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Welcome to the Awakening Church podcast.

We pray this message encourages you and provides the hope and light of Jesus Christ.

Thanks for tuning in.

Happy New Year's Awakening Church.

Thanks so much for joining us for this very special New Year's Day service that we're presenting online.

I'm confident that the next few moments are going to be deeply encouraging to you, and I believe it'll be a great kickstart to the new year as we step into 2023 together.

It is hard to believe that it's already 2023 and that we're stepping into a new year.

And I don't know about you, but for me, especially like COVID has changed time and it feels like the months just blur and you blink, and a year is over.

And then stepping into a new year can often feel like wait, I didn't even really catch up to the last year and feel a little bit, you know, overwhelming or even intimidating.

Now, at awakening, there's a practice that we've taken at the beginning of the year, we we often do, that helps slow things down, pause, get perspective on the last year, and then help give some direction and future for uh the upcoming year.

The practice real, it's really actually two great questions.

And and the questions are ones that my wife and I came across at a New Year's Eve party many years ago.

We were some of our lifelong friends over in Santa Cruz on New Year's Eve.

The dinner had just finished, we're hanging out talking, and some of our dear friends, Josh and Danny Fox, they took the um they took the conversation to the next level, you know, and they asked these two questions.

And it was, it may, if you've been around, you've heard them before.

What one word would you use to describe the last year and why?

And then the second question, what one word do you hope will describe the next year and why?

And I gotta tell you, we sat around that table and everybody just grew silent as we're thinking and trying to figure out how do we sum up the entire year in a single word?

And what word would that be?

And I gotta be honest, some of us cheated, we used hyphens on that.

We couldn't get it quite down into one word.

Now, here's what was powerful as we began to talk and began to share.

Not only did we get a window into other people's lives and what was going on, but it began to help us really sum up and begin to think through and process the last year and what had happened and what was the major theme.

And then it gave us just powerful clarity, often clarity that we don't have for the next year ahead.

You know, on New Year's, we often set goals and New Year's resolutions.

Those are wonderful, those are great.

Uh, and some of you are like, I hate New Year's resolutions, that's fine too, but often we don't have an overarching theme or a word for that year that gives such great clarity and direction.

And so let me ask you, looking back 2022, what one word would you use to describe the last year?

And as we are now in 2023, what is the word you long or hope for will describe this year?

Now, as you're thinking about your word, I thought I'd take time to talk about the word for awakening.

You know, Jenny and I have used this question so many times throughout the year with friends and often around New Year's, but then we've applied it to our family, then we've applied it to our marriage, and yes, we even apply it and talk about it here at Awakening of like, what is the word that God has for us or what for 2023, and what one word would we say describes the last year?

Now, summing up um a year in a single word isn't anything new.

In fact, uh the great dictionaries have been doing this for quite some time.

Oxford, uh, the Oxford whatever language dictionary, they summed up this last uh year's word.

It was the word of the year.

It was the first time that the public got a vote on the word of the year, and their word was goblin mode.

Yes, you heard me correctly.

Some of you are very familiar with it, some of you are learning this for the very first time right now.

Goblin mode, which means a type of behavior which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations.

And so the word of the year, according to Oxford, is goblin mode.

Well, Miriam Webster is in on this as well, and their word of the year is gaslighting, okay?

Gaslighting, well, what is that?

You've heard it, all of us have heard it, but what is it?

The act of practice, the act or practice of grossly misleading someone, especially for one's own advantage.

And the words for 2022 often seem pretty pessimistic and negative, don't they?

And it speaks, it speaks so much to kind of the current state of our culture and of our country, with a deep sense of angst and even apathy that has come alongside the last several years that we've journeyed through.

Well, what is the word then for awakening?

And if I could summarize one word for 2022 for awakening, that word would be replanting.

Replanting.

You know, as we came out of COVID, we often thought, you know, and talked about how do we begin to regather as a church.

And very early on, I recognized it's not a regathering, but it's actually a replanting.

You know, over COVID, about 60% of our church moved out of the area.

Recently we took a survey of our church and it was really insightful.

Let me give you just a couple of the stats that came from that.

Did you know that 71% of our church today is new within the last three years?

Meaning that many of you who are listening, you started joining us uh during COVID time or after that.

21% of our church, one in five persons that you come across at Awakening is new within the last three months.

That's staggering.

61% of our church started attending because they were personally invited.

Two-thirds of you are here because someone invited you.

What encouraging reality that you have experienced what God's doing here and you want to invite people in, and they're sticking.

They love being a part of this.

And then at the same time, recognizing wow, the big aha for us is man, we have a new church.

70% of our church is new within the last three years.

We're not necessarily regathering, we're replanting.

Well, what's the difference between regathering and replanting?

Well, regathering is looking back at a point in time and trying to get back to that time of what it looked like then.

You know, what did awakening look like in the BC era before COVID era, right?

And how do we get back there to the quote, good old times?

And so we look back and go, how do we get there?

We're actually replanting is looking at where we're at today and what is God doing now, and what is the new work he is doing, and how do we step into all that he has for us today?

You know, when Jenny and I planted Awakening Church a decade ago, we began with this vision to awaken this generation to new life in Jesus.

And, you know, uh a decade later, that passion, well, it's still burning uh bright and strong in our hearts today.

And really, that's the seed that God's given us as a church.

That's our North Star that that isn't shifting.

Our vision, our values.

That's the seed planted.

And then here's what's been amazing is as we've replanted this last year, 2022, we've actually got the opportunity to watch God begin to bring new life and growth.

Uh, I want to actually share just a few things of what we got to see in 2022 and the new life and the growth, the sprouting up, the budding of new life in this new season.

We've seen just ministry expansions, uh, first kids ministry.

Something that we didn't have before COVID, and we have today is we actually have full kids ministry at both services.

We launched a fourth and fifth grade class.

We didn't have before COVID a um a VBS.

Now we have our Camp Wonder.

We had 108 kids attend that, and four kids decide to follow Jesus.

Our youth ministry is growing.

We tailored it specifically for high school and junior hires.

Our high schoolers went on their first mission to Mexico trip.

It was awesome.

And our junior hires went to Hume Lake camp and had a transformational time, and we saw five of our high school and junior high students get baptized this last year.

Man, we're seeing this sprouting of new life, of this replanting.

College ministry, which really went dormant, and we started as a college ministry way, way, way back in the day.

And then, you know, over COVID, everything shut down.

Well, it's beginning to get kickstarted again, and we have a college hangout area where we're seeing college students begin to get connected and grow, and they're stepping in, and we have a great small group for them.

In fact, this last year we were given a mini bus, and we used to do this to help students who couldn't drive or didn't have an access to be able to get to church.

We'd go pick them up in a bus and bring them to church, and we're looking forward to getting that back going again.

2021, we saw Robbie Brown step on as our worship pastor, and he, along with Glenn, they're uh shaping this worship uh ministry.

And here's what's so exciting after a year of seeing we're we're developing a worship culture of people who are passionate worshipers for Jesus, excited to be in his presence.

Uh, we've produced our own original worship music, both uh launching at our uh birthday and launching at Christmas season, and we've done these uh multi-church worship gatherings, which is amazing.

I love it.

I think it's incredible that we're uh I think it just blesses the heart of Jesus, and it's what the church should be about when we're uniting together as the church, not just kind of doing our own church things.

Groups, proteges, groups, we have over 200 people in groups this year growing together to become more like Jesus.

Our protege class this year has been the largest we ever had with 19 proteges, many of them professionals, and uh giving up and sacrificing their time to grow their leadership and their discipleship team with Jesus.

We have ministry teams which have all had to be restarted, rebuilt, and we see in that replanting, God form and grow these ministries.

Our prayer team is vibrant, our care team's growing, our cafe team praise the Lord.

We have coffee on Sundays and we need it.

Well, needs a little strong, but man, is it helpful.

Uh, there are events and decor team.

We have a newly formed MILS team, which is amazing for coming along families or coming along people in difficult times.

And how do we just tangibly love you and help you in a team?

Our space team is just incredible, and they've adapted through all the different iterations from our tent days to moving inside.

We recently were able, we're given, we're able, we recently were able to uh install four storage containers, which now allows us to be able to, you know, no longer drive our trucks.

It's an incredible blessing to us.

Just kind of a year and um back of all our teaching series that we covered.

Uh, we did just us talking about God's justice and heart for justice, bad advice on relationship, shift.

We taught through the book of Jonah, broken God, and we just really talked through and taught through a theology of God of who God is, world changers.

Um, it was all about the next generation.

Forgive and forgive the four great invitations of what it means to follow Jesus, gifts of the Holy Spirit, when we pray, contentment and take joy.

And some of you are like, oh, that's right.

And here's what, as I was going through that list, um, it was hard for me to even remember.

I'm like, wow, that was just all in one year.

Some of it felt so long ago uh because of all that has happened.

And one big praise is we've been praying for an executive pastor for oh man, for a couple years and searching, and God answered our prayer with Dave and his family moving out here, and uh, we're so excited uh for what God has for us in the future as they stepped into the Bay Area with us.

Now, along with that, we've seen deeper engagement in this replanting, and just think about some of the big events over the last year our Good Friday and our Easter service.

We saw a little over 700 people uh engage in our Good Friday and Easter services, our awakening 10th birthday, where we gotta celebrate.

I mean, think about this.

This is amazing.

We gotta celebrate 10 years of God's faithfulness through all of it.

We had a little over 500 people join us through that.

As we said, as we step into the next decade, we're gonna fix our eyes on you, and we're gonna we're gonna keep our eyes focused and lean in with prayer.

We saw 21 people make a public decision uh by getting baptized this last year, and then we spent 40 days this past fall, which was wonderful, of prayer and going like, what does it look like to lead from our knees to begin the next decade totally dependent on God?

And I can't wait to see all that God does through uh that season ahead.

Okay, one more area.

It's amazing.

All just think about this is a year of what God has done.

Uh, the last area I want to talk about is just local and global impact.

You know, from day one, we said that uh we believe the church uh should lead the way and unleashing extravagant generosity to a hurting and broken world.

Why?

Because we have an extravagantly generous God.

And so we've we've just said, okay, how can we lean in and love and serve uh those that God's brought along our path?

And we made a commitment from the very beginning.

At minimum, 10% of what comes into awakening is going to go out the door to uh other ministries and what God's doing in both locally and globally.

In our fiscal year 2021-2022, we were able to give 22% of what came in, which uh was roughly around a little more than 200, and I think it was 71 or 91,000.

It was$291,000 given away.

Now we help lots of organizations.

Uh, we've been able to respond to emergencies and relief in Afghanistan and Ukraine and Haiti.

Uh, and I we do some things locally with Called Up, which is a collegiate athletes um, you know, ministry and foster the city and maintenance for mom and uh city team.

But I want to zoom in with Del Mar.

And Del Mar, we've said we've been here at Del Mar for 10 years, and we said it's more than a place to meet, but a people to love.

And I just want to share just this fall, which is cool.

I mean, it's really, really cool, how we've been able to love Del Mar High School.

Now, now think about this.

We over COVID, we were able to start a food pantry partnered with City Teen, and twice a month we're able to provide groceries for just around 100 families, and then off and on, we're able to provide uh clothing as well.

At the beginning of the semester, as we step into the new school year, we do a backpack drive.

We provided 80 backpacks filled with school supplies for students who are in need.

Uh, there's many students here that they come from homes where going to college is like not even a thought, and they couldn't afford even the application fees to even apply for college.

We think about this is amazing.

We were able to give$14,000 to support 50 students to be able to apply for college and be able to step forward into that next season.

Um, we really want to serve the teachers and faculties here.

So, some small things that we love to do just to bless them.

Right at the beginning of the year, we give them gifts and just try to encourage them from the outset.

Every single Friday, we bring them coffee and donuts just to say, man, you are loved, you are seen, we're so grateful for you.

And then at the end of each semester, we throw them a party.

So at Christmas time, we threw them a party, and then at the end of the spring semester, we'll throw them a party, bring in a taco truck, and we just say thank you and how we how much we love you guys.

Um, this last Christmas, we do a giving tree to help families in need and to provide a Christmas for many families who otherwise wouldn't have uh the ability to have a Christmas.

Church, I'm so proud of you and what we were able to do.

This is the largest giving tree ever uh in the history of our church.

Uh talk about replanting and God doing new things.

$32,000 between cash and gift cards was given through our giving um tree, and uh 35 families were served and helped, and some really major needs were met through that way to go church.

It is awesome.

I mean, it is amazing as you look back, and I know I went through all that really pretty fast, but to think through all that God's done and the work he's doing and the life and the springing up of how he's moving and working in our midst isn't is amazing.

Our word, if I had to say for awakening in 2022, it's replanting.

Well then what is our word for 2023?

Our word for 2023 um is Jesus.

And I know that may sound obvious, um, but unfortunately, if we look around at Christians today, I I wouldn't say that uh we have a reputation to being known like Jesus and wouldn't really describe Christians in the social media sphere as being Jesus-like.

Our word for 2023 is Jesus.

What would it look like for us to fix our eyes on Jesus this year, to make him central to our hearts and our lives, that in 2023 it'd be less of me and more of Jesus.

Imagine what God would want to do for through us and in us when we just begin to focus on Jesus.

I remember it was about a year or two ago, Jenny said to me, you know, as I look around and I look at responses, and there's all these issues, all these things that are going on, the thing that seems to be missing, or what's missing, not the thing, is Jesus from the conversation.

Like he just got dropped out of it.

And our tribalism and our partisanship and our all the things and anxiety and things, and it's like, where did Jesus?

He got lost from the conversation.

Dallas Willard in his book The Great Omission writes this He says the greatest issue facing the world today, with all its heartbreaking needs, is whether those who, by profession or culture, are identified as Christians will become disciples, students, apprentices, practitioners of Jesus Christ, steadily learning from him how to live the life of the kingdom of the heavens into every corner of human existence.

The greatest.

Issue, he would say, facing the world today is whether Christians will become apprentices of Jesus, disciples of Jesus.

I fully believe he is right.

What would it look like for you in 2023 to say, this year, I'm gonna become an apprentice of Jesus?

What would it look like where you say, no, you know, my word for this year?

There's lots of good words, there's lots of things, but but our word would be it's Jesus, the name above every name, the name by which uh we are saved, the name upon which is powerful, where we go, no, it's all about him, all because of him, and all for him, where we begin to go, no, it's all about Jesus.

And I'm gonna bring my life under your discipleship, your apprenticeship.

You know, a life verse for me is Hebrews 12, 1 through 2.

It says, Therefore, since we're surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, therefore, since we have so many incredible people who've lived life well through the centuries and loved Jesus and walked with him, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

Get anything that's tripping us up and keeping Jesus the focus of our life.

And then let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us in 2023.

Let's run with perseverance the race that God has marked out for you and where he's placed you in 2023.

And then it says this fixing our eyes on Jesus.

At the beginning of the year, it's easy to fix our eyes on all sorts of things.

And often our eyes get fixed on the economy, our eyes get fixed on this crisis, our eyes get fixed on what's happening in our family or at our workplace, our eyes get fixed with some of the internal dialogue or emotion that we have, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of the faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

What would happen?

What would happen if you if you actually fixed your eyes on Jesus this year?

Imagine what would happen if you just began to go, I genuinely want to know you, who you are.

I genuinely want to know what's on your heart.

And imagine what would happen if you began to go, and I'm just gonna start doing and learning how to do the things that you would do if you were here.

And imagine, think about this.

If we as a church began to do this, if we as a community began to say, no, Jesus, we're gonna fix our eyes on you.

I know it sounds simple, I know it sounds obvious, but it's missing from the church and it's missing from the world, and it is a great need, and it is the call upon us.

Will we fix our eyes on Jesus?

It's incredibly simple and yet profound at the same time.

And I wonder, I wonder what God's going to do in our church and in Silicon Valley as we begin to say, no, it's all because of you, Jesus, and I fix my eyes on you.

One word.

Describe 2023.

If we're sitting back here, Lord willing, next year, it's Jesus.

Jesus, just Jesus, simply Jesus.

Next week, we're gonna actually spend time unpacking our vision.

Next Sunday is Vision Sunday.

I want you to join us, come ready, excited for what God has you has for us, and I'm gonna unpack what this looks like, what's the plan?

In the meantime, uh we're gonna start today, and we have a Bible reading plan that's going through the Gospels and out of the Gospels.

You can get it at awakeningchurch.com, and that's gonna pop up right now so that you're able to go there.

But we want to start getting to know Jesus, and so we have to get into the gospels, and next week we're gonna unpack exactly what that looks like in the plan for the entire year.

Now, as we close, you gotta hear the words for awakening, replanting, and Jesus.

How about you?

Would you take time this week, maybe today, maybe tomorrow, and would you ask that question, what one word would you use to describe 2022 and why?

And what one word do you long or hope for will describe 2023 and why?

And spend some time with a friend or a family member and kick it around.

It's incredibly powerful questions that give us perspective and then direction into the new year.

Happy New Year! Can't wait for what all God has for us in the next year.

We hope you are blessed by this message.

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