SPEAKER_00: You are listening to the Gateway Franklin Church podcast.
SPEAKER_00: To learn more about Gateway Franklin Church, including our service times here in Franklin, Tennessee, visit us online at gatewayfranklin.com.
SPEAKER_00: And now, here is this week's message.
SPEAKER_06: Well, good morning, Church.
SPEAKER_06: You thought he was preaching.
SPEAKER_06: He was very kind to help me.
SPEAKER_06: Thank you, Pastor Charlie.
SPEAKER_06: Well, good morning, Gateway.
SPEAKER_06: How are you doing today?
SPEAKER_06: Good.
SPEAKER_06: Isn't it so good to worship with our kids and our students in the room?
SPEAKER_06: It just feels alive.
SPEAKER_06: So good.
SPEAKER_06: That's a glimpse of what Sunday morning looks like for me every week.
SPEAKER_06: So good.
SPEAKER_06: If you haven't met me yet, I'm Pastor Bruno.
SPEAKER_06: I have the honor and the privilege and the pleasure of being uh the Gateway Kids pastor here at Gateway for the past five and a half years.
SPEAKER_06: It's been quite some time.
SPEAKER_06: Thank you.
SPEAKER_06: You know, these kids, it's been tough.
SPEAKER_06: Just kidding.
SPEAKER_06: It's been so wonderful.
SPEAKER_06: It's such a joy.
SPEAKER_06: Um, if you have a kid that has been through our elementary kids program for the past three three years, I am so pleased to tell you that your kids have finished the Bible cover to cover in 140 Sundays.
SPEAKER_06: Isn't that amazing?
SPEAKER_06: Give them a hand.
SPEAKER_06: They know, they know more of the Bible than a lot of us.
SPEAKER_06: But here's the fun thing is that 80% of the sixth graders that are moving up to the student ministry, they have been a part of this program.
SPEAKER_06: So, you know, Pastor Christian, you're welcome.
SPEAKER_06: They have tons of Bible knowledge now.
SPEAKER_06: Just kidding.
SPEAKER_06: Oh, glory to God.
SPEAKER_06: He's awesome.
SPEAKER_06: Um, but I I just love sharing the word of God with kids because kids are so fun and they engage.
SPEAKER_06: The first service, they did me dirty.
SPEAKER_06: But kids in this service, I count on you.
SPEAKER_06: You know who you are.
SPEAKER_06: Um, but kids are so excited all the time to learn about the word.
SPEAKER_06: They don't get offended by the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: Do you know that?
SPEAKER_06: We get offended, they don't get offended.
SPEAKER_06: They get excited.
SPEAKER_06: When we were learning about the Israelites in the desert, they were asking me any question that I would say, like, who did this?
SPEAKER_06: And they're like, Jesus! And I'm like, not yet.
SPEAKER_06: He hasn't been even born, but yes, he is coming.
SPEAKER_06: They're just so excited because they know that the God that they serve is a God of rescuing.
SPEAKER_06: They know it from the garden.
SPEAKER_06: And when we fell short, that there was a rescuer.
SPEAKER_06: And man, I can't tell you how many times I asked a question, they're like, Jesus, and I'm like, not yet.
SPEAKER_06: Jesus, not yet.
SPEAKER_06: He's coming, he's coming.
SPEAKER_06: But they're excited.
SPEAKER_06: So today we're gonna talk about the life of the apostle Paul.
SPEAKER_06: And the kids have a lot of knowledge on that because we just went through it.
SPEAKER_06: Yes, kids, one more lesson on Saul.
SPEAKER_06: I promise.
SPEAKER_06: Um, this one is gonna be so fun.
SPEAKER_06: Um, but what I love about this message is that Jesus himself came to rescue him, right?
SPEAKER_06: Um, the so I'm gonna give you a little bit of a background story on him because his first name was Saul, and then he turns into Paul.
SPEAKER_06: And listen, if I flip Saul and Paul, you'd just forgive me because I learned the Bible in Portuguese and the names are the same, but let's just use that as an excuse.
SPEAKER_06: Um, but if you've never heard the story of the Apostle Paul, the Paul that we hear from so much who learned who uh wrote letters that turned into books that now fill the New Testament of the Bible.
SPEAKER_06: Uh, that Paul started out as Saul, and that was his original name.
SPEAKER_06: And Saul was a Pharisee.
SPEAKER_06: The best way I can explain it to kids is a Pharisee was the OG influencer, minus the TikTok dances.
SPEAKER_06: I don't believe they were like, praise you, you know, like the whole shebang.
SPEAKER_06: I knew somebody would be interesting.
SPEAKER_06: Thank you.
SPEAKER_06: Uh I rehearsed for that.
SPEAKER_06: Um, but he was an OG influencer in Jesus' time.
SPEAKER_06: He would be, he was very respected.
SPEAKER_06: People would give him ears, like they wanted to know what's Saul about?
SPEAKER_06: What is he doing?
SPEAKER_06: Where is he going next?
SPEAKER_06: Who's he arresting next?
SPEAKER_06: Right?
SPEAKER_06: They were they were all about Saul.
SPEAKER_06: And because he was a Pharisee, that meant that he had the highest training of a Jewish person.
SPEAKER_06: So think about this.
SPEAKER_06: By the age of six, uh, Saul went on to a local teacher, a local rabbi, which in our situation would be Pastor Charlie.
SPEAKER_06: You can send your kids here.
SPEAKER_06: He would teach them.
SPEAKER_06: Uh, he would go to a local rabbi, a teacher, and then he would learn the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: By the age of 10, he had the entire first books of the Torah memorized.
SPEAKER_06: That would be Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy memorized.
SPEAKER_06: Then, if you think about this, it's about 80,000 words.
SPEAKER_06: For us, it would be like two-thirds of Homer's Iliad.
SPEAKER_06: Okay, that's a lot.
SPEAKER_06: So then, because he was really smart and really good, he would move up to the next level.
SPEAKER_06: And by the age 13, Saul had the entire Old Testament memorized.
SPEAKER_06: That is 39 books of the Bible, approximately 620,000 words.
SPEAKER_06: This would equal for you guys who like to read, not me, uh, the entire Lord of the Rings book series.
SPEAKER_06: This is how thick it is, okay?
SPEAKER_06: But um, so he went on after that, and he learned from another respected rabbi, which was like Gamaliel.
SPEAKER_06: It was like the top of the top.
SPEAKER_06: And he learned from him, and Gamaliel would grill these students.
SPEAKER_06: He grilled Saul to make sure that he knew that he could do what Gamaliel was doing.
SPEAKER_06: He didn't grow up to be a rabbi, but he had all the training.
SPEAKER_06: Okay.
SPEAKER_06: So, what would that look like for us today?
SPEAKER_06: Think of someone today who has memorized the U.S.
SPEAKER_06: Constitution, every Supreme Court landmark case, several text law uh law textbooks, and could quote them instantly on a debate.
SPEAKER_06: It's quite a lot, right?
SPEAKER_06: So any of my 13-year-olds feel up for the challenge?
SPEAKER_06: Let me know.
SPEAKER_06: We meet on Mondays.
SPEAKER_06: But that's a crazy Bible training, isn't it?
SPEAKER_06: It's incredible.
SPEAKER_06: And it was a very intense process.
SPEAKER_06: But Saul, he was not only extremely smart, he was also like this well-known, influential guy, right?
SPEAKER_06: So now we we see that he was a passionate man for the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: We sometimes hear about Saul persecuting the Christians as Saul was this evil man who hated the Christians.
SPEAKER_06: But why?
SPEAKER_06: He was zealous for the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: He had passion.
SPEAKER_06: Like you and I have passion, and sometimes we go a little bit too far, right?
SPEAKER_06: But we have passion.
SPEAKER_06: He had zeal for the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: He wanted to protect it.
SPEAKER_06: So at the glimpse of these Christians and this Jesus breaking whatever this that we have that's good, I'm gonna protect it at all costs.
SPEAKER_06: He took it upon himself because he saw that the Christians and Jesus were a threat to the word of God itself.
SPEAKER_06: It makes a lot of sense when you think that way.
SPEAKER_06: So now Saul will become Paul, not like this, I promise.
SPEAKER_06: Like, but we're gonna tell a story.
SPEAKER_06: But he's gonna become Paul.
SPEAKER_06: And Paul is gonna go out and he's gonna teach about the risen Messiah, the one who came for you, the one who came for the Jews and to the Gentiles.
SPEAKER_06: The Gentiles were the people that didn't deserve God's grace, love, mercy, nothing.
SPEAKER_06: But Saul goes out as Paul and he charges at them and he's after them, and he's excited.
SPEAKER_06: And now he gets arrested one too many times.
SPEAKER_06: And in one of these times, he goes into court in front of the governor, and he goes into court in front of the king, and he's gonna tell them this story.
SPEAKER_06: And we're gonna find it in Acts chapter 26.
SPEAKER_06: And so here's what the text reads.
SPEAKER_06: It said, one day, he's telling the king, one day I was on such a mission to Damascus, armed with the authority and commission for the leading priests.
SPEAKER_06: This means he had a piece of paper that said, I, we priests, authorize you to do whatever it takes, arrest these Christians by our authority, because they are threat, they're a threat to the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: So he had it written, he had the command, and he said, I was armed with the authority and commission of the leading priests, and about noon, your majesty, I was on the road, and a light came from heaven, brighter than the sun, and shone down on me and my companions, and we all fell down.
SPEAKER_06: And I heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?
SPEAKER_06: It is useless for you to fight against my will.
SPEAKER_06: Saul said, Who are you, Lord?
SPEAKER_06: And the Lord replied, I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting.
SPEAKER_06: Now get to your feet, for I have appeared to you.
SPEAKER_06: And listen, we listen to this, very excited, okay?
SPEAKER_06: So, kids, if you're here two VBSs ago, I count on you.
SPEAKER_06: If you don't remember, I will it's fine.
SPEAKER_06: I can do this.
SPEAKER_06: But he said, Now get to your feet, for I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and my and I will rescue you.
SPEAKER_06: Thank you, Lincoln, and I will rescue.
SPEAKER_06: Yes, I am to send their eyes so they may turn from thank give it up.
SPEAKER_06: I knew I couldn't count on a friend today.
SPEAKER_06: Proud of you.
SPEAKER_06: Extra treats next week.
SPEAKER_06: It was all rehearsed.
SPEAKER_06: I'm just kidding, it wasn't.
SPEAKER_06: So good.
SPEAKER_06: He said, I am sending you, he said, to both your no, sorry, hold on, go back.
SPEAKER_06: I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and my witness.
SPEAKER_06: And then he says this, that we didn't do this last year, but he says, Tell people that you have seen me and tell them what I will show you in the future, and I will rescue you from both your own people and the Gentiles.
SPEAKER_06: Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles to open their eyes so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power and the grip of Satan to God.
SPEAKER_06: Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God's people who are set apart by faith in me.
SPEAKER_06: I love this passage so much because I've read it over and over, and I've read it in different ways, and I saw it in different ways.
SPEAKER_06: At first, I saw it as this charge like, let's go get him, people.
SPEAKER_06: Now get to your feet, for I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and my witness.
SPEAKER_06: Yes, I'm gonna rescue you, and I'm sending you to open their eyes so they may turn from darkness to light.
SPEAKER_06: Come on, somebody, right?
SPEAKER_06: He's like, Let's go, right, and then I was thinking about this.
SPEAKER_06: He is sending you, Saul, and he says, Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles.
SPEAKER_06: Saul probably didn't want to go to the Gentiles.
SPEAKER_06: He was, he, he, Saul thought the Gentiles were the lowest of the low.
SPEAKER_06: These people, they don't deserve the crumbs, they don't deserve the crumbs of the word of God.
SPEAKER_06: The holy word that I have vowed to protect and to keep, they don't deserve that.
SPEAKER_06: And I love that Jesus is talking to him and he says, It is useless for you to fight against my will.
SPEAKER_06: And then he says, Who are you, Lord?
SPEAKER_06: For Saul, he was blinded, first of all.
SPEAKER_06: He was like, Who are you, Lord?
SPEAKER_06: He was terrified.
SPEAKER_06: But for him to recognize the authority and the power that came from that voice.
SPEAKER_06: When we say that Jesus is the name above all names, that he is the everlasting peace of Prince of Peace, the one that was and is to come, there is power in his name.
SPEAKER_06: And Saul recognized that immediately.
SPEAKER_06: He didn't say, Who are you, stranger?
SPEAKER_06: He says, Who are you, Lord?
SPEAKER_06: There was a weight to the voice of the Lord.
SPEAKER_06: When I thought and prayed about today, the word that kept coming to my mind in this passage was sent.
SPEAKER_06: You're being sent.
SPEAKER_06: I'm being sent.
SPEAKER_06: That sounds so beautiful.
SPEAKER_06: Let's send them.
SPEAKER_06: And it comes with so much depth of responsibility.
SPEAKER_06: Kids and students, the summer is ending.
SPEAKER_06: Soon you're going back to school, but guess what?
SPEAKER_06: You are being sent.
SPEAKER_06: It's exciting.
SPEAKER_06: You're being sent with the same power and authority and responsibilities that Jesus sent Saul who became Paul.
SPEAKER_06: You two are being sent.
SPEAKER_06: There is more to your school than your grades, your clubs, your friends.
SPEAKER_06: There's so much more.
SPEAKER_06: As ambassadors for Christ, which all of us are, kids, students, it is your call to bring his word with you everywhere you go.
SPEAKER_06: You are created in the image of the most high God.
SPEAKER_06: What an honor.
SPEAKER_06: This means that uh you were created to reflect God's love and kindness and mercy and his light where you go.
SPEAKER_06: When you walk into a room, Christ should be reflected through you.
SPEAKER_06: So whether you're going to a private, public, or homeschool, you're sent.
SPEAKER_06: Represent Christ.
SPEAKER_06: Be a light in the darkness.
SPEAKER_06: Yes, in your small Christian school, they're gonna need a light.
SPEAKER_06: Trust me.
SPEAKER_06: In your homeschool, your parents are carrying the weight and the responsibility of your education.
SPEAKER_06: Pray for them, be a light for them.
SPEAKER_06: In your public school, you need to be a light.
SPEAKER_06: You don't know what culture is throwing at you this year, but I can promise you that no matter what it is, you have everything in you to represent Christ and all that you need, your father has already provided.
SPEAKER_06: The spirit that lives in you of power, love, and the sound mind is in you, and you let that out.
SPEAKER_06: So exciting, so good.
SPEAKER_06: If you're not a student in the room today, tomorrow is Monday.
SPEAKER_06: And so it all starts again.
SPEAKER_06: You two are being sent.
SPEAKER_06: Maybe to a job that you despise, but you need to show up to every day.
SPEAKER_06: Or maybe to a place that you have been a part of for quite some time that doesn't feel dark, it doesn't feel sad, it doesn't feel dry, but it feels stale.
SPEAKER_06: You need to be the light.
SPEAKER_06: You are called to show up and be the light.
SPEAKER_06: Maybe it's a new season that you're stepping in or that you just did.
SPEAKER_06: And maybe it's something thrilling and exciting, but it comes with responsibilities, and you are called to be a carrier of his love and grace into it.
SPEAKER_06: No matter what the season is for you, maybe you are already in it.
SPEAKER_06: You are being sent to bring Jesus into those places with you.
SPEAKER_06: You might not be living in darkness yourself.
SPEAKER_06: We all once were in darkness and now we know the light, but you might not be living in that darkness right now.
SPEAKER_06: But I am sure that there is somebody around you that is in that darkness, and they are counting on somebody to show up for them.
SPEAKER_06: And that is you.
SPEAKER_06: Being sent is not a choice when you are a follower of Christ.
SPEAKER_06: Jesus said himself, it is useless for you to fight against my will.
SPEAKER_06: We were made and created in his image, so wherever we go, Christ goes with us.
SPEAKER_06: The spirit of the Most High God goes with us.
SPEAKER_06: If you are starting school or in a transition or even just in this season that you can't really call anything, know that there are a lot of unknowns, and it may be a mix of joy and grief for the season that comes and the season that goes.
SPEAKER_06: And maybe it's a fear of the what-ifs.
SPEAKER_06: I'm here to tell you that when God sends us, He also provides for us and he rescues us.
SPEAKER_06: Before Jesus told Saul, I am sending you to the Gentiles, He said, I will rescue you.
SPEAKER_06: How beautiful.
SPEAKER_06: Before He sends us, He provides the rescuing.
SPEAKER_06: We serve a God that time and time again has rescued its own people.
SPEAKER_06: So I was thinking about today, and um the Lord gave me a story that I haven't thought about in a long time.
SPEAKER_06: And I'm like, okay, I'm gonna tell the story, and they're gonna laugh a lot.
SPEAKER_06: So you just bear with me because it's a rescuing story.
SPEAKER_06: And uh when I was about eight years old, my mom had just gotten back home from the hospital with my dad.
SPEAKER_06: My dad was sick, don't remember what it was.
SPEAKER_06: But at the time he had a fever and they needed prescriptions, and my mom said, I need to watch him because he has a fever.
SPEAKER_06: You go to the pharmacy.
SPEAKER_06: We lived in a building.
SPEAKER_06: Think about New York City that's similar to where we lived, but by the beach.
SPEAKER_06: So we lived like, you know, tall buildings and such.
SPEAKER_06: And um, she said, I'm gonna send you to the pharmacy to pick up the prescriptions for your dad.
SPEAKER_06: So I was armed with my own, you know, power by my mother to go get the prescription.
SPEAKER_06: And um she says, Because you're eight, obviously in Brazil we still, you know, think about the safety of the children.
SPEAKER_06: Um, she said, I'm gonna send my 80, your 78-year-old grandpa with you.
SPEAKER_06: Now, my grandpa grew up in a farm, didn't have a phone, knew nothing about what would be to live in New York City.
SPEAKER_06: He was just there to visit.
SPEAKER_06: She bestowed it upon me, an eight-year-old, to lead the way, to be sent.
SPEAKER_06: And so she said, You know where it is, right?
SPEAKER_06: Uh-huh, uh-huh.
SPEAKER_06: Yeah, I know.
SPEAKER_06: Uh-huh.
SPEAKER_06: I was probably more excited about spending that money than anything else.
SPEAKER_06: And she said, You know the way?
SPEAKER_06: Yes, yes, I know the way.
SPEAKER_06: I know the way.
SPEAKER_06: Okay.
SPEAKER_06: She said, it's right around the corner.
SPEAKER_06: I said, Okay.
SPEAKER_06: So I go down the building and grandpa said, Where is it?
SPEAKER_06: I said, round around the corner.
SPEAKER_06: So we turned a corner.
SPEAKER_06: And he said, Where's that pharmacy?
SPEAKER_06: Uh, it's not in this corner, it's in the other corner.
SPEAKER_06: So we turn another corner.
SPEAKER_06: So he said, Where's that pharmacy?
SPEAKER_06: It's around the corner, Grandpa.
SPEAKER_06: Didn't you hear mom saying?
SPEAKER_06: So we turn another corner.
SPEAKER_06: By the time we turn so many corners, I'm starting to feel this anxiety inside of me of like, where's that pharmacy?
SPEAKER_06: Why is that pharmacy not here?
SPEAKER_06: Why what am I missing?
SPEAKER_06: And grandpa's like, Bruna, we just need to call your mom.
SPEAKER_06: We just need to call your mom.
SPEAKER_06: I'm like, Grandpa, I know where I'm going.
SPEAKER_06: Clearly, I did not, because I have it on the map, proof to show you.
SPEAKER_06: Can you please show the first?
SPEAKER_06: That's me, right there.
SPEAKER_06: That's where I lived.
SPEAKER_06: Right there.
SPEAKER_06: And then the green, you see the green?
SPEAKER_06: That's where I was supposed to go.
SPEAKER_06: Okay.
SPEAKER_06: That's where I went.
SPEAKER_06: I know it's hilarious because I lived there my whole life.
SPEAKER_06: My parents still live right there, just down the street.
SPEAKER_06: My parents still live there, and I turned so many corners.
SPEAKER_06: And by this time, my 78-year-old grandpa is so tired.
SPEAKER_06: 30 minutes we've walked inland at night, 8 p.m.
SPEAKER_06: So I did what every person would do.
SPEAKER_06: I called my mama, and I didn't have a phone because I was eight.
SPEAKER_06: My grandpa didn't have a phone because he grew up in a farm.
SPEAKER_06: He didn't have a phone.
SPEAKER_06: He had a landline, maybe.
SPEAKER_06: And so I went to this place as a payphone.
SPEAKER_06: For those who don't know, if you're I'm I'm that old.
SPEAKER_06: There's that's a payphone in Brazil.
SPEAKER_06: And I didn't have the coins for it.
SPEAKER_06: So you have to do the shame call, which is 9090.
SPEAKER_06: That's your charged call.
SPEAKER_06: That's gonna charge the landline that's gonna answer it.
SPEAKER_06: So I I dial 9090, and as soon as it rings, my mom hears on the phone, this is a charged call.
SPEAKER_06: And she just goes, Bruna! And I said, Mom! And she said, Where are you?
SPEAKER_06: Because my mom was expecting me to be on the green and I was on the red.
SPEAKER_06: And I said, Mom, I'm sorry.
SPEAKER_06: We're lost.
SPEAKER_06: She said, Where are you?
SPEAKER_06: And I and I gave her the directions.
SPEAKER_06: And she came within five minutes.
SPEAKER_06: She plopped my sick dad in the car and drove as quick as she could to my restaurant.
SPEAKER_06: I was so nervous because I'm crying.
SPEAKER_06: I'm thinking I'm getting spinky.
SPEAKER_06: I'm getting time out.
SPEAKER_06: I'm never gonna go out again.
SPEAKER_06: It's over, my life is over.
SPEAKER_06: And as soon as I hope it's in the car, my mom is cracking.
SPEAKER_06: Do you know how many times I went to that pharmacy?
SPEAKER_06: Way too many times.
SPEAKER_06: Way too much candy and ice cream in that pharmacy.
SPEAKER_06: I knew it was somehow.
SPEAKER_06: I don't know if it was the rush of coming out or the responsibility.
SPEAKER_06: Maybe the responsibility of leading my 70-year-old grandpa.
SPEAKER_06: Thank you, Mom.
SPEAKER_06: But she was laughing.
SPEAKER_06: And the reason why I remember the story so vividly is because one too many times my times my mom has shared the story.
SPEAKER_06: And she will laugh every time.
SPEAKER_06: She said, have gotten along.
SPEAKER_06: She knew where she was going.
SPEAKER_06: Never punished me for being wrong.
SPEAKER_06: She never punished me for turning the wrong corner.
SPEAKER_06: How dare you not know where you were going?
SPEAKER_06: She knew that my government with Jesus wasn't for someone.
SPEAKER_06: My mum sent me, but she was ready to pick me up.
SPEAKER_06: She was ready to roll me.
SPEAKER_06: She got there so fast.
SPEAKER_06: My dad was not second stuff, but you know.
SPEAKER_06: He was there to rescue me.
SPEAKER_06: Yes, he benefits from it because he turned from darkness to light.
SPEAKER_06: Why am I here?
SPEAKER_06: We need to be certain.
SPEAKER_06: Jesus made it very evident, even if he doubted it.
SPEAKER_06: Appointed and is anointed as a servant and a witness.
SPEAKER_06: He said, Tell people that you have seen me and tell them what I will show you.
SPEAKER_06: Have no doubt.
SPEAKER_06: He says, Yes, I am sending it to the Gentiles.
SPEAKER_06: Make no mistakes.
SPEAKER_06: But I will rescue you.
SPEAKER_06: No matter what happens.
SPEAKER_06: Have no doubt of who you are in this season.
SPEAKER_06: Every weekend, kids will repeat the same things because I want it to be ingrained in their brains.
SPEAKER_06: I am a child of God, and Jesus is my Lord and Savior.
SPEAKER_06: I hear the voice of the good shepherd.
SPEAKER_06: I do not hear the voice of a stranger.
SPEAKER_06: I was created with a purpose, and God is working in me today.
SPEAKER_06: The second thing is be committed.
SPEAKER_06: I didn't do anything, God that it wasn't for your glory.
SPEAKER_06: And even when times got tough, I pushed through it.
SPEAKER_06: Because I knew the final part of that verse is so that then they who have faith in me will have a place in God's family.
SPEAKER_06: Be committed.
SPEAKER_06: Be bound to a promise.
SPEAKER_06: Be bound to the purpose.
SPEAKER_06: Be bound to your calling.
SPEAKER_06: Be committed to see your season to look at everything through the lenses of Christ that is within you.
SPEAKER_06: And if you can't see the Lord, help me see it.
SPEAKER_06: Recognize the authority in his voice.
SPEAKER_06: I know the seasons sometimes can feel daunting.
SPEAKER_06: It feels daunting.
SPEAKER_06: Sending your kids to school, terrifying.
SPEAKER_06: I've done that last year.
SPEAKER_06: It's hard.
SPEAKER_06: But don't allow the circumstances or the culture or your own desires or fears to get in the way.
SPEAKER_06: Because God has sent you, and guess what?
SPEAKER_06: He sent your child.
SPEAKER_06: He sent these kids.
SPEAKER_06: And it's not for when, it's for now.
SPEAKER_06: It's not for when they grow up, it's for now that they're young.
SPEAKER_06: The most important title that we hold is children of God.
SPEAKER_06: It's not adults of God.
SPEAKER_06: It's children of God.
SPEAKER_06: He's called us into his family.
SPEAKER_06: The verse that this church is standing on this year is Galatians 6 9 that it says, I uh let us not grow weary of doing good, because in due season we will reap a harvest.
SPEAKER_06: If we do not lose heart, the harvest is actually standing right around you.
SPEAKER_06: Some of you here know the Lord very well, and maybe some of you are just now getting to know him.
SPEAKER_06: There is a harvest out there, and for you, young and elders, there is a place in God's family, there is a calling, there is a charge.
SPEAKER_06: I am sending you.
SPEAKER_06: I know that it comes with a lot of responsibility to obey God's vision.
SPEAKER_06: It comes with opposition, but we're prepared for it.
SPEAKER_06: Saul, Paul, endured countless darkness, opposition, and suffering.
SPEAKER_06: Um, he had countless imprisonments, beatings, frequent, frequent brushes with death, five Jewish floggings.
SPEAKER_06: Those were 39 lashes, five times.
SPEAKER_06: Three beatings with rods, one stoning, three shipwrecks, a day and a night adrift at sea, hunger and thirst, cold exposures, sleepless nights, and the most important one for Saul, Paul, the daily responsibility to care for the churches that he started to plant.
SPEAKER_06: He cared, he had zeal for the Word of God, but he had even more zeal for the Lord Himself, for His people.
SPEAKER_06: Friend, you may never be flogged, praise Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: We don't do that.
SPEAKER_06: But you might feel defeated when you find yourself in that board meeting on Wednesday and you're facing opposition.
SPEAKER_06: You may never face prison, I pray to God, but you might feel stuck in life at times.
SPEAKER_06: And as if you got given the short end of the stick.
SPEAKER_06: That's not fair.
SPEAKER_06: You may never be shipwrecked, but you might find yourself wandering aimlessly at your job or at a relationship or your purpose.
SPEAKER_06: You may never go hungry or thirsty, but you might find yourself lonely.
SPEAKER_06: Either because others rejected you or because you had to remove yourself from an unhealthy situation.
SPEAKER_06: You may never be stoned, but you might hear very ugly words that would hurt deeper than being stoned.
SPEAKER_06: It would penetrate the heart so deeply.
SPEAKER_06: Even in all of that, let me tell you that Jesus Christ, the risen Messiah, He has already provided for you.
SPEAKER_06: You don't need to wonder when or if He's coming, you would need to know when.
SPEAKER_06: Like the kids, when we were learning about the desert, and every question was like, So they got rescued by Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: Not yet.
SPEAKER_06: But we get the pleasure to say, Yes, Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: When are you coming?
SPEAKER_06: I'm waiting for you.
SPEAKER_06: I'm surrendered to you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: Second Corinthians 4, 8 and 9 says, We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed, perplexed, but not driven to despair, persecuted but not forsaken.
SPEAKER_06: Your father has not forgotten you.
SPEAKER_06: We're struck down but not destroyed.
SPEAKER_06: Saul had to fall off his horse, he had to be humbled, but he saw the light.
SPEAKER_06: So my my third point is to be consumed.
SPEAKER_06: Paul allowed that moment to be everything.
SPEAKER_06: He probably held on to those words and that encounter with Jesus more often than not.
SPEAKER_06: He didn't face the opposition thinking, oh, this is great.
SPEAKER_06: But he he he endured it because of the cross.
SPEAKER_06: He endured because he knew somebody needs the light.
SPEAKER_06: And if it has to be me, then let it be so, Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: Allow God to be the center of everything that you do this year.
SPEAKER_06: Maybe at your school or your family or your job, somebody needs your light.
SPEAKER_06: Saul was in darkness himself, and he got rescued by Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: And he went from arresting Christians, putting them in bondage, to setting captives free.
SPEAKER_05: There is power in the name of Jesus.
SPEAKER_05: You are being sent from bondage, from captivity to freedom in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_06: Be consumed.
SPEAKER_06: Maybe when you walk into class, when you're with your friends, or when you're struggle-making friends, when you try out for sports and you think you failed, but it had nothing to do with you.
SPEAKER_06: In whatever you do, remember that who sent you is Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: And if that place feels dark, then know that He is providing and He will rescue you.
SPEAKER_06: I'm gonna ask that our students and our kids and college students that you guys would come up in a minute and we're gonna pray for you.
SPEAKER_06: But I want you to tell you that way too many times, people of the world wandered in darkness.
SPEAKER_06: In fact, for 4,000 years they wandered in darkness.
SPEAKER_06: And we get the privilege to have the risen Messiah with us.
SPEAKER_06: To talk with him, to see him, to witness him.
SPEAKER_06: Let us not forget that.
SPEAKER_06: Let us not take it for granted.
SPEAKER_06: We were once in the darkness and now we see the light.
SPEAKER_06: You were made for such a time as this.
SPEAKER_06: Be joyful when you're sent today.
SPEAKER_06: Let us not live our daily lives and forget him.
SPEAKER_06: Be certain you are a child of God, you have a calling.
SPEAKER_06: Be committed.
SPEAKER_06: Be the light.
SPEAKER_06: Be committed to it.
SPEAKER_06: Obey the vision of Christ and let him consume you.
SPEAKER_06: There is nothing better.
SPEAKER_06: There is nothing more important than him in us, Christ in us.
SPEAKER_06: More of you, God, and less of me.
SPEAKER_06: Amen.
SPEAKER_06: Oh kids, would you please stand up and come to the front?
SPEAKER_06: Students and our college students, would you please come forward?
SPEAKER_06: We want to pray for you.
SPEAKER_06: We want to bless you as you head into this school year.
SPEAKER_06: You can you can make your.
SPEAKER_06: Oh, thank you so much.
SPEAKER_06: Make your way to the front.
SPEAKER_06: College students, you can mix with the students.
SPEAKER_06: Pastor Krishna's gonna pray for you.
SPEAKER_06: Kids, you can scooch this way.
SPEAKER_06: If you're a sixth grader, now guess what?
SPEAKER_06: You're a student.
SPEAKER_06: So you go that way.
SPEAKER_06: I know I missed you guys already.
SPEAKER_06: But kids, would you scooch this way?
SPEAKER_06: If you're a kid, scooch this way.
SPEAKER_06: And we're gonna pray.
SPEAKER_06: Because kids, you are a part of a body that loves you, that invests in you, that cares for you, that pours into you.
SPEAKER_06: So would you actually turn to me because I wanna I wanna look at your faces?
SPEAKER_06: I am so proud of you.
SPEAKER_06: You were made for such a time as this to be the light in the darkness, to be a friend.
SPEAKER_06: Be a friend.
SPEAKER_06: When you see people that don't have a friend, go introduce yourself.
SPEAKER_06: Be a friend, be the light of Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: So, church, would you please stretch your arms towards our kids?
SPEAKER_06: We're gonna pray.
SPEAKER_06: Father, I thank you for each of these kids.
SPEAKER_06: Lord, thank you that they have been called now.
SPEAKER_06: That they don't have to wait for when they grow up to be mighty man and woman of God.
SPEAKER_06: We know they will be.
SPEAKER_06: Thank you, God, that you are empowering them right now.
SPEAKER_06: That Holy Spirit, you are within them, that you will not fail them, that they are certain of who you are this year, that they know, God, that you are sending them.
SPEAKER_06: And Father, I pray that they would be not only the light in the darkness, but they would light up the path.
SPEAKER_06: Um, Father, that your word would be a lamp to their feet, that they would be rooted in who you are, Jesus, in who you created them to be.
SPEAKER_06: Father, I pray a protection over these kids.
SPEAKER_06: Lord, that no harm would befall upon them.
SPEAKER_06: Father, I pray that if they're they face opposition, that is an opportunity for transformation.
SPEAKER_06: Let them be vessels for you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: Let them be used for your glory, for your kingdom to come, for your name to be lifted high.
SPEAKER_06: I pray a boldness and a fire on their spirit that can't be taken out.
SPEAKER_06: I pray that they would spread like a wildfire in their environment wherever they go, that people would see them and they will see, I have seen the light of Christ.
SPEAKER_06: I pray that other kids would want to be like them.
SPEAKER_06: What is it that this kid has that I want, I need, and it is you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_06: And I thank you, Lord, for each of them, for the boldness in their spirit, that they would remember the word of God, and in the time of trouble, Lord, that you'd come for their rescue.
SPEAKER_06: I pray that in Jesus' name.
unknown: Amen.
unknown: You guys may be seated.
SPEAKER_02: And for the middle high school and college students, and y'all are in some of the most formative and pivotal parts of your life.
SPEAKER_02: And I'm so glad that I get to walk alongside y'all as y'all are growing physically, growing in the Lord.
SPEAKER_02: And we the church want to bless y'all and part with you as you continue to grow in that.
SPEAKER_02: And I want to give us I want to give y'all two things to consider.
SPEAKER_02: The first one comes from Ecclesiastes.
SPEAKER_02: It says this remember your creator in the days of your youth.
SPEAKER_02: Remember God now, before the days of trouble come.
SPEAKER_02: They might be around the corner, they might be when you reach adulthood, they might be next week.
SPEAKER_02: But remember God.
SPEAKER_02: Grow in the love and the formation that he has out for you.
SPEAKER_02: As Pastor Bruno was talking about, he is sending you, he is rescuing you.
SPEAKER_02: But I want to remind you of this as well.
SPEAKER_02: This is Ephesians 2.10.
SPEAKER_02: It says, For you are his handiwork.
SPEAKER_02: The word handiwork, it's poema.
SPEAKER_02: Poem, a masterpiece that God has made you special in Christ Jesus to do good works.
SPEAKER_02: And so, Lord, I just pray over these students.
SPEAKER_02: And Brent is going to pray for the middle schoolers, and then we're going to pray over the high school and college students.
SPEAKER_02: So extend your hands as we bless them going into this school year.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, I just thank you for this morning, the blessing that you've given us to be able to gather in your house this morning, Lord, and what a blessing it is that you have chosen us and you are sending us out to glorify your name.
SPEAKER_03: So, Lord, I just lift up these middle school students to you, Lord, this morning.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, I'm I'm brought back to 1 Timothy chapter 4, verse 12 that says, Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young.
SPEAKER_03: But set an example for believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, I pray that whether they're sixth, seventh, or eighth graders, Lord, that that would be their story, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: That more people would grow closer to you and come to know more about you because of who these students are, and more importantly, who you are in their lives.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, that they would know who they are because of whose they are, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, I pray that even though it would be sixth, seventh, and eighth graders, Lord, that they would walk in the confidence that they are walking in the presence and power of the living God and resurrected Messiah that lives withinside all of them.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, I just ask that your peace and your provision be on them, Lord, as they walk out this next season.
SPEAKER_03: New seasons, they they always bring about change, some unknowns.
SPEAKER_03: Sometimes that's hard, but that doesn't mean that you haven't already blessed this school year and blessed this season for them.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, there's not a school, there's not a school, a classroom, a place in their home that they could step into that you haven't already gone before them, you haven't anointed, you haven't prepared for them.
SPEAKER_03: So Lord, I just lift them up to you, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: May they walk with your hands always beside them, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: We are on a pilgrimage up towards you, Lord, and I pray, and I thank you that you are our shepherd.
SPEAKER_03: You are the one who leads us.
SPEAKER_03: Lord, that you have gone before them, you have come behind them, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: You are with them always, you are walking with them through everything, Lord, and I just thank you for the ways that you're about to bless them in this season.
SPEAKER_03: With new friends, new teachers, Lord, all the blessings that they might have already stepped into and the blessings that they haven't come to see yet, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: We thank you for all that you are and all that you're about to do in this new season, Lord.
SPEAKER_03: We love our middle schoolers, and so do you.
SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
SPEAKER_03: In Jesus' name I pray.
SPEAKER_02: And Lord, I want to lift up the middle schoolers that are going into high school for the first time, that transitions are our time of excitement, but also that could be a time of anxiety.
SPEAKER_02: So, Lord, let there be peace.
SPEAKER_02: Let there be joy, that there will be a friend when they walk into the school doors for the very first time.
SPEAKER_02: In the same way, I pray for the recent graduate that's going to college or going to the workforce or maybe they're unsure of what they're gonna do.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, let there be peace that doesn't make sense.
SPEAKER_02: Let there be joy that overflows into their life.
SPEAKER_02: I want to pray for the college senior that might have no idea what they're gonna do in nine months.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, you do.
SPEAKER_02: Guide their steps, guard their mind, guard their heart.
SPEAKER_02: Help them to trust in you with all of their heart to lean not on their own understanding but in all of their ways acknowledge you and you're gonna guide their path.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, be with these high schooler and college students as they are are going into school.
SPEAKER_02: Bless the work that they're gonna do, bless the learning that's gonna be worshiped unto you.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, guard their heart as they are entering into a tough season.
SPEAKER_02: Celebrate with them as they do great in their activities in school.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, we we trust that you are present in every situation.
SPEAKER_02: And we thank you for that.
SPEAKER_02: We thank you for this school year.
SPEAKER_02: I pray for growth, for formation, for discipleship, for community, for an abundant life that you promise in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, let that be the reality of these high school and college students.
SPEAKER_02: Let it be so.
SPEAKER_02: We pray this in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_01: In my role, I get to pray over uh educators and parents uh as a part of this service.
SPEAKER_01: If you're involved in the education system from homeschool through school board, any of that is there anyone in the room uh involved in the education, please stand.
SPEAKER_01: And um and then if uh and then a parent, if you're a parent of a child in school, I want you to also stand.
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna pray over both of you.
SPEAKER_01: I just wanted to see our educators in the room as well.
SPEAKER_01: We I think just as Westerners, we don't quite grasp the power of a blessing.
SPEAKER_01: It's very Jewish, it's very powerful.
SPEAKER_01: We've blessed the kids.
SPEAKER_01: And I there's there's three things I wanted to pray for you.
SPEAKER_01: I wanted to pray for God's mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Mercy as we have studied it coming out of the Psalms, mercy being his power, not just kind of a pat on the back, his power.
SPEAKER_01: That you can operate under the mercy of God, the power of God.
SPEAKER_01: Um, that you would have the courage, that you'd be able to step in with the kind of confidence to teach and lead, and the wisdom of God.
SPEAKER_01: There's plenty of smart people don't have a lot of wisdom.
SPEAKER_01: The wisdom of God is being able to facilitate what's in front of you now.
SPEAKER_01: What do you know now with what God infuses for action?
SPEAKER_01: It it's to me, it's the lowest hanging fruit of any prayer in Scripture.
SPEAKER_01: If any of you lack wisdom, you're to ask, and I will give it to you.
SPEAKER_01: Mercy, courage, wisdom.
SPEAKER_01: Father, I thank you for the men and women that are standing representing a formal path of education for students.
SPEAKER_01: I don't read a time in scripture where there's not a fight for the next generation.
SPEAKER_01: And this is front lines.
SPEAKER_01: So, Father, the mercy that they need, the courage that's going to be required, the wisdom in shaping another human being.
SPEAKER_01: Father, give that, give all three of those without measure for moms and dads.
SPEAKER_01: It can feel like that we are less than in terms of influence and all of the things and all of the people that are trying to influence our kids.
SPEAKER_01: But in fact, Lord, you have placed us at the head of that class.
SPEAKER_01: We are the main influencers.
SPEAKER_01: So, Lord, as you transform us into your image, may that transformation, Lord, bleed through us into our kids.
SPEAKER_01: And where we lack mercy, please give it.
SPEAKER_01: Where we lack courage, we ask for it.
SPEAKER_01: Where we lack wisdom, we depend on you for it.
SPEAKER_01: I pray for strength and vitality for our families.
SPEAKER_01: In the name of Jesus, I ask it.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.
SPEAKER_01: Would all of you stand when we conclude in worship?
SPEAKER_01: I want to remind you that we have communion available on my left and right if you want to partake of the Eucharist before uh as a part of this part of the service.
SPEAKER_01: But also, I don't, you could have walked in with all kinds of stuff today that you wanted to share.
SPEAKER_01: You wanted someone to pray with you.
SPEAKER_01: I don't want to bypass that either.
SPEAKER_01: So on this side uh on our altar, there'll be people here that will be uh ready to pray for you.
SPEAKER_01: Pray with you if you want to do that over here.
SPEAKER_01: We have it just as a separate time.
SPEAKER_01: If you want to just spend some time alone with the Lord, I invite you to move.
SPEAKER_00: We hope you were encouraged and challenged by today's message.
SPEAKER_00: Again, to learn more about Gateway Franklin Church, find us online at gatewayfranklin.com.
SPEAKER_00: Thanks for joining us today.