to chapter 3 of 1 Thessalonians. That's chapter 3, 1 Thessalonians. And our time this morning, we're going to look at verses 1 to 10. That's 1 Thessalonians chapter 3. If you don't have your Bible, you are welcome to use one of ours out on the table, out by the door. 1 Thessalonians chapter 3, verses 1 to 10. So please focus your attention on God's Word with me. Therefore, when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone. And we sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-worker in the Gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith. that no one may be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass and just as you know. For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith for fear that somehow The tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain. But now that Timothy has come to us from you and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us as we long to see you, for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction, we have been comforted about you through your faith. For now we live if you are standing fast in the Lord. For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you? For all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith. Let's pray. Oh, Father, as we consider your word to us, as we consider Paul's word to the Thessalonians, we just pray, Father, that you would teach us what it means to be caring disciple makers. I pray, Father, that you would help us to remove any distractions, that we would be able to fix our eyes at the task at hand. And we pray, Lord, that you would bless this time and be glorified through us. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Alright, what does it look like when someone is concerned for someone or something? Translation, what does caring look like on the stage of life? What does it look like? I thought, considering the weather, the cold wind, let's start looking ahead. Spring's coming, whether we want to believe it or not, it's going to eventually, Lord willing, arrive and one of those outdoor activities that I know several of you partake in is gardening. Now we also know in gardening not all gardeners are created equal, correct? Some people are good at gardening, some people are bad, some people are more committed, some people are less committed. But when you have a good gardener, when you have someone who is committed to the task of gardening, they become very concerned about gardening, do they not? They do. I mean, they're concerned. They're out there watering, consistently, night and day. They're protecting the plants from animals, from rodents. They're weeding. I mean, they are concerned. Some of them get really into it. Not to embarrass somebody that I'm related to, but a particular person that might possibly be here this morning, was raising ghost peppers. And I thought he was dating them. He was so in love with these peppers, and he would go out there. I swear I caught him singing to them a couple of times. He would deny it. It's true. I have a testimony. He was concerned about them. And it really becomes important to the gardener. Why the questions on concern? Why the questions on gardening? Because really, the more committed we are to a task, the more evident our concern will be. Where there's no commitment, there's apathy and indifference. And you see, Paul was a master gardener in God's kingdom. That he had planted this church that God had used, Paul, in a unique way to the Thessalonians. And as he planted this church, he wasn't simply content that, hey, the garden started. He wanted to see the garden grow and flourish and they become very dear to him. And that's going to be really at the heart of what we discussed this morning. The heart of Jesus Christ, the heart of pastoral ministry, and the heart behind disciple-making Christianity is a deep concern for the spiritual well-being of those people in our lives. Did you get that? The heart of all of us here, if you profess a faith in Jesus, should be to have a concern for the spiritual well-being of those around us. That includes family members, that includes friends, that includes your co-workers. It concerns you where people stand spiritually, not only in the eternal sense, But in the day-to-day sense, how are they doing in their relationship with their Lord? There is no room for apathy and indifference. So that's what we're going to consider today. We're going to look at what does spiritual caring look like in the life of a believer. And we'll do this in two ways. One, we're going to look at the pressing worry. We're going to look at the pressing worry. Paul was concerned about the Thessalonians. And if you recall from the last several weeks, why is he concerned about the Thessalonians? They're in a pagan environment, and they're in an environment where they're being persecuted. So they're really sitting ducks. On paper, this church is set up, is destined for failure. If you were to make a list, most likely churches to not succeed Thessalonians, because on top of it all, what happened? Their leadership was pushed away. So Paul is in a time of silence, he's waiting, he's longing to hear what is going on at Thessalonica. So we see this pressing worry. But secondly, I want us to see the positive word. That although Paul is worried, he's concerned that Satan had come in and that these people had threw their faith by the wayside and left, But what comes back? A positive word. That God, what He began through Paul, was continuing to do, and it was a source of praise, it was a source of worship, it was a source of inspiration to Paul. He even will make a statement, he says, now we can live. That they were on the brink of death, he was so discouraged, and now he hears this positive word about the Thessalonians. And he's able to press on. So the pressing worry and the positive worry. Well, let's begin our time as we pick up at verse 1. And I wanted to see the pressing worry. It's been said, when you love something much, you often fear much. And what that means is the more you have, the more you have to lose. So there's a source of worry, the apparent loss. And Paul was all chips in when it came to the Thessalonians. They were family to Him, that even though He was there for a short period of time, He loved them dearly. And then, as we looked last week, what happened? He got pushed away to the point that He equated it with a parent losing their child, or having their child torn from them. That we were bereaved from You. So Paul is deeply concerned, and now communication was difficult. He had no idea what was going on. Well, as we look at the pressing worry, I want us to see that he had a sacrificial concern for them. Read verse 1 with me. He had a sacrificial concern. It says, Therefore, when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone. And we sent Timothy. We could bear it no longer. Silence was killing Paul. He had not heard from the Thessalonians since he had been pushed out. So he was deeply bothered. And I think we can all relate with that. Has there ever been a time where you were trying to reach somebody that you care for and you were unable to reach them? What happens? It's a source of, what, great anxiety. Maybe you're a parent at a store and somehow your child gets separated from you for that very quick moment. Every worst nightmare scenario hits and you start panicking and you start yelling and you start running. Or maybe you're trying to call your loved one and they just aren't answering and, oh, must have the phone off and that. And a few minutes turns to hours and the next thing you know, you're driving across town, knocking on the door and then, Praise the Lord, it's nothing big. I had a family member of a co-worker who, when the Philippines had like a tsunami earthquake, their one brother was stationed over there and they couldn't reach for like three weeks. And it was just a source of great anxiety. Is he alive? Is he not alive? See, we can all relate with this. And Paul was so deeply concerned what was going on at Thessalonica. And it wasn't just simply how they were doing. Are they alive? Are they not alive? How's their health? No, he's concerned about what? Their spiritual well-being. I sometimes wonder, was Paul the person who struggled with the great what-ifs? Because if so, I can completely relate. You know, what if this happens? What if that happens? I wonder if he started analyzing conversations he had with maybe some suspect people within the church. He's like, I wonder if that person wasn't genuine. I wonder if they're stirring up dissension. I wonder, I wonder. And he doesn't have the luxury of a cell phone. He can't go on Facebook and read the status updates. So he's just left with silence and that silence of what if. So the silence was killing him, the sacrificial concern, so sacrifice was necessary. It says Paul, when we could bear it no longer, so it reached a point where Paul just couldn't deal with it. He says, okay, we're going to be left behind at Athens, and we're going to send you Timothy. Now why is that sacrificial? One, if you recall, you can look later, Acts 17. Acts 17, when Paul is in Athens. Paul's experience in Athens was not as positive as his experience. in Thessalonica. When he's in Athens, it says Acts 17, 16, Paul was waiting for them at Athens. His spirit was provoked within him as he saw the city was full of idols. So just idolatry all over the place. It was discouraging. And on top of it all, Paul doesn't bear much fruit there. So Paul is in this difficult situation, not bearing any fruit, and then he's going to send his primary confidant, so he's going to be stuck there alone. And yet the sacrifice was necessary. Paul says elsewhere, 2 Timothy 2.10, I endure everything for the sake of the elect that they may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. that He's concerned about their hearts and He's willing to suffer. So with that said, the sacrificial concern, do you care for the spiritual well-being of other people? And let's step back though, not just your family members. I mean, let's be honest, what kind of mother or father would not want to care for the well-being of their children? What kind of brother is not going to care for his brother or sister? What kind of friend isn't going to care? But I'm talking Let's expand that circle. Do you care about the well-being of those people that God has strategically placed you in their lives? Is it shown in your life? Is it tangible? What sacrifices do you make for your fellow believers? Is it sacrificial? Do you call, do you check on people? Because that's the heart of the Gospel. Because not only is there this sacrificial concern, Look at the sizable contribution that Paul sends. It says, we sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-worker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith. So Paul says the silence is enough, time is enough, I'm going to be moved to action, I'm going to send Timothy. Now, could Paul have sent somebody else besides Timothy? Could he have just sent a messenger? He's in Athens, had some money, go hire somebody to send, to go get a word, what's going on. Could have did that. Even though he didn't bear much fruit in Athens, there's probably some believers there. Could have sent one of them, hey, I need you to do this for me. It's really, wouldn't be in my best interest to go. But no, what does he do? He sends Timothy. First of all, look at the picture that Paul has of ministry. He says, I sent Timothy, our brother, so it's like family. But then notice what else it says, and he sends God's co-worker. Imagine that on your business card. I'm changing my church pastor, Pastor Joe Hillrich, God's co-worker, Joe Hillrich. Now, that doesn't sound a little bit arrogant, but it's not because the reality, and that's the amazing, of anything, I don't think it's arrogant, it's humbling. to come to the realization that we are God's co-workers in His work, that we work alongside. I mean, how many times have you worked in an environment where your co-workers drive you crazy? Anybody? Raise your hand. So some people here have co-workers. No bad co-workers ever. Lucky you. And yet, what does Paul say? No, we get to be God's co-worker. I mean, that's just remarkable. 1 Corinthians 3.90 says, we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building, but we are His co-workers. It's amazing that we get to join His team and be a part of His work. And ministry is not a burden, but a blessing. So Paul, this picture of ministry, he sends our brother and God's co-worker in the Gospel of Christ. And then what does he send him to do? To establish and exhort you in your faith. Why is that important? Because Paul not only sent him on a fact-finding mission, he sent him on a faith-building mission. He's not okay with just routine maintenance. You might have heard personal trainer Chris Powell. He's been on television before. He's actually done a few specials where he does a year-long kind of extreme makeover with a person. And over a year's time, you see this life transformation. It's really remarkable. But one of the things they typically do is it's quarterly. So at a quarter, they'll sit down, they'll do a weigh-in, and I remember the one particular person he had, he did the quarter, and when he got to the weigh-in, he looked at him, and you could just tell the frustration, because there wasn't much difference. Three months, not much difference, and sure enough, the weigh-in, there was like a four pound change. And you could just tell that there's a discouragement on the part of the trainer. You see, in Paul's idea of the Christian faith, he's not okay if you stay at your same weight. He wants to see growth. He wants to see transformation. He wants to see maturity. And that's why he sends Timothy, who's a co-worker of God. I want to establish you. I want you to be exhorted in your faith. He's not simply okay with saving. And I think that is a challenge for you and I, because I think one of the great dangers with the church is we want to get everybody into heaven. And once they're into heaven, we're good to go. And he called, at least Jesus, what did he say? Go and get people into heaven. No, he says go and make disciples. And discipleship involves maturity, it involves gospel growth. Well, are you God's co-worker today? Has your mind wrapped around that idea that you are God's co-worker? What a great privilege, what a great honor it is. I had to ask myself that, because sometimes I think I take for granted being a pastor, or I sometimes will bust out the violin. Poor me, nobody understands what I have to go through, and yet then I'm reminded, Paul's words, God's co-worker, that it should amaze me that this isn't sacrifice, this is blessing beyond blessing, that I get to be used by God in that capacity. But also, are you growing? Do you long for growth in others? Are you seeking to bring it in the lives of others? But lastly, I want us to see a serious caution. Read verse 3 with me. He says, to establish and exhort you in your faith that no one may be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we were destined for this. What is Paul talking about? Suffering. It sounds a little bit, let's be honest, Let's beat the same drum. Back in the old school days, it's the record stuck on the skip. Because, I mean, Paul's talked a lot about it. You're going to be a Christian, you are going to suffer. If you remember the Gospel of John, Jesus said it a lot. They hate me, they're going to hate you. Second Timothy 312, indeed, all who desire to live a person, a godly life will be persecuted. So apparently, Paul, while he was with them in those short months, he kept telling them, you're going to suffer. You're going to suffer for this. He continues on, you know that we are destined for this, but when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction. So if anything, they were probably so enthused about the gospel, he's like, hey, it's not always Blue skies and the sunshine. It's going to be tougher. Prepare yourself. Brace yourself. For when we were with you, we kept telling you this just as it had come to pass, and just as you know, for this reason, when we could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you. What was the fear from Paul's point of view? That you would have given up. Have you ever seen an endurance test where people give up physically? I mean, I've seen contests where maybe a local dealership, everybody has to touch a vehicle, and until they finally move from touching, the last man or woman standing wins the vehicle. And eventually, you start outweighing, is a truck worth me standing here for 72 hours? You see it on the survivor shows. You see it on the military training shows. Like, to become a Navy SEAL, part of the training is what? They want to break you to the point where you give up. Because if you're going to give up in that situation, we don't want you out there in the battle when giving up is not an option. And Paul understood the weakness, he understood the frailty of man. And Paul knew that when we are being afflicted, when we are being tormented and we are suffering, there is a definite potential chance that you and I will wave our flag and say, enough is enough. I quit. I can't deal with this any longer. Now, when we talk about that, we're not talking about faith. We're not talking about a person who was a believer leaving the Lord and never coming back. But we're talking about the person who never was a believer in the first place. Jesus warns of this in the Gospels. Matthew 13, 21. It's part of the parable of the sower. Matthew 13, 20 and 21. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Yet he has new root in himself, but endures for a while. And guess what? When tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. Paul speaks of this person with Demas in 2nd Timothy. For Demas in love with this present world, it's really ironic with what we're looking at, he deserted Paul and he went to Thessalonica. So the very place that we're reading about, he went there because he had deserted Paul. Are you ready for trials? I mean, I hope I've never painted a picture that the Christian life is one of trial-free living. If anything, I probably err sometimes on the side of stressing it too much, because I don't want you to be misguided. Do you see the danger, though, to quit? And do you see your need for God's grace and strength? Because we have this pressing concern, a situation at hand, Paul is worried. But listen to the positive word, and I think this is where the great encouragement is found in this passage. Paul sends his most valued friend, his confidant, his child of the faith, so to speak, Timothy, to find out what's going on, but also to help them. And he gets back a report that I think exceeds expectations. First thing he gets is a great report. Read verse 6 with me. It says, But now that Timothy has come to us from you and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us as we long to see you. So Timothy comes back. I can imagine Timothy gets there. Maybe Paul even runs out when he sees them in the horizon and they have that face-to-face moment. And I can imagine Paul, maybe not crossing his fingers, but just wondering, what's Timothy going to say? Is it going to be what I kept worrying about? Is he going to say things are just not good there? And maybe it doesn't start like that. Instead, Paul looks at Timothy and Timothy smiles. And he says, Paul, you won't believe what's going on there. And he gives this positive report, listen to what it says, the good news of your faith. It's the only time in the New Testament that that word is used, not directly associated with, guess what? The gospel. Evangelion, the good news. He's like, the news of your faith to me was like the gospel to my ears. and about your love and reported. Not only was the faith being evident in their lives still as a church, all those worries about, you know, Paul had to defend the ministry amongst apparent mockers of him at Thessalonica. They still loved him. Listen to what it says. They remember us kindly and they actually long to see us. That you still care for us, church. As we long, and it was a great report, and Paul was genuinely happy. Why is that important? Because Paul also, remember he's in Athens, he's alone, he's not experiencing fruits, he's experiencing the difficulties of being amongst a bunch of idol worshippers, and I think there's a tendency, maybe it's just me, but misery likes company, does it not? Is it difficult for you to rejoice in others when you are not able to rejoice? Listen to this story. It's a story, mind you, but I found it interesting. There was a demon who was tempting a godly monk in the fourth century. And he kept trying to tempt him to all these various kinds of sins. And everything he did, this monk just resisted and stood firm in his faith. So the demon comes back to Satan and kind of recounts, this is everything I'm doing and I am just not having success with this monk. And Satan looks at him and says, you're being way too hard. And the demon looks at Satan and is confused. He's like, here's what I want you to do. I want you to go back to the monk and I want you to tell him that his brother has been made bishop of Antioch. Just tell him that. So the demon returns and gives us this good news that his brother has been made bishop, so this leader in the church. And instantly, the brother began to envy and became jealous. Do you understand the moral of that sort of the principle behind it? Is that we should rejoice in God's work in the lives of other people regardless of your circumstances and regardless of mine. They should be mutually exclusive. I should be able to celebrate even if I'm going through misery and you should be able to celebrate if you're going through misery and I'm going through times of celebration. that we should rejoice in that way. Listen to Paul, the whole principle. Paul is in prison in Philippians, and he says somewhere, preaching the gospel out of false ambition. Guess what Paul says? I rejoice. Christ is proclaimed. Remember John the Baptist? They're like, hey, they're going to Jesus, and he's like, awesome. No jealousy. Joshua to Moses. People are prophesying, and Moses is like, I wish everybody could. It was a great report. Well, do you get excited when you see God at work in others' lives? Are you tempted to be jealous, to be envious? Do you trust God makes good on His promises? Not only do we see this great report, we have a glad response. He says, for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction, we have been comforted. Paul wasn't jealous. Paul wasn't like, hey, It's not fair that things are going well there and they're not going well here. No, he says, I'm comforted about you and your faith. For now, we live. Paul has been enduring hardship. We read elsewhere that he had the anxiety of all the churches. That I had the anxiety of this church. Paul had the anxiety of all the churches. Idolatry had been grieving him, he's worried about the Thessalonians, he's having these sleepless nights, and yet he's inspired. Listen to what he says, for now we live. In other words, when the message came, he was so encouraged by it, he was able to press on. I want you to imagine it is 98 degrees, it's the month of August, hopefully not around the time of your wedding, so like after the wedding, really hot, Really sweaty, you're out in the yard, having a bowl, and your spouse comes out with a nice cold water, iced tea, lemonade, and you drink it, and what does it do? It hits the spot. And if you're like me, you drink it fast, and you get another one, drink it fast, you get another one, drink it fast, you keep working, 20 minutes later you start feeling better. But in the time and season, what it hit the spot, it encouraged. And what Paul is saying here is when we got that good news, it inspired us. It pressed on. It says, for now we live as if he was not going to live until he heard that news. And now he was able to. He says, we're standing fast in the Lord. You are standing fast. For what Thanksgiving can we return to God for you? In other words, I can't thank God enough for what God is doing in your life. I'm so encouraged. The joy that we feel for your sake before our God, there's not enough cups of lemonade or iced tea or cold water on a hot sunny day that could inspire Paul like the news that God was working in and through their lives. He's happy for them. And God gets all the glory. Well, do God's people inspire you? But also, does it remind you that what you're doing for God is worth it? I think it's easy to be discouraged in the world that we live in. I think it's easy to view building into people's lives as a waste of your time. It's putting you out there to get hurt, to risk. And what God is saying is it might be that way, but there's enough reasons to be encouraged, to be excited. to be inspired and to thank God for His work and to be filled with this great joy. But lastly, I want us to see a good request. He has this glad response. He has this good report. I want to see the good request that He has. It goes on in verse 10, it says, as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith. First of all, take note of the prayer. He prays for them earnestly. Anytime we've read ideas of earnest, we're talking sweat. We're talking effort. We're talking on his knees. He's praying for them night and day. Now, is he praying literally every night and every day? Maybe. But the point behind it is He is praying for them. Because the reality is, why would He need to pray for them? They're good. Everything's great. Because they're not out of the woods yet. Remember, He had warned them of suffering. They're still suffering. Was there still a chance that Satan could come in with another attack upon them? Was there a chance? There was a certainty. And Paul still needed to pray for them. He warned that their faith could still flounder. I mean, how many times have we seen somebody celebrate prematurely, right? I'll never forget, it was, I believe in a Super Bowl, but maybe it wasn't. This big football player picks up a fumble, starts running the other way. and gets to about the ten yard line, and he starts holding the football up, celebrating, and guess what? The other team was running from behind. And before he crosses the finish line, he fails to have the football with him. It's that premature celebration. And I think sometimes we can look in people's lives and see what God is doing and be excited, and then we think everything's good. And yet, in the very next moment, everything could change drastically. So Paul understood that and he prays for them. But not only does he pray for them, he longs to be present amongst them. And it's really picking up with where we talked about, he wants to see growth and everybody has room for growth. He says we want to see face to face and to supply what is lacking in your faith. When he says lacking, it's not a critique in the negative sense, but there is room for growth. There is room for them to grow in knowledge. Now he'd only been there several months, like maybe three months. So there's probably a limited understanding that they have of the gospel. So he wants to bridge that gap. But also there's life application, right? He wants to see growth and development. It's one of the ways that trials works. James 1.3, For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness, and let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. That Paul wants to see them grow. Well, are you praying for that? Are you praying for people? Do you pray in the good times? Also, do you pray in the bad times? What role does prayer play in your life? It's one of those disciplines, pastorally, that the longer I serve in this capacity, the more I'm reminded that it's one of the tasks I'm paid to do. Like preaching, yeah, I want to work on the sermon because I'm going to stand in front of you and I don't want it to be a flop. I can hide if I prayed for you last week. And yet God knows and God has called me to intercede and to pray on your behalf. But also what is lacking in your faith? Where are some areas that you need to see growth? Maybe it's holiness. Maybe it's biblical knowledge. But all that said, are you teachable? Are you teachable? Because if you're going to admit there's a lacking, that means there's humility. And hopefully everybody here, including myself, realizes that we haven't arrived. We're not there yet. We all have room to grow in the gospel. I heard a story this past week that I thought was a great illustration of what spiritual caring looks for in the life of the church, what it should look like as a pastor to his church, what it should look like as you build into people. It involves two brothers, Connor and Caden Long. They are triathletes, pretty amazing young children, but they're triathletes. Connor is eight years old at the time when the story kind of started, and his brother Caden is six. And as I said, they're triathletes. They tried other sports, but Caden just couldn't do any other sport. The reason why is Caden is a child who suffers from cerebral palsy, can't walk, and can't talk. So his brother, I mean, this kid is truly remarkable. was so bothered that his little brother could not be a part of doing what he wanted to do and participate with one another, decided, we're going to fix that. We're going to do sports together and we're going to do triathlons. So, I guarantee you watch the video, you will cry. Fact. So you've got this eight-year-old boy swimming, pulling a raft in these triathlons with his brother sitting in it. He's on his bike with his brother in a cart being pulled, and then at the run, he's pushing his brother in a cart. And it's not just that. You hear this young child talk about his little brother, like, what are you doing? It's like, man, to see my brother's smile and excitement, he's like, even the night before a race, Caden is so excited, he can't even sleep. Sometimes he falls asleep during the race. And he's clapping, and he's smiling, and he's so happy. And he's like, and sometimes when we walk by and people use that R word, and they speak negatively about my brother, they don't understand that he's a real person. And he's got feelings, and I care for him. He's my brother. And I hear this story, and it was really remarkable. But at the same time as I started, I was like, is that not God's call? to us to minister and to be concerned for the spiritual well-being of our friends and our family members and our co-workers. Because spiritually speaking, a lot of people are even in worse case conditions than Caden with his cerebral palsy. And what our call is to come alongside them and do whatever it takes to be sacrificial, to be selfless, to be serving, to be compassionate, to be caring, to be focused on them, that it's not about you. It's not about me. It's about Christ and it's about others. So here's two thoughts as we conclude. One, I think ministry is about people. I've heard pastors say, I love ministry, but the people. And there's been days, I admit, I think that And then I repent. Because without people, ministry isn't ministry. It's about the well-being of others. It should drive us. It should drive you. It should drive you to pray for your friends. It should drive you to take that extra effort to build relationships with your co-workers. I mean, if you, the Christian, aren't going to care about the well-being of somebody spiritually, who in the world is? But secondly, not only is ministry people, ministry is praise. It's seeing God work in others' lives, but also seeing God work through your life in others' lives should humble you to no end. I mean, think about it. We could all have business cards that say, God's co-worker. And guess what? Nobody earned that. You didn't go to school long enough for that. You aren't that skillful. You aren't that gifted. And yes, God chooses to use us. What a privilege it is. Let's pray. Father, we just thank you that God, indeed, you allow us to be your co-workers. And I pray, Father, that we would not take that calling lightly, but that you would use us in mighty ways to care for your people in this world. I pray that we would go that extra mile, that we would spend a lot less time focused on me, myself, and I, and spend a lot more time on the well-being of those who desperately need to be loved on with the gospel. And I just pray that we would see fruit in this area in our lives, tangibly, but also deep within. And may you get all the glory. We pray in Jesus name. Amen. Would you please stand? As we continue in worship, as you probably noticed, we will be celebrating communion. So anybody who has children in children's church who would like to be back to be a part of communion, whether they participate or to just be a part of the worship, you're welcome to go get them at this time.