Anchors - Living Anchored

We're so excited you're in this room with us or whether you're online. We got some folks getting baptized, so be sure to celebrate them as they go. Here we go. ♪ I won't waste another minute in my old way ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, I've been born again ♪ ♪ I've been born again ♪ ♪ Again and again and again and again ♪ ♪ You rescued me out of the mess I was in ♪ ♪ You treated my sorrow for something the same ♪ ♪ Now I'm dancing on the grave that I once lived in ♪ ♪ Goodbye yesterday, I'm living in the light of a new day ♪ ♪ I won't waste another minute in my old ways ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, I've been born again ♪ ♪ Goodbye yesterday, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me ♪ ♪ I've got resurrection in my veins ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, I've been born again and again and again and again ♪ ♪ You rescued me out of the mess I was in ♪ ♪ You treated my sorrow for something the same ♪ ♪ Now I'm dancing on the grave that I once lived in ♪ ♪ Again and again and again and again ♪ ♪ You rescued me out of the mess I was in ♪ ♪ You treated my sorrow for something the same ♪ ♪ Now I'm dancing on the grave that I once lived in ♪ ♪ I have decided to follow Jesus ♪ ♪ The world behind the cross before and I won't surrender ♪ ♪ I have decided to follow Jesus ♪ ♪ The world behind the cross before and I won't surrender ♪ ♪ I have decided to follow Jesus ♪

♪ Gonna leave the world behind the cross before and I won't surrender ♪ ♪ I have decided to follow Jesus ♪ ♪ Gonna leave the world behind the cross before and I won't surrender ♪ ♪ No, I won't surrender, no, I won't surrender ♪ ♪ The world behind the cross before and I won't surrender ♪ ♪ I won't surrender, I won't surrender ♪ ♪ The world behind the cross before and I won't surrender ♪ ♪ Again and again and again and again, you rescued me out of the mess I was in ♪ ♪ You traded my sorrow for something distinct, now I'm dancing on the grave that I once lived in ♪ ♪ Again and again and again and again, you rescued me out of the mess I was in ♪ ♪ You traded my sorrow for something distinct, now I'm dancing on the grave that I once lived in ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, I've been born again ♪ Come on, hands up, hands up! Are you thankful for the presence of Jesus? Come on! Come on, we sing, we're dancing. And we're dancing on the grave that I once lived in Dancing on the grave that I once lived in Dancing on the grave that I once lived in Dancing on the grave that I once lived in Praise the Lord, I've been born again Praise the Lord, I've been born again ♪♪♪ ♪ I got the joy of the Lord deep down inside of my soul. ♪ ♪ And I can't hide it no more, I'm gonna praise Him. ♪ ♪ I got the joy of the Lord deep down inside of my soul. ♪ ♪ And I can't hide it no more, I'm gonna praise the Lord. ♪ ♪ Who broke my chains and bought my freedom. ♪ ♪ What else can I say but thank You Jesus. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just that good, just that faithful. ♪

♪ And You're just that kind, I'm so grateful. ♪ ♪ That You saved my life like You said You would. ♪ ♪ With my hands up high, heart abandoned. ♪ ♪ And my faith on fire, singing and dancing. ♪ ♪ Cause You saved my life like You said You would. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just, cause You're just that good. ♪ ♪ You put a song in my heart, I sing with all that I got. ♪ ♪ Tell the world who You are, I'm gonna praise You. ♪ ♪ You put a song in my heart, I sing with all that I got. ♪ ♪ Tell the world who You are, I'm gonna praise You. ♪ ♪ The one who broke my chains and bought my freedom. ♪ ♪ What else can I say but thank You Jesus. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just that good, just that faithful. ♪ ♪ And You're just that kind, I'm so grateful. ♪ ♪ That You saved my life like You said You would. ♪ ♪ And with my hands up high, heart abandoned. ♪ ♪ In the faith of God, singing and dancing. ♪ ♪ Cause You saved my life like You said You would. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just, cause You're just that good. ♪ ♪♪ ♪ Oh, You're just that good, oh. ♪ ♪♪ ♪ I praise the one who broke my chains and bought my freedom. ♪ ♪ And what else can I say but thank You Jesus. ♪ ♪ You're the one who broke my chains and bought my freedom. ♪ ♪ And what else can I say but thank You Jesus. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just that good, just that faithful. ♪ ♪ And You're just that kind, I'm so grateful. ♪ ♪ That You saved my life like You said You would. ♪ ♪ So with my hands up high, heart up and singing. ♪

♪ A faith on fire, singing and dancing. ♪ ♪ Cause You saved my life like You said You would. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just, cause You're just that good. ♪ ♪ Cause You're just that good. Oh, You're just that good, oh. ♪ ♪♪ ♪ Jesus, You're good, You're good. ♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪ I pray into the atmosphere. Spirit of God, You're here. ♪ ♪ You have all authority. I pray over my heart and mind. ♪ ♪ I am healed by Your stripes. Your blood declares that I am free. ♪ ♪ In the mighty Name of Jesus, I pray. ♪ ♪ Calling on the power of heaven, I proclaim. ♪ ♪ Every weapon formed against me must break. ♪ ♪ In the mighty Name of Jesus. ♪ ♪ And I draw a permanent boundary. The enemy has no rights. ♪ ♪ To come near my family. Yes, Jesus. No escape, baby. ♪ ♪ We'll never run to God's face ♪ ♪ No matter the circumstance ♪ ♪ The cross has sealed my destiny ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus I pray ♪ ♪ Calling on the power of heaven I proclaim ♪ ♪ Every weapon formed against me must break ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus I know ♪ ♪ All the power of fear and darkness it must go ♪ ♪ Cause every key to every victory I hold ♪ ♪ I hold in the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪

♪ When the enemy comes near ♪ ♪ Oh on the doorframe of my life ♪ ♪ Is the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ There's an army of angels here ♪ ♪ Oh I'm protected on all sides ♪ ♪ By the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ When the enemy comes near ♪ ♪ Oh on the doorframe of my life ♪ ♪ Is the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ There's an army of angels here ♪ ♪ Oh I'm protected on all sides ♪ ♪ By the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ I pray, calling on the power of heaven ♪ ♪ I proclaim, every weapon formed against me ♪ ♪ Must pray, in the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ I know, all the power of healing darkness ♪ ♪ You must know, there's every key to every victory ♪ ♪ Oh, in the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ In the mighty name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Are you worthy, Jesus? Are you worthy, Jesus? ♪ ♪ Oh, you mighty God, fill the room, fill the room ♪ ♪ There's nobody like you, there's nobody like you ♪ ♪ Sing, I will not fear, I will not fear ♪

♪ The enemy comes near, on the doorframe of my life ♪ ♪ It's the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ There's an army of angels here ♪ ♪ I'm protected on all sides, by the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ The enemy comes near, on the doorframe of my life ♪ ♪ It's the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ There's an army of angels here ♪ ♪ I'm protected on all sides, by the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ The enemy comes near, on the doorframe of my life ♪ ♪ It's the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ And I will not fear, I will not fear ♪ ♪ There's an army of angels here ♪ ♪ Angels here are protected on all sides ♪ ♪ By the blood of Jesus Christ ♪ Jesus, we worship you today. Church, if you're comfortable, can you lift not only your hearts to Him, but your hands as well, just as a full sign of surrender to our God. There's one name, there's only one that deserves the praise and the glory and the honor and the worship, no matter what's happening in life, and that is Jesus, the Son of God, who holds all power. He's the answer to every issue, every problem.

So Jesus, we worship you. We lift your name up. The mighty, mighty, mighty name of Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Church, every week, we come to this moment in our service and we spend some time remembering the cross, remembering what Christ Jesus did on the cross. First of all, because He tells us to. He says, as often as you do this, do it often and do it in remembrance of me, in remembrance of me. Not that He's hungry for the worship, not that He's hungry for the attention, but something happens when we do it, when we remember what God did for us this week. We remember through Jesus on the cross, something happens in us and it realigns us. It recalibrates our hearts and our soul. That's why we do this every single week. But because we do it every week, it's easy for it to just become commonplace and just another thing that we do, a rote thing that we do, and may we never let it be that. I'm gonna invite you in worship just to have a seat You're online, wherever you're watching from, you can prepare those elements as well. We take the bread because it reminds us that the body of Christ was broken for us.

We take the juice because it reminds us His blood was poured out on the ground when He gave His life on the cross. And there's power, there's power in that. So whatever you need today, whatever season you're walking through, may this be a moment that we recenter our lives on one thing, what Christ Jesus has done for us, amen? Let's pray together. Thank you, God. Thank you, God. Thank you that none of us are worthy, God. In fact, your word says that all of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glorious standard. And yet, Jesus, you went to the cross for us. You took our sin, our shame, our faults, our failure upon your shoulders. And you bore the weight. And you took our place. God, may we never forget it. May that never grow old for us. May we never overlook that because it's why we're here. It's why we have life and life abundantly, because of your sacrifice. Thank you for doing it and giving us this gift freely for those of us who have called on your name, God, and believe that you are the son of God, Jesus. Center us again on this, God. Center our hearts and our lives on this again as we call out your name, in Jesus' name, amen.

You can take the elements when you're ready. You can take the elements when you're ready. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Today is your first time. Pantano is a place where you can build meaningful relationships, grow in your faith, and take your next step with Jesus. If you're on campus, stop by Next Steps after service and say hello. We'd love to meet you, answer any questions, and help you find the best way to get connected. Joining us online, we'd love to connect with you too. Fill out a connect card through Next Steps so we can get to know you and help you stay connected to all that's happening at Pantano. Next week, we kick off a brand new series called My Anxious Thoughts. Anxiety has become a part of everyday life for many of us, but Jesus never intended for it to control our minds. Together, we'll discover how God's truth and presence can bring peace, hope, and stability, even in life's most overwhelming moments. Next week is Baptism Week. While every week is a great week to get baptized, we set aside one week each month to celebrate and share these incredible stories of life change together. Baptism is a chance to say yes to Jesus

and step into the amazing new life he has for you. If you've been thinking about taking that next step, visit Next Steps and sign up today. We can't wait to celebrate with you. At Pantano, one of our core values is radical generosity reshapes our world. As a kingdom-first church, we share our resources and our lives selflessly so people can experience the love of Jesus in real, tangible ways. To give, drop your gift in a giving box, give online through our website, or text GIVE to 46356. Thank you for being a church that puts our values into action. We're grateful for each of you. The Global Leadership Summit is coming back to Pantano on August 6th through 7th, 2026. Over these two impactful days, you'll hear from inspiring speakers and gain practical leadership insights that can help you grow in your workplace, ministry, and relationships. You can reserve your spot today by visiting Next Steps. We're excited to see how God will use the summit to strengthen and grow you as a leader. If your social media feed could use a little more joy and a lot of laughs, give Pantano a follow. You'll find encouragement, updates, stories from our community, and plenty of reasons to stay connected throughout the week. Thanks again for joining us.

We can't wait to see how God will move in our time together. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ Well, hey there, Pantano. It is the last week of our series called Anchors, and I hope you've had an incredible time worshiping through this series. I know my family and I have, as we've been part of the worship as well. But this week, as we wrap up this series, I'm really excited. One of our longtime friends, he's been here a few times. Most of you know him if you've been around Pantano for a while. But my friend, your friend, John Cassetto, is here this weekend with us, and he's got an incredible message prepared to wrap up our series. So do me a favor, Pantano, as you always do, please give a warm welcome to my friend and yours, John Cassetto. Awesome. Well, hello, Pantano. It is so good to be back. You know, I love this church. I love you guys so much. I'm honored to be here. We can't even remember if this is my sixth

or seventh time to be here, but I feel like at this point, I should have my own lanyard, become an official difference maker in this house, because I just love you guys. I'm so honored to be here. I wanna just give a special welcome to our Benson campus. We love you guys so much. To those of us joining us from Gospel Rescue Mission, and honestly, to all the guys joining us from Wilmot Prison, particularly the Santa Rita unit, guys, we are so thankful for you. We love you guys, and we are cheering for you, and we are for you, and mostly, God is for you. And I wanna tell you something really remarkable happened this week in the Santa Rita unit. 30 of our brothers in Christ got baptized 30 of our brothers in Christ got baptized this week in the Santa Rita unit. Yeah. Guys, we're for you, and we're with you, so yeah. So I'm so happy to be here. You know, I was trying to put some, join some dots this week. Chris Hamlin, your amazing worship pastor here, I met him, I think it was about seven years ago now, and you guys have to know, you have one of the best of the best in the world who is shepherding with humility and honor the space of worship

at all of the Pantano locations, and I'm just really honored to be welcomed into this place by Pastor Saul, Pastor Roger, Pastor. Chris, and I like to give Trevor a really hard time, but guys, you are led by one of my favorite people. Pastor Trevor is truly a gem, so. Yeah. And just to be clear, that's the last nice thing I'll say about Trevor. Just kidding. I really love him, and Laura, and this house is really special. So guys, we've been in this series called Anchors, and the last few weeks, Pastor Chris taught about being anchored, and even through the testing times, Pastor Chris is an amazing communicator. But before that, his wife, Pastor Rebecca Hamlin, oh my gosh, you guys know she's amazing. Like, I know this is normal to you. You think this is normal. Rebecca is not normal. She's brilliant. She's an amazing communicator, and anytime she speaks, we all lean in really closely. And before that, Pastor Saul, who's such a, he's such a homie, and we love him, and we love it when he communicates. So I'm really honored to kind of bring this series to a close. Now, just be advised, I'm like the friend that they call

when no one else is available, so set your expectations low. Next week, it's, you know, resumed to normal programming, and there'll be really good preachers again. I'm just teasing. I really do think God has given me a word to share with you today, and I think it's in season. I think it's for all of us, and maybe it's even for me. I've really met the Lord in preparing these remarks to just share with you as we kind of bring this Anchors season to a close and move through the summer together with what the Lord has for us. Okay, so it's not lost on me that today in this room, we have people walking through a wide variety of seasons, and this anchored life, building our life with these anchor points to God, to his word, to his community, that's not just for those of us who are walking on the high grounds, for those of us where life feels really great, and now, okay, well, things are in order. Now I can set my anchor to the Lord. No, I believe that's a call to us no matter what season we're walking in. It's for those of us trudging through the valley days, the high grounds, and honestly, most of us are in that in-between time, and I wonder if any of you find yourself in any of these seasons, the season of deep grief,

when someone you love is gone or something precious has been lost, and you're doing your best just to breathe your way through the day. Anybody in the season of waiting, that in-between place where the prayers feel unanswered, the future feels foggy, and you're holding onto hope with really tired hands? How about the season of new beginnings, a fresh chapter, something really exhilarating, sometimes terrifying, where God is inviting you to step into something unfamiliar and trust him in the unknown? How about the season of quiet faithfulness, nothing dramatic, nothing flashy, just the daily steady choosing to show up, to love well, and to keep walking with Jesus in the ordinary? Anybody in the season of healing, when old wounds are being tended to, when God is gently stitching together what was torn, and you're learning to believe again that wholeness is possible? The season of joy and celebration. I'm just gonna ask you, anybody in the season of joy and celebration, you can raise your hand. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, come on, yeah. Listen, here's what I wanna say. Joy and celebration, when life is overflowing with goodness, new babies, restored relationships,

answered prayers, and you can't help but sing, listen, if you're in that season, shout it from the mountaintops. Don't ever be ashamed to say you're walking on the high grounds, because those of us who are down in the valley or kind of heading up the mountain, we need to remember that the high days are coming, am I right? Sometimes we can be like, oh, things are really good, but I know it's hard for them, no, shout it, post it, share it, because our God is good, and when we're down in the valley, we need to know that there is still room for us to go higher, and we will meet him on the mountaintop, the interesting thing with the life is, I don't know that those always last decades and decades, do they? It seems like the Lord tends to give some of this along the way, but he finds this. They told me not to respond when things happen, so I'm not responding to that. How'd I do, Trevor? Okay, two more. The season of pressure and overwhelm. Anybody there? Anybody found themselves in that? When the demands are high, the plates are full, and you're wondering how long you can keep all of it spinning? Yeah, the season of spiritual dryness.

When God feels distant, the spiritual practices feel empty, and you're longing for his voice to break through the silence again. All those seasons, if you stick around earth long enough, you get the joy of walking through all of it. I've been in all of those in my life, and I know there's some brothers and sisters here who can say, yeah, I know what each of those feel like. Well, I wanna talk to you about one of my all-time favorite psalms. It's Psalm 121. Some of you know this psalm. It's not like the world-famous Psalm 23, where everybody knows Psalm 23, but today, let's spend just a little bit of time in Psalm 121. It's what's called a psalm of ascent. It's a song that God's people would sing as they journeyed upward, as they ascended toward the city of Jerusalem. So can we do something? Would you mind standing to your feet? We're gonna read this psalm all together. Wherever you're at, feel free to just stand to your feet, and let's read this together. Now, guys, let's don't read this like the church way. I lift my eyes to the heavens. Where does my help come from? Okay? We can do this.

We can do this like we believe it, right? And even if we don't believe it, maybe if we don't believe it, or we're walking through those seasons, we'll say it for you, but for those of us who can believe this, let's say this with a strong voice. Come on. I lift my eyes to the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip. He who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you. The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all... This is the good part. Keep it going. He will watch over your life. The Lord will watch over your coming and your going, both now and forevermore. Hallelujah. Amen. The word of the Lord. Great.

Great. All right. Go ahead and sit down. I love that psalm so much. I love it. It's called that psalm of ascent. This is one of 15 of these such psalms that the nation of Israel would sing as they ascended to Jerusalem to worship and bring offering and praise, a song for the journey, for the walk, for a hike. Now, my family, we love a good hike or a walk. We have done some pretty epic hikes. Yosemite, any Yosemite fans here? We used to live in California. We've done so many of those hikes. One of our favorites was the four-mile hike. Plot twist, it's really five miles all upward. And then we got to go to the Florida Keys last year. And has anyone done the Florida Keys? We get to walk over some of these amazing bridges and see this turquoise water to your left and to your right. The town we used to live in, we had this lake. It was a one-mile hike or walk around the lake, and you'd run into people from town all the time. We love a good hike. Now, our family, I have three sons. My wife and I have three sons.

Noah is 23, Hayden is 21, and Judah is seven. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Praise the Lord. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Now, we are not usually singing when we're on these hikes or walks. There's usually someone who's hungry, someone with a blister, and someone who regrets all of their life choices. And that's usually all just me. I'm just kidding. We've got two Gen Xers, two Gen Z, and one Gen Alpha all in the same house. It's a wonder we can even talk to each other, right? It's such a grace. But back to Psalm 121. The psalm for the journey, the psalm for the hike, for the walk, the journey through life. We don't know who wrote it. Not interesting. But I think it's beautiful. And I imagine this psalm to be written by Someone like me, a person who's captivated by the wonder of a maker, who is also a helper. I lifted my eyes to the mountain, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.

Maybe it was someone who just wanted to be and to do better every day, but rarely feels like they are, and could use the help of a higher power to keep them on the narrow path. He will not let your foot slip. He who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. Sometimes I think maybe it was a dad with three sons, who can sometimes get overwhelmed or consumed with anxiety. The Lord watches over you. Maybe it was someone who needs reminding that indeed the Lord is nearer to me than anything or anyone, and he is keeping me close to him. The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. Maybe it was a young student, writing these words, feeling on the outside of every social circle, with enemies closing in on them, with weapons of gossip and judgment. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. Or maybe the writer was a woman who had known the pain of abuse and gathered every ounce of courage to take the next step forward on the journey, but was not giving up on hope, on the God who gave her every ounce of that hope. The Lord will keep you from all harm. He will watch over your life. The Lord will watch over your coming and going,

both now and forevermore. I love this psalm, and I wanna dive in and talk about it just a little bit more, but as we continue to do that, would you just pray with me? God, thank you for your word. Thank you for these words of life. Thank you that you gave us these songs, these psalms, this map for the course, for the journey. God, it is our hope and our desire to be anchored to you. We wanna live a life that's on track with you. So Lord, would you speak to me, through me, to each of us here, that we would all hear your voice in this moment? In Jesus' name, we all pray together, and we say, amen, amen. Okay, so I was here about a year and a half ago. And in that season, if I'm honest with you, we were really tender. We had begun a deep season of transition and change in our family. We had ended a season of ministry. We were uncertain on what was next and what God was doing with us. Were we ascending a new mountain? Were we descending the old mountain? Just a bit of confusion. And today, I stand before you a year and a half later, and I'm just so excited to tell you that a year later, we're no longer kind of wandering through that wilderness

of uncertainty. We've moved from California to Kansas City. Just kidding. We love it, it's great. But we're in a new state, new neighborhood, new jobs. And instead of going through this season of wondering and uncertainty, now I find myself kind of battling this tension of comfortability. Anybody feel that? Where life is normal and we're settled in and trying to say, how do I live this anchored life even in that? Many of us know that feeling. You realize and look around and be like, yeah, I got this, but something feels missing. And one of the passages that has shaped my life is this Psalm 121, that reminder that the Lord preserves your soul and you're coming and you're going. And honestly, for a long stretch, we didn't know where we were coming or going. And maybe you felt that too. A child who's far from the Lord, a job that didn't come through, financial pressures that haven't eased, a diagnosis you never expected, or simply the quiet disappointment that life isn't what you imagined it to be at this point. We have dear friends who are struggling with the same thing.

We walked through similar seasons. And they told us something that stayed with me. They chose not to fixate on the valley, but to be captivated, even distracted, they said, by the goodness of God. And that became our prayer, too. As we waited for God to mend, to heal, and to reveal, to whisper, we wanted to keep our eyes locked on the goodness of God. So in this season where we're no longer in the in-between, we're learning how to stay awake, stay grateful, stay anchored, even when life becomes familiar again. And one thing I've learned is there's not really eight easy steps to this anchored life, this very mysterious and beautiful life with Christ on the narrow path. So you won't be getting those from me today. But I was thinking of this idea of anchoring our lives to God. And I got this image from the Bible that just I couldn't get rid of. So I wanna just spend the next few minutes talking about this image. It's from the book of Jeremiah. And I think we're gonna put this on the screen. This is Jeremiah 17, verse eight. And I think it's an image of what an anchored life really looks like. Jeremiah 17 says, "'But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,

"'whose confidence is in him.' "'They are like trees planted along a river bank, "'with roots that reach deep into the water. "'Such trees are not bothered by the heat.'" Anybody in Tucson know anything about the heat? They're not worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green. And they never stop producing fruit. I love that image. I thought about putting up a picture of a tree planted by the water with green leaves and fruit. But I thought, I want you to imagine it. I want you to see your tree. So just for a second, close your eyes and imagine this tree planted by living water, roots going deep into the ground, lush, beautiful green leaves swaying in the wind, still bearing fruit, every season just bearing fruit. Okay, snap out of it. That's the anchored life. That's the picture of the anchored life. So whatever season you're in, the waiting ones, the joyful ones, the bored ones, we want to focus on three things. And I want to share with you these three things that might be helpful to you, my fellow travelers. The first one is we are rooted. That tree says it sends its roots deep into the ground. We want to do the same.

We want to be rooted. And I know you have an amazing program all over Pantano called Rooted. It's amazing, it's amazing initiative that allows us to really set a life course that builds our life on the truth of God, the love of God, the words of God through his scripture. You know, we can read all sorts of books, but if we are not looking at every single book through the eyes and through the perspective of what God says, then we're building our lives on shifting sand. I have found that when I don't send my roots deep into the soil of the heart of God, that's when my confusion and doubt is sky high. I doubt my worth. I become suspicious of other people's motives. I start having internal dialogues with how I can roast somebody with my own words. But that's not the evidence of a heart that's tuned to the heart of God. The rooted man or woman is secure. He knows it's not about him. He's not threatened by stronger men. He welcomes them. She takes great delight knowing that she's attached to something greater than herself. She's not in competition. Says they are like trees planted along a river bank with roots that reach deep into the water.

Colossians 2 also says, let your roots go deep down into him and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught and you will overflow with thankfulness. Rooted fathers, brothers, uncles, grandfathers, they're life givers to others around them. Their security is rooted in God. Rooted women elevate other women. Rooted students speak encouragement over their peers and never tear them down. Their identity is so secure. that they are not threatened by their external circumstances like a job title, their income, their neighborhood address. So I want to encourage you, no matter what season you're in, to actually lean in to the word of God. I don't know how else to say it. I know, I know, it kind of sounds like the thing we say over and over. I don't know how to live an anchored life or a rooted life with the roots that go deep into the water without picking up your Bible. Or the Bible app. Or the Audible version. Man, can you imagine? We live in a time, it just occurred to me. Some of us read real good. Some of us listen real good. Some of us are like, I haven't picked up a book in years, but man, give it to me on a device.

Guys, we live in a time where we can access God's word in a way that is best for you. Pick up your Bible. It's time, am I right? It's time, lean in. What this world needs is more rooted people. So I just want to encourage you for that. We're rooted. The anchored life, those of us who are choosing to choose these anchors, number one, we're rooted. Number two, we are evergreen. We're evergreen. We keep our true colors no matter what and no matter when. You know what? We're the same people that are in here as when we're at the job site. We're the same person at school as we are in student ministry. We keep our green, welcoming, fresh, growing, lush, green color by seeking the presence of God. Now here's the deal. I think sometimes in order to keep my true colors, I need the clarity. I need God to tell me, okay, God, well, where am I going? What direction are we going? Because once I have those answers, I'm more peaceful and then I can read my Bible more and not feel all the guilt and shame that I don't want to feel. But here's the deal.

I don't think God ever promised us clarity. I know, right? I think he promised us his presence. We're always seeking clarity, but maybe we should be seeking his presence. So what if staying evergreen means we don't constantly pursue clarity, but we pursue his presence? You know, I was thinking, God told Abraham to leave everything familiar, his country, his people, and he didn't tell him where he was going. But he did take him outside one night and he said, look up at those stars. So shall your offspring be. And Abraham went. God told Moses to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt and he didn't give him a plan, but he did give him a vision for a promised land flowing with milk and honey. I like this one. God told a very, very young girl, a virgin named Mary, that she would have a son and to name him Jesus. She was given no assurance of his safety or that life would go smoothly, but in Mary's ear, God whispered the plan of salvation for all of us. And what did she say? May it be unto me as you have said. If we don't seek his presence, we lose our true colors. The way often seems unclear in many of our seasons,

but it's in his presence that he gives us vision. So we seek his presence. Second Corinthians 4.8 says, we are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We're perplexed, but we're driven by despair, but not driven by despair. We're hunted down, but we are never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but I get back up again. No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. In the waiting and the wondering, we will not wilt. I'll give you a real honest example here. You know what comes to mind when I think about someone who's evergreen, someone who's perennial, whose leaves always stay green in every season, who's the same guy no matter what room he's in? Pastor Glenn Elliott. Yeah. Some of you don't even know that name, but your lives have been changed by him. Pastor Glenn serves so faithfully. here for many years, and continues to. That's a man, so for those of you who know, watch a guy like that. You wanna know what it looks like to stay green, to stay evergreen, to stay perennial, to stay meaningful in every season? I don't know, I think you got a good one around here.

All right, we're rooted, we're evergreen, and the third and last thing I wanna say is, we're fruit-bearing. Jeremiah says, that tree, it never stops producing fruit. Pantano, we are fruit-bearing people. We bear the fruit of lives that lift up the name of Jesus. Our fruit is honorable relationships. Our fruit is a new generation, rising up to sing the praises of the king. And ultimately, our fruit looks like what Paul said to a church, maybe not too different than this one, a church in Galatia, where he says, the fruit of your lives, the fruit of a life marked by the spirit of God is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Eight of you knew that one, good job. I'm just kidding, I love you guys. John 15 says, I'm the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me, you can do nothing. You know, I've struggled with this. You know, leaving a season that felt really fruitful and really fulfilling for a long time, I have wondered the last couple years, can my life still bear fruit? And I'm wondering if there's some of you in here today that are like, John, I don't feel like

I've had any good fruit in years. Well, I wanna tell you, I believe that picture of that tree who still bears fruit season after season, year after year, it doesn't matter about your job, doesn't matter about your income, you can still live a life that bears fruit. You know, recently, I told you I began a new work, a new job in a new state, in a new neighborhood. I am so honored, I get to work now with an organization called International Justice Mission. We are the largest anti-trafficking organization on planet Earth. Yeah, praise the Lord, praise the Lord. We help people experiencing some of the most grievous injustices on planet Earth, violence against women and children, the exploitation of children online, forced labor, forced trafficking. It's just, it's a joy to give my one and only life to be a part of that. I think I have a slide for you. If you wanna join me in praying for this type of work, take a picture of that QR code. Yeah, you can take your phone out and get that QR code. We'd love for you to join us in prayer and helping people see full restoration, but I share that with you to tell you, I am so honored that in this season of my life, I can still bear fruit.

My one and only life can still bear fruit by being a voice for the voiceless, helping the most vulnerable on planet Earth. I wanna say one quick word to the parents that are here right now. Our fruit can appear in our kids. We don't have to repeat the sins of our parents. We can believe for a better day. We can pass patience onto our kids. We can say the words to our kids that we'd always wished were said to us. We don't have to pass our biases onto our children. We can pass more than our favorite sports teams onto our kids. May love, joy, peace, kindness be passed down to your children and to their children. Amen? Amen. Yeah. We can go ahead and bring the team back out or Mark on keys at this point, but lastly, to everyone listening, I wanna wrap this up here and just feel compelled to remind you of what God says of you, no matter what season you're in. Because if you're like me, we can forget what the truth is during certain seasons. When I'm on the mountaintop, I'm not always really sure I need the Lord at that point because we got it.

When I'm down in the valley, all I need is the Lord, but I also think I'm kind of worthless and can't do anything. So one night a while back, I couldn't sleep. And I got up and I wrote down the things that I knew were true. Like I had actual evidence of them in my own life and in the Bible. Now listen, most of what I've said up to this point, I'm pretty sure it's true. But what I'm about to tell you, I know that I know that I know it's true. And so to everybody watching us online in prison, at Gospel Rescue Mission in Benson, right here at Houghton, and you find yourself longing to live a life that is securely and undeniably anchored in the love of God. The God who hung the planets. The God who had the idea of a sunset. The God who handcrafted the feathers of a hummingbird. The God who carved the Grand Canyon layer by layer, long before any human ever stood on its edge in wonder. The God who made sea otters, panda bears, quokkas, and golden retrievers. The God who said it's time for In-N-Out burgers to extend beyond California. That God, he's the one. He says, I like you.

He says, I sent my son for you. That God, he puts your picture on his refrigerator. He carries your picture in his wallet. So I want to remind you what's true. This isn't just my words, this is from the Bible. You are not a slave to fear, addiction, anxiety, or depression. You are an overcomer, a victor, in not some things, in all things. You are more than conquerors. That's Romans eight. You are not insufficient. You're more than enough. In your weakness, you're made strong. His grace is sufficient for you. That's second Corinthians. You are not ill-equipped. God's given you so much. You're not under-resourced. You are apportioned. You have just the right amount of loaves and fish in your basket to do whatever the Lord has required of you. But still stay dependent on the miracle maker. You are not alone. You are accompanied by the maker of heaven and earth. You are chosen. You're not an outcast and you are not homeless because you are a citizen of heaven. Don't get it twisted.

Philippians 3.20. In Pantano, you are free. You are not bound by the chains of your past, your job title, your decisions of your youth. You are a new creation set free by the grace of God. Lastly, you are not finished. Some of you came here today and that's the only thing you need to hear. You are not finished. You are just getting started. This is what the Bible says. Because he who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it. He who began a good work in you, your team, your marriage, your children, your church will indeed be faithful to complete it. Now a quick word to the young people like me. Facing the pressures of life, unsure of your future or feeling lost in the midst of a world that doesn't always understand you, I have good news. The struggles of today, the doubts, the pressures to fit in, that doesn't last forever. There's a place where you will belong, a place where you are fully known and fully loved. It's called the kingdom of God, it's called the church. So come just as you are here in the kingdom of God. Your story is not finished, my dear young people. And a quick word, if I may, to the older generations like me. To the older generations who may feel weary.

who have lived through the highs and lows of life and now face the ache of time passing too quickly. There's a day coming, dear friends, where you will feel and be renewed, when you will be reunited with those you've lost, and you will feel the joy of God's presence in a way that you've never known before. The pains in your body, the regrets of your past, none of it will last forever. Your hope and your home is and always will be in heaven. Amen? Amen. So stand up again. Stand up. I know, up and down, up and down. What's with this guy? But don't you wanna read it again? Don't you wanna read the words of life again? Psalm 121, let's get it on the screen and let's say it. You say it how you wanna say it. Sometimes you can only whisper. Sometimes you gotta shout it. But this time, you say it how you wanna say it. I lift my eyes to the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip. He who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you. The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm. He will watch over your life. The Lord will watch over your coming and your going, both now and forevermore. Here's the deal. I believe that it's the Lord's intention to take the place where you are positioned right now, the season that you're in right now, to turn it into the most special place of communion with him as we send our roots into his word, as we stay true and evergreen, and as we produce the perennial fruit of a spirit-filled life. On the other side of any fear or disappointment or even joy and victory, there stands a savior, a life-giver. He has a name, Jesus. He's not just a shepherd. He's the good shepherd, the shade at your right hand. You will not get burned because he is watching over you. So let me pray over you. Then we're gonna sing, because that's what we do. We have a singing faith. We say thank you to the one who this is all true about. I gotta stop talking, so let's just pray. If you feel like it, you can do your hands like this.

It just says, God, I want more of you, and I'm releasing stuff that I need to release, so I'm gonna do this. God, thanks for being in our midst. We've sensed your nearness. We want this. We want to be anchored to you. We want to be like that tree, planted by the water, no matter what season we're in. We trust you, God. We deeply trust you to shepherd us along this way. It's so good to know that no matter where we are, you can find us, you can locate us and speak directly to us. So Lord, here we are. May it be so. Watch over our comings and goings, both now and forevermore, and all together, we say in the holy name of Jesus. Amen and amen. Amen. Let's sing. Let's sing. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Come on, with everything we have. ♪ Blessed assurance ♪ ♪ Jesus is mine ♪ ♪ He's been my fourth man in the fire ♪ ♪ Time after time ♪ ♪ Born of His spirit ♪ ♪ Washed in His blood ♪ ♪ And what He did for me on Calvary is more than enough ♪ So I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, Jesus, You will never fail. Perfect submission, all is at rest. I know the author of tomorrow, the soul of my steps. So this is my story, this is my song, Praising my risen King and Savior one day more. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. You won't fail, You won't fail, Lord. I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered. I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered. That's why I trusted. We seek You now, Jesus. I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered.

Every time, every time. I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered. That's why I trusted. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. I trusted God, my Savior, Who will never fail, He will never fail. just your faithfulness through generations, Lord, your faithfulness through all of our years as we get older, when we're young into adulthood and as we grow into those older years, Lord, we can look back and see just a through line of you being faithful. Lord, thank you that in this room as we worship you together, Lord, that there is this consistency to your presence, this consistency to who you are, that even if we're in the depth of just of a valley, Lord, that we can look and say, but I remember, I remember how the Lord brought me through the last one and he's gonna bring you through the next one. Lord Jesus, would we be aware of your presence in a way that allows us to be bold with our faith, that allows us to trust you, Lord, that we can look back and see I sought the Lord and he heard me and he answered. Lord, every single time, Lord, you've been faithful. And so, Lord Jesus, we worship you. We give you praise. We give you glory, Lord.

Lord, would you unify us in the name of Jesus Christ? We pray, amen, amen. Would you give the Lord some praise? If you're looking for your next steps or you need prayer, we have two rooms right across the way called Next Steps and our prayer room. We love you so much, have a great week. You're amazing. Thank you. God bless you.