♪ Corner holding hate signs ♪ Crooked system make it harder ♪ Walk a straight line ♪ Yeah got you staying up praying all night ♪ Call me now yeah ♪ Cause I love you Hi I want to invite you to connect in community Here at Westover we believe the way to grow together in faith and friendships is through life groups At Westover we have groups for all life stages There are groups for families

singles men women young adults and special interest or if you just want to make friends We have groups that meet in person and even groups that meet online And if the perfect group does not exist for you it might just be the one you create It's the perfect way to follow Jesus and love people So download the Westover app and join a group today

At Westover we believe following Jesus changes everything That's why we've created our First Steps class a four week experience designed to help you grow in your faith and build a strong foundation for your walk with God In First Steps you'll discover what it really means to follow Jesus how to read and understand the Bible how to make prayer a natural part of your life and why community matters for your spiritual growth Each week offers practical tools intentional teaching and space to take your next step Whether you're new to Jesus new to Westover or simply ready to grow First Steps is the perfect place to begin your journey Classes happen every month so you can jump in anytime We can't wait to walk with you as you take your first step in following him

Hey I'm Albert Santiago and I'm the director of Westover Hills Sports Ministry Westover Sports is the largest community outreach Westover Hills Church has to offer Between soccer flag football basketball softball and volleyball we have something for everyone Westover Sports isn't just for our youth athletes We have plenty of adult leagues as well If you're around Westover Sports logging up you'll hear us say it's more than a game You see we believe through sports we can help develop character and integrity while honoring God If you love sports serving people or wanna try something new Westover Sports is searching for dedicated volunteers to help maintain our programs You can download the Westover app to find what's available or visit our website at westoversports com for more information We look forward to seeing you

At Westover we have experiences for kids of all ages In early childhood we are opening the eyes of infants and preschool age children to the wonders of who God is with three basic truths God made them He loves them and He wants to be their friend We demonstrate this with fun and interactive elements like worship small groups and lots of love If you feel more comfortable keeping your child with you the Wiggle Giggle Room is available during all services This room is open for one parent and a child to enter an environment that allows the children to be more active while their parents are still able to enjoy service

In elementary your children 10th through fourth grade come to a Westover kid service where they'll engage in dynamic worship and biblical teaching Most of their time is spent in their small group to help them form life giving relationships with their group leader and other kids their age Together they learn about the Bible and how to have a relationship with God memorize scripture and have fun developing friendships with each other Our goal at Westover Kids is to introduce your kids to Jesus and create a space for them to experience Him at each phase of life by bringing the Bible to life Our teams provide a safe fun and engaging experience where your child can be paired with a leader to guide them through service into a closer relationship with Jesus

For fifth through 12th graders our next gen services offer a fun welcoming space where faith grows friendships thrive and tough questions get real answers Each service features powerful worship engaging messages and small groups led by caring leaders who help students build a strong faith foundation This is more than just a service It's a place to belong Come experience it for yourself and be a part of something life changing

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♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Westover will you stand with me today Let's lift up together our very best praise Amen ♪♪♪

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♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Come on every voice in this place

Sing it out ♪♪♪

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♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Come on church We're gonna continue to lift up a sound of worship in this place We're gonna continue to praise the Lord knowing good and well that he's in control of all things that he has all authority and he's never lost a battle So let's sing this out together With one voice we sing

♪ Every weapon formed against me it ends here ♪ ♪ I speak in the name of the Lord ♪ Every cycle of addiction It ends here Every voice of condemnation It ends here I speak in the name of the Lord

I speak in the name of the Lord I'm not taking back what the enemy stole from me In the name of Jesus I'm breaking off every lie that I once believed The one who lives in me Has all the glory The one who lives in me Has all the glory

Every darkness of depression It ends here Every bondage every sickness It ends here I speak in the name of the Lord

I speak in the name of the Lord I'm not taking back what the enemy stole from me In the name of Jesus I'm breaking off every lie that I once believed The one who lives in me Has all the glory The one who lives in me Has all the glory

We're taking back I'm not taking back what the enemy stole from me In the name of Jesus I'm breaking off every lie that I once believed The one who lives in me Has all the glory The one who lives in me Has all the glory

Yes Come on church I came on assignment today To encourage those who are low in their spirit Who feel broken hearted and heavy today To remind you that our God is faithful That our God is victorious And no matter what you're facing He's right there with you in the midst of it all Because no weapon formed against you shall prosper So we're going to declare this full of faith today You've given me authority To push back the enemy To fight from the victory

And it's about time I use it You've given me authority To push back the enemy To fight from the victory And it's about time I use it You've given me authority

To push back the enemy To fight from the victory It's about time It's about time I use it You've given me authority To push back the enemy To fight from the victory And it's about time I use it I'm taking back what the enemy stole from me In the name of Jesus

Yeah The one who lives in me Has everything I need Only you Jesus Oh The one who lives in me The one who lives in me

Oh You've given me authority To push back the enemy To fight from victory And it's about time It's about time You have everything I need Oh it never ends with you Lord

And it's about time You have given me everything I need Yeah And it's about time I use it Oh

It's about time we use it Oh yes Oh you never fail You never will We look to you Jesus Come on with every hand lifted Can we declare this one more time And I'm taking back what the enemy stole from me In the name of Jesus I'm breaking off every lie I once believed The one who lives in me Has all authority The one who lives in me Has all

authority The one who lives in me Has all authority The one who lives in me Has all authority applause

piano plays softly piano plays softly When I looked back I didn't think that I would make it I was sinking And the shame came like a wave I just knew that I was too far gone Then you showed up

One time God you loved the impossible One time God you loved doing miracles I see it all I see it all How your head was always working even in time You were faithful never failing Even when I thought the darkness would end You showed up Oh

One time God you loved the impossible One time God you loved doing miracles You never took it you never gave up Nothing's too far gone for the one time God

One time God you loved the impossible One time God you loved doing miracles You never took it you never gave up Nothing's too far gone for the one time God You always show up

You always show up My heart is knowing That my God is holding tomorrow in His hands My life your story Cause you're not finished with me yet See my heart My heart is knowing That my God is holding tomorrow in

His hands My life your story You're not finished You're not finished He's not finished with me yet You're not finished finished with me yet You're not finished with me yet Keep watching keep waiting

Keep hoping keep praying Keep watching keep waiting Oh I know my God is awaiting Keep praying You better keep on watching Keep watching keep waiting Oh I know To keep hoping keep praying

Keep watching keep waiting Keep hoping keep praying Cause you're not finished with me yet You're not finished with me yet

You're not finished He's not finished with me yet You're not finished with me yet And now that we're here I give you glory and the praise For all of the years Your loving kindness kept me safe I know that the storms will always come But even when the devil thought he won That's when you showed up

Come on how many can testify today man Say He's an on time God You love the impossible On time God You love doing miracles You're never too late you never give up Nothing's too far gone for the on time God You always show up

You always show up You always show up Oh my God has never left me My God has never left my side You always show up On time at the right time I know You always show up Yes you always show up Yes you always show up He's an on time God

On time God You love the impossible On time God You love doing miracles You're never too late you never give up Nothing's too far gone You're never too late you never give up Nothing's too far gone

You're never too late you never give up Nothing's too far gone for the on time God Come on is there anybody in the house of the Lord that can give the on time God some praise Give him the highest worship that he is worthy and deserving of I don't know about you but the presence of the Lord is here and I know he's already moving he's already speaking and I don't want you to miss it because I believe he has something particular for each and every person in this room today Whether you call Westover Hills Church your church home or maybe you're visiting for the first time we call it an honor and a privilege to worship with you We see you we love you and we're so glad that you're here Do me a quick favor before you grab your seat today can you

turn to a few people around you share your best smile with them give them a fist bump a handshake let them know they're looking good today and then you may be seated Hey I'm Laura and welcome to Westover And I'm Seth Whether it's your first time or you've been with us for years we're so glad you're here While you're with us today make sure to open the Westover app You'll find events content and next steps made for you And don't forget to check in Once that QR code pops up you'll be on your way to earning your TED badge Here at Westover there's

so many ways for you and your family to get connected and move forward together Coming up next week it's Westover's birthday Join us April 25th and 26th as we celebrate all that God has done through our church over the last 40 years It's going to be a special weekend as we honor the past and look ahead to everything God is still going to do And if you're new or looking to find your place here at Westover we'd love to help you take your next step at Welcome Home happening Sunday May 3rd It's a chance to hear the story of Westover Meet our team and discover how you can be a part of it all Because church isn't just a place you attend it's a place where you belong

Thank you for spending your weekend with us Make sure you stay connected by checking your app and following us on social media at Westover Hills We're so grateful you're a part of our church family as we follow Jesus and love people together Bye guys Welcome to Westover We're so glad that you are with us this morning Whether you're here in the room or part of our online family Thank you for worshipping with us And maybe you are brand new to Westover We are so glad that you have joined us We would love to connect with you And the way that we do that is through a connect card which you'll find in the seat back in front of you We just ask that you take it and fill it out Or you can scan the QR code and fill it out digitally And then we invite you at the end of service to take a few moments of your time

and step down the hallway to Guest Central My husband Pastor John and I will be there We would love to personally meet you But thank you for joining us today Well maybe you've been coming to Westover for a while But you're looking to get connected You're looking to be a part And you want to know what your next step is We want to invite you out to an event coming up called Welcome Home On Sunday May 3rd This is an opportunity to hear the heart of our pastor To find next steps for you here at Westover So that we can personally connect with you and your family And so we invite you register online We'd love to see you there And we look forward to seeing you at Welcome Home in just a few weeks Well now we have the opportunity to give back to God

To worship Him through our giving One of my favorite attributes of God is His faithfulness and His goodness And when we honor God in our finances When we give back to God He always provides He even tells us in His Word Test me in this In Malachi 3 10 God says Test me in this and see if I do not pour blessing upon your life And Westover we thank you for your generosity Each and every week It fuels the mission of God here at Westover And allows us to minister here on this campus And throughout our community And so we invite you be a part of what God is doing To be a part and to give something Maybe you haven't stepped in on

your generosity journey yet We invite you today to give something Test God in this area And let Him provide and show up in your life And then grow in your generosity And see God pour blessing upon you There are several methods to give here at Westover Choose the method that's most convenient for you But right now we want to pause And we want to pray over our offering And I want to pray that as you take that faith step That God would honor it And that you would see Him be faithful Lord we thank you God For how you are already moving in this service Your presence your goodness And your faithfulness towards us And so right now Lord with a heart of generosity and gratitude We give back to you And we ask that you take what we give Use it to reach more people Use

it to make an impact in this community And right now Lord I pray for the giver That you would bless them That you would show up in their life And prove your faithfulness to them Speak to us through the rest of the message In Jesus name Amen As some of you may know I'm an adventurous foodie I like new foods new restaurants new experiences Whenever I go out I want to try something brand new

so many food experiences that I've yet to experience In fact I have a list of food fusion things that I wanna try in the near future like Viet Thai fusion Korean street barbecue and even Egyptian barbecue I can't wait to try these things out because there's some things that are meant to go together But have you ever been somewhere and you tried something new that was a fusion that someone told you was gonna be good but it wasn't

They told you it was gonna taste good but it wasn't See not everything that people put together actually works Here's some food fusions I don't wanna try I don't wanna barbecue banana split I don't want ketchup ice cream I love sushi but I don't want raw chicken wraps And I don't want vegan tacos

Because there's moments when fusions just don't fuse Today I wanna tell you a little bit about my favorite Disney classic movie If you know it maybe you'll just shout it out Once upon a time there was a charming lady who wandered into an abandoned castle As she walked in she realized that it was cursed

The man the lord of the house and everyone in it was under a curse And the beast who lived there he decided to keep her in the castle because she was necessary to reverse the curse But she had an interesting background She had two stepsisters she wore glass slippers and she rode around in a carriage that used to be a pumpkin But she was never alone because she had seven dwarfs that accompanied her and 12 Dalmatian puppies that were given to her by her best friend Cruella de Vil

Whenever she went up to her charming beastly prince she'd look into his eyes and say Dumbo I love you Today I fear in the modern American church that we've created a mosaic Jesus and a fragmented faith where we've pulled from this thought and this idea from this faith experience from this TikTok theology from this political talking point and we've created a Jesus that we don't see in his word

We've created a Jesus that's comfortable and convenient one that constantly blesses us but never challenges us to change or be different We want a gospel that tells us we can stay just the way we are and doesn't invite us to pick up our cross and follow Jesus Today I fear that we live in a world and in a faith experience where people are led more by horoscopes and crystals and mythologies instead of being led by God

where we're living in a culture where people are willing to go to Google or AI first when they face problems rather than going to God's word or seeking the direction of the Holy Spirit I wonder if we live in a faith experience that is not reflective of the full gospel of Jesus Christ

Today I want to speak on the myths we live by the myths and the misinformation we live by in our life You see a myth it's a widely held thought or idea or belief that's false that shapes our mind and directs our decisions And I don't know if you know this but some of us we grew up with some myths We were told some things when we were young when we were growing up and for some of you you've known that these are myths but for some of you this is brand new information

Consider yourself enlightened today Number one that you need to wait 30 minutes after you eat before you swim Number two that if you eat Pop Rocks and drink a soda your stomach's gonna explode Number three that if you shave your hair's gonna grow thicker For others of you it's the idea that if you swallow gum it stays in your stomach for seven years And finally

we were told that you only use 10 of your brain I'm here to tell you use all of it I know some of you are thinking about Pastor John There are some people If they're sitting next to you don't look at them just pray for them Today I wonder what are the myths you believed about Life

faith God and faith community What are the myths and misinformation that you've internalized in your heart that are now shaping your thoughts and how you live With that in mind I wanna invite you to join me in the book of Hebrews chapter six While you're turning there I'm gonna invite you to open up the Westover app because we have sermon notes that you can use to follow along In fact in the sermon notes for this weekend I've included five myths

five truths and our responses to those truths from God's word Today I'm gonna highlight two But first I wanna invite you to join me in the book of Hebrews chapter six We're gonna look at verses one and following Before we get into the text let me just offer you a little bit of context The writer here is addressing believers He's telling them that they need to move beyond the myths that they've embraced

that they need to grow up spiritually and not stay in the elementary teachings of faith and that they need to move forward onto maturity This is the context God is saying to them then and to us today Hebrews six verse one and following says this So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again Say again and again Again and again

Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding Surely we don't need to start again with the fundamental importance of repentance from evil deeds and placing our faith in God What he was telling them then is we don't need to re adjudicate this We don't need to re examine this This is already established In order to get to God you have to repent and turn to God and put your faith in Jesus He goes on to say this You don't need further instruction about baptisms the laying on of hands the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment You see back then what people would do is they would go to the scriptures and they would endlessly debate these ideas instead of living out their faith They would talk about it instead of living it This is why he says in verse three this And so God willing

we will move forward Say move forward We will move forward to further understanding I wonder for how many of us our myths are preventing us from moving forward into further understanding What are the myths you've internalized What are the things that you've believed that are not consistent with God's word Today today I'm gonna address two of these myths

But today I wanna offer you a challenge Let's move on beyond the myths and into spiritual maturity Let's move on beyond the myths and into spiritual maturity The first myth is this The world is broken I didn't break it I can't fix it This myth is a thinking myth It's a myth of the mind And one of the reasons why this myth endures in our mind is because there's some truth to it The world is broken

Look around the world is broken We get viruses we didn't cause We get into accidents that we didn't cause Hail falls on our house and ruins the roof We didn't cause that But the challenge with this myth is that this myth cultivates within us hopelessness and helplessness Where we back away and say it is what it is I can't change it I'm going to do nothing We take no responsibility and we take no action And it impacts our faith

Reality is sometimes life comes at you fast and you're just at the wrong place at the wrong time I remember when my kids were very little my wife and I we took our kids to SeaWorld for the very first time They were super excited because they wanted to see Shamu And we got there they gave our kids first time guest stickers and everywhere they went they were greeted and welcomed

We got to the Shamu tank and as the attendant saw my kids walk up the attendant ushered my kids right to the very front We said no no no we're going to sit up higher And our kids said no we want to see Shamu So reluctantly we sat right at the very very very front Two minutes in we were completely soaked We were wet from top to bottom because anytime you sit in the splash zone you're gonna get wet

Today I want to remind us that all of us we sit in the splash zone of wrong and sinful thinking Some of us have been splashed and we are drenched based on our past experiences and the myths we've internalized and we currently believe For some of us it's just a little bit it's splash on our shoes But the challenge with us is that all of us all of humanity sits in the splash zone of sinful thinking

And there's a threefold effect to sinful thinking Intensity inwardness and constancy Intensity inwardness and constancy Intensity You see sinful thinking is not a casual thing It's intense it shows up in dramatic ways We see it in crime we see it in the way people hate or express prejudice

There's intensity to it But also there's an inwardness to sinful thinking It's not something out there in someone else's life if we're really honest it's on the inside It infects our life We have the virus of sinful thinking on the inside And it impacts our relationships and how we view God

As some of you know I spent a decade as a professional counselor and I remember one man I met with and as we were talking he was explaining his life and what I noticed was a common thing that everything and everyone was the problem After a few moments I paused and I said sir what if the problem is on the inside

not around you And I said this tentatively but with some courage I said what if the problem is you and how you think and not everyone else You see sinful thinking there's an inwardness component to it but there's also a constancy component to it It's been present since Genesis chapter three when sin was introduced into the world We see it in the garden of beginning the garden of Eden and we've seen expressions of this throughout all of humanity whether it's the Holocaust or World War II or corporate corruption or crime or drug cartels or addiction or brokenness it's everywhere

Often what happens in these moments is we begin to look for something brand new something different something to change or distract our life Recently my wife and I we bought a brand new vehicle and it's brand new and I don't care what people say I love new car smell

In fact they tell us that new car smell is toxic but I don't care it smells great We took it home it was brand new no problems until a couple weeks ago we got a recall notice telling us that there was a problem on the inside of the vehicle

something that needed to be fixed that needed to be repaired and so we took it back to the dealership we took it back to the manufacturer because I don't know how to fix that flaw in the vehicle but the manufacturer does I wonder today how many of us are walking through life with things happening on the inside and we've ignored the recall notice of God's word

telling us that we need to go back to the manufacturer who is Jesus Here's the truth that confronts the myth of this idea it's simply this Jesus fixes what humanity can't We can't fix it but he can It's the reason why he came to earth he died on the cross to pay for all of our sins it's so that he could fix what's on the inside and what's around us and Jesus can fix what humanity can't

But only if we're willing to put our faith hope and trust in him because in order for us to move forward into spiritual maturity we must be willing to own our life Today I want to challenge you own your life and give God everything else Own everything on the inside your thoughts your beliefs your feelings I've said it this way before

everything within your skin is your responsibility Own your life and give God everything else Don't try to control people don't try to change them you can't You'll get frustrated and so will they don't do it The only control God told us to have is self control The challenge with this is that sometimes we're trying to control everyone else instead of allowing God to change us We need to own our life

Here at Westover one of the ways that we frame it is this we must be willing to admit believe and confess To say yes to Jesus we must admit believe and confess The challenge is is that when we don't admit that we have a problem or that we are the problem then B and C become blame and complain

It's someone else it's their problem not me I don't need to change anything If you're having problems in a relationship don't say God change them be willing to say God change me change me transform me Today let's move forward beyond the myths and into spiritual maturity The reality is some of us we don't struggle with thinking myths we struggle with emotional myths feeling myths And here's the second myth I wanna share with you If I feel something it must be true

If I feel something it must be true We live in a feelings first culture If it feels good do it If it doesn't feel good I'm not gonna do it But just because it feels good doesn't mean it's right and just because it's hard doesn't mean it's wrong Sometimes what I see in God's word is obeying God is hard but it's still right

We live in a world that says pay attention to your feelings even at the expense of your faith And what's happened is that we've created a faith where it's a faith plus It's faith plus something else One of the things that we add are isms It's faith plus some isms and these are ideas concepts that we've internalized to make our faith better

Let me give you some of these isms Hedonism it's the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain That's one of the isms Next one is this materialism If I can just get the car the promotion the new house more fame more success more degrees more notoriety more followers on social media then I'll finally be happy For others it's experientialism where they say

my experience is my truth My subjective experience is objective truth What I feel and experience on the inside is what's actually true This is where these feelings become the center of our faith experience Then there's some other isms like spiritual tourism We see this in church where people come and visit a church and they're looking for a feel good message not one that challenges them to change and be transformed by the power of God

They're looking for something to tickle their ears not something to make them better as they follow Jesus Then sometimes there's some feeling isms like pessimism and skepticism that begins to seep into our faith What are the isms we've allowed into our mind and heart that are now affecting our faith If we allow these isms in what ends up happening is we make faith decisions based on our feelings

where we say I'm only gonna pray when I feel like it I'm only gonna read God's word when I feel like it I'm only gonna worship God when the song is my vibe Otherwise I'm not going to Today God's inviting us to change our mind be transformed Here's the truth that confronts this myth

Feelings are real but they're not the truth Feelings are real but they're not the truth Feelings are something we experience but they're not the truth of God's word We've over relied on our feelings and under relied on our faith We've allowed our feelings to dictate what our faith is and how we live that out

Feelings are actually supposed to be like house guests that come and then go not like family that stays or even overstays their welcome Have you ever had someone come over to your house and they overstay their welcome and you're looking and you're like Lord Jesus prompt them to leave

Maybe it's a family member maybe it's a friend maybe it's a neighbor maybe it's an aunt an uncle maybe a cousin maybe a mother in law maybe your mother in law I'm here to tell you not my mother in law My mother in law is great Mom you can stay as long as you like okay You're not getting kicked out Today I wonder how many of us have allowed our feelings to override our faith

We've allowed feelings to be the thing that dictates how we live Today I wanna challenge us let's live Spirit led not feelings driven Let's be led by the Spirit of God Let's be led by the truth of God's Word Let this be the thing that leads us in our faith not what we feel Because sometimes the moments we don't feel like it is the moments we need it the most We need to read God's Word And when we need to pray the most that's when we need it when we need to worship the most Not when we feel good but when we're feeling down or broken or hopeless that's when we need God the most

So today you may be asking well how do I do this I wanna invite you to check your feelings But don't just fact check your feelings Be willing to faith check your feelings Say it with me faith check your feelings Check your feelings against God's Word And when they don't align

don't change your faith Realign your feelings Let God's Word be the thing that defines you You see sometimes we're led by our emotions and we need to let faith flip our feelings For some of us it's simply this faith mood controls faith

feelings conquer hopes and emotions decrease beliefs We've allowed these emotions to be the thing that lead us forward For just a moment I want to invite us to flip that list Let's allow faith to flip our feelings and read it the other way Where faith controls mood hopes conquer feelings and beliefs decrease emotions We need to be led by our faith not by our feelings

But for some of us it's not the feelings it's that we have the wrong perspective of who God is We see God in a different kind of way and what happens in our life is sometimes it's as if we're we walk into a hall of mirrors Have you ever been to an amusement park or carnival where there's a hall of mirrors

Yeah when you walk in you get a reflection of yourself but it's not accurate right Some it makes us 10 foot tall and some of us it makes us short and squatty and we keep moving real quick because it doesn't give us an accurate view of who he is or who we are or what other people are In the same way I wonder if we're walking through a hall of mirrors when it comes to Jesus We have a distorted perspective we don't see him clearly

Reality is for some of us we want Jesus to be Superman but not Savior Superman not Savior We want him to come and rescue us from the challenges and the attacks that come our way but we don't want him to change us and save us from our sin and our brokenness Which reminds me Muhammad Ali the world heavyweight champion that so many of us know he had an illustrious career and one of the things that he would do is he would travel from place to place competing

I remember reading a story about him being on a plane one time sitting in first class and as they were about to take off the flight attendant came up to Mr Ali said Mr Ali it's an honor to have you on the flight today but before we take off I need you to buckle your seatbelt Then the flight attendant continued down the aisle she began to repeat the same thing to prepare the cabin for takeoff

She then went up to the front and to the first class cabin and she realized that Mr Ali had not buckled his seatbelt so she once again said Mr Ali I just want to remind you we cannot take off until you buckle your seatbelt He looked at her and he said Superman don't need no seatbelt to which she replied well Superman don't need no plane either

Today I wonder how many of us are actually trying to Superman our way through life instead of acknowledging that we need a Savior named Jesus We need someone to save us and for some of you I know what you're saying you know what you're saying Pastor John I already put my faith and hope in Jesus but I'm still struggling

I can't seem to put my hands around what's missing You find yourself feeling like there's still some emptiness in your soul and spirit when it comes to faith I want to suggest you that maybe you settled into the shallows of life You settled into the shallows of life

I want to share with you here the symptoms of the fact that you might be in the shallows of life You might be in the shallows of life if you feel like the demands of God's Word are overbearing and excessive You feel like your life is full but your soul is empty

You feel like there's something missing when you go to God in prayer You feel like you're seeking God but only when you need him to rescue you not because you want real intimacy with him Where you're just seeking relief but not closeness not to be transformed If this describes your experience you may have settled into the shallows of life

I may remind you we weren't created to live in the shallows of life As some of you may know I swam competitively in high school I spent a lot of time in the pool One of the things that you notice if you've ever been around a pool for any length of time is that there's one sign that's at every pool and it's this no diving in the shallow end of the pool

Why Because if you dive into the shallow end of the pool you can really hurt yourself even permanently Today I wonder how many of us are diving into the shallows of faith We're making faith decisions that are shallow and superficial

Where we say you know what I'm gonna come to church one hour and worship God but then I'm gonna live however I want the rest of the week Where when you come to worship you just worship with a little bit of your words but not with your heart and your full devotion Giving God everything all the honor and all the praise that he deserves

You've heard about faith community but if you're really honest your faith community are your co workers that you meet at happy hour after work Instead of finding believers in the church who are willing to encourage you and challenge you and to pray for you when you're going through hard times I believe that this is the best place to find friends

I wonder how many of us in our financial generosity we're approaching our generosity as a tip based on our experience rather than what God really deserves So instead God's inviting us to not just tip him but to tithe Why Because we understand that investing in the church and giving through Westover is the way we invest and create eternal impact God has blessed us so that we can bless others

You see we can't have a deep relationship with God while having a shallow experience We can't go halfway in and halfway out and expect full blessing Today God is challenging us to go into the deep of his presence To say God I'm gonna go all in I'm gonna abandon the myths

I'm gonna abandon the elementary teachings and I'm really gonna lean into your presence Imagine what would happen to our life if we were willing to say God you're all that I live for Here's what I've discovered over time is that shallowness with God will never satisfy the deep longings of the soul

The Word of God says this that deep calls unto deep And today I wonder if many of us were just settling for the superficial Here's what I've discovered in my faith experience The depth and the desperation to which I go in my relationship with God is the depth and and the full expression of what I experienced from him

Here's what I mean If I only give God a little I only receive a little from him It's not because he doesn't want to bless me it's because I've been to his presence Today God's inviting us to be transformed Let's move beyond the myths and into spiritual maturity

But it starts with a decision We must decide that we're gonna put Jesus first We're gonna put him in charge Otherwise we're just living by the myths Today I want to invite you to stand with me We're stepping into a sacred moment I'm gonna invite no one to move

Because the only way we fully experience the transformative power of God is if we're willing to say yes to him Because the greatest myth of humanity is that we can do life without Jesus That's the greatest myth I don't know about you but I've tried for way too long to do life without Jesus and guess what I'll be the first to attest it doesn't work

I feel empty and broken and unfulfilled Today I don't want you to leave the way you came I want you to say yes to Jesus It's the prayer of my heart Here at Westover we believe that saying yes to Jesus is as clear as ABC A admitting that we're all sinners in need of a Savior named Jesus Christ B believing that he died on the cross to pay for all of our sins and that he rose again on the third day to give us hope and freedom

C that we would confess from our heart with our mouth out loud that we want Jesus to be the Lord of our life I want to give you that opportunity today I know some of you you may have come This is your first time here You've heard about Jesus but you've never said yes to Jesus Or maybe you've been coming for a while and you've heard about Jesus but you've never taken that step

But something about today has stirred your heart and you want to say yes to Jesus If that's you this is your moment Don't miss it For others of you you used to have a close relationship but you've kind of let the relationship relax and you've drifted away Today Jesus is inviting you home He's saying come back

I want you to know who I am and live the way I've created you to live If that's you this is your moment Don't miss it So here's what I'm going to invite us to do I'm going to invite everyone to bow their head and close their eyes front to back side to side no one moving I want to give you an opportunity to say yes to Jesus There's two steps to this If you say you know what Pastor John I need to say yes to Jesus for the first time this is your moment Don't miss it If you want to rededicate your life this is your moment Don't miss it This is step one On the count of three I'm going to invite you to raise your hand

You're not joining this church you're just saying yes to Jesus Here it is One two three Yes hands going up Yes yes yes Yes yes With every head bowed and every eye closed those of you who have your hands up can I just invite you to open up your eyes and look at me I want to look at you

I want you to know that God has waited your entire life for this moment He's waited for this moment because He wants to meet you He wants you to know who He is And here's step number two With every head bowed every eye closed I'm going to invite you to come up to the front and stand here with me I love the privilege of leading you in a prayer to say yes to Jesus We're not here to shame you

I just love the privilege of leading you in a prayer to say yes to Jesus Yes thank you for coming Thank you for coming And as you come up I just want to invite you to give me your eyes for just a moment As I said a moment ago this is a moment God has waited for your whole life He wants you to know that He is real

And I would love the privilege of leading you in a prayer to say yes to Jesus And as you say this prayer say this from the place where you say I love you to the people that you love And say it out loud And to make it easy in fact the entire church is going to say it right along with you But let's pray this prayer Say this with me Say Jesus Thank you for loving me

Thank you for dying on the cross to pay for all of my sins To give me a better life and a better future Today I put my trust in you And today I confess from my heart that you Jesus are the Lord of my life I put you in charge of everything

Help me follow you Help me take steps of faith with you And bring joy to my heart In Jesus name And everybody said amen Can we just celebrate these wonderful people who have said yes to Jesus Before you leave we'd love to pray a blessing over you Church can I just invite you Let's extend our hands and let's pray a blessing God I pray right now for these wonderful people who have just said yes to Jesus God I pray you bless them I pray that you encourage them I pray that you help them have courage to take steps of faith with you And Lord may you protect them May you show them the way forward Encourage them today And bless them today In Jesus name And everybody said amen and amen For those of you who came up to the front our prayer team is handing out something to you If I can just invite you to just

hang out for two minutes our team would love to explain something to you to help you advance To the rest of you I want to say thank you so much for joining us this weekend If you're brand new to Westover you're looking for a way to get connected our team would love to greet you at Guest Central God bless you and we are dismissed ♪♪