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Well, a man. I can't think of a better song to introduce our passage this morning. Would you take your bibles? Let's open the second Timothy. Chapter two, starting in verse three. You'll have to forgive me this morning. I'm a bit under the weather. The flu and strep throat has hit the Shackleford house S O. Today. We're not going to be having guessed receptions. Um, I almost stayed home and had someone else preach. But in light of the topic, we're going to be talking about today, which is commitment. I'm here and I didn't feel like I could pass that up. Even feeling the way I feel right now, we're in Chapter two of Second Timothy commitments. One of those things that's hard to define, but I know it when I see it. Commitment is one of those things that's hard to define, but I know it when I see it. For instance, the BBC in January reported on the greatest marriage proposal ever. It was a young man by the name of Lee, Local er. He took his girlfriend to her favorite movie, which was Sleeping Beauty. What she doesn't know is that months earlier, he hired a cartoon artist to change the faces of the characters into their likeness. And so when the characters come up and he starts the proposal, the lights in the theater comes on. She sees their faces on the cartoon characters, and the lights come on to reveal the entire auditorium is filled with family. He gets down on one knee and he proposes. I have trouble defining commitment, but I know it when I see it. This guy was committed. He made plans. He spent money. He put in the time he put in the work. This guy was 100% all in. Sadly, not all relationships are like that. We all know that couple that's just perpetually dating year after year after year. And the young lady gets frustrated and she says, Where's this going? She wants to define the relationship. Where is that? Are we gonna ever get married? And the guy gets upset and says, We're together, aren't we? Isn't that enough? Problem is that that guy knows, deep down, he's not truly committed to the relationship. That's the way it is for many relationships. Even in the church. We lack the commitment with 100% commitment. And I would argue that many in the church tend to sort of have a dating relationship with the church. They're not truly committed the way that Christ wants us to be committed. Some of you might even say that to me today. Well, I'm here, right? Isn't that enough? But you're not engaged in the mission. You're not connected to community. Your goal is not as we just finished singing the cause of Christ. If you're honest with yourself, maybe you're dating. Some of us are just locked in this pattern of come to church, Take notes, go home, come to church and take notes. Go home and we become these collection points of knowledge. But we're never truly engaged in the mission in the cause of Christ. One author describes the church data as follows. Listen to this church daters, Air one me centered. They only come for what they can get. Social interaction, programs, activities. And their main question is, what can the church give to me to their independent? They don't want to get too involved. This is the person who lives the Lone Ranger. Christianity, life. It's just me and Jesus. I don't need anybody else. We're not investing in the lives of others. They don't see themselves as vital for God's purpose. In community three, they're critical. They're quick to find fault in the church. This is the lover with a wondering. I always looking for something better. That's a church dater today. What I want to introduce you to is the topic of commitment. It's that you and I would be committed and that we would be contributors, not merely consumers, not merely daters. But we would be a contributor, not merely a consumer. God wants us to keep the Gospel Central. Last time we saw that the way that we keep the Gospel Central is we lay down a legacy. This week we're seeing that the way we keep the Gospel Central is by being fully committed to the cause of Christ. So you and I and I want to convince someone here today to stop wondering church from church, from church to church to church. I want to convince you to put deep roots down here with an imperfect people and an imperfect church and an imperfectly leadership and say this is where God has me to serve But that's in the dating relationship. And let's commit to this body at this time in this place. That's what God has for. So let's take our Bibles. Let's stand in honor of God's word. We're in second Timothy. Chapter two, Verse three says this share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think over what I say for the Lord will give you understanding in everything. This is our passage this week before we sit down, this is a very powerful passage. I love the image. I love illustrations. I think that's how the apostles preached. I think that's how Jesus preached, he said. Let me tell you about vines and branches. Let me tell you about birds that can't farm. Let me tell you about flowers that can't. So he gave illustrations, and today we've come to a passage with three very vivid illustrations on what it means to be committed. We're looking at three very powerful illustrations that if you and I could grasp what thes these things, they're saying you and I would be committed the way that God wants us to be committed to his mission in his church. So my God, blast the reading and the preaching of his word, and may God's people receive it with joy in their hearts. You may be seated. How do we pick up the kind of commitment that God is looking for for up from us? How do you and I be truly committed to the cause of Christ as we just finished singing? Noticed that little word in Verse three. It's a two letter word as that little word points us to the manner of our commitment. It directs us to three professions, three illustrations that display the commitment of this person, whether it's the farmer, the soldier, the athlete, it displays a depth of commitment for a greater pay off, and I want to make a big deal out of this. You don't just endure hardship. You don't just endure trouble through life for no reason. It's for the pleasure. It's for the joy that set before us. The soldier endures for a final victory. The athlete endures for a final crown. The farmer is passionate about the final harvest, so let's look at those three pictures of commitment. Three pictures of commitment. First of all, let's look at the soldier. If you're taking notes in your bulletin, there's a handout you could fill in these three blanks. The 1st 1 we need to be dedicated like a soldier, be dedicated like a soldier. The soldier is the picture of dedication notice. In Verse three, Paul tells Timothy share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ. Jesus Paul loves the military metaphor. How many of you served in some branch of the government? Just raise your hand. Some branch of the military. Awesome. Thank you. Thank you. Absolutely. Thank you very much. Paul was around a lot of soldiers mostly because he was in prison, but he was in prison. And from time to time he would include the soldier metaphor in Ephesians six. He would look at that soldier and he'd say, Put on the what the full armor of God Gird up. Be ready for this battle in second Corinthians 10. He'll say, though we walk in the flesh. We are not waging war according to the flesh. The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. He's saying, This is a spiritual war. You and I are in a spiritual battle. We're soldiers. We're soldiers First, Timothy, 1 18 pulses wage The good war. We're fighters were soldiers, holiness. The battle for holiness in your life. That's a war. The battle for purity and marriage. That's a war. The battle to raise up disciples as your Children. That's a war That's a that's a fight notice. He gives several ways that a soldier is dedicated. Look at Verse three and you might write these down off to the side. First of all, soldiers and dear hardship soldiers endure hardship, he says, share and suffering as a good soldier of Christ. Jesus. What he's saying is that friends, this is not a playground. This is a battlefield. This is a battleground and a good soldier endures the battle. They expect hardship. I'll never forget this story of Jill Briscoe on 9 11 and you remember what that day was like. The emotions were high. They grounded every plane. Joel Briscoe happened to be in an airport, and she noticed a group of soldiers and particularly a young lady who was off to the side, crying. The other emotions were just so thick. And so she she thought to go over and talk to her and minister tour. And she said, Dear, I just noticed that you were crying. I know this is a hard day and she confessed. The soldier confessed. She said, You know, I know what this means for the country that we're probably gonna goto war after this. I know that I'll probably be deployed. This is really hard for me. And then she said, This line she said, You know, I didn't join the Army to go to war. That's quite a vivid thought, Really. You didn't join the Army to goto war. That's a shocking statement. But I'll tell you, that's how a lot of people think about Christianity. I didn't sign up for this. I shouldn't be treated this way. The Apostle Paul was concerned. I think, for Timothy that maybe Timothy would back off and and flee away. Hey was concerned that Timothy might give up, and so Paul has to remind him. You're a soldier. You be a good soldier. That word for being a good soldier, being honorable soldier, maybe even it could be interpreted. Be a heroic soldier. Don't be a shame filled soldier. Good soldiers embrace hardship. The friends. That's a great question of application for all of us. What hardship has God brought you to? To minister to that, you need to start embracing in your life. Maybe it's the hardship of hostile relationship. Maybe young people. It's the hardship of Ah, Professor that's hostile to the Gospel. Maybe it's a pagan boss. Maybe it's, Ah, a difficult circumstance in your family that you have to endure. God is calling you to make that decision to endure in the mission that Christ has given to you. Many of you have endured difficult seasons in this very place, and I love you for it. I'm thankful for that. God calls his people to endure through the hard season's second soldiers fight together. Dedicated soldiers fight together notice in Verse three. That word Sher Sher and suffering as a good soldiers share reminds us that we're not alone. It's almost like he's saying, Timothy, come take your part in the suffering. It reminds us that we serve on a team. We need teachers on that team. We need Children's ministry workers on that team. We need volunteers on that team. This is how you're committed. Like a soldier you served together. You find your place in this church. A place where you conserve. I have this guy in a previous ministry. His name was he. Now it's a heath. Where is God called you to serve? Where is it that you belong in the church? Where is your calling? Hits a pastor, Matt. My calling is to serve where the need is. Where do you need me? I loved that guy. For that reason, where do you need me? I'm called to the empty places where no one else is serving. That's where I'm supposed to be. Share implies relief. It, uh it understands that life has heavy burdens. It's that you and I are to come alongside one another and support one another. In fact, just the other day, I noticed this on social media. Someone posted the picture of a church sign that said, We love hurting people that could be really good or it could be really, really bad. I think I know what they're saying. I think what they were trying to say is we relieve burdens, We help people. We come alongside people with heavy burdens and we bear each other's loads. We give grace to one another. Don't you want to be a grace giving church? Don't you want to be the kind of church that's a breath of fresh air to other people to serve alongside one another? That's what dedicated soldiers do. A grace giving church is powerful, one pastor said. The grace giving church is the difference between a veterinarian and the taxidermist. You might be thinking, What's the difference? You get your dog back Either way, just one of them has life. That's the idea. We want to be the kind of people who bringing healing and relief in this community. Third, write this one down. Under dedicated soldiers, we follow a commander. We follow a commander Sharon, suffering as a good soldier of Christ. Jesus, How can you and I be dedicated to this mission? We follow our commander. That means that we accept him both as savior and as sovereign we submit to our Lord, but we follow him. I love that picture in Isaiah. Chapter six, Isaiah In the year King use IA died, he saw the Lord High and lifted up and a little bit further down in the passage. Isaiah, here's the call of God who will go for us and he says Here I am Send me. Send me. What was it that motivated Isaiah to go? What was it that motivated Isaiah to go on behalf of the Lord? It was that he saw the glory of his commanding officer. He saw him high and lifted up, and it says the train of his robe. Phil came down from the heavens and filled the temple with glory. Now that's a little a little known fact that in ancient times what what kings would do when they defeat another king and battles that take that robe. They cut the defeated kings robe off. They would sew it to their own robe, and so, over time, a victorious king his robe would get longer and longer and longer. What's that saying about our king? As his robe stretches from heaven, toe earth and fills the temple? And there's robe despair. What's that say about our king? He's unbeatable and glorious, infinitely glorious. When Isaiah Seed listen to me, Listen to me. When Isaiah sees the one he serves, he says, I'll go. Okay, I'm in. The greatest thing that you need today is to have an encounter with the true and living God it is. To know him is to experience him. And when you know who got ISS, when you know who your God is, you will be the dedicated soldier that we're talking about here. But you have to encounter God 1st 4 says his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. That's the driving passion of every Christian. I want to please the one. My commanding officer, I want to please the one who enlisted me right down Second Corinthians 59 it says, Whether we're at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. A soldier requires self denial on submission to please the Lord. That thought is something we ought to ask yourself day by day by day. Am I here to please the Lord is my life to please the Lord Are my activities pleasing to God so often? I could be running in so many different directions. And the reason for that is because I'm unclear on the goal of life. What's the goal of life? Second, Corinthians 59 I want to please the Lord. That's the goal of life. Soldier is committed to the mission, and that's how we please the Lord. We retain our mission. We don't lose our mission. We don't lose our distinctive. A man in Atlanta tells the story of looking for a place to eat, and he called this place called the Church of God Grill, and he thought to himself, What kind of place is this Church of God Grill? So he called it up just to figure out what this place was all about. And he said, How did this restaurant get such a name like that? And they explained, the guy answered the phone and explain. Well, this used to be a little mission down here, and we were preaching and we were teaching the gospel and serving people. And after church we started selling dinner to pay for the bills. Eventually, the people started liking the chicken more than the preaching. We did such great business with people carrying out chicken orders and dinners. Well, we started cutting back on the church and we started selling more chicken and eventually the church shut down and we just kept the name. They lost their distinctiveness. Let me tell you something Central Church will not become central barbecue number one We've already got one of those. It's pretty good. We will not lose our distinctive Sze will bless you. Thank you. We will not lose our distinctive Sze. You and I are called tow. Watch out for erosion! You and I are called Tau Live the Gospel But that's how we please our master number four Let me give you 1/4 sub point There were to guard against entanglements And we see that in verse four The soldiers focus No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits. Why, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him That word entangled is this word for weaving. In fact, it's the same word that was used of the crown of thorns that was woven together that maybe there are things in your life that maybe you're even good things. But they're so weaving your life together that you're now becoming something bad. You're not on mission anymore. It's interesting. Paul might have been quote quoting the Roman military code. We forbid men engaged in military service to engage in civilian activities. It's not that civilian activities air bad. Those are good. It's that we have a higher calling soldier doesn't have time, but for the most important things. Where to seek the excellent things is what it says in Philippians 1 10 Not just good things, the most excellent things. So that's a good question for us Church. Just to stop the pause and to ponder you're here today. Many of you are very, very busy. Are you busy with the best things? Are you actively engaged in good things or the excellent things? There's nothing wrong with family time. There's nothing wrong with working on your car. There's nothing wrong with taking a vacation. That's not the issue. The question is, does your calendar reflect your values? Does your pursuit of money exceed your pursuit of making disciples? Have you seen more movies this year than converts? That's the question. What's your priority priorities? A good question to answer. Shortly after joining the Navy, there was a new recruit they asked the officer for a pass. This new recruit, he said. I need to go to my friend's wedding. His commanding officer said back to him, You can go to the wedding, but I need you back here by seven o'clock in the evening. You gotta be back on campus by seven. The young man said. Sir, you don't understand. I'm in the wedding. I'm part of the wedding party and the commanding officer says, Young men, you don't understand. You're in the Navy. There's a difference. There's a higher priority. We need to constantly think about what our priority is right down, Hebrews, 12 1 says. Let us lay aside every weight and sin which cleans so closely and let us run with endurance. The race that is set before us, something's air since we need to lay those aside, Some things are just not helpful. We need to lay those things aside, too. They're slowing us down there, tangling us up. So I challenge you to survey your life today. Are you a dedicated soldier or are you someone who's going in 20 different directions and you're not on mission? That's the question of this text. Second main point. We need to be disciplined like an athlete. Now we're moving from the Army to athletics, from the Army to athletics. Be disciplined like an athlete. Verse five says this, and athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. Paul must have enjoyed sports, and he's constantly using athletic terms. He's constantly using athletic imagery. We know that he was in the city of Corinth around 50 51 a. D. That's the ifs. Me in games were there, but also they had the after the Olympic Games in Athens, and so the Olympics and the Isthmian games. These were major sporting events, and people from all over the world loved tow. Watch them. In fact, I kind of wonder if, while Paul was in Corinth, he was making tents for some of the athletes. I just wonder if maybe that's what he was doing. Maybe he had a favorite athlete, but he loves using sports analogies right down. First Corinthians nine first 24 he says. Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize, so run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self control in all things. Do you hear that? They do it to receive a perishable reef? But we an imperishable So I do not run aimlessly. I do not boxes. One beating the air. I discipline my body and keep it under control less. After preaching the others, I myself should be disqualified. I think that when he's saying I discipline my body, that literally means to beat black and blue. He's working out the image of an athlete. He goes to the gym, he's getting in shape. There's discipline. That's the question we have to ask. Are we disciplined athletes? Write down a couple of things. Two things that keep an athlete disciplined. Number one. We have to think more about our prize. Our reward notice. Inverse five. The crown. The word for crown. Hear Stefano's. It's that oak leaf cluster that a victor would win and it says an athlete is not crowned. That's the dream of an Olympian. I want the crown. I want the victory. They hope for it. They dream about it. Likewise, the Christian we have to dream about our future. We have to dream about seeing the Lord Jesus. I did this this week. I was in my office. I was just praying over this text. And I just imagined myself that day. When the Lord Jesus comes, maybe today cracks open the heavens and I see him. What is he going to say to me? What is he going to say to me is going to say Well done, Matt. Well done. Good. And faithful servant. Is he going to say you did it? Where's he gonna say, Matt? You wasted your thirties. You slowed down in your forties and you did practically nothing in your fifties. You took the wrong path. I gave you a mission. You took the wrong path. I want to think about the day of reward. I want to think about the crown that's coming. I want to think about the day and what he will say on that day. I want to hear Jesus say, Well done. No athlete also thinks about the rules. Notice inverse five. He competes. How? According to the rules. Well, this one was kind of funny, too. Research? There were several rules to be a on athlete in this day. If you're gonna compete in a major competition, you have to be a citizen, you're also required to spend 10 months preparing and exercising and dieting. And the third you had to swear before a statue of Zeus that you had done all your preparation. And if you failed, you got a fine and you were possibly even beaten for failing. Now imagine this. Imagine this dietary restriction. I fail on a diet pretty regularly. But if this guy fails at his diet and maybe he eats a hamburger, he could actually be taken to the public square and be beaten. That's how serious they take the rules. We understand that they have a saying back then of no rules, no reef, no rules, no reef. You have to follow the rules. We understand that today, when I say the name Lance Armstrong, we all know what happened there, right? Disqualified. That's the first thing that comes to our mind today. There's a doctor in out there that the Christian has no rules to follow. Some people say, What are we under God's grace? Swindal flushes that out, he says. This many people defined grace as the absence of rules. Nothing could be further from the truth. The word of God is, among other things, a rule book. It's a guide for life. The Bible contains principles requiring discernment to apply, but it also contains specific precepts. Hard and fast rules that must be obeyed without question. Abstain from sexual immorality. Be kind to one another husband. Love your wife's love. One another. Jesus, the giver of Grace, says, I love. If you love me, you will keep my commandments. This isn't legalism. This is how we stay on course through the journey. Discipline is something every one of us has to have. It's giving up something lesser for something greater. And athlete understands that when you make a discipline to show up at this place Sunday after Sunday and read your Bible day after day, that's a discipline. But it produces gain. It produces a win. All of us need to take time to discover what discipline we need to grow in. We need to be disciplined like a runner like like an athlete. We need be dedicated like a soldier. Last point, and we're done. We need to be diligent, like a farmer. Three beautiful images. We go from the army to athletics to agriculture. Be diligent, like a farmer. Just a couple of thoughts on the farmer Notice in Verse six. It's a hard working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops notice. He's a hardworking farmer. That's our goal. That's the picture of commitment. It takes intentional work, hard working in the Greek that speaks to someone who labors and toils and strains, and he doesn't give up. Maybe you know somebody who's in the farming industry. It's hard work, difficult work. It's especially difficult before modern equipment. I think today they're in these machines with air conditioning in the cab, and that's really nice. But But back then, they were turning over soil with shovels. There's hundreds of obstacles rain and bugs and weeds, and he keeps going. And by the way, just imagine how different the farmer is from all those other two. From army and athletics. You're You're a lot of time alone. You plough the field. It's lonely, it's silent. No one's cheering you on, and you still have to work hard. It requires patience. You have to watch because there's not immediate results. But notice. The thing that drives the farmer is the harvest. The farmers always working with his eye on the harvest. Look at verse six. It's the hardworking farmer who ought to have the first share of what the crops. It's the crops now. What does that mean? What does that mean for us? Is what is he saying when he says, We have to have the first share of the crops? We have to be like this guy and we get the first share of the crops. What is he referencing? There's several views on this one. Some people say that the harvest is future rewards, and that might be it. Other people say that this is actually addressing the pastor. It's that you ought to pay your pastor right? Don't muzzle the ox. The laborer deserves his wages. First Timothy five. Maybe that's the idea. I tend to take the third view that really what this is saying is that this is the reward of the act of service itself. It's that when you engage in gospel ministry in this place, when you make that decision to be involved in this community and to serve and Children's to serve in youth to serve as a greeter. When you make that decision to serve in this place. You get to experience the initial reward of that ministry itself. When a young person comes to faith in Jesus Christ, you get the first blessing. You're the 1st 1 that blessing hits, touches Your Heart before, gets to touch anyone else's heart. When I'm preparing these sermons when I'm preparing in my office, there are moments where I just can't wait to bring back what I've discovered. The things I want to share with you. I'm so excited because it hits me way before it hits you. You get the first blessing. It's the same for all of us. I had a pastor that I shepherded with. His name was David, he said. Can you believe we get to do this as our job? It's incredible that we get the first joy. You get the first joy. If you're serving in that, it's the same for all of us. Wherever you serve, you get the first harvest. Rejoicing as a young person comes to faith serving those families. What a joy. How do we apply this? I want to give you some applications. Take your pan and just right with me as we conclude how do we apply this text? I think first of all, all of us need to ask the Lord to help us understand where we can be more committed to the mission of the Gospel. Every single one of us needs to ask the Lord to help us toe understand where we could be more committed to this gospel mission. Notice in verse seven pulses. Think over what I say. The Lord for the Lord will give you understanding and everything. You may walk out of this room today and say I don't know what I need to do. I don't understand this, but I'm gonna think about it. And I'm gonna trust that the Lord is going to give me his mind on where I need to apply this. He's going to help me understand. He's going to give me understanding. He's gonna show me where I need to personally change and be more committed. Second number two make an examination of our priorities. You need to make an examination of the things that you prioritize in life. What are the things most important to you? Some of you need to join the church. Some of you need to engage in the church. You've been coming for a long time, but God is saying now is the season you need to engage. You need to serve, you need to commit. This is the place with an imperfectly church, in perfect people in perfect leadership. But you need to engage and join up. Maybe that's what God's saying to you, maybe God saying you dad's that you need to make for your family this day a bigger day of the week. I think we often live in this era of, um, poor leadership among families with fathers. Kevin D. Young says this. The man who attempts Christianity without the church shoots himself in the foot. He shoots his Children in the lag. He shoots his grandchildren in the heart. These airmen who are CEOs in their businesses, but they can't lead their families to commit to church, and they can't pray with their families. Some of you need to commit to the church in a deeper way and lead your family to do that. Puritans called Sunday the Market Day for the soul in that a great term the market day for the soul. It's where I come and get rations for the week. We need to make this day a bigger day. Third, all of us need to evaluate our investments. What are you investing your time and your money in? I had a professor at Dallas Seminary. His name was Mark Young. He used to say, uh, used to quote Leonard Raven Hill, who said the Americans spend more money on dog food than missions. That's quite a statement, isn't it? Is that the the height of my priority dog food? I want to put my money and my investments in the right place. I wanna look for places to serve. I wanna look for places to build relationships. I'm gonna pick up a discipline to serve in the church. In your bulletin. There's a something a little unique as we close today. It looks like this check. Don't try and spend this. They'll lock you up for that. This is symbolic. This is a blank check. I want you to look at it. It it says paid to the order of Jesus Christ. It's dated today. What's the amount? All I have all I have 100%. That's what gods wanting from you. This is sort of symbolic I want youto if you really are committed to doing this and giving this to the Lord, I want you to put your name on it. I want you to sign it right here. This could be powerful. And then I want you to put it in your Bible on this passage right here. It could be a very powerful commitment. What I want you to do is commit to giving the rest of your life to the Lord Jesus to the right things in life. That's what commitment looks like. That's a picture of commitment. I'm writing him a check for the rest of my life for all I have. For all I am, I'm giving it to the Lord. Perhaps one of the most defining moments in world history was when Cortez came at Vera Cruz, Mexico, and he had 11 ships. He and his men were seeking a new life and they were seeking a new world they were gonna conquer. And they were going to extend the power of Spain When life got hard. Life got difficulty and it was more than they ever imagined it would be. There were cities to build. There were battles to win. The new Life was very difficult. And Cortez brought all his men along the shore and he took one ship, sent it back, and he took the rest, and he set them afire. He burned the ships as if to say, We're not going back. We're gonna commit ourselves here and we're all in. It worked. We're all in. And what happened is when they committed, they stopped dating the New World. They conquered and they took over and they had flourished. Heads, ballad, eyes closed. I'm gonna invite the men to come and start serving Communion. What is it that God wants for you today? God wants all of us every single one of us to commit ourselves to the cause of Jesus Christ. To write your check, to stop dating in the church and engage with the church. Today we're going to close the service with Communion. Our men are going to go and begin serving right now. Man, you can go ahead and begin passing those out. Once you get the elements, someone invites you just to take some time to pray over this. It says in verse seven that God, he will actually give us understanding and everything. Maybe you take this time to ask the Lord to give his understanding. So what you need to do, how you should respond today, how you could be more committed. How is it that you're going to be committed to this church to this body? As you get the elements, you can pray in silence. Take some time to confess sin. Let's renew. Let's repent that I'll come back and we're going to pray together and take the elements.