Well, good morning. I don't know about you across
screens, so Paulding, good morning to you, and
Baghdad, good morning to you, and anywhere you
find yourselves, like Mike and Debbie, who are
in Colorado Springs, I don't know what you experience
through a screen, but may we have more of the
Holy Spirit moving in our lives. I don't know
what you sense God is up to, but I do know this.
He sees you. He knows you and he wants to speak
to you today. There is a holy confidence that
if you will open yourself up and you will let
the Holy Spirit have his way with you today,
meaning let him speak, let him guide, let him
convict you, you will leave here differently.
And let's be honest, that's why you showed up.
I don't think anybody shows up to church just
because they're like, this will be boring and
then we'll get out of here. Right. I hope that
I hope that what God's doing is he's stirring
in you. And I hope that's happening with you
here across screens like the Holy Spirit is just
as present in Colorado Springs as he is right
here. I can't I can't get the image out of my
head, you guys, of the earth with no strings
attached. And that God knows every single person
on there, so not only is there no strings holding
it up, he knows every single person on there,
he knows every single person in this room, he
knows every single thing that's on your heart,
and he knows exactly what you need. That's the
holy confidence of this moment. If not, let's
just go home. Formula One started early because
of the storm. I can go watch Formula One. I'm
sure you can find something that you think is
better than Formula One. I doubt it, but sure,
try. We're heading into a new collection, and
it's called Where Is Your Limit? Maybe personalize
that. Where is my limit? Now, sometimes we create
collections, and we're like, oh, we want you
to remember the title. I don't care if you remember
this title or not. I care that you remember the
question, because I think the question is important.
But where is my limit? Where is your limit? But
what I really hope and what I really feel is
there is a cultural moment here that the church
needs to have a conversation about, that we need
to be engaged in, that we remember the concepts
and the conversation, and that's what we carry
forward because we are in a cultural moment in
2026. And what I mean, kind of to highlight this,
is this idea of what is my limit and how this
all works. I got to play around with one of these
this week, so I was like, I'm going to play with
it some more. But just to show you that it is
on and is working, if I can figure out how to
make it work, right? You can wave because you're
on. It is not a kiss cam, people. It is not a
kiss cam. We don't need no Coldplay moments up
in here. That's a bad joke. You shouldn't laugh
at that joke. But just to prove that it is on.
But isn't it interesting that if we go over here,
and I was to ask you what you see, what is that?
Bass guitar. You didn't even say guitar. Well
done. You came right out the gate with bass guitar.
But here's what's interesting, right? If we do
this. Maybe. What is it? It didn't change what
it is. The answer is still a bass guitar. Right?
But you're not able to make out the detail that
you once could, right? Same as if I go over here,
which I'm going to make you all sick right now.
Okay, I need you to do me a favor. This is a
pedal board, just so we're clear. Can you tell
me the make and model of the numbers on each
pedal? Anybody? Why not? Because it's out of
focus. If you're taking notes, my view becomes
distorted. It's okay. It's blurry for you guys.
You're not on camera the whole time. It's blurry.
They can't even make out who you are. You're
fine. If you're taking notes, my view becomes
distorted when the focus is wrong. My view becomes
distorted when the focus is wrong. There's a
story. In Luke chapter 22, in the life of Jesus,
and maybe just kind of as a let you know what
I'm doing instead of just doing it. And you're
going, what was that all about? I don't want
you to be confused. And so you ever watch one
of those movies or TV shows and they kind of
show you what happened here and you don't really
have all the details. So you're like, I don't
know what this is. Like, why did they do that?
Or who are they? And then the rest of the time
they backfill with the story. So you're like,
oh, that makes sense now. It's kind of the same
thing here. We're going to jump ahead in the
story and we're going to ask the question, how
did they get there? And in Luke 22, 47, it says
this. While he, Jesus, was still speaking, a
crowd came up and the man who was called Judas,
one of the 12 was leading them. He approached
Jesus to kiss him. OK, so we're given this moment
in time where. To catch everybody up, you had,
Jesus had disciples, then he had 12 disciples
that he called to follow him. Those 12 disciples,
it says that Judas is one of those 12, one of
the ones that was closer to Jesus. It's been
a lot of time with Jesus walking with him. And
the next thing it says in verse 48, but Jesus
asked him, Judas, are you betraying the son of
man with a kiss? He's calling Judas out. He's
going, Judas, you're here to betray me. And I
don't know how you feel, but this guy walked
with Jesus. This guy saw the good, the bad, the
indifferent, the moments of Jesus that were mundane,
the moments that were super important. He heard
Jesus talk about what's really vital, what Jesus
was here to do. And yet one of the 12, he didn't
get it. You could say his view is distorted of
who Jesus is. Because his focus is in the wrong
place. And so you have this moment. It's okay,
I feel the same, honestly. Verse 49 says, when
Jesus' followers saw what was going to happen,
so they see this crowd coming, they see the betrayal,
they said, Lord, should we strike with our swords?
And one of them struck the servant of the high
priest, cutting off his right ear. So we're told
in the story now, another one of the 12 who've
been with Jesus, he whips out a sword like, and
the ear's on the ground. Because you build the
kingdom of God one ear at a time, okay? Let me
ask you, when did Jesus say the kingdom was going
to be taken by swords? Anybody remember that
if you've been around Jesus for a while? No.
There's nowhere where Jesus says that his kingdom
is going to be put in place through violence.
And yet, one of his followers, one is betrayed,
another one of the 12, he's cutting off ears.
And you start to get this picture of like, how?
How did we get to this point, which Jesus says
in 51, but Jesus answered after cutting off the
right ear, no more of this. And he touched the
man's ear and it healed him. What was that like?
You just watch the guy's ear get cut off in front
of you. And it doesn't say that Jesus picks up
the ear, by the way. It says that he touches.
His ear and heals him, which tells me that Jesus
doesn't need to use all the old stuff to make
things new. He doesn't need it. And so you have
this moment where you go, what is happening?
How did we get here? If you jump back, we're
going to go to Matthew because Matthew kind of
lays out the story a little in a little more
detail for us. But the story right before what
we just read. There's a moment that happens in
Matthew 26, 36. Then Jesus went with his disciples
to a place called Gethsemane. So he goes to a
garden with his disciples. He said to them, sit
here while I go over there and pray. He took
Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with
him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.
Okay, a couple of things just to make sure we're
in the story together. So Jesus comes to the
garden. He takes all the disciples and he goes,
hey, you guys stay here while I go over there
and I pray. You just sit here while I go over
and pray. And then he takes three of them with
him and he takes them further. Now they're separated
from the group and they're along with him. And
it says specifically that he becomes sorrowful.
This is really important that we keep these parts
straight. Jesus is becoming sorrowful and troubled.
Jesus is the one who is experiencing the sorrow
and experiencing a troubled soul. Verse 38, he
said to them, my soul, my soul is overwhelmed
with sorrow. So now he's speaking to the three.
My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point
of death. Stay here and keep watch with me. Hey,
for anybody in the room that are like feelings
shouldn't be shared, Jesus didn't get the memo.
I had somebody text me in between. He goes, man,
what stands out to me is that Jesus shared his
feelings with them. So he expresses, he expresses
my soul. My soul is overwhelmed to the point
of death. And so what does he tell them to do?
Stay here and keep watch. That word keep watch
is to be actively intentional in alertness. You
are actively intentional, right? Like you are
working at being alert. There's undertones here.
So it's larger than just stay awake, guys. This
is like, no, I need you. I need you to be active
and intentional. You have a role to play in my
sorrow being over and my soul being overwhelmed
to the point of death. There's a moment here
where he says, he says, not only is it or the
wording there, not only is it that you are. that
you are active and alert and intentional, but
you are spiritually attentive to what is happening.
He's telling them, be spiritually alert. Be spiritually
alert. Know what's happening in these moments
in the kingdom, in the bigger picture of God.
Be spiritually alert. Hey guys, my soul is overwhelmed,
but what I need from you is that you are spiritually
alert with me. Verse 39, going a little farther,
he fell on his face. Fell with his face to the
ground and prayed. So now Jesus, who's overwhelmed
to death, begins to pray. My father, if it is
possible, may this cup be taken from me, yet
not as I will, but as you will. What is Jesus
doing? He's overwhelmed. He's on his face. But
notice what he does. He prays. And what happens?
God aligns. God the Father aligns his will. It's
in prayer that Jesus is aligned. It's in prayer
that Jesus gets focus on what God the Father
in the big picture is doing. And he, in that
moment, aligns himself now to the Father. It's
through prayer that he does that. That when his
soul was overwhelmed, when he didn't know what
to do, when he is to the point of death, it says
that he falls down and he prays. And in that
moment, his... Spirit is aligned with what God
wants. He's aware of what God's calling him to.
He's aware of what God's doing in the moment.
Verse 40, then he returned to his disciples.
Remember the ones who were active and spiritually
attentive? And found them sleeping. I don't know
how you feel. I would have kicked them. I'm just
being honest. Like, if I'm overwhelmed to the
point of death and you go to sleep, That's not
a good time. Couldn't you men, Jesus says, couldn't
you men keep watch with me for one hour? He asked
Peter. We were sitting in a teaching prep, teaching
team this week, and somebody said, it's interesting,
he talks to Peter. It's kind of fascinating that
he talks to Peter, because he's referencing a
group, but he singles out Peter. And I just got
some processing. Why would that be? Well, you
go to the story before it, and what do you find?
They're sitting at the communion table, right?
I don't know what your background is, the Eucharist,
the Lord's Supper, whatever that is, right? They're
sitting in the upper room at the last meal together
where Jesus gives the communion command, so to
speak. And in that moment, what does Peter do?
Peter's like, I got you. This is not going to
happen. In fact, I'll go to prison for you. In
fact, I'll die for you, Jesus. To which then
Jesus is like, hey, yeah, there's going to be
this whole thing about you denying me. But Peter's
what? Peter is the guy that's standing up and
going, no, we're with you. We'll go to death
with you. Isn't it interesting that we love the
big things for God? No, if it means we're going
to do this for the kingdom, we'll go do that
for the kingdom. And Jesus goes, you know what?
I just need you to be aware of your own soul
and pay attention to the spiritual temperature
around you and what I'm doing. And we're like.
Isn't it interesting that when God asks us to
do the little thing, we often can't do the little
thing, but we're so committed to the big thing.
Notice what he says, watch and pray. Watch and
pray so that you will not fall into temptation.
The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
I don't doubt it, you guys. My whole world for
you, God. And we mean it, right? Like our spirit
is like, yes, there's something right about this,
right? And yet we fall at the slightest thing.
Our spirit is so willing, like I'll go and die
for you. Just don't ask me to stay awake right
now. You can feel the humanity in the whole thing
where we go, no, I get this. This resonates.
Notice what he told them. He said, verse 41,
watch and pray so that you will not fall into
temptation. It's interesting that word temptation.
So, so first of all, Jesus gives them an invitation
to pray. So in the midst of like. falling asleep
and not being able to do, and the flesh is willing,
or the spirit is willing, flesh is weak. He goes,
hey, pray. Pray. Slow down and align yourself
with God the Father. And he goes, specifically
align yourself that you won't fall into temptation.
Now, the word temptation is the idea of trials.
Don't fall for the trials that are coming, is
what Jesus is saying. Now, some scholars... that
are way smarter than me, that wrote books and
commentaries and all that kind of stuff. They
claim that there's different camps out there,
but one of them is, no, Jesus was telling them
they were going to face similar things, so be
ready that you don't fall into those things.
I don't buy that. I buy that Jesus is in the
moment with them and Jesus is teaching them something
that will be vital. And so I believe that he's
telling them, hey, don't fall. Pray, get spiritually
aligned with God so that when you step from this
moment, the trials you're about to face, you
don't fall into the temptation that's there.
I mean, think about it for a second. Think what
happens from this moment. They leave this moment
and we're cutting off ears. We leave this moment
and one of the guys who's been integral with
Jesus at this moment denies Jesus. They begin
to hide. They scatter and hide. They're confused.
They don't understand what's happening. So they
hide some more after he's raised from the dead,
right? There's all these things that you go,
he was preparing them by trying to align them
to what God was doing and they missed it in the
moment. Verse 42, he went away a second time
and prayed. My father. If it is not possible
for this cup to be taken, unless I drink it,
may your will be done. He's aligning himself
through prayer again. When he came back again,
he found them sleeping because their eyes were
heavy. So he left them, verse 44. So he left
them and went away once more. He gets back and
they're sleeping again. He's like, I'm done.
I'm done with you guys. I'm just going to go
do my thing. So he left them and went away once
more and prayed the third time saying, The same
thing. So he aligns himself the third time. Then
he returned to the disciples and said to them,
are you still sleeping and resting? You guys
have had like hours. You're still sleeping? Look,
the hour has come and the son of man is delivered
into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us go. Here
comes my betrayer, which gets us to the point
we started out at. In Luke chapter 22, same story
is captured. A few more details are added. Luke
22 verse 39, Jesus went out as usual to the Mount
of Olives, to the garden of Gethsemane, and his
disciples followed him. On reaching the place,
he said to them, pray, pray that you will not
fall into temptation. Sounds familiar, right?
Like we just went through this, you just heard
this, right? Like pray that you don't give in
to the trials ahead. He withdrew about a stone's
throw beyond them and knelt down and prayed,
Father. If you are willing, take this cup from
me, yet not my will, yours be done. So he's aligning
himself in prayer. We've already covered this.
It's all similar. Look at this, verse 43. An
angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened
him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly,
and his sweat was like drops of blood falling
to the ground. An angel came and strengthened
him. I was like, wait, excuse me? Because there's
a group of people that are sleeping. But the
same opportunity is given to them. Jesus goes
and he prays and he aligns himself with what
God is doing. And it says that as he does that,
the outcome of that is that an angel shows up
and ministers to him and strengthens him and
gets him ready for what's ahead, which tells
me that the same thing was available to the disciples
and they completely missed it. Right, the same
opportunity. I mean, think about it. My mind's
been like racing with this lately because I'm
like, oh my gosh, there's so many times I'm in
a moment that I just like, I'm gonna do it. We'll
just keep pressing through. And I'm like, how
many times have I maybe missed an angel showing
up and ministering to me because I didn't slow
down and align myself with what God was actually
doing? What if you have angels available to you
today? What if what you're going through, God's
already ready and willing to provide what you
need to get through it? But you're too busy doing
what you need. Listen to what it says. Verse
45, when he rose from prayer and went back to
the disciples, he found them asleep. We're like,
yeah, we already read this. We know they were
sleeping. Listen to these next words, exhausted
from sorrow. He adds that detail. exhausted from
sorrow. I read this, you guys, like a couple
of months ago, and I'm like, I have never seen
that before. First, I have never seen that Jesus,
in the midst of his own sorrow, he actually cares
for them like a father with his kids. He goes,
pray that you, he's helping them in the moment
that he is overwhelmed to death. And I'm like,
that's amazing, first and foremost, because I
wouldn't have done that. But the only way you
do that is if you're aligned to God. And so in
that moment, what I didn't see is they were exhausted
from sorrow. Exhausted from sorrow. That wording
in the original means that they were carrying
a burden so great, it overwhelmed them to the
point they could not function. They were carrying
something so great, the grief that they were
carrying. Now, hang on. What did we read in the
last story? Whose was the grief and the sorrow?
Jesus. And what have they done? They've taken
the sorrow and grief from Jesus, and they're
now choosing to what? Carry it. It was never
theirs to carry in the first place. And because
they're carrying something that wasn't theirs
to carry, they're exhausted and missing what
God's doing in there. In their life. They're
missing the moment of angels ministering. They're
missing the moment of aligning. They're missing
the moment of purpose and mission. Why? Because
they're exhausted. Isn't it interesting? Exhaustion.
Right? It's just cultural. You ask somebody how
they're doing. I'm exhausted. What do they actually
mean? I'm beyond my limits. It's too much. I
got nothing left. Hey, I'll go first, you guys.
There are times when I do not want to walk upstairs
at the end of the day and tuck my babies into
bed. I'm just done. I gave it all away. I got
nothing left to do. I don't want to walk upstairs.
I don't want to sit with you because I'm exhausted.
Wait, what am I called to? Those babies upstairs.
Isn't it interesting? Exhaustion. Exhaustion
is a way of saying I'm spread too thin. What
do we do with spread too thin? I got too much,
which is another way of saying what? I'm beyond
my limit. These guys are beyond their limit because
they're carrying something they were never asked
to carry. I wonder how many of us, God hasn't
actually called us to what we're doing. God actually
hasn't asked us to carry what we're carrying,
but we just. did it anyways. And now we're like,
I don't know. It's interesting. Culturally, culturally,
even the world around us, right? Just in case
you were wondering what brand the keyboard was.
Because I know you've been wondering for a long
time. You too can purchase, just kidding. But
isn't it interesting when things are in focus,
we have clarity. We know exactly what to do.
Jesus knew exactly what to do. Through prayer,
he'd what? He'd aligned himself and he saw as
God saw. He wasn't distorted in his view at all.
He had clarity, which by the way, you guys, this
is Matt. Say hi to Matt. He hates every minute
of this. But he's phenomenal at keys and we're
very grateful for that. But isn't it interesting
that I would say the culture around us is geared
towards exhaustion. Think about it for a second.
You have a device. And that device means that
you're always on, always accessible, that there
are always expectations, even when you are in
your house and the doors are closed and it's
just you and maybe by yourself, maybe with your
roommates, maybe with your family, but you're
still accessible and you're still on. We weren't
created to live that way. I don't know how you
feel. There's some mornings I get up and I got
such purpose. I know what I'm doing. And then
I remember I didn't text that person back. And
before I'm done, it's 30 minutes later. And what
I intended to win my day with, I didn't win it
with. Right? The very devices that we hold are
geared towards mental exhaustion. It's interesting
that, you know, you... You can have clarity in
a moment, but then the world around you work
and all of a sudden your view is distorted. Think
about it for a second. You meet people, you guys,
and people ask you, hey, how are you doing? Oh,
I'm just busy. I've just been going, going, going,
going. And we say it like it's an identity. Because
somewhere along the way, the clarity that we
once had, we start to believe. We start to believe
that my busyness is my identity. And so we start
to run faster because somehow my busyness has
made me important. Somehow, if you're not busy,
man, you are a sluggard. That's a Bible word
in case you're wondering. You can look it up.
It's in Proverbs. But that's the culture. The
culture tells you that you're important if you're
busy. Really? Because I don't read that in the
Bible. We have a cultural system around us. And
the cultural system around us tells us all kinds
of information. You ever notice? I don't know
how you feel, but I am so tired of actors that
I don't know that are old, that died, and you
feel you need to give me a notification that
they died. Or maybe you know my algorithm, so
you just keep popping notifications that you
think I'll click on. And it's just information.
Maybe it's a news feed for you. Maybe it's the
war. You just keep getting more and more and
more information. If that's not enough, now we
got devices, AI, that we can get any answer we
want anytime on anything. And it's just more
information. And information is overloading.
And what? It wears you down. The culture around
you is geared towards you being exhausted. You
don't think this is true? I was driving my middle
school to school. The other day, and I've got
a Red Bull coin in my car. It's a Max Verstappen
coin somebody gave me. And so it just sits in
my car. And if you flip it over, just in case
you're curious, he's a four -time world champion
because you need to know that information. And
she goes, hey, Dad, can I take your Red Bull
coin to school? I'm like, sure. She comes back
the next day. She puts it in there. I go, what
did you do with it? She's like, I just showed
it to some of my friends. We had conversations.
I was like, what did you guys talk about? She
goes, we're talking about energy drinks. They
love Red Bull. She goes, you know what, Dad?
Middle schoolers are crazy. All they care about
is energy drinks. She goes, and if it's not energy
drinks, then it's coffee. And if it's not coffee,
it's candy. Middle school, you guys. Why? Because
there's a culture around us that says you need
that to cope. We had a conversation in our teaching
prep. And Joanne, who was up here leading us
earlier, Joanne had some time off. And during
that time off, she asked herself a question.
If I need a third cup of coffee today, what am
I doing that's too much that I need a third cup
of coffee? That was her barometer. And some of
you are like, a third cup? Man, I'm on my tenth.
But don't be surprised that the world around
you is geared to distorting your view. We're
told in Scripture that the enemy controls the
world. The enemy of God controls the world. If
you want a name, Satan controls the world. Now,
what does that mean? That means that he has set
up a system of this world, the culture of this
world, to work against the things that God is
trying to do. So why are we surprised that we
have a culture of exhaustion? Why are we surprised
that we're always going when Jesus is remedy?
Listen to this in verse 46. Why are you sleeping?
He asked them. Get up and pray so that you will
not fall into temptation. You will not fall for
the trials. What does he tell them? Get up and
what? Pray. Get up and pray. What is the answer
to a culture that is trying to get you to live
outside of your limits, specifically with exhaustion?
Get up and pray. Why? What happens in prayer?
The Holy Spirit will align to you the places
that he never called you to be. The Holy Spirit
will align for you the places that he never asked
you to push yourself into. I mean, you think
about it. Anybody with a business, what's your
goal of your business? To do what? Scale that
sucker. Did God ask you to scale it? Or did God
just want to meet your provisions for it so it
provides plenty of time for other stuff? Isn't
it interesting? Like, when is enough enough?
I might step on some toes, maybe. When are your
kids' activities enough? When are your activities
enough? I love, I've come to love communion.
I can't say that I always loved communion because
it felt ritual to me. But in the last, I don't
know how long, decade, maybe longer, God's given
me such a love for communion. And here's why.
I mean, you can take this out. It's not the best.
It's a dried up little piece of cracker, dried
up little piece of bread. If I had my way, we'd
have sourdough for everybody. But it's so significant
to my journey with Jesus. Because what this little
piece of wafer does, cracker does, is it centers
me back on the person of Jesus. It centers me
back on hope. The disciples end up with despair
because they're not aligned with what God is
actually doing in the kingdom. They're not aligned
with purpose. They're not aligned with mission.
I wonder, your distorted view, Your exhaustion,
what is it costing you? Well, how I figured that
out is I come to the table where Jesus said,
my body's given. And I meet him in this space
where there is mystery because he meets me here
and he meets you here. And the Holy Spirit wants
to talk to you. So we're gonna take some time
just for you to have a conversation with the
Holy Spirit. Where, where am I not aligned with
you? Where am I missing what you're doing? And
so the next moments are yours and then we'll
take it all together. Thank you. on the night
that Jesus was betrayed, he made a statement.
He said, this is my body given for you. What
that meant was they would not have to give theirs
to save themselves. That he showed up to save
them, to align them to a new mission, a new kingdom,
to a new king. But he also did it willfully.
Why? Because he was aligned with what God had
called him to. And so in this moment, it's a
moment of remembrance, but it's also a moment
of pulling us forward. God, what are you aligning
me to? What are you calling me to? What are you
calling my family to? Because God, I want to
give this life where you've asked me to give
it. And so he gave them bread. And he said, take,
eat, do this in remembrance of me. He took a
cup of wine and he connected it to his blood
that was going to be shed. But he used a word.
He said, it's new. It's new. What I'm doing is
a new covenant. It's a new contract between humanity
and God. And in the new covenant, the new contract,
because of his blood, You are completely forgiven.
Anyway, happy for forgiveness? Like, come on,
I'm there. Like on my worst day, I get his best.
Are you kidding me? But he connected for us that
this new covenant would change everything, where
grace would be abundant. Where even in the midst
of my exhaustion and missing it, there would
be grace to bring me back. And so he handed them
a cup. He goes, don't forget, it's in my blood.
Take drink, do this in remembrance of me. Would
you pray with me, God? Thank you, thank you,
thank you for who you are. Thank you that you're
so good to us. Thank you that you meet us and
you speak to us. God, in these next moments,
as we let our voices rise to you, would you?
Be the one we look to. God, we choose to look
to you. God, would you reveal to us before we
leave this place, would you continue to speak?
Because God, where else are we going to go but
you? Would you align us before we leave this
place with what you are doing in our lives, in
our calling, in our purpose, in our meaning?
Would we find our value in you? And so God, as
we declare, we look to you. Would you ignite
our souls today? Thank you for loving us. And
everybody said, amen.