← Church of the Highlands - Sunday Messages - Audio
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It is so great to see everybody here at Highlands today. I just love looking into this room and seeing all of your faces and, of course, imagining every single location joining us right now, every campus, anyone who's joining us online or on demand later on this week or this year at some point, and of course, the men and women of the Alabama correctional facilities. Come on, let's put our hands together and welcome our entire church family. And I just sense God's presence here today, and there is so much passion in the room. I know the same is true at every location. And I'm just. I'm excited to be with all of you, all of you here today at church. I believe God's got something in store for each of us today. Before we jump in the message, though, I did want to just honor one more group. I know I already had you clap, but I'm just really thankful today watching our news package. Really thankful today for all the ministry that's happening in Highlands Kids. Can y' all honor the Highlands kids team? Pastor Beth, the entire team. Thank God. As someone who has kids in Highlands Kids, I'm so thankful that our church is a church that points them to Jesus and then helps them learn at a young age the word of God. And so just don't want to ever miss a chance to thank them. That is not childcare. What's happening there is discipleship, and that's an amazing, amazing thing. So, again, excited to be with you guys today. We're finishing out a series. So if you're new at Highlands, you're jumping into the very last part, and we would love you to go back and watch what's already happened. But if you want to know what it's all been about, this whole month has been about the fact that we are a people who have a new beginnings God. And back at Christmas, Pastor Chris really heard from the Holy Spirit and declared that 2025 would be a year of new beginnings. And so we've launched this series this month to really dig into that, called All Things New, where we've talked about new faith, we've talked about new fitness, how God's created us to be a vessel that he wants to use. And then last week was a powerful message on new freedom. And I'll jump into our topic today, but I really just want to make sure we don't miss the opportunity. Again, if you're new here today or you've been a part of this entire series, you know, this is not something that we just came up with. Our God is truly Throughout Scripture, represented as this God that no matter what we have done, can give us a new beginning. And so our theme text has been out of Isaiah 43, 18 and 19, and makes it even more powerful when you know the context. This is a verse that God is speaking through Isaiah to the people of Israel. And Israel's story is a lot like our story. They were kind of up and down. At least I know it's a lot like my story. There was moments where they loved God and served God. And this is actually a moment where they had stepped back into disobedience and they had put themselves in a really bad situation. And, you know, you would expect God to be mad at them. God to scold them, to rebuke them, to smite them. You know, all this, you know, whatever you might imagine, he's given them chance after chance and they have squandered it. But instead, we get this beautiful love letter from God that I want all of us to receive personally today. He says, you know, forget the former things. I love that. That our God is God, who from the very beginning, he just wants us to know that no matter what happened in 2024 or before, that today is an opportunity. Can I get a better amen in church today? Today's an opportunity for a new beginning. So don't dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing. And that's what this whole series has been about. The new thing that God wants to do now, it springs up. Do you not perceive it? I'm making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. So no matter where we have been today, not just this year, today is an opportunity for that new beginning. God has a blank slate for all of us today. Through the grace and the mercy of God, we can have a new beginning and God can write a new story in each of us. And honestly, I just want to build faith today for what I believe God is already doing, just really just to shine light on the fact that God is moving in a huge way in our church right now. I mean, 21 days of prayer was just special. Even last or yesterday, this entire room was packed out just like it is right now with people praying and seeking God. Did you guys enjoy 21 days? Come on. Anybody out there? It was so powerful. Whether you're online or in person, we've seen God move every single week at church. And what I love is how the response to that is that we are. We are all, as a church, taking next steps. I think this is just incredible. And this Month alone, y', all, we have seen 2,637 people engaged with the growth track, which is. That's a lot of people saying, you know what? God has more for me, which is what the growth track's all about. Just meeting, you know, three steps where we can get involved in our church and discover purpose and ultimately to jump on it, jump on a team, which is amazing. God's moving. In our young people, we have had fasting retreats and services where the presence of God has moved in a powerful way. Just this past week, just to highlight one of those, our one college students met, and over 2,200 college students gathered together to worship God. I'm just saying God's on the move. God's on the move. And really, the one that we gotta celebrate the most is altogether, we've seen 3,346 salvations in this month alone. And, y', all, there are story after story of the miracles that are happening. In fact, on day 5 of 21 days at our Tuscaloosa campus of a documented miracle of a young boy, five years old, who had dealt his entire life with aspirations. Swallowing issues. That day was all about healing. His father laid hands on him, and in that moment, he was healed. In fact, a few hours later, they went to the doctor. He is no longer on medicine, like, completely healed. God's moving. I'm just telling you, God is moving. On day 10, I got a text right after prayer of a couple who was on the brink of divorce. And God really moved in the husband's heart during that day at prayer. And he texted me. He's like, pastor Mark, I'm telling you, keep me accountable. We are not getting divorced. We're gonna figure it out. We're getting back. Like, we're getting back together, moving back in together. God is moving in our marriage, and he's just on the move, y'. All. It's been a miracle season. I mean, Even in day 18, we had snow in Daphne and Mobile. Are you kidding me? So it's been an amazing month. And. And so we're gonna lean in today as we finish out this series, really with, to be honest, a day of decision. This is kind of a take what all that God has been doing. And I'm gonna hit a topic really hard today that's critical for us to take our next step. A next step for each of us. Today's all about that decision. I do wanna say, though, just as a pastor, if you are, this is day 22. If you're still Praying for that miracle. If you have not seen the answer yet, do not be discouraged now. I really just wanna speak to anyone who right now is still, you know, you're praying for your marriage, you're praying for your child. You're praying for that healing miracle in your own life. God is a new beginning. God. And your miracle is coming. And I love what the Bible says in Philippians 1:6. Being confident. That's what I'm praying that God would do right now, even in your heart right now, that you would have a confidence, being confident of this. That's why I've been honestly sharing those stats just to build faith today that he who began a good work in you will carry it to completion. The day of Christ Jesus our God is that kind of God. So this is not a moment heading out of January into February and beyond to pull back. This is a moment to press in. You know, a couple weeks ago, Pastor Chris gave that illustration of honking the horn. Y' all remember that? And y' all be honest with you. I've had pce, honking a horn anxiety ever since. Anytime I'm hot on Highway 280, I hear a horn, I'm imagining it's Pastor Chris behind me right there. That's a true story. I'm like, is that PC? You know, But. But honestly, God has used it in my life on a personal level. That. That beep, beep like it's time. Mark, don't, don't stop short. And even if God's begun to work, there's more like it's. This is not a moment to pull back. This is a moment to step forward. But we're going to need beyond a shadow of a doubt. I believe it's even impossible for us to experience all that's in front of us without today's topic to. Today we're going to jump into really. What was one part of last week's message. New fellowship. How all of us need fellowship in our life. And I love that word, fellowship. How many of you guys remember the fellowship hall? Come on, wave at me. Wave at me now. Go with me right now. All right? Because we all had the same. Somehow we all had the same fellowship hall. Cinder blocks painted white, six foot tables. Come on. Folding chairs and potluck lunch on day 22. Right? So fellowship, it's one of those words, though, that we don't honestly use very often anymore. It's kind of one of those words that's gone out of circulation. However that works. We talk about friends or relationship. I like Fellowship. And as I dug into the meaning of the word, I know why that word has been used traditionally in the church is because it's a Jesus word. In fact, if you want to take notes today in your app, you can write this down. You know, fellowship is the relationships in our lives that are centered on the unity we have in Christ. So thank God for friendships, and there's all kinds of friendships, and we need friendships. But I'm thankful that at the core of that, God offers to us fellowship, that we can be surrounded by others who, no matter where they look like or where they come from, our unity is in Christ. It's that we're there with each other in the journey of pursuing Jesus, knowing God, finding freedom, discovering purpose, and making a difference. And if you read the Bible, what you're gonna see is that literally from Genesis to Revelation, fellowship is a major theme of scripture. I wanna teach us today. We're gonna go through two parts of this message. The first part is kind of the theology or really the heart of God for fellowship for all of us. And then we're gonna talk more about the culture of fellowship at the very end. But the verse I want to use is. It's from the New Testament church in Hebrews 10, verses 23 through 25. We're gonna kind of key off of this text today says, let us hold unswervingly to the hope. And again, this is important. I'm gonna highlight this because that hope right there is Jesus. And again, remember, fellowship is centered around the hope. What brings us together? It may be common interests. It may be what we're studying. It may be that we all attend the same church. Geographically, we're together, but at the heart of it, to be fellowship, it is all centered on the hope we have. It's the hope that we have in Jesus. We profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds. Not giving up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another. And all the more, as you see that day approaching. This word right here is one of my favorite words in the Bible. It's one of my favorite words. I love the word together. Come on, look at your neighbor and say together. Together. And I love that word because it's the action of fellowship. We're coming together. And I love even looking around this room, y'. All. Today we have come together, and our church is a together church. If you're new here at Highlands, we're just one big crazy Diverse family. Can I get a better Amen? Come in. Look around. Just the beauty of this room. I mean, we're from Alabama and we're from Georgia. When we're black or white or Hispanic or Asian, we're young. Aren't y' all thankful for the young people in our church? Hey, you know what? I'm thankful for the older people in our church, the wisdom of older people who've pursued God all of their lives. I'm okay with us middle aged people being in our church and just continuing to learn how to walk out our faith with God. We are one big together family from the country, from the suburbs, from the city. And God has brought all of us together. It's a beautiful, beautiful thing and it's the heart of God because God knows this. This is one of the rally cries of my family, but I think it's a beautiful rally cry for our entire church. We just know that together we win. That if we can just find a way to get past our differences and center around Jesus, then there's a whole lot of future, a whole lot of new beginning in front of us. So I want to kind of go back to Hebrews 10 and unpack it for a moment. There's really three kind of. On that theology of together, that theology of fellowship, there's three critical pieces of that text that we learn that you just gotta know. This is the why behind fellowship number one. The most important one is that together is God's plan. It's our heart, because it's his plan. And we see that at the very beginning of that text in verse 24, says, Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds. Spur one another on that when God brings us together in fellowship, he's doing it intentionally, that we all need each other, we need to come around each other, yes, to hang out and yes, to spend time together, but so that we'll have the accountability of our pursuit of Jesus, that you'll be there for me and I'll be there for you. The bottom line is this fellowship is vital Christianity. This may hit hard for some of you guys who had a bad experience with this, but Christianity is not an individual assignment. It is a group project. And all the smart people kind of twitched right there because the group project meant you did all the work. But in God's heart, it's impossible. It's impossible to really pursue the best that God has for us in our lives on our own. He designed it for us to spur one another on. And I'm thankful for that. Because honestly, if we try to do this thing by ourselves, it's miserable. I'm gonna give you a little bit of a metaphor. It's kind of a funny one, but I think it's a powerful one to kind of hang this thought around. I'm not a huge bicycle rider, but there was a point in my childhood, my dad is. He's here in this service. I love my dad growing. He was one of those dads that, like, we found new hobbies and he would just hit it and it would be the thing we do, and then we would move on to something else. And there was this one season that, that was. We joined a bike club. It was biking, street biking. So we're on the road, not mountain biking, but we joined this bike club, y'. All. We went to Walmart. We got the Huffy 21 speed bike. It looked so good. And so we got this bike, got our helmets, went on a couple small rides. But the first big ride we went on was a life defining moment for me. And I know y' all are gonna think I make this stuff up, but a lot of my memories are Mount Chiha. That's just my story. Okay, so they take us to the bottom of Mount Chiha, and they're like, today's ride is, we're gonna. We're gonna ride up this mountain. It might as well have been Mount Everest for me. I'm on this 21 speed. I got it in granny gear. I am pushing as hard as I can. I'm wanting to get off my bike and walk it. And my dad is yelling at me, pedices don't walk. My dear Lord, Pedices also don't prepare because we just went out here and did it, you know? So, okay, so for some of you, like, your walk with God has been like that. You're just on the bike, like, kicking as hard as you can. Now let me give you another metaphor. And this is the heart of God. And that is really Christianity is more like a church fan. Can I get an amen? All right. Fifteen passenger church fan. I mean, we talk in fellowship halls today and 15 passenger church fans. It's a throwback Sunday. But it's true. I have so many great memories. And a church fan going to a retreat, going to a conference, all the crazy things that happened. I was sharing this at our saturated retreat a few weeks ago. But I just remembered even early on, when I was just joining the team here at Highlands, I was a youth pastor and Jill and I led a mission Trip to Mexico. And we didn't fly. We drove to Mexico with 15 middle schoolers in a church van. And I'm here to testify about it. I lived through the whole thing. Can y' all just imagine what that smelled like? You know, Axe body spray and Taco Bell. It was awesome. You know, we drove all the way there, and y', all. I could go through story after story. So many crazy things happened. I mean, we couldn't hardly find a shower. Literally couldn't find a shower for two weeks. We just swam in rivers, you know? And, like, there was all these things that we faced difficulties and, I mean, but in the middle of all of it, somehow we had the time of our lives. We were facing opposition. There was stuff in front of us, but what we were together. And that's the heart of God, that it is impossible. All that God has begun this month. God's moving, and it's impossible for us to walk that out. We can only hold onto our faith by holding onto each other. It is God's plan. We see that again throughout the Bible. But I'll highlight Ecclesiastes Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help him up. But The Bible channels Mr. T right here. But pity the fool who falls and has no one to help him up. All right, so we need each other. Everybody say, together is God's plan. Together is God's plan. It's God's plan. Here's the second one. This is true, too. We gotta stop here for a minute. Because it's important that we recognize together is not always easy. It's not always easy. Back to Hebrews. Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds. Not giving up. This is here for a reason. Why? Because there's some people, even in the early church who struggle with that. It says, don't give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing. And together isn't always easy. Because together, to be honest with you, is messy. Together requires us to be vulnerable. Together is inconvenient. Or we're already busy in our lives. One more thing on the calendar. It can feel at times like, oh, man, it's inconvenient. Can I really fit that in? And bottom line is together takes work. I want to lean in here because even in my heart today I know I'm speaking to some people that when I even mentioned this whole together thing, immediately the pain of past relationships comes back to you. And you're kind of like, I get it, it's God's plan, but I have been burned by people before. Your past may be full of pain. Maybe it's family pain or even church pain, or you've put yourself in environments like that and it just. It's not always worked out. And if that's you today, I just want you to know, number one, we're praying for you. My heart today is praying for the person to re engage in fellowship who's got a past that's full of that pain. And number two, you just need to know that is spiritual warfare. The enemy would love to do anything he can, bringing all that up to keep us. And honestly in any way right now that any barrier, even if it is the business of our life, the enemy would love to do anything he can to keep us out of fellowship because it's that powerful. That's why I'm focusing on it today. This is like assignment preaching today. This is spiritual warfare. You know, we are living in a generation that is more connected than ever before. I mean, we all have a phone. We can literally right now, in the middle of the service, communicate with anyone here in Alabama or Georgia or around the world. But we're more connected than ever, yet also more isolated. A recent survey was done of young people in America. The average young person has about 300 followers on social media. But when asked, how many close relationships do you have? The answer was on average one. And 25% said zero. We'll let that hang for a moment. More connected and more isolated. Why would the enemy like that? Because he knows if he can get us alone, he can take us out. And that's what First Peter says so strongly. Be alert. This is what today is honestly. Beep, beep. I'm not Pastor Chris, but beep beep. Be alert. This is real. This is a moment. Because what's happening in the spiritual, your enemy, the devil, is prowling around like a roaring lion. When you're. We've all seen the Discovery Channel documentaries. If you get out of the herd, if you get by yourself, you get taken out. He is looking for someone to devour. So together is God's plan. But it's not easy. So here's what it really comes down to. Together takes a choice. Together takes a choice Again, back to Hebrews. Don't give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another and all the more especially in the crazy world we live in as we see that day, the return of Christ approaching. And this is A big but in the Bible right here. And I know I probably shouldn't say that in church, but that is a big but right there in the Bible, because that I'm gonna leave. I'm gonna let that. I'm just going to move away. That right there, that is the choice we're in right now on this Sunday, 1-26-25. Don't give up meeting together, but make the choice that today I'm stepping across. It's almost like there's a doorway in front of us right now. And through the power of the Holy Spirit, if you've been around this month, that door has opened. On the other side is new faith. On the other side is new freedom. On the other side is new fitness. But we're kind of like right now, today, finishing this series at the threshold. So we know God is real. We know God has great things for us. But the choice for all of us today is to step across that threshold, to step into all that God has for us to step in fully to the year, to the future, to of new beginnings. This is the moment we're in to not let ourselves get out of the habit of fellowship, but instead press in like never before, especially in the world we're living in. Hey, everybody. At Highlands, it is time to get together. And today is super intentional because next week, February 2nd, it is our anniversary Sunday. By the way, do not miss anniversary Sunday. PC will be back. It's going to be a spectacular Sunday as we celebrate 24 years and launch our 20. Can y' all believe it? 25th year as a church. We're in our 20s, right in the middle of our 20s. It's amazing. It's gonna be a powerful, powerful Sunday. The heart of that Sunday is we are launching small groups. You heard about it already from your campus pastor. I'm preaching it today. I'm gonna hit it right here again because this is that threshold. This is the decision that we gotta step across into fellowship. It's next week is the opportunity. So we're launching groups. They run from February 2nd to May 3rd. As you heard earlier, the directory, it's already online. You can go check out groups. And I'll say it one more time all week long, because we're still training leaders today. So even if you, by the way, want to be a small group leader or feel called to that, it is not too late. So we're going to train leaders. So all throughout the week, we're going to add groups. So by Wednesday, Thursday, be sure look at it today. But by Wednesday, Thursday, you're going to see that there are groups at every campus, every topic, every walk of life, from high schoolers and middle schoolers and high schoolers all the way up through discipleship groups, literally groups that look more like a Sunday school experience, and groups that are built around recreation. We do that because we're all in different seasons, different places, and we want to create kind of a menu for all of us that there is literally no excuse to step across that threshold into the fellowship that God has for us. And so next Sunday, in fact, before we finish today, I'm actually going to bring us to a moment of decision, really the choice today that even before we sign up, to step across that kind of threshold of I'm going to get in a group. It's this. It's not about church programming. It's about fellowship. Bring us to that moment of decision so that we can recognize that what God has for us is amazing. It's gonna require a choice. So I've been praying so hard that the spirit of God would just move today that each of us, whether you're new, if you are new, and this is all brand new for you, that you'd have the confidence to try it out. And even if you're here today and you've been around Highlands for a long time, some of y' all are like 24 years. I was there at the beginning. You've been around that this would never become stale or ordinary, that we would never let this become tradition. But fresh and new, we would step into those environments and let God do the work he wants to do. So here's how I want to close out today. I mentioned this earlier. That's kind of the theology or the why behind groups. But as we finish out today and finish out this whole series, I want to finish out with really the culture of what you're going to experience. Today's like, I want to give, like, a window that no matter what group you join, they all have the same DNA you're going to experience in every group. It's like the same brand promise. This is how our leaders are trained. And this is just the culture of what God does in groups. And to do that, I want to highlight the story of King David. King David is an amazing read to go read his life story. He started literally at the bottom. I mean, a million miles away from being a king. He was the eighth of eight children from an average family, no pedigree. He was often overlooked. He literally was forgotten. He's like the shepherd boy that was Way out in the fields. And there was nothing about him, no ingredients you would have looked at and said, this is going to be the future king of Israel. Now fast forward to the end of his life. He's King David. He's a king. He's a warrior, he's a poet. Like, there's a massive, massive call in his life. And maybe the greatest thing you could say about King David is written right here in Acts 13. It says, after removing Saul, he made David their king and God testified. This is strong. When God testifies about who you are and how you lived your life, that's a big deal concerning him. I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart. He will do everything I want him to do. So here's the question. How did David go from shepherd overlooked nobody to King David, a man after God's own heart? It wasn't his pedigree, it wasn't his talent, which is a beautiful invitation for all of us. It was his fellowship. There were key relationships in his life, and each one of them held a different role, which is what we're going to experience, the culture. We're going to experience all three of these in a small group. So I want to give you these just to encourage you and really, really just to build faith again for what you're going to experience as you step into a group. So the first one is a man named Samuel. God used Samuel in a huge way. David's life first. Samuel 16. And Samuel was a prophet. He was called by God in this season of Israel's history. And God used him in the life of David. It says, the Lord said, rise and anoint him. Speaking of David. This is the one. So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers. And from that day forward, from that moment on, the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. What I love about Samuel's role in David's life is God gave Samuel eyes to see something that David didn't even see in himself. This is what we do when we get together. Come on, somebody. We see the best in each other. You step into a small group, you step into that environment, you step into that fellowship, you're going to be surrounded by other people who literally, I believe through the Spirit of God, have God's eyes for your life. And all of us probably are our worst critics. We look in the mirror, we see all the faults, we see everything that is wrong. We all know our checkered past. We bring a lot of times a Lot of shame into that. And I'm so thankful that through the spirit of God, God brings others around us to say, hey, I'm not even looking at all that. I see what God sees, and there is something great on the inside of you. All of us, all of us need this in our life. We cannot do this journey of life in this crazy world we're living in without it. I got so many people in my life. I am grateful to God for the people in my life who have seen things that I could not see in myself. My dad, I mentioned earlier, my brother who's here in this service, my siblings now, and even my brothers in law now and sisters in law. I'm thankful for culture in our family that's edifying. And I've had friends all along the way. Maybe one of the greatest examples of this is a friend that I met as a freshman in college. Stepping into college, I played football in high school. And I know you're looking at me. You're like, what position did you play? Was he the quarterback? Was he the receiver? Y', all. I was the long snapper. Some of y' all are like, what is a long snapper? Exactly right? So. But it was an opportunity to play in college. I looked at different universities, even went around to, you know, Auburn. It was gonna be a walk on there, possibly Tuscaloosa, wherever else. Ended up doing a visit to uab. And this guy that I loosely knew through from some relationships gave me the tour on campus that day. His name's Thomas. And God just really moved in my heart that I didn't even understand that it was a piece that I got that I was supposed to go to uab. And then Thomas and I end up living. And I believe there was already some dreams in my heart. But can I tell you something? My plans and my disciplines and my habits didn't reflect those. And I stepped into college, and I was kind of planning on being average. And Thomas refused to let me be average. Now, he did it in a very dramatic way. Literally every morning, he would come into my room. This is a true story. 6:00am, 6:30 at the latest. And he would bust my door open. And he would say the same thing every day, and it is etched into my mind. He would say, it's a great day to be a blazer. And I would, like, throw stuff at him. And almost every day, he would have breakfast already cooked for me. What college roommate does that? And he would say, hey, hey, have you read your Bible yet? And I'm like, thomas, I Just woke up and he's like, get in the word. God's got a plan for your life. Hey, let's go work out. I'm like, bro, I'm not going to work out. I'm the long snapper. And he's like, no, you're gonna go work out. I'm like, I'm just a long snapper. You're more than a long snapper. You know, whatever else, I don't know. But he was just always edifying, even to this day. I mean, I met Jill, my wife, through Thomas. He already knew her. I found Highlands through Thomas. He's like, bro, we gotta go to this new church this week. He's still a part of our church this week. I got actually two voicemails. One was a pocket dial, which I deleted quickly. The second one was him encouraging me. Mark, God loves you. He's got a plan for you. Still to this day, I am thankful. Anybody else? Thankful for the people in your life who see what you can't see. As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. When you get in a group, you're gonna have people around you who see the best in you. Here's the second one. This is the culture of our groups. When we get together, we seek God for each other. When we get together, we seek God. Now, David, back to his story. He's anointed by Samuel, but he's not king yet. He's king in waiting. There was actually already a king named Saul. Saul ends up being very jealous of David, hated him, and literally was trying to kill him. And in steps another relationship. David would never have been the man after God's own heart without Samuel. He would never have been the man after God's own heart without a guy named Jonathan. This is kind of a small piece. They have a great story of friendship. This is a small picture of. It says, while David was at Horesh, in the desert of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life. And Saul's son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. I am so grateful that what you're going to experience in a group, what I've experienced in fellowship, are others who man, thank God they're there on the good days. Thank God they're there on the bad days. People who will help me find strength in the Lord. When I want to quit, there's someone there to say, no, I'm going to. I'm going to stand with you in this pain, and I'm going To walk with you through it. And I could go on and on. We're running out of time. But I do have to just share a few stories because honestly, if I just said one thing today, this is what you need to know, is that every group here at Highlands for 24 years has exemplified this right here. No matter the curriculum, no matter the reason we gather, we are there for each other, seeking God for each other, locking arms together, and just testimony after testimony. Listen to this from our River Chase campus, says Casey Jones, this is her name. Had a horrible day, March 24, 2022. She says, I received a call every mother dreads. My daughter, two hours away at college, had overdosed and was rushed to the hospital. I love this. My first texts beyond family were to my small group, my closest friends, her language, asking them to pray. As I drove, they called, they texted, they shared testimonies. They prayed with me, reminding me I wasn't alone at the hospital. Doctors gave us a grim outlook, but we stood firm, trusting in a greater healer. Both of my small groups sprang into action, praying, visiting, supporting us with constant love and care. That Sunday, they organized a prayer circle, and I felt their unwavering faith carry me. After 10 days, my daughter walked out of the hospital. A walking miracle, and I could not have gotten through it without my small group. I love this. Who truly became the hands and feet of Jesus? You want to know what you're going to get across that three? Let's praise God. That's one of literally tens of thousand stories like that. This is one from our shoals campus. And I love this, that our dream team groups that get together, whether that be greeting or parking, they also function as fellowship. So it's not just the groups that we're in each week. It's the teams we serve on. This is from shoals, says one of our dream team greeter legends. A gentleman named Benny passed away from a sickness just a few months ago, the week our building opened. From the moment that happened, the team rallied around his wife, Vicki. From being at the hospital to meals, to helping with the service, it was nonstop care. The connection was so deep that all the pallbearers at his service were his greater small group. This is what we do when we get together. It's real life. It's thank God for the good days, but it's the bad days. I don't want to go through that alone. And we need each other. Look at what the Bible says in Proverbs 17. A friend loves at all times, but a brother is born for A time of adversity and small groups are born. Fellowship is born for that time of adversity. Helen Keller said, walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light. And that is so true. So we see the best in each other. We see God for each other. And here's number three is we speak truth to each other now. They're all good, but I'm grateful for this one. Even as we head into this year of new beginnings, we all recognize no matter what God has done in us and no matter where we've been, Come on. God's not finished with us yet. We're all on a journey. David is no different. He is now fast forward in his story. He's now king. He's actually done some great things, but he finds himself doing some things that he's blind to. He finds himself making some pretty bad decisions. In fact, adultery and murder are the decisions he makes. These are horrible decisions. He has power and he misuses that power. And you would think he would see it. But just like all of us, when we get into sin and mistakes, oftentimes we're blind to it. So David is completely blind to his mistakes and he's heading towards disaster. He's about to be just disqualified. We never would have read that verse we read earlier from Acts. This is a moment in his life where he could lose the position he's in and the favor of God on his life. And the whole story could have ended differently. But he has a third friend named Nathan who comes to him. Another prophet who comes to him and he speaks to him. He actually tells this whole parable about how he knows he has to be gentle with this moment to kind of get David's eyes open. He tells this whole parable that's it's similar in essence to what David has just done. And he gets David all emotional. And David says, who is the person talking about the parable? And Nathan looks at him and says, you are the man. And in that moment, go read the next few verses. David's eyes are open. He's like, it's me. And he repents. And he allows the grace of God to step in. And he walks out of there different and changed. And there's a whole journey there. But thank God that Nathan was in his life to speak truth to him. And all of us, if we're going to get to where God wants to take us, if we're in that church van for life, we need each other to help shape the things that the places in our Lives where God has been kind of off limits. We can allow others to speak to us, and those walls can come down, that mask can come down. That's what happens in a group. And all of a sudden we have other people helping us see those blind spots and spurring us on to all that God has for us. An open rebuke is better than a hidden love. Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy. This is what you're gonna get in a group. You're gonna get people who see the best. You're gonna get an environment where we link arms and seek God together. And you're gonna get a place where people speak truth to you. So here we are at that threshold, and it's a moment of decision. You know, really even thinking about the whole month, maybe today is just one, you know, for you, one piece of a spiritual journey that God is putting together right now in your life. I kind of sense this as a starting line for 2020. I know we're a month in, but like, to me, in my heart, spiritually, this is the moment. Stepping out of 21 days, stepping into all that God has for us. It is a moment of decision. God's opened the door, and now for all of us, we have a choice to make. Are we gonna step into that new faith? I'm gonna pray for that just in a moment. Are we gonna step into that new fitness? Are we gonna step into that new freedom? And will we trust God, his plan and step into that new fellowship? And if we do, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, if we do, it's gonna be a beautiful year. And honestly, it's the doorway into all that God has for the rest of our life. Can I get an amen today? Come put your hands together. If you believe it today, if you would bow your heads and close your eyes at every location and just want to open this moment up for the Holy Spirit. The sermon is over. This is a moment for God to move in. A moment. We're going to pray over really the whole series and that kind of threshold moment in any area. But I want to focus first on just an opportunity for anyone to experience new faith. You're here today and you don't know God as your personal Lord and Savior. This moment is for you. Maybe you've had a relationship with God in the past, but you've walked away from it. If that's you, you know it. Because right now, I believe with all of my heart, God is making it clear to you. And what we Love to do in a moment like this is give you a chance to respond. Not by calling you up front or embarrassing you. Every head is bowed and every eye is closed. This is a moment between you and God. Just a moment of response. A chance to say, no, that's me. And I'm ready today to walk out of here different. I'm ready today to give my life to God. I am tired of living in my own strength. Today is the day of salvation. I cannot leave here without God living inside of me, without Jesus living in my heart. Or if you have known him in the past, this is the day you come back home. I cannot do. I've been trying to do it again on my own, and I know it. And this is the day that God has opened your eyes and you need that relationship with him. If that's you, this is a moment for you at every location. Again, every head is bowed and every eye is closed. On the count of three, if that's you, I'm gonna ask you to lift your hand boldly. And then we're gonna pray together. And God is gonna go to work in your life. On the count of three. One, two, three. If that's you right now, Amen. Right here in the front. Praise God. Right there in the middle. Awesome. Awesome. Amen. Right there, I see your hand. Right there in the back. All over this room, I see your hand. Yes, sir. Awesome. Powerful, powerful moment. You can put your hands down. If that's you, just pray this prayer in your heart. Say, jesus, today I give you my life. And I ask you to forgive me of my sin. I repent. I'm turning away from my ways. I'm turning to you as my Lord and my savior. God, today I receive your Holy Spirit, God, so that you can live inside of me. And I give you my entire life. God, right now, I thank you for all those who just prayed that prayer. You're at work in them. Thank you, Jesus, for the work you're doing right now. God, the old is gone. The new has come. They're a new creation in Christ. They're walking out of here changed in Jesus name and God, thank you that you're gonna continue that work. God, thank you for the testimony of today in their life. Now, for each of us, I do believe God is speaking right now. And it could be today's topic, this moment of decision for fellowship, or it could be something that you literally wrote down on January 1st as a new Year's resolution or as a faith goal. It could be any number of things. I don't know what that is, but this is a moment to decide to say yes to that. Yes to God, yes to that, that freedom, yes to that area of your life. You're gonna step out in faith. Yes to that restoration, yes to that financial faith goal, whatever it might be. This is that moment. Yes to fellowship. This is the moment. God, right now I pray for everyone as we're in this valley of decision. God, thank you that your word tells us you light our path. God, I believe for each of us there's an individual decision of response that you're calling us to make right now. And we say yes to the specifically God. I'm praying for all those who've been worrying or debating or maybe even because of their past, deciding whether they'll step into fellowship right now, in this moment, not next week at anniversary Sunday, right now, we choose to step into those groups and allow you to do what only you can. And God, we thank you that all that you're doing is for your glory and God, it's going to result in the new life that you have for us. In Jesus name, everybody said amen. Can you join me in thanking God for all that he's done today? Amen. Amen.