Principle 2 -
Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to him, and that he has the power to help me recover.
My daughter Abby is a big Veggie Tales fan. Our first big screen movie we went to this weekend was “The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything.”
Probably our favorite Veggie Video is Dave and Giant Pickle. It is a vegetable take on the Old Testament story of David and Goliath. I don’t know why but for some reason she loves the Big Pickle.
Although it is a children’s story, the message of this story is very similar to the message Pastor Barry shared with us last week.
Dave is this little guy. And there is this big pickle that wants to beat him up. Dave knows that he cannot defeat the big pickle on his own, but God will help him.
When King Saul tells Dave he is too little. “Little people do little things, but big people do big things.”
Dave responds by saying, “he’s big (the big pickle), but God’s bigger.”
To put it all in perspective, here is where we are at! We are a dot on the map. And here is our problems. They are bigger than us. Bigger than we can manage. Bigger than we can handle. Bigger than our ability.
What I heard Barry share with us last week from God’s Word is that while our problems get the better of us – God is more than able to carry us though to overcome them. Our problems are nothing compared to him.
Yes, the problems we face in this world are big, but God is bigger. God is better. God is faster. God is stronger.
Maybe you remember a few months back – I shared with you just how incredible our universe is. It is massive. Huge. Our minds can only begin to grasp the immensity of it all.
When it comes to talking about the dimensions of the universe we don’t talk miles, but we talk billions and trillions of light years.
And God created it all. That tells you just how big God is. He is bigger than the biggest thing you can think of.
On the screen is a picture from the Hubble Telescope Website. It is entitled: Iridescent Glory of Nearby Helix Nebula. A Nebula is a dying star. You see that little tiny dot right there in the middle. That is actually the star. And everything else you see is gasses being emitted from the star as it dies.
Now to give you a perspective in terms of the universe this is nearby, but in terms of our world, it is a long, long ways away. Only 650 light years.
If you got in your rocket ship, turned on auto pilot to travel at the speed of light, you would arrive in about 650 years from now. So it is not a day trip to this star.
What I find so beautiful about this nebula is it reminds me of the eye of God. Do you see the eye? God is up there, looking down upon us.
This is a popular way to view and to see God. God is up there in the sky and this is pretty much his perspective. He looks upon the earth from a distant.
It sort of makes me shudder to think about 80’s songs. But it made me think about that 80’s song by Beatte Midler. I am not going to try to sing. I will spare you that. But these were the lyrics.
God is watching us. God is watching us.
God is watching us from a distance.
God for many is an impersonal force from a distance that has set the universe in place, the rules of nature, and such and is largely hands off.
Today, I would like to dispel this myth. While God is big, God is powerful, God is not impersonal. God does not have a vague perspective of our life, but intimate one. Psalm 8:
1 O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him, Psalm 8:1,3-4
Today’s principle is this: Earnestly believe God exists, that I matter to him, and that he has the power to help me recover.
There are very few atheists in the United States today. Ask most people if God exists, and they will likely say yes.
But the question is who is that God they believe that exists? Is it the God of the Bible? And do they earnestly believe God exists? Do you earnestly believe God exists?
For the vast majority of Americans and I would say for a great percentage of church going Americans, God in their minds is largely irrelevant. He is eye in the sky, but not much more. He has little impact on day to day decisions and circumstances and many do not give much thought to him.
Many of us miss that God is personally and intimately concerned with each one of us. That the decisions we make each day, each hour, each minute really do matter to him.
That when we encounter those problems that are bigger than us, that he desires to be our deliverer and our savior.
Listen again to the words of the Psalm that was read earlier.
There is not one person that God overlooks. Psalm 139 speaks so well of God’s intimate knowledge of each of us.
O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord. Psalm 139:1-4
You matter so much to God, that God takes the time to learn the intimate details about you that no one else knows or cares to take notice.
If you are joining me in reading through God’s Word in 2008, we will be reading Matthew 10 Tuesday. In that chapter we read in verse 30 that the very hairs of our head, whether we are bald or have a full head, are numbered by God.
John 10:3 tells us that God calls each of his sheep, his people by name. God knows your name. You are not irrelevant to him.
Why do I know that God cares for you?
The first reason I know that God cares for you is because he created you. He crafted you in his own image. You are the prize of his creation. There is nothing more valued in all of creation by God, than you.
The second reason I know that God cares for you is because he sent Jesus to die for your sins. He does not leave you in your sins, but gives you a way out. If he is willing to give you his own Son to die on the cross what else will he not do.
The third reason I know that God cares for you is because he says so. Cast your cares upon him, because he cares for you. God’s Word is true. There is no deceit from the mouth of God. It is worth believing in.
I could go on. I know God cares because he gives you the gift of prayer. He gives you the gift of worship. He gives you the Church. The Word and the Sacraments. He has given you spiritual gifts – you are not on this earth for no reason, you have a purpose and a place here.
Remember last Monday was an incredible day. Close to 70 degrees here at the beginning of January. The big news story was the tornado that struck not too far to the north.
The tornado touched down near the town of Poplar Grove. My parents live not too far from this town just north of Belvidere. The tornado destroyed the buildings at Edward's Apple Orchard. Edward's holds some special memories for me. I have pictures of a class trip I took there when I was in kindergarten. Most recently we took our daughter Abby there last fall for a fun day. It is sad to know that this landmark will never be the same.
Watching and reading some of the coverage of this event, I was listening to a lady whose home was destroyed in the storm. In the interview she basically cursed God and accused him of bringing this great evil upon her.
This is something that is not all that uncommon. So often I hear people blame God for their ills in life, especially in the midst of tragedy. My first reaction is always one of great sadness, because I know in that moment that person does not really know God at all.
As Americans we create God in our minds rather than allow him to reveal himself to us. And the God we create in our minds is a God that is obligated to put his hedge of protection around us no matter if we honor him with our lives or not. Nowhere in the Bible does God promise to protect the ungodly. I find it interesting that the person who wants nothing to do with God, when tragedy strikes, all of a sudden lashes out and says, "where were you God?" I can almost hear God crying out: "I was always here, but you pushed me away."
When the going is good it is easy to push God away. And to leave him up there as that eye in the sky. But when problems come our way, we shouldn’t ask “where were you God?” He is exactly in the same place we left him to be.
When we make God irrelevant in the good times, he will remain irrelevant in the bad times as well, at least until it is too late.
God doesn’t want you to call out to him only when times are bad, but also when times are good. God wants to be a part of your life. A part of every decision you make. He wants to be a part of all the intimate details. He wants to guide you and lead you in the way of blessing, in the way of wisdom, in the way of eternity.
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. James 4:8 ESV
Today there may be some of you who have kept God off in the distant. As long as he is the Lord of the Universe everything has been well. But as you have encountered life, you realize that you need more than just a Lord of the Universe, you need a Lord of your Life.
That’s our church’s name! Lord of Life. It is because we desire a God who is not far out, far away, far removed. But we desire a God who lives and dwells here.
A God who is present with us to face the trials and tribulations of our lives. Draw near to him and he will draw near to you.
That is the invitation I give to you this morning. To say Jesus, I have been keeping you at a distance for far to long. I have been trying to do it on my own. But doing it on just is not working.
I put on a good face. I am good at concealing from others my inadequacies. But I don’t have it all together and I am barely getting by.
It is time to stop just getting by. But it is time to conquer, it is time to live in victory.
Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to him, and that he has the power to help me recover.
Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to him, and that he has the power to help me recover.
My daughter Abby is a big Veggie Tales fan. Our first big screen movie we went to this weekend was “The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything.”
Probably our favorite Veggie Video is Dave and Giant Pickle. It is a vegetable take on the Old Testament story of David and Goliath. I don’t know why but for some reason she loves the Big Pickle.
Although it is a children’s story, the message of this story is very similar to the message Pastor Barry shared with us last week.
Dave is this little guy. And there is this big pickle that wants to beat him up. Dave knows that he cannot defeat the big pickle on his own, but God will help him.
When King Saul tells Dave he is too little. “Little people do little things, but big people do big things.”
Dave responds by saying, “he’s big (the big pickle), but God’s bigger.”
To put it all in perspective, here is where we are at! We are a dot on the map. And here is our problems. They are bigger than us. Bigger than we can manage. Bigger than we can handle. Bigger than our ability.
What I heard Barry share with us last week from God’s Word is that while our problems get the better of us – God is more than able to carry us though to overcome them. Our problems are nothing compared to him.
Yes, the problems we face in this world are big, but God is bigger. God is better. God is faster. God is stronger.
Maybe you remember a few months back – I shared with you just how incredible our universe is. It is massive. Huge. Our minds can only begin to grasp the immensity of it all.
When it comes to talking about the dimensions of the universe we don’t talk miles, but we talk billions and trillions of light years.
And God created it all. That tells you just how big God is. He is bigger than the biggest thing you can think of.
Now to give you a perspective in terms of the universe this is nearby, but in terms of our world, it is a long, long ways away. Only 650 light years.
If you got in your rocket ship, turned on auto pilot to travel at the speed of light, you would arrive in about 650 years from now. So it is not a day trip to this star.
What I find so beautiful about this nebula is it reminds me of the eye of God. Do you see the eye? God is up there, looking down upon us.
This is a popular way to view and to see God. God is up there in the sky and this is pretty much his perspective. He looks upon the earth from a distant.
It sort of makes me shudder to think about 80’s songs. But it made me think about that 80’s song by Beatte Midler. I am not going to try to sing. I will spare you that. But these were the lyrics.
God is watching us. God is watching us.
God is watching us from a distance.
God for many is an impersonal force from a distance that has set the universe in place, the rules of nature, and such and is largely hands off.
Today, I would like to dispel this myth. While God is big, God is powerful, God is not impersonal. God does not have a vague perspective of our life, but intimate one. Psalm 8:
1 O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him, Psalm 8:1,3-4
Today’s principle is this: Earnestly believe God exists, that I matter to him, and that he has the power to help me recover.
There are very few atheists in the United States today. Ask most people if God exists, and they will likely say yes.
But the question is who is that God they believe that exists? Is it the God of the Bible? And do they earnestly believe God exists? Do you earnestly believe God exists?
For the vast majority of Americans and I would say for a great percentage of church going Americans, God in their minds is largely irrelevant. He is eye in the sky, but not much more. He has little impact on day to day decisions and circumstances and many do not give much thought to him.
Many of us miss that God is personally and intimately concerned with each one of us. That the decisions we make each day, each hour, each minute really do matter to him.
That when we encounter those problems that are bigger than us, that he desires to be our deliverer and our savior.
Listen again to the words of the Psalm that was read earlier.
There is not one person that God overlooks. Psalm 139 speaks so well of God’s intimate knowledge of each of us.
O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord. Psalm 139:1-4
You matter so much to God, that God takes the time to learn the intimate details about you that no one else knows or cares to take notice.
If you are joining me in reading through God’s Word in 2008, we will be reading Matthew 10 Tuesday. In that chapter we read in verse 30 that the very hairs of our head, whether we are bald or have a full head, are numbered by God.
John 10:3 tells us that God calls each of his sheep, his people by name. God knows your name. You are not irrelevant to him.
Why do I know that God cares for you?
The first reason I know that God cares for you is because he created you. He crafted you in his own image. You are the prize of his creation. There is nothing more valued in all of creation by God, than you.
The second reason I know that God cares for you is because he sent Jesus to die for your sins. He does not leave you in your sins, but gives you a way out. If he is willing to give you his own Son to die on the cross what else will he not do.
The third reason I know that God cares for you is because he says so. Cast your cares upon him, because he cares for you. God’s Word is true. There is no deceit from the mouth of God. It is worth believing in.
I could go on. I know God cares because he gives you the gift of prayer. He gives you the gift of worship. He gives you the Church. The Word and the Sacraments. He has given you spiritual gifts – you are not on this earth for no reason, you have a purpose and a place here.
Remember last Monday was an incredible day. Close to 70 degrees here at the beginning of January. The big news story was the tornado that struck not too far to the north.
The tornado touched down near the town of Poplar Grove. My parents live not too far from this town just north of Belvidere. The tornado destroyed the buildings at Edward's Apple Orchard. Edward's holds some special memories for me. I have pictures of a class trip I took there when I was in kindergarten. Most recently we took our daughter Abby there last fall for a fun day. It is sad to know that this landmark will never be the same.
Watching and reading some of the coverage of this event, I was listening to a lady whose home was destroyed in the storm. In the interview she basically cursed God and accused him of bringing this great evil upon her.
This is something that is not all that uncommon. So often I hear people blame God for their ills in life, especially in the midst of tragedy. My first reaction is always one of great sadness, because I know in that moment that person does not really know God at all.
As Americans we create God in our minds rather than allow him to reveal himself to us. And the God we create in our minds is a God that is obligated to put his hedge of protection around us no matter if we honor him with our lives or not. Nowhere in the Bible does God promise to protect the ungodly. I find it interesting that the person who wants nothing to do with God, when tragedy strikes, all of a sudden lashes out and says, "where were you God?" I can almost hear God crying out: "I was always here, but you pushed me away."
When the going is good it is easy to push God away. And to leave him up there as that eye in the sky. But when problems come our way, we shouldn’t ask “where were you God?” He is exactly in the same place we left him to be.
When we make God irrelevant in the good times, he will remain irrelevant in the bad times as well, at least until it is too late.
God doesn’t want you to call out to him only when times are bad, but also when times are good. God wants to be a part of your life. A part of every decision you make. He wants to be a part of all the intimate details. He wants to guide you and lead you in the way of blessing, in the way of wisdom, in the way of eternity.
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. James 4:8 ESV
Today there may be some of you who have kept God off in the distant. As long as he is the Lord of the Universe everything has been well. But as you have encountered life, you realize that you need more than just a Lord of the Universe, you need a Lord of your Life.
That’s our church’s name! Lord of Life. It is because we desire a God who is not far out, far away, far removed. But we desire a God who lives and dwells here.
A God who is present with us to face the trials and tribulations of our lives. Draw near to him and he will draw near to you.
That is the invitation I give to you this morning. To say Jesus, I have been keeping you at a distance for far to long. I have been trying to do it on my own. But doing it on just is not working.
I put on a good face. I am good at concealing from others my inadequacies. But I don’t have it all together and I am barely getting by.
It is time to stop just getting by. But it is time to conquer, it is time to live in victory.
Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to him, and that he has the power to help me recover.
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