back to indexBerean Community Church NYE Service
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I wanna welcome all of you guys to this evening's service, 00:05:45.300 |
for all the great things you've been doing in our lives 00:05:51.820 |
So let's take a moment to bow and a word of prayer 00:05:56.280 |
Heavenly Father, we take this time to thank you, God. 00:06:02.700 |
So much has happened, not only just simply in this past year 00:06:06.320 |
but, God, throughout time, you have been proven faithful 00:06:12.300 |
So God, we give thanks to you and praise to you, 00:06:14.780 |
and we really hope that, God, moments like this 00:06:20.860 |
to truly remember just how good you have been. 00:06:23.980 |
And we also pray, God, that as we take moments like this 00:06:26.580 |
to consider and think about how we can continue 00:06:29.980 |
to live intentionally under your mighty hand, 00:06:33.580 |
how we can dedicate more and more of ourselves 00:06:37.900 |
We ask, God, that you would continue to lead and provide. 00:06:41.300 |
We thank you for this time that we have to worship you. 00:13:51.580 |
♪ When the brave and chaste and saints adore ♪ 00:16:51.800 |
♪ The King who was and is and evermore will be ♪ 00:17:56.440 |
♪ The King who was and is and evermore will be ♪ 00:18:59.860 |
♪ You are the reason for the colors of my soul ♪ 00:19:39.220 |
♪ You are the reason for the colors of my soul ♪ 00:20:32.980 |
♪ Stop the presses, we got good news in store ♪ 00:20:43.820 |
♪ Start the pressing and let's make it our own ♪ 00:20:48.020 |
♪ Faith that keeps pressing onward to our heavenly home ♪ 00:20:53.020 |
♪ So we'll keep on walking 'til we see your face ♪ 00:20:58.980 |
♪ Help us love, help us praise, help us lead your way ♪ 00:21:03.980 |
♪ Yes, we'll keep on walking every step is grace ♪ 00:21:09.480 |
♪ Help us run to obey, help us lead your way ♪ 00:21:27.560 |
♪ Drop the ways that turn the hearts into stone ♪ 00:21:31.600 |
♪ 'Cause I kill the chains don't turn our sins into gold ♪ 00:21:36.600 |
♪ Leave the vices and now gain from a bad day ♪ 00:21:43.480 |
♪ What use is dead weight when it's freedom we stand in ♪ 00:21:47.980 |
♪ So we'll keep on walking 'til we see your face ♪ 00:21:53.520 |
♪ Help us love, help us praise, help us lead your way ♪ 00:22:50.980 |
♪ There is now a hope that lasts beyond our days ♪ 00:22:55.980 |
♪ For the one that once was buried lives again ♪ 00:23:12.320 |
♪ Praise the risen one who overcame the grave ♪ 00:23:19.640 |
♪ Oh, you broken-hearted, all you want and need ♪ 00:23:24.640 |
♪ Confined living water, everlasting streams ♪ 00:23:31.680 |
♪ To the wandering spirit, lost and searching ♪ 00:23:41.100 |
♪ Find the risen king who overcomes the world ♪ 00:23:55.440 |
♪ Lift your voice and sing that Christ is king ♪ 00:24:02.140 |
♪ No more condemnation, no more doubt and fear ♪ 00:24:15.320 |
♪ For our sin and shame, they have no power here ♪ 00:24:20.320 |
♪ In his resurrection, perfect love has set the captives free ♪ 00:24:27.240 |
♪ Praise the risen king who stands in victory ♪ 00:24:44.160 |
♪ Lift your voice and sing that Christ is king ♪ 00:24:58.440 |
♪ Lift your voice and sing that Christ is king ♪ 00:25:08.980 |
- Well, thank you to all the media team members 00:25:57.040 |
and I'll read a simple verse that you know well and pray. 00:26:13.820 |
Father God, as we together saw all those photos 00:26:17.920 |
of our church community, our spiritual family, 00:26:20.580 |
we feel so blessed that because of what you've provided, 00:26:32.960 |
of the fellowship growing together in your name. 00:26:38.900 |
And we also pray, God, that more and more intentionally, 00:26:43.920 |
every single one of us would continue to live our day 00:26:47.260 |
with a great purposefulness and a heart's intent 00:26:56.580 |
and to follow after all of your instructions for our lives. 00:26:59.940 |
We thank you, God, it's in Christ's name, amen. 00:27:03.000 |
Now, with that, there were so many different activities 00:27:11.580 |
that we have is we have then, as the church grows, 00:27:23.400 |
and then keep ourselves very busy, which is great, 00:27:26.220 |
but it presents, in of itself, a new challenge. 00:27:38.880 |
That famous passage that we just read in Matthew 6, 00:27:51.200 |
that sometimes it is very, very difficult for us 00:27:54.960 |
to keep some of our priorities straight and in order. 00:27:57.720 |
We're very grateful for a lot of the blessings 00:28:00.420 |
and opportunities we have, but staying focused 00:28:03.480 |
is actually a massive challenge in our lives. 00:28:11.800 |
In college, every time the end of the year rolls around, 00:28:15.680 |
You're cramming for tests, you're putting together, 00:28:18.080 |
you know, how are you gonna get your assignments done? 00:28:26.920 |
and once you arrive, distractions all around you. 00:28:30.920 |
On your left, there's a bunch of people playing ping pong, 00:28:33.220 |
and you say to yourself, I do need to get my blood flowing, 00:28:36.720 |
so you go and play a little couple of ping pong. 00:28:40.200 |
you're like, oh, I did kind of work up an appetite, 00:28:42.320 |
so over there on your right, there's like a buffet. 00:28:45.240 |
And then so you walk over there and you grab snacks, 00:28:47.400 |
and have you met those people who grab the snacks 00:28:54.080 |
And so what ends up happening is you're studying, 00:29:01.280 |
so you're like, oh, I need a break from my eating. 00:29:10.880 |
me and my friend had this burning question for Pastor Nate. 00:29:18.160 |
and then you realize it's two in the morning, 00:29:22.160 |
So you go home and study, but then et cetera, et cetera, 00:29:37.040 |
And I know I am in some sense poking fun at the collegians, 00:29:52.800 |
What's more, it's not so far from the college life 00:30:01.560 |
Just the simple necessities of break, leisure, 00:30:26.560 |
You should be praying and prioritizing knowing the Lord 00:30:29.360 |
and making him known through evangelism, amen? 00:30:34.720 |
you want to be faithful in your church, amen? 00:30:37.440 |
Those are things you've heard many, many times. 00:30:39.280 |
The difficulty is keeping those priorities straight. 00:30:47.520 |
And it may be because there are so many different 00:30:55.760 |
Now, the scriptures gives us another possible reason 00:31:02.720 |
and I just wanted to make sure to share that with you 00:31:06.580 |
Why is it so difficult for us to keep focused 00:31:16.320 |
I'm gonna be reading from verse 25 down to verse 34. 00:31:27.800 |
"as to what you will eat or what you will drink, 00:31:30.100 |
"nor for your body as to what you will put on it. 00:31:38.680 |
"that they do not sow nor reap nor gather into barns, 00:31:59.860 |
"in all his glory, clothed himself like one of these. 00:32:02.900 |
"But if God so clothes the grass of the field, 00:32:12.940 |
"Do not worry then, saying, what will we eat? 00:32:18.940 |
"For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things. 00:32:25.380 |
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, 00:32:36.000 |
"each day as enough trouble has enough trouble of its own." 00:32:42.960 |
it gives to us this explanation, which is my point one, 00:32:46.920 |
that we have a difficult time keeping our priorities 00:32:49.120 |
because we worry way too much to stay focused. 00:32:55.480 |
again, my guess is you've heard this commandment 00:32:58.920 |
so many times, to seek first the kingdom of God. 00:33:05.000 |
he is saying this as a solution to the problem, 00:33:08.320 |
and the problem is that we are beset with anxiety 00:33:16.380 |
So what's really interesting is this text tells us 00:33:23.200 |
of the things we ought to be doing is because you worry. 00:33:27.720 |
And what's really interesting, that the highlight 00:33:36.280 |
Again, earlier, I wasn't necessarily taking a shot 00:33:39.240 |
at the Collegians, but I mentioned about food 00:33:45.920 |
as to what we're constantly worried for, right? 00:33:58.160 |
And then secondly, the second example is still more, 00:34:03.980 |
it says, "Your body, what you will put on it, 00:34:07.640 |
"what you will wear, and basically how your body will look." 00:34:11.700 |
So as you think about this, and I was meditating, 00:34:19.500 |
That just simply the care for how I look and how I appear 00:34:34.020 |
that I don't really care about how I look anymore. 00:34:38.220 |
I've 100% accepted the fact that I'm not much to look at, 00:34:57.180 |
I mean, we would think that we would be so mature 00:35:00.900 |
as to move past what we struggled with when we were teens, 00:35:04.280 |
caring so much about brand names and how we look. 00:35:24.720 |
So many different types of products are out there. 00:35:27.960 |
I mean, I could tell you, yes, I kind of don't care, 00:35:32.400 |
All of a sudden, I find myself spending money on, 00:35:37.760 |
like $25 for a bottle of hair growth shampoo. 00:35:42.720 |
Another $25 for a little bottle of digestive enzymes. 00:35:58.880 |
he talks about how for this reason, do not worry. 00:36:02.760 |
And the reason was you cannot serve two masters 00:36:15.280 |
the greatest scheme to knock you off your horse. 00:36:22.760 |
Remember, at this time, the vast majority of people 00:36:31.160 |
They live paycheck to paycheck, so to speak, yes? 00:36:34.240 |
And in that kind of situation, worry, anxiety, 00:36:37.120 |
how am I going to make sure I take care of everybody, 00:36:41.480 |
And the struggle to do what we think everybody else 00:36:45.760 |
is doing and how we look as compared to everybody else. 00:36:49.860 |
That alone can make our priorities so skewed and muddy. 00:37:25.280 |
For you tonight, as you think about this year, 00:37:37.680 |
that have been taking the biggest places in terms 00:37:40.480 |
of the real estate of your mind and your heart? 00:37:44.000 |
What are some of the things that are causing you 00:37:46.460 |
to think so much about whether it's your job, right? 00:37:51.220 |
Yes, you will have to work incredibly hard in your life 00:38:01.180 |
Yes, you and I are called to be faithful parents, 00:38:13.040 |
Yes, you're supposed to prepare, and be wise, and be 00:38:21.740 |
Because that worry is going to cause us to be led astray. 00:38:26.820 |
And I thought about what is it that I worry about. 00:38:33.940 |
that it is this worry I don't have time to get 00:38:40.180 |
I know I want to pray, I know I want to evangelize, 00:38:42.700 |
I want to take care of the flock of the church, 00:38:44.440 |
I want to take care of my wife, I want to take care of my kids, 00:38:54.000 |
You guys know that, yes, the pastors are busy. 00:39:05.520 |
But on the flip side, I want to use all of it. 00:39:08.000 |
I have no issue with people asking to meet up, 00:39:10.560 |
and et cetera, because I want to use all of it. 00:39:16.700 |
that mean I don't have this worrisome angst in my heart? 00:39:28.460 |
Like, God, I wish there was just like five more hours in the day. 00:39:36.180 |
realized this was actually a constant request in my heart 00:39:38.700 |
when I prayed, is I asked God to make me faster, stronger, 00:39:42.780 |
et cetera, et cetera, and more effective so that everything 00:39:55.420 |
that I can't do everything that I want to do. 00:40:05.380 |
If you, too, are worried that you don't have enough time 00:40:26.820 |
Because in the same way that I cannot complain to God 00:40:29.420 |
and say, God, why don't you give me more money? 00:40:31.940 |
If you gave me more money, that could have served you harder 00:40:38.540 |
In the same vein, I can't look at God and say, God, 00:40:45.020 |
If you gave me more time and you gave me faster reading skills 00:40:47.780 |
and faster typing skills and et cetera, et cetera, 00:40:57.500 |
God has given to us everything he deemed necessary. 00:41:20.020 |
Our God, this past year, has given me and to you 00:41:31.100 |
As what is proper in his sight, as what is good in his wisdom, 00:41:38.620 |
And if I ever dare complain for more, he might ask me, 00:41:48.460 |
How have you made sure that the blessings of community, 00:41:51.940 |
the blessings of your energy and your strength and the time 00:41:54.500 |
that I've already given you, how have you prioritized it? 00:41:58.580 |
And in this way, I believe and trust God, that he knows 00:42:09.620 |
And moving a bit more quickly into the second point, 00:42:15.180 |
If there is another convicting point from this passage, 00:42:21.060 |
The birds of the air, they don't have to scurry around. 00:42:25.180 |
But the Lord, the Heavenly Father feeds them. 00:42:36.580 |
look everywhere in which way for these things, 00:42:39.740 |
you have a Heavenly Father who knows and who gives. 00:42:43.700 |
This is the confidence of every Christian, amen? 00:42:57.340 |
Do you trust that I will give according to my sovereign hand? 00:43:05.780 |
and say there is a quick, quick thought that we could have, 00:43:21.660 |
But does that mean that every single Christian who 00:43:24.740 |
has ever trusted in him will actually, in fact, 00:43:38.260 |
And it's Jesus himself who has said that he has no nest. 00:43:46.140 |
He doesn't even have a place to rest his head. 00:43:48.180 |
And he has looked at us and every single disciple 00:43:51.740 |
Expect that you will suffer in ways probably worse. 00:44:06.500 |
It's more about transcending that to receive his kingdom. 00:44:14.980 |
In verse 33 when it says, "But seek his kingdom 00:44:23.540 |
The priority is his character, his righteousness. 00:44:35.500 |
and maybe some of you guys are sitting here worried 00:44:42.660 |
about your family members because there has been drama 00:44:46.780 |
When we seek his kingdom, you will worry a lot less. 00:44:59.540 |
at the center of his will because God has said, 00:45:07.260 |
been learning about the church, that in God's program, 00:45:10.820 |
he desires for us to be a source of refreshment edification 00:45:20.180 |
And you know that it is God's will and his priority 00:45:23.660 |
that we be lights in his dark, dark generation 00:45:35.900 |
As you take a moment to do a brief review of those things 00:45:45.780 |
How, as a question to you, how, by what means, 00:45:52.140 |
be seeking God's kingdom first in this next year? 00:46:01.060 |
will pray our hearts out so that God will help us put 00:46:04.820 |
to the backseat all the things that is taking priority, 00:46:08.380 |
my hobbies, my ambition, the stuff that I feel like I need 00:46:12.940 |
today, I must have, my longing for this and that, 00:46:27.580 |
For me, as I took time to pray and meditate about this, 00:46:29.900 |
I will say I have been so encouraged by our church 00:46:38.980 |
I want to thank every single one of you guys. 00:46:44.140 |
we felt like the church members were constantly bringing out 00:46:49.300 |
You know, you guys have heard me talk much about our Bible 00:46:55.620 |
but we had over 100 people go through that class this year. 00:46:59.340 |
And so many times, if I greet somebody and say, 00:47:03.260 |
They'll say, well, my brother told me I should come. 00:47:08.500 |
So many times when we had our boothing outside, 00:47:13.640 |
It's like, oh, my coworker kept on badgering me. 00:47:16.620 |
I see the fruit of we were investing priority 00:47:29.260 |
the scriptures tell us in 2 Timothy chapter 4, verse 5, 00:47:39.860 |
do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your ministry. 00:47:48.580 |
to be able to walk from room to room and in between, 00:47:52.280 |
have one of you guys stop me, introduce me to your relative, 00:47:55.940 |
and have the sweet joy in sharing the burden of love 00:47:59.380 |
to share the gospel with the people you love. 00:48:06.500 |
And I pray I can do the same, that whether it's my sons, 00:48:10.220 |
I'm walking with them, and I'm talking to you, 00:48:14.500 |
If I bring any relative, any friend from the past, 00:48:18.220 |
that we will be joined in this purpose of sharing 00:48:26.980 |
in thinking about the next year, the question is, one, 00:48:35.500 |
What worries have become your deciding criteria, 00:48:39.780 |
trying to stem off all the things that could go wrong, 00:48:42.780 |
trying to make sure you're pursuing the security? 00:48:59.300 |
How can I, in one single incremental measure, 00:49:05.460 |
that I would bear his image and be unto this world 00:49:30.300 |
where you would tend to the worries and anxieties 00:49:35.580 |
Father God, I pray that you will strengthen our faith. 00:49:39.220 |
Lord, we confess we are people beset with fears and worries. 00:49:46.460 |
help all of those fears to subside and disappear. 00:49:50.780 |
I pray, Father God, that we'll live with incredible confidence 00:49:56.060 |
I pray, Father God, that we would have great ambition 00:50:00.140 |
And I ask, God, that we will be a church characterized 00:50:03.340 |
by incredible trust and prayer, but also incredible strength 00:50:09.260 |
We thank you, Lord, and ask for your spiritual blessing 00:50:16.180 |
All right, at this time, I want to encourage all of you 00:50:20.540 |
to just bundle up, either within your family groups, 00:50:24.300 |
or just turn to your neighbor in groups of three to four 00:50:29.780 |
Because we only have about 10 minutes before 12 o'clock hits, 00:50:34.780 |
please take time to briefly share just like a thing, OK? 00:50:40.500 |
has been kind of plaguing your mind, that may potentially 00:50:48.060 |
And then let's think about what incremental step 00:50:53.540 |
So I'm going to give you guys about 10 minutes. 00:51:00.220 |
And then at the end of it, we'll sing a closing song, OK? 00:51:04.900 |
look to your neighbor, and take some time to pray.