WEBVTT 00:00:09.779 --> 00:00:13.320 Hello, and welcome to the Kalamazoo church of Christ podcast. 00:00:13.580 --> 00:00:14.839 Thank you so much for listening. 00:00:15.300 --> 00:00:16.199 We're startup church. 00:00:16.280 --> 00:00:23.460 We just planted in September, 2020 and at the Kalamazoo church, we believe that Christianity is done best when it is done together. 00:00:23.579 --> 00:00:32.299 And so if you live in the Kalamazoo area, we would love to connect, be it coming to a Sunday service, one of our small groups, or even just grabbing coffee with a member to learn more. 00:00:32.700 --> 00:00:36.439 You can visit kalamazoo.church in order to do that. 00:00:36.920 --> 00:00:40.380 We pray that you are inspired by what you hear today. 00:00:44.329 --> 00:00:46.590 He's got a nice little bunny tail there. 00:00:47.810 --> 00:00:59.880 So as I spoke to our house church, one of the last times that we, uh, uh, got together, uh, we're the church's family, right? 00:00:59.880 --> 00:01:00.039 Right. 00:01:00.960 --> 00:01:03.299 So that makes this the family room. 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:04.680 And that's what I want. 00:01:05.299 --> 00:01:07.500 That's the feeling that I want to project today. 00:01:07.719 --> 00:01:11.480 If we're brothers and sisters in Christ, that makes us family. 00:01:11.680 --> 00:01:20.120 And the interesting things about, uh, siblings, you know, brothers and sisters is that we don't get to choose who our brothers and sister is. 00:01:20.159 --> 00:01:21.859 That's totally up to God, right? 00:01:22.000 --> 00:01:28.620 You might, you might've noticed that and found that well-illustrated in your own physical family, but here we are today. 00:01:28.620 --> 00:01:34.340 We're gathered together as brothers and sisters in Christ, his church in the family room. 00:01:35.859 --> 00:01:44.379 I, uh, Lorraine had mentioned a little bit about, uh, the tough week, uh, that we have, you know, undergone and we're no different than, than you. 00:01:44.500 --> 00:01:47.000 I'm sure many of you have had, uh, difficult weeks. 00:01:47.239 --> 00:01:52.379 Uh, last Saturday, we, uh, most of, you know, Rachel, my daughter-in-law, uh, she lost. 00:01:52.459 --> 00:01:53.140 We got the call. 00:01:53.180 --> 00:02:01.500 I was actually at Walmart of all places Friday night trying to get some grocery shopping done and her grandma had a, um, um, uh, a brain aneurysm. 00:02:01.859 --> 00:02:04.920 She eventually passed overnight, so we got that word on Saturday. 00:02:05.640 --> 00:02:12.240 Then Saturday, we were at Lorraine's dad's house and then we got the call early Sunday morning last week that he had passed. 00:02:13.000 --> 00:02:15.520 In the middle of the week, I come down with this awful head cold. 00:02:16.319 --> 00:02:18.419 So this is nothing but the devil working, right? 00:02:18.460 --> 00:02:22.020 This has been on the books for some time, so we're just going to try to let that pass. 00:02:22.080 --> 00:02:24.560 In fact, I, uh, I'm, I'm, I'm fully medicated. 00:02:24.560 --> 00:02:29.759 In fact, the last dosage of, uh, drug should kick in right about now, so I think we're going to be okay. 00:02:30.039 --> 00:02:30.620 All right? 00:02:30.800 --> 00:02:31.479 Here we go. 00:02:31.719 --> 00:02:35.719 You can actually turn your Bibles over to, uh, Psalms chapter 107. 00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:42.680 We'll be spending a, um, some time, uh, in that particular book, in that chapter, Psalms 107. 00:02:47.960 --> 00:02:51.919 So, do you care if I swing by the old house, I asked expectantly. 00:02:52.639 --> 00:02:55.439 Sure she replied to my total surprise. 00:02:55.960 --> 00:03:03.840 We were making our way back, uh, home after spending a full day on the beach, a ritual we religiously observed two or three times each summer. 00:03:04.840 --> 00:03:17.960 Rine, my wife of 35 years, seemed content with a leisurely drive, absorbing the countryside and shielding her eyes from the sun that flashed between the trees, houses, and barns that we passed along the way. 00:03:18.639 --> 00:03:28.659 It had been years, 10 or, uh, 15 or 20, since I had last seen my childhood home, and I was both excited and nervous to see what had become of it. 00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:34.340 The house sat on an acre's worth of yard, surrounded by cornfields. 00:03:34.620 --> 00:03:42.979 A two-story farmhouse would have fit better, but this was a modest single-story dwelling, an 800-square-foot ranch with a full basement. 00:03:43.860 --> 00:03:49.159 And true to its age, it was dressed in aluminum siding, the white paint peeling off like a bad sunburn. 00:03:49.939 --> 00:03:54.419 From a distance, my eyes caught the familiar outline of the maple tree in the front yard. 00:03:54.740 --> 00:04:02.719 I saw myself pushing that lawnmower back and forth and back and forth, a task I inherited from my father at a young age. 00:04:03.319 --> 00:04:12.919 The L-shaped gravel driveway remained true to my memory, and I thought to myself, this could be the same dirt I walked on 40 years earlier. 00:04:14.259 --> 00:04:21.060 The front door of the house was centered, as seen from the street, rarely used and gave no compelling reason to enter. 00:04:21.060 --> 00:04:32.139 When we lived there, our primary entry was the side door at the end of the house, which led directly into the kitchen by veering to the left, avoiding the basement staircase straight ahead. 00:04:32.759 --> 00:04:51.720 But my domain was in that basement, along with our main living space consisting of an older three-piece sectional, bulky yet comfortable, sporting a two-tone black polyester fabric, an area rug, a 19-inch black and white television, and a wood-burning stove. 00:04:53.279 --> 00:04:59.519 Now a small window near the ceiling with a rusty metal frame rescued my otherwise dark bedroom. 00:05:00.120 --> 00:05:07.300 The exterior cement block walls were painted pastel blue and radiated cold regardless of the season. 00:05:08.120 --> 00:05:10.259 The two interior walls were paneled. 00:05:10.579 --> 00:05:20.839 One contained a full-length closet, the other appropriately decorated with Detroit sports team pennants, and a poster of a girl in short shorts on a skateboard holding an RC Cola. 00:05:23.069 --> 00:05:25.709 I knew I would lose many of you on that point right there. 00:05:26.870 --> 00:05:28.949 I loved living in the country. 00:05:29.610 --> 00:05:35.350 There must have been a formula that determined where we lived, because houses on farms were our default. 00:05:36.230 --> 00:05:42.370 They may have been cheaper to rent than those located closer to home, and regardless, I did not mind. 00:05:42.670 --> 00:05:48.490 The surrounding farmlands made our homes feel like homesteads with plenty to offer a boy and room to breathe. 00:05:49.509 --> 00:05:56.889 We moved to 60th Street in 1976 and lived there for four years, which for us was a borderline eternity. 00:05:58.290 --> 00:06:06.589 Now in the summer, I spent hours outside throwing my baseball against a weathered sheet of plywood stained with red paint marking the strike zone. 00:06:07.209 --> 00:06:17.610 I turned a circular cement slab destined to become a corn silo into a mini basketball court and often begged Dad to throw me the football as far as he could. 00:06:18.230 --> 00:06:23.209 Dad, I need a motorcycle, and I can afford this one, I pleaded. 00:06:23.810 --> 00:06:31.350 Yes, son, but I know nothing about working on these things, and when we have trouble, it will mean an expensive trip to the shop, he replied. 00:06:31.350 --> 00:06:49.240 Well, following a moment of negotiation, Dad relented and blessed the transaction. 00:06:49.959 --> 00:06:54.819 As I summoned the owner, I dug deep in the pocket for my hole of savings,$125. 00:06:56.220 --> 00:07:05.920 Fortunately it came with a helmet in better condition than the dirt bike and featured a full-face one-way visor I envisioned wearing looking back at those I would leave in my dust. 00:07:06.920 --> 00:07:11.740 Like most boys I hung out with, I now owned a motorcycle. 00:07:12.379 --> 00:07:18.600 The Suzuki 90 was mine and transported me through the acres of farmland adjacent to our home. 00:07:19.259 --> 00:07:25.899 Hi Mom, bye Mom, I shouted as I rushed inside the house to drop off my books from school and retrieve the keys to my newfound freedom. 00:07:26.699 --> 00:07:30.019 But before making it to the garage, Dad stopped me in the yard. 00:07:30.740 --> 00:07:34.740 The day you get cocky on that thing will be the day you get hurt, he warned. 00:07:35.500 --> 00:07:37.120 I know, Dad, I'll be careful. 00:07:37.740 --> 00:07:40.300 To his credit, he did not hound me about it. 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:45.120 His only rule, outside of not getting cocky, was to stay off the paved roads. 00:07:46.120 --> 00:07:54.779 A two-trail led out from our garage, running between a silo, the silo pad I used to play basketball on, and another owl building. 00:07:54.779 --> 00:08:00.040 It was primarily used by the farmer's trucks and tractors, but it was perfect for my dirt bike. 00:08:00.620 --> 00:08:07.399 The wide knobby tires on my motorcycle cut through that sand, the mud, and the dirt as I traversed deeper into the fields. 00:08:07.699 --> 00:08:10.360 I did not wander off the two-trail too far. 00:08:10.579 --> 00:08:14.199 It was easy to lose your way once the corn grew taller than you. 00:08:14.980 --> 00:08:16.800 The whole experience was peaceful. 00:08:17.399 --> 00:08:21.360 I could go anywhere I wanted, think about the day, or try to forget it. 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:26.920 Occasionally, I would stop riding, take off the helmet, and listen to the wind rustling through the corn. 00:08:28.100 --> 00:08:38.460 A stock pond near the back of the property fed the irrigation system, and I was both curious and scared of the oversized nozzle shooting water a hundred foot in each direction. 00:08:39.379 --> 00:08:53.759 But I was unlike most 14-year-old boys in that I used my motorcycle to deliver myself to remote prayer sites where I talked to God about 14-year-old boy concerns and the prospect of a church planting. 00:08:54.259 --> 00:08:57.480 My dad had mentioned the possibility, and I ran with it. 00:08:57.899 --> 00:09:00.379 I was determined to pray it into existence. 00:09:02.019 --> 00:09:06.019 Father in heaven, thank you for my life and my family. 00:09:06.700 --> 00:09:08.480 Thank you for my motorcycle. 00:09:09.080 --> 00:09:11.940 Father, please allow dad to start a new church. 00:09:12.379 --> 00:09:19.480 Please, father, help it to be a great church, a growing church, a church focused on winning souls for you. 00:09:20.500 --> 00:09:23.659 Help me to be a preacher, dad, just like dad. 00:09:24.100 --> 00:09:26.399 In Jesus's name, amen. 00:09:28.139 --> 00:09:37.480 After a long summer and many prayers surrounded by corn, the church became a reality, the spiritual epicenter of my young life. 00:09:37.919 --> 00:09:47.379 On Sunday, October 2nd, 1977, with little fanfare, 20 people gathered for the inaugural service of the Waterloo Church of Christ. 00:09:48.240 --> 00:09:52.580 This was as simple and ill-advised a beginning as one could imagine. 00:09:52.899 --> 00:09:55.019 There was no outside financial support. 00:09:55.500 --> 00:10:01.240 There were few individuals committed to the church plant outside of my family, and yet we started. 00:10:05.779 --> 00:10:08.899 Now, that is my story. 00:10:08.899 --> 00:10:12.519 Actually, that's a portion of my story. 00:10:14.000 --> 00:10:15.519 What about your story? 00:10:16.279 --> 00:10:27.580 See, our stories are very important, and they're very important if for no other reason than each and every single one of us present here today have one. 00:10:28.340 --> 00:10:29.580 Well, Paul, I really don't have a story. 00:10:29.639 --> 00:10:32.200 No, no, that's absolutely not true. 00:10:32.340 --> 00:10:34.419 That's 100% not true. 00:10:34.419 --> 00:10:55.340 You see, the insignificant details of our life, or so it seems, like this young kid riding his motorcycle back in the midst of cornfields, have great relevance to your life, your story, and dare I even say it, your salvation, which we're going to learn about a little bit later in the lesson. 00:10:56.039 --> 00:11:02.279 You see, there's significance in motorcycles when they're part of my story because that was my beginning. 00:11:02.820 --> 00:11:04.820 That's where I first learned how to pray. 00:11:05.600 --> 00:11:09.799 And the idea that it was in cornfields, that was, again, that's my story. 00:11:10.399 --> 00:11:15.419 Now, again, you have your story, and here's the thing about your story. 00:11:15.799 --> 00:11:18.779 You are the only one that can tell your story. 00:11:18.919 --> 00:11:21.100 I can't do it for you. 00:11:21.399 --> 00:11:23.740 I can't tell Spence's story. 00:11:24.379 --> 00:11:27.100 I can only tell mine, and you've just heard part of it. 00:11:28.080 --> 00:11:42.440 A lady named Leslie Leland Fields wrote a book that was entitled Your Story Matters, and she quotes Patricia Hample by saying this, For we do not, after all, simply have experiences. 00:11:42.899 --> 00:11:45.500 We are entrusted with them. 00:11:45.539 --> 00:11:46.539 Let me repeat that. 00:11:46.919 --> 00:11:50.320 For we do not, after all, simply have experiences. 00:11:50.879 --> 00:11:53.019 We are entrusted with them. 00:11:53.179 --> 00:11:55.039 Let's break for that for just a moment. 00:11:55.039 --> 00:11:59.899 If we are entrusted with something, we are responsible for something, right? 00:12:00.799 --> 00:12:03.059 That is the case with our story. 00:12:03.919 --> 00:12:06.139 We must do something with it. 00:12:06.519 --> 00:12:08.580 We must make something of it. 00:12:09.039 --> 00:12:16.820 And then she asked the question, are we to remain silent, or do we welcome the burden of witnessing? 00:12:17.980 --> 00:12:18.519 Wow. 00:12:19.080 --> 00:12:28.360 Are we to remain silent today as the church, as individual members of this church body, as individual members of this family today? 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:36.820 Are we to remain silent, or do we take on the burden, yes, even the command, I might add, of witnessing? 00:12:37.500 --> 00:12:41.460 I think that's what Psalms chapter 107 is trying to get us to see. 00:12:41.500 --> 00:12:43.799 Let's turn over there and read the first few verses. 00:12:44.620 --> 00:12:51.799 107, Psalms 107, one through, well, at least the first couple of verses here. 00:12:54.259 --> 00:12:56.860 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. 00:12:57.019 --> 00:12:58.620 His love endures forever. 00:12:58.740 --> 00:13:00.179 It starts out pretty good, right? 00:13:01.379 --> 00:13:04.980 Pretty innocuous, something that we all can accept, right? 00:13:05.379 --> 00:13:07.120 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. 00:13:07.220 --> 00:13:08.600 His love endures forever. 00:13:11.159 --> 00:13:12.399 Then he continues. 00:13:13.659 --> 00:13:17.440 Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story. 00:13:18.019 --> 00:13:22.899 In other translations, it says, let the redeemed of the Lord say so. 00:13:23.500 --> 00:13:25.940 He's not saying, hey, I think this is a good idea, folks. 00:13:26.059 --> 00:13:31.139 He is telling us, let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story. 00:13:31.500 --> 00:13:33.200 Why is this story so important? 00:13:33.659 --> 00:13:34.700 Well, let's continue on. 00:13:35.100 --> 00:13:37.320 Those he redeemed from the land of the foe. 00:13:37.379 --> 00:13:40.039 Have we not been redeemed from the land of the foe today? 00:13:40.700 --> 00:13:46.580 For those he gathered from the lands from the east and the west, from the north and the south. 00:13:46.879 --> 00:13:50.039 You see, it indicates here that we all have different experiences. 00:13:50.240 --> 00:13:51.960 We all have different backgrounds, right? 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:56.519 But he tells all the redeemed of the Lord to say so. 00:13:56.899 --> 00:13:58.340 Bring that story up. 00:13:58.440 --> 00:14:00.139 Let's hear your story. 00:14:00.659 --> 00:14:03.259 Give voice to your story. 00:14:04.320 --> 00:14:09.759 I want to direct your attention for a little bit lengthier reading to the book of Acts. 00:14:10.279 --> 00:14:15.399 Acts chapter 17, verses 16 through 28. 00:14:15.879 --> 00:14:18.259 Acts 17, 16 through 28. 00:14:18.539 --> 00:14:19.919 I'm going to tell you straight up. 00:14:19.919 --> 00:14:21.980 This is more of my story. 00:14:22.379 --> 00:14:27.600 I fell in love with this passage of scripture and even put most of it to memory at one point in time. 00:14:27.820 --> 00:14:37.320 I'll tell you how long ago that was, is that my new international version, the one I memorize in it, has that version's been updated by another version and maybe another version, OK? 00:14:37.700 --> 00:14:43.240 So if I were to try to quote it today, it would probably look foreign to what you have in your scripture today, OK? 00:14:43.679 --> 00:14:48.840 So let's just begin in verse number 16 and read through this. 00:14:48.840 --> 00:14:49.440 All right, Paul. 00:14:49.879 --> 00:14:56.080 Now, while Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 00:14:56.759 --> 00:15:05.700 So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 00:15:07.039 --> 00:15:12.259 Now, a group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. 00:15:12.580 --> 00:15:16.139 Some of them asked, what is this babbler trying to say? 00:15:16.139 --> 00:15:19.919 And others remarked, he seems to be advocating foreign gods. 00:15:20.440 --> 00:15:25.500 They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and his resurrection. 00:15:28.460 --> 00:15:39.139 Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, may we know this new teaching is that you are presenting? 00:15:39.539 --> 00:15:44.259 You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean. 00:15:44.639 --> 00:15:52.000 Now, all of the Athenians and foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking and listening to the latest ideas. 00:15:53.580 --> 00:16:01.200 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said, people of Athens, I see that in every way you are very religious. 00:16:01.720 --> 00:16:09.960 For as I walked around and observed your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription, to an unknown God. 00:16:11.000 --> 00:16:16.639 So you are ignorant of the very thing that you worship, and this is what I am going to proclaim to you. 00:16:17.320 --> 00:16:24.120 The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth, and does not live in temples built by hands. 00:16:24.720 --> 00:16:28.580 And he is not served by human hands as if he needed anything. 00:16:29.419 --> 00:16:34.220 Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 00:16:34.840 --> 00:16:45.039 From one man, he made all the nations that they should inhabit the whole earth, and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 00:16:45.639 --> 00:16:52.679 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. 00:16:53.100 --> 00:17:00.820 For in him we live and move and have our being, as some of your own poets have said, we are his offspring. 00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:03.899 Isn't that amazing? 00:17:04.118 --> 00:17:04.838 Isn't that awesome? 00:17:05.259 --> 00:17:15.618 We could spend, oh my gosh, days and weeks and months contemplating what was written here in the book of Acts by Luke. 00:17:16.420 --> 00:17:19.140 Here's a few observations that I wrote down. 00:17:19.200 --> 00:17:24.299 Now, this is more of my recent history, and this really is more my recent story. 00:17:24.640 --> 00:17:36.920 It was after the church here began meeting together, and I began reflecting upon this passage a little more seriously and maybe with a little more intent. 00:17:37.319 --> 00:17:39.480 Here's some of the things that I wrote down at that point. 00:17:40.359 --> 00:17:51.779 As a young man, I was intrigued with the latter part of Acts chapter 17, the narrative of the apostle Paul addressing the crowd assembled on Mars Hill to the extent that I placed it to memory. 00:17:52.599 --> 00:17:59.900 And he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live, Acts 17 26. 00:18:00.779 --> 00:18:15.980 I have argued that these words give our present lives meaning and purpose, the time in which we live, our residences, and our employers are not a coincidence, nor are the unique circumstances that define our lives. 00:18:16.559 --> 00:18:19.480 But a fresh approach has broadened my understanding. 00:18:20.059 --> 00:18:28.279 A simple deduction would affirm that if the divine could order our lives in such a manner today, then he did also 20 years ago. 00:18:28.660 --> 00:18:36.619 And there has never been, nor will there ever be, a moment in my life or yours apart from his choosing. 00:18:36.619 --> 00:18:38.200 Let that sink in. 00:18:38.900 --> 00:18:42.920 The psalmist states it perfectly, your eyes saw my unformed being. 00:18:44.579 --> 00:18:49.880 And all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. 00:18:50.500 --> 00:18:54.740 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. 00:18:55.200 --> 00:18:57.740 Psalms 139 verses 16 and six. 00:18:58.420 --> 00:19:02.119 Too wonderful, too lofty for me to attain. 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:08.559 You know, I wrestle with this intellectual gap, but marvel at its implications. 00:19:09.720 --> 00:19:12.480 The resulting corollary suggests a question. 00:19:13.000 --> 00:19:24.660 Why have certain events happened in my life, especially those that have ended in pain, confusion, heartache, leaving me stranded on a dead end road without recourse or explanation? 00:19:25.559 --> 00:19:29.400 I find the satisfactory response elusive. 00:19:30.140 --> 00:19:38.339 While at times frustrating, I'm not discouraged for by merely asking the question, am I not conceding the limits of my intellect? 00:19:38.779 --> 00:19:46.460 If something does not make sense, it does not necessarily mean that it doesn't make sense, but rather that it doesn't make sense to me. 00:19:47.160 --> 00:19:51.920 And so my mind wanders, fearing a discovery that complicates. 00:19:52.299 --> 00:19:59.799 I'm not a theologian nor scholar, so only a concise, simple, and straightforward explanation will suffice. 00:19:59.940 --> 00:20:01.380 Please center in with me here. 00:20:02.160 --> 00:20:03.599 God did this. 00:20:04.019 --> 00:20:05.880 God did everything that he's done. 00:20:06.480 --> 00:20:09.480 He knew every day about you before you live one of them. 00:20:09.619 --> 00:20:15.099 He knows the word completely when it's on your tongue before you state it. 00:20:15.359 --> 00:20:19.599 He knows of the situation that's happening right here and right now. 00:20:20.480 --> 00:20:29.000 God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 00:20:29.059 --> 00:20:30.980 Acts chapter 17, verse 27. 00:20:31.700 --> 00:20:46.980 Luke asserts that the times and the places God preordained for us to occupy had one singular goal, and that goal was to provide the framework in which for each of us to seek and to find him. 00:20:47.400 --> 00:20:50.079 Essentially, that's it. 00:20:50.160 --> 00:20:54.019 It's God's way of saving me. 00:20:54.779 --> 00:20:57.839 That's the only explanation that I can come up with. 00:20:58.680 --> 00:21:06.299 God ordained my place and time, knowing that he would have to start not today, but at the beginning of my life. 00:21:06.599 --> 00:21:12.859 A moment in time, surrounded by eternity that he's already lived in. 00:21:13.740 --> 00:21:17.079 When I did not know him, he would begin at birth. 00:21:17.319 --> 00:21:23.819 He would enlist friends and neighbors, parents, preachers, teachers, jobs, health issues, good and bad relationships. 00:21:24.619 --> 00:21:42.720 My childhood years, my teenage years, my young adult years, my wife, my children, and a myriad of other people, maybe in this audience here today, not wasting a single solitary moment, but each element beckoning me a little closer to God. 00:21:43.259 --> 00:21:45.660 It's his way of saving me. 00:21:46.039 --> 00:21:52.460 So when we look at our lives, and we look at these individual details and think they're insignificant, you're wrong. 00:21:53.000 --> 00:21:54.319 You're wrong. 00:21:55.180 --> 00:21:57.240 It's of great importance. 00:21:57.720 --> 00:22:01.339 How else do you explain the importance of a motorcycle in my life? 00:22:01.500 --> 00:22:05.839 A stupid piece of machinery that's gonna turn to dust. 00:22:05.980 --> 00:22:07.400 Probably already has at this point. 00:22:09.559 --> 00:22:19.279 From our stories, these little elements in our lives define a narrative that we can share, no, that we have to share. 00:22:19.400 --> 00:22:27.160 The burden of witnessing with our other fellow believers in Christ, but also those who have not come to know him yet. 00:22:27.319 --> 00:22:27.559 Why? 00:22:27.960 --> 00:22:30.700 Because they have a story too. 00:22:35.650 --> 00:22:38.349 Come on, drugs, hang in there just a little bit longer. 00:22:42.619 --> 00:22:44.500 Let's turn our Bibles to 1 Peter. 00:22:44.539 --> 00:22:48.019 1 Peter chapter three, 15 and 16. 00:22:48.420 --> 00:22:49.140 What time we got? 00:22:50.220 --> 00:22:51.119 Oh, okay. 00:22:52.660 --> 00:22:55.259 We'll do this as quick as we can. 00:22:55.259 --> 00:23:08.630 1 Peter chapter three, verses 15 and 16. 00:23:09.890 --> 00:23:12.910 But in your hearts, revere Christ as Lord. 00:23:13.450 --> 00:23:30.710 Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have, but do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 00:23:30.710 --> 00:23:36.509 All right, notice what Peter does not say here. 00:23:37.069 --> 00:23:41.529 He does not ask us to be prepared to recite every Bible verse on a given topic. 00:23:42.109 --> 00:23:47.849 Peter does not encourage us to be prepared to nail down all the important doctrinal points that we find in scripture. 00:23:48.549 --> 00:24:01.089 Peter does not ask us to be prepared to uphold the traditions of our specific faith community, but he does ask us to be prepared to give the answer for the reason for the hope that you have. 00:24:01.589 --> 00:24:03.930 Our reason is simply Christ himself. 00:24:04.650 --> 00:24:06.750 Jesus is the reason, we've heard it, right? 00:24:07.009 --> 00:24:09.349 It's not just true at Christmas time, it's true today. 00:24:09.970 --> 00:24:11.349 Jesus is the reason. 00:24:12.650 --> 00:24:13.769 What is our hope? 00:24:13.930 --> 00:24:15.569 Jesus is the reason for the hope that we have. 00:24:15.869 --> 00:24:19.250 I see our hope is our story. 00:24:19.630 --> 00:24:23.069 Our story that says, you know what makes a great story? 00:24:23.349 --> 00:24:35.650 When there's somebody who has screwed up so bad, so horribly bad that they can do nothing to help themselves and they're there left, and then point number two, somebody comes in that rescues us in that situation. 00:24:36.089 --> 00:24:36.769 Well, guess what? 00:24:36.950 --> 00:24:39.309 We all qualify, right? 00:24:39.410 --> 00:24:40.869 That's a great story. 00:24:41.410 --> 00:24:43.950 We're dying to hear yours. 00:24:45.329 --> 00:24:53.569 And this hope that we talk about, this hope of reflecting back on our lives and telling our stories to others, this isn't a hope-so hope. 00:24:53.569 --> 00:24:57.670 This is a no-so hope, and there's a big difference between the... 00:24:57.670 --> 00:24:59.730 You can hope for a million dollars today. 00:25:00.069 --> 00:25:02.309 Chances are you're gonna go to bed broke this evening. 00:25:02.430 --> 00:25:04.309 That would be my guess, kind of like me, right? 00:25:05.349 --> 00:25:07.710 That's not like the hope that we have. 00:25:07.869 --> 00:25:13.049 The hope that we have is sure, because we have seen it. 00:25:13.369 --> 00:25:15.869 Haven't you experienced that, your story? 00:25:16.049 --> 00:25:19.650 And we haven't seen how God has taken us through these times. 00:25:19.990 --> 00:25:23.470 We just don't know how much left, right? 00:25:23.750 --> 00:25:26.230 But we do know our destination point, do we not? 00:25:26.390 --> 00:25:27.589 Amen, amen, Paul. 00:25:29.269 --> 00:25:34.069 I've asked a few gentlemen today to help me out with a few short stories. 00:25:34.730 --> 00:25:38.690 And we find these recorded back in Psalms 107, where we started today. 00:25:39.650 --> 00:25:42.029 So turn your Bibles back to 107. 00:25:42.150 --> 00:25:45.369 I've asked Spence first to start us off. 00:25:45.430 --> 00:25:50.609 And reading just a few verses, Psalms 107, four through nine. 00:25:50.750 --> 00:25:51.910 Spence, can you do that for us? 00:25:52.369 --> 00:25:53.190 I got you, Paul. 00:25:54.890 --> 00:25:56.130 Starting in verse four. 00:25:56.289 --> 00:26:02.089 Some wandered in desert wasteland, finding no way to a city where they could settle. 00:26:02.490 --> 00:26:06.990 They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives abed away. 00:26:07.890 --> 00:26:12.670 Then they cried out to the Lord in their troubles, and he delivered them from their distress. 00:26:13.349 --> 00:26:17.650 He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle. 00:26:18.569 --> 00:26:23.529 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind. 00:26:24.450 --> 00:26:29.069 For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. 00:26:29.789 --> 00:26:30.250 Wow. 00:26:31.609 --> 00:26:34.609 I wonder if you have found yourself here. 00:26:34.789 --> 00:26:36.490 Maybe this could be part of your story. 00:26:36.609 --> 00:26:37.130 Maybe not. 00:26:37.410 --> 00:26:38.890 We're not trying to make your story. 00:26:39.009 --> 00:26:44.710 We're just trying to identify, number one, what the writer of Psalms is writing here. 00:26:44.710 --> 00:26:49.529 But I think I find elements of the stories listed here in my own life. 00:26:49.769 --> 00:26:55.170 This first portion that Spence read for us is a story of loneliness to community. 00:26:55.309 --> 00:27:04.589 And I like how in each of these segments that we're going to read today, we find ourselves in an unhopeful situation that turns into a hopeful situation. 00:27:05.130 --> 00:27:12.089 Did you notice when he said in verse number four, some wandered in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle. 00:27:12.089 --> 00:27:15.309 They were hungry and thirsty and their lives ebbed away. 00:27:15.690 --> 00:27:17.490 Have you felt that disconnected before? 00:27:17.670 --> 00:27:20.349 If you have, I'm right there with you, right? 00:27:20.630 --> 00:27:21.670 I've felt that way. 00:27:21.750 --> 00:27:22.869 I've felt isolated. 00:27:23.029 --> 00:27:28.230 I have felt all by myself, lonely, tired, ready to give it up, right? 00:27:28.789 --> 00:27:30.789 But then thank God, he continues. 00:27:31.349 --> 00:27:34.769 They were hungry and thirsty, their lives ebbed away, verse number six. 00:27:34.849 --> 00:27:39.509 They cried out to the Lord in their trouble and he delivered them from their distress. 00:27:40.089 --> 00:27:42.970 Another making, another great story, right? 00:27:43.089 --> 00:27:47.029 Somebody who can't help themselves and God pulled them out of the mire. 00:27:47.150 --> 00:27:48.069 Who do we have next? 00:27:48.730 --> 00:27:52.809 Keith, will you stand and read Psalms 107, 10 through 16. 00:27:54.410 --> 00:28:07.529 Some sat in darkness, in utter darkness, prisoners suffering in iron chains, because they rebelled against God's commandments and despised the plans of the Most High. 00:28:08.490 --> 00:28:16.089 So, he suffered them before they could be stumbled and there was no one to help them. 00:28:16.789 --> 00:28:22.250 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble and he saved them from their distress. 00:28:23.150 --> 00:28:28.349 He brought them out of darkness, in utter darkness, and broke away their chains. 00:28:29.470 --> 00:28:35.150 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind. 00:28:36.150 --> 00:28:40.869 For he breaks down gates of brown and cuts through bars of iron. 00:28:41.789 --> 00:28:43.109 Thank you, Keith. 00:28:43.789 --> 00:28:47.029 Same type of situation, a little bit different scenario, right? 00:28:47.230 --> 00:28:48.390 He begins in verse 10. 00:28:48.809 --> 00:28:55.210 Some sat in darkness, in utter darkness, prisoners suffering in iron chains. 00:28:55.269 --> 00:29:01.670 Now, those iron chains may have been real or maybe they just could have been representing something. 00:29:02.150 --> 00:29:04.809 How many of you have been in a dark place in your life before? 00:29:04.809 --> 00:29:07.089 Again, I think we all can relate, all right? 00:29:07.109 --> 00:29:10.289 We've been shackled by bad thoughts. 00:29:10.470 --> 00:29:13.910 Perhaps it's just something mental that we just can't get over. 00:29:14.309 --> 00:29:17.109 Perhaps it's the realization of where we are in life. 00:29:17.210 --> 00:29:19.289 We're without hope, without Christ. 00:29:19.789 --> 00:29:22.730 And so, this could be part of your story. 00:29:23.069 --> 00:29:31.210 One of distress that will lead to deliverance if we choose our great hope in Christ. 00:29:31.849 --> 00:29:34.910 Psalms 107, 17 through 22. 00:29:35.190 --> 00:29:38.130 I've asked Cal if he will stand and read this, please. 00:29:39.549 --> 00:29:46.009 Some became fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of the inequity. 00:29:46.769 --> 00:29:50.230 They loved all truth and drew near the gates of death. 00:29:51.210 --> 00:29:56.049 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble and he saved them from their distress. 00:29:56.509 --> 00:29:58.950 He sent out his word and healed them. 00:29:59.470 --> 00:30:01.509 He rescued them from the grave. 00:30:02.430 --> 00:30:07.890 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind. 00:30:08.750 --> 00:30:13.890 Let them sacrifice thanks offering and tell of his work with song of joy. 00:30:14.109 --> 00:30:25.210 I think this is a broad enough one that each of us have experienced at least a little bit of this because he begins by stating, some became fools through their own rebellious ways. 00:30:25.430 --> 00:30:26.569 We've all been there, right? 00:30:27.150 --> 00:30:30.069 It's just a matter of, when are we going to acknowledge that? 00:30:30.349 --> 00:30:32.789 And when are we going to acknowledge our hope? 00:30:32.890 --> 00:30:35.529 Again, a story of rebellion to worship. 00:30:35.910 --> 00:30:42.950 Finally, our brother Tony coming from the back is going to read Psalms 107, 23 through 32. 00:30:45.400 --> 00:30:46.500 Right, wow. 00:30:46.740 --> 00:30:47.339 Thank you, Tony. 00:30:47.720 --> 00:30:50.460 Thank you brothers for helping me out there a little bit this morning. 00:30:51.200 --> 00:30:54.099 So some went out to seas and ships. 00:30:54.240 --> 00:30:56.500 They were merchant on the mighty waters. 00:30:56.500 --> 00:31:04.180 I would think that they would be successful, that they are able to sell their goods and make money and do business. 00:31:05.720 --> 00:31:08.079 And then trouble came, right? 00:31:08.900 --> 00:31:10.339 Things kind of fell apart. 00:31:10.579 --> 00:31:11.559 And now what do we do? 00:31:11.660 --> 00:31:19.599 And I think to a large extent, all of us are part of that story too because who needs God when we're doing well, right? 00:31:20.119 --> 00:31:26.579 He usually has to bring us down a notch or two or maybe we have to hit rock bottom before we're able to listen. 00:31:27.519 --> 00:31:32.940 I hope that you'll go home this afternoon, this week, maybe brush up on these stories a little bit more. 00:31:33.380 --> 00:31:43.200 But most importantly, I hope that you will go home and reflect back on your story and always be prepared to share with others. 00:31:43.500 --> 00:31:46.279 Give the reason for the hope that you have. 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:52.160 Gonna leave you with just a couple of concluding remarks and then we'll end in prayer here this morning. 00:31:52.160 --> 00:32:03.170 The alarm went off at the customary hour, 5 a.m. As my eyes struggled to focus, I hit snooze to enjoy a few extra moments of nothing. 00:32:03.930 --> 00:32:09.609 I finally convinced myself to rise, motivated almost exclusively by the aroma of fresh brewed coffee. 00:32:10.329 --> 00:32:18.009 I passed my wife on the way to the kitchen, smile, offer a good morning and a kiss and settle in my chair at the dining table. 00:32:19.250 --> 00:32:22.049 Another day is about to begin. 00:32:22.789 --> 00:32:33.410 Another day fully imagined an eternity ago by the maker of the universe to draw me closer to him. 00:32:34.890 --> 00:32:35.390 Humbling. 00:32:36.309 --> 00:32:39.349 But it's his way of saving me. 00:32:40.089 --> 00:32:41.450 Church, I want us to stand. 00:32:42.349 --> 00:32:48.430 I want us to pray as Jesus taught his disciples today as we dismiss. 00:32:48.890 --> 00:32:54.529 And after our prayer, need for you parents to go get your kids from a kid's kingdom. 00:32:55.809 --> 00:32:56.690 Let's pray. 00:32:57.069 --> 00:32:59.450 Our father in heaven, how would be your name? 00:33:00.009 --> 00:33:04.190 Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 00:33:04.829 --> 00:33:11.990 Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. 00:33:12.430 --> 00:33:16.190 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. 00:33:16.549 --> 00:33:20.769 For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever. 00:33:21.650 --> 00:33:21.950 Amen. 00:33:22.549 --> 00:33:23.490 You're dismissed. 00:33:27.950 --> 00:33:33.009 Thank you so much for listening to the Kalamazoo Church of Christ podcast. 00:33:33.269 --> 00:33:36.670 If you're in the Kalamazoo area, we'd love to get connected. 00:33:36.930 --> 00:33:44.289 Please go to kalamazoo.church and fill in your information to come to a Sunday service or any other event that we have going on. 00:33:44.289 --> 00:33:46.930 In any case, you'll be hearing from us next week.