For This Reason - 1 Timothy 4:7-10 - Gospel Church

Alright guys, I will commit all of our locations this weekend so I want to say something very specific to those of you who may be brand-new like is your first time with us your regional rate.

One of our campuses and I don't want to feel weird utility got invited to someone's birthday party. They didn't tell you was there a birthday party rights and us what it can feel a bit weird don't don't feel like that. All right, it is a great opportunity for you to get to know us, because today I get the chance to do what I wanted to do for years now, and that is where we get a chance to talk about what were to hopefully pray to God that we see over the next 10 years and I was told a long time ago just leaderships. The menu don't you don't cast a vision longer than your organization has been in existence. Okay, this is generally a good practice. So today is the day that I get to cast a 10 year vision and let's talk about something that we might get to see but hope in that era get a chance to see the heart of our church for. I want to go to get a copy script she could turn with me to first Timothy chapter 4 alright so were skipping a little bit ahead were to jump back into budgets, moving through our series next week but were to jump to chapter 4 for this week and will talk just about a couple of verses today, but what I hope you can end up seeing is this very simple idea and that is that if we can look back and see what God has done through that small launch team. What could he do if we were to open our hands and put RES on the table now collectively. I mean, when you think about what God has done decent over 170 adult missionaries out of the church in the last 10 years we have seen, I am sure a probably over 100 foster children or adoptions happen in this church in the last 10 years we seen close to 1500 baptisms five campuses and now for churches that have been parroted out of this church only partnered with.

I mean, they came up and were sent out and raise from this church.

And it all goes back to a bunch of twentysomethings with a dream that had a belief that God could do more than they thought or imagine head of the gospel changes everything. Now here's my question. If God could do that with the launch team authority. What could he do with 3000.

If 3000 people across five locations bought in in the same way the dagger but twentysomethings bought in May and the skies the limit and what could God do Kaiser Bobby has talked about before you know you not having resources that's that's real listen. I remember when we launch Mercy Hill if if we needed to go by five shares from Walmart for small group. It was like a three hour meeting okay because it was like it will have the money for that. Okay no resources and all the sudden you have a church that monthly has a budget three times what the year one budget was 10 years ago. What could God do if a church like that opens their hands and buys in the same way.

I pray that we will man I'm gonna start up for what God is doing here as I've ever been in my life and on a whole, and I know that many of our leaders are many of you are see every single day and open all of us will be a will make that decision to lead all the way in today. Alright, so here's order to chase down from first Timothy chapter 4. Big idea for this weekend. We will strive to talk about striving laboring toiling is what he says we will strive for God's mission. When our hope is placed in him will strive for God's mission. When our hope is in him. Let's anchor our hope in God, and let us strive for the mission monthly all the way in and put RES on table for the next 10 years.

In first of the chapter 4 here's what it says have nothing to do with irreverent silly myths.

Rather, train yourself in godliness that we talked about this market get into the reverence of the irreverent silliness we talked about some of that earlier but I do want to get into this idea train yourself for godliness.

Now here's the example that he uses verse eight for while bodily training is of some value godliness is of value in every way as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life that is Tecumseh bodily training is good but you know that the godliness training that's we need to be. After some was in here like man. Finally, I want to go to the gym anymore.

Okay, no running or not is nobody saying okay that he's using as an example, in the way that many of us would think about training for our bodies, we would think about training for a particular skill set of work or maybe we were trained to make our our hobby, but were training ourselves for something the same and apply that to something that is eternal instead of temporal.

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance does the Barcelona camp on for to this end. Your translation might say.

For this reason we labor some translations say this one says we toil and strive why because we have our hopes set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe no talks about physical training, physical training, sliding good is not eternal though hot godliness training is Atty. Gen. of the other word for training in godliness is it's a very simple word we throw around all the time. We need to define a more it's the word discipleship. That's the work training in godliness, raising someone's maturity. It's talking here Paul is talking about University says hey, this is the reason that we toil why it goes back to verse eight we labor and we toil and we strive that we would see people trained in godliness brought to maturity that we would see disciples made you better immersing overlong you know this heart and mercy shall we say like this, discipleship is word caught and in his word as is were taught in life, right it's hearing the word of God preached in its living it out and group so that we here we say it Mercy Hill paid the idea that spiritual growth is complex and nobody can know what you're supposed to do and how the ever-growing faith. That's it. That's the thing that's out there and it needs to be debunked.

Acts chapter 2 tells us pretty easily that no discipleship is simple. That doesn't mean that it's easy okay simple doesn't mean easy something can be difficult without being complicated, it is harder, but it's not complex. It is something that we can look at reasonable one of the building blocks of training in godliness or bringing someone to maturity the building blocks from acts chapter 2 are very simple. We gather together for worship and preaching when we gather in smaller groups for relationship so that we can iron sharpening iron and life on life. We learn to give our time telling treasure and then we learn to go and live for something that is higher than ourselves, and we think about other people rather than us, whether that be the nations or our neighbors are workplace or the world if you jump into the data stream, God will move you in the current you will move in godliness and that's what he's getting at here. It's not easy. It's simple but it's not easy right and so that's why we need to be trained in it and Paul says very particularly high. That's all. Verse eight training godliness.

He says very particularly verse 10 it is for that reason that he strives and that he labors and that he toils it is to raise up disciples. That's what Paul was all about is what he's trying to get Timothy to be all about it when I hope I'm all about and it's what I hope you are all about what I am to do is to train you to be about this and that's what he says in Ephesians 4. Look what it says on the screen and date and he gave the apostles and prophets in the bed of the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. What is the work of the ministry. I am the equipped for our pastoral team is he a quiver of the saints to go out and do the work of the ministry.

But what is that ministry is for building up the body of Christ is searching, you don't send away training, godliness is for discipling others is senior brought to maturity until we all attain to the unity of faith in the knowledge of the son of God, to mature manhood in the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Why do we toil. Why do we labor what we try to do what is the aim that Paul is getting at here. The aim is we toil and we labor to see people brought up into maturity and that's what he finally gets into inverse and when he says it is for. To this end, we toil and we strive. That is what Paul is working for he is working to see people brought up into the faith know this is why you saw a launch team from Raleigh-Durham in 2012 about your twentysomethings and college students. Do you know that that team had 10 college students on it that graduated many of them had job offers in their majors and they turn those things down, and came here and took John's painting house. The landscaping we had people that left being teachers and can only find jobs being a teacher's aide people's old house and moved into apartments.

Why would they do that they do it for this end they want.

They did it so that we would see people raised up and trained in godliness. That's what it was about people that were black people that would be born again and then trained in godliness you ever seen we we have missionaries all over the world that are watching this in a lovely says in verse 10 to you guys because he says for we we do that we labor right now we mean by we pause anywhere in the same jig jot geographic region. As Timothy with her laboring together for some you guys can be our 10 year anniversary. To see this letter. We love you we pray for you and we labor with you. Why are you there, why are they there church same reason, to see people born again and brought to maturity. This is why we are here Christian, there is a purpose to your life. We said assault on the mercy hill you were made for more than possessions and promotions and your kids are made for more than straight A's in soccer. You are put where you are for a particular purpose and reason some of us in here today might be thinking to yourself when it's all random that's wrong, bro. Okay, it's not all random God has you and a particular place in a particular work environment in a particular school.

He's got you in a particular neighborhood. Some of us he's got us in places we don't want to be now understand that you he's got us. He's got us taken children to therapy because walking in and out of the hospital to see a loved one. It's not random is what what what this is. We are there to toil. We are there to serve.

We are there to labor. We are there to strive. We are there to see people brought up born again brought up into maturity. That is why we labor now. It's interesting to me here to say this, you know, he uses the word labor and toil now so we are teachers okay and I love this and I know Mike, my teacher, my English teacher grown up a high school although they always said don't mix your metaphors will nobody told Paul that okay if you look in the Bible and he does all the time.

He goes from, or talk about athletic training to Nelson were taught about agriculture and okay sword, trying nobody knows I don't know now or talk about labor and toil and striving but the idea is that sowing the seed is going to be hard but is worth it though it's can be hard. Ministry is hard.

Ministry is hard work and I listen I know I know is you primarily hear anything minimizing my job is or not that's element is if you give you sorrow and Ephesians 4. My job is actually ministry my job is equipping ministers, you'll that's a much my that's not my job.

Your job is the work of the ministry. I was given to equip you write what you do the ministry that you take on.

That's what is heart. It's worth it, but it's hard be an everyday Christian with an eternal perspective, it is hard you were here for labor toils travel that the word is Agro needs of my agony is where we get our word got a crazy right now me that we would let you know as I now love you ministry all that doesn't mean that it's not hard keeping your home open for those kids in the neighborhood that don't have believing parents is not easy using vacation time to go on a mission trip and leaving your wife and for little kids behind that's that's not easy right it's good is totally worth it. We labor but it's not easy, maybe not taking a lifestyle increase.

Every time our pay increases, but instead we do a generosity increased. That's not easy right but it is it is worth it and that's what the Bible is getting us to see here we labor and we toil don't get it twisted. It is hard what I'm calling our church to today to lean all the way here and let's go for the next 10 years, and let's just see what God can do that doesn't mean that is easy I know is not easy to switch back and the song archers plan for minute, because you always like this, or sometimes first planning is crazy. Okay, I may we plan this church and and it was menu you just see some of the crazy stuff. After we were there we have Manny and I we had the whole garage is kids stuff and I'm the one with only one with the truck our listings on pull the trailer you know up to the proverbial partner set everything up or set everything up over there one night for worship gathering. I might not feel like I smell smoke and there's likely yet you do because the speakers on fire. Okay, so the speakers burning down and it's got no duct tape all over and I am wiser and I finally got a chance of pulling fire alarm generally know we didn't actually get it.

We got put out. I think about that, stuff on my minutes. Crazy summer. Once we showed up at Burma Park to do chores at night and I get there and the whole place is decked out for Christmas. Nobody told me this and I walking my mint is where our lobby is all know this is Santa's workshop today.

Okay I'm easing there like sit on his lap and the whole thing and the guys in their jolly old fella know that Anna Michael okay we can do that as you walk by Santa you know to get into the forces of the government is okay and in a sale.

That's not all. Actually the other side of the building are rented out by the Humane Society to give away kittens tonight telling you the straight somebody comes a church okay greatest first-time guest experience of religiously go ahead and sit on Santa's lap here and then did you get your kid in the first time goes back thanks a lot. Okay I hope I hope you come back. They never came back okay that people that I promise you never came back minute it was.

It was crazy. We saw some funny stuff like that and praises conversations with client of this church that within the first year I have these people come in all the said they would come in and what they can or church one time. Want to meet with me and they would want to sit down and they would want to say that God sent them torture so that they could be my mentor, but I don't need you mentor me, get the feeling here. Maybe your Bulova wolf.

Honestly, come one time and you will be my mentor the shepherds mentor is weird that much spiritual stuff going as crazy and I think back toward Washington and Emmett were good. You see them on screen and all that and you see them on stage and I remember the stories of the spiritual tax and the miscarriages and the crazy things that were happening at work and all the family stuff that went crazy and financial issues that popped up.

The second we try to bring the gospel to the city. It's hard you taking the gospel across the street to a neighbor and asking them to come to church they that there's risk in that you a it's hard think about attend one, serve one rather than just being a consumer for the next 10 years like it's it's hard.

What I want to try to tell you, though, is that it's worth it easier to get inside its witness in every believer that comes from moment or somebody calls them to lean all the way and they got have this moment were they realized flavoring and soil has its roots in agony.

That doesn't mean it's not worth it does me is not good, but it does mean that is hard and every believer at some point even goes the place were there wondering if it's worth it to get on the Stephen Foreman crazy Stephen Foreman is white and waiting to be missionaries.

Crazy Pl. in North Africa. Their first day they ever went on. He hands her smell of this book. He hands her a copy of the book Fox's book of martyrs on their first date cholesterol. You don't leave and he just sent him as will be up front that this is this what my life is about my now mom I'm going in our mortal and MSU Ballwin and I left it all, they left an incredible career here.

They left augmented brought for kids. They go to the hardest place that you can go in the hardest time that you can go and Stephen was martyred in the dirt street by Al Qaeda. That's an incredible gospel movement things they saw there. So going on and on the flight back home. It hit simply as it is hit.

Many of our missionaries. And since many of us and is even we struggle with were trying to figure out according to take a vacation days to work at Mercy Hill kids week next summer and they cut it all comes rep. The question is man was it worth it she wrestle with the Emily differ months, but you know what she comes to the conclusion it was absolutely worth God is worth it. It's hard, but he's worth it. Is it worth it to us. I was rescuing and you keep saying it's worth, it's worth of you have a given. Actually, the why. I know I built it up to say this. This is why it's worth a look at verse 10 for to this end, we toil and strive we know what that is. That's the one that's the aim to this in verse eight, were trying to get people in the training, godliness and discipleship. But that's not the why. Why is it worth it. This is why it's worth it because we have our hopes set on the living God. That's why it's worth it, the Savior, who is Savior of all people, especially of those who believe that's why it's worth it if it's worth it because it is a hard yes one of the kindest things are hard today. Yes.

Is it worth it yes wife because God is alive and he is active and he is moving and he is a mission you want to convince you. There is a greater purpose to your life and for my life than what the American dream which is actually a nightmare has to offer us. That's what it's about a living God who has a mission.

We strive to see disciples made because this is the why we serve a living God who is a mission old got if Jesus is raised, and God is moving.

We are all fools and I am the chief but Jesus is alive and of God is moving, then it is worth every bit of our life to strive and to labor and to toil to see disciples made they will be our reward. We will see them in heaven for all of eternity. I this is worth it if these things are true about that my life that God is alive and I give my life to Christ very early my life six years old. I don't mean I haven't had boss doesn't mean I haven't seen the darkness in different situations in my life that I look back at us like big I was six years old.

It had to be like the first time God is ever calling you and I just I just praise God that one of the things I look back on in my life that is an absolute fact is, I'm 38 years old but I say but I was six and I do not have one memory in my life of ever actually feeling alone these alive. He is he is moving he is a Christian. She is in us, and he is any is giving us this mission. Look at what is said that he is the Savior of all people, especially those who believe. Don't all tripped up on this. First, people want to go crazy with it. Another way that you can easily translate this verse is to say that he is a Savior of all people.

That is to say, those who believe. By the idea being here is not that there's two types of saber or something like that or universalism or some like that all it's saying is that Jesus Christ is available to anyone who would trust in him. John 316 tells us that Jesus was given for the whole world. It is a gift, though that has to be accessed by faith. There is a mission for all of us know it starts with you and it starts with me okay it started here before but maybe gospel came to us on his way to somebody else. But it did come to us not to push now just for a minute just a myth has it come to you. Have you experienced setting your hope on the living God.

If you set your hope on a God who has a mission that is out there for you.

You know Jesus Christ as the Savior for all people you can trust in him. Every single one of us on the sound of my voice Arkansas today. If God is calling you today. Salvation can be yours today. Will you come to him would you put your trust in him today. Jesus Christ was given the son of God stepped into humanity in order to be a sacrifice, and an atonement for your sin in our sin we are separated from God forever.

We deserve nothing to hell for eternity and God is totally just to do that. But Jesus Christ stepped into our shoes, and he was sacrifice for us. Would you invite him into your life which you claim that gift by faith today and I pray that you would some of you may be some of you maybe are in this mode are I know I don't know exactly your story might be to some of you might be in this mode because you're in the sky. Religious culture in the South. Whatever. And you might be in this mode of like highs and lows and encounter faith story words like man I thought you different arcs of your life like I got really excited about God and then I just constantly fell off and I get really excited. I totally fall off in a remote Bible that I just you haven't thought about that in six months. As these why old extremes are going up and down and up and down the listen every Christian struggle so you gotta check the spirit in your own life. Is it possible that you never actually set your hope on God in the first place. Is it possible you never actually yielded and invited him into your life and that's what's creating all of these highs and lows and highs and lows.

Is it possible that that's where you are. It's I guess it is more like what Jerry Seinfeld said about pop tarts. Write a pop tart can never go stale because it was never fresh. Okay you heard of before and it's like some of us think were doing still know you were never fresh. We we think I'm going stale.

Maybe it's that you never sent your hope on God you can do that today. Here's one push now so hard because I'm about to push this church as hard as I ever have the say would you lean all the way in.

We would put our yes on the table and become the launch team for the next 10 years, but I don't want to do that and hide you up in a motivational way to put you on a red-hot for little while just turned ice cold again and maybe what action needs to happen is that you give your life to Christ today, and pray God in my sin. Using Jesus as a Savior, turning loose of my life and I'm turning to him as my Lord, would you pray that prayer with me. Even today, and when you do you get baptized on October 6, October 9 to Pastor Jeremy holiday or whom I love okay and he was Pastor JD referencing the video you guys know they know how and plan a port city in Halifax Nova Scotia. There just moving up there Halle. I love Jeremy you. It tore my heart out. It tore my heart. I'm numb. I'm all for. I'm excited for but you want talk about this break is about as hard when they said they said he was going to health.

I Jeremy came he said ma'am were going in a world Halifax Nova Scotia when he finally told me they were actually going to look & manual to Russia varsity.

I guess that it no Nova Scotia Russians have scammed okay so anyway they're going to elaborate Jeremy Aubry observing of this message because you don't know this but Jeremy listen man has been a pastor dances was his Achilles' heel for years. Okay, I mean the first time he stepped up the baths about downtime somebody Mercy Hill.

He was all nerves like a seam shaking like this and you get the person to baptize and I promise you, right before he's about to go to Italy baptized somebody say the name of the father the son hold TPP grounds and he says, by the power vested in me. I now pronounce you meant lately. That's not right that's not right thing is how you baptize the body baptized in the name of the father the son and the holy Temple like what you don't know the number talking to Bobby like that anybody got a PhD you like what you do theologically with that. We got a rebound so I don't know what we do okay you know so I bring up a little bit. It may just talk about Jeremy such as he such a founder will today. Just that was honoring so anyway but I just think about. I just think about man I think about and all seriousness met all the people to Jeremy personally baptized in this church. I mean personally because he had he raised them up these college kids Ali and some of you guys need to walk through his doubts as waters on site on October 6 and I pray to receive him today and go public.

Then right and then we can get into, then it's time to say man is my yes on the table now limited to the rest of the church arrived. If your believer today. If you call Mercy Hill home man. This is the Paro Marceline and we gotta decide. Men who were to be in the next 10 years of his will according to Miller strive for God's mission believing that he is worth it. Let's strive for God's mission in the next 10 years in greater ways that we have in the first 10 years that we serve a God who is alive. We serve a God who has put us on a mission and we can become a launch team. Again, one of the greatest years I have mercy, and talk about myself before I promise you both want talk about any elder forms or by any staff member from soma any community leader.

I'm talking about me my you guys men just look at the world it seems like our fire can begin to fade as the church gets older. Doesn't it doesn't not is… That's a big fear that why because that passage in Hosea chapter 13 the God blesses you a bunch all the sudden you begin like a blessing more than God. You begin asserting I'm not pretty satisfied with this, I don't need you anything. I don't feel that may come from where we were back against the wall willing to punch ourselves out that washing came her we were willing to do anything to reach the city and I think about that now.

10 years later, my man, there's a danger in getting comfortable there's a danger in having more stuff. There's a danger in all of that is on call myself back to this before: anybody else but I just think that is our hope in God, a living God who has a mission for us. For this reason we labor for for that. To this end is our pastor said today we strive and we toil now or call us to make that decision today. Management 10 years, I understand that there is such an achievement. And that God God is glorified in that it's awesome because we gotta understand the stories not finished is just got started right. I mean, it does do the starting line. God has just come and gone off and what God is going to do through the church here and I want us to get that in our mind that our story is not finished. We want to honor the past we want to understand where God is taking us.

Mercy Hill church. What is our story.

This is generally our story in the 30s.

A.D. Jesus Christ commission some disciples to go make disciples to the ends of the earth, and they had never heard of a town called Greensboro yet.

Okay there's about 30 something 80 those guys begin to go out like crazy and by mid first century there start to see disciples made and actually some missionaries have even been sent to some places like Egypt and even people popped up in India, there's this kind of these Christians are discount Agoura providing end of the first century A.D. there were church planting centers in Rome and Antioch in different places that are beginning to start sending churches out so that by 300 A.D. you have just about half of the Roman Empire that is now professed faith in Christ for hundreds A.D. you have a guy named Patrick. Okay, that has a dream wakes up goes a share the gospel with a bunch of people in Ireland, we now curb commemorate that some people debug and smashing pension each other okay. Not sure what that's about all that's kind of an odd way to celebrate right but that's what you know people around the world to be you guys understand Saint Patrick whatever menaces the bike.

This is the mission movement starting to go out you by the end of the six century, 40 missionaries were commissioned to go to a place called England that was filled with barbarians at the time okay and they go out and they start seeing massive movement for thousands of people are coming to Christ and hundreds of churches are beginning to be planted now for the next 500 years or so. Things get sketchy.

That's why we call the dark ages right but you know what happened during that time the next few hundred years, people actually started waking up to the power of God was in his word and it shouldn't just be held by a few, but that we should be able to read the word for ourselves and so when you get into the 1300s and 1400s, what you end up seeing is people like John Wycliffe and all this they start to get the word out and face the persecution that comes with that, but by 1611, the greatest viral before viral was viral happen when the King James Bible was printed with the Gutenberg press and all I can to stop and then it begins to go all over the place and as it does with it comes a missionary movement listen when people move back to worship.

The next thing that always happens is missions when people worship rightly they wake up to realize there's a lot of people don't know this God is available for the next couple 300 years.

The next couple 300 years or the Moravian movement in names like William Carey a little bit later that an arm Judson in different names that many of us might note our kids. Maybe read their biographies in the midst of all of that missionary movement.

What happens in 1609 John Smith points the first what we would, now look back at as a Baptist church, meaning that they stood on the word of God as the sole authority and they decided that baptism should happen after someone's conversion you were born a Christian, you were born again and being born again. Then you took baptism after that. But by 1638. They had begun to plant churches all over the place and the powers that be started persecuting them. There's this big theme always in the book of acts of persecution, scattering the church and what happens more churches begin to get planted and popping up its own 1638 fleeing persecution. Some brothers come over here and plant a church in Rhode Island that has those same beliefs church begins to grow, to finally plant a church in Chowan County. In 1727 in North Carolina amidst the great awakening. In 1740 or so.

All the sudden thousands of people are coming to Christ under people like George Whitfield and all of these there, Christ. A little place and there is a massive revival that breaks out in the state of North Carolina and a dude named Struble Stearns the so you guys may have heard of pride he finds out about it from up north and he's I do not have any part of this and so he comes and moves his family down to where liberty North Carolina they go right down the road of you probably not even an hour from here right now I'm not eating that he did not in a plant to Sandy Creek church which blows up by that date. Standards 600 some people. They start playing churches like crazy and it's a movement, they played over 40 churches in North Carolina. One of them. They plant in Durham North Carolina that is called the Rose of Sharon church in Durham over the next hundred years that that's probably about 1800.

Okay, next hundred years.

That church begins to grow it changes names and like churches do it more.

Since a living being. It's it's moving around. It changes bunch of names also. But by 1907, it had landed and stabilize and plant a church. And Nora finds another church and you get nothing here to plant another church in North Durham. That church was called the North Durham church very creative.

Okay 1959 that church. Reaching outside of its borders decided it needs to plant a church. Further north in Durham and today and trying to plant that church decide to call a young man that's 28 years old and a brother, Sam, James from Greensboro, North Carolina. Okay, who was on his way to be in a legendary missionary we have the opportunity having preacher this year. Legendary missionary in Vietnam, but on his way there he was stopped because of a heart condition of his son as we had a stop off in Durham so he gathered some brothers together begins to pour into them gathers the brother and the sisters and they start to plant a little bad this mission. They call about Dan called Grace about this mission that grew into a great church called Homestead Heights Baptist Church that changed its name to the summit church and hired a 28-year-old pastor named JD Greer in 2002. Within a few years after that Pastor JD had a vision laid on his heart to plan a thousand churches in a generation. Listen to me. Not out of the summit but it was out of churches that came out of the summit.

It was churches planting churches, planting churches, and the aggregate of a bunch of mercy Yuletide families right ends up seeing a thousand churches planted by 2050. And by God's grace working to see it happening.

2012, after five years of cultivation. There was a team led by me and pass her body and about 30 other twentysomethings that she did the call in 2012 we came to be one of those. I think we are the second or third one to go out and we plan to the church in a plant of the church moving here in May 2012 Ya by the fall, we lost our church with a couple hundred people by the rest of that fall that we had Artie sent our first missionary to Africa and we had our first baptism on October 14, 2012 a brother that many of you guys might even know to this day named Alex Nolan who is now China, who is now training help.

Now there being trained maybe to be sent out the actual living in Raleigh-Durham right now right 50 baptisms in the first year of ton of those being college students. It was crazy. It was revival. God was moving and it was just nuts and within two years. Our second birthday. We had moved into the space right over here were on that preaching and the kids face and enforce services totally packed out there.

We broke a thousand in attendance for the first time on our second birthday, but more exciting than that was a little bit later on that year in 2014 we had our first missionary family raise up to decide to move with the church that we were partnering with when the heat family moved out to the bridge church in Wilmington to help them get going couple years after that in 2016.

We have the largest city project.

We never had 35 students bought an all summer mental worship to do ministry to be shakes here and on the heels of having a city project that summer. All those college students, the Clifton Road campus lots that fall. Praise God, and we officially became a multisite church and I think about that in 2012, our whole goals would answer what our goal was to thousand 12.

I do not inhabit your goals like that. We will go there and be faithful that's that's a great goal. I guess okay and so you know people like Emily Dickinson handles on a formula is okay we want to see 500 people gathered at year five. November 2017 we had not seen in five years. 500 people gather actually November 2017 was her 500 baptism. When Sabrina was baptized here at Mercy Hill we probably partnered with about 10 churches by 2019. But in 2019. We made that moved from going to partnering to parenting and would send 50 of our folks down the plant new city church in Tampa Florida and with that church was our hundred adults that had left this church to go to the mission field in April 2019, we saw a thousand baptism at the high point campus. Praise God for them. Praise God for their faithfulness there in March 2020. We ended up the week before the shut down got it moved our hearts radically towards adoption and foster care ministries and ministries of life and helping people in these situations. In a March 8, 2020. The church took up an offering for $250,000 so that we would be able to forever. Hopefully please for the next few years.

Be able to say to our families a step off the sidelines on the front lines. We will be your first supporter financially.

In September of that same unit is all the little company has earned this okay is all right in the Lakota in September of that year that are incredible worship team launch their first worship album. It was an incredible nine minute worshiping together and all of that in the fall of that year is well memo heart, which is correct. When I got this phone call.

The fall of that year, the largest sending agency for international missions in the world why got a call from one of the people that was there was there at the training. They do a couple trainings that you're one of them is in the fall and I said brother there are more people at this training for mercy cultures and any other church in the country that are getting ready to go out October 2021, so you guys might remember this because I was so fired up about about a year ago, we were able watch our fifth campus Mercy Hill and Espanola. We see the gospel proclaimed in another language in our city and what an incredible opportunity to see more going in that way. Seven people were baptized that following Easter cement also not fall we lost the student center when opportunity over 200 students may come together and worship downfall, and in December 2021 so that you are part of this in the church came together and in cash raise the money to buy the land for future home and hub on that were to be able to do ministry out of is the regional campus will move for years to come in April. Then of 2022 years an hour here okay in April, 20, 22, our first residency class graduated. We need to celebrate this more. Okay how we praise God you guys understand regional we have these graduate agencies graduates lineup that got a 36 hour Masters degree in their theological studies while doing ministry here without ever leaving this campus. One time right here able to train them to see them sent out and finally the second weekend of September and 20, 22, we celebrated our 10 year anniversary and then we had a decision to make men is what God has done enough or will we continue to lean in and to strive and to labor in ways that we never have, and I believe what's gonna happen by God's grace as we anchor our hope in him and I would get a statement he gave us a mission. What happens is that 30 people in a large team. Understanding what the seeds of doubt church work and what it became that 3000 people across five different locations decide to lean all the way in and when we do, the story just keeps rolling so that by the end of the year in 2022 Mercy Hill started a program in North Carolina to help 20 other churches over the next five years. Break 1000 in attendance and send 100 of their missionaries because, to whom much is given much is required and then by the end of 2023. The regional campus is moved into the new home and hub because the church went deep and was willing to give of their time, talent and treasure to see it happen. By the time we get to 2025. We have our first true granddaughter church that is planted by one of the churches that we planted in and by 2027 because of how many teams and college students. We are reaching and sending to the nations.

Five unreached people groups have come off the board in northern India that do not have the gospel being proclaimed in their language in their home right now and then in the fall of 2029. Our college ministry starts their community group session and they break 500 for the first time and we understand what that means because 30% of our missionaries come from the college campus and all the sudden 2030 we see an 18-year-old kid because of the timeline was never in any other church. They went to the hospital they went home and they were put in infant care and ministries and all that right here. Another 18 years old and I can't decide they're going to choose where they're going to college based on where church plants are going on your and then later on that year we launched our 10th campus and truly make what God is doing at Mercy Hill accessible to everybody in the triad and then in 2031 for the first time in Guilford County there more license foster families than there are kids needing placement. Praise God not only not only because of the families here because the ministry Mercy Hill is galvanized the church at large and we become in a quicker and a trainer of other churches in our community to reach their community in this area and in that year in 2031. We also plan our 20th family church which means that with that church plant that would absolutely be more people worshiping in the family of churches than there are in the flock right here at Mercy Hill and then in 2032 at Easter. We have a chance to do baptisms. As we always do and a 5000 person is baptized at Mercy Hill church in Nevada fall we send our 500 missionary you know why because that's how works Mercy over the last 10 years every 10 baptisms. We get to 171. Actually every 10 first-time guest gets one baptism we see hundred people come to the door for the first time that's assembling on that we see in the last 10 years. Maybe we'll get to see it again. My question is meant what could God do with the group. This here's the thing about this I can dream and imagine this what you got, actually do. If we would lean all the way and so here's my question to God's got you in this place for a particular reason we lean all the way in and we do labor and will you strive James Calvert in the 1800s was going to be a missionary to the islands of Fiji. The cannibals entities getting his family off the boat the captain constantly says James if you stay here, they will kill you and all of your family and James Calvert famously said brother. We died before we came here.

Why are we here is it to build a life or is it to give one away.

I'm wrestling with the I want to buy us in the table. I can never have an appraiser, you will as well. And let's be that washing I want to stand up at 2032, probably on the stage.

Okay Standiford 2032 cement stories and just 10 years seedlings of the church but of the 10 year mortgage church bought all the way and again (father we come before you lower our lives are yours and are baptisms.

Father, we have decided that to live is Christ, we have died to this old life in God.

I pray that you will renew a fire in us like has never been before. Lord convince us to set our hope on you convince us that you are living God with a great mission. Lord I pray for that. We will toil and strive in Christ, and we pray, amen