I'm urging to be people who reach into your pockets, who look at your hands, who do something to unbury what God's given you, in order to make this world a better place. I'm asking you right now, to make a 30 day commitment to do that, once a day. It might be something small. It might be a quick encouraging email; it might be you go to Fred Hollows, give them $30; it might be buying something there. It might be finding an orphanage or you know of something; it might be helping this lady that's going to shave her head for leprosy. It might be something, but why not once a day, I'm not going to make it undoable.
All I'm asking you for, is a commitment for 30 straight days, to do one thing a day to make someone else's life better outside of your family, just one; just once a day, for 30 days. Once a day for 30 days; and I promise you, if you live 30 days like that, at the end of 30 days, you will not be able to imagine living any other way - so much good that can be done. You will find it will help your worry problem. You will find it will help your anger problem, you will find it will help your anxiety, it will help your grief. It will help the pain of whatever you've been through in the past.
When you give your life to something else, it solves all those other things. I'm urging you, and I'm challenging you, for the next 30 days. Thirty days, will you do something once a day, for someone else outside your family, just 30 days? After 30 days, ask yourself: do I want to do another 30? All I'm asking you for is 30 days, 30 days.
Now if you will do that, I want you to make a commitment before the Lord right now, simply by bearing witness and raising your hand, I will do this for the next 30 days. Okay, now I want you to look around - keep your hands up - look around. I want everybody to know that you're able to hold these - just have fun with it. Don't be judgemental, have fun. Just ask each other: hey, what did you do this week?
Maybe someone who knows what they're doing with Facebook- because I don't - maybe you could start a Facebook blog on Bay City Outreach thing called Salt and Light, or whatever you want to call it, and just have it there for people to put their stories: hey, I was here, and this is what happened. You won't believe what God did. Hey, I was here and this is what happened, you won't believe what I saw God do, and then when we start telling stories like that, it creates energy; and I promise you, I promise you, this is what God has called Bay City to be. Regardless of who's standing up here, this is what Bay City is: a group of people bringing heaven to every place they see hell on this earth. I urge you to be that. Let's pray together.
Lord, You're wonderful, we love You, and we honour You. Lord, forgive me for the places I've buried my talent. I want to be someone who uses what You've given me, to establish Your kingdom here. I'm going to pray a prayer with you, if you mean it. I'll tell you the prayer first, and then we'll pray it together. If you mean it, I want you to get in on it, and the prayer goes like this:
Lord Jesus, give me the courage to see things differently, and the irresistible urge to respond to what I see. So if you mean that, right now under your breath, say: Lord Jesus, give me the courage to see things differently, and the irresistible urge to respond to what I see. If you're here today, and you've never received what Jesus did for you before the foundation of the world, and you just want to get onboard, you want to start your journey with God, you could say something like this: Lord Jesus, I have no hope of saving myself, so I ask You to be the Lord of my life. I choose to trust Your version of my story, instead of my own. Thank You Lord. Amen.