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God's Call- Minister Max Lucado · Max Lucado Daily Sermons

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: We are loved, we are chosen, We are glassed.
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: We are renewed. We are gifted, we are empowered, we
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  Speaker 2: are set, we are called.
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: Well.
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  Speaker 4: Whether you're watching online or here at the Oak Hills
• 1:09
  Speaker 4: Crownridge Campus, we are very, very grateful that you're a
• 1:13
  Speaker 4: part of this gathering. If you're a first time guest,
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  Speaker 4: let me tell you this is a unique month that
• 1:20
  Speaker 4: in which you come our way. We're talking about the
• 1:23
  Speaker 4: future of our church. We're exploring ideas about facilities and ministries,
• 1:28
  Speaker 4: and we don't do this often. This is something that
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  Speaker 4: happens every few years. We're very grateful that you came,
• 1:34
  Speaker 4: and we welcome you to sit around the table with
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  Speaker 4: us in this family conversation. If you're a member, then
• 1:41
  Speaker 4: this is a perfect place for you to be because
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  Speaker 4: it's time for us to really pray and think seriously
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  Speaker 4: about what is happening next. And you're probably wondering why
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  Speaker 4: I'm sitting in a chair. I'm going to tell you
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  Speaker 4: that in just a minute, But first, would you pray
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  Speaker 4: with me and then we'll get started. Would you grant
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  Speaker 4: us your presence, dear father, just a visit from you,
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  Speaker 4: a word from you today, your wisdom, would you, Lord,
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  Speaker 4: let your grace be upon every person here, and we
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  Speaker 4: pray in the name of Christ, and all the church said,
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  Speaker 4: how do you like this chair I'm sitting in. It's
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  Speaker 4: pretty normal, isn't it pretty ordinary? It's a nice chair,
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  Speaker 4: I'll tell you. It's got cushion just like yours does.
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  Speaker 4: It's got patting in the backs, very comfortable. It's got
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  Speaker 4: four legs. It's got four legs. It's a very ordinary chair,
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  Speaker 4: very functional, but ordinary.
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  Speaker 5: I don't know. Maybe there's a gum under it. I
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  Speaker 5: haven't looked.
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  Speaker 4: This is the chair that we've used in events in
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  Speaker 4: this building for seventeen years. So though it's a very
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  Speaker 4: ordinary chair, it's witnessed some pretty extraordinary moments. A single
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  Speaker 4: mom sat in this chair. She had no intention of
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  Speaker 4: ever being a single mom, but then her marriage fell.
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  Speaker 5: Apart and her heart broke.
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  Speaker 4: Last place she ever thought she would be would be
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  Speaker 4: sitting in a church with no husband. And she was
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  Speaker 4: really in this chair out of desperation more than inspiration.
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  Speaker 4: But this chair was here, the space was available, and
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  Speaker 4: she would tell you that that day she took a
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  Speaker 4: chance and came to church and had a chair. That's
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  Speaker 4: the day that healing began. A young father sat in
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  Speaker 4: this chair, a father of a newborn, his firstborn, and
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  Speaker 4: he brought that baby to church so proud, first time
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  Speaker 4: that baby had ever been brought to church.
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  Speaker 5: He carried the baby in, and.
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  Speaker 4: At some point during the service, during communion service, in
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  Speaker 4: a very unceremonious fashion, but very personal, he committed that
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  Speaker 4: baby to God. There was a widower who sat in
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  Speaker 4: this chair. He sat in this chair when he attended
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  Speaker 4: the funeral of his wife. The chair was right up
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  Speaker 4: here on the front row, and her casket was just
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  Speaker 4: ten or fifteen feet away. An ordinary chair witnessed this
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  Speaker 4: extraordinary moment of farewell, fear, and faith all coming together.
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  Speaker 4: A six year old sat in this chair. The little
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  Speaker 4: fella had a crayon and a sheet of paper. His
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  Speaker 4: mother thought he was drawing pictures of Superman or Tic
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  Speaker 4: tac toe.
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  Speaker 5: Turns out he had drawn a picture.
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  Speaker 4: Of the Cross and written a verse as best he could.
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  Speaker 4: That picture still hangs on a refrigerator door. Moments ordinary chair,
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  Speaker 4: but extraordinary moments. There was a businessman who chose integrity
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  Speaker 4: while sitting in this chair. There was a young man
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  Speaker 4: who chose to take the path of sexual purity. While
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  Speaker 4: sitting in this chair, there was a marriage that was
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  Speaker 4: falling apart. But while sitting in chairs like this, he
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  Speaker 4: reached over and she reached over, and they held hands,
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  Speaker 4: and they resolved to go one more time, and they're
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  Speaker 4: together still. Ordinary chairs that witnessed extraordinary moments. Maybe you
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  Speaker 4: could have added your story to a chair story. I
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  Speaker 4: bet you could. I bet if we were to circulate
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  Speaker 4: a microphone, we would not have the time today to
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  Speaker 4: tell all the time that wonderful things have happened in
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  Speaker 4: these chairs. Ordinary chairs that have witnessed extraordinary moments. How
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  Speaker 4: did these chairs come to be here? How did they
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  Speaker 4: come to be in this How did this room come
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  Speaker 4: to be here? Well, the chairs are here, in the
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  Speaker 4: room is here, and the space is here because of you,
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  Speaker 4: because you responded when God prompted, and you reflected the
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  Speaker 4: heart of God, and the heart of God, we believe,
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  Speaker 4: is a heart that says, let's make room for more,
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  Speaker 4: let's be hospitable, let's keep the doors open. One of
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  Speaker 4: my favorite passages that teaches us this is in the
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  Speaker 4: Old Testament, and it's a word that came directly from
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  Speaker 4: God to a prophet in his name was Isaiah, and
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  Speaker 4: God told Isaiah to tell the people this, clear lots
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  Speaker 4: of ground for your tents. Make your tents large, spread out,
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  Speaker 4: think big, use plenty of rope. Drive the tent pegs deep.
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  Speaker 4: You're gonna need lots of elbow room for your growing family.
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  Speaker 4: Our God is a god who likes to make space
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  Speaker 4: for people. As far back as the book of Isaiah,
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  Speaker 4: this was written eight hundred years before the birth of Jesus.
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  Speaker 4: And then when Jesus came, Jesus was all about creating space.
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  Speaker 4: When five thousand people came for food, he didn't turn
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  Speaker 4: them away. When the large crowds gathered to hear and see,
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  Speaker 4: he didn't turn them away. He was all about creating space.
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  Speaker 4: And we know that God doesn't live in buildings. We
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  Speaker 4: get that no, no facility can contain the majesty of God.
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  Speaker 5: But God uses buildings.
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  Speaker 4: He used the temple in Jerusalem, he used the synagogue
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  Speaker 4: in Nazareth, he used the homes of the New Testament
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  Speaker 4: Christians in the first century in Jerusalem. He uses homes today.
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  Speaker 4: And he's used this crown Ridge facility. And he's used
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  Speaker 4: all of our campuses. In fact, if my math is correct,
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  Speaker 4: the chairs you're sitting in and others like them have
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  Speaker 4: witnessed about thirty six thousand Bible classes thirty six thousand
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  Speaker 4: classes over the last seventeen years, and they've been a
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  Speaker 4: part of thirty four hundred sermons. You thought you had
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  Speaker 4: it bad, Imagine what life is one of these chairs is?
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  Speaker 4: They got to hear sermons all the time. These chairs
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  Speaker 4: have facilitated worship pilgrimages like the one you took today.
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  Speaker 4: Over two million times, two million times an individual has
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  Speaker 4: come and found this chair a place to sit and
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  Speaker 4: think about God. Since moving into this location, this campus
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  Speaker 4: alone has witnessed over four thousand souls be baptized. How
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  Speaker 4: many times has someone been counseled, or prayed for or encouraged?
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  Speaker 4: I think these chairs have been worth the effort, don't you?
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  Speaker 4: I think they have been worth the effort. God has
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  Speaker 4: used oak Hills to increase the population of Heaven and
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  Speaker 4: decrease the population of Hell, and for that we're immensely grateful.
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  Speaker 4: Just buildings, but because they're about an extraordinary purpose, they
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  Speaker 4: do it extraordinary things. Now, this chair is not yet
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  Speaker 4: to be put out in the pasture. But let me
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  Speaker 4: show you something else. If God provides us the opportunity
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  Speaker 4: to build a new sanctuary on the Interstate ten side
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  Speaker 4: of the property. We'll use chairs like this. These are
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  Speaker 4: sample chairs. Don't get too wound up about these chairs.
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  Speaker 4: I've already had somebody say I don't like those chairs,
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  Speaker 4: and we're not talking about that today. These you're just
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  Speaker 4: sample chairs. But it could be something like this. I'm thinking, well,
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  Speaker 4: to get some chairs that have a little beeper and
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  Speaker 4: somebody dozes off during a sermon, they get a little
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  Speaker 4: little jolt. I'd be nice, wasn't it. And when I
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  Speaker 4: need a good amen, I push a button and you
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  Speaker 4: have no I'm just kidding. I'm wondering who might use
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  Speaker 4: this chair someday. I'm envisioning a guy from California. Let's
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  Speaker 4: call him Kurt. Kurt from California, and right now he's
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  Speaker 4: happily and gainfully employed out on the West Coast. What
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  Speaker 4: he doesn't know is that he's going to receive an
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  Speaker 4: opportunity to accept a promotion.
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  Speaker 5: In two years. Two years from.
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  Speaker 4: Now, his boss is going to give him an opportunity
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  Speaker 4: to accept a promotion. But the promotion involves a transfer
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  Speaker 4: from California to Texas, specifically to San Antonio. Kurt has
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  Speaker 4: three kids. They're all right now, middle school and high school.
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  Speaker 4: And while he was planning to move, he knows he's
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  Speaker 4: going to have to pay tuition, and this is you know,
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  Speaker 4: we're going to be a major expense, and this promotion
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  Speaker 4: involves a pay raise. And so he and his wife
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  Speaker 4: talk about it. They don't pray about it because they're
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  Speaker 4: not believers. They're not churchgoers, they're not faith based families.
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  Speaker 4: They are not against religion, but it's just not a
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  Speaker 4: part of their life. But they see this as a
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  Speaker 4: good opportunity. So he says yes, and he moves from
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  Speaker 4: California to Texas. Besides, he's been a Clippers fan and
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  Speaker 4: that hasn't worked out, and he really wants to get
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  Speaker 4: closer to San Antonio. I'm sorry, I didn't mean that.
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  Speaker 4: That was a joke. Come anyway, Kurt.
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  Speaker 5: We love the Clippers. And so he moves.
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  Speaker 4: He moves ahead of his family because they're still in school,
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  Speaker 4: the kids aren't, and they want to finish out the semester.
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  Speaker 5: So he moves in let's say.
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  Speaker 4: January, and he rents in apartments somewhere on the it
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  Speaker 4: In corridor. The move is a little more challenging than
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  Speaker 4: he had expected. The responsibilities at work are a little more,
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  Speaker 4: and then something about being dislocated or separated from his family.
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  Speaker 4: There's something missing in his heart, and he's beginning to
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  Speaker 4: realize that no job promotion and no pay increase can
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  Speaker 4: meet the deeper needs of his life. And for the
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  Speaker 4: first time in his life, he actually begins thinking about faith.
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  Speaker 4: What do you do when you start looking for a
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  Speaker 4: place to find out about faith?
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  Speaker 5: Well, most people go to a church.
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  Speaker 4: And he's driving up and down Interstate ten every day
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  Speaker 4: and he sees the campus building on Crownridge, on the
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  Speaker 4: Crownridge Campus, and he sees it's a new building, and
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  Speaker 4: on weekends he sees lots of cars and he thinks, well,
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  Speaker 4: I guess I guess I'll go check it out. Now,
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  Speaker 4: Kurt has never been to church. He doesn't know if
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  Speaker 4: you come on Saturday night there's more space. And he
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  Speaker 4: doesn't know if you come early, like at the eight
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  Speaker 4: am or the eight fifteen am service, there's space. He
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  Speaker 4: just does what most people think, and that is people
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  Speaker 4: go to church at mid at mid morning hour on Sundays.
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  Speaker 5: That's what most people do. And so he does.
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  Speaker 4: And he shows up and there's plenty of room.
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  Speaker 5: There's plenty of space.
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  Speaker 4: In fact, the person who greets him says, men, we're
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  Speaker 4: so glad you're here.
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  Speaker 5: We got plenty of room. Now.
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  Speaker 4: It was crowded a few years back, but we got space.
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  Speaker 4: We've been saving you a seat. And he walks in,
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  Speaker 4: me in and he sits down in a seat just
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  Speaker 4: like this. And because this chair is in a what
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  Speaker 4: we would call a dedicated sanctuary, that is to say,
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  Speaker 4: it's built only for one thing, and that's worship gatherings,
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  Speaker 4: then he's not in a place where people are going
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  Speaker 4: to be walking back and forth in front of him
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  Speaker 4: like he if you were sitting in a He's not
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  Speaker 4: in a corner where the sound isn't as good or
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  Speaker 4: the lighting isn't as good. Everything was built so that
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  Speaker 4: every person will have a good sight and sound experience,
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  Speaker 4: and hopefully all the barriers will be removed so that
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  Speaker 4: person can hear about God's love. And Kurt does. Kurt does,
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  Speaker 4: and the change isn't instantaneous, but it is significant. And
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  Speaker 4: you know, before he receives his family from California, he
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  Speaker 4: actually sends an email to his wife and says, honey,
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  Speaker 4: I think this move had less to do with the
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  Speaker 4: job and more to do with God. This is a
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  Speaker 4: chair that if Lord Willing were able to build a
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  Speaker 4: new sanctuary in the outer west of San Antonio, this
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  Speaker 4: is the kind of chair that would go there.
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  Speaker 5: You know who might occupy this chair.
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  Speaker 4: There's a family right now stationed in Germany in the military.
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  Speaker 4: In about two years, they're going to be moved from
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  Speaker 4: Germany to San Antonio. Like many of you, have been
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  Speaker 4: brought to San Antonio by the military, and that's okay
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  Speaker 4: with them. They loved their military life and they're ready
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  Speaker 4: to get back to the States and so they happily
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  Speaker 4: moved to San Antonio and they find a house that
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  Speaker 4: fits in their budget and just fits in their expectations.
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  Speaker 4: To be honest, it's the first time they've ever been
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  Speaker 4: able to purchase a house. It's a young family, and
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  Speaker 4: they find it not far from SeaWorld, which makes both
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  Speaker 4: of their kids very happy. And they've no more unpacked
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  Speaker 4: their boxes the first day than somebody shows up at
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  Speaker 4: their door with a platter of freshly baked chocolate chip
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  Speaker 4: cookies and an invitation, would you like to come and
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  Speaker 4: visit our neighborhood group We meet next Tuesday night, And
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  Speaker 4: they say yes, and they come and they meet some
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  Speaker 4: really nice folks. And these folks are all excited because
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  Speaker 4: they're all a part of the Oak Kills family that
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  Speaker 4: meets out in the Alamo Ranch area, which is just
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  Speaker 4: five minutes from their house. And they say, oh, we're
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  Speaker 4: so glad you're here. If you'd been here three years ago,
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  Speaker 4: we were meeting in a Marriott hotel. But now we
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  Speaker 4: have our own building and we have space for you.
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  Speaker 4: And they come and you know, they're only in San
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  Speaker 4: Antonio for a couple of years, but those two years
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  Speaker 4: are very significant because while they're they make friends that
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  Speaker 4: become lifelong friends. They learn about the Bible things they'd
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  Speaker 4: never learned before. The children make decisions for Christ that
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  Speaker 4: will literally reroute the trajectory of that whole family tree,
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  Speaker 4: all because there was space.
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  Speaker 5: Here's what I think.
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  Speaker 4: I think that churches that are healthy, vibrant, robust churches
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  Speaker 4: do two things. They teach grace and they create space.
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  Speaker 4: They teach grace, they're constantly saying, for God so loved
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  Speaker 4: the world that he gave his one and only son,
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  Speaker 4: so that whoever there's the grace word, whoever believes in him,
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  Speaker 4: will not perish but have everlasting life. That's our message,
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  Speaker 4: that's our hope. And in a world that's so dark
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  Speaker 4: and discouraged, people want to discover a.
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  Speaker 5: God that loves them unconditionally. Amen.
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  Speaker 4: When you teach grace, you tend to run out of space.
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  Speaker 4: When you teach grace, you tend to run out of
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  Speaker 4: space because people want grace and they begin occupying seats.
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  Speaker 4: And so at Oak Hills we try to create space
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  Speaker 4: in two ways. We create space by having neighborhood groups,
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  Speaker 4: and the genius of having neighborhood groups as you can
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  Speaker 4: have as much space as you do living rooms.
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  Speaker 5: And so we have over four hundred and.
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  Speaker 4: Fifty living rooms being used right now as small sanction
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  Speaker 4: where groups of eight to ten people in a neighborhood
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  Speaker 4: come together and worship and get to know each other
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  Speaker 4: and have community. Well, that's wonderful because it seems like
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  Speaker 4: there's an endless supply of living rooms, and so that's smart.
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  Speaker 4: The challenge comes when you want to have space for
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  Speaker 4: the large gathering. The New Testament church, remember meant house
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  Speaker 4: to house, but then also they had the gatherings of
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  Speaker 4: the entire congregation that would come together in the temple courts.
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  Speaker 4: And so we follow that model and finding space for
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  Speaker 4: the larger gatherings or for all the people to assemble.
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  Speaker 5: It can be problematic the Outer West.
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  Speaker 4: For example, we've met in the Marriotte Hotel now for
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  Speaker 4: two years. They've filled up two services and they're about
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  Speaker 4: to go to three. They pack and unpack every weekend.
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  Speaker 5: And it's just worked great.
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  Speaker 4: But we think it's time to have a permanent facility
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  Speaker 4: there in that ever growing, fastest growing area of the city.
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  Speaker 4: Crownridge Campus is a church where we have experienced capacity
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  Speaker 4: growth for seven years.
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  Speaker 5: Will fill it up and then it'll decline. We'll fill
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  Speaker 5: it up and then it'll decline.
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  Speaker 4: We fell we can't we reach capacity ninety two percent
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  Speaker 4: of our Sundays at those prime hours when people want
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  Speaker 4: to attend, and so we've prayed and thought about it.
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  Speaker 4: The elders have prayed and thought about it. And here's
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  Speaker 4: what we're presenting to God, and that is this idea
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  Speaker 4: of building a permanent facility on the Outer West, so
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  Speaker 4: when that couple comes from Germany, it'll be there. And
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  Speaker 4: expanding the facility at Crownridge by putting a new worship
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  Speaker 4: center on the it side of the property and changing
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  Speaker 4: this room into a nine hundred seat room. Between the two,
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  Speaker 4: we'll have thirty five hundred seats and that's all our
• 19:45
  Speaker 4: parking will permit. And we've actually maxed out our campus
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  Speaker 4: at that point, so we'll be ready for Kurt when
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  Speaker 4: he comes from California. This, altogether, plus additional help for
• 19:57
  Speaker 4: pioneer Bible translators and the church that we love in Tall, Brazil,
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  Speaker 4: which will be our first international campus, is a thirty
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  Speaker 4: four million dollar project. Four million dollars has already been
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  Speaker 4: earmarked out of our regular giving, and I'm happy to
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  Speaker 4: report that four million dollars has already been pledged, already
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  Speaker 4: been given and set apart. It's advanced gifts, so we're
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  Speaker 4: well on our way. But boy, it is far from
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  Speaker 4: a slam dunk. It is far from a slam dunk.
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  Speaker 4: And this is the crucial week right now, this is
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  Speaker 4: the crucial week.
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  Speaker 5: We're in the fourth quarter.
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  Speaker 4: There's two minutes on the clock and the score is tied,
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  Speaker 4: and we have the ball and we need to pray.
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  Speaker 4: It's time for us to get make sure that we're
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  Speaker 4: all involved, we're all informed, and we're all engaged. Let
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  Speaker 4: me just review just very quickly what we're talking about
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  Speaker 4: Maybe you haven't seen the details on the Outer West campus.
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  Speaker 4: It's a very simple campus. Here's a projection of the seat.
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  Speaker 4: Nine hundred seats, plenty of office space, plenty of classrooms space.
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  Speaker 4: It's on eleven acres that we already own. It will
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  Speaker 4: be called the Oak Hills Alamo Ranch. In addition, the
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  Speaker 4: discussion is to build a dedicated sanctuary on the Interstate
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  Speaker 4: ten side of the property. I'm pointing over my shoulder
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  Speaker 4: because Interstate ten is that way. Am I surprise you
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  Speaker 4: to know that this was never intended to be a
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  Speaker 4: dedicated sanctuary. This is a gymnasium. This is a gymnasium.
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  Speaker 4: It served us well for seventeen years. But we think
• 21:23
  Speaker 4: it's time for us to have a room that we
• 21:26
  Speaker 4: create more space. We envision an entryway with ample signage,
• 21:32
  Speaker 4: more room for people to find their way in. When
• 21:34
  Speaker 4: visitors come, they'll know exactly where to go. We envision
• 21:38
  Speaker 4: a worship center that will see twenty six hundred people
• 21:42
  Speaker 4: on the Interstate ten side of the property, in nine
• 21:45
  Speaker 4: hundred on this side of the property.
• 21:47
  Speaker 5: I love that picture.
• 21:48
  Speaker 4: What I don't like about it is there's somebody up
• 21:50
  Speaker 4: there preaching and there's nobody in the chairs. I'm going
• 21:54
  Speaker 4: to talk to the architect. Is that me is that
• 21:57
  Speaker 4: one of my bad sermons? And so we'd have ample room.
• 22:02
  Speaker 4: Every seat would have equal equality when it comes to
• 22:08
  Speaker 4: sight and sound, plenty of room to receive more people,
• 22:14
  Speaker 4: to create more space. And like I say, we've already
• 22:18
  Speaker 4: had four million dollars committed to this project, four million
• 22:21
  Speaker 4: earmarked out of current funds. And so we're moving in
• 22:25
  Speaker 4: now to the last toward our last weekend, in which
• 22:28
  Speaker 4: we're asking all of the church, everyone in the church,
• 22:32
  Speaker 4: to pray seriously, what is my role in this? Here's
• 22:36
  Speaker 4: how success is measured in something like this. One hundred
• 22:40
  Speaker 4: percent participation. One hundred percent participation. When every person spends
• 22:46
  Speaker 4: time before God saying God, what is my role in this?
• 22:51
  Speaker 4: Then we know we have achieved a communion with God
• 22:55
  Speaker 4: that reveals God's will. If all of us do that,
• 22:58
  Speaker 4: then whatever happens is what God once. That is God's will.
• 23:02
  Speaker 4: Here's my concern. My concern is that I sense a
• 23:06
  Speaker 4: mentality that says, I think this is a great idea.
• 23:09
  Speaker 4: I'm so glad someone else is going to do it.
• 23:13
  Speaker 4: I'm so excited that somebody's going to do this, may
• 23:19
  Speaker 4: I gently no, no, may I firmly remind us we
• 23:23
  Speaker 4: are the body of Christ. We are the body of Christ.
• 23:29
  Speaker 4: And some of you are spectators. It's time for you
• 23:31
  Speaker 4: to become owners. Some of you are fans. It's time
• 23:36
  Speaker 4: to become a follower. Some of you are on the sidelines.
• 23:40
  Speaker 4: Would you please get in the game. Would you pray
• 23:44
  Speaker 4: seriously in case, just in case you're wondering. We don't
• 23:50
  Speaker 4: have a friend who's a billionaire who's standing in the wings,
• 23:55
  Speaker 4: ready to write a check if there's a soft if
• 23:57
  Speaker 4: this false south, if there's a shortfall. If you know
• 24:02
  Speaker 4: that billionaire, I'd love to talk to him or her,
• 24:05
  Speaker 4: But we don't have that person, nor do we belong
• 24:09
  Speaker 4: to a denomination that pledges to match what we give.
• 24:13
  Speaker 5: We're on our own.
• 24:14
  Speaker 4: In that sense. We're an independent church and we don't
• 24:19
  Speaker 4: have any secrets. There's no secret slush fund that we've
• 24:21
  Speaker 4: been building up. Our funding is completely transparent. You can
• 24:26
  Speaker 4: look at every penny this church as well. There's no
• 24:28
  Speaker 4: secret fund that we've been saving. So this is it,
• 24:32
  Speaker 4: and our response over the next few days will determine
• 24:36
  Speaker 4: the next few years of ministry in this church and
• 24:41
  Speaker 4: all I'm asking is that every person engage.
• 24:44
  Speaker 5: Now, what does engagement mean?
• 24:46
  Speaker 4: Engagement means you pray, And I want to give you
• 24:48
  Speaker 4: three short lines about how to pray. If you'd like
• 24:51
  Speaker 4: to fill in blanks, here's what I'm encouraging it to do.
• 24:54
  Speaker 4: Number one, would you please be grateful? Would you take
• 24:58
  Speaker 4: some time this week and just be grateful? Just be
• 25:02
  Speaker 4: grateful for how God is good to us. I believe
• 25:05
  Speaker 4: that every major decision must be made from a posture
• 25:09
  Speaker 4: of gratitude. That we get ourselves in an attitude of gratitude,
• 25:14
  Speaker 4: and then we can hear from God. We worship him,
• 25:17
  Speaker 4: we praise him, we think him. We're not like that
• 25:20
  Speaker 4: mother who was walking along the beach with her little
• 25:23
  Speaker 4: four year old boy and a big wave came up
• 25:26
  Speaker 4: and snatched her son and sucked him out into the water.
• 25:30
  Speaker 5: She fell on her knees and she prayed, God, would
• 25:32
  Speaker 5: you please save my son. He immediately answered her prayer.
• 25:35
  Speaker 4: The little boy came floating on the next wave and
• 25:38
  Speaker 4: plopped the water plopped him right down next to mom.
• 25:42
  Speaker 5: She was surprised. She looked down at the boy.
• 25:45
  Speaker 4: She looked up at God and she said, God, he
• 25:47
  Speaker 4: was wearing a hat.
• 25:51
  Speaker 5: Did you get that.
• 25:55
  Speaker 4: We can do that, We can become so focused on
• 25:58
  Speaker 4: what few things we don't have that we overlook the
• 26:03
  Speaker 4: astounding blessings that God has given to us. Let's don't
• 26:07
  Speaker 4: do that. Let's get into a posture of gratitude. Here's
• 26:11
  Speaker 4: what the apostle Paul said to the church in Corinth
• 26:14
  Speaker 4: when he was talking to them about their giving. He said,
• 26:19
  Speaker 4: for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
• 26:22
  Speaker 4: that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he
• 26:25
  Speaker 4: became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich.
• 26:33
  Speaker 4: The Gospel is not a rags to richest story. It
• 26:37
  Speaker 4: is the richest to rags story. God gave up his
• 26:41
  Speaker 4: richest in the form of Jesus Christ, and he took
• 26:44
  Speaker 4: on our rags so we then could take on the
• 26:47
  Speaker 4: grace of his riches. You're wealthy, You've been blessed. Aren't
• 26:53
  Speaker 4: you thankful for what God has done for you? Aren't
• 26:56
  Speaker 4: you thankful that you have food to eat? Aren't you
• 26:58
  Speaker 4: thankful that you have friends? Aren't you thankful that you
• 27:01
  Speaker 4: have enough health to get to church? Aren't you thankful
• 27:03
  Speaker 4: that you have a bed in which to sleep? Aren't
• 27:05
  Speaker 4: you thankful that you have enough grace to cover your
• 27:07
  Speaker 4: sins and the.
• 27:08
  Speaker 5: Promise of heaven ahead of you.
• 27:10
  Speaker 4: We begin our prayers with the spirit of gratitude. Be grateful,
• 27:15
  Speaker 4: and then number two, be thoughtful. Be thoughtful. There was
• 27:21
  Speaker 4: a man who loved his money so much that he
• 27:24
  Speaker 4: decided that he would take his money to heaven with him.
• 27:29
  Speaker 4: On his death bed, he told his wife, go down
• 27:31
  Speaker 4: to the bank, get all of my money, put it
• 27:33
  Speaker 4: in cash, put it in pillow case.
• 27:35
  Speaker 5: Put it up in the attic when I die.
• 27:38
  Speaker 4: As I passed through the house, I'm going to grab
• 27:40
  Speaker 4: that pillow case and I'm going to take that money
• 27:42
  Speaker 4: to heaven with me.
• 27:45
  Speaker 5: So she did.
• 27:46
  Speaker 4: She put all their money in the pillow case, set
• 27:48
  Speaker 4: it up in the attic. Her husband died, they had
• 27:50
  Speaker 4: the funeral. After the funeral, she thought, well, I'm going
• 27:53
  Speaker 4: to check on that pillow case. So she went up
• 27:56
  Speaker 4: in the attic. There it was still sitting there, still
• 27:59
  Speaker 4: full of money. And she shook her head and thought,
• 28:02
  Speaker 4: I knew I should have put it in the basement.
• 28:13
  Speaker 4: Here's the mistake that man made. He thought his money
• 28:16
  Speaker 4: was his money. He thought his money was his money. Boy,
• 28:21
  Speaker 4: do I have good news for you. You don't have
• 28:23
  Speaker 4: any money. You don't, but you have a father who
• 28:29
  Speaker 4: owns everything, everything, and he has promised to take good
• 28:35
  Speaker 4: care of you. So your prayer and my prayer this
• 28:39
  Speaker 4: week is not God, how much of my money should
• 28:44
  Speaker 4: I give to this? But God, how much of your
• 28:48
  Speaker 4: money would you like to use in this?
• 28:51
  Speaker 5: Does that make sense?
• 28:52
  Speaker 4: That's the prayer. That's the prayer. It's a prayer of stewardship.
• 28:55
  Speaker 4: We're not owners, were stewards and we trust that God
• 29:00
  Speaker 4: will tell us what to do. If every single one
• 29:02
  Speaker 4: of us does this, then we know we have achieved
• 29:05
  Speaker 4: his will. And if there's enough money to press forward, fine,
• 29:08
  Speaker 4: if there's not, then fine. The goal is one hundred
• 29:12
  Speaker 4: percent participation, and we just trust God that he will
• 29:16
  Speaker 4: do what is right. So for that reason, the apostle Paul,
• 29:19
  Speaker 4: again talking about giving, says this.
• 29:24
  Speaker 5: Remember this.
• 29:24
  Speaker 4: A farmer who plants only a few seeds will get
• 29:26
  Speaker 4: a small crop, but the one who plants generously will
• 29:30
  Speaker 4: get a generous crop.
• 29:31
  Speaker 5: Now look at this. You must each decide in your
• 29:34
  Speaker 5: heart how much to give.
• 29:36
  Speaker 4: Nobody's going to tell you. You each decide in your heart
• 29:40
  Speaker 4: how much to give. What Deanlon and I do is
• 29:43
  Speaker 4: when something like this, an opportunity like this.
• 29:45
  Speaker 5: Surfaces, we pray, she prays, I pray.
• 29:49
  Speaker 4: We pray together, and then we listen, and sometimes a
• 29:53
  Speaker 4: number just makes sense and she gets a number in
• 29:56
  Speaker 4: her head. I get a number in my head. We
• 29:57
  Speaker 4: get two sheets of paper, We write that number down,
• 30:00
  Speaker 4: we flip over the we trade papers, and she looks
• 30:04
  Speaker 4: at my number, I look at her number. And the
• 30:06
  Speaker 4: big number always trumps the smaller number. That's how we
• 30:09
  Speaker 4: do it. We just trust that God will lead us.
• 30:13
  Speaker 4: He always has. And I can't tell you how many
• 30:16
  Speaker 4: times we have been given the same number, which just
• 30:19
  Speaker 4: really affirms that we have been led by God.
• 30:21
  Speaker 5: Be thoughtful, Just be thoughtful. Will you do that? You
• 30:25
  Speaker 5: can nod your head if you will. Will you do that?
• 30:27
  Speaker 5: Just take some time.
• 30:28
  Speaker 4: It's a great experience, a wonderful adventure. And then number three,
• 30:33
  Speaker 4: Be cheerful, Just be cheerful again. The same apostle, dealing
• 30:38
  Speaker 4: with the same topic of money, he said this, don't
• 30:42
  Speaker 4: give reluctantly or in response to pressure, For God loves
• 30:47
  Speaker 4: a person who gives how cheerfully. God loves a person
• 30:53
  Speaker 4: who gives cheerfully. I'll just say it right up front.
• 30:59
  Speaker 4: If you see this as an obligation, if you see
• 31:04
  Speaker 4: this as something you have to do to get Locato
• 31:08
  Speaker 4: off your back, If this is just a tax deduction,
• 31:12
  Speaker 4: if this is just something that you're wanting to do
• 31:14
  Speaker 4: so we can get on with the rest of the
• 31:16
  Speaker 4: then please don't give.
• 31:19
  Speaker 5: Just don't don't.
• 31:23
  Speaker 4: It'd be better for you not to because God loves
• 31:26
  Speaker 4: a cheerful giver. He blesses the happy gift, and we
• 31:31
  Speaker 4: want him to bless every gift. So if you can't
• 31:34
  Speaker 4: give cheerfully, then just sit this one out. But if
• 31:39
  Speaker 4: you can give cheerfully, gratefully, thoughtfully, happily, motivated by grace,
• 31:49
  Speaker 4: hoping to create space, then there is absolutely no doubt
• 31:52
  Speaker 4: in my mind that God's will will be done. Would
• 31:57
  Speaker 4: you agree, amen. We've asked two of our elders to
• 32:02
  Speaker 4: lead us in a special pastoral prayer. Benny Cleveland is
• 32:05
  Speaker 4: Chairman of the Elders and Jim Barker is the president
• 32:09
  Speaker 4: of our Coordinating Board of Elders, and they're both going
• 32:12
  Speaker 4: to come. Benny has a special word for us from
• 32:15
  Speaker 4: our elders, and then Jim has a special prayer. Remain
• 32:18
  Speaker 4: seated as Benny talks, and then stand as Jim.
• 32:22
  Speaker 6: Prays, good morning, Church, I bring you greetings from the
• 32:27
  Speaker 6: sixty four elders of Oak Hill's Church. You know we're
• 32:32
  Speaker 6: in the middle of a campaign, and I want to
• 32:35
  Speaker 6: give you a little background history how the elders were involved.
• 32:40
  Speaker 6: About eighteen months ago, we begin seeking God's will list
• 32:44
  Speaker 6: of what we should do for the furtherance of His
• 32:46
  Speaker 6: Kingdom work. And after much deliberation and prayer and entering
• 32:53
  Speaker 6: into a forty days of prayer personally, we all came
• 32:57
  Speaker 6: together and felt like we had heard from God. And
• 33:00
  Speaker 6: that's why we're in this campaign now that we are
• 33:03
  Speaker 6: called campaign has four elements that you've been informed about.
• 33:08
  Speaker 6: The first one is the new sanctuary here at the
• 33:11
  Speaker 6: Oak Hills campus at Crownridge. The second is a new
• 33:16
  Speaker 6: worship center over in the Alamo area. The third is
• 33:22
  Speaker 6: to be partners with pioneer Bible translators who which you
• 33:27
  Speaker 6: already support, but to support in a greater way. They
• 33:31
  Speaker 6: have the awesome task of ministering to people groups that
• 33:35
  Speaker 6: do not have the Word of God in their natural language.
• 33:39
  Speaker 6: And then the fourth one is to put our first
• 33:42
  Speaker 6: international campus in the Tall Brazil. Now, to do all
• 33:47
  Speaker 6: of this, we'll need participation from God's people, and of
• 33:51
  Speaker 6: course that's talking about money. Well, God had a lot
• 33:54
  Speaker 6: to say about money, and I refer you to Psalm fifty,
• 33:59
  Speaker 6: where talked about owning the cattle on a thousand hills.
• 34:02
  Speaker 6: But let's look at some of the details of what
• 34:05
  Speaker 6: he really said. He said, I have no need of
• 34:10
  Speaker 6: a bull from your stalls, nor do I have a
• 34:14
  Speaker 6: need for goats from your pins. Every beast of the
• 34:18
  Speaker 6: forest is mine. The cattle on a thousand hills. I know,
• 34:22
  Speaker 6: every bird of the mountains, and everything that moves in
• 34:25
  Speaker 6: the field is mine. But if I were hungry, I
• 34:31
  Speaker 6: would not tell you, for the world is mine and
• 34:35
  Speaker 6: all it contains. Did you get that God said, if
• 34:40
  Speaker 6: I were hungry, I wouldn't tell you because you see,
• 34:44
  Speaker 6: he doesn't need your money, He needs your heart. We
• 34:51
  Speaker 6: take seriously the subject of prayer, and we've been praying
• 34:55
  Speaker 6: a lot about this. So now Jim Barker, who is
• 34:59
  Speaker 6: the resident of our coordinating Board, is going to lead
• 35:03
  Speaker 6: us in a time of prayer. Would you please stand
• 35:05
  Speaker 6: as Jim leads us in time of prayer.
• 35:09
  Speaker 7: Thank you, Benny and Max. Thank you for reminding us
• 35:13
  Speaker 7: that we are called to pray and now would you
• 35:17
  Speaker 7: join me? Is we pray to our gracious Father, Almighty Father,
• 35:25
  Speaker 7: we thank you for the gift of prayer. Thank you
• 35:29
  Speaker 7: that you desire for us to speak to you about
• 35:32
  Speaker 7: our needs, our lives, and the lives and needs of others.
• 35:37
  Speaker 7: We're also reminded, Father, that prayer is not just speaking
• 35:42
  Speaker 7: to you, but perhaps and most importantly, listening to you,
• 35:46
  Speaker 7: listening to you speak to our hearts about yourself, about
• 35:51
  Speaker 7: your will and your ways for our lives in Christ.
• 35:56
  Speaker 7: And we remember that you instructed us to pray your
• 36:00
  Speaker 7: kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it
• 36:04
  Speaker 7: is in heaven. And this we do pray, Father, thanking
• 36:06
  Speaker 7: you that you have invited us to join you, to
• 36:10
  Speaker 7: participate with you in bringing the good news of your
• 36:13
  Speaker 7: kingdom to men, women and children, that they might sense
• 36:19
  Speaker 7: their need of you, to turn to you to find
• 36:22
  Speaker 7: your love forgiveness and new life through faith in Christ.
• 36:28
  Speaker 7: And to this end, Father, we asked that you would
• 36:31
  Speaker 7: give us a spirit of wisdom and of revelation and
• 36:34
  Speaker 7: the true knowledge of yourself. You'd open the eyes of
• 36:38
  Speaker 7: our hearts that we might know this glorious hope to
• 36:43
  Speaker 7: which you've called us. What are the riches of the
• 36:46
  Speaker 7: glory of the inheritance of your resurrection life in us,
• 36:51
  Speaker 7: and to surpass in greatness of your power toward us. Yeay,
• 36:55
  Speaker 7: in us who believe this same power of your presence
• 36:58
  Speaker 7: that raised your son from the d this same power
• 37:02
  Speaker 7: in dwelling us, making us your body by whom you
• 37:05
  Speaker 7: speak and act and fill the earth with your presence. Yes, Father,
• 37:12
  Speaker 7: we do now offer our hearts to you, that you
• 37:15
  Speaker 7: might speak to each of our hearts, revealing to us
• 37:20
  Speaker 7: the part that each of us might play as members
• 37:23
  Speaker 7: of your body here at Oak Kills Church, to bring
• 37:28
  Speaker 7: the hope of the Gospel in Christ to a confused
• 37:32
  Speaker 7: and a hurting and despairing world. Now, Father, grant us
• 37:38
  Speaker 7: hearts to hear, and grant us faith and courage to respond.
• 37:44
  Speaker 5: To what you have to say. We asked this in the.
• 37:46
  Speaker 7: Name of your Son, to whom belongs glory forever and ever. Amen.
• 38:07
  Speaker 8: A A A A A A A A A A
• 38:39
  Speaker 8: A A A A.
• 40:04
  Speaker 9: Loving you alone feels so beautiful, and yet.
• 40:14
  Speaker 5: It hurts the most.
• 40:19
  Speaker 9: You became my quiet sunrise, the dream I never dared
• 40:25
  Speaker 9: to say. Every smile you gave so freely took my breath.
• 40:31
  Speaker 5: A little away.
• 40:34
  Speaker 9: I held this lovel like fragile glass, so precious, soft
• 40:39
  Speaker 9: and true, but every being inside my heart was only
• 40:44
  Speaker 9: reaching out to you. Unspoken love is sweet and.
• 40:50
  Speaker 10: Painful, like honey mixed with rain, a tender whole bile,
• 40:57
  Speaker 10: all so sadly while it slowly breaks me loving you
• 41:03
  Speaker 10: from just one side. Now leave my soul in silent blue.
• 41:09
  Speaker 10: Because the deeper that I fall alone, the lonelier I do.
• 41:18
  Speaker 10: I can blame my heart for choosing someone it could
• 41:23
  Speaker 10: never keep, so I smiled through hidden heartache. Hell love
• 41:30
  Speaker 10: you quietly spoke in Love is sweet and painful, like
• 41:37
  Speaker 10: honey mixed with rain.
• 41:39
  Speaker 3: Attend the whole bial so tightly wally slowly it breaks
• 41:46
  Speaker 3: me loving you from just one side. Now leave my
• 41:51
  Speaker 3: soul in silent bloo because the deeper that I fall alone.
• 41:57
  Speaker 4: The lonely.
• 42:17
  Speaker 10: Maybe Loving you in.
• 42:19
  Speaker 11: Silence it's the closest I can stay, though leaves behind
• 42:25
  Speaker 11: the sorrow that may never fast away.
• 42:33
  Speaker 10: I spoken love is sweet and painful, like honey mixed
• 42:40
  Speaker 10: with rain, a tender whole bil so tightly wally slowly
• 42:47
  Speaker 10: breaks me loving you from just one side. Now leave
• 42:52
  Speaker 10: my soul in silence, because the deeper that.
• 42:57
  Speaker 8: I follow love the LOLLI had to