GO

All righty. Hey, couple of quick announcements. On the 24th, we're planning to have a service,

but may not be here because this church will be using the premise for their service. So

we don't have a place yet for the 24th evening, but we let you know. And if you know of a

place that can accommodate us, and as long as it's not that side of Cloverdale, we are

okay. Yeah. Surrey is as far as we go. After that, many of us might need a passport. So

we'll stay on this side. And if you find a place in Burnaby, Vancouver or Richmond, let

us know. Yeah. For the 24th evening. Sorry. Could someone please explain to Zia what we're doing

here? Yeah. Yeah. Vivi, you're his roomie, man. Tell him. Yeah. So that was one thing. Two,

thanks for all the text messages and WhatsApps and emails you sent when my mum passed away.

You woke me up in the middle of the night because I was 12 and a half hours ahead of you. But it was

three enriching weeks in my life. And like I wrote in my email to the church, around October,

the Lord said that, listen, go tell a mother that when she leaves the earth, you'll be there to help

her leave the earth and enter heaven. That's exactly what happened. So on the 22nd, I held her hand as

she went from earth to heaven and I just watched her life slip away, but also was amazed at how

faithful God was to simple promises he made that you'll be there. And so I was just so thrilled

the way God does things. And I was so happy that she went where she went. The previous night,

Pastor Mike, a friend of mine, had asked me to go pray with her and May had sent me a text where

she had the sense that after someone comes to meet my mum, she'll probably leave. So I remember going

to my mum with my brother-in-law and speaking, whispering in her ear, not whispering actually,

shouting in her ear. So Pastor Mike told me to whisper. I shouted and I said, Amit, there's

nothing left here on earth for you. You've done everything you need to. You know Christ has saved

you. You know you've worked well for him. And there's a much better place and an amazing person

waiting for you. So feel free to leave. And I bless you as you go. And the next morning she went and

when I woke up that morning, I remember the Lord saying, Listen, throughout this funeral and the

service, make sure that people recognise heaven on earth, not when they die, but heaven on earth,

after someone's died too. And so the way we did the service in the funeral was just so Acts 29ish,

that's the best way I can put it. It was a service like we do worship here, calling people, picking

up a mark here or someone there and saying, Come and sing. Honest, I'm not kidding you. And so that's

the way it happened. And it was pretty amazing how we are so different when it comes to Hopi. And at

times I had a fake sadness because I thought to myself, you're looking too happy. So I had to tone

it down a little but I was happy for where my mum was. The only time I was sad was when I would

think of things that I wouldn't do with her. That's the only time I felt sad. And so it was an amazing

time. So thank you for all your ill timed text messages, ill timed in terms of the time difference.

But otherwise, everything you sent was very comforting. And it's great to go away for, I've

never been away for three weeks. This is the first time and it's great to go away knowing that Tuni

won't take over the church. And so everything went quite well. And I'm so glad to be back. We did go

to a couple of churches that are pretty good. But man, I'm telling you, I think we should all go away

for three weeks and then you come back really longing to be here. So from now on, we'll all go

away for three weeks at some point here during the year. Not you. You go away for six weeks. That's

not good for you. Okay. There's a Christmas, Don, when is the Christmas play that you're acting in?

When is that? Next year. There is a Sunday school Christmas play that we are trying to coerce Don,

the best actor in this church, to participate in. But he thinks he's a level above now, so he's not

taking part. But maybe you guys can help him be part of it. Don, we'd love it. Anything that you

want, we'd do for you taking part. There is a Sunday school Christmas play. It's on the? 22nd. Okay.

There you go. All righty. Hey, so what should we think of in terms of a theme? Prashant, when are you guys due?

Any time in the next two weeks. Very cool, man. Theme for 2025. We'll start on it today.

The two-letter word. So that's a theme for 2025. Just in case it's too small. Like in case you

thought it was an abbreviation, it's not. It's just go. Yeah. That's a theme for 2025. Go. And

I'm hoping that many of us will go. We'll talk about that. So when it comes to follow,

we love following because we talk about following Jesus. Follow is a desire to join

Jesus on a journey. But go is a now act of obedience, and it has urgency, and it cannot be delayed.

And the strange thing is we have had the amazing ability to separate follow from go.

We have been able to separate follow from go, and we've concluded that we can follow Jesus

without going.

Without going where his spirit leads, which could be to Wally or to Warsaw. Doesn't matter.

So when we talk about the word go, and I pray God that it actually mobilizes us next year

so that we can try out the things we learned and see whether they actually became flesh or not.

Because nothing that we learn becomes flesh unless it's tried out.

The word became flesh only because Christ came to the earth. He

goad or he went from heaven to the earth. The word becomes flesh only when you go.

Can I have a little more volume, Evan? A tiny bit more.

Yeah, so the word becomes flesh only when you go. Unless you try out the word by going,

you will not see whether it's become flesh or not. It could just be theory. It could be

intellectual knowledge. And so it becomes flesh only when you go. Now following is a desire

to join him on a journey or a project. So we have projects, we have journeys that

sometimes we follow Jesus in. But go has an urgency to it. It's an act now kind of a

word and it cannot be delayed. And it's in response to obedience where when we follow Jesus,

he asks us to go. Look at Luke 9, 57-62. Luke 9, 57-62. And you'll find that to follow him

means to go where he's asking you to go. Luke 9, 57-62. Here's what it says. And

here's the odd thing. Going is the cost of following.

Going is the cost of following.

Going is the cost of following. Tony, you look like someone who needs to be saved.

Like total hoodie guy. No, no, please. Please, no, no, I'm just kidding, man.

Wear it, it looks good. Tony, put it on, put it on. Come on. It inspires me to preach salvation.

Oh, Tony, please, man. I shouldn't have said it.

Going is the cost of following. Yeah? Going is what? Going is the cost of following. To follow

Jesus, going is the cost. And so that's why we have been able to separate go from follow.

And by separating it, we don't have to pay the cost of going. And yet it is impossible

to follow without going. I follow Jesus without going wherever his spirit leads.

Be it to Wally or to Warsaw. And so when you read Luke 9, 57-62,

it says, as they were walking along the road, a man said to him, I will follow you wherever you go.

And so there was an idea even then that to follow a rabbi or a teacher or a mentor or a master was

to go with him. And so he says, I will follow you wherever you go. So he's aware of that concept.

Then Jesus replies, foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has no

place to lay his head. And so he brings up immediately the fact that following me and

following me and if it demands going will require high inconvenience, are you ready?

He said to another man, follow me. But the man replied, Lord, first let me go

and bury my father. So this was not going with Jesus. This was going to take care of the things

that needed to be taken care of. When he says, let me go bury my father, what he's saying is,

once my father dies, once things have been sorted out in terms of the inheritance,

once the property has been divided, then I will come and follow you.

That's what it actually means. So he is going, but he's going in an opposite direction and he'll

follow when it's convenient. And the third one is, Jesus said to him, let the dead bury their own

dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God. Again, the word go is so common in this

paragraph. Still another said, I will follow you, Lord, but let me first go back and say goodbye to

my family. Jesus replied, no one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in

the kingdom of God. So this idea of follow and go is totally enmeshed. You can't separate it. Any

questions on that? And so over the next four weeks, perhaps except for our Christmas Eve service,

we will be focusing on this word go. So that in January, we'll know what the rest of the year

should look like. And we'll throw challenges even today for those of us who need to go or want to go

or have a desire to go, but don't know how and where. Why are we separating follow and go? Because

following is easy if going is not necessary. And so why not separate it and come up with statements

like, you don't have to go across the oceans, you just have to go to your neighbor. And we never do

that because I don't know. I've got seven neighbors on my floor. I know only two of them, because it's

not kosher to go and knock on someone's door. So we separate it and we send missionaries.

So it becomes convenient for the rest of the church. Like I've said before,

the most resisted truth in Christianity is that the saints do the work of ministry.

And the most revolutionary truth in Christianity is that the saints do the work of ministry. Let

me say that again. The most resisted truth in Christianity is that the saints, as in we,

do the work of ministry. And the most revolutionary truth in Christianity is that the saints, we do

to the Worker's Ministry.

So by separating it, the Church walks scot-free.

If you aren't going, it may be that you are not following.

If you are not going, it could well be that you are not following.

Because go and follow are inseparable when it comes to Christianity.

Let's be very clear about this, yeah?

So that there's no, ah, well, it doesn't apply to everybody.

Not true.

There is a high probability that if I am not going where the Spirit of Christ that

I follow is leading me, that perhaps I am not following.

And at the end of the day, remember that go therefore, go therefore is a prerequisite

for discipling.

And it is every disciple's commission.

And going is always a pain.

It's highly inconvenient.

And I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think, I think,

And so, you cannot evangelize without going.

You cannot establish or raise a people or a church without going.

And you cannot entrust and multiply without going.

And it's a very old notion to settle down.

Jesus, God said to Adam and Eve, go forth and multiply.

What happened in the plains of Shinar?

They decided to build a tower called the Tower of Babel, and they decided to settle.

And God is so against the idea of settling that he actually intervenes to scatter.

Hear me again.

And it can happen to the best of churches, eh?

Let's assume we are the best of churches.

It can happen to us too, where when a people begin to settle, God will scatter.

And how will he scatter?

Very odd ways, which we will blame the devil for.

But he will scatter.

How did he scatter people around the Tower of Babel?

He caused confusion.

He caused misunderstanding.

They could not understand each other.

They could not communicate with each other.

It was confusion.

People scattered because there was confusion and inability to communicate.

God sometimes, because he is a go forth God, actually scatters.

When people do not go and try to follow.

Because his very command right from Genesis 3 is, go forth.

And going forth is not easy.

It's always messy.

I mean, you know how difficult it is to send your kids off,

and for kids you know how difficult it is once you are sent off.

You want to leave when your parents want you home,

but once you leave you realize, oh shucks, them paying the bills was so much better.

I remember once I started earning, I bought my own soap and my own shampoo and my own toothpaste

and I put it in the certain part of the washroom and I told my dad,

you don't have to pay for anything anymore.

I got my soap, my toothpaste and my...

He got so upset.

He says, go buy soap and toothpaste and stuff for all of us.

I'm not paying your car insurance.

I'm not paying for your car.

I'm not paying...

I immediately said, nope, I'm taking it all back.

So going forth is never rosy, never done well.

It's always stops and starts.

It's stuttering, stammering.

There's no easy going forth.

The decision can be decisive, but the process is not.

Please hear me.

The decision has to be decisive, but the process is not.

The process is prolonged and it has a lot of stumbling and stuttering and stammering.

Example, Jesus goes says to Peter and his brother John, follow me.

These guys are cleaning their nets with their dad.

The moment he says, follow me, they have no cost benefit analysis.

They drop their nets, say goodbye to their father and walk away.

It's fascinating what they do.

They don't know the rabbi well enough, but he's saying, follow me and they leave everything

and they follow him.

But after that begins the process that's prolonged and Peter and John and everybody stumbles.

They deny him.

They go fishing.

They go back to fishing.

They mess up, but the decision was decisive.

And that is important when it comes to going.

The decision is decisive.

And once you make that decision, you can always go back to that point of decision.

But what happens with us because we've separated to go and follow is that we never arrive at the moment

of decision.

We keep postponing it, keep postponing it, keep postponing it.

When I'm married, when my dad or mom die, when the property comes into hand, when my education is over,

when I have got my commercial pilot's license, when I have become a realtor, when I have done that,

when I have done this, then I will do this and then I will do that.

When my child is 16, do you know how long it takes for a child to get to 16?

Phew!

We can't do that, eh?

The decision has to be very decisive.

And then let the process be up and down and prolonged.

That's different.

When you look at the Book of Acts, you've heard this before, but you'll see continuous go happening.

Acts 1.1 to 6.7 is Jerusalem.

Acts 6.8 to 9.31, Judea, Samaria.

And there's a system to it, eh?

God is strategic.

It may not be logical to you and I, but it is strategic always because the Spirit of God is brilliant.

He's a genius.

I mean, what a time for Christianity to advance.

What was the time?

The empire of Rome.

What was the advantage?

They built roads.

They built roads throughout.

It was easy to access cities now.

Before, it was almost impossible.

Acts 6.8 to 9.31, Judea and Samaria.

Acts 9.32 to 12.24, you meet Cornelius the Centurion and you have the church in Antioch,

which was now the first Gentile church that was beginning to form.

Acts 12.25 to 16.5, you have places like Iconium, Lystra, Derby.

Acts 16.6 to 19.20, you have Macedonia.

So now we've gone to Greece, Achaia and Ephesus.

Now we've gone into Turkey.

And then finally in 19.20, 1 to 28.30, you have Journey to the center of the universe then, Rome.

This is the process even in the Book of Acts.

So there's this constant going forth.

This is a very old theme.

It's impossible to avoid.

That's why I'm hoping that we won't be able to avoid it next year.

Impossible to avoid.

This has been the movement of God from the beginning.

He's ascending God.

Ascending God goes before you.

Ascending God goes before you.

And why does he say we can go?

He says we can go because he now has all authority over every human,

every ruler or mayor, every city, town or nation.

That's why he tells you to go.

As impossible as it seems right now to think evangelism is going to take the entire world,

remember, 2000 years later it has spread everywhere

through 12 men who were pretty scared.

The idea of Go cannot happen unless authority doesn't back it up.

How do you get into a nation that's closed?

How do you go to North Korea?

How do you go to Russia?

How do you go to China?

How do you go to certain parts of India?

But every time Go is resisted, the gospel spreads.

Every time Go is resisted, the gospel spreads.

It's almost like every time Go is resisted, God says, alright, let me flex my authority.

So because he now has authority, meaning he is now the master, he has jurisdiction,

he's the one who says open or shut, because he has that, he says now you can go.

That used to belong to somebody else, he took it back.

Any questions?

Because that's how he prefaces Matthew 28,

all authority on heaven and in earth has been given to me, therefore go.

It would be like Jesus saying to his disciples, listen, there's a donkey tied out by a house,

go untie it and bring it.

And if anyone asks you, what are you doing?

Just say, the master has need of it.

So either he's prearranged it or he knows God will take care of it.

But he's saying, I have authority, I've taken care of it.

It's like me saying, go to Don's new house and take all the furniture you want.

Why? Because Kezia has given me authority.

And so you go based on the authority.

Otherwise you go there and the alarm sets off and the cops come and Don won't bail you out.

But once you have authority, things begin to change.

Now what prevents us from going?

We can look at that.

Fear prevents all of us from going.

You know, ages ago, this was more than 15 or 16 years ago,

I had an opportunity, a real, like not an invitation, an actual opportunity to go and teach English in North Korea.

And I thought about it, I prayed about it, got scared and said no.

It was only a six month stint.

But I said no.

Because I was scared of what would happen if you went to North Korea.

And so I said no.

So fear is one reason why we won't go.

Another reason we won't go is because of these two words, comfort and convenience.

You know, this, we have to be careful about,

is comfort and convenience.

You know, this we can deal with.

Many of us know how to go beyond our comfort.

We do that on a regular basis.

But when it comes to going, convenience is high priority for first world people.

And so convenience can be anything from don't have enough days to the cost of tickets is too high to it's raining.

To I have to feed my cat.

To my kid has piano lessons with Sheldon.

To stuff like that.

Convenience is high priority.

The idea of inconvenience goes against every grain of self preservation in me.

So I'll find the most convenient time for things to happen.

And the most convenient time may not be a now time.

That's the catch.

The idea is not to feel rebuked as we talk about it.

The idea is to recognize these things.

The third one is if my heart, this is a tough one, if my heart is set on family, work, money,

possessions before Christ and the body both go together, then I will struggle to go.

I'm not talking about going abroad.

I'm talking about go anywhere that the spirit is leading me.

This becomes a struggle.

If my heart is set on family, work, money, possession before Christ and the body, then I'll struggle to go.

Here's something else that happens.

We don't go because we don't have enough time to go.

We don't have enough time to go.

We don't have enough time to go.

Here's something else that happens.

We don't go because when we went, we had bad experiences or the money for the ticket didn't come back.

Or nothing happened.

This is what disciples are made of.

They go places and they have really bad experiences.

They get attacked by spiritual powers and physical human beings.

Paul used to call them beasts sometimes.

Other times they're almost broke after having gone because there's nothing to show.

Other times nothing happened.

He goes to Athens.

He preaches an amazing sermon that we preach on today, but he didn't get a single convert and he comes back.

All three are real and all three are reasons not to go again.

It is nice to trust that God will provide these cliches that we have.

They're not untrue.

Where God sends, he will provide.

And that the sender is responsible for the one he sends.

All those are true, but it doesn't mean dollar for dollar.

There's not crypto, though crypto is doing really well.

Say praise the Lord if you want to.

But the point is that these are some of the reasons we don't go.

Another reason is professionalism.

We don't go because there are enough professionals who will go.

That's what they studied for.

That's the organization they joined.

That's what they are meant to do.

Missionaries, evangelists, those guys, they'll go.

So professionals take away from our ability and willingness to go.

Any questions before we move on?

Here's another one.

We need results.

So if there are no results, people don't go.

You need goals.

We are wired that way, goals, plans, results, outcomes.

And if we don't have that, we sometimes don't go.

Here's another one.

We'll stop with this.

Concerns like go where?

How long?

With whom?

What for?

What about?

When these are unanswered, it becomes difficult.

And yet this is the life of any of the twelve that walked with Jesus.

So any questions on these?

Professionals so that the rest of us can pay for them.

I can mow the lawn, but why not pay you to do it?

Less sweat.

So the church has professionals too who take care of this.

And so once that's taken care of, all we need to do is have a mission Sunday once a year.

Bring a missionary who's dressed up in strange clothes to talk about what he's doing there,

and set up a table in the lobby, and sponsor him, and write out a check.

I'm praying that we all end up in the lobby wearing strange clothes,

and only Toonie is left here wearing his hood.

Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Any questions on any of these reasons we have?

Fear, convenience.

When my heart is solely fixed on family work, money possession,

which are responsibilities we have, and Jesus had them too,

and he did subscribe to it and fulfill it,

then when we have bad experiences, when professionals take care of things,

when we need results, because it's a result-oriented world, right?

And concerns like go where, how long, when those things are not clearly defined,

going becomes very difficult.

This is the upside down kingdom, guys.

This does not function like the world.

The question that we have to ask is, can Sharon give up her education tomorrow,

because she hears clearly God is asking her to go to some place?

Can she say, I'm almost at the end of my education.

If I stop now, I might have to repeat another year.

It's going to cost me a lot. My parents are going to be quite upset.

It's a really bad idea. Why can't I wait five months more?

Can George, who is jobless, say, I'll be jobless for three more months

because I need to go to a certain place?

So that's the question.

It's a tough question, and I pray that all of us meet that place,

come to that encounter, and if we fail, so be it.

We can get up and try again.

It's not an easy thing, and God has tremendous grace.

Here was a question I was asking myself, because I go,

but the question was, has go become a cause, or has go an adventure with God?

On my way back from India, I was watching a documentary called Canary.

It's about a guy who, before climate change even was a buzzword,

he began to notice the thinning of ice caps in different parts of the world,

and so he dedicates his life to preserving the knowledge you can get out of ice caps

in places that are remote, and he had to go drill.

He had to take heavy equipment.

At the end of the day, when he was 80 or so, he had a pacemaker,

and he still went, and he holds the record for the guy who wore a pacemaker

and has gone to the highest altitude ever to do what he does.

And as I'm watching it, I'm thinking of myself, and his wife talks about him,

his daughter talks about him, his friends talk about him,

and the one thing that stood out in the entire story was that this man had a cause.

The question is, is this a cause?

David asks, when people are hiding from Goliath and rushing back into the foxholes

every time Goliath comes up, the question David asks is, is there not a cause?

So sometimes when I go, am I going because of the adventure that you can go on with God,

or is there a cause where you come back and you fit a pacemaker and you go again?

When you come back and you realize you've just spent hundreds and thousands of dollars on a helicopter

to take heavy drilling equipment up a mountain, and you realize that the altitude is,

the air is so thin up there that the chopper is not able to take the drills up.

You lose all that money, and now you have to reinvent drilling equipment that runs on solar power

where nothing stops you. Why? Because it's consumed you as a cause.

I ask myself this question. The reason I'm talking about myself is it's the only person I know really well.

And so that you can ask yourself the same question. I ask this question of myself,

Jacob, what is a cause in your life that you would spend anything for, stop short of nothing,

invent stuff, do anything, but what is that one cause?

And the only thing that I absolutely know is a cause in my life is Acts 29.

This thing that we are building here is a cause for me. I'd do anything for it.

Anything for it. Nothing is too much. Nothing is too less.

But then the question, the next question I ask myself is, so when you go, is it a cause?

And the surprising answer is no, it's an adventure.

And I want to shift from an adventure with God to going being a cause because you cannot follow without going.

It should consume me to the point where it doesn't matter when, where, how,

whether it's helpful or not, whether there's hostility or not, whether it's a difficult place or not,

that you go because it's become a cause and God is saying, follow my spirit and go.

Then you go into the wilderness where Satan tempts you and you come back stronger.

And it doesn't have to be far off.

And so to the guys who go to Wall-E, is it a cause?

Is it a cause?

When it's a cause, then going is so easy.

When go becomes a cause, when this becomes a cause,

as in a purpose or a consuming reason that is a flame in passion,

when go becomes a cause, God tailors it so you can mature.

God tailors wherever you're going in such a way that you mature and tailors it so that you become fruitful.

Any questions?

Any questions?

Yes, so sometimes adventure can consume us to the point where if there is no adventure, there is no vibrancy to it.

Sometimes getting beaten or finding hostile places is not an adventure, but if it is a cause, you will still go.

An adventure excites you. There's passion, there's results, there's friendship, there's camaraderie, there's things we do.

But what if it's without all that? The cross was not an adventure. The cross was a cause.

There's no adventure in that kind of excruciating pain, but it's a cause.

Yes?

There is various things coming into that, because if you don't see anything, obviously you can't see anything.

Yes, I pray God that we see fruit because fruit is really encouraging.

When fruit is not seen, then God will have to show us a city that is not built with hands.

And he does that because he knows our level of discouragement.

I mean, he knew Elijah's discouragement. He knew Paul's discouragement.

He sends Paul multiple messages saying, don't worry, when you go to the city, there are people in the city who are with you.

I'm with you. So sometimes when we don't see fruit, it can be discouraging.

And when you don't see fruit, people will judge you by that too, eh?

Saying, so what's happening?

And so that's when God sends you reassurances by sending you either people or messages or himself turning up and showing Abraham a city that was built without visible hands.

And that encourages Abraham.

Some of us will work really hard and we'll see someone else get the credit for it.

And you just hope he's your friend.

It just stinks when it's someone who disagreed with you and they're still getting credit for all the work you did.

Think of it this way. Jesus didn't see no fruit.

He saw one out of the twelve still sticking around. The rest had disappeared.

But in Isaiah 53 it said, and the will of God will prosper in his hands and he will see the fruit of his labor.

It was in the future, but it wasn't then.

Yes, he did see healings and demons and the power of the Holy Spirit at work.

Oh, that's another point I make further on if we get there today.

It's in going that you see all the things that you have been learning practiced out there.

It's always out there.

If you read Mark 16, if you read Romans 15, wherever you go, the reading always reads like this.

Go there and as they went, God endorsed their words with signs and wonders.

Romans 15, I have blazed a trail through Iconium and Lystra and Derbian.

Wherever I go from one end to the other, I see the power of the Holy Spirit at work.

Acts 10.38, and Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth went and did what?

Set people free from the oppression of the devil and heal them because the Holy Spirit was on him.

Guys, we've talked about this before, but the best way to see this, people know presence when presence goes.

People know presence when presence goes.

Even in Exodus, what does God say?

My presence will not stay with you, will go with you.

Wherever presence goes, people will know it.

Both the people that are going with it and the people that experience it.

Wherever presence goes, people will know.

And presence, where presence leads, people, his people must go.

This is why Paul was smart enough to know that the presence of God in the person of the Holy Spirit was not going to Derby,

was not going to Lystra.

Acts 16, verse 6, and he comes to Bithynia and the Holy Spirit forbade him.

Acts 16:6

And he came to another place and the Holy Spirit said, no.

And he won't go.

And so what does he do?

He goes to Macedonia and he goes to Troas and he goes to sleep.

And that's where there's a vision of a man who says, come to Macedonia.

I have a friend whose name is Segi.

Segi heard that some guys from his church, don't worry, I won't do this, not at least the way he did it.

Some guys from his church decided, okay, let's go.

And they picked up and they went.

And he called them and he said to them, listen, did the Holy Spirit ask you to go there?

They said, no.

Why have you gone there?

They said, oh, we just felt like going.

And he said, you better come back right now because where the presence does not go,

it's a bad idea to go there without him.

He's very severe like that.

And they came back immediately.

I'm not suggesting that that's how we need to operate.

But where presence leads his people must go.

And whenever presence does not lead you somewhere, best not to go.

It usually ends up in unnecessary turbulence.

Let's go to the next question.

So I'm going to ask you about the

turbulence.

Let's wrap it up with these few thoughts and then we'll stop.

You know that song, he won't, he won't, he won't?

You know that song?

No.

Okay.

What's the name of that song?

He won't fail.

Yeah.

The chorus is the chorus.

He won't, he won't, he won't, he won't.

I was watching something on Facebook every time a pastor says, I'm going to wrap up with

these few thoughts in the chorus will be he won't, he won't.

So I was just thinking of that when I said we'll wrap up with these few thoughts.

I could hear a whole chorus in Tuni going, he won't, he won't, he won't.

Yeah.

What's the mission of the church?

Go into the world to do a whole lot of things, to serve, preach, heal, deliver, or liberate

the world.

To do a whole lot of things, to serve, preach, heal, deliver, or liberate, love.

How does this work?

What's a movement?

Usually strategic places.

Who decides strategic?

Holy Spirit.

What's a method?

In Ninoe, it was preaching, repentance.

In Lydda, in Acts 932, it was a miracle.

In Ephesus, it was the deliverance of a woman with a spirit of divination.

So that's in Acts 19.

So what's a method?

It can be varied.

But none of these methods happen sitting at FCC.

FCC is this place, Forest City Church.

All of it involves a going.

And in Isaiah 6-8, it says what?

What does it say in Isaiah 6-8?

Sorry?

Isaiah 6-8, without looking.

Who shall I?

Who will go for?

Us.

Who shall I send?

Who will go for us?

Isaiah 6-8 or Isaiah 6-7, I'm not too sure.

Who shall I send?

Who will go for us?

Crazy, eh?

As far back as Isaiah, God's asking it.

Who shall I send?

Who will go for us?

Is it you, Emmanuel?

Who shall I send?

Who will go for us?

That's the question he's been asking.

So here's my question.

Let's pick four nations or four places besides local places.

Let's pick four places for next year.

Yeah?

So let's pick...

I'm not picking out of the air.

These are some of the places that I know we need to go to.

Peru, Nepal, Tanzania, and...

Papua New Guinea.

Okay, four places.

So who shall...

Let's replace God with Jacob now, just for the fun of it.

And not because I'm God.

There was never a doubt about that.

Who shall I send?

Who will go for us?

Who would go to Peru?

And what kind of sending would this be?

This would be Luke 10, verse 1 sending.

Luke 10:1

And Jesus called them, called the 72 to himself,

and maybe there are 72 here,

and said, let's send them out two by two.

And he sent them out to towns and cities ahead of him.

Towns and cities that he would be going to.

Towns and cities that he knew they were going to.

Towns and cities that he knew there would be a harvest

waiting to be harvested.

To those, he sent them two by two.

So who would go to Peru?

Who would go to Nepal?

Who would go to Tanzania?

And who would go to Papua New Guinea next year?

So who would go to Papua New Guinea?

Feel free to stand.

Anybody wanting to go to Peru?

Not once, more than once a year.

And 2025 is just a month away.

It will be on you before you know it.

Who would go to Peru?

Who would go to Nepal?

Peru?

Nepal, Brandon.

Zia, Nepal.

Okay?

Who would go to Peru?

It's a nice place.

Oh my God, I'm trying to sell a destination now.

Who would go to Tanzania?

See, I'm glad these guys have stood up

and over the year that lies ahead,

more of us will stand up.

It's good that these stood up without thinking

and they're stuck.

The rest of us are thinking people.

We don't make mistakes like this.

But behold, a guy who's willing to go to Papua New Guinea,

which was the last choice in that list

because it's one of the toughest places.

But that's where he's going.

Tanzania, those two.

Nepal, Brandon and Zia.

And to Peru, Evan.

Remember these names, eh?

This is how it'll work, God willing, next year.

Yeah?

And then when people don't stand,

we can volunteer them, right?

Let's just stop there.

Any questions, guys?

There's only one requisite for going.

Not one, but one of the main requisites for going

is to be able to go to the next destination.

Not one, but one of the main requisites for going

is Mark 3, 14.

Mark 3, 14.

Mark 3, verse 14.

Mark 3:14

It's a very simple requisite.

Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him

those he wanted, and they came to him.

He appointed 12, designating them apostles,

that they might be with him,

and that he might send them out to preach

and to have authority to drive out demons.

And so the requisite is that they might be with him

and that he may send them out.

That's the requisite, that they might be with him.

They might be with him through the body,

they might be with him through individuals,

but they might be with him so that when they go out,

they do carry his nature, his power, his name,

and that they are actually sent.

Nobody in the Bible is went.

Everybody in the Bible is sent.

There are no went people in the Bible.

There are only sent people.

Any questions?

We'll stop here. Any questions?

Someone make a note of the guys who stood up, eh?

Because, not because we want to target them,

but because they are the first fruits,

and so they'll be the ones that will face immediate training.

Zia doesn't know what he just signed up for.

Any questions, guys?

Okay, so let's pray.

Let me ask people to pray.

Okay, so let's pray.

Dilla, if you can come up.

Emily, if you can come up.

Subin, if you can come up.

And Jill, if you can come up.

And Jeremy, if you can come up.

If you guys can just pray for this.

And

Anna, if you can come up.

Let's just pray.

Let's just pray that God takes this theme,

and Jane, if you can come up.

And Toonie, if you can come up.

And let's just pray.

I'll ask Jane to start and I'll ask Toonie to end.

Or I might end after Toonie, but let's just pray.

Oh, that Anna for this time around.

Yeah.

Well, there are two Annas, huh?

And if Emmanuel can come up,

that small one.

I'm just kidding, Emmanuel.

I just remembered there are two Immanuel's,

so I thought I'll do that too.

Sure, you can come up too,

since smaller Emmanuel may not be able to.

Okay.

That's a lot of people praying,

so we hope they'll not go super long.

That they'll be relatively short of prayer,

otherwise it'll be a lot of praying.

But let's just have these guys pray

that, Father, this theme of going that we've started,

can you just cause it to now flourish?

Yeah?

Let's call Ruth up too.

Ruth, if you can come up.

Or if you don't want to come up,

I can bring the mic there.

Okay, let's go.

Father, first of all, we need your help.

We need your help with this.

I pray that one of the things I feel is,

one of the things I feel is,

can you make this, just like for Jesus,

a joy set before us?

That as we walk into 2025,

that going is a joy that you set before us.

The people, the nations,

the land that you're asking us to step into,

the people you're asking us to bring back.

That they are, that you show us glimpses of these people.

You show us glimpses of these nations.

You show us glimpses of what's coming.

And that we, Holy Spirit,

you nurture that in us.

That it becomes the joy set before us

as we walk into 2025.

This I ask in Jesus' name.

Yeah. Thank you, Oba.

Loving Heavenly Father, we just

thank you for all these

ones, Lord, that are going forth in your

power and your wisdom and your

and ascent to bring the Gospel to

and to increase the Kingdom of God.

And we just thank you, Lord,

that you'll give them all the strength

and the power that they need for this

work before them, Father, in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Thank you.

Abba, I just ask that your cause

would consume all of us,

the line in the song,

everything I am for your Kingdom's cause.

Abba, I ask that that would be

something that your Holy Spirit does

for every single person in our body

as we step into 2025.

Because there's absolutely nothing

that's worth more than your Kingdom's cause.

Lord Jesus,

even as Lord Father,

there were willing people who just stood up

without even thinking

another second Lord Father.

We as a Church, we send them out with expectation

and we know, Lord Father,

that we are going to receive them back

with gladness, with great testimonies.

Lord Jesus, as we send them, Lord Father,

we see them, Lord Jesus, going for a plunder.

And we ask you, Father,

nations as our inheritance,

and even as Lord Father,

there is this prompting to go, Lord Jesus.

We see a break forth of revival

that's going to happen

through these people who go, Lord Father.

And it's just going to be, Lord Father,

we know, Lord Father, that it's going to be

wells bursting out, Lord Father,

and wells of joy

going to burst forth

in all these places that

is written on there, Lord Father,

in Jesus' name.

Yeah, who will go for us?

It's a very hard question, Father,

but you've posed it to us

and I pray for a new courage

and a new hunger for us

to be able to answer that, Father.

Earlier today we sang,

Jesus, have it all,

and I pray that you'll teach us what that means.

And I think the first step of that

is to go.

So, no matter how long it takes

for next year, Father,

help us, give us that courage

to answer that question.

Yeah, Father,

we thank you for those who stood up

and just immediately said,

I will go, Lord.

Lord,

just as we have a desire to follow,

a hunger to follow, Lord,

give us a willingness to go,

Lord.

And as Jane prayed,

let it be a joy, Lord, to go.

Give us that joy.

We need the joy.

I need it, Lord.

I need the joy.

I need the willingness to go,

Lord.

And Lord, as we go, Lord,

let it be a...

let us be the light in the darkness, Lord.

Let us bring light in the darkness.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Father,

I want to

commend the people who stood up

without even thinking.

It takes a lot of courage,

and Father, we want to honour that.

Just like we may not figuratively see

a pillar of fire and smoke

going ahead, but Father,

you're always there,

and I don't want to go...

they don't want to go without you going first.

Let that be something

that they hold strong, Father.

Just like Israel on the shore,

not knowing where to go,

but it's through the wild

you make the way, Father,

and these places may be daunting,

but you make...

you make springs

burst forth from these places, Father.

So we pray that

you anoint them and you make them ready

for the season that's to come.

Lord, you say in your book

Lord, you say in your word,

ask of me, and I will surely give the nations

as your inheritance

and the very ends of the earth

as your possession.

So we thank you, Lord,

for those who are asking you

for the nations

as their inheritance, Father.

And I saw a picture of

monarch butterflies

just flying over...

just being dispersed

over the whole earth.

And what my sense was that

the monarch butterflies

because it's representing us

as we know our identity

as sons and daughters of the king.

And butterflies

also have to go through a process

to turn from a caterpillar

into a butterfly.

And some of those...

some of us in this room

have gone through a process

and God is ready to send you out.

And the butterfly also represents

the new life that you're bringing

to different places in the world.

So we thank you for that, Lord.

We pray that the people

who are going out would rise up

as sons and daughters of the king

knowing their identity

and bringing new life

to those who need it.

In Jesus' name.

In Jesus' name.

Oh Lord, I want to pray

for direction

and I pray that these people

who will be going to these four nations

I pray for direction

and I pray that

every obstacle

that we come across

that you will level those obstacles

I also pray for connection

because they will need connection

once together.

I pray for connection.

They should be connected to a flesh of people

who will make it easy for them

to preach the gospel

in Jesus' name, our Father. Amen.

Father, your word says

the harvest is plentiful

but the workers are few.

We want to reverse that in this church

that we want to say that

the harvest is plentiful

and the workers are plenty as well.

In this house there will be no shortage

of workers, Father.

There will be no shortage, Father.

So we declare that over this church, Father.

And I pray that

the first fruits that have

stood out today, Father

I pray that they will pave the way

for the rest of us to catch this, Father.

And so, Father, we pray

that you will raise up

this family, Father, who will rise up

to take our rightful place, Father.

And so, Father, may

training and consecration

begin.

Father, I deliberately pray

that over this church, Father.

I pray because

there are so many things that have been spoken over

this church, Father.

And so, Father, let training

and consecration begin, Father.

And I pray, Father

that these next few months

of preparation will be deliberate,

Father. You will train our hands for war

so that when we go out, Father

we will be the ones slaying the enemy

not getting hurt

or wounded, Father.

So I pray that there will be

a plentiful harvest as we begin

the process of training and prepare ourselves

to be consecrated

to be used for you, Father

and for your kingdom. So, Father,

we pray for a season of pruning

a season of training, a season of

wielding the Word

and

being empowered

and led by the Spirit, Father. I pray

for this house, Father, that

you will do

what you have promised us, Father.

So we prepare ourselves

for this in Jesus' name.

Father, I see

kids as young as Yaya

going.

There are times when

she can remember details of a story

in the Bible better than grown-ups.

Young ones

going, Father.

Father,

I see in the next

four weeks many others

stepping up

saying, I want to join that

first group that stood up.

Father, I see you by your Spirit

descending like a cloud

upon

us over the next four weeks

bringing up in our hearts

again and again in our spirits the idea

of goal.

It will become obsessive.

Yeah.

So we thank you, Father.

I see us

setting 20s and 30s

alight in these four nations and other nations

that you will add to this.

So we thank you for the different prayers

that have been prayed, the

illustration of the monarch butterflies

and the little

things you are weaving together.

We thank you that you have arrived at this point

with us. We are grateful for this

privilege above. It's a privilege.

I pray that you help us please you

in this that we do.

All of us, all of us, all of us,

Father, a going church

what a beautiful thing.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Thank you guys.

If you need prayer, there will be someone here to pray with you.

Otherwise, we will see you

when we see you. Yeah.

Thank you.