Compass Church Sermon, June 2019

And as the seasons of the year become new, it means we are moving on with new seasons of our life as well. The Bible tells about the seasons of life as well. It tells us that there are seasons for all the activities of life. 

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, It reads as follows: 

To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: 

2 A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted; 3 A time to kill, And a time to heal; A time to break down, And a time to build up; 4 A time to weep, And a time to laugh; A time to mourn, And a time to dance; 5 A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing; 6 A time to gain, And a time to lose; A time to keep, And a time to throw away; 7 A time to tear, And a time to sew; A time to keep silence, And a time to speak; 8 A time to love, And a time to hate; A time of war, And a time of peace. 

Everything has a season. 

We see the same things in the lives we live right now. We enter a new season of life when we Get a new job, Get married, Have kids, Kids become teens, Kids leave home, We move, We retire. 

All of those things are natural points of life that enter a new season. But there are times when we make a conscious choice to change direction in our life that we also enter new a new season. Maybe we recognize that our life has not been moving in a positive direction or really has not been working out so well, so we seek to change directions, turn over a new leaf, if you will. 

Many times, these moments of thinking through our life occur at natural points during the different seasons of our life: Around the beginning of the year, At major birthdays, As well as during the natural changes of seasons that we spoke of earlier. 

So even at those times while things are changing already, we may sense a need for other changes that need to take place. Sometimes we are not in control of the changes around us. Such as a church building recognized for years being taken away. All of this is to recognize that different life events lead to different seasons in our life.  

 

So change happens in individuals, in families, in corporations and in churches as well. 

Compass Church entering new season! Compass Church of Simi Valley is preparing to enter a new season of ministry as we begin phase two of our Relocation to Moorpark. 

As changes have occurred, it has not always been easy, and as we continue to move forward it will not always be easy, but we will begin to see some of the fruit of this new season of ministry. 

We have had opportunities to minister to new people here at this very hotel and as we expand into our new facility, we are going to face even more opportunities to minister to new people. And while a new season of life, for a church or for individuals, can bring freshness and excitement, it can also be a little scary. 

Think about the changes mentioned earlier…Starting a new job, Getting married, Having kids, Retiring from a career that spanned decades into a new world of opportunity, Making a decision to follow Christ. Picking up years of memories in your church building and storing them for a new season. 

Today, I want to give us some things that we can expect during a new season of life so that it will be less scary and that we will be better able to seize opportunities that present themselves and be better able to experience the excitement that a new season brings. 

Change – people have a love/hate relationship with change. They want things to change because if they didn’t, things would be boring. They want things to stay the same, because change brings uncertainty. It is that uncertainty that we are truly afraid of. The things we don’t know. 

We are excited to get married, but what will married life really be like? I am excited to have children, but can I really raise them? I am excited about starting a new job, but will I be able to do it? I am excited about retirement, but am I truly prepared? I am excited that Compass is growing and moving to a new community, but what will the growth require of me? 

We like to know in advance, what any change is going to require of us. The problem with that, from a Christian perspective, it requires no faith. 

And the Bible tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:7 to “live by faith, not by sight.” 

We like to live by sight, don’t we? We want to know that everything will turn out just like we want it. The fact of the matter is that we don’t really trust God to take care of things for our best and His best for us. 

But for us to grow in our relationship with God, for us to grow in our faith, we need to learn to walk by faith and not by sight. That requires that we move forward in the midst of change and uncertainty. And as our faith grows, we bring pleasure and glory to the Lord. 

Hebrews 11:6 says “without faith it is impossible to please God.” 

So, I encourage you to have faith in the Living God, have faith in His servants…Pastor Mike, your Elders, your leadership.  

For Compass Church to grow, there are going to have to be changes. 

• Changes in ministries 
• Changes in buildings 
• Changes in the way we do things. 

But trusting the Lord through change will help us grow closer to the Lord as He leads us through them. For you to grow, you need to experience change. Maybe it is through some of the natural points of change that God will help you grow in your trust of Him. 

Maybe the change you need to experience is the change from living life your way, to living life God’s way. That can be a scary change, but it is a change that will provide eternal benefits beyond any you can measure. As changes come naturally, accept them as part of life and let the Lord grow you through them. As you recognize that a change needs to take place, commit to trusting the Lord to lead you through it to draw you closer to Him. 

The key to becoming a champion through this time of change is submitting yourself to Christ. When we submit ourselves to the Lord in our daily living, trusting him with the changes that go on, humbly seeking him in the challenges we face, He gives us new opportunities to be used in greater ways. And the reality is that God wants to use everyone in this room and He can use everyone in this room. But you need to humble yourself and Submit yourself to Him. 

Maybe you are unsure what the Lord is wanting you to do during this phase of uncertainty here at Compass. Actually, let me ask the question...Is this season really that uncertain? We know where we have been, we know where we are now, and we know where we are going! The only thing uncertain to the path in which to get there, beloved! 

I leave this thought of our changing surroundings for you…Our seasons change, but we have the one who is constant, immutable, and sovereign. Hear this as I read again in Ecclesiates 3 continuing in verse 9… 

What profit has the worker from that in which he labors? I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God. 

God has given the gift of time to every person, at every place, for such a time as this. God has given us yesterday, today and maybe tomorrow. Therefore, make today count. God has appointed, so you have a choice to worry or not to worry. God has a task or plan for every life. God has given us the ability to look beyond our life of today. God expects us to do good with our work with what He has given us. God gives to all people the ability to appreciate the good of their work. God wants us to find enjoyment in our life.  

Time changes us, but God never changes, nor does He change His purpose with us. “Everything God does will remain forever” (v. 14). 

In short, success in attaining our vision lies not with the question we most naturally ask but with the question we almost never ask. We must shift our interest from asking “What’s next?” to asking “Who’s next?” 

The unmistakable truth is that our vision is only as good as the people in whom that vision has taken root. And while development, process, and making people are never the path of quickest reward, they are the path of greatest long-term effectiveness. 

If, on the other hand, we choose the short path of what most people most value, we will inevitably miss the better path of the better future that got us into our calling to begin with. So today I’m inviting you to choose the harder and longer path of vision. If we recover our focus on who’s next over what’s next, I think we will find ourselves back on the long road to somewhere instead of the short road to nowhere.