Judges 5:1

Let's get to the Word of God. If you have your Bibles, turn to Judges chapter 5. We have been going through a series on the Book of Judges. This book not only illustrates a cycle of sin, repentance, and deliverance on a national scale for the children of Israel, but it also reflects something that happens on an individual scale in our own lives.

We often notice that we follow God and are doing well in obedience, but then times get easy, or we become lazy. We stop practicing the things we know to be true in the Scriptures. For instance, we may stop coming to church. During COVID, it became easy to stay home. I remember staying home on Sundays and thinking, "Man, I see why people love this so much." It was amazing. I had a whole day to work in the yard and finish cleaning my cars.

However, the reality is that we need to be in community. The Scriptures affirm that we absolutely have to be in church; you cannot be discipled from home. You need to be with the body of Christ at least once a week. That is what we are looking for.

In the Book of Judges, we see this cycle on a national scale with Israel, and we also see it individually. A saying kept ringing in my mind as I studied Judges chapter 5, where we look at a very unique judge named Deborah, whom Myles talked about a little bit last week. This saying comes from a book by Michael Hoff titled "Those Who Remain." It states, "Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times."

The Book of Judges reflects this cycle, but let's substitute "strong" and "weak" for "obedient" and "disobedient" as Christians, as believers and followers of God. This is exactly what we see: hard times create obedient men because they have to call out to God. Then, obedient men and women create good times. When we follow the law of God, our society flourishes; it raises the whole ship. However, what happens next is that these good times lead to peace—times of peace that last for 20 years, 40 years, or even 80 years, which we will see throughout the different periods of judges.

During those times of peace, there is ample opportunity for the children of Israel, and for us, to walk away from God. We might think, "Well, times are easy; I don't really need to focus all my attention and energy on God and on how I am becoming more like Christ." Inevitably, we start to slip and fall away. This is exactly what happens throughout the book of Judges, over and over again.

In the fifth chapter of Judges, the story of Deborah continues. Last week, we saw the battle and how it played out. Deborah was a unique motherly figure among the judges in Israel, rising up at a time when she was absolutely needed. She motivated these weak-willed men to get up and go to war. That's really what it is.

You'll notice that the title of my message was "Weak Men and a Mother's Motivation." There is a very real reason for that. Among Bible scholars, there are two opinions as to why Deborah is included in the book of Judges. One reason is that Deborah serves as a condemnation and judgment of the weak-willed men of that day, as there were no men suitable to be a judge. The second opinion is that Deborah represents God's comforting presence among His people, who are oppressed and anxious. I tend to believe that both of these interpretations are true. It is both and, right? Deborah the prophet and judge is both a judgment on the weak-willed men of Israel and a sign of God's comforting presence in the midst of His oppressed people. He is there, comforting and motivating His anxious people.

I think we need both of those things today. We need that comforting presence, which is why we look at weak-willed men and the motherly motivation. We have some moms in here, right? From my own experience, I can tell you that there have been many times when, as I got older, life did not become less anxious. There were always more things on my plate. I can remember specific instances in college when I felt devastated and thought, "I can't get these things done." It would be my mom who would say, "No, you can do it." Her encouragement would almost be like a light bulb moment for me—my mom believes in me, so of course I can do it. That motivation, that encouraging motivation, is so important.

I can do it, but I kind of need that kick in the butt a little bit. It was like that motherly kick in the butt, where it's like, "Hey, you can go do this." That's exactly what Deborah had to do for the people of Israel. Moms, your role in society and in your families is so important in that regard. It's so important because, in chapter five, we're going to see that Deborah arose as a mother of Israel, basically. There was a nation that was in need of that motherly, tender motivation, that encouragement that says, "You can do this."

So, this message today is going to be a very highly applicable message for you all. Before we go out and eat our tacos and enjoy all that, I'm going to leave you with a couple of challenges—some homework, some things that I want you to do. So, that's just looking forward for us.

Let's look at Deborah for a minute. Deborah is the only female judge in the Book of Judges. She holds a very unique stance, and we talked about this a little bit if you were here with us last week. She is the only female judge, which isn't really weird to us in 2024, but at the time of the Judges, that would have been a very unique thing. She's also the only judge and prophetess who sang a song of victory after being freed from oppression.

King Jabin had been oppressing Israel during the time of Deborah for 20 years. The 12 tribes of Israel were under this oppression, and it says that King Jabin was a powerful military force, with 900 chariots at his disposal. Those chariots were like tanks today, or even probably more formidable. It would be like having F-35s. He was a foe that you cannot even comprehend trying to go up against.

The Book of Judges, in chapter five, actually gives us more insight into the times in which Deborah was living than even chapter four does. It lets us know that among all of the 10,000 men, there were no chariots. There were barely shields and swords for these men to go into battle with. That was the state of the union at that point. Deborah gives this call to action, a call to be obedient to the God of Israel.

However, only half of the tribes showed up for battle. Only six of the 12 tribes responded. Barak was hesitant to go with Deborah, saying, "Well, if you go with me, Deborah, I'll go." She had been this motherly motivation, and the way that a judge would work at this time was to convey the word of God and help rectify differences between the tribes. They would be that mediating, loving force that would essentially keep everything together.

At that time, when she rose up and said, "Hey, it's time; God is saying it's time for battle. It's time for action," only six of the tribes showed up. She is the only judge to lead her nation in a song of victory after the battles were won. This is similar to the prophetess Miriam, who is Moses's sister. When they were freed from captivity and bondage in Egypt, she sang a song of praise.

Both songs of praise, Deborah's and Miriam's, highlight God's power for deliverance, emphasizing that it was God who delivered them. They also underscore that God was sovereign over nature, which fought against their foes. Think about Egypt for a moment. When they escaped from Egypt, Pharaoh sent his 600 chariots after them. Remember, they were facing 900 chariots, making this a greater foe than even Pharaoh. Yet, God split the sea, allowing them to pass through on dry ground, and then the sea swallowed up all of Pharaoh's army. It was a miraculous deliverance from God.

In the Book of Judges, chapter five, Deborah did something very similar. Although we won't have time to read all of it, I encourage you to do so. She points out specific things that God did, such as the sky opening up and torrential rain falling. When it is rainy and muddy, you can't use chariots. It's like trying to take a truck off-road when it's muddy; you just spin your wheels and get stuck. This created a level playing field for the battle.

The passage also mentions the River Kishon, which God used during Deborah's time to wash away the enemies, as if a great flood had occurred. I imagine it was absolutely chaotic, much like a scene from "The Lord of the Rings," where dark riders are overtaken by a rushing river. This is similar to what happened with Deborah, where a flood wiped away her enemies.

Both Deborah and Miriam have similar songs of praise. As we begin this service, we will look at the importance and power of praise. This is a significant part of a mother's encouragement: teaching and showing her nation how to sing and praise the Most High God for His victories.

Let's read Judges chapter five, verses one through three. It says, "Then sang Deborah and Barak, the son of Abinoam, on the day that the leaders took the lead in Israel, that the people offered themselves willingly. Bless the Lord! Hear, O Kings; give ear, O princes! To hear the Lord, I will sing. I will make melody to the Lord, the God of Israel."

Let's pray. Lord, I pray that we would learn to worship You in songs of victory, like Deborah. Teach us, show us, and empower us to sing these songs of victory, for You, Lord, have won the greatest battle overall of sin and death. You have won the greatest battle for us. We are victorious because You have been victorious.

Lord, may we be inspired to offer ourselves willingly, as these leaders were obedient to go to war. Deborah commends them for their obedience, and she commends those men, the people who offered themselves willingly to go to war. May we willingly offer ourselves to You as these people did in the time of Deborah.

Lord, now is a time I believe for action. We need men and women who are willing to surrender to You, willing to go to battle for You. We battle not against flesh and blood, but we know that we battle against principalities and powers in the unseen places. There is a spiritual war happening even right now over our church.

Lord, You are the strength that we need. I ask that You would pour out Your Spirit fresh upon us today, for this new generation to be salt and light in the world, to be the hands and feet of Jesus, living obediently to the teachings that we know to be true. We ask these things in Jesus' name and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

So, we're going to look at the power of praise and then examine the sin of doing nothing. Over the last four years, I've noticed, and you probably have too, headlines throughout the news. One of them that I specifically saw was from, I believe, 2023, about a year ago in a Forbes headline. It was a massive health wake-up call. The heading caught my attention: "Depression and anxiety rates have increased by 25% in the last year."

I would see those constantly happening—those same kind of headlines. There is a mental health crisis brewing in our country. Depression and anxiety are on the rise. As a high school pastor and junior high pastor, I get to see this amongst our kids. Their generation is the most anxious and the most depressed generation that we've ever had. I can't help but think, Lord, what does this song have to do with this? That's probably what you're thinking right now as well.

I will precede that by saying perhaps the church in general, and I'm not just talking about Cross Connection, but broadly speaking, the evangelical church—those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior—has not been doing the best job of equipping the saints for the work of the ministry. So many saints have been chained down by anxiety. Does anyone feel like that? Has anyone been anxious this morning? You don't have to raise your hands because I know you all are. You're probably anxious just because I'm even talking about this.

We all have a heavy burden. There are things in your life right now that you're dealing with that are weighing you down. When I read this song of praise, I'm reminded—this is point one, and it's so important that we get this—that praise is an antidote to anxiety. Do you think that the children of Israel were maybe a little anxious after they had won this battle and were now trying to rebuild a nation from nothing? That's kind of where we're at in Deborah chapter five.

Not only that, but maybe they were also anxious because these twelve tribes were supposed to be in unity, yet only half of them showed up to the battle. Do you think there was a little bit of tension, a little bit of divisiveness among the tribes of Israel? A little bit of anxiety about how they were going to get along? Praise is an antidote to anxiety.

You see, anxiety is ultimately a fear. I think that singing—this is something that science has now proven, but it's also something we know by sheer practice—has a cathartic effect. When we use our voice to sing, it has a soothing effect. In fact, science has shown through brain scans that when we sing, a feel-good chemical is released in our brains. That's what happens when you sing.

But there's also a spiritual effect when we praise God in our misery. It has a spiritual effect that frees us from the bonds of fear, dread, and uneasiness.

Anxiety can easily chain us down and keep us focused solely on the problems we are facing. It creates a tunnel vision where it feels like all of our problems are piling up on us. Physically, it can feel as if we are stuck. I remember driving back from India a week ago, and as we ascended into the mountains, we suddenly hit a wall of fog. Has anyone ever driven in a wall of fog at night? It’s a frightening experience when you can only see about ten feet ahead. In that moment, anxiety spikes because you start to worry about missing a turn or not seeing the road clearly.

That’s what anxiety feels like; it’s like being enveloped in fog. I deal with anxiety all the time, and it’s a normal human condition. The question is, how do we cope with it? As Christians, God has provided us with many ways to manage our anxieties, and one of those ways is through praise.

To illustrate this point, let’s look at Paul and Silas in jail. If you turn in your Bibles to Acts chapter 16, you will find the story in the New Testament. After the Gospels, you have the book of Acts. In Acts chapter 16, verse 25, we see Paul and his friend Silas, who have been ministering the gospel and have been falsely imprisoned. The verse states that at about midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

Suddenly, there was a great earthquake that shook the foundations of the prison. Immediately, all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened. Paul and Silas were unjustly imprisoned, and at their darkest hour, they did what no one else was doing. Chained up with their hands behind their backs and cuffed to a wall, they were in a grim situation, likely surrounded by rats and the stench of a prison. Yet, in that dark place, a voice began to rise up, praising the Lord.

You might wonder how someone could praise God while in jail, in a place that we consider bad and overcrowded today. Back then, prisons were often just holes in the ground—definitely not a place anyone wanted to be for any length of time. Yet, amidst the darkness, those voices of praise began to resonate, and all the other prisoners started to listen.

And then all of a sudden, the earth starts to shake because Paul and Silas are praising God in their misery. The reason we come together to corporately worship God in our struggles is that it lifts us up in a great way—cathartically and spiritually—breaking the chains of anxiety that hold us down. Their praise influenced others locked in the same dire circumstances. That's powerful when you think about it. Your praise could influence others who are experiencing the same anxieties and depressions. These are very real challenges that weigh you down.

The others in the prison were also listening. Their praise did not just release Paul and Silas from their bonds; it also released everyone else in that jail. Their praise opened the door for God's power to be unleashed and for their chains to be broken. Too many of us today are chained down by anxiety. As Christians, this keeps us from truly fulfilling the call and word of God—the call of Deborah to take action. It's time for us to go to war; the time is now. That is Deborah's call to the people, a motherly motivation that says now is God's time for you to be saved. They had to wake up and respond.

When we are chained by anxiety, it becomes difficult to think about anything outside of ourselves. However, when we sing and use our voices, we regain control. We make a joyful noise unto the Lord, and there is a freeing effect in that. I think we need to practice this more.

Living in San Diego, we've all heard stories of Navy SEALs. Every one of us has likely heard these stories. Navy SEALs, based in Coronado, go through what is called Hell Week when they are trying to become SEALs. This week is an entire week without sleep, and they are put through extreme challenges. The men who survive Hell Week, by and large, are those who can sing in their misery. This ability to sing during hardship is a common factor among those who make it through Hell Week.

We're all cold, shivering, and freezing. We're all covered in mud, and then they just start singing. There is this lifting effect; they get lifted out of their circumstances. Their anxieties are released, and all of a sudden, it also becomes a glue that holds them together as a unit.

You see, as the church, when we worship together, it's the same thing that happens, except we are praising God in our worship. God invites you to praise. He's a gentleman; He doesn't force you to praise. He invites you to praise, and He has extended that invitation. The psalmist has it right when he says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts." (Psalm 139:23). He continues, "Point out anything in me that offends you, Lord, and lead me on the everlasting path."

As Christians, with the Holy Spirit living in us, there are constantly things that come up in our lives, like, "Hey, you need to deal with that sin," or "Hey, you need to change your behavior here." Maybe you shouldn't curse anymore. The Holy Spirit starts to convict us of things that are out of alignment with the will of God. We are supposed to be little Christs; that's literally what "Christian" means as followers of Jesus. We are to mimic Him in all that we do.

God, through the Holy Spirit, is going to transform your heart and character to match the high calling given to each one of us. This transformation allows us to be a light and a witness, ministering to the world the love of Jesus Christ. Psalm 146 states, "I will praise the Lord with all of my life. I will sing praise to God as long as I shall live." (Psalm 146:2).

Do you want to commit today to praising God with your entire life? If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, I encourage you to write that down. Ask yourself, "Am I willing to commit right now to praising God with my entire life?" The reality is that we would all worry much less if we praised more.

I actually pulled that from a sermon I taught back in Thanksgiving 2022. We would worry less if we praised more because Thanksgiving and praise go hand in hand. There is a real mental shift that happens when we stop focusing on the negative—the problems in our lives and the things that are terrible about other people. Instead, we start to shift our focus to what is good. What is God doing that is good? What can we be thankful for? What is going on in your life right now that you can be thankful for?

That lifts us up out of our anxiety and out of our depression. It doesn't mean you're not going to deal with it; it doesn't mean that it's not still going to be there. But it's that shift of focus that we go from our dire circumstances to the God who's in control of the universe, the God who wins battles for us and has won the greatest victory over death and sin.

Those who praise God regularly are different. Those Christians, those followers of Jesus Christ who praise God regularly, show a noticeable difference in their lives. I can tell because they are also the people who are serving God in practice. They dedicate their lives to service. There is a connection between serving and praise. One result of being filled with the Spirit of God is not only serving but also singing.

There are a lot of Christians going through hard times right now. Many of you are dealing with really tough things, and I'm sorry. God wants to be in the midst of that. He wants to be that comforting presence in the midst of your misery that lifts you out of it, like Deborah did with the people of Israel. God wants to be that comforting presence that strengthens our knees when we're feeling weak and gives us the energy to stand up and get out of bed when we don't feel like it.

When we all praise God together as Cross Connection Church, as the family of Cross Connection, there is a contagious part of our worship that lifts us all out of our miseries. That's one of the challenges I'm going to give you as we leave.

Speaking of songs, back in 2012, during my college days, I remember a Christian song by Matthew West called "Do Something." It's a catchy song, and the lyrics kept coming back to my mind as I was preparing for this message. Not only is the motherly motivation part of this important, but there is also the sin of doing nothing as Christians. There is a sin of doing nothing.

In one of the lines of the song, it says, "I'm so tired of talking about how we are God's hands and feet, but it's easier to say than to be, to live like angels of apathy and tell ourselves it's all right; somebody else will do something." How many of you have thought that thought? It's like, that person looks kind of lonely; I don't recognize them. Somebody else will talk to them. This is a family, right?

Okay, how about this? I just listened to this really great Bible study on prayer, and I just learned...

All of these amazing things about prayer are discussed, but then the weeks go by, the months go by, and your prayer life has never changed. It's much easier to talk about these things than it is to actually put them into practice. I think you would all agree; it's the same for me. It's much easier to talk about what I ought to do than it is to actually put it into practice. We need to be careful. We need to put these things into practice because half of the tribes of Israel are condemned for not showing up to the battle, while the other half are celebrated for courageously joining this battle and saying, "I'm all in."

We have to ask ourselves, are we all in as Christians? Are we all in? Let's look at verse 13 in chapter five of Judges, specifically verses 13 through 17. This passage breaks down the tribes that went into battle and those that did not. It says, "Then they marched down the remnant of the noble; the people of the Lord marched down for me against the mighty." From Ephraim, their root, they marched down into the valley, following you, Benjamin, with your kinsmen. From Machir marched down the commanders, and from Zebulun, those who bear the lieutenant's staff.

Deborah describes that not only did the leaders of these tribes—the men who held the staffs—take action, but they were also the ones who told others what to do. They were the ones actually going to battle. They were servant leaders at this point, saying, "I'm going to be obedient. I am all in as a leader. I'm not just going to tell other people to do this; I'm actually going to do this." It's powerful that the leaders took the lead in Israel because there has been a long time when leaders do not take the lead. When weak men are leaders, our nation suffers. Israel suffered until Deborah rose up and said, "Wake up! Now is the time to take action." These leaders took heart and followed her.

The princes of Issachar, in verse 15, came down with Deborah, and Issachar was faithful to Barak in the valley. They rushed at his heels; they were all in. Among the clans of Reuben, however, there was great searching of heart. This indicates that the tribe of Reuben was divided. They were asking themselves, "Should we go to war? Should we not go to war? What do we do?" There was great searching of heart among the tribe of Reuben. Deborah then asks in verse 16, "Why did you sit among the sheepfolds to hear the whistling of the flocks?"

Among the clans of Reuben, there was great searching of heart. This tells me that they heard the cry; there was a call. There were 10,000 men willing to serve, and Deborah, the judge of Israel at the time, was backing them up. She was going to war with them. However, half of them said, "We should go to battle," while the other half said, "We have to watch our sheep." Ultimately, the half that chose to watch their sheep won, and the tribe of Reuben stayed away from the battle.

There are always excuses to not do something. We often say, "I have something to do at home," or "I need to wash my car." We always have something to do. Our Western culture is the busiest culture in the world. We are always so busy that we sometimes get too busy to follow God and to obey Him. We have to be very careful. Are we orienting our lives to be too busy? Are we setting an example for our kids? This can become a generational issue. My parents were very productive and energetic people. They were great businessmen who made a lot of money and provided a good life for me. However, they also never went to church because they didn't have time; they were too busy.

Busyness, I think, has become a kind of drug for our culture. If you're not doing something all the time, you feel weird or anxious. You feel like you need to be doing something. I can relate to that. I am the kind of person who sets a goal and just wants to go, go, go until it's done. I get so busy that sometimes I forget to notice the other things going on around me and the people in need of ministry. I apologize if that has been your experience. The reality is that I am human, which means I am imperfect. God is working in my heart and through us to make us more like Jesus.

Now, if busyness is your drug, here's the challenge: rest is going to feel like stress. I've heard that before, and I think it's so true. If your busyness is what you rely on, when you try to rest, it will feel stressful because you feel the need to do something. This is something we should all take to heart. When God calls us to action, we need to be obedient.

Gilead stayed behind beyond the Jordan. Dan stayed with the ships, and the tribe of Asher sat still on the coast of the sea, remaining by their landings. In contrast, Zebulun was a people who risked their lives to the death. Naphtali, too, joined them. These tribes were commended for their courage because when the call to action came, they responded, "I'm here, let's go to war."

Their leaders were with them in the battle. They weren't just watching. Now, there's a powerful effect when that happens. How many of these men do you think complained about their problems but did nothing? I think all twelve of these tribes, every single one of them, had men and women who were just sick of being oppressed.

The second point on your outline is this: it's much easier to talk about the problem than it is to be part of the solution. This isn't something particularly smart; it's just common sense. It's so much easier to talk about the problems in our lives than it is to be part of the solution for them. It's easy to see the problems with our culture, our world, our nation, and our government, and not be part of the solution. It's also easy to see problems in our church, with ourselves, and with other people than it is to take action.

All of these men, I think, complained. They would say, "Oh man, Jabin has 900 chariots; nobody can touch this guy, and he taxes us. We're so tired of paying all of his taxes." For a long time, they felt that the justice system was unfair. Everything seemed unfair, and they started to think that their country was going to hell, largely because of Jabin. They complained and bickered, saying, "If only..." It got so bad that they had to cry out to God, and God raised up someone to free them from this oppression. Still, half of them didn't go.

James, the brother of Jesus, said that we must not just listen to God's word but also do what it says; otherwise, we're only fooling ourselves. How many of us are convicted by that? It convicts me every time I read it. I think, "Yeah, we read the Bible and say, 'Okay, I know I need to do this,' but it's so hard to put into practice."

One of the things I constantly talk about with our youth is an example from Scripture. We know that the Bible tells us not to curse; the way we talk ought to be different from the world. Yet, Christians struggle with this. I have students, high schoolers and junior hires, coming up to me asking, "How do I stop cursing? I can't; it's really hard for me to stop." I tell them, "Well, let's break it down one conversation at a time. Lord, help me not to say that word in this conversation." It's about rephrasing this big problem that has been part of their lives for so long into manageable steps.

Now, a bite-sized chunk. This conversation is important. Lord, help me in this next conversation not to stray from the point.

Here's the thing: we have been going through an identity series, focusing on change and identity within the youth group right now. What I've noticed among our generation is that we are a generation of what I would call chameleons. We love to blend in. Chameleons blend in when they are fearful of a predator, and as a culture, we are a bunch of chameleons. We get into a group of people, and out of fear of being outed as someone different with different perspectives, we immediately try to blend in and surround ourselves so we don't get noticed.

However, you are called to be different. You are called to be an ambassador of a different kingdom. We are called to be a light, and a light is hard to hide. You are called to be the salt of the earth. We are going to be different.

Quite honestly, we have to admit that there is fear surrounding what happens when we stop doing these things. What happens when we start obeying Christ? We must say, "God, I am going to give you the consequences of that." If people look at me differently or think about me differently, I don't care. I am going to be obedient to you above all else. Help me today to do that.

We don't just listen to God's word; we have to do what it says. Otherwise, we are just fooling ourselves. James, the brother of Jesus, was likely thinking of Jesus's very words when he said, "Why do you call out to me, 'Lord, Lord,' but do not do what I say?" The Pharisees were very good at that. They put on a great show, but they did not do what the Lord said.

Jesus said that those who do what I say are like those who dig deep and lay their foundation for their house on solid ground, on the rock. But those who do not do what I say are like people who build their house on sand, and they get washed away when anything comes against them.

I want Cross Connection Church to be a church and a community built on the solid foundation that is the word of God. We must dig deep and be ready to withstand the wind, the tornadoes, the waves—whatever comes against us. We can stand strong on the word of God because the Pharisees thought they were doing everything right, but they weren't listening to God. They weren't doing what He said.

It was all about them. When we serve God, it's not all about us; it's all about God getting the praise. To God be the glory now and forevermore. Amen.

Many Christians say the right thing. We've read the Bible, but we often have a hard time putting this into practice, myself included. We know when we do something wrong, and we think, "I know I need to not do that anymore." The Word of God clearly asks us to be faithful, and giving God 10% of our finances is something so few do. Why? Because of fear and anxiety. If I give God that, then I'm not going to have it.

However, you're making something that was an earthly thing into a heavenly thing, and God blesses that in a heavenly way. Unfortunately, many prosperity gospel proponents have capitalized on this to make people give, and then they receive nothing in return. But God does say that when you faithfully give to your church, there is a reward that is multiplicative—much better than you can ever ask or imagine—that comes back to you.

I would encourage you to consider whether this is something the Lord is working on in your life right now. Don't you trust God? God won victory over sin and death with your money, but that's a hard thing to hold onto. You might listen to a sermon or a podcast and say, "I just learned so much about the love that Jesus has for us." While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Christ was the one who went to those who were the outcasts of society.

If you think about the woman at the well, the Samaritan woman, it would be like Jesus going to the current divide between Democrats and Republicans. People might say, "Jesus, you don't talk to those people; they have nothing in common with us." But He loved her. He went to her, spoke with her, and sat with her. He offered her the gift of eternal life.

How did He do that? How do we do that? We've lost the art of communicating without getting defensive, divisive, or yelling. When you talk to someone and realize they have a different political affiliation, your anxiety level rises. You might think, "I can't talk to them." But guess what? You have more in common with them than you think. You're both sinners, and you both need Jesus.

What we can learn is the art of having a cool, calm curiosity.

We need that in our culture. We need to learn how to relate to other people with a cool, calm curiosity. That's going to be part of the challenge I give you after the service as well. Are we willing to ask somebody their story? Are we willing to ask someone how they met Jesus? Or, if they even know Jesus, why are they at church? Maybe they're just looking for a friend, but we often think that somebody else will do that. Right? That's the pastor's job. No, that's yours. You're the body of Christ. You're the hands and feet of Jesus. You're the salt of the world. You're the light of the world.

We often get into the mentality that the church ought to do something, but it starts with us. We have to recognize that we live in a high-stress, anxiety-inducing time. It's unique, but God chose all of us to be here for it. God's providence put us in this place for such a time as this. I genuinely believe that. He put you in this place for that. We live in this high-stress, anxiety-inducing time, and we need to be calm in our demeanor, inviting others with a calm attitude. We need to approach others with a calm curiosity.

Guess what? We all need that calm in our lives because our anxiety is way up here, and we need somebody to bring that calm. When I'm a chaplain and I walk into a room or a house where someone just took their life, the chaos is overwhelming. Suddenly, that calm personality, that calm person walking into the room, brings everything down to a calmer level. All of a sudden, they can talk and sit together. It's like, "Hey, I'm sorry. Let's just sit with you." Calm can be contagious, church. Your calm attitude and your calm invitation to people can be contagious, just like your worship and praise is contagious.

There is a parable of the two sons, and this is what I want to use to encourage you. In Matthew chapter 21, Jesus said, "What do you think? There was a man who had two sons." He said to the first son, "Son, go into the field and work for the day." That son said, "I'm not going to go." But later on, he changed his mind and went into the field to do the work for the day.

Then the father went to the second son and said, "Son, I want you to go work in the field today." That son said, "I'll go." But as the day went by, that son stayed in his room playing video games. I'm just teasing.

Which son was the obedient son? Was it the son who did something, even though he said he wasn't going to, or the son who didn't, even though he said he was going to? We need to be careful as Christians. I would rather be that first son. It's better late than never to be obedient to the call of action, to the upward calling of Christ in Jesus. We have to be obedient to that. It's better late than never. And that's the encouragement for you.

You might be thinking, "Man, okay, this is tough," because there are a lot of things in my life that I'm realizing right now. As Pastor Gary is singing, it's kind of that kick in the butt. But I'm trying to do this as a motherly kick in the butt to say, "Let's get up on our feet like Deborah," and respond to a call to action, a call to serve. We have a third service opening up, and that's why we've been calling to serve. There is an opportunity for you to use your gifts in the body of Christ, and you have to be able to do that.

You see, point number three is that God has called us to action and obedience. I'll give you two more examples here. In verses 23 and 24, there's a really great comparison. There is a cursing and a blessing in chapter five, where Deborah, the angel of the Lord, says, "Curse Meroz," which is a town. The angel of the Lord curses its inhabitants thoroughly because they did not come to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty. They stayed home. They did nothing. There was a sin of inaction, and there was a cursing that followed that sin.

Then, in the very next verse, which is so interesting, we see the most blessed of women, Jael. She knew how to pitch a tent. She was really good at driving those tent pegs, and she was so good at it that she killed the commander of the army. It was just like, it wasn't even a second thought; it was just wham! You see, too many Christians, though, are engaged in this sin of doing nothing. God has already gifted you, just like Jael already had the gifting that God needed for her to win that victory. God is at work in you right now to transform your character to match your calling.

I'll invite the worship team up now. Come on up, guys. I'm going to read this verse for us, and it's in 1 Peter chapter 4, verses 10 and 11. It says, "Let each one of you use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as the one who is speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength that God provides, so that in all things God might be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen."

Peter makes it very clear that we've received the gifts from God for two purposes. One of those purposes is to bring praise to God and to serve others. Those are the two purposes that God has given for you. He has given you gifts to use, to serve others, and to bring praise to God. The second purpose is that serving isn't just about receiving attention or glory. We have to do both of those things: serve others and bring praise and glory to God.

We are going to conclude with a song of worship, and I want to encourage you with two different challenges. The first challenge is this: Are you willing to worship God wholeheartedly today? Are you willing to praise God in a way that maybe you've never felt comfortable doing before? If you're up for the challenge, I encourage you to sing this song with everything you have. We put the slides up not just because we like to read the lyrics, but because we want you to sing them. Our slides team is faithfully back there so that we can all participate, even if we don't know the song. There is a cathartic and freeing effect from anxiety when we sing these songs together in community, and that is contagious.

The second encouragement, aside from worship, is to go support the youth. I’m just teasing about the tacos, but part of that is this: when you're out there eating tacos, I want you to find somebody you don't recognize, someone you haven't met yet. Introduce yourself. Say, "Hi, my name is Garrett. Would you tell me your story?" Let's sit down and eat some tacos together with someone new. This is a family, guys. Cross Connection Church is a family. We love each other, but we also need to be the family that's willing to reach out and say, "Hey, nobody's talked to this person. Can I sit with you for ten minutes? Can you tell me a little bit about yourself? How did you meet Jesus? Why are you here?" Just have that quiet, calm curiosity. That's my challenge to you.

With that, let's go ahead and take on that first challenge and worship the Lord. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, as we come to you in worship, I know that there are many here who have been weighed down by anxieties, fears, and depression. Every single one of us carries burdens that weigh on our hearts, and I pray that you would lift those up by the power of your Spirit. Just as you freed Paul and Silas from their bonds, Lord, I pray that even in our misery today, you would bring us freedom.

This morning, the things that we're going through, You see them, You know about them, You care about them. Lord, even in those miseries, may we together, in all of our misery, worship You, the Most High God. Help us to do that. Empower us to do that, Lord. May our praise be pleasing to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.