The Greatest Gift

Thank you for listening to the river.

Bend Church podcast Reverb in church exists.

Delete all people to know love and live New Life in Jesus

Christ. We hope that you enjoy this

message. Happy Father's Day to you all

and Father's, Day to all the dads.

Get out there. So glad to be able to celebrate

with you this morning, if we haven't had the chance to meet

my name is Ben. I get to serve as one of the

pastor's here at Riverbend Church.

Whether you're live with us here in Gainesville and Oakwood on

our Oakwood campus was already able to spend some time with

with the, with the volunteers down at Oakwood.

No better group of volunteers than we have down at our Oakwood

campus, incredible men and women just pouring their lives out,

just showing the love of Jesus being the hands and feet of

Jesus. Jesus.

If you're joining us online, welcome, we love being able to

gather together, spend time with one another and today we get to

celebrate Father's dad's father figures.

And I think that there are three essential things to Father's Day

and no particular order dad jokes Meat and naps.

All right, so we're gonna knock out two of the three.

Hopefully, not the third. Hopefully, not the nap will say

that to this afternoon. So to help kick us off a little

light-hearted. I've asked two of our dads to

come up and they're going to give us, they're going to

alternate back and forth. They're going to give us their

best dad joke and then we're going to choose who the winner

of the best dad jokes. So what are two volunteers?

This earn income. Which give them a warm welcome.

so, if y'all don't know, That's gonna be tough to beat if y'all

don't know, is Jeff, White is Rob Andrews.

Their kids are thrilled that they're up here.

So here's what we're going to start with.

Listen we've got to pay bills so keep that in mind with your dad

jokes. Okay.

All right. Don't make me lose my job.

That's what I'm getting at. So here's what we're going to do

is Jeff, you're going to go one and then Rob, you're going to go

then. Jeff.

You got another one, rob? You got another one in there.

Will declare a winner? Good.

All right, start us off, Jeff. Okay, I'll have to It's one of

those things that when somebody asks you to do something you say

yeah I'll do that. And immediately like right now

I'm thinking well I wish he'd ask somebody else.

Okay, anybody have pets, raise your hand, a recent study, came

out that 30% of pet owners. Let their pets sleep with them.

I tried it and my goldfish died. It's a solid start.

Well Jeff, I was at the gym the other day.

That's the joke. That's a joke.

And there was, there was a chicken there.

He was working on his pets. That's good.

All right. The other night at least and I

were out to dinner and the waitress was flirting with me.

She turns and walks away. Eliza said, bless her heart.

She's obviously had covid. I said, how do you know that she

said because she has no taste What do you get when you put a

mad cow and angry goat in the same room?

A bad move. Alright we've been here so I

need your help with we need to clear winner.

So by round of applause, if you think the winner is Jeff the

chains together, If you think the winner is Rob, put your

hands together. That's a tough one.

No sir. That's at uh, Well, you both you

both you both get beef jerky. so, And then you get the, you

get the dad Cub that I think it says, where do I keep, I don't

know what it says. This is Dad joke on there.

All right, we love just being able to celebrate Dad's and just

being able to honor Dad's because I don't think it's a

secret at all that especially in our day and age in our

culture's, you know, Dad's and father figures are kind of,

they're very much relegated, their their ridiculed, their

downplayed. But here's what we know, we know

that who we are in large part is due to the contributions of the

men, the fathers and the father figures of our lives and your

influence can never be. Dated and what I want to do this

morning in the time that we have is I want to go into a book or

go into a passage in The Book of Mark.

Mark chapter 1 if you have a Bible with you whether it's a

Mark 1 · chapter mention

physical copy or digital copy Mark chapter 1 and we're going

Mark 1 · chapter mention

to be picking it up in verse 16 but let me get it.

Give you kind of a little bit of a historical context because

what we're going to be looking at this morning is is a father

that he's mentioned. This guy, he's mentioned in all

four Gospels. Counts, Matthew, Mark, Luke and

John, his name appears in all four but there's not a whole lot

of print given to them. There's not a whole lot of ink

given to this God, that God by the name of Zebedee, is a dad

that we know as Zebedee. Now, we also know this is Dad's

and men and father figures we come in all different types of

personalities, right? So you may be the type of

Personality that you're kind of an out front, like life of the

party type of guy. You may be more the behind the

scenes. Type of type of quiet leader,

but your influence is immense. Enormous, nonetheless, no matter

what your personality type is, and no matter what your

personality wiring is, I happen to believe that Zebedee is

probably one one of these behind-the-scenes types of goz

even though his overall context. And and what we do know about

him is is going to be really big for us to kind of unpack when we

start looking at the challenge that God has for us as dads, and

fathers and father figures. But when we get to Mark chapter

Mark 1 · chapter mention

1, Jesus is about 30 years old, at this point in time, he's on

the very, very front edge of his ministry before.

Jesus starts his Earthly Ministry.

His cousin, a God, that we know is John the Baptist is baptizing

people by the Jordan River. In the Jordan River, he's

teaching about baptism and repentance.

And he's preparing the the hearts and the minds of the

people that are coming out of Jerusalem and the surrounding

area to come hear him speak he's preparing them for the coming

Messiah. Jesus.

Jesus comes onto the scene comes to the banks of the Jordan River

and comes down into the water and tells John that he needs

John to baptize him John baptizes.

Jesus goes under the water comes back up.

We read in the early chapters of the Book of Matthew to where the

Holy Spirit, descended on Jesus like a dove and a voice.

Of the father to send it from Heaven.

Say, this is my son in whom I'm well, pleased from that point on

the holy spirit of God leaves, G leads, Jesus out into the

Wilderness out into the desert, for about 40 days of prayer and

fasting and just spending time with the father.

And in those 40 days, we have the three Temptations of Jesus

listed for us. After those 40 days.

Jesus comes out of the Wilderness and he starts to

select his first followers. He starts to Select his first

four Apostles and this is where we pick it up in verse 16 of

Mark chapter 1, of where Jesus is on the scene.

Mark 1 · chapter mention

Calling his first four Apostles, read with me, verse 16 says, one

day, as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee.

He saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the

water for they fish for a living, Jesus called out to

them. Come follow me and I will show

you how to fish for people. Some of your translations may

say come follow me and I'll teach you how to be a fisher of

men. And they left their Nets at

once. And I followed him verse 19, a

little further up or farther up. The shore, Jesus saw zebedee's

Sons James and John in a boat repairing their Nets, he called

them at once and they also followed him leaving their

follow father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men.

Now, this means that Jesus. When we start to look at Jesus

calling his disciples, I think that we probably need a little A

little bit of first century, Jewish context to understand

what these guys were doing. They weren't just fishermen.

We need to see that they were kind of seen as a certain class

of people if you will. So first century, Jewish

context, is this is if you were a male boy at the age of 6, you

would go to your local synagogue and you would go to your local

synagogue, probably every day and you would memorize the

entire Torah as a six-year-old 6 through 10 years old memorize

the entire tour. Now for us.

Us. We know the tour is the first

five books of the Bible. The first five books of the Old

Testament, Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers and

Deuteronomy. So at the age of six, all Jewish

boys would memorize word for word.

All five of those books from 6 to 10.

And you thought multiplication tables were tough.

But the rabbi's would look at the vast majority of that group

of boys, and thank them for their time, probably give them a

participation certificate or scroll, they would have a

graduation ceremony to wear their parents.

Their moms are posting on Facebook and Instagram.

You know this happy graduation from Little synagogue school but

they would look at the vast majority of these little boys

and they would go go. Follow your father's trade, go,

learn your father's trade. In other words, go follow in

your Father's Footsteps. If your dad was a farmer, You

would learn how to be a farmer. If your dad was a fisherman, you

would learn how to be a fisherman, but they would say

they would hold back and they retained the best of the best of

the best and of the best of the best of the best.

Those boys starting at the age of 10 would go on to memorize

the entire what. We now know as the Old Testament

word for word Genesis through Malachi they would memorize this

word forward into the vast majority of those kids.

Would give them a graduation certificate or scroll.

Get do a ceremony whole nine yards and they would say go

learn a trade and other words, we believe that you have what it

takes to go, Blaze your own path in a career.

If you want to follow your dad's footsteps and being a carpenter

or a farmer or fisherman, go have at it.

But we believe that you have what it takes to go Blaze your

own path, but to The Very Best of the Best of the Best of the

Best, they would retain those boys after memorizing the entire

Old Testament. Aunt.

And they would assign that boy to sit under a specific Rabbi or

teacher and that teacher would then teach that little boy or

that young man, his take on certain passages and Prophecies

of the Old Testament that take and those teachings of the rabbi

would be known as that rabbis yoke.

Which gives a completely deeper understanding to what Jesus

says, in the popular passage in Matthew 11.

Remember, when Jesus said, come to me all you who are weary and

carry heavy burdens and I will give you rest.

Take my, what take my yoke upon you take my teachings upon you

and let me teach you because I'm humble and gentle at heart and

you will find rest for your souls.

For my what my yoke, my teaching is easy to bear and the burden.

I give you is light. What is the Look of Jesus, the

Yoke of Jesus is basically twofold.

Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, soul, mind, and

strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

Love God, love people. That's my yolk.

That's the yolk of Jesus, that's the teaching.

That's the Core Essence. The core teachings of Jesus,

USA, you may say, okay that's great.

Good to know from six to ten. Memorize the first five books,

man, that's crazy. After 10 years old, vast

majority, they were dismissed but then some of them went to

memorize Genesis through Malachi.

Cool. And then after that, select few

would send her to write. Send us it under rabbi's,

teaching, what in the world does this have to do with me in 2023?

Well, the context of this since Jesus was walking by the Sea of

Galilee is these four men, Peter and Andrew James and John were

considered the not good enough of the religious.

They were considered the not good enough.

By the people that were picking teams.

I don't know your story, I don't know your background.

Don't know your context or you're setting a what you came

in here with this morning, or, or what you have in Oakwood, or

watching online where you may be physically or mentally or

emotionally or spiritually, But if some of us feel a little

discouraged, may be discouraged. Maybe maybe we're still broken

over some past mistakes. Maybe you feel like a not good

enough. Can I give you a word of

encouragement Gainesville Oakwood online?

It's not good enough, that Jesus specializes in, it was not good

enough that Jesus called to follow him and to flip the world

up on its head and giving the hope of the Gospel to everyone

that they came across. And by the way, his pattern has

it changed. He still calls the not good

enough, but here's the difference between Peter and

Andrew and James and John, Peter and Andrew, they were fishermen

James and John, they were also fishermen, but their daddy on

the fishing business, So, Peter and Andrew even though they were

fishermen, they went to learn their father's trade.

James and John had a safety net. And following Jesus.

So when Jesus comes and says hey James and John, the sons of

Zebedee you come follow me for them to step away and follow

Jesus. They weren't stepping away from

nothing, they were stepping away from a tangible future.

A seemingly secure future in order to embrace an unknown, a

life of unknown faith. And following Jesus, you know,

who had the primary role in all of this.

Zebedee. Zebedee had the primary role in

James and John following Jesus. Here's why.

Because as the dad Zebedee, served as a gate of sorts now,

we all know this. If you have a if you have a

fence in your yard, you have a gate, a gate is going to serve

as two primary functions, right? It's either going to serve is

going to stay close to keep things either out or to keep

things in or a gate serves to swing open to allow Things out

or to allow things in. That's those true.

For the dad's, the fathers and the father figures in here is

every single one of us in our spheres, in our Circles of

influence, whether your dad, whether you're a mom Whether you

are a veteran and following Jesus, you follow Jesus, if for

decades or whether you're brand new to following Jesus, mine in

your life, we serve as gates to the circles and spheres of

influence that God has already placed us around.

Zebedee could have kept the gate closed and basically looked at

his sons and go James and John. Listen, I know that you want to

follow Jesus. I know that you want to go after

this guy. I know that you want to chase

after this, but God has listened Sons.

This is what we've been planning for.

This is the family business, he could have kept the gate closed.

But what does ebony do? He opened the gate.

He opened the gate and he actually encouraged his boys to

go. Follow Jesus.

And you may say Ben, I don't read in, Mark chapter 1,

Mark 1 · chapter mention

starting in verse 18 to where Zebedee encourages his boys to

follow Jesus. Where do you get that?

He encouraged his boys to follow Jesus.

It comes with the overwhelming way in which God has chosen to

work in the power of the influence of dads and father

figures in our lives. I don't think that anything has

changed over. In years.

So here's what I would tell you is as we look as men as women as

students as anybody who God has placed in a position of

influence, how do we live a life that actually encourages those

around us to follow Jesus? And there's two primary ways

that we're going to be looking at this morning, just two

primary ways through the life and through the lens of Zebedee.

Here's the first one is living a life of consistent.

Fullness living a life of consistent faithfulness.

Now, like I said, zebedee's name appears in Matthew Mark, Luke.

And John, however, there's not a lot of ink given to him, We just

have his name, but here's what we do have.

We do know that his family. We're very, it was very, very

close to God. We know that his family was

very, very close to Jesus. As a matter of fact, zebedee's

wife was a woman by the name of salami salami minister to Jesus

met his physical needs while he ministered in the area of in the

region of Galilee. Salami was also one of the women

that was at the foot of the cross.

When Jesus was being crucified and salami was also one of the

women that went to the tomb, the morning of Easter of Easter

Sunday to anoint. Jesus body was spices.

Salomi zebedee's wife was one of the first ones to discover that

Jesus wasn't in the too many more.

James and John, his brother at his zebedee's sons.

John was already a disciple of John, the Baptist we read in

some of the other gospel accounts to where John followed,

John the Baptist and then when John the Baptist introduced

everybody to Jesus, John looked at John the Baptist and goes.

Okay, you've been preparing me for this guy.

I'm going to follow this guy. We know that there's this,

there's this track record there James, and John, along with

Peter, they composed the, the Inner Circle, the core three of

Jesus, closest disciples, this core three.

They were privy to beings Jeet Singh.

Jesus, actually in his glorified, Heavenly State on the

Mount of transfiguration, they were the only three of the

Apostles that got to see Jesus in that.

State. These three were the ones that

Jesus Took deeper into the Garden of Gethsemane, the night

that he was betrayed by Judas to pray for him.

These three were the three that were present when G, when Judas

came up to betray Jesus with a kiss, It was these three that

compose the inner core of Jesus friendship group.

You may say, okay? So salami, she loved Jesus,

James and John, obviously is love Jesus.

Then how do we get that Zebedee obviously?

Love Jesus. Well, we get this through.

There's overwhelming evidence to testicle evidence that he would

have absolutely loved Jesus. Here's what I mean.

And like I said, I don't think that anything has changed over

2,000 years and the way in which influence works in the way that

God wants to work in the family unit, I want to show you Stats.

We kids come to Jesus Christ, first. 3.5 percent of families

will follow. What I mean by that is we love

being able to pour into our kids.

We love being able to teach our kids, the gospel from the time

that they are born to the time that they leave Elementary

School, make the transition into middle school and high school.

We love being able to teach them.

That there is a God that created them.

There's a God that loves them. Jesus has plans for them and the

Holy Spirit can Empower them. We love doing it.

We will never give up doing that.

We love next-gen. We will always give next-gen our

best and our Our first and our finest we love going after next

gen. However, if a kid is the first

in a family to become a follower of Jesus, only three, three

point, five percent of families, moms and dads in the rest of the

family will follow. If a mom comes to Jesus first

and she's the only person in the family that becomes a follower

of Jesus first and guess what? Seventeen percent of families.

Follow the check this out when a dad comes to Jesus first.

Just check this out. Ninety-three percent of

families. Follow May say give or take

what? He doesn't matter.

Ninety-three percent of families follow when Dad follows Jesus,

here's what we know. Typically, as the dad goes so

goes the family. As the dad goes.

So goes the family. So how can we make these

inferences about Zebedee? We look at the fruit of the

family as the dad goes. So goes the family.

So I guarantee you that Zebedee was a God-fearing Jesus loving

man that even though he led from the background.

And there's not a lot of print given to him, his life of

faithfulness of consistent faithfulness, was on display in

the way in, which his wife follow Jesus.

In the way that his sons And followed Jesus.

He lived a life of consistent faithfulness.

Now, here's the encouraging word Zebedee.

Wasn't a pastor Zebedee. Wasn't a missionary Zebedee.

Wasn't some had some massive following social media

following. As a Christian influencer, he

was a businessman. He was a fisherman, he was a

businessman. How in the world could this

fishermen have such an impact for the kingdom of God?

Here's why? Because Jesus always did more

through the laws of ordinary fisherman than he ever did

through hypocritical, religious leaders, Me say that again Jesus

always did. Jesus always does more through

the live to the lives of ordinary fishermen.

Then he does through hypocritical religious leaders,

he lived a life of consistency. I think that we faithful

consistency. I think that sometimes we get so

twisted and even I would even say that it comes out of some

enthusiasm and exuberance to do great things for God, we get

things so twisted. That we think that we have to do

these big audacious things for God.

And we lose sight of the fact that what he has called us to do

is to live a life of faithful obedience even in the seemingly

mundane Tom's. Let me say that a different way.

God cares, just as much about your Mondays and Thursdays as he

does your Sundays And where's this lived out?

First, it's lived out first in the home.

So dad's father's father figures, men, how do we do this?

How do we live out a life of consistent faithfulness to our

families? This is not an exhaustive list,

but I think it's going to start here.

I think it starts with praying over your kids, praying over

your wife, praying over your family, praying with your

family. I think it also starts with

having, just very honest conversations with your family,

with your kids and say, Hey, listen. mom and I, or maybe your

single dad, Or maybe you're single bomb and you're just

being very honest, and very vulnerable with your kids and

go. And listen, I'm really having to

pray through this decision. I don't know which way to go,

but I'm praying through it because I need God to God, me,

as a mom, as a dad, as a father, as a father figure, you don't

have to have all the answers. Sometimes, the most powerful

thing that you and I can do in leading our homes and leading

our families and lives. The honor Jesus is to show them

our Are vulnerable dependence on Jesus, our need for Jesus.

Because listen, if we don't portray that to our kids, our

kids are going to grow up thinking.

Hey listen if I'm just like Dad and Dad, never showed me that he

needed Jesus. Then I'm going to try to be like

Dad and I don't need Jesus and we know that that's not the case

at all. I love the I love the old quote.

He goes something like this. It says your greatest

contribution to the kingdom of God.

May not be something that you do but someone that you raise And

except under rare circumstances as the dad goes.

So goes the family but it starts with living a life of faithful

consistency. And consistent faithfulness.

But it also goes with this living with an eternal

perspective, living with an eternal perspective again, put

yourself in the shoes of Zebedee.

What would the safer bet be? What were the safer bet be?

For James and John to stay with him as fishermen.

That would be the safer bet. But Zebedee, knew this in the

perspective of Eternity, the wisest thing for James and John

to do would be to follow Jesus. But make no mistake about it.

This really cost this decision cost Zebedee.

And this is what I mean, James, and John has two boys, they were

probably his two best fisherman. He taught his boys, the trick of

the trade. They knew all the family secret

like fishing spots. James and John helped Zebedee,

help their dad, build this business up, James and John were

the retirement plan for Zebedee? James, and John actually

standing in in line to inherit a fishing company.

A fishing business, stood to make a lot of money, and a lot

of money was going to translate into a lot of influence.

They stood to be major players in the fishing business in the

Galilee region of that time. So when Jesus comes on the scene

and he says, James and John follow me, he was asking them to

give up something. That was seemingly certain to

embrace something that had no guarantees.

And he may think, okay, I'm glad it worked out for them, but then

I'm really scared of that Exchange.

I don't know if I do that. We'll check this out as a part

of that exchange James and John could have stayed as business

partners of their dad. Eventually taking over the

family business, or they could be eyewitnesses to the son of

God. His life his teachings, his

miracles, his death, his resurrection.

You see James and John after making the decision to follow

Jesus. James is going to go on to be

the first Apostle martyred. In other words, he's the first

disciple to be killed for saying, I'm a follower of Jesus

Christ. He was killed because he was so

outspoken for Jesus. Christ saying listen, we follow

this guy for three, three and a half years.

We saw him die. We saw him resurrect from the

dead. He is the Messiah.

He is the way the truth, the life.

Repent experience eternal life through Jesus and the political

leaders of that day in Jerusalem around 44 ad had enough and they

killed James. He was the very first of the

disciples killed. his brother, John goes on to write the Books

of first and second and third, John, The Book of Revelation and

the Book of John John was the only one of the 12 apostles.

That was not martyred for his faith, but he didn't get off

easy. He actually was hunted down and

he was boiled alive, and oil, and they thought he died.

But he woke up and then he was thrown into a prison.

And then he spent his last days busting rocks in a prison camp

on the island of Patmos. Dying desolate and hungry.

But it was this exchange there. But again, can you imagine how

history may have been different? If Zebedee had forbade James and

John to go Place doubt in their hearts about going, or even

hesitated about James and John following Jesus?

You see this gets back to the heart of living with an eternal

perspective. Do you know what the number one?

Qualifier? The number one evidence of a

life that lives with eternal perspective is is generosity.

It's generosity. Now, follow with me.

Generosity is when I take and when I start to look at

everything that I have my Tom, my talents and my treasures.

And I start to realize these are not things for me to own.

These are things for me to Steward.

And what I mean by stewarding is these are things for me to

manage not for me to own These are things for me to invest.

These are things that have been entrusted to me by God.

So my primary responsibility is to invest these things to the

kingdom and the purpose of God. Let's hold that.

Thought, let me ask you a question.

If somebody came to you and said, listen, I have no idea

about God. I have no idea about Jesus, but

somebody gave me a Bible. I know that you're a Christian.

What is the first place that I should look to find out what

Christianity is about? What is the first place in the

Bible that I should look at to find out who Jesus is and and

this God that you say worship, I think that we would probably all

refer that person probably the most popular.

In the entire Bible, right? John 3:16, let me show you since

John 3:16

for God, so loved the world that he gave his only son, that

whoever believes in him. Should not perish, but have

eternal life. That is the spot on, right

answer. This is what we should be

pointing people to write if we want to know the heart of God.

If we want to know, the purpose of Jesus and the offering of the

Holy Spirit, it is John 3:16. But do you pick up the link

John 3:16

between generosity and eternal perspective?

Even in John 3:16 for God. So loved the world that he what

John 3:16

that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should

not perish. But half what eternal life.

How do I invest my Tom, my talents and my treasures into

the kingdom of God, that is living a life of generosity.

There's a there's a missionary a famous missionary, by the name

of Jim Elliot, he was a missionary to the people in

Ecuador. I love this quote from from Jim

Elliot. He is no fool.

Who gives what he cannot keep to gain, what he cannot lose.

What a powerful quote. Zebedee is the picture of this

70 worked really, really hard to build this fishing business

Zebedee. Had plans for James and John to

take over the fishing business, James and John probably had

plans for them to take over the fishing business.

But here's the thing is Zebedee, and James and John's plans, were

not congruent with the plans that Jesus had for James and

John and Zebedee. Jesus actually had a greater

plan. He had a plan in, which he

showed James, and John and Zebedee.

How to live with an eternal perspective and living with an

eternal perspective is going to be living a life of generosity.

so here's what I want to do this morning, I want to focus in on

two questions and we're going to end a little bit differently

this morning, but I just want to bring us into an overall time of

prayer this morning, and I just want to walk through a couple

questions with you this morning. It's number one.

How are you? How am I?

How are we living a life of generosity?

And number two, Is how are we, how are you?

How am I encouraging those around us to live a life of

generosity? Now, you may be in here.

Oakwood you. Maybe you maybe down in Oakwood

or online to where you're saying.

Been this sounds great. I wish I had a dad like Zebedee,

but that wasn't my experience. What am I supposed to do?

With all mercy and Grace and compassion.

But in full belief of the power of the holy spirit in and

through you, here's my word of encouragement to you.

If you didn't have a father a dad or father figure like

Zebedee, here's my challenge to you.

Let the chain now start with you.

Let The Chain now start with you.

You do realize that zebedee's opening the gate for his son,

James, and John. Now links him with hundreds of

millions of people's lives, that have given themselves over to

following Jesus Christ. When a new chain, let a new

pattern, let a new family link start with you.

Whether you're a dad, whether your father or father figure,

you have people in your circle and sphere of influence that

lead them the challenges to lead them to live a life of

generosity to lead them in a life that encourages them to

follow, Jesus Christ to live without Eternal perspective and

you're going to live without Eternal perspective with

constant and consistent faithful, obedience to his word

and to his prayer. Are you maybe in here?

And you may say Ben, listen, I'm a single mom in here or I'm

spiritually single. I'm married, but my, but my

husband or my, my wife is not a follower of Jesus, what am I to

do? And that's a great question to

in our challenges, our churches to come around to love you and

to support you. But here's what I would tell you

is the Holy Spirit and full confidence, the Holy Spirit Will

equip you to do and to be anything.

And Anything that he calls you to be in anything and everything

that he called you to do in the lives that he's already placed

around you. You may be in the camp where you

say, been, I'm new to following Jesus.

I'm new to following Jesus. Like, how can I lead somebody

else to follow Jesus? If I'm brand new to following

Jesus, all you have to do to lead is to Simply Be One.

Step Ahead continue spinning. Tom in his word, continue

spending time in prayer and being committed to being

obedient to what, you know, God is speaking in and through you

and prayer. And you know, what God is

revealing to you in his word and just live out.

Out. Faithful obedience.

So every single one of us, whether you're a man or a woman,

a mom or a dad, a father figure, a mother figure, a student, a

child in here. We are all called to live with

this consistent faithful, obedience.

And we're called to live with an eternal perspective, but the

Eternal perspective, the number one fruit of Eternal perspective

is generosity. So this is not going to be a

time. I'm not going to ask you two to

come down. As a matter of fact, I just

simply want to invite you wherever you are.

Gainesville Oakwood online. If you would simply join me in a

time of prayer wherever you are just bow, your heads and close

your eyes. We don't believe that we bow our

heads and close our eyes because it's some holy posture.

We bow our heads and we close our eyes to tune out all the

distractions around us. I just want to spend some time.

And allow the Holy Spirit to speak in and through and over

us. And I want to walk you through

these questions. And these questions are not at

all. Meant to be some point of guilt

there. They're meant to be a point of

reflection to where I asked. God, this for me and I'll allow

God to transform me from the inside out.

So again. Ask God, how God, how am I

living a life of generosity? God.

How can I use my Tom? Use my talents.

Use my treasures, my resources. To make a difference for your

kingdom. And then the second question, Is

God, can you show me names and faces of people that you were

calling me? To encourage them to live a life

of following Jesus. God, who have you placed in my

life? That you've placed them in my

life, for the purpose of, showing them, you and

encouraging them through your word through prayer.

God, we come before you completely humbled by the facts

that you are here with us. God, you love us.

God, that there is nothing in our lives.

That is by chance, coincidence or happenstance.

Got the people that you have placed in our lives.

God, you have strategically placed them there for such a

time as this God, I pray that you would call our hearts and

call our moms and call our lives back to being once.

That is most satisfied in you. In that consistent faithful,

obedience to you. God, we pray that you would help

us to live with an eternal perspective.

Got our prayer is that you would use us in similar ways like you

use Zebedee. God, we want to be gate holders.

God, we want to hold the gate open for those that are around

us for those that are coming after us, to applaud them, to

cheer them to encourage them to follow after.

You got open our eyes to the level and the significance of

influence that we already have. And may we Steward that may we

manage that for your kingdom with an eternal perspective and

is in Jesus name. We pray.

Amen. As we stay in an attitude of

prayer. Also want to ask that that we do

this. If you are a dad, if you're a

father in here or you serve as a father figure, I know many men

in our church. I know many men in my life that

they don't have biological kids but they have a lot of spiritual

kids. God is strategically placed

people men and other men. Other women other students, boys

and girls in their lives. For them to be a spiritual

father. So if you're a father, Our

Father Figure in here, this morning, can I just ask that we

do something? We're going to keep the lights

down low, can I just ask that you stand and as you stand?

Can I ask if there's if there's somebody And that is standing

near you. Can I ask that you just place

your hand on them or place your hand out towards them.

We want to pray over you men. We want to pray over you men

because this is one of the prayers that we're praying as a

church. We're praying that God would

unleash his holy spirit, not just in, and through Riverbend,

not just in and through Hall County, but this entire region

and I'm firmly convinced thoroughly convinced, it's going

to start with us, it's going to start with a menace.

Going to start with a dad's is going to start with the father's

in the father figures. But church we need one another's

prayer in this endeavor. So as you reach your hand out,

you may be touching them, you may be reaching your hand out

over them. Would you solidly?

Pray for them? You may know them by name.

You may not know them by name, God knows him by name.

But would you pray over them? Got for these men.

Got, we love them that I love for them, got our heart for

them, our desires for them pale in comparison to your love, your

desires, your heart for them. God, I pray that you would

protect them, I pray that you would protect their hearts that

you would protect their minds. God, I pray that you would

protect them from pride and from insecurity, God, I pray that you

would Infuse them with your holy spirit Power God that you would

leave them as you call them to lead those that you've placed

around them God that you would continually work in and through

them and got your work in and through them would be an

overflow to all that are around them.

Can we thank you for these families?

God, we thank you for your encouragement.

God, we also want to pray. Over some of the ladies in the

house this morning as well. Some of the ladies in Oakwood

this morning that there's not a dad, there's not a there's not a

there's not a male, there's not a father figure present but God

they're pulling spiritual double duty.

God we pray that you would come alongside them and that you

would strengthen them. God, that you would comfort

them, God that you would embolden them got, Infuse them

with your grace, your power, your mercy, your hope, God, we

pray that you would continue to do in and through us.

When only, you could get credit for doing and it's in Jesus

name, we pray, amen. Thank you for listening to the

Riverbend Church podcast. Learn more about who we are as a

church and how to connect you can head over to our website

Riverbend church. That life