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Speaker 2Alright, my friends. It is that time. Officially 11:00 on Sunday morning. So, we're gonna go ahead and get this party started here. I hope you were able to find parking.
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Did everyone everyone able to find parking in the lot this morning? Yes. Yes? Okay. Good.
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We had some guys out there helping direct traffic, and it all worked out. I've got a little bit of sad news this morning. I'm up here this morning because we had to ship Ray off this morning. His best friend back home passed away yesterday, just unexpectedly from a heart attack. And so he felt like he needed to get back there and be with that family.
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And you guys know how Jackson is. It's tough to fly out of here at any time that you might need to. So he him and his family, they all left early this morning, drove to Salt Lake City, and they're hopping on a flight from there to Atlanta. And they'll be there hopefully this evening to be with that family. So that is where they are this morning which leaves the pulpit open for me to lead some singing and Carl's gonna be preaching today.
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So, if you guys wouldn't mind, let's stand up together and we will start this worship. Praise him. Praise him. Hymn number 12 in your hymnals if you'd like to. Praise him.
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Praise him. Jesus, our blessed redeemer. Sing oh, worth his wonderful love proclaim him, hail him, highest arch angels in glory, strength and honor, give to his holy name. I'm a shepherd, Jesus will guard his children in his arms. Carries them all day long.
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Praise him, praise him, tell of his excellent greatness. Praise him, praise him, ever in joyful song. Praise him, praise him, Jesus our blessed redeemer. For sins he suffered and bled and died. He your rock our eternal salvation.
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Hail him, hail Jesus the crucified Okay, we'll we'll we'll get going here together in one second. Who bore our sorrows love unbounded wonderful deep and strong praise him praise him tell of his excellent greatness praise him Praise ever in joyful song. I think I'm singing the wrong melody here, and I apologize. I apologize. Are we back to this next verse here?
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Yes. Okay. We'll get it together on this one. Third time's a charm. That's how it works.
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And I'm not real sure what to do with my hands, but if I do some of this, you know, just go with it. Alright. You ready? I'm gonna put this in the way. Bob's gonna keep me in line.
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Thank you, Bob. Praise him. Praise him. Jesus, our blessed redeemer. Glory.
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Do the Lord belong praise him praise him tell of his excellent greatness praise him praise him, ever in joyful song. Alright. Now we've shaken off shaken off the dust a little bit. We're ready to go. And there's a lot of swaying.
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Now I see what they're saying every week when they're up here and they wanna just kinda do some of this gliding. Very, very good. Alright. Worship the king, hymn one zero four. If you'd like that, otherwise, words are on the screen.
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Alright. You may be seated. You may be seated. We're gonna go through just a few announcements. Like I did say, Ray is on the road.
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So why don't we just take a quick moment to pray for their travels and for the family that lost a father just yesterday. And his name is is Chad Rex Rexrod. Chad Rexrod, his wife is Amy. Kids are Madeline and Andrew. So let's just let's just open up with a quick word of prayer for those guys.
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God, thank you so much. Thank you so much for families in life and time we get to spend together. I pray that you would just be with Ray as him and Pascal and Tanya are traveling this morning, back home to Atlanta to be with the family and great friends that that lost a father. Pray you just be with Amy and the and the kids, Madeleine and Andrew, as, they grieve, their father Chad, and that, you would just hold them tight and, just just be there to comfort. And I pray that Ray is able to help the grieving process as they are there as well.
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We love you. Thank you for this church. In Jesus' name, amen. All right. So on to a few announcements.
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Here we go. Welcome. Glad you guys are here. It has been a wild weekend, obviously, here at the church. We had a big parking lot fundraiser with the snowmobile hill climb in town.
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So everything has just been jumbled all weekend, but we're glad to be taking a breath this morning. So connect hour between services, of course, and that's going to continue as as well as we can as the kitchen remodel happens, and that's going to be starting here in a week or so. So know that if you're here by 10:00, there's usually some snacks and refreshment and time to get together with those folks in the first service that you might not normally see. So connect hour between services. Also, Monday night, meal, music, and message is going to be off for the next two weeks of spring break.
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So they'll pick back up, in two weeks when everyone's kinda back in, to the normal grind of things. School has started. We'll be back with, I believe, Awana and Monday nights. The men's study is also off for two weeks as as we go into spring break. So if you're normally one of the folks that shows up for that men's study at 6AM on Wednesdays, don't come this Wednesday or the following.
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They are going to be off. Melissa Landis, a missionary, you know, and one of our own here. She's headed back to work with her Crossroads ministry around Durban and South Africa. She's going to be leaving in two weeks. So we just wanna give the opportunity to let everybody know that in case you want to chat with her about what's going on or you haven't seen her since she's been back.
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And also just wish her, you know, some happy trails as she heads back, over into that service. So she will be off in two weeks. So keep her in your prayers as well. The Hillclimb parking lot, like I mentioned earlier, we did the fundraiser. And this year, Glenn and Liz Owings, kinda organized it, and they wanted to use it as a fundraiser.
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They're adopting a child. And so we just wanted to let everybody know that they raised over $3,000 in just two days with the parking lot fundraiser, and that's all going to go to benefit the adoption of a new little baby in that family. So we're pretty excited for them to, one, have the opportunity to help financially in that way, but also, that they're bringing another little one home. So Glenn and Liz Owens, it was and it was a great a ton of people in this church got together and made it happen. So it was cool to see.
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Next week, April 2, make sure you know this, only one service, middle of spring break. Just one service at 10AM combined service. Florin, you'll be preaching, I believe. So you don't want to miss out on that unless you're out of town. We'll have it recorded.
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Don't worry about that. But don't come at nine or don't come at eleven. You'll miss it at eleven. You'll be early at nine. But 10:00 combined service, one service next week.
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So why don't we stand up, greet one another, and, we'll bring you back together in song. And I'll see if I can do a better job with the next couple of songs. Alright. When the role is called up yonder, hymn seven seventy four, we're gonna go ahead and get singing on this. When you're done with your conversation, you join on in.
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The trumpets of the Lord shall sound and time shall be no more and the morning breaks eternal bright and fair when the savior shall gather over on the other shore and the role is called up yonder, I'll be there. Alright. Nice work. All right. O for a thousand tongues to sing hymn number 21.
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Alright. Short and sweet. Would the frontline team please come forward, and, we'll go ahead and say a prayer for the offering. God, once again, we come to you. We're thankful.
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We're thankful for this church. We're thankful for the folks that, make this church up. And, we're always thankful of your provisions. God, I pray that you, would use these offerings in the way you see fit, that we'd be good stewards of it. And, that they would extend and reach the places where you would like them to go.
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We love you, in Jesus' name. Amen.
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Speaker 3Abram traded his home in Ur to become the father of a nation. Ruth traded her homeland to become the great grandmother to a king. Moses and David traded their sheep to become leaders of Israel. Peter and Andrew traded their nets to become fishers of men. Mary traded her of the church.
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Saint Augustine traded the life of debauchery to author over 100 works promoting the gospel of Christ. Albert Schweitzer traded a successful career to train as a doctor and establish a hospital in Africa. Rachel St. Traded her grief to dwell among the natives who had killed her brother. Cory Timbun traded anger and resentment to forgive a brutal to And
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Speaker 2do We're we're
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Speaker 1to
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Speaker 3team. Proud And we're
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Speaker 2world.
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Speaker 3What are you willing to trade?
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Speaker 1And I think it's one that deserves our consideration is using our time, our resources, our passions, whatever God has gifted us with, what are we willing to trade so that people can know that that God truly does love them and, care about them? That video gave some great examples. But it comes down to putting our faith in action and following God because we trust him. My estates is I'm really glad to see you. Can I say something real quick?
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They just had just a newborn baby. Her name is Mia, and Mia is back from the hospital. And can we just let them know we're glad that they're here and so happy about baby right now. As I have been preaching through Monday nights in Luke, something that God has been showing me is just how trustworthy Jesus is. And Jesus doesn't lead people astray.
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Jesus leads people into God's kingdom, and that is through love and through relationship and by earning their trust and proving himself over and over again to where we begin to realize that what we have by following Christ is far better than what we have without him. Can I say that again? That what we have by following and trusting Christ is far better than what we have without him. But the fact remains that God has reached out to us. God is reaching out to us, and I believe that kind of love deserves a response from us.
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And Jesus got all kinds of responses. Think consider that. The responses that Jesus got, for example, when Jesus preached in his hometown and he said, hey, listen. All these scriptures that you've heard read, these scriptures are about me, but you won't believe me. You won't listen to those folks he was talking to.
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Their response was just straight up anger. They were so mad that they they tried to push him off a cliff. Tons of responses to Jesus. Another one, he went to Capernaum, to teach. Cast out demons, he healed the sick.
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Their response, amazement. They said, what authority and power this man's words possess. So powerful that at his command, he healed Peter's mom-in-law. And her response, she immediately got up and served a meal for them. So sometimes people were amazed, sometimes they're angry, sometimes they were thankful, sometimes scared, sometimes just straight up opposed.
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But here's the deal. I'm asking us not just to pay attention to their response to Jesus, but to ours. How do we respond when God is reaching out to us through his son? And I can't think of a better response than the one that we're looking at today here in Luke five one through 11 when Jesus does a miracle on the Sea Of Galilee. And the response from Peter was simply to do this, to trust.
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I just I could not get away from it, that whatever Jesus told Peter to do, he did it. He wasn't indifferent, he didn't argue, he acted in faith, and he trusted what Jesus had to say. And I'm convinced it's because Jesus had earned his trust. That Jesus had earned his trust. He built a relationship with him.
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He proved himself trustworthy to Peter over and over again, and that's why Peter could leave everything and follow Jesus. So I'm gonna read it. It'll be on the screen. And as it's being read, would you take note of how Peter trusted Jesus in these verses? And I think we ought to ask ourselves is, do I have a trusting faith like this?
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So it's Luke five one through 11. And, Renzi, as I'm reading it, would you just track with, track with me on the screen here? It says this, one day, as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea Of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. He noticed two empty boats at the water's edge for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water.
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And so he sat in the boat, and he taught the crowds from there. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, now go out where it's deeper and let your nets, let down your nets to catch some fish. Master, Simon replied, we worked hard all last night. We didn't catch a thing. But catch this, if you say so, I'll let the nets down again.
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And this time, their nets were so full of fish that they began to tear. A shout for help brought their partners to the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking. When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, oh Lord, please leave me. I'm such a sinful man. For he was awestruck by the fish that they had caught as were the others with him.
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His partners, James and John, sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. Jesus replied to Simon, don't be afraid. From now on, you'll be fishing for people. And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus. Can I pray before we we go any further?
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God, just as you met Peter and you met each person individually where they were at, I pray that you would meet us where we're at. And you can do that because you're still alive today, that you live in our hearts this time. And I pray that we'd be we'd be willing to meet you as you are willing to to meet with us and speak to us. In Jesus' name, amen. So I don't have a a three point sermon today.
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Just one just one theme I wanna point out, and it's simply trust. Like I said, I couldn't get away from it. And the reason that I say that is people don't leave everything that they have and follow Jesus if they don't first trust him. People don't trade like in that clip we saw, comfort and routine so that others can know Jesus if they don't first trust him. We won't be fishers of people and ask others to know this Jesus unless we first know him and trust him.
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That makes sense, right? It's foundational, and trust is built on relationship. And God doesn't demand it. He doesn't force Peter to trust him in this. He simply wins him over by meeting Peter where he's at in life.
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So in the chapter before, he heals Peter's mom-in-law, and now he comes to Peter's work and he performs a miracle. It's it's can see that Jesus is really pursuing him. And all these series of events begin to change Peter's heart to where Peter can say, I'll follow you wherever you go. I used to read this and I would think to myself, wait, they they left everything and they followed Jesus? It just, I I thought, it just seems so abrupt to me, but it wasn't abrupt.
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It it happened over time. It happened over relationship. Day after day, Jesus was showing his disciples that he was trustworthy and loving and faithful and powerful. He walked with them. He commune with them.
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He hung out with them. He ate with them. He showed him his life. It it was a process over time, but the same is true for us. As we build a relationship with Jesus over time, we can see that he's trustworthy, that he's loving, that he's faithful, that he's powerful.
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And I look around and I think, many years have you had to do that? And you've seen it over and over and over again. But it begins with trust, and it's built on relationship. And so I'd like to do is go back to the the scripture that was read, take note of how Peter trusted Jesus. And as we did, can I just ask you to put yourself in his shoes?
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If Jesus asked you to do these things, if you were Peter, how would you respond? Think about that. Okay? Beginning with verse three. Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon Peter, its owner, to push it out into the water so that he could teach from there.
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Now this might not seem terribly significant, but imagine that you are Peter that day. It's your boat. It's your livelihood. Peter could have said, no. No thanks.
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Please ask somebody else. I've got work to do. We're working hard all last night. I'd rather just clean my nets, go home, that kind of thing, but he doesn't. He lets Jesus use his boat, pushes him out, and then he's got his ear.
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He's listening. So even if that's just a small amount of trust, it's still trust. It's still trust. And so I wouldn't overlook it. The fact that you're here today takes trust on your part.
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Some folks wouldn't even wanna step foot into a church that had a bad experience. The the whole gospel thing might seem, kinda strange, and it's not an easy thing to do. But once you trust, you begin to see. I think of that verse taste and see that the Lord is good, that the more you know, the more you want to know. What came next here required even more trust.
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Check out verses four and five. When he finished speaking, he said, Simon, now go out where it's deeper and let your nets down to catch some fish. Master, Simon replied, we worked hard all last night. We didn't catch a thing. Here's a key verse, but if you say so, I'll let the nets down again.
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I learned something interesting about fishing back then and that is that most fishing was done at night because the fish could not see the nets fall around them. And now we have, obviously, those transparent nets and things to prevent that, but they didn't, so fishing was done in the evening. So again, put yourself in Peter's shoes. By this time, there's a crowd. You're fishing all last night, didn't catch a thing.
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Now he's asking you to fish during the daytime. If it didn't work, Peter would look foolish for doing this. But in trust, he says, alright. If you say so, I'll do it. But can you see how each act of trust and Jesus then following through with it?
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More trust, more relationship, more trust, more relationship. I could just kinda see this whole thing unfolding. Verse act, verse eight, that's an act of trust too. When Simon Peter realized what happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and he said, Lord, leave me. I'm a sinful man.
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So that's not just a humble response to Jesus, but it it really showed Jesus. It showed Peter's trust in Jesus' righteousness. Does that make sense? Not his own. And that's the kind of attitude that Jesus can work with.
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Jesus told a story about a person who trusted in in God's righteousness rather than his own in Luke 18. I just want to let this speak for itself because it really it it makes the point. Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness, and they scored everyone else. Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a pharisee, the other was a despised tax collector.
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The pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer. I thank you, God. I almost have to laugh at it because I can't imagine anyone saying this. Thank you, God, that I'm not a sinner like everyone else. For I don't cheat and I don't sin and I don't commit adultery.
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I'm certainly not like that tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income. But just check this out. The tax collector stood at a distance, and he dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow saying, God be merciful to me for I'm a sinner.
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I tell you that this sinner, not the pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled and those who humble themselves will be exalted. But you get the point there? Peter wasn't trusting in his own goodness like that Pharisee. Instead, he humbles himself and he's trusting in the righteousness of Jesus.
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Does that make sense? You could see it there in his response. And that then brings him into a closer relationship with Jesus, to where he's willing to follow him wherever he went. Verse ten and eleven, and then I wanna wrap it up. Jesus replied to Simon, don't be afraid.
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From now on, you'll be fishing for people. And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus. And I can begin to understand why. That act of trust after act of trust after act of trust and obedience then led to a deeper relationship with Jesus. And Jesus didn't let him down.
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He came through for him time after time after time, and he proved himself faithful. And I get it. I get why he left everything. So again, just one theme that I wanna point out and it's trust. It's the takeaway.
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Because I'm thoroughly convinced that the best way to become fishers of people and to introduce others to Jesus is to first thoroughly trust him ourselves. How can we can we sell someone to believe in someone that we don't truly, truly know and truly trust. It's hard to do, but when you know him yourself and you trust him yourself, it's much easier to introduce others to him as well. It's just foundational, and trust builds on relationship. And so my encouragement is to build on that relationship with Christ.
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God does not demand it, and he doesn't force us. I I love this verse here. Revelation three twenty. Look, I stand at the door and knock. You hear my voice, I'll open the door.
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I'll come in and we'll share a meal together as friends. That doesn't sound forceful to me. It sounds a lot it sounds a whole lot more winsome to me that that's our lord, that he would knock and say, may I come in? And we have the choice, yes or no. But like I said before, and the thing that kind of kept ringing in my head was that what I have with him is so much better than what I have without him.
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So by relationship, really, Jesus is winning winning his way into our lives. And as we build on that relationship, trusting him along the way over time, we see he's proven himself and he will continue to. He's trustworthy, loving, faithful, kind, so much more. To where like Peter, he was willing to follow him with abandon. A lot like this.
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I've got kids, they're bigger now. If we did this, I'd probably get a bloody nose. They loved to do this when we're younger. Did they know how to swim? No.
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No, they did not. And yet, when we go to a pool, they would just fly into my arms. But it's because they trusted me that I would catch them. And I think of this, if an earthly dad like myself who is not perfect by any stretch. If I can do this for my children, how much more can we entrust our lives to God, our heavenly father?
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You know what I'm saying? And so I wanna encourage us like Peter did to keep trusting. Keep trusting in the little things and the big things. Each act of obedience, each act of trust adds to more trust and a deeper relationship. And the wonderful thing about trusting and obeying is it adds more trust.
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It adds more faith. It adds a deeper relationship to where we can say, I believe where we can say, I'll follow you. I'll follow you wherever. All my days, I'm yours. Amen to that?
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Amen. So that's a message of encouragement there. It begins though with trust that is built on relationship. So I'll invite Florine to come on up. In fact, that was so good that you're I thought, let's do that every Sunday, your kids.
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And we'll sing one more song here together. And before we we sing, let's pray together. Would you stand there with me? God, I I do thank you for reaching out to us and showing us your love through relationship as you did with Peter, winning your way into his life, winning your way into our life. And my prayer for us is that as you reach out to us, that we would reach out to you and build on that relationship and trust you in the details so that each act of trust on our part would draw us closer to you, where we can get to that point saying, I'll follow you wherever.
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In Jesus' name, amen. Amen.
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Speaker 2All right. Let's finish up here with soon and very soon. Alright. Sometimes, Florin can play a little faster than I can sing. But great job.
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Thanks for, bearing with us today without our fearless leader, Ray. We do have a benediction here, and I'm gonna go ahead and read that to you right now. Therefore, as you've received Christ Jesus, the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught abounding in thanksgiving. Colossians two, six and seven. Go this spring break, love on people, trust in God, let that be the path.
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We love all of you and we'll some of us will see you next week. Otherwise, just enjoy some time off. You guys are dismissed.
