Episode 38 - On The Team Or Just Wearing The Jersey

We ask a hard question with a hopeful aim: are we truly on the team or just wearing the jersey. We trace how obedience, community, and honest accountability turn Sunday shine into a daily, lived faith that holds up when no one is watching.

• why obedience is the evidence of love
• reading Scripture to know what to obey
• faith and works as proof, not merit
• moving from image to substance in daily life
• honest community that bears burdens
• practical accountability that encourages growth
• replacing excuses with surrender to God
• being ready as the next person up to serve

If you're here in the Rockdale area on Sundays, we have worship at 10:30. We meet at 10:00 for a little coffee, donuts, and fellowship out at the American Legion Hall here in Rockdale. We do have a nursery, we do have kids' church. Everybody's welcome.

Transcript

Welcome And Purpose Of The Podcast

SPEAKER_01 0:00

I'll be thinking about Welcome to Let's Connect, the official podcast of Connect Church in Rockdale, Texas, where we want to help you to live a life that matters. One that is both on mission and has a purpose to follow Jesus and make disciples. So let's get started.

SPEAKER_02 0:31

All right, welcome into Let's Connect, the official podcast of Connect Church here in Rockdale, Texas. I'm your host, Bill Whitmeyer, and today I have with me, as always, our pastor, Ken Ansel. Ken, how you doing? I'm great. Doing good. Our weather came back. Man, it's it's it's it flips flops right now this time of year between your weather and my weather. And today is a your weather kind of day, man. So yeah. I know the other day I woke up and I was just like, yeah, and the nurses, the nurse is getting ready, and I'm just kind of laying there in bed, relaxing. And you know, read my Bible a little bit, and she's she'll take a shower, I'll read my Bible. And she gets out and she's like, she's like, Man, it's it's definitely one of your days today. I'm like, yeah, boy, bit old Ken's just waking up going and getting out of bed. So I wake up.

SPEAKER_00 1:18

Jennifer, is it cold out there?

Why We Don’t Monetize: A Labor Of Love

Are We Really On The Team

SPEAKER_02 1:21

Yeah, it was it was it was pretty cold the other day. So hey, uh, this is episode 38. Wow. And um we're really doing well. Uh I I mean, not not from a bragging standpoint, although I guess I brag a little bit because uh means a lot of people are actually listening to God's word and what we're talking about. And that was the whole reason to do this whole thing. I've been asked a couple of times if we were ever gonna monetize it. And I said I just tell people I have no no desire to do that. I want this just to go out and and and it's a it's a labor of love and it's a and it's a work for God to let God work through you and I to let people know about his word. And so I don't I this will never be on a paved service, and and I don't see us monetizing it, but it has it's been a great experience for me because um we really talk about a lot of things that help my faith grow. And uh I think we all need that. So sometimes uh, you know, uh people well not people, but the nurse mainly today asked me, you know, how we get uh how we get things, how we figure out what we're gonna talk about. I said, sometimes, you know, I'll I'll do a little thinking during the week and write some stuff down. Sometimes you do it. And then the reason she asked me was because today you texted me something. Right. And um I was like, wow, that's good. And I showed it to her. She she just says, Is that how it gets done? Because I I'm not an idea, man. That's all you, I guess. But I said, No, we do it different ways, but this one's really good. And she read it and she goes, Yeah, that is really good. And and the whole gist of it was that um, you know, we may be Christians, we may be this, but but are we really on the team? And I'll let you explain what you meant by that because it's really pretty powerful.

SPEAKER_00 3:03

Yeah, I've thought for 42 years, you know, I mean, I was I was probably the worst athlete that ever suited up for the Rockdale Tigers. I tell everybody they retired my number because they didn't want anybody else to have to wear that thing after I did. But you know, I mean, I I mean football especially, I loved football, but uh didn't put what was uh really needed uh into it to uh to be a you know just an okay player. I mean, just even a okay player, you know. I mean, I was just too busy, I guess, looking cool or or the cool factor was more important than than playing, starting, being, you know, being any good at it, uh listening to coaches. And I was on the team. I mean, I had a jersey, I had a locker, I mean I went to practice and rode the bus and and did all that stuff, but I look back and go, man, I mean, was I really on the team? I mean, I mean, I wasn't a good teammate, you know, I wasn't a good team player. I just, you know, it's almost like what Jesus describes as on the outside, you know, the the tomb is clean, right? Whitewashed. But inside we're just dead bones that were selfish and fleshly and consumed with with myself. And yeah, and I I I mean I still 42 years later, I'm like, what what I mean, was I really on the team?

SPEAKER_02 4:23

You know, I uh when my son was playing, we were sitting down one day and I think he was a sophomore or junior and and uh he said something to me. He was he was kind of upset because he wasn't the big starter and all this and um I mean you know, he had to he had to grow a little bit, he had to mature a little bit and had to get there, but boy he was really discouraged and uh and um and I just told him, I said, you know, you just you have to hang in there, you have to keep working on it, you have to keep doing this, and I said, and remember this, and and this is sometimes what I feel like in my walk with Christ, is that you know, the the thing is is you're in that minute. It's like you were saying, you're on the team, you had a jersey, you're right there on the sidelines, you're you're with all the the the cool ball, you know, the jocks and stuff, and and and we get caught in the moment and and we don't think about the future and and all that. And I told my son, I said, you know, right now this is just something you're doing. But ten years from now, twenty years from now, you'll give up your left arm just for a week's worth of practice, just to go back out there and have that chance just to practice, you know. And as and as we go through our lives as Christians, it it's sort of the same thing, you know. We we think about that. That's why your analogy was so good. It was like, wow man, am I really am I really a part of the team? I mean, or do I just have that jersey? Do I just have that shirt that says, hey, I'm a Christian?

Jerseys, Proof, And Obedience

SPEAKER_00 5:52

Yeah, am I really on that team? Yeah, and Jesus defined it. He's like, if you're on the team, if you're a part of the church, if you're a Christian, you know, twice John said, uh, it's in John, uh, that you'll obey my commands. If you love me, Jesus said, You'll obey my commands. Well, you know, first of all, you gotta know the commands to obey them. And so we know from you know, I love uh you do too, I know data, statistics, you know, Barna, life way, pew. Most people that claim Christ don't read their Bibles on a regular basis. And so how can you be obedient? How can through obedience, growing your faith, growing in maturity, but learning how to be a greater part of the local church, right? Let alone the big what Tim Tebow calls a big seed church, the universal church. You know, how can we do that if we're not in the Word? And so yeah, that that just goes back to okay, if I'm not being obedient, d I I don't love Jesus. I mean, that's what Jesus said. It's it's it's like there's some red flags. Uh people don't see them in their own life, which you know, a guy the other day that goes her men's almost said women's Bible study, we'd be in trouble if that was happening. But yeah, the guy that uh you know the other day, he and I were talking, he's like, Ken, are any of us Christians? You know, because we're so not obedient, we're so not doing what we're supposed to be doing, and of course, praise God for grace, right? So we're not taking that out of the equation. But even James, and you know, I hate to even use it, but what James 217, if if if you say you have faith, you gotta have works, you gotta have some stuff, you gotta have some proof. And you know, I mean, I I mean, I would stand by the coaches, so I might get in the game. You know, like if I'm right there, they might grab my face mask and send me in with the play, but even with that, I couldn't get in the game to save my life. So, you know, did I have any any proof? Again, I got the jersey and the jersey and everything on the job.

Faith, Works, And Everyday Evidence

SPEAKER_02 7:47

You just try to get it all the pictures you can, you know. So, oh, there's Ken. Oh man, Ken must have been really good. There's Ken, you know. Yeah. I mean, in my case, I was, you know, I'm the slowest person ever born. I can throw a football country mile, at least when I was in school, but but I couldn't run anywhere. Yeah. You know, even even you know, people make the joke. Only my grandfather used to make the joke, the only pace you run fast to is a refrigerator. No uh, because all the other grandkids beating you there. I I was absolutely the slowest, but I learned how to kick. There you go. So there was my importance. I knew I only had to go into those terms. But as a as a uh when you when when you look back and you fall back into this as a Christian, it it is a it is a you know, we when we were in school and we played football, man, football was our lives. You know, every summer. You didn't have to, you didn't have to, but we were in that weight room all summer long. And and every chance we got we were playing it. I mean, every chance, even even outside of season, if we had a chance, you know, I remember every Sunday after church we met at my best friend's house out by the country club in Giddings, and we had a big he had a big yard on the side of his house, and we had a big tackle football game there, and we'd come to school on Monday, and some of us had split lips or whatever, but but we had a big game. Every chance we got we played, yeah. You know, and and when you think about it in your Christian life, is that what you're doing? Every chance you get, are you playing for Christ? Or are you are you out there doing what you need to do? Is you know, I I we we we've talked about it before, we just talked about it a little while ago before we started this today. And and and and you see I I don't think a lot of things have changed in 20, 30, 40 years, except social media. So now on social media you'll see people that'll stand there with their hands up on Sunday and and their beers up on Saturday at a concert, you know. And and you know what? I'm not saying you should you can't drink beer, you can't have a you know, you I I'm not that guy, but you know, when you're out and you're and you're at a you're you're at a concert or something where somebody's singing less than Christian music, which is pretty much everything every concert just about, and you're out there partying it up, well, you know, you gotta look at that too and think. Yeah. You know there's that old thing that what would Jesus do? And and I've not always been a big fan of that. No, me neither. That movement, but the wording of it.

SPEAKER_00 10:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:14

It hits sometimes. Yeah, it does. And in those cases, it does.

SPEAKER_00 10:17

Yeah. I I mean, I wasn't in it to win it. It's kind of when what you were just talking about to me. I'm like, wow. And even, I mean, I played tennis too, and and you know, it's probably a better tennis player than football player. And my mother said one time, she goes, You'd be really good if you didn't care what you look like while you were playing. I'm like, wow, and your own mama tells you that. I'm like, why don't you just come over and kick me in the teeth, Mom? And uh, of course, when you're 14, 15, you don't, you know, 16, you know, you don't use like mom, you're stupid, you know. Yeah, I mean, I'm not sure. What do you what do you think? You don't understand. You don't understand. Yeah, you don't get it. The cool factor thing. And yeah, I don't I don't know. I think I read the other day that in 2025, it is a negative to be a Christian in our culture. Like, there's no reason for anyone to go to church, say they're a Christian, you know, unless they are. Uh, you know, you don't get you don't have to go to church to be elected to an office or make rotary president or anything like that. And so, man, I just I guess I'm trying to encourage myself. Like, I want to be in it to win it. I don't want to just look good on the outside, I want to be good on the inside. And that, you know, the the parable of of the banquet where you know everybody said they would come to the party and then on party night they're like, Oh, I'm busy, but they have lame excuses. Yeah. And so I think of how many how what what are the excuses that we give the Lord? I'm gonna talk about that some Sunday, but to to not be in it to win it, to not be all about it like you said you were as a kid.

SPEAKER_02 11:45

Yeah. Yeah, and I think the thing to remember with that is that you know, when you when you make those concessions, because you're not gonna be there or you're not gonna be following it, whether you're praying this or whether you think you are or not. You are talking to God about that when you're when you're when you're rationalizing that in your head. You know. There is a factor of that. You know, you're not just rationalizing that to you, because guess what? God's right there and can hear everything that is going on. And it and it becomes where you do make those excuses, just like you used to, you know, dad would come home. Hey, why didn't you mow the lawn? Well, I had some homework to do, and then mom had me do this. He's like, All right, well, tomorrow get it done. It comes home the next day. The grass is a little taller and you hadn't mowed it yet. Why didn't you get it mowed? Well, dad, I I I hit my knee in gym class and it really hurts today. All right, well, get it done. You know, and and you could find those things, you know, in in every aspect of your life, including your Christian life. And the difference is dad may not know, although I suspect having eight children of my own, dad knew way more than I thought he did. Ward Cleaver always knows. Yeah, yeah.

Playing For Christ Beyond Sundays

SPEAKER_00 12:57

But maybe he didn't, yeah, but God does. God does. I there's a guy, if I mentioned his name, everybody would know it. He's still here in town. He was a year younger than I remember during practice, he always had a growing pool. So he just, you know, he got to just hang out in the whirlpool or whatever it was. I never got to see that, but thinking about it, I don't really want to get in a hot tub with you know where other guys have been hanging out, but uh with their little nasty jock strap and everything. But anyway, yeah, but you know, on game night, he was good to go. And you kind of touched on that a minute ago. Like we we might look good on Sundays, but our but our but how do we, you know, that x-ray machine, if we walk through that, what's our heart? Uh I guess an x-ray machine wouldn't show your heart. What's the EKG maybe, you know, what's our heartbeat? And it I feel like we're being critical. I'm man, I'm I want to be encouraging people to get that heart check and go, okay, what what's happening? Where am I at? So they can make some improvements.

SPEAKER_02 13:57

I mean, here I I I think a lot of people get into church and and they see those churches, and we've talked about this a little bit before on this podcast, and they look up at those front pews or they look at those whatever you want to call them, those stalwarts in the church, and you think, man, I'll never be like that guy, or I'll never be like her. And the fact is you have no idea what that person's really like or what struggles they're going through or how hard it is in their lives. And and so the you know, uh, you know, your priorities, where they are in Christianity, and I I've said this for a long time, and and it's what I truly believe, but obviously number one has to be God when you're walking. But but number two, it comes down to that same thing you hear in the airplane, you know, the airbag falls out, you gotta put it on you before you have somebody else. So my number two has always been me. I've got to I've gotta make sure I'm in that right place so I can do anything, so that I can talk to people, so that I can be that best example, and then and then it's then it goes to your family and your friends and the other things in your life. Sure. But you know, we we worry so much about what other people are doing, um, right, wrong, or indifferent. And and we should lovingly be helping other people too. We've talked about that. But the fact of the matter is we have to make sure we're good first. Yeah. Um, you know, when we do communion in church, and you always bring this up, you know, you all or all believers are welcome. But if you've got that sin on your heart, you know, and and and uh that's where it is. You've got you know that. Yeah. And so, you know, it's up to you to get with God and and and work through that and get to your right place. And man, it it it is you're you're right. It's not to uh belittle anybody, it's not to make anybody feel bad. It's that you know, that thing we talked about it one time in in Bible study, and somebody brought up maybe it was you, you know, what do you we we always talk about trying to save people before they die? And you know what? What what what what happens if five minutes after I walk out the front door here and Jesus comes back? Could happen. It could. It could most definitely happen. And then that question is, you know, well, tonight we're supposed to go out and do this, and I'll worry about that in the morning. You know, there was a lot of that back in the day with me. It's like, hey, I know I need to really sit down and look at my Bible, but man, we're going out to you know, we're going out to have a few drinks and watch the game tonight.

SPEAKER_00 16:32

So I'll worry about that tomorrow. Yeah, Jesus said, you know, day, you know, this is my paraphrase, day is here and night's coming, and there's gonna be a come a time, right? I mean, whether we can't do the work of the Lord or individually or or corporately, and yeah, so procrastination's not a spiritual gift. Last time I checked. And then, you know, I know we've talked about this too, but you know, what you just mentioned made me think about the two biggest things we need is community and a and accountability. And I think accountability comes through community as we spend time together. Like I know I've got, you know, a handful of guys, about five guys, that that when maybe I'm not um being the best teammate, right? The best Christian in a sense of um struggling for whatever reason, right? That I that I can say, hey man, be praying for me today. And we need that, right? We need when you just talk about you walk in and you you know everybody looks good, but you uh we need some people that can uh bear our you know, bear our burdens, help us with our struggles, encourage us, and and even that's when you you know they say friendship begins when you raise your hand and say, Me too. Yeah. Because we think everybody else is hitting it, you know, and and we're getting dogged, and if we you know, if we were honest on Sunday mornings, we'd be surprised at how many people's kids are messed up, grandkids are messed up, they're messed up, finances are we were just talking about people's finances and uh yeah, we'd be surprised and what man, what a blessing it would be if we could just be honest and real with each other, right?

Excuses, Priorities, And Accountability

SPEAKER_02 18:08

I always wonder about that when you say that, and and not you, but I mean when when when as a person I say or whoever says, Hey man, how you doing? And people say, Oh man, I'm doing great, or I'm doing fine. You know, because you know and I'm just as guilty. People will ask me that, and I'll be like, Oh, yeah, it's going good, it's going good. And it's not. Yeah. And the thing about a church community, and it's one of the things that I really enjoy about our church community, is that those folks want to know, and they want to be able to pray for you and help you and and and and help things move along. Um, and you don't always get that in a lot of churches. You don't always get that with a lot of Christians, but that's that that's what when you have that, that is a community of believers that is working together.

SPEAKER_00 18:53

Man, yeah, you you you don't want to hear on Sunday morning someone comes in and you go, How are you doing? And they say, you know, you don't want to hear life sucks, but but but you know, if that's where they're at, that's what you want to hear. Yeah. So you can so you can grab them and say, Man, let's let's pray, let's talk. You know, we we you know, we've experienced that at church where people come in hurting. And um wow, God's good, right?

SPEAKER_02 19:19

And that's part of being on that team, isn't it? You know, picking up your teammates going forward. You know, you brought it up when when Jesus comes back. He's gonna be looking for those people that are that are on the team, that are that are wearing those jerseys for real, that are real, that are the ones that are really working for him and and and to to make people disciples. Yeah. That's who he's you know, that's that's the team. Yeah, and and and we can all do it. I mean, we we it it's it's not I mean, I I know there's a lot of people that think, oh man, I could never do that. I could never do that. And and so many of those people are just allowing those worldly pressures, those the the that worldly peer pressure or whatever to come into their lives and control where they're going. And and I think something that came out Monday at Bible study that that hit me was, you know, and I probably say this too much, you know, we need to do this, we need to do that. No, we need to let God work through us to do this. Yeah. And too many times we all put that pressure on ourselves. I've got to do this for God. Yeah, yeah. Just have that faith, believe in God, and then step out of the way and let Him work through you, and then do what He what He asks you to do. And that is so hard. It's hard for me. You know, you put yourselves in places in the world, it's hard for everybody, but but that's what it is about being on the team, being a Christian, being an individual with a serious relationship with God, being that disciple. It's about knowing where you are in the world, knowing where you are as a Christian, and then getting out of God's way and letting Him work through you.

SPEAKER_00 20:56

Yeah, man, that preaches, yeah. I mean, that's Galatians 2 20, really. And and you know, maybe one of the takeaways today is is be the next man up. You know, I get as a church planner, I get I get some coaching from our denomination, and which is great, you know, an outsider that can speak, you know, very bluntly into me and my life and into the life of our church, and he's you know, this guy's asking me some really hard questions, you know, or like uh developing leadership and yada yada. And yeah, maybe if some people are struggling going, you know, I I could never be man, I don't want to say it like this, but you know, maybe uh I don't think God could ever really use me in a in a great way in the church. Uh sure he can. I mean, right the ground is level at the cross. I mean, you and I don't have a franchise on being great, whatever that means, you know, in in the body, but but yeah, be the be ready to be the next man up, man, because w you know God's always looking for that.

SPEAKER_02 21:58

And I think you're right. There's a lot of folks out there that may have done things in their lives, may have issues or just can't just don't feel like they can do that. And and they can.

SPEAKER_00 22:08

Oh yeah.

Community That Tells The Truth

SPEAKER_02 22:09

But the thing to remember is you're not gonna do it by yourself. You're gonna do it with God there working through you. And we, you know, even I say it, and I I did it Monday night, and then one of the other gentlemen that's in our Bible study came out and said, you know, the thing to remember is we're not doing it by ourselves. God's doing it through us. And I was like, wow, man, I've said that a bunch, but I haven't really heard it from somebody else like that. And then it, man, it just, you know, we talk about it, you're gonna feel a little conflicted, a little convicted, you know, whether you're in church, whether you're in your actual sermon or we're in Bible study or wherever, and that both convicted me and conflicted me. But then it made me, you know what? Now I know I've heard this, I've said this, but I haven't really been working on this and making this a reality, applying it. Thank you. And and yeah, and when he said that, it's been on my mind now for 72 hours that one thing from Bible study the other night. And so, you know, no matter what you think of those other people sitting in church, oh man, that guy's a great Christian. You don't know. You don't know, and we can't compare ourselves to other Christians, not at all, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:22

And and then, you know, what you're saying is like one is get over yourself and then get out of your own way, you know. I mean, it's too bad I was taking a spot on the roster. I mean, everybody, everybody makes the team, right? But you had a hundred jerseys, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:36

But I bet you didn't have a hundred people come out for football back then in those days.

SPEAKER_00 23:40

No, no, no. And and but you know, maybe maybe I was in the way, in the way of somebody else, or and man, I don't want to be that in the kingdom. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:52

So all right, I was episode 38.

SPEAKER_00 23:56

I think you're up this week. All right, let's pray. Holy Father, um help us, Lord. I mean, we're broken, uh, but we're yours, and um we're here and we're available. And Father, use us. We want to hear you say, you know, who would I send? And we want to be able to reply, Here I am, send me. Uh Father, bless the people that are hearing this, those that are struggling. Lord, we all have hurts, habits, and hangups. Help us get over those things so that we can be used by you in the greatest possible way. We pray these things in your son's name. Amen.

SPEAKER_02 24:33

Amen. All right, that is episode 38, as I said. Want to thank everybody for listening. If you're here in the Rockdale area on Sundays, we have worship at 1030. We meet at 10 for a little coffee, donuts, and fellowship out at the American Legion Hall here in Rockdale. We do have a nursery, we do have kids' church. As a matter of fact, I think I'm the kids' church leader this week. Well, I do what I do what the nurse tells me to. So, but uh, we have it this week. Everybody's welcome. If you're not in the Rockdale area, we'll be back next Thursday with another episode of Let's Connect. God bless.