ASK AWAY: Real Questions. Real Answers

Welcome to Ontario Community Church. I'm Pastor Patrick Daly, and you're listening to a special Ask Away episode.

Today is a little different from a normal sermon. This is a question-and-answer format. Real questions, real answers.

And during the recording, you'll even hear my wife, Amber, join me as we respond to questions together.

Some of the questions are theological, some are practical, and some are personal.

But our goal is simple, to keep Christ at the center, to pursue clarity, and to grow together.

All right, let's begin together.

Well, good morning, everyone. We are doing things a little bit different today, as we have been just going through our mission and vision.

We've been going through just all sorts of things with the new year.

Our annual theme being Blessed Are the Peacemakers.

And we've been...

And we've just been really going through a process of just identifying who we are as a church.

And it's just, there's been a lot of questions that's been going on, and it's just been really, really rewarding.

It's, I'm really grateful for you guys to submit the questions that you have.

And some of the other questions we put on are questions that we have commonly gotten in the two and a half years that we've been here.

Some that we get are a little more, some are pastoral, some are more about children's ministry, some are about family.

And so we just wanted to take some time to really just respond to some of the questions here that we have.

And so what I'd just like to do is, I'd like for us to open in prayer, and then we'll just go ahead and get started in our time together.

And so, Father God, we thank you for this time, this opportunity for us to gather together.

We recognize that this is not a typical sermon.

This is more of us responding to questions that have been submitted by the congregation and the community as well.

And we just pray that this will be a good opportunity for us to respond, for us to respond in wisdom and clarity.

And we just pray for everyone who is here in person and those who are tuned in online, that this message will just, these answers, these responses will be made clear and on ears that can hear and understand.

And we're just grateful for this church body.

We're grateful for this congregation.

And you have given us just a wonderful task to be able to preach the word and to be present with this congregation and to be salt and light to the community.

So bless this time together, and we just love you so much.

And thank you so much.

It is in the name of Jesus that we pray and we all say together, amen, church.

All right.

So, again, today is we're just doing a Q&A session.

We did this two years ago.

It was actually in 2023 or 24 when we did that.

And it was more biblical-based questions, which naturally, you know, when a pastor comes on, you want to ask questions regarding scripture and whatnot.

And it's still, it's a time for us to, as leadership for me as a pastor, and then I have Amber up here.

There are some questions regarding children's ministry and regarding just us as a family unit.

We'll answer as clearly as possible, and we will just with grace and truth.

And if you guys have any other questions, feel free to just write them down and give them to us.

If we have time, we'll get to any additional questions.

We do have, I think, 15, 16 questions to go through.

So, we're just, again, this is not a typical service that we do.

So, if this is your first time, we typically open the Word, we observe it, right?

We learn the lessons, and we learn what we need to do as Christians.

And so, we're going to go ahead and go into, I've titled this on here.

It's the same title as we had back in 2024.

It's Ask Away, and it is real questions and real answers.

If it wants to...

All right, just give it a second in here.

Real questions and real answers, and this is basically the 2026 or part two of Ask Away.

We're not going to have this every Sunday, but will be situations for us to go over things.

So, the first question that comes up, then, is...

Let's start to the next slide, then, is...

Does God help those that don't know Him?

This is a common question that you get when regarding...

What if they're not a Christian, right?

How does God help at all, or what does that look like?

And what I put on this next slide here is that God shows kindness and help to all people.

Now, what type of help that looks like is going to be different.

And you think of the creation of the earth, right?

You think of the rain and the sun, right?

And every day that you have life, that is a gift from God that is for everybody.

Now, when we're thinking of salvation and transformation, becoming more like the Lord, that is more exclusive for Christians.

And there's a verse that's in Matthew 5, verse 45, where it says,

Matthew 5:45

He makes His sun rise on evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

So you think about the creation of the earth, like I'm saying, the sun, the rain, every day that we have is a gift from God.

And that is going to be for the unbeliever.

That's going to be for the believer as well.

But when we're thinking of what God gives to us, that's going to be...

Us as Christians, that is going to be very different.

And so it's important for us to know that with every gift that God gives the unbeliever or soon-to-be-a-Christian,

it's an opportunity to see God's provision, to see that God does provide even for those that don't know Him.

So you think of how God is the God of abundance.

He gives so many gifts and opportunities for us to know Him.

And what an amazing God that we have that gives gifts even to those that don't believe Him.

It's an opportunity for them to believe.

Right?

You observe the earth.

You observe the universe.

You look at the sun, the sunrise and the sunset.

You look at the mountains and the birds that are chirping in the air.

And it's supposed to be evidence of something that is much greater than that which is created kind of thing.

And so there's a lot into that.

Amber, did you want to...

Yeah.

And so as some of you might know, I have a background in biological and part of my classes was going through cultural and religious and that was one of the questions that would get asked quite frequently from a lot of my classes.

And so they were quite frankly, they would say, well, isn't that not fair that people in remote places may never hear the gospel message?

And so that was one of the things that I would hear frequently.

But as Pastor said, there's kind of this divine revelation that God does send through beauty of the earth, through instances where people do come into contact with us that really displays God's power.

And quite frankly, a lot of people may not have heard the message yet.

But they do...

They say there's something that's just special.

There's something that is great about this place or how there's miracles happening.

We don't know where they come from.

And...

And I would also preface that with that is why we are called to go out into all the nations as well.

So we are called to go out and to share the gospel, share the news, get it translated for even the most remote places so that they can really have that deep relationship with God.

But they could very well come across God and an understanding of God in their own circumstance.

And we can't put God in a box to say that he cannot speak divinely to those people in some way, shape, or form as well.

You have to think, not only is it nature that is speaking, right?

You think of the heavens declare the glory of God, right?

Or all of creation sings out to glorify God, right?

You have all of these verses throughout Psalms, Proverbs, just throughout Scripture that is testifying to the awesome power of God.

Not only do you have it within the creation, but also through people, right?

Part of us is to share in the gospel message, right?

The ministry of presence, speaking truth in love, all of these different ways to get people to see that there's something more than this earth, right?

There's something more to this life.

And it's just such a wonderful thing.

It's a great question.

Absolutely.

Let's go to that next one.

Question two, then, is does one have to be baptized and born again to be saved?

Now, this is a question I get all the time.

I don't know about you, Amber, but I get that all the time.

Because in Scripture, there are some verses where, for example, where it says, repent and be baptized, for example, right?

And then you have other verses that talk about, well, believe and be saved, and it can cause some confusion that happens, right?

So I want to put the answer that we have on here, which says that we are—what's that next slide?

Is that we're saved by grace through faith.

And baptism is obedience that follows that.

Now, sometimes when you read certain verses where it says, well, repent and be baptized, it's kind of talking about, right, repentance.

We understand that as metanoia, the changing of mind, right?

Our minds to be changed on who the Lord is.

And through that repentance, through that metanoia, we come to believe in the Lord, right?

And from belief comes the obedience, which is baptism.

There are so many verses that talk about faith in God and believing in the Lord.

That is the core.

That is the first—that is the most important thing.

Now, does it mean you should never get baptized?

Well, no, you should absolutely get baptized.

And it's important for us to know that if we create baptism to be a requirement for salvation, it then becomes part of a workspace salvation, right?

What happens to those—and there are case studies of this where there are people who may be more allergic to water or they may not have access to water.

And it creates just this kind of strange situation that happens.

And so, as Christians, in so many verses, it talks about believe in the Lord and be saved.

And I understand there are some people who have a different theological understanding where it may be more of their conviction to be baptized than by all means be baptized.

But when we're talking about salvation, it talks about belief, right?

Salvation is the gift of God, right?

And it is received by faith in Jesus Christ.

And so, being born again, if you go in the Gospel of John, where there's that conversation with Nicodemus, how can somebody be born again, right?

And Jesus answers by saying, that which is born of the flesh is born of the flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is born of the Spirit.

And you have to look—I think it's John chapter 3 where it's talking about that.

John 3 · chapter mention

It's important for us to realize that we are born in the physical realm, and there's also the spiritual realm, right?

Being born again.

And that occurs when we believe in the Lord, right?

Believing the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

And so, again, baptism, it is important.

It is something that we should do after salvation.

And what you see commonly in the book of Acts is they'll believe, and then they'll then get baptized.

And that's fine.

I actually think that's wonderful.

And a lot of churches that do that, they make a decision for Christ, and they're ready to get baptized.

That's a beautiful thing to see.

Many different churches have timing.

Sometimes they might have baptism classes and things.

But we must not make it where baptism becomes the requirement.

It is belief in God.

Having faith in Him is so important.

Yeah, and I just like to add a piece.

Because I work with the children, they often ask me a way to get baptized.

And so, we don't typically baptized infants.

But we do believe that when you have made that choice, you have professed your mouth and believe in your heart.

And then you can be baptized.

So, I mean, really, as early as children can do that, they might find it more significant, especially when they're a little bit comforted.

And can really take to heart that.

But I'm of the belief that when they're at five, and we're professing that Jesus is there, so we're at that.

But we just don't typically do it.

But if we're baptized, we think that's okay.

Yeah, there's a lot of times where some churches will talk about, well, re-baptism and legitimate baptism.

And we don't want to go so much into that.

But it's just important to get baptized.

One way or not.

And it's one final thing before we go to that next question.

It's important for us to know that believing in Christ, receiving salvation, right, making that decision for Christ, that's a very personal thing.

Right, that's something between you and the Lord.

That's very personal.

And when you're ready to get baptized, that's something that you want to tell everybody.

Share with your friends that now you're ready to make that public confirmation.

And so that's something that's...

Yeah, exactly.

It's a part of our way to think that if we are baptized in front of our friends, our family, they may not be at the meeting yet.

And so it opens up that conversation.

What's going on?

Where are you going in the water?

Why are you doing that?

So it's also a piece of that that is a beautiful...

All right, let's go to that next question.

So the question is, what do you say to a Christian who's concerned for their non-Christian loved ones who have passed away?

And this is a very, very good question.

And I wanted to take a moment to pull up in Scripture.

It's from Genesis 18, 25.

It's actually a very, very good verse.

If you want to turn your Bible there, that's fine.

If not, you don't have to.

But what's very interesting is you have the scene of Sodom and Gomorrah, right?

And it says in verse 22, men turned from there and went towards Sodom.

Abraham stood before the Lord.

Abraham drew near.

Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?

Suppose there are 50 righteous within the city.

Will you then sweep away the place of non-spirit or the 50 righteous who are in it?

And then verse 25, far be it from you to do such a thing.

To put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked.

Far be that from you.

Shall not the judge of all the earth do what is just?

And it's this question that's being asked here where we don't always know the heart of someone.

Now, we can see the outward expression, right?

We can see the actions of people, right?

Someone who has a heart of bitterness.

We can see that.

We can see the anger and the animosity that people have towards other people.

But what's so important is that towards, in the course of someone's life, how God may have revealed himself to a person, we don't know that.

And so we have this hope.

That question that gets asked, it comes from a place of love.

Love for someone who, you may not have seen the evidence, right?

You may not have known them as a Christian.

You may have known them as someone with a heart of a stone, right?

Or a really cold heart, as it were.

And we honor that.

But it's important for us to know that we place our loved ones into the hands.

Right?

And God knows the heart.

We trust in the character of God.

Especially when we don't have all of the information, right?

How many of us know every thought in our own minds, right?

Sometimes we wrestle with our own thoughts.

And so when we think of someone that has lived a life that is a non-Christian, we don't know their heart.

It is only God that knows that.

And so I want to give these words to you.

We grieve with hope.

And that's so important for us, right?

We grieve honestly.

And we are not hopeless, though.

Because it is God who will.

He knows.

He knows you better than you may know yourself, right?

He knows you better than a family member would.

And so we trust in God.

And we give our loved ones into the hands of God.

And this is not...

We have to know that from those verses in Genesis that God is just and God is merciful.

So part of it is we can't even fathom the mercy of God on one end or God's justice.

And at the same time, we may not understand a person's heart.

How many of you have may known somebody who has a hard shell but a soft inside, right?

I mean, I'm sure we could all raise our hands and know someone who's like that.

Maybe you yourself are like that.

We just don't always know the heart.

And that's so important for us.

So when there is a loved one, we have to offer that to the Lord.

And so that's very important.

And if you have had a loved one who has passed away, I mean, I'm here for you as your pastor.

You can always talk to Amber or anyone from the board.

We can pray with you.

And this is not an easy question.

You know, we're in our third question.

And that's a heavy one.

Yeah, and I think we have to be mindful of how we interact with people who are greedy.

And it's something that sometimes our words are meant to try to help someone get through that.

But they actually become a lot more harmful.

That might work, well, they're not going to heaven.

You know, they were such a wicked person.

It's really not our place.

God is the ultimate judge.

And he knows our hearts.

He knows their hearts.

And so we have to check ourselves in how we respond to someone who's grieving.

Because all of us are around people who might be going through those.

And sometimes we do it as a way to relate.

Or, oh, yeah, my grandfather just died.

And he was a wicked man.

Or, you know, we try to relate.

But we be mindful.

The scripture says to us to be mindful.

It's slow to speak, right?

To listen.

To hear where they're coming from.

And comfort them without necessarily pushing on what we believe to be about their problems.

And certainly with the loss of any family member.

I mean, the last thing you want to do is be like, well, they're in hell.

You don't want to do that.

You want to comfort them and be present with them.

Because at the end of the day, you don't know.

You really don't know their heart and what they have been through.

The people that have interacted.

Every single person that interacted with their life.

It's certainly possible that someone planted a seed that was there.

So.

And you're speaking as the person.

Yeah.

To the living.

And you have a profound effect on how their faith developed as well.

Let's go to the next question then.

So it's why do you partner with the secular community?

Now this is one.

This is a question we've gotten a few times.

Where it's so.

It's important for us to recognize that.

Jesus calls for us to love God and to love us.

To love our neighbors.

There's a verse in Jeremiah 29.7.

Where it talks about seeking the welfare of the city.

And pray to the Lord on its behalf.

And it's so important for us.

You know.

The church is a safe place.

For us to come together.

Encourage one another.

To grieve together.

To be present with one another.

But it's also important for us to be salt and light for the community.

That doesn't mean we are compromising our beliefs.

It means that we are representing Christ when we go out in the community.

Because let's be honest here.

Is anyone 100% never interact with anybody?

I mean maybe if you're alone on an island I suppose.

Right?

But more often than not you're going to interact with somebody.

Right?

And how are you representing Christ with every interaction?

Whether that's at Dutch Brothers.

Right?

Whether that's at Walmart or Albertsons.

Right?

Or you're going to Walmart.

How are you representing Christ?

And that's so important in that.

Right?

And we partner with these secular organizations.

Because it's the common good.

So I think of building healthy families.

I think of FACE.

I think of the Treasure Valley Relief Nursery.

A lot of them they are focused on having strong and healthy families.

That's something that is very important.

That we as the church we value.

Now how they help families might be a little bit different.

We have the spiritual side.

Right?

We have the biblical and scriptural side.

Right?

The ministry of presence.

For them they may have evidence based or science fact or different ways.

Different techniques.

But it's so important that when we are out in the community.

We can build relationships.

We can.

It's really.

We're focusing on.

You think of how Jesus dined with sinners.

Right?

How he was present with all of these different people who are worldly.

Or secular as it were.

Right?

Well he was there to be present.

And as we go further on in these questions.

We believe in this idea of friendship evangelism.

And the ministry of presence.

Where it is about building relationships.

And when the proper time is right.

You don't force it.

When the time is right.

Then you share.

In who Christ is.

It's not force.

It's by waiting upon the Lord.

Waiting on the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

And you have to think families.

They need support.

They need presence.

And so we partner with them to.

Because we value families.

But also.

That's part of our mission.

Yeah.

When we first moved here.

We've been doing ministry for many years.

So I thought.

Oh.

Just do the same things that I've always done.

You know.

I have some events.

And different things.

And very quickly.

I was humbled.

By the amount of resources.

Organizations.

That are in our community.

There is a lot going on.

And actually.

We were talking about it.

In our class this morning.

That we live in a post-Christian world.

That might seem very strange.

For some of these.

Because we were raised.

In the Christian era.

In the Christian church era.

Where the church really dominated.

A lot of life.

Social life.

A political life.

Just everyday interactions.

We're really centric.

Around church.

But our world has changed.

And our world has progressed through.

And a lot of things in our community.

Are going to happen.

Whether or not.

We show up.

Or not.

And so I quickly learned.

That you've got to be where the people are.

Because they're not going to step through these doors.

Unless something drastic happens in their life.

Or.

Or.

By friendship with the people.

By just being there with one another.

Seeing how you live your life.

And so.

I put.

My.

My children and myself.

We went to.

Building healthy families.

We went to.

A lot of these activities.

And I met other moms.

I met other families.

And.

Very.

Seldom.

Did I.

Reveal.

I'm a pastor's wife.

I've got a church.

You know.

I thought.

I was a selder.

But.

When the questions.

Hey.

I can't lie.

So.

I tell the truth.

And I tell.

Yeah.

I'm a pastor's wife.

I do children's ministry.

And it just.

Opens up doors.

That are more authentic.

That are more.

Real.

That says.

Yeah.

My kids.

Run around.

And just like.

You are not.

Perfect.

And you're welcome.

You're not perfect.

With me.

And know that Jesus loves you.

And so.

That was really.

What kind of.

Shifted that.

And the church already had these relationships.

Built in.

When we came.

You guys were already supporting.

CDCRN.

Not at the time.

You guys weren't supporting.

Building House and Families.

But now we are.

But there's a lot of other organizations.

That you guys were already supporting.

And you guys have.

Joined in partnership.

With each other.

At the food pantry.

You get to know people.

You serve alongside them.

People love.

To be in community.

With one another.

They love to serve together.

And when those.

Moments happen.

It's the most organic thing.

That really.

That really.

Shows the love of Christ.

Before we go to question five.

I think.

Just as people ask.

Why do you partner.

With the secular community.

How often.

The secular community.

Will ask.

What are you guys doing?

You're from a church.

What do you.

What do you want from us?

And it's.

It's.

Very standoffish.

But.

It's.

I'm here to serve.

I'm here because I value families.

And I'm no different.

I'm.

No better than you.

And I just want to.

Be here to help.

And the amount of conversations.

That you get from people like.

Oh.

Churches don't do that.

I don't want to judge other churches here.

But.

It's.

This is a real conversation.

That Amber and I have.

All the time.

We're going into.

Question five.

Why is Ontario Community Church.

Nonpolitical?

Now this is a very interesting one.

We'll go into the answer.

Directly.

Right.

We are.

Nonpartisan.

We're not going to.

Going to endorse the candidate.

That's not appropriate.

We.

Come to church.

To gather.

To worship the living God.

Right.

To.

Celebrate the.

Who Jesus Christ is.

Being the way.

The truth.

And the life.

And.

It's important to know.

That Christ.

Is above.

Political parties.

Now I know.

In the culture.

In which we live in.

Well.

What seems to happen.

Does the news media.

Or social media.

That try to bring everybody together.

I wish.

Right.

But they tend to divide.

Right.

They tend to divide.

On.

You know.

How taxes should be paid.

And you know.

Who has so much authority.

Or you should endorse this candidate.

Or that candidate.

And it goes on and on.

But the reality is.

Just because we are nonpartisan.

Does not mean.

That we are non-moral.

We turn to the pages.

Of the word of God.

To guide us.

In how we live.

In our everyday lives.

And it's important.

To make that distinction.

Because some people may say.

Well.

Why aren't you picking a side?

Are you watering down the gospel.

Or compromising things?

Absolutely not.

In fact.

It's a call for us.

To double down.

On scripture.

And what it says.

And what it means.

And how we can apply it.

Let the word of God.

Mold you.

And how you vote.

And how you.

View politics.

Not the other way around.

It's very tragic.

When you see politics.

Trying to force.

Itself.

Into the pages of scripture.

For some sort of agenda.

Or narrative.

And so.

That's something.

That we've got to be.

Very careful.

Just as Christ said.

In the.

Gospel of John.

That my kingdom.

Is not of this world.

That's very powerful.

And very strong language.

Because how often.

Do people want to.

Make their own kingdom.

Right.

Or weaponize Christ.

As it were.

And there's also a verse.

In first Timothy.

Where it says.

I urge that prayers.

Be made for people.

For kings.

And for all those.

In high authority.

Right.

Important for us.

To pray.

For those.

Who are in political office.

Pray for those candidates.

Pray for those.

Who are currently serving.

Ask the Holy Spirit.

To move.

In their life.

Let there be change.

Because if you remember.

When we went over Ezra.

We had those three.

Pagan kings.

That the spirit of God.

Changed their hearts.

And through the Holy Spirit.

God's purpose.

Was fulfilled.

The very.

I mean.

That's why we went over Ezra.

To see.

Wow.

The spirit of God.

Can work through pagan kings.

I pray that.

He'll work through.

A lot of.

Some of our leaders.

In political office.

And I'm not saying that.

To take so much of a job.

At politics currently.

But I guess I am.

But.

It's just important for that.

So.

Just understand the difference.

Between that.

Right.

That Christ is above.

Political parties.

And that.

Our unity.

Is in Christ.

We're seeking the things.

That are higher.

Seeking the things.

That bring us together.

And we pray for our leaders.

And we just.

We refuse to be divided.

By.

By.

Our.

Yeah.

And I was just.

I was that with.

Don't be afraid.

To ask.

A question.

That is.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

For.

pulpit, but you can certainly

have meetings of pastor,

myself, or, you know, us

together, where we go through that.

Where in Scripture can we find some

wisdom? Where can we find direction?

But yeah, you're not going to hear

the, what's

on the news headlines.

Let's keep going.

I know we're already taking a lot

of time. So question six, how does OCC

hold grace and truth when

either I or someone I love is

worldly, a sinner, or non-Christian,

et cetera, right? That's a pretty

big list in here, right? And I actually think

that covers the questions submitted, right?

It's important for us to

know that we stand

on the truth of God's Word, right?

We stand on the truth that is found in Christ

and we love others

like Christ has loved us.

And we are to be a light for others

to come to Christ, right?

It's important

for us to know that

the Lord

invites all of us,

no matter what our background is,

no matter how sinful

we are, no matter how

much in darkness we are,

there's still the call to come to the light.

And so,

as far as I'm concerned,

you are welcome to,

no matter what kind of sinner

you are.

There's a joke that

I hear every so often where it's

name a place that's full

of sinners, right?

I think a family feud.

And when the number one answer

was the bar.

I'm like,

a bar in the church?

Like, why is the church?

I think the church was like

the third one in the list here.

I'm like,

what in the world?

The church is full of sinners.

Sinners that are in need

of a Savior.

Sinners that are in need

of direction in their life

and divine transformation.

That's so important.

And this is just a place

for us to come together

no matter what your backstory is.

And that's the beauty

of this place.

We'll just go ahead

and just keep going.

Going to question seven,

I have to thank certain people.

I'm looking at you, Matt.

As I hear you're speaking

at Baylor University on AI.

Is this for the church?

And the answer is yes.

I am presenting

at Baylor University

at the end of the month

on artificial intelligence.

And I'm just going to go

over this real quick.

AI is a tool

like any technology

that we steward.

And I'm speaking

on behalf of Ontario

Community Church

for others,

leaders to learn from.

We have used AI

to see what it can

and cannot do.

In fact,

that's why I have

this next slide.

This is kind of

our congregational.

This is part of

what I'm presenting here.

And that it's that

scripture remains

the source

and the authority, right?

And we turn to

the word of God.

Amen?

Right?

That's important

for us to know.

And number two

is that AI may help us

but it may never

replace the word, right?

With all these prompts

and these generations

that happen from AI,

it can be overwhelming

but it must never

replace the word of God.

The third thing is

the church must discern

and steward AI.

Just be mindful

of what it is

and what it generates.

What kind of images?

What kind of videos?

What kind of answers?

It's no different

than how you discern

conversations

that you have

with people.

And then finally,

ministry requires

human and spiritual presence.

I put that on there

because I kid you not,

there are churches

that have AI ministers

and they don't forget.

And I don't know

about you,

a computer that doesn't forget

doesn't sound good to me,

right?

Especially if I'm

pouring out a lot

of personal information

kind of thing.

So when we think

of ministry,

right,

it requires human presence

but also spiritual presence,

right?

We have the Holy Spirit

that is with us

and we also have people,

humans that minister.

So that's very,

that's the gist of that.

I don't want to go

too far into that

but this is for

the church,

for Ontario community

but also for

the collective church

to have a framework

in how they use AI.

Let's go to the next one then.

Question eight.

How do you handle

recent events?

Now this is one

that I really,

I wasn't sure

about putting on here

because let's be honest here,

there's a lot of recent events

that are going on.

There's a lot of violence,

a lot of confusion,

misinformation,

and debates

and then it goes on and on,

right?

And I put on here

as the response

is that we respond

through prayer,

discernment,

and scripture.

We could spend

days if not weeks

going on

and all the current events

that are happening

in our world

but it's important

for us to know

that we pursue

peace,

truth,

and doing good

in the name of Christ.

Just as it says

in Romans

Romans 12:18

chapter 12

verse 18,

if possible,

so far as it depends

on you,

live peaceably

with all.

Or in Romans 12

21,

do not be overcome

by evil

but overcome evil

with good.

It's very important

for us to know,

right?

And I know

whenever I have

any sort of

news thing

that goes on,

I have to really

pray about it

and think

very often

the media

will try to,

you might have

heard the word

rage baiting,

right?

Just trying to

get you built,

right?

Get you angry,

right?

Get you warped up.

And then there's also

the truth of things

that are happening.

But it's important

for us,

we see that

a lot of evil people

and a lot of evil

things that are happening,

that's why we trust

in the living God.

we trust in him

and not to be afraid

but just double down

on him.

Now,

question nine.

So this is a classic

if I have a dollar

for everybody

that asks this question,

right?

So,

real quick,

God has provided us

five beautiful children,

right?

And we're focused

at this time,

we're focused on

faithfully raising

our children

in a Christian home.

God has blessed us

with those five children

and some of you

may know,

some of you

may not know,

it took us

four years.

Amber was actually

told that she

could not have children

and it is by

the grace of God

that she

was able to get

pregnant

and have lots

of children

and we are blessed

by that.

God has provided

in such wonderful ways

and yeah,

that's something

that we get

all the time

but you know,

it's okay,

that's all right.

So the next question

then is,

how do you

personally share

the gospel?

This is an interesting

one.

I get this every so often

and I know for Amber

she gets this every so often

as well.

We'll go to that

next slide

in answering this.

It's known as

the ministry

of presence,

right?

It's being present

with people

in the community,

people within

the church,

right?

You think of how

Christ in his ministry

he was present

with the disciples.

Yeah,

I'm out with everybody,

right?

All walks of life.

He spoke the truth.

He dealt in love,

right?

He was present

with people

and so

it's nothing

to really overthink.

It just means

be present with people.

It's not about

force or coercion

or aggression.

It's about

building relationships

with people.

That's something

that is incredibly

important for us

to know.

And there's another

one that is known

as friendship evangelism.

It's very similar.

It's again

building relationships

and at the proper time.

It's not to say

you're never going to

share in the word of God.

It's when the time

is right.

For some people

it may be years.

For others

it may be a few weeks.

It just depends

on the person

and it's important

for you to ask

the spirit.

When is the right time?

More often than not

you'll know.

You'll know

when they're not ready.

More often than not

you will know

when the time is ready.

And what I have found

in my own experience

is when people

begin asking questions.

Hey, I thought

is Jesus

just this

cool surfer guy?

He's got long hair,

he's got a robe,

he walks in sandals.

Is he like

a Laguna Beach guy

or what?

You know?

Or I heard

Jesus was this.

Or

why do you do that?

Just like we're talking

about our presence

in the community.

Yeah,

I would just like

to say to do it

with gentleness,

respect,

and authenticity.

You're not going

to be everybody's

best friend.

And

not every

seed is meant

for yourself.

And for some

you may go to

community events

and different things

and think,

oh, I'm going to

tell people about Jesus.

There might be people

there that already

have a home church.

I would

implore you not

to try to take them

away from the home church.

God has them

with it.

He has them.

And

it's just

being real.

Don't be safe.

The world

has

very big

radars

of knowledge.

Just be real.

And a lot

of our culture

is actually

very against

the idea

of forcing

scripture down

or forcing

faith down

people's throats.

You find this

a lot in

the global

Christianity,

global stage.

There's all these

articles that are

written on it.

But what's

important is

building those

relationships

is far more

powerful

than forcing.

And as I said

last week,

and I'll say it

again,

God does not

force us

to choose him.

So what are we

doing forcing

people to choose

him?

Right?

It's the same

intentionality,

focus,

building that

friendship,

being present,

right?

Letting your

life,

the words that

you speak,

exhibit the

life-loving

truth of

Christ.

We're going

to go on

to that next

question then.

This one is

geared towards

Amber.

Yeah,

you guys are

all,

you guys

are worried

on the

burnout,

but mostly

as part of

the choice

of serving

God for

us,

it allows

us to be

in the

community,

it allows

for our

children to

have

experiences

outside of

school,

and to see

the amount

of people,

my children

are no

stranger to

all kinds

of people,

all kinds

of kids,

it's something

that allows

us to

actually balance

our family,

our church

life,

and our

community,

let them

feed off

of each

other.

So it

might look

like sometimes

we're doing

a lot of

things,

but we're

cultivating

relationships,

we're allowing

our children

to learn

and experience

it well

in different

ways,

and sometimes

we get the

opportunity

to share

to people,

and that's

usually the

most beautiful

thing.

And it

definitely

allows for

us to

have

balance.

Because Amber

and I are

so active

in the

community and

active in

the church,

we have a

flexibility

that just

allows for

us to go

where the

Lord leads

us,

and then

also have

spontaneous

trips to

be able to

teach the

kids different

opportunities,

going to the

zoo,

going to all

different.

I think

I have

some

opportunities.

somebody in

our

congregation

invited us

to that,

and so

that was

something that

you were

able to

enjoy,

and the

kids were

able to

hear different

instruments.

Then we

have the

last one day

of prayer.

If you

look at the

crowd,

there's not a lot

of kids there,

because most of

you are in

school, but

our kids get

to experience

that, and we

do pray, and

we get

together, and

we're kind

of one of

the only

couples that's

actually ever

at that

national day

of prayer,

because other

couples might

have to

work somewhere

else at the

school, or

different.

So we have

a presence

together, and

as a family,

which so many

times I have

people say,

it's awesome

to see your

family function

together, and

to see what

a family can

do together.

it's not

something that

they see.

So it's

these kind

of opportunities

that allow

us to have

that.

In community

service, we've

got to go to

home to

families.

We've got to

actually remember

in the spring,

in the winter,

they've got to

go to the

for the

residents, and

in the winter,

they sang

Christmas carols

to them.

So they were

able to go

there into

shining flight.

And we

did a

community

research

at

Four Rivers

Cultural Center

and also

we get to

this was a

dual purpose.

We were

promoting our

VDS, we

were promoting

faith, and

we were also

to have fun

in the park,

and it was

amazing as

well.

So if you

can see that,

it kind of

all is

together.

So we get

to do things

as a family,

but we also

get to serve

our community

and share

the church

presence in

these spaces.

We're most

oftentimes

we're the

only

presence

in these

spaces.

Also, if

you don't

know, Amber's

previous job

when we were

in Hawaii,

she was the

head of

school of a

Montessori

school, so

she's got

credentials in

this.

Not only is

it gifting to

be able to

teach our

own children,

but also the

children here,

so it's just

been a

wonderful blessing

with that.

Let's move

on to that

next question

12.

Go ahead,

if you want

to talk to

it or not.

How come

we don't get

anyone to

ask you

those questions?

And that

actually breaks

my heart.

Oh my goodness,

who has been

angry to you

when you've

asked questions?

Questions are

beautiful.

Questions reflect

the heart.

Questions reflect

that you want

to go deeper.

It shows us

you want to go

deeper.

When you're

asking those

questions,

it's like,

okay,

yeah,

I don't

think your

question is

so like,

you're in

trouble,

like,

oh,

let's get

you,

like,

we're going

to jam

all these

scriptures down.

No.

It just

means that

you might

be hurt.

It might

mean that

you're confused

about something.

You might

be hearing a

lot of what's

going on in

the media,

and you're

going,

I'm just

confused.

But I'll

tell you that

God is not

a God of

confusion.

He's a

God of

clarity.

And so

clarifying is

by asking

questions and

being open to

you talking

about it.

I might have

a slightly

different

perspective than

you.

And we might

be able to

work that

through and

go through

the scripture

and see what

that looks

like.

But I'm

sorry if

anyone has

ever told

you to stop

asking questions.

I personally

notice that

they go to

Amber with

the questions.

And so

she'll bring

it to me.

Hey,

somebody asked.

I'm like,

who asked?

She's like,

that's the

kind of

question.

And I

might not

always have to

answer them.

I might say we

have to

research this.

I'm not

sure.

I'm only

34 years old.

It's important

to know that

there are

many things

that we are

certain about

when it comes

to scripture.

We think of

the gospel

story,

the significance

of Christ,

being the

savior of the

world,

being the

Messiah,

the atoning

sacrifice,

all of these

different things.

We know for

sure.

There's other

things.

Oh, gosh,

you scratch

your head.

In one of my

classes, I was

going over the

book of Job

and the

three friends,

Eliphaz,

Bildad,

and Zophar.

Oh, my

goodness.

You want a

heavy book of

the Bible,

read Job

sometime,

right?

But sometimes

we have

questions that

we may not

have the

answer in

this life,

or there's

sometimes we

find passages

in scripture

that we're

not meant

to understand

at this time.

Sometimes it's

the proper

time, right?

There's a

section in

Daniel.

It's towards

the end of

Daniel.

I don't know

the exact

verse where

Daniel's

having all

these visions

of what's

to come,

and he's

basically

saying,

God, I

have no

idea what

you're saying

here, but

you're telling

me to write

it down,

and God's

like, yeah,

so shut

your mouth

and you're

going to

write it

in.

It's not

your time

for you

to know.

And that

seal goes

in and is

revealed in

Revelation,

which is

wild, but

that's a

whole different

thing, but

that's an

example of

knowing at

the proper

time,

right?

It may not

be in your

lifetime.

It may be

it's okay

for us to

not know

certain things,

and sometimes

that's intentional.

Sometimes

that's God

saying, not

yet.

You'll know

sooner or

later.

It makes

us very, it

actually humbles

us in things

that we don't

know.

That shouldn't

uproot our

faith.

In fact,

it shouldn't

even.

So the next

question then,

what are

sea nights

and how are

they different

from parent

cafe and

dad cafe?

Ooh, we

get this one

one night.

Want to

take this

one, Amber?

Yeah, so

parent cafe and

dad cafe is

something that

building healthy

families offers,

and so we

extend our

facility to

them, and

we also

serve through

that by

providing

childcare,

providing

presence, and

just being

there with

them.

And for

dad cafe,

it's kind

of more led

by Patrick

and I,

like we

designed that

whole thing,

but we

are trying

to help

people to

come to

that

care.

So the

word that

dad is

good.

But it's

just a

time for

parents,

grandparents

to come

together to

be able to

talk about

their stories,

they go

through

questions,

they're

called

protective

factors and

different

things that

Building

Health with

Families

has, and

they've

got a

set of

questions,

and it

builds that

community,

it gives

them knowledge,

it gives

them resources,

resources,

and we

get to

be there

with them,

and we

get to

care for

them,

whether that

be child

care or

being part

of the

discussion,

and allowing,

we are not

hired by

them, so we

can say

whatever we'd

like to say,

we are just

another person

in that room,

and so that's

another way

that our

light shines

into people

that we

may never

have ever

come into

contact with,

so it's

different than

the sea

night, because

sea nights

are something

that our

church is

doing, from

inside it

is completely

ours, so

we can

share Jesus

a little more

blatantly, but

we do that

by a take

home, we

do a take

home piece

where we

give the

kids the

science

projects we

take home,

and I put a

scripture on

there, I

put a little

bit about

Jesus on

there, but

we do

prayer before

we have a

meal, so

that's an

introduction

into what

does prayer

even look

like, what

does having

a meal

together as

a family

look like,

and we

look through

some of the

flavors and

then another

slide, we've

got people

come together,

they do some

writing meals,

they do science

experience,

technology,

there's I

think one

more, or

two more,

but yeah,

we get together

at a table

and dinner

together,

and have

conversations,

and it

gets to

do hands-on

activities,

and so it's

really, it's

our ministry

to families,

it's our

ministry to

children, and

particularly trying

to reach the

middle school

age children,

because we do

a lot with