Lloyds' Commissioning Service

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Larry Davies, Don Filcek; Phil 1:3-8 Lloyds' Commissioning Service

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You are listening to the podcast of Recast Church in Mattawan, Michigan Good morning.
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Welcome to Recast Church. I'm Don Felsick. I'm the lead pastor here. And I just want to say I'm glad that you've gathered together
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To celebrate what God is doing in our midst here this morning I recognize it for some of you Maybe you just looked us up online and you just showed up and you're like, hey
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We'll check out a new church or whatever. We are doing something different than we normally do this morning. We are commissioning to the service of the
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Lord for gospel ministry to Indonesia Zach and Lee Lloyd and I asked if you guys would just stand for just a moment and identify yourselves here
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Zach and Lee Lloyd they're going to be heading off to Indonesia and a week from tomorrow They're actually going to be boarding a plane with their four children and they're going to take a long trip
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And that trip is going to result and it's so much more than a trip. It's kind of funny Sometimes people will say hey, you know how we heard you're going on a trip.
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Well, it's not just a trip not like going on a vacation Not simply as if they're interested in moving to a warmer climate, it's not just a job transfer but this is
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Them going to set up life in a different culture with the intention of bringing the good news to the people of Indonesia Zach and Lee have been called out by the
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Spirit of God to be sent by Recast Church and it is a privilege this morning that we have to take part in that this morning
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We're going to hear from a representative from their their missions agency Their missions agency is called team and a man named
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Larry Davies Who's been their mentor from that agency the way that admissions agency works just to inform you real quick Why do we have a missions agency?
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Well recast church doesn't necessarily have all the resources that it would take to move the Lloyd's from This place in Matawan to the point where they're living and functioning well in the country of Indonesia So there are agencies that have served the church for years team being one of those that serves churches all around the nation to help them with the legwork and the logistics that it takes for them to get visas to get plugged into language schools to Join with other missionaries that are already there on the field
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So we're going to be hearing from Larry Davies who's been their mentor from that organization helping them to get from here
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Raise support and get them to the field and he's going to be sharing with us a challenge to us as a church
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About what what could we be doing to encourage them? As they move on from this place and we are there sending church and in many ways we are going to be their lifeline
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We're gonna be praying for them We're gonna be lifting them up and encouraging them and so he's gonna be sharing some of that with us this morning
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What we're doing this morning is not something new sending them out is not something that hey, you know recast just thought hey
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Let's find somebody who'd be willing to move overseas and and send them somewhere else It's not just something that's originated with us
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But back in Acts 13 1 through 3 back near the origin of the church
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We saw this modeled for us in Acts 13 1 through 3. We read these you don't need to turn there
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You can just take this in listen in this isn't even going to be a primary text this morning But it is one that is focused on what we are doing here this morning
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Acts 13 1 through 3 says this now there were in the church at Antioch Prophets and teachers
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Barnabas Simon who is called Niger Lucius of Cyrene? Manan a long life friend of Herod the
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Tetrarch and Saul While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting the Holy Spirit said
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Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them
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Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off And that's the nature of our meeting here this morning.
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That's the nature of our gathering is That the Holy Spirit has laid on the hearts of Zach and Lee To go that he has set them apart to be sent and the church is now
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Sending them and we will at the end of the service the elders will come Lay our hands on them and pray for them and send them off in this pattern in this model that we see laid out for Us in Acts 13 1 through 3 this morning.
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We are officially sending out Zach and Lee Lloyd and their family as our first International Missionaries and that is something that is to rejoice in it's something
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Yeah, that's that's and that's that I hope that applause is glory to God and I know Zach and Lee are have been just been
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Emphatic as I've interacted with them. They want all the glory and honor to go to Christ This is not a service for them
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This is a service for us to connect with what God is doing in them and through them and to take part in that as A church and I'm excited about what
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God is gonna do through their family in the years to come But now let's pray as the band comes to lead us together in worship this morning father
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I thank you for the privilege that it is together together as your church and especially during this
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This amazing and special service that we have here to send out our brother and sister and their children
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To the ministry in Indonesia father for the calling that you placed on their lives For the calling that we have in our very core values that talk about Replicating that talk about sending others out from our midst that it's not all about us
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It's not all about what happens in these four walls But you have a mission that is for reaching the nation's for reaching our
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Jerusalem our Judea our Samaria and to the ends of the earth and that is your plan that we would be a hub we would
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Just merely be one stopping point along the way of the process of your kingdom expanding and father that we would be ascending
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Ascending church a church that is willing to give of our best and our brightest and to give of our Talent and to give of our gifts and all of the things that you have blessed us with to in turn
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Send others out and so we rejoice in this opportunity we have this morning. We also rejoice in the opportunity opportunity
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We have to step before your throne and to praise you together And so father I pray that you would receive our worship this morning that these songs would be
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Would be unto you that we would envision you on your throne glorious and worthy of all of our praise and worship and that our worship would extend so much farther than our songs that we would
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Never be a move to think that worship is singing but worship is our lives worship is the way we work
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It's the things that we say it's the things that we do. It's the way that we parent It's the way that we are co -workers. It's the way that we interact with others around us as well
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So father accept our worship this morning in Jesus name. Amen I'm gonna at this point introduce to you all of you.
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I'm Larry Davies who's from team missions He has been the mentor for Zach and Lee along the way
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He's gonna bring a challenge to us as a church about what it means for us to send out a missionary and to support them
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Later on. I'm gonna bring a challenge to Zach and Lee. So yeah, we're gonna have to kind of double -barreled messages this morning
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But we're both gonna be just a little bit shorter than I normally am. So we'll see how that works out. Maybe You can be hopeful at least
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Larry Davies himself was a missionary to the Czech Republic he and his wife Michelle and their two kids from 2006 to 2014 and then after his family moved back to the
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States in 2014 Larry stayed on with with team as a mentor to mission to missionary candidates with that organization and so he's currently his full -time employment is this this this ministry of taking care of missionaries who are on their way to the field and helping them to stay the course and Grow in the ways that they need to and so he's been mentoring
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Zach and Lee along the way And as a former missionary and as a member of Zach and Lee's sending agency
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I'm very excited to have Larry come and bring this charge to us He's gonna be giving us as a congregation a challenge on how to continue to support them as a former missionary
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I'm sure he has some insight into that Things that churches were able to do that would help and things like that But he's gonna be bringing the word to bear on our lives and talking to us about holding the rope
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So Larry if you come up at this time, I appreciate you being here with us and traveling from Pennsylvania to be here
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So thanks a lot Larry Good morning It's really great to be here with you and As pastor
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Don mentioned Michelle and I have been serving with team and this last year or so We have been serving
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Alongside or I've been serving alongside Zach and Lee and I remember meeting them in the mountains of Tennessee in February of 2015 and Little did we know that shortly after arriving we would be met by a crazy ice storm that doubt our power for about 24 hours
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Knocked out the internet service for about four or five days Or any cell service on the top of this mountain.
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So it was still a great time getting to know people but It was just really great to get to meet them and many times when you meet a new missionary there.
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They're all excited I think this is going to go really really fast for us and we're gonna out the door lickety -split
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To be gone in about a year and I remember you meet most new missionaries and they're all thinking it's fast for them does but the task at hand sometimes gets larger than they think and What seems to be a few months ends up being many many many months?
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But Zach and Lee I were diligent at the work ahead of them and I'm sure their their faith was tested a few times
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Not sure what God was doing and even their faith was tested this last week in obtaining their visas but God was faithful to the task and Here we are roughly a year later and They are ready to launch on this journey.
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So it's been Great to walk with them and it is really really great to be here to celebrate in this with you guys well, let me
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Talk to you about two other missionaries, perhaps you've heard this story before But in September 1952 to Columbia Walter Erickson and Edward Tritt Received an invitation by the government of then
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Dutch New Guinea modern -day Papua They've received an invitation to go on a journey expedition into the interior parts of the country
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And Erickson and were the first two missionaries sent by the Evangelical Alliance mission team Tritt had arrived a few months or this whereas Erickson was there about a year or so earlier
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But in September of 1952 the two embarked on this journey. It was a very difficult and challenging journey fraught with difficult terrain leeches
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Leeches Difficult difficulty in the language as well as some really really strained relationships between Erickson and Tritt and their guides
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Eric Edward Tritt wrote a lot about this journey in his journal But the last journal entry was from September 27th, 1952 at that time
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Communication with the missionaries was lost and A search party went out to try to find them on October 17th
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Tritt and Erickson's bodies were found Apparently while they were asleep They were overtaken by their guides and as a result lost their lives
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Well in this day and age that might have been the end of missionary work in Papua We tend to be a little safe a little less risky these days
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But in the words of the German pastor and author Dietrich Bonhoeffer who also lost his life at the hands of the
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Nazis He said when Christ calls a man he can't he bids him to come and die
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Sometimes that's taken literally most certainly every time it's taken that we Give our will to God His desire becomes our desire
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Well, this was not the end of missions work. No sooner was the news of Tritt and Erickson shared by a team's assistant general director
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When Ron and Charlene Hill stepped forward as replacements for Erickson and Tritt and Ron recalled a
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Story that he had a discussion that he had with Walter Erickson before Erickson left for Papua and It was right then and there that Ron decided that he would follow
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God's call wherever God desired little did he know That God would answer that call in the wake of this sad news
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The stories that followed are incredible how Tritt and Erickson's fiancee's followed the call on the missions despite this heavy grief upon their lives
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How God's judgment weighed heavily upon this village where these attackers? resided many many other missionaries soon followed the call to go and 60 plus years later team has sent over 425 missionaries to this area of the world
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Today most of the work has shifted to schools to train nationals to go into the interior of the country to preach the gospel or to event community centers where evangelistic activities are reaching the the growing migrant population
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Today the dangers are not the same as they were for Walter Erickson and Edward Tritt But the call does remain the same and that calls to go there for and make disciples of all the nations
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And that's why we're here today To celebrate what God is doing continues to do as he calls people out
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To go and make disciples this time as he's calling the Lloyd family to go to Papua Now, did you know that we serve a ascending
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God? Long before Erickson and Tritt long before team was in existence long before the
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Lloyds God has been sending people We read of of Abraham being called out from the land of her which is in modern -day
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Iraq if you will he was called out from there to go to the land of Cain in the Promised Land and He went in faith to do whatever it was that God called him to do many years later we read of a
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Specific call that Isaiah received in Isaiah 6 we read of him being called to prophesy to these Israelite people many many years after that God Sent forth his very son here to earth to live among us and to die ultimately for our sins
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Paul writes of that at Galatians 4 for but when the fullness of time had come God sent forth his son That call continues to this day prior to his ascension to heaven
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Jesus charged the disciples with this that we read in John 20 21 Jesus said to them again
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Peace be with you as the Father has sent me even so I am sending you God continues to call people time and time again whether that's across the street or around the world is up to him
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Yes today we are here to celebrate the sending of the Lloyd family to Papua To recognize what
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God is doing But this is also a celebration and commitment to you their church
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To say we are in this together. We are standing with you for the good the bad and all the in -between
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We are in this together As pastor
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Don mentioned earlier, this is what we would call a commissioning service Commissioning what does that kind of mean?
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Well one of the definition many definitions of the word But one of the definitions is the authority granted free an action or a function
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That's really an appropriate term for today As we read earlier in Acts 13 2 to 3.
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That's exactly what this little church in Antioch did They commissioned Saul and Barnabas to go out.
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They laid their hands on them and released them But they were sensitive to what God was doing in the congregation
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They were sensitive that God had specifically said to Saul and Barnabas you were to go out and he recognized that laid their hands on It released them and sent them
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That's the significance of this day you recast church or recognizing the calling given by God and You affirm it in the
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Lloyd's today And you bless them in this journey It's something similar to what
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John writes in John in 3rd John verses 5 through 8 John writes
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Beloved it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers strangers as they are Who testified to your love before the church?
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You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God For they have gone out for the sake of the name accepting nothing from the
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Gentiles Therefore we ought to support people like these that we may be fellow workers for the truth
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John says you're sending them on their journey and they're going out for the sake of the name that is
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Christ's name and you need to do well as Supporting them in this as co -laborers in ministry.
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I might add today that you're also seeing results of your own labor the name of this church recast
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The remaining standing for Replication the core value of this church, right? You are you see you're not losing the
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Lloyd family you're simply redeploying them as They replicate their lives in Christ to the people they come in contact with It's a very very necessary thing
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Paul writes in Romans 10 14 to 15 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed
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And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching and how are they to preach unless they are sent?
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it's necessary for someone to go and Preach teach and share their lives in Christ to the people who don't know it
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It's necessary for Zach and Lee and their family to go To share their lives so that it can be replicated into the lives of the coupons
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You're also adhering to the call that the church has been given that which we read in Acts 1 8 but you receive power when the
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Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and To the end of the earth here.
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Jesus kind of gives a maybe a geographical blueprint for the church you have been reaching your local neighborhoods your communities your
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Jerusalem if you will and Your towns and cities around here your Judea your
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Samaria, but now you're fulfilling that last Geographical region to literally send them to the ends of the earth to Papua and This is necessary Today you are recognizing the calling of the
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Holy Spirit in this family and you're sending them off as you faithfully obey the Great Commission But your work will not end today
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In fact, it may just be beginning They will be in a very short time hopping on a plane heading off on a incredible fantastic journey
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But they will be in desperate need of your prayers and encouragement I'm reminded of another missionary
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William Carey. It's known as the father of modern missions He Served in for 41 years in India never once returned in England now
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Zack and the team is not asking you to stay for 41 years in Papua without ever returned into,
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Michigan But yeah, you know did some great things to he translate the
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Bible perhaps in six different languages Helped found the Baptist Missionary Society which exists to this day But prior to leaving his
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His friend and fellow pastor Andrew Fuller agreed to stay behind and to rally support for the effort and Fuller made this statement to his congregation.
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He said We saw that there was a gold mine in India But it seemed almost as deep as the center of the earth who will venture to explore it and Carrie had called out
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I Will go down but remember You must hold the ropes
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And fuller at it. We solemnly engaged to do so know why we live so we desert him
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You this church? Are being called to hold this rope for the
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Lloyd family They cannot go Nor be sustained in this ministry without you holding their rope
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Perhaps you may wonder What in the world does it look like to hold the rope for a missionary? The Philippian Church, I think is a great example of a church that held the rope for Paul Now it wasn't the
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Philippian Church was not Paul's sending church if you will like you are for the Lloyd's There's a church he found on a second missionary journey
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But this church caught the vision of partnering with Paul When you read this book you see
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Paul's a deep affection for this group of people He kind of holds him up as an example as we read and in Corinthians He tells the
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Corinthian Church look to the example the churches of Macedonia, which is where Philippi was located It's also widely accepted that Paul was in prison while he was writing this letter
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He's in shackles. He cannot go about talking to people and to plant churches like he had been doing
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But here he is and throughout this letter you read this theme of of joy and optimism
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Why why would Paul feel this his future looks dismal yet? He's got such Passion and joy and he's rejoicing
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Primarily because of his love for Christ and Christ's love for him But he also rejoices with this church and what they have done for him
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Of all the churches he could have written to he chooses to write to this church in Philippi read
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Philippians 1 3 through 8 Paul writes I Thank my
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God in all my remembrance of you Always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now and I am sure of this
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And he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Christ Jesus Christ It is right for me to feel this way about you all because I hold you in my heart
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For you are all partakers with me of grace Both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel for God is my witness how
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I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus Wow Do you catch what
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Paul is saying here? He's He's pouring it out
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Look at the verses just that the Paul is saying here read The rest of the
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Philippians at some point and just see Paul's passion pouring out to these people
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Why why them he's here saying I thank God for all my remembrance of you. I hold you in my heart
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Why this group of people? Simply put They got it
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They understood They partnered in this ministry of Paul later on in chapter 1
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You catch more glimpses of the church sharing in Paul's struggles They could empathize with them.
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They cared for and loved him They prayed for him. They were also sharing in Paul's vision for the gospel for evangelism sharing the good news preaching amongst people who don't know
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Christ They understood the hard work of that and In that they could deeply relate to Paul and his struggles in sharing the gospel
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Paul says that you are partakers with me both in imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel
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But we need to understand the depth of this partnership.
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It's not just superficial Paul uses a word here in verse 5
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We read it as partnership maybe in some translations partnership or participation Maybe communion may be fellowship
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It's a word. It's not important that you know, the original word the word is clean of Nia But this word has a deep deep rich meaning
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It means partnership and fellowship communion, but it also means being united in purpose and action serving alongside each other
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In the New Testament we read of a bunch of one another commands Things like love one another encourage one another live in harmony with another forgive one another be devoted to one another
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It's these kinds of commands that embody what Paul is talking about here in partnership
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Perhaps because of this partnership We can view Philippians as a great missionary newsletter from Paul to the
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Philippian Church Now hopefully Zach and Lee will never be writing to you from prison
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But when you read their letters When you see their emails Look at the words read between the lines and See their love for all of you
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See their love for sharing With others about Christ and as partners in this ministry to Papua in this coin onia relationship with them
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Make sure that you in turn encourage them bear with them motivate them
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Be devoted to them pray for them Love them Share with them in their struggles laugh and cry with them
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Share with them in ministry as you two are in partnership with the gospel as you are sharing with people here in Michigan as they
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Are doing likewise in Papua. I think we'd be amiss
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If we also didn't mention a little bit About finances And how this church partner with Paul Philippians 4 17 and 19
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Paul writes Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit.
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I Have received full payment and more I am well supplied having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent a fragrant offering a
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Sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God and my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus this church was able to tangibly show their support and partnership with Paul in what appears to be financial gifts
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Missionaries cannot exist overseas without finances, so it's important To support them in this regard, but the blessing is not only for them the blessing is also for you
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From the conversations I've had with the Lloyd's this church as a whole and perhaps many individuals are supporting them financially
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And coming alongside them because you love the Lloyd's You believe in the vision that they have been given but you also do so because you're giving back in the hands of God to be used as he sees fit and That generous giving is pleasing unto
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God and through it God's blessing reaches out to you as well Now dare we look too far ahead
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But when they read you'll have another great opportunity to to partner with them to share with them
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When they return in about give or take four years for their home assignment or furlough, whatever you might want to call it
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Look what happened in Antioch when Paul and Barnabas returned after their first missionary journey We read this in Acts Acts 14 26 to 27
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But I like how we read this account in message translation it reads this
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Finally they made it to Italia and caught a ship back to Antioch where it had all started
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Launched by God's grace now safely home by God's grace a good piece of work on arrival
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They got the church together and reported on their trip telling in detail I God had used them to throw the door of faith wide open so people of all nations could come streaming in Isn't that amazing?
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I love how it says at the beginning there Where it all started launched by God's grace and now safely home by God's grace
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Remember the word we talked about commissioning authority granted for a purpose or function
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It's the authority is in God's grace that is launching them today
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Here at recast church where it all started You're sending them in full faith of that grace.
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They don't know what's ahead of them We don't know what's ahead of them, but we do know that God's grace is sufficient for them and for you upon their return you'll hear all kinds of Things about God's grace sustained them and how
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God did amazing things in and through them never we read of here and about Antioch The church or do you think maybe the church got together?
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Heard a story or two had some punch some cake and then went home after 30 minutes Now I think in every sense of the the
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Christian sense of the word. I think they partied it up They got together and they praised
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God for what he was doing They were amazed this little band of believers was hearing the gospel going out amongst the world as far as they knew
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They God was doing some amazing things They heard story after story after story and they couldn't get enough of it.
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The Lloyds will come back and They will tell you all kinds of stories of how they made some serious mistakes at the language some funny food stories and How they broke some big -time cultural no -nos
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That's just what goes with it being overseas But in between all that You will hear some great stories of how
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God used them To touch people to bring people closer to him and perhaps even seeing some
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Come to know him personally Wouldn't you love to hear these stories when they return?
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To praise God for what he has done like this church in Antioch was hearing then as their partners in ministry
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Don't you think you should be in frequent prayer for them Plead with God for their safety
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They will be on the front lines and the enemy does not want them there Plead with God to keep their eyes fixed on Christ because I will tell you that cross -cultural ministry anywhere overseas outside the
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United States is Emotionally mentally and spiritually
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Challenging Plead with God to break down the barriers that are before them so that his kingdom will break through to Papua Be faithful in this and as you do
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You can wait with great hope and anticipation for that day to praise God Similarly to what the church in Antioch did you can praise
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God for how his word was going out to people living in darkness But have seen a great light
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The light of Christ that is inside The Lloyd's the light that this church has helped kindle inside of them
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You know when the Israelites Crossed the Jordan for the first time He had left
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Egypt and were entering the Promised Land It had crossed and God said
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I want you to build a memorial They took 12 stones and they built a memorial right there
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So that they and future generations could be reminded of God's faithfulness of how he had called them out today
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May this day be a memorial to commemorate all that God has done in their lives
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But how he has called this church to set them apart send them along their way and Be in partnership to continue in that koinonia
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Relationship with them. I remember our commissioning service back in 2006
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A missionary a pastor from when our supporting churches was there and he told us
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Says remember this day Remember when your calling was affirmed on this day because there will be days in Czech Republic when you're be like this isn't worth it
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This is hard Remember your calling remember when was affirmed on this day
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Looking back there were many of those days, but today I ask that you recast
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Church Remember this day Remember your commitment to the
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Lloyd's in partnership in the gospel Remember you must hold the rope for them.
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They desperately need you to do that Thank you. I'll get a chance to do this very often to get up and and speak after communion
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I think there's something cool about that. Just having reflected and remembered what Christ has done for us I would encourage you over the next few minutes that if any time you need to get more coffee or juice or I don't even know if there's any doughnuts left over there
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But whatever it takes to kind of keep our focus here, and I'm not gonna go very long this morning
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But I am going to be speaking to Zach and Lee specifically and giving them a challenge from the church but I am speaking to them as a friend and It's been such a joy to serve alongside of Zach and Lee over these years
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And even though I'm speaking to them I would like everybody to listen in To God's challenge for ministry as we think about this because honestly
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God's Word as I'm gonna bring it It's something for all of us to take on Despite the fact that I'm specifically tailoring it to your your circumstance in your situation.
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So I listen in Zach and Lee Your calling your calling is a great gain for Indonesia.
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It's I'm convinced of this But it is a great sacrifice for as a church, isn't it?
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It's a sacrifice for us You've been here. You've been praying for recast church And I don't know how many of you would even be aware of this
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But they were praying for recast church for over a year before this church ever existed before we ever had our first meetings
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They were there faithfully on Wednesday nights in the boardroom over a Berean Baptist Church Where this thing this idea this plot was hatched to start a church in Matawan, Michigan And they were a part of that from the very beginning and they were there
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From the very beginning You've shined the light of Christ to others by using your gifts and your abilities to serve the body of Christ And I am thankful to God For the way that he has ministered through you
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It's been a privilege to serve with you to sharpen you and to be sharpened by you And I am so pleased to be sending your family out and that I know
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I know you I know your work ethic I know your passion for the glory of God. I know your hunger to see the kingdom of God expanded.
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I Know your commitment to the Word of God And I also know your commitment to the gospel In your time at recast you've been models of ministry to many of us and in your going out
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You are models of ministry to many here. I'm grateful to be sending you out without reservations
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I can imagine it being otherwise But it isn't I send you out without reservations and I'm confident that that's the that's the the sense of this church as well
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I know you're gonna work hard in it in Indonesia for Christ But I do have a text that I've chosen to challenge you as you step out into the new season of your life
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I Recognize that I fully believe and I've had even conversations with you guys about many of these things that are pulling from the text
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And I know that they're on your heart and I know there are things that you desire and at the same time just to remind You I sense that this is going to be a reminder from the text of God's Word to help you to move forward
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So our text this morning is 1st Corinthians 2 1 through 5. I'd encourage everybody to just look over there We're gonna be brief
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It's kind of one point per verse here and we're gonna be looking through it But this is what God laid on my heart as I was reflecting on sending you guys out into gospel ministry
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And so let's all read this together 1st Corinthians 2 1 through 5 follow along in God's Word Paul speaking here and I when
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I came to you brothers did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom
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For I decided to do nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified
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And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling and my speech and my message were not implausible words of wisdom
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But in demonstration of the Spirit and of power that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God Let's pray briefly before I dive into this father.
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I thank you for your word I thank you for the power that your word has to transform us and to change us again
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I thank you for sending out Zach and Lee and I pray that this word might be something that they can reflect on and come back to time and time again as a reminder to them of the way that You send out
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Paul and Paul in his ministry to the church in Corinth came to them in a certain attitude in a certain perspective
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That we're gonna be looking at here in a moment I pray that you would move in all of us to think and contemplate about the way that we move
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Out from this place each week out into our community But for Zach and Lee, that's so much more this week to be moving out into Indonesia We pray that you would be with your word as it comes into our hearts this morning in Jesus name.
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Amen In 1st Corinthians 2 Paul was reflecting on his method of ministry
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Back in the time when he first came amongst the Corinthians, so he's he's now no longer there This is a church that he started he planted it now
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He's removed and he said he's writing to them and saying hey remember what it was like in the beginning Remember the method with which
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I came to you remember my approach to you Well right now Zach and Lee are getting ready to approach a new people
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They're coming they're gonna be coming into a new community here shortly a place where they're gonna set up house
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They're gonna set up life. They're gonna learn the grocery store They're gonna learn how to manage that that fish market and those kinds of things and I mean all different kinds of things including the
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Language and all that but they're gonna have some barriers there that they're gonna be working to overcome and and there's an attitude and a heart that I see in Paul here that I want to encourage you guys to take on as you
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Enter this new stage of life of coming in amongst the people to minister to them and the first thing that I want to reflect on is found in verse 1 and that is
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Humility the humility with which Paul came into that community he exhibited humility
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He did not come into that new community as an arrogant man Now I have no question, and I'm confident if you study the life of Paul I'm confident that Paul showed up in Corinth and had some strong confidence in the message
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He was bringing do you agree with me on that you think you think Paul had some confidence that he was right?
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And he had something right to bring to the people of Corinth And I'm confident that you guys are right, and I believe that you have confidence that you are right
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Look at how Paul approached them though knowing that he was right He did not come to them with lofty another word for lofty is arrogant.
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He did not come with arrogant speech or with arrogant wisdom Well did he come with speech?
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Yeah, did he come with wisdom? Yeah But not with arrogant speech
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Not with arrogant wisdom He certainly came to the people of Corinth with the truth
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But he also came to them with significant humility and what he brought
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What he brought to them was not his own and he knew the message that he had to bring to them was not his own
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But rather what he had to offer to them was the testimony of God And I believe that that led him to humility
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Not not our message not the Lloyd's message, but the testimony of God that you have to bring
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Zach and Lee and family as you move to Indonesia do so with confidence in the testimony of God But do so with humility.
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That's number one secondly in verse 2 Paul moved into Corinth with focus
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With a laser point focus Paul. I believe it says he I came among you and I knew nothing
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Other than Christ and him crucified now. Do you think Paul knew more than that? I mean did he know more than that in his mind?
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How many of you think he had a little bit more knowledge than that? So he's intentionally choosing what to know and what not to know here
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Which is which is ultimately to say he's focusing in on something. He was trained under Gamaliel How many of you know that he he knew the
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Ten Commandments fairly? Well, he had a lot of Old Testament law He had a lot of other things that he could have brought into the community in Corinth You guys have a lot to bring into the community that you're moving into to Montecore to Salatiga to the
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Indonesians You have a lot to bring to them But here in our text Paul says
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I made it a point to focus on that which matters most Christ and him crucified
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And that is the message and I know you know that message, but I believe that there's gonna be temptation
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Zach and Lee I believe there's gonna be temptation to to teach other things to to bring in a lot of other things into that mix
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Paul here says when I came in among you Took that which is first and foremost Jesus Christ and his sacrificial death on behalf of sinful humanity
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He had a laser light focus towards his King and that sacrifice When you guys get to the field you can get through language training
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You're gonna move and settle in about a year from now a little bit more than a year You're gonna be settling into Montecore the the final city of your ministry
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There's gonna be a lot of avenues of ministry It's gonna be a lot of options that are laid out in front of you a lot of different ways
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And you're gonna hear from other missionaries different methods what's worked What hasn't I'd encourage you to take some of that on but never lose sight of that central focus of why you are there
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Christ and him crucified you you know when you want to come when you move into Indonesia in just just maybe a few weeks
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You might be tempted to begin to teach them the value of sticking to a calendar for example that just might
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I mean I know you guys a little bit but that could be a temptation or or to show up at the time that you say you're gonna show up for a meeting like There might be some things practically that you would like to teach them
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But my encouragement to you is to focus on that one thing Christ and him crucified the cross let that be your one message third
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In verse 3 Paul came to the Corinthians recognizing the gravity of the situation He recognized what's at stake in verse 3?
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He says that he came to them with weakness and in much fear and fear and much trembling I Don't want to preach a message that you guys need to be fearful as you go there
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But there's something here that Paul says when I entered this missionary endeavor when I came into The place of Corinth where they did not understand the gospel there was
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Weakness like his knees were weak, and he trembled well what for I don't think he was fearful of them
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I don't think he was scared of the Corinthians Paul who had been shipwrecked and beaten and left for dead I mean, I think he was kind of like well.
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This is kind of routine stuff I mean that happened. I'm sure that that was not fun for him, but he was a bold individual
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I don't think he was afraid of them. I think he was afraid for them
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And that's what I would encourage you to contemplate is the gravity of the calling Paul both recognized his own weakness, but also he recognized.
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What is at stake in Kingdom ministry again a reminder? I know you guys know this but but thinking that through He recognized.
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What is at stake salvation is certainly of God. I know you know that exactly that many conversations We just sat
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Zach had the opportunity to go with his father and we were down there with the elders and we went to a conference where there was a lot of talk about the sovereignty of God and how salvation is a work of God and and and trusting in that is what helps a missionary to sleep at night trusting in that is what helps us as Christians to sleep at night knowing that salvation is
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God's work We're faithful to share and to do it But who is the one who saves God is the one who saves we can't do that if we thought it was on our shoulders
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If you thought it was on your shoulders that you wouldn't rest much But I know that you know that it is of God it is his work
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But there is indeed a gravity Surrounding gospel ministry that should bring us to tremble at the thought of what is caught in the balance here
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What is at stake? So as you go to Indonesia go with the joy of the calling of Christ knowing that he has has called you out for this ministry
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But also go with the recognition of the gravity of the need of among the people in Indonesia the gravity of the calling of the gospel ministry reminded
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Paul of his weakness and Caused him to take his calling seriously fourth in verse 4 again
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Paul reflects on humility like he did in verse 1, but he adds a little bit of a twist He didn't move to into Corinth with finely crafted arguments.
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We saw our snappy well -thought -out words of wisdom But it was the demonstration of the power of God that moved in that community
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Certainly, you're gonna need to use some words right? I mean you're gonna need some words It's not gonna be just going and doing magic tricks or something like that.
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That's gonna get it done I don't know if you guys learn mime yet. Is that something you have to learn as a mission? No you don't okay?
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So you're gonna need to you're gonna need to learn some words And that's why your first year is gonna be in Salatiga for language study
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But but really think in terms of you know you're gonna be studying the language, but where is your hope placed is it fluency?
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Is your hope placed in that you will eventually one day be able to share the gospel completely is that is that where the hope?
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Rests in fluidity of language or clarity or Is your trust in the power of God to change hearts and minds?
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Paul didn't trust in his own ability to communicate the gospel Secondly the language barrier will help you to lean heavily on God early on I think that's gonna be pretty clear right that you're gonna have to trust in him
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And it's one thing that I learned about working with international students who come to America when I was working with them at Western It's just the reality that somebody can have a master's degree and when they are speaking a foreign language
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They sound like a kindergartner Have you ever noticed that and I've always it always I always felt bad for them because there's this intelligent
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Individual in there trying to get out in expression, and you're gonna feel that pressure at times There's gonna be times when it's gonna be like I want to get this out, and I I mean you guys are
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Educated you're intelligent people, and it's gonna be like I just don't even know how to order a pizza right now
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You know it's like I mean basic basic stuff. I don't even know if they have pizza But uh when
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I keep that on but I Don't know, but yeah, there's gonna be this language barrier, and you're gonna have to lean heavily on God during that time
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But as you increase in your proficiency of the Indonesian language Never let your trust slide away from the power of God To your own ability to provide plausible words and wise quips in Indonesian Let it rest where it should be the power of God and lastly
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Number five Paul's ultimate motivation and coming into Corinth was the glory of God.
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I know that both of you have a strong view of God's sovereignty and I believe that that trust in the sufficiency and supremacy of Christ and all in and over all things is going to serve you well in the twists and turns of Missionary life and there will be twists and there will be turns we all experience twists and turns in life
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Right and yet those will be at a different a different caliber in a different scope as missionaries My final encouragement to you from verse 5 is that like Paul?
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When you look back on your legacy of ministry in Indonesia, it is not that you have built up a people who trust
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Zack and Lee Lloyd But rather a people who know what God has done in their midst
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But the glory and the credit for your toil in the mission field shines out his power in his glory,
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I Know that good things are in store for you Because I know the God that's sending you and I know he always gives good to his children
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And you guys know what? I mean by that that's code for it's not all gonna be easy
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Because God's gonna give you exactly what you need and sometimes you're gonna need a challenge Sometimes you're gonna need things to knock the rough edges off of you, and I know you've experienced that in life already
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But I know that God has good in store for both of you I'm grateful to be sending you out
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I'm well aware that many of these things are just Reminders to you you've thought about them
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You've wrestled with them. You've been making an effort to put them into practice in your lives But my prayer for you as a family is that your ministry in Indonesia is characterized by humility
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By focus by gravity by power and ultimately that the glory goes to God for all
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I'm grateful. That's our privilege is recast to send out a family that has already worked to be so faithful here I'm so glad we are not sending out slouches
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That'd be a tough that would be a tough a tough thing, right But the fact of the matter is you guys leave a gap here
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And if you didn't leave a gap then it would be no sacrifice for at all for for our church But the church will feel and kind of already has felt in your and you're proud in the process of raising support and being gone
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We felt your absence But at this time we're gonna ask Zach and Lee and their family to come up and we're gonna move these chairs over here for a
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Second and we're gonna have the elders come up and and pray for them and their family. So if you guys want to come up and The elders would just join here
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Zach and leave here We're just gonna have each one of the elders
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Offer a prayer for Zach and Lee. Um, there's something that is I think symbolic here. I mean we God in his word gives us symbols
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He gives us a symbol of Bread and juice for the body and blood of Christ and here what we do is symbolically by laying hands on them
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My hands don't have power. We're not healing them. We're not sending them any power but there's a picture here of our endorsement of them as we lay our hands on them is our our
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It's a biblical and scriptural way of saying we are sending them with our authority and with what
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God has Issued for us and so at this time and I'm just gonna ask you guys to pray Maybe just we'll just pray in this order.
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Let's go ahead and offer prayers to them. So For them, let's pray Heavenly Father.
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I thank you for the Lloyd's Lord. I thank you for your call on their life I thank you for the way you've worked in their life through through all the circumstances to this point and I Grateful for them as friends
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God, and I'm sorry to see them go out of our immediate context here But God, we were so rejoicing for your work in their life and father for your for your sovereignty in Directing them to this mission field and God.
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I I pray you would equip them and empower them to do your work there Give them the the faith they need give them the strength they need
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Help them to grow as they go through this experience and father use them in a mighty way on the mission field
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Heavenly Father. I am reminded of Samuel and Isaiah who say here Am I and I'm grateful that the
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Lloyd's have Answered your call and we ask that they would be in your hand as they go that they would
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Remember your works in their lives and in the lives of this body when the times get tough
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We pray for the details of travel and language Safety Lord we ask that you would
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Be with the kids that you would give them Insight and wisdom that comes from you as they face challenges
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Lord, we pray that you would Make their time fruitful that they would not look to Progress and gain as man does but as you do
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Lord that they would see spiritual Fruit and that they would be
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Encouraged to see your work around them and Lord for us we pray that you would
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Give us the wisdom that we would learn as they are learning To really support them to know what to say when to say it and how to say it or we pray that He would give opportunity for us even to Join in their ministry physically
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And we also pray that you would return them to us at the right time
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That we may rejoin one another We ask all these things in your son's name. Amen Lord, I too.
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Thank you for the Lloyd's. Thank you for their faithfulness to you Thank you for their responding to this call
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Lord and pray that you would go out with them Pray especially Lord for their marriage and for their family that you would strengthen and encourage them that they would be faithful and loving to each other and Zach would continue to lay down his life
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For his wife and for his family pray for their education Lord as they Continue the wonderful work of homeschooling
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Lord that you would be faithful to them in the resources that they need and the ability to Impart truth and wisdom to their kids
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Lord And Lord, I pray for us as a congregation that we would
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Be united in purpose that we would see that they are encouraged by the work that's going on here in Matawan and in our communities as Lives are changed and hearts are drawn to you that they would
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Be able to know that's going on here and have that same joy and excitement in your work
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That we would be able to hear the wonderful stories From them and as we see hearts and lives change to to follow
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Christ learn God today we Recognize your faithfulness and all of this
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Lord we recognize as your children and As recast church that you have laid a call on Zach and Lee and you've called them out and Lord we recognize that we honor that Lord remind them of your faithfulness on the days when that when they can't see it when they can't feel it
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Lord remind us of where they're at on those days and may we lift their their name up before you
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Because you are you will take care of father. I Want to just thank you It's humbling to me to see your hand
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The sketching of your hand across their lives Over these last several years and to see the way that you have brought them to this very place in this very time for this ministry that you've called them to I Thank you for this church and the opportunity that we have to support them and to send them out father
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I pray that you would sustain them encourage them give them boldness give them focus
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Give them the humility that they need as they enter into this new culture and father that it would all be for your glory for your honor father that Christ would be lifted high that he would be manifest in their lives in a way that they look more and more like Christ and father that that would rub off on the