in making this a reality getting this here.

It's been a long road. There's been trials and you stuck through it. Well done. It's accomplished. Thank you.

Thank you. Lastly, I want to give each of the guys a cross. You see these guys all wearing these crosses. Mainly, just represent something bigger than us. We're a part of something that is larger than us.

Jesus, for sure. I think really a purposeful discipleship opportunity. These guys hold me accountable and are welcome to speak into my life at any moment. So I'm gonna give Mark will probably help me here just a little bit. These are a little hopefully not too tangled.

And I'll just invite the guys up. For me that cross means don't forget the girl. I laugh so I don't cry. My first retreat in '19 where I met Dave, I went and my desire when I was asked what I wanted to get out of the retreat, I wanted to I wanted to love my wife better. And God met me there.

So I don't know what these crosses will mean exactly to y'all, but just remember that you're part of something that's that's more. So Kyle, would you come up, sir? Jeff? Mr. Buster.

Thanks for driving the bus. Matthew. Pastor Ray. What I love about this group is there's some giants here. Not just in the physical.

Cole Abel. Brother. Ben Upton. Yeah. Mister Asher, will you come up, please?

Cole? Dearning show. Gil? My good friend, Ron Robinson, Blackfoot. Mr Dale Woolwine.

And last but not least, Glenn Owing. Roland. Sorry, bro. Where are you hiding back there in that orange? Yep.

Right there. So I just, as you guys are finishing, you can just see the love and the bond that God's done in in this weekend and the way he's changed our hearts and what he's ask him what God did and some of the miracles that he did in the time we were together. So I just I don't have any more. We're at the hour. Mr.

Karl can come up and close us in a song, and we look forward to sharing God did over the weekend. Thank you, guys.

Would you stand and we'll sing together? I think this is appropriate song to close with, make room, that we would make room.

Amen. Amen. Our benediction today is from Isaiah 55. Seek the Lord while he may be found. Call on him while he is near.

Turn to the Lord and he will have mercy. Matt said something to me this week that I had not thought about in a long time. I I questioned whether I even said it in the first place. But he says that I did not trust him. There was a step of obedience that was required in going to this thing that I did not want to take.

In fact, I said to several people, I'd rather take a public beating on the square. But a good and merciful God nudged. Don't begrudge that nudge. Alright? Don't do that.

Something that Matt says that I said is that when you take a step of obedience, everybody after you benefits from that obedience. Seek the Lord while he may be found. Listen to him. Listen and obey right away with a happy heart. Call on him while he's near and turn to the Lord and he will have mercy.

Amen.

Amen. Amen.

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