South Fellowship Church

THE LORD'S PRAYER: Kneeling for Battle Matthew 6:13

THE LORD'S PRAYER: Kneeling for Battle   Matthew 6:13
 
The year was 1720, the date June 21st.  The pirate, Bartholomew Roberts, was just about to sail in to the Trepassey Bay in Newfoundland, the easternmost part of the United States of America.  As he got ready to enter that bay, he noticed that there were twenty-two merchant ships lined up around the coast of the bay.  In that day, merchant ships often carried artillery because there were others, like Black Bart, sailing the open seas, ready to take them down and take them for all that they were worth.  Black Bart, or Bartholomew Roberts, was one of the pirates who came up with, what we know now to be, the "Jolly Roger" flag.  It was a way to send a message that the pirates used.  They would simply hoist up this flag and it was an invitation to any ships that could see it "hey, if you're willing to hoist up your white flag and surrender, we're willing to not kill you."   They were trying to negotiate.  Bartholomew Roberts and his crew pulled into the Trepassey Bay in Newfoundland, June 21, 1720, surrounded by 22 ships in this bay and they, slowly but surely, hoisted the "Jolly Roger" flag. And every single one of the twenty-two ships in that bay, slowly but surely, hoisted up their white flag of surrender. Every single one.  The ironic part is that if you go back and read about this account, together for sure, but even independently, many of those ships that gave up without a fight had enough resources onboard to give the good pirate, Black Bart, a run for his money.  But they refused to even fight the battle.  They had enough to win and yet refused to fight.  

The Lord's Prayer: Releasing the Records - Matthew 6:12

THE LORD'S PRAYER: Releasing the Records    Matthew 6:12
 
Have you ever tried to think back and figure out what your earliest memory is?  Not one that you've seen in pictures or stories that you've heard, but genuinely the thing from your past that's the very first thing that you can remember.  For me, I was five years old.  It was my birthday and I had been given a Big Wheel for my birthday.  Huge wheel in the front, two mini wheels on the back ---- I was in love!  I begged my parents to let me take it on an inaugural spin around the block.  I was ready for my birthday party; I was dressed in a red-and-white shirt that had horizontal stripes on it.  I had red shorts on and on the left pocket was a little green alligator.  I begged my parents mercilessly; I now know where my seven-year-old gets it from.  They finally gave in.  I took my red and yellow Big Wheel on a spin around the block.  I went tearing out of the driveway, made a left hand turn, made another left hand turn, another left, another left and I was about to make my final left hand turn on the final stretch and I'm not exactly sure what happened.  Other than the little wheel on the back got caught in the groove that attached the curb to the sidewalk.   The next thing I knew, I was lying on my face, in the gutter, covered in mud.  I can remember getting back on my Big Wheel and making that final left hand turn and heading home.  I pulled up the driveway and put the Big Wheel off to the side and stood there, not exactly sure what was going to greet me when I knocked on the door.  It was the first time in my life that I can remember feeling shame.  It was the first time in my life I can remember failing.  The first time in my life where, regardless of anybody else's standard for me, I didn't live up to my standard for myself.  Can you remember the first time you felt that way?  

THE LORD'S PRAYER: All I Need Every Day - Matthew 6:11

If you've been with us over the past few weeks, you know we've been walking through a series on the Lord's prayer.  If you're new with us, welcome, we're really glad you're here.  We're going to be diving into one of the stanzas in this prayer and trying to ask God God, what do you want us to hear from this portion of this model prayer that you gave your disciples to pray -- a way for them to interact with you.  
I grew up in a church that was sorta "high church."  It was a Presbyterian church and the pastor wore a robe every Sunday when he preached.  I think it was because he didn't want to think about what he wore under it.  Every time he prayed....he had this sorta booming voice....his name was Ben Patterson and every time he prayed, you just felt like the Shekinah glory of the Lord filled the room.  I can remember as a kid sitting there, going I don't think I'll ever be able to pray like that.  I don't think I'll ever be able to talk to God in a way that I really feel like he hears me, because I don't know that many big words and I don't know how to do that and I don't know how to enter in.....   I can remember feeling almost a little discouraged by prayer as a young kid because I felt so distant from the way it was suppose to be done.
 
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THE LORD'S PRAYER: All I Need Every Day - Matthew 6:11
Speaker: Pastor Ryan Paulson
South Fellowship Church
Based in Littleton, CO 

The Lord's Prayer - Kingdom Invasion - Matthew 6:10

“Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”
(Matthew 6:9–13 ESV)

BREATH OF HEAVEN: The One Thing that Changes Everything - John 8:31-32 & Romans 13:8-9

BREATH OF HEAVEN: The One Thing that Changes Everything - John 8:31-32 & Romans 13:8-9A number of years ago, I got into road biking and I never thought I'd be a road biker, but my wife got me a bike for Christmas.  I was looking for another way to get out and enjoy beautiful Colorado and, indeed, over the last few years, I've really grown to love the sport of road biking.  I had a friend who invited me to go on a bike ride with him, sort of spontaneously.  He called me and at the time my wife was hosting a party and there were a number of women over at our house.  I said yes to him.  I was biding my time and hoping that by the time it was for me to go, they'd be gone.  I went upstairs and got ready.  It came time for me to go.  I had to walk downstairs through my living room to get into my garage.  The living room is where all these ladies were.  I had to go downstairs dressed head-to-toe in full-on spandex in order to get into my garage!  I had always been the guy that looked at others in full spandex and thought, "I'm never going there!  I'm never doing THAT!" until I went on a bike ride not wearing them.  It was not fun!  I realized the moment I got on the bike WHY everybody that rides spandex head-to-toe!  I joined that club.  It turned out....the thing that looked confining at first, actually brought freedom.  The thing that looked like it was going to be uncomfortable and it looked like there's no way I'm ever going there, actually was the thing that allowed me to ride way better with way more comfort than I ever would have imagined.  

BREATH OF HEAVEN:The Point is a Person John 5:39-40 & Hebrews 1:1-3

BREATH OF HEAVEN:The Point is a Person John 5:39-40 & Hebrews 1:1-3BREATH OF HEAVEN:The Point is a Person   John 5:39-40 & Hebrews 1:1-3My wife, Kelly, and I met on a backpacking trail a number of years ago.  I felt like I made quite the impression on her.  Things had gone well on that trail.  I was convinced, if I could talk her into it, that I was going to marry her. I wasn’t sure she was as committed as I was, nonetheless, she had thrown out on the trail…if you ever want to come to Durango and spend some time and hang out, it’s an open invitation.  I filed that away in the very front of my file cabinet.  We got off the trail after spending a week together and I waited all of two days to call her.  I called her house.  This is back in the day where phones were attached to the wall.  You had to call and actually talk to somebody’s parents in order to ask them out on a date!!!  Her dad answered the phone.  He was a football coach for 20 years in Durango.  He said hello.  I answered, “Hi! This is Ryan. Is Kelly there?”  I hear him yell to Kelly, “Kelly, Ryan’s on the phone.”  Kelly yells back, “Ryan who??”  Evidently I didn’t make as great an impression as I thought.  I asked, “Does the offer still stand to come down and visit you?”  She said, “Yes, absolutely.”  This is also before you could plug an address in your phone and it would tell you how to get there.  I got a map and looked up Durango to figure out how to get there.  She said, “When you get into town, it’s basically one street in town, you’re going to make a left at Mustang and then you’re going to weave up and you’ll eventually get to where I live.”  She gave me the directions.  I asked my parents if I could borrow one of the cars.  They said they were using both of the them that weekend.  So I went out and bought a car!  Got in my car and drove…..I said—-I’d seen Goodwill Hunting a few times—“I gotta go see about a girl!”  I get in my car and drive to Durango.  I drive all the way through main street and I don’t see Mustang.  That’s the street I’m looking for….Mustang.  I come back through and still don’t see it.  I do that a number of times.  Kelly was at work at this point in time and there was no way to call her at work.  I go back through again and think I didn’t just buy a car to come down to see about a girl for it to end up like this.  As I’m driving back through, I see a gas station named “The Mustang.”   I realized that although Kelly is brilliant and beautiful, she is geographically and directionally challenged!!  I realized that if I have the wrong goal, I’ll never end up in the right destination!

BREATH OF HEAVEN:Pragmatic Wind 2 Tim. 3:16-17 & Luke 4:1-13

BREATH OF HEAVEN:Pragmatic Wind         2 Tim.
3:16-17 & Luke 4:1-13
We're in a series, started last week and over the next two weeks, and we're
exploring both the power and prominence of the Scriptures.  For millennia,
this book....really, it's a collection of writings....I think you should view
it more as a library than a book.....it's 66 different books, written by 40
different authors over the course of 1500 years....three different continents
with one central message...whose name is Jesus.  We want to look at why
the Bible is so significant.  Why has it transformed cultures, transformed
lives, transformed cities for the last few thousand years?  What is it
about this collection of writings that's so significant?  Last week we
said we don't want to impose ON it, we want to receive from it.  We want
the Bible to tell us why it's such a big deal.   

OH HOLY NIGHT: CHAINS SHALL HE BREAK Isaiah 61 & Luke 4:16-21

OH HOLY NIGHT: CHAINS SHALL HE BREAK  Isaiah 61 & Luke 4:16-21
Anybody have one of these (paper chain) things going on in their house right
now?  I used to think this was a nice, cute art project that we allowed
kids to do during Christmas time.  This is a Christmas chain.
 Everyday you wake up and you rip one link of the chain off and you get
closer and closer to Christmas and there's one for every day, until you get up
to Christmas morning.  I used to think it was a nice, cute art project,
but really what this is is a representation of sanity for parents!  Here's
the question you're hearing if you are a parent right now:  How many days
until Christmas???  Instead of having to do quick math in your head, you
get to say go check the chain.  Count the links on the chain.  We've
got four days until Christmas.  This isn't a cute art project.  This
is sanity for every parent.  

EXILES: EXALTED EXILES 1 Peter 5:5-14

EXILES: EXALTED EXILES  1 Peter 5:5-14
When I was in college, I worked with an organization called Young Life.
 I mentored a number of students and the only time that I had free and the
time they were willing to meet was real early in the morning.  One
morning, I got out of bed, my feet hit the ground at about 5:45 am.  The
meeting started at 6:00 am.  This was not uncommon.  It was about a
13-minute drive to where we were meeting.  I had two minutes to get
dressed...more than enough time.  My feet hit the ground, I pulled on a
pair of pants, a shirt, a sweatshirt, popped in my car and drove to the cafe we
were meeting at.  I walked in and we quickly got a seat because nobody
else was that crazy to be there at that time.  I walked to our little
booth and sat down and opened the menu.  A waitress came by and instead of
asking us what our order would be, she came carrying a sock!  She didn't
say anything.  She just walked up to our table, stood there and held up
the sock.  I was thinking to myself that I hadn't looked at the whole
menu, but I didn't know where THAT fell on the menu.  What's the deal?
 She just stood there holding the sock.  She said, "When you
walked in this morning, this sock fell out of your pant leg."  Don't
judge me!  You've been there before.  I took off my pants the night
before, all in one fell swoop because I don't want to waste time before I fell
in bed.....took it all off, socks included, and the sock got pinned in the leg.
 As I walked into the cafe, the sock slowly worked its way out, fell down,
creating a nice thing to wipe your feet on as you walk into said cafe.
 The waitress felt it necessary to come in and deliver back my sock, thank
you very much, waitress.  I looked at her going I had no idea I was
carrying that.  I had no idea that was attached to me.  I think the
Apostle Peter, as he writes to this group of five churches---home churches,
probably, in the first century---here's what he wants to do today.  He
wants to walk up to them and go you're carrying this, but you don't know you
are.  You're carrying this.  This is something that's attached to
you, but you have absolutely no clue.  Here's the thing:  They're not
alone.  The thing that Peter's going to talk to the first-century church
about today is what he wants to talk to us about also.  I think there's
some things that you're carrying; there's some things that I'm carrying and
unless we have God-given eyes to see, I think we could easily overlook the fact
that most of us in this room are carrying this.  I think Jesus' posture
towards us this morning is.....I think He wants to come up and say hey, I'm not
sure if you're aware that THIS is a part of your life.

EXILES: LIFEBOATS, LISTS & LEADERSHIP 1 Peter 5:1-5

EXILES: LIFEBOATS, LISTS & LEADERSHIP 1 Peter 5:1-5