First And Ten : Why Not Me? - EJ Young (Full Experience)

Put your hands together like this. Come on, we say... Sing, get up, get up, get up, And get up out of that grave. You say that. Get up, get up, get up, Get up out of that grave. You say... Get up, get up, get up, Get up out of that grave. Sing, get up, get up, get up, Get up out of that grave. And wandering into the night, I was wanting a place to hide This weary soul, Oh, this vagabond. And I try with all my might, Oh, but I just can't win the fight. Oh, I'm solely dreaming Of a vagabond. Come on, this is our story. We say... And just when I ran out of rope, Oh, I met a man. I didn't know. And he told me That I was not alone. Oh, he picked me up And he turned me around. He placed my feet

On solid ground. I thank the Master. Oh, I thank the Savior. Because he healed my heart And he changed my name. And forever free. I am not the same. I thank the Master. Oh, I thank the Savior. Oh, I thank God. Come on, put your hands together. For this morning. If you've got breath to do love, If you've got a reason to pray, We say... I cannot deny what I see. Got no choice but to believe. My doubts are burning. Oh, like ashes in the wind. So, so, so, so, so. So, so, so, so. What's the next? Burden and bitterness. You just, just keep it moving. Now, you and him will come here. From now till I, From now till I walk the streets of gold. I'll sing a song. You saved my soul. This wayward son

Is found his way back home. He picked me up. He turned me around. He placed my feet on solid ground. I thank the Master. Oh, I thank the Savior. Because you healed my heart. And you changed my name. And you set me free. I am not the same. I thank the Master. Oh, I thank the Savior. I thank God. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh. Oh, anybody thank God you've been healed. Come on, remember what you've been freed from. You've got salvation in Him. So we say, hello, so. If you're lost in other world, then I am free. Come on, you say. I am free. Anybody say, I am free. If you're lost in other world, then I am free. Come on, you've been set free. You've got Jesus. Come on, let's say it. I am free. If you're lost in other world, then I am free. Oh, I am free. You're free.

Oh, I am free. If you're lost in other world, then I am free. Oh, I am free. Believe that. If you're lost in other world, then I am free. Oh, I am free. I am free. If you're lost in other world, then I am free. We are free. I am free. If He picks me up, then He turns me around. If He picks my feet on jolly ground, I thank the Master. I thank the Savior. He caused me to heal my heart. He changed my name. And forever free, we are not the same. I thank the Master. I thank the Savior. I thank God. Yeah. Oh, you're free today. Oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh, oh, oh. Yes, we thank you, God. Jesus, we thank you for your goodness, for your faithfulness. God, may we always see it, may we never forget it. You're so faithful and good.

We praise you in this place. Thank you, Jesus. Walking on seas, parted from me, you arrived. ♪ You were right there ♪ ♪ Fire and clouds, you brought me up ♪ ♪ You were right there ♪ ♪ You have been faithful for all the years of my life ♪ ♪ You have been faithful for all the years of my life ♪ ♪ Oh, you've been faithful, Jesus, I'll beseech you ♪ ♪ Oh, you've been faithful, Jesus, I'll beseech you ♪ ♪ When I faced my trials, and I couldn't fight them ♪ ♪ You were right there ♪ ♪ There's no explaining how I am made, beautiful ♪ ♪ You were right there ♪ ♪ You have been faithful for all the years of my life ♪ ♪ Oh, you have been faithful for all the years of my life ♪ ♪ You've been faithful, you have been faithful ♪ ♪ For all the years of my life, oh, you have been faithful ♪ ♪ For all the years of my life, oh, you have been faithful ♪ ♪ Oh, yes, you've been faithful, we thank you, Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, you never let us down, no, no ♪ ♪ Tell me, has it said, fast love ever ceased? ♪ ♪ Tell me, has it once not been there for me? ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been, and faithful you will be ♪ ♪ Oh, you never fail, worthy is the Savior, worthy is the King ♪ ♪ Worthy is the one who resurrected me ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been, and faithful you will be ♪ ♪ Oh, you never fail, tell me, has it said, fast love ever ceased? ♪ ♪ Tell me, has it once not been there for me? ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been, and faithful you will be ♪

♪ Oh, you never fail, worthy is the Savior, worthy is the King ♪ ♪ Worthy is the one who resurrected me ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been, and faithful you will be ♪ ♪ Oh, you never fail, you never fail, you never fail, you never fail ♪ ♪ Oh, you have been faithful for all the years of my life ♪ Yes, you have, yes, you have. ♪ You have been faithful for all the years of my life ♪ ♪ Oh, for all the years of my life ♪ ♪ Tell me, have you said, that's love ever seen? ♪ ♪ Tell me, have you once not been there for me? ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been, and faithful you will be ♪ ♪ Oh, you never fail, worthy is the Savior, worthy is the King ♪ ♪ Worthy is the one who resurrected me ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been, and faithful you will be ♪ ♪ Oh, you never fail, worthy is the Savior, worthy is the King ♪ ♪ Tell me, has he said, that's love ever seen? Tell me, how's he once not been there for me? ♪ Oh, you're faithful! Yes, you're faithful! ♪ Worthy is the Savior, worthy is the King ♪ ♪ Worthy is the One who resurrected me ♪ ♪ Faithful you have been and grateful you will be ♪ ♪ Oh, you never fail, you never fail, you never fail ♪ ♪ You never fail, you never fail, you never fail, you never fail ♪ Sing it again. ♪ You never fail, you never fail, you never fail, you never fail ♪ You know, all throughout the Bible, you see people remembering and calling to mind God's faithfulness. And that's what these songs are. They're invitations to remember how you've seen God's faithfulness in your life.

There's even times in the Bible where they would set up memorials just to help let future generations never forget the faithfulness of God, because how many of you know it can be easy to forget the faithfulness of God in your life? I wanna read this verse to you. It's found in the book of Limitations. I love this book in the Bible because it teaches us that it's okay to be real with God with our raw and real emotions. I got a call or a text this morning from a friend here at church, and he said, I'm angry at God. And he said, I'm sorry, that was wrong. I said, no, it's not wrong, it's incomplete. God's okay for you to be angry. He's okay for you to be scared. He's okay for you to be human, but don't stop there. We're gonna read this verse together. I want you to read this out loud with me as it comes on the screen. Say, yet this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope. Say that with me one more time. Yet this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope. Let's say it. Because of the Lord's great love, we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.

It's okay to be human. It's okay to feel things, but don't stop there. We gotta get in view of God's faithfulness. We gotta remember that moment. He carried us through it, that situation, that season. We wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for God. So right now, just give Him praise and say, thank you, God, for your faithfulness. We've seen it. We'll see it again time and time. Praise God. Welcome to Fellowship Church. Let's all remember today the goodness of God. Again and again and again. We're so glad to have you here with us. My name's Derek Bonneau. I'm one of our pastors, and on behalf of Pastor Ed and Lisa, we just want to thank you for being in the house of God today. If you're here for the first time, can we put our hands together, welcome them, everybody online. Come as you are, bring it to God, but don't stop there. Put your eyes on His faithfulness and watch what He does in your heart and in your soul. And in just a moment, we're gonna hear a message that is gonna bless you. From Pastor Ed and Lisa's son,

Pastor E.J. Young is in the house. E.J. leads our Dallas campus. Fellowship Church has locations all over North Texas, East Texas. He leads our Dallas campus. Shout out to everybody in Dallas. And he leads FC Cares, which is an unbelievable ministry. If you're here, you're going through hard times, maybe you're in the hospital, you need prayer, you don't have to do life alone. FC Cares, we're here for you. We're gonna hear from him in just a moment. Before we do, just slow down, be present. I know you're physically here, but let's be here mentally, spiritually, and let's remember the faithfulness of God, all right? We're gonna pray together. And if you're here today, this is all new to you. You're not really sure what you believe about God. We invite you right now to pray a prayer. Just say, God, if you're real, will you show me who you are? Will you show me how you've been faithful in my life? Maybe even when I didn't see it. And friends, what we wanna tell you is just you being here right now is God's faithfulness at work in your life. He loves you, he wants a relationship with you. He's brought you here today. Lord Jesus, we thank you for who you are, your faithfulness that we see again and again and again.

There are millions of examples, from the cross to the empty grave, to all the times you've shown up in our lives. Thank you for who you are. We lift up every life. We lift up everything that's going on in this room and everything that's going on around the world. Because you reign, because your faithfulness, your steadfast love never fails, we have confidence, no matter what the world looks like right now. So we lift it all up to you and we pray what you taught us to pray. Heavenly Father. Father, hallowed be your name, and may your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in glorious heaven. We've seen your faithfulness again and again, and we'll see it again and again. Thank you, Jesus. ♪ I could sing your name for all eternity ♪ ♪ All my life, and still find more to love each time ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ever on my lips ♪ ♪ It's sweeter every time that I call on you ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ It makes me cry holy ♪ ♪ There is no other name, no ♪ ♪ There is no other name, you see ♪ ♪ There is no other name, Jesus, you're worthy ♪ He's the friend.

♪ You have been the friend who never left ♪ ♪ I won't forget your faithfulness ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ever on my lips ♪ Even when we walk through the valley. ♪ It's sweeter every time that I call on you ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ I don't know what it is. ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ It makes me cry holy ♪ ♪ There is no other name, my Lord ♪ ♪ There is no other name, there is no other name, you see ♪ Sing. ♪ Jesus, you're worthy ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ There's just something about your name ♪ ♪ It makes me cry holy ♪ ♪ There is no other name, my Lord ♪ ♪ There is no other name, there is no other name, you see ♪ Sing. ♪ Jesus, you're worthy ♪ ♪ Worthy of it all ♪ ♪ Jesus, you're worthy of it all ♪ Come on, lift it up. His name. ♪ Jesus, your name is like the morning light ♪ ♪ The one the darkness can't deny ♪ ♪ The resurrection and the life, Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus, your name can save, your name can heal ♪

♪ Your name can make the storm to seal ♪ ♪ You'll never fail, you never will, Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus, the bread of life broken for us ♪ ♪ The wounded and the worthy one ♪ ♪ The first and last and soon to come, Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus, the king who overwhelms the grave ♪ ♪ The Lord who will forever reign ♪ ♪ The name above all other names, Jesus ♪ Shout it out. ♪ Jesus, be the name, Jesus, be the name, give him glory ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name that gets all the glory ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name, it's your word ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name, cause you're faithful ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name that gets all the glory ♪ ♪ Be the name, be the name, Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name that gets all the glory ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name, Jesus, be the name, be the name ♪ ♪ Jesus be the name against all the glory ♪ Jesus be the name against all the glory and the praise and the honor. You're worthy of it all, Jesus. Come on, let's get ready for the Word of God in our lives right now. You may be seated. ♪ Jesus be the name against all the glory ♪ ♪ Jesus be the name against all the glory ♪ There's truly nothing like getting a brand new phone. The moment you and I receive a brand new phone, it's the best feeling ever.

The new features, the long battery life. I can hold a charge and be without a charge for like more than three days, they say. The camera that takes the best photos on the market. There's nothing like it. Then a couple weeks go by, you're driving down the tollway, driving down 75, you see an ad on Instagram, you get an email, Apple releasing the greatest and newest iPhone this fall. Suddenly, your phone doesn't feel so new anymore. Nothing about your phone has changed. The only thing that's changed is your awareness something better, something greater existed. That feeling that we've all faced. Scripture addresses that issue, that feeling. In Exodus chapter 20, verse 17 says this. You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that is your neighbor's. Now, most of us would not say we own any donkey or any ox. Well, maybe, just maybe, at our Elasa Ranch campus in East Texas, maybe they have some, but I doubt anyone at Fort Worth, right here in Grapevine, Frisco, Dallas, we wouldn't own any ox or any donkey. So let's modernize this verse. It says this, you shall not crave your neighbor's house. You shall not desire your neighbor's spouse, their career, their staff, their income,

their car, their success, or anything that belongs to someone else. This command has just moved from the visible to the invisible. Every command that we've studied over these past several weeks can be measured in behavior. This one, though, is measured in desire. You can hide it from people. You can keep it on the DL, the down low, but you cannot hide it from God. It doesn't confront what you and I have done. This confronts what you and I want. What does it mean to covet? Here, let's look at a definition of coveting. It says, it's a disordered desire for something God has not given you, especially something that belongs to someone else. So at its core, coveting isn't just about what you and I lack it's what we believe about God. It reveals whether you and I trust his wisdom, his timing, his goodness. Coveting is actually a trust problem disguised as a desire problem. It's a trust problem disguised as a desire problem. The 10th commandment is ultimately asking you and I this question, do we trust God? Do we trust God with every fiber of our being? We live in a culture of comparison. It's exacerbated by this little rectangle of death. The device that lays inside here is the root cause

to all of our issues we're facing today. We doom scroll social media, watch highlight reel after highlight reel after highlight reel, see people jet setting all over the world, their vacations, their cars, their success, and we feel so far behind. And it starts ever so slightly with this, God, that's not fair, God. Why do they get to go there, God? Why them and not me? Hey, Lord, I've been faithful to you. Why can't I have what they have? And without even realizing it, our posture has shifted because posture determines direction. Whatever you and I focus on grows. Whatever you and I rehearse in our heart. becomes a reality. I love photography. And if you've been at our church long enough, you might remember me with a camera around my neck, running around this church taking photos. And I started photography when I was 12 years old. One of the first things you learn about photography is making sure your subject's in focus. So when I'm taking a photo of Pastor Ed, taking a photo of our amazing worship team, I'm gonna make sure they're in focus. And that photo will be beautiful and clear. But if my focal point is just slightly off,

if it's on the background instead of the subject, the photo is ruined, the photo is distorted. Our hearts work the exact same way. When we focus on what God has given us, his blessings, his grace, his provision, our perspective is clear, it's a beautiful photo. Our gratitude will grow, our worship will grow, our trust will grow. But if we focus on what someone else has and what we lack, our eyes, our soul shifts and everything blurs. God looks less generous. His wisdom feels unfair. His timing begins to feel like neglect. And that distortion, it spreads. It fuels resentment, dishonor, it compromise. Coveting becomes the root system to so many other sins. It's a parasite. The moment that gratitude fades, resentment will grow and we move from, oh my goodness, God, thank you for what you're doing in my life, to God, why not me? That three-word phrase is so dangerous for you and I. God, why not me? That's where the drift begins, because when we obsess over what we lack, we lose sight of what we have and we eventually lose sight of the one who'd given us everything. And that's where the problem lies.

The problem lies beneath our desire. When I was born, doctors diagnosed me with a rare neurological disease called neurofibromatosis type one. I know, that's a mouthful. Basically, this disease causes tumors to grow on my nerve endings. I have fibromas, they grow cutaneously, that's above the skin. Subcutaneously, that's below the skin. These doctors told my parents that I would have disfigurements. I would not be able to have kids, most likely. Not be able to play sports. I could go deaf, I could go blind. They told my parents I would have all these challenges in life. Can you imagine what that was like for my parents? My parents are pastors, Ed and Lisa Young. What many people don't know about their story is they had just walked through a miscarriage. Think about this. They had my sister, Lee Beth, walk through a miscarriage, losing a child, and then their newborn son, they find out, has this life-altering, life-shattering disease. I cannot imagine what that was like for my parents. But by the grace of God, I'm a walking, talking miracle. All those complications the doctors said would happen, most of them never came to be.

Few subtle things that some people might notice. Those cutaneous tumors I told you about, they're called fibroids, I have those on my skin. Couple learning disabilities. I mean, I don't know if you can tell, I'm very ADT. But all in all, I've lived a healthy, lived a full life. But I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't struggle with coveting. As I've gotten older, I go to the beach, I go to the pool, go on vacation, I take my shirt off, and I see my skin covered in these fibromas, and I look at other people with clean, unmarked skin, and I feel the slips start to happen in my life. God, why me? God, why do I have this diagnosis? Why can't I look like that? God, I want what he has. Coveting doesn't shout. It whispers ever so slightly to you and to me. It feels reasonable. It feels justified. It doesn't say and scream in our lives, oh, we hate God. It quietly says, hey, God, why not me? And it's something we do not wanna admit to. And as a pastor, I've had the opportunity to pray for people over a multitude of things. People ask for prayer for their lyingness, maybe their lusting, their struggling with lust, their addiction, a whole laundry list of things.

But coveting, I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt, that's never popped up as someone asking for prayer. over that. Why? Because it deals with our heart. It deals with our innermost desires. It deals with our desires. Mark chapter seven, verse 21 through 23 says this. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness, all these evil things come from within and they defile a person. Look at the company that coveting keeps. Listed alongside sins we would say are all dangerous, detrimental to our lives. So what is this telling you and I? This is not something to play around with. This is not something to mess with. This is an issue of our heart. Because coveting is so sneaky. It's a sneaky sin because it can hide behind compliments. It can say, oh my goodness, I'm so happy for you, while quietly wishing that thing that they have was ours. We wish it was ours. And here's what the apostle Paul says in first Thessalonians chapter two, verse five. He says that flattering words can hide

behind a cloak of covetousness. We say one thing, put up a false front, but underneath our heart, our soul is still comparing to our neighbors. You and I, we covet because we believe only if we had what my neighbor had, my coworker had, only if I had that family, only if I had that car, that income, we compare, we say only if only if only, we'd be secure. But what is the gospel telling you and I? Our security was never in what you and I have. It's in what Christ has already secured for you and for me. And when we desire anything above Christ, Christ is no longer the center of our lives. I love C.S. Lewis. C.S. Lewis is one of my favorite theologians and authors. He said this, he said that envy is the art of counting the other fellow's blessings instead of your own. I like substituting that word envy for coveting. Coveting is the art of counting the other fellow's blessings instead of your own. Think about King David. King David, a man after God's own heart. He had wealth, victory, power, influence. He was the giant slayer. Yet one day, David was where he shouldn't have been. He should have been at battle, but he was walking the rooftops of his palace,

walking on the edge and the ledge. He saw Bathsheba bathing in the sunlight. Bathsheba was married to one of his soldiers, Uriah. The Bible says that David coveted Bathsheba. He wanted what wasn't his. Again, that's coveting. He took what wasn't his, he stole. He tried to cover up what wasn't his, he lied. Then he killed to protect what wasn't his, he murdered. With one swing of the bat, four of the Ten Commandments broken. What started out as a glance became lust. Lust became action. Action became deception. Deception became murder. Second Samuel 11, 27 says this, but the thing that David did displeased the Lord. It displeased the Lord. And thank goodness David had someone in his life to hold him accountable. Nathan, a man in his life, held him accountable, and David ended up confessing, I have sinned against the Lord. Then Nathan replied with this, the Lord has put away your sins and surely you will not die. I know what most of you are thinking. Wait, David? King David deserved to die for what he did? Yes. According to the law, David, King David deserved death.

But the Lord forgave. The Lord showed mercy. But just because he was forgiven, just because he was given mercy, doesn't mean the consequences still remain. Because the child that Bathsheba and David had died. David's household, his life was forever in shambles because of the decision that he made. David, he didn't lack resources. He lacked perspective. Because when perspective warps, desire distorts. And when desire distorts, destruction always follows you and me. And that's what happens when you and I lose our perspective, when we lose our focus on the one who's provided everything that we need. Coveting doesn't come from having too little. It comes from forgetting what God has already given you. in me. And let's be real, having a heavenly perspective on this matter is easier said than done. One of the hardest spiritual tensions we all face as Christians, we all face is, how do we celebrate a good gift, a good blessing in someone else's life when it quietly reminds you and me what we lack, something that we may never have. You smile, we smile, we congratulate, and we mean it down deep, but underneath the surface of all our heart, our soul aches for that thing. True freedom, though, begins by shifting our focus from what we lack to who God is and their desires that God wants you and I to have. Romans 8 29 says we're being conformed to the very image of Christ. That means that Christ wants us to desire growth, maturity, holiness. Think about the fruits of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and self-control. And it's not wrong to desire things of this world. It's not wrong to desire a marriage, wrong to desire kids, job opportunity, growth. Those are not wrong. Those are not inherently wrong. They're human desires that we all face, but the key is order. When growth in Christ is

primary, everything else in our life becomes secondary. When Christ like this is the anchor, good desires don't control you and I. They're entrusted to God. A good desire, though, can become dangerous when it turns into, oh God, you owe me for this. God, you know how many times I've been serving this year at church? You owe me. You and I can still want something deeply and say, hey, Lord, shape me through this season I'm in. Grow me in this, and if you withhold this from me, God, Lord, let you alone be enough for me. God cares more about who we're becoming than what we're accumulating. God cares more about our sanctification than if we're married, having kids, having a job promotion, getting that brand new car. God cares more about our growth in Him than what we are accumulating. And one of the things that is so frustrating as a pastor is seeing people use the Bible to their own desires, their own needs, and they take it out of context all the time. One of these verses they use is Psalm 37.4. It says, delight yourself in the Lord. He will give you the desires of your heart. You're probably saying, oh my goodness, it's a get-rich-quick scheme. I figured it out. No, this verse right here is a promise of provision, not a promise of prosperity. God is talking about food, drink, clothing, daily needs, daily necessities. The covenant gospel tells you and I, hey, seek God and He will give you your desires. What is Scripture telling us? What is God telling you and I? He's saying, seek me and you will not be ruled by the desires of your heart. Growing up, once a year for the first 16 years of my life, we had to travel down to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas for testing for my NF. I remember vividly as a child sitting in the children's cancer wing playing with kids my own age. These kids were pale, they were frail, no hair on their heads, obviously going through cancer treatments, obviously going through chemo. I told myself this, I said, EJ, you can never complain. It was like a Holy Spirit was speaking to my life. You can never complain, never complain about being poked, prodded, your blood work, your MRIs, all the testing you have to go through doesn't even compare to what those kids are going through. I didn't covet those kids' lives, but I still struggle. I still struggle with coveting. Recently, my wife and I started trying to start a family several years ago, and we walked the painful path that so many people face with fertility, struggling with fertility. My wife and I would see post after post after post coming this summer, this spring, this winter. Here we're like, God, why not us? God, why is it so easy for them to start a family? Why can't we have that? God, that's not fair. God, I want what they have.

One of the things I've learned about coveting is coveting grows fastest in seasons of waiting. It's like mold. Mold grows fastest in the dark, and many of you feel like you're in the dark right now. Maybe you're struggling with fertility issues. Maybe you've walked through a miscarriage, multiple miscarriages. Maybe you just lost a child and you feel like, God, where are you? God, where are you in this season? Some of you are waiting on healing. You see people getting healed left and right, going through remission through cancer, and here you are another year, another month not being healed, not seeing a family member healed. Maybe you're just waiting on a spouse. You're like, God, if only I had a girlfriend, if only I had a boyfriend, if only I had a husband or a wife, would I finally be secure in you? Some of you are buried in debt. Some of you feel stuck while others are advancing. The danger comes, though, when comparison turns contentment into resentment. When comparison turns contentment into resentment, you begin to resent God for the season you find yourself in. If I had to boil down coveting to one word, just one word, it'd be trust. Do you and I trust God?

Recently, I was talking to my grandfather, I call him Goosey, that's my dad's dad, amazing and faithful pastor for many years, recently retired, and anytime I get a phone call from my grandfather, it's intense because he's an amazing man of God, and he can be intimidating. He said, EJ, do you know where the center of the Bible is? I'm like, I'm a pastor, I should know this. Yes, of course, it's the Psalms. But Goosey went a step further. He was like, no, EJ, I'm talking about the center chapter and the center verse. And I'm like, only my grandfather would know the answer to that question. He said, EJ, it's Psalm 118, verse eight. Would you go there? And so I was in my office at this time, so I grabbed my Bible, turned there, he said, EJ, read it to me. I'm like, yes, sir, yes, sir, Goosey. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. He said, if that's not at the center of your life as a Christian, if that's not at the center of every Christian's life, they are missing it. They're missing it. Every act of coveting you and I make is a vote of no confidence in the character of God. We're saying, hey, God, you don't know

what the best plan for my life is. Hey, God, you don't understand what I need and want. But every time you and I are content, every time we're saying, God, thank you for this, it's a declaration, hey, God, you are trustworthy. You are trustworthy. When coveting rises in our hearts, don't nurse it, don't justify it, don't try to hide it, no, bring it to God. Ask him to reorder your desires. Philippians 4, 11 says this, I've learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I've learned in whatever situation I am to be content. So how do you and I break the chains, break the bonds of coveting? You gotta practice gratitude out loud. Lord, thank you for your blessing. Thank you for what you've given me. In my quiet time, as I'm journaling my prayers out, one of the first things I try to do is, Lord, thank you for this, fill in the blank. Lord, fill in the blank. Lord, thank you for blessing my wife and I with our son, Tripp. Lord, thank you for Jess, thank you for my family. Lord, thank you for your church. Try to practice gratitude out loud. So as you go home today, before you go to bed, what can you thank God for? What can you write down on a sticky note,

a piece of paper, maybe a new iPhone, whatever you have at your disposal, write down what you're thankful for God. You know, I say, EJ, you don't know what season I'm in. You have no idea what I'm going through. My family is a testament of what we've gone through. We've gone through some difficult seasons in our lives. Most of you know our story. We lost my older sister, Lee Beth, to an alcohol withdrawal seizure. That was a dark and difficult time for our entire family. But we were able still in that season, and it's still difficult to this day, to say, Lord, thank you for what you're doing in my life. My wife, Jess, and I, we were still able, even when we were trying to have our son. Lord, thank you for your provisions. Lord, thank you for your blessings. Because when we stopped saying, I don't have enough, and we started saying, oh, Lord, you are enough, gratitude will grow, and coveting will work. lose its grip. Romans 8.32 says this, he who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also along with him graciously give us all things? God loves you and I so much that he gave us his son, he gave us salvation.

If that was the only thing that he ever gave to you and to me, that'd be far more than we ever deserve, far more than we ever need. He loves us, he gave his life for us, he paid your debt, he secured your future. Let's pray together. Dearly beloved God, thank you so much for what you're doing in and through this church, Lord. Lord, help us break the chains, break the bonds of coveting. Help us, Lord, practice gratitude out loud. If there's anyone here today who's hearing the sound of my voice and you've never given your life over to Jesus, never given him the reigns of your life, and you wanna make today that day, I wanna lead you in a prayer. Would you pray this prayer after me? Just say, hey, dear Jesus, I admit to you I'm a sinner. I believe you came from heaven down to earth to pay the penalty for my mistakes. You died on a cross and three days later rose again. Right now, I commit my life to you. Lord, thank you for rescuing me. Thank you for saving me. We pray this in your most holy and precious name, amen. What a powerful word. If you just made that decision with Pastor EJ,

I wanna turn your attention to this card right in front of you. Maybe you're here today, you've made the decision to give your life to Jesus. First of all, can we put our hands together? That's the greatest decision you could ever make. Maybe you're here and you're going, I wanna get connected. I need to find people to do life with. I'm tired of doing life on my own. I'm tired of doing life on my own. I'm tired of doing life on my own. Join a connect group, join a Bible study class. We have some for single, marrieds, every age and stage of life. So you're like, how can I get more connected? Well, you can use this card for that as well. Or maybe you're here today and you're going through some difficult stuff in your health or your finances or your marriage and your family, you would love prayer. Whatever it is, I want you to reach out and grab this connect card real quick. It's in the seat back in front of you. Wave it at me, let me know you got it. There's some pins available as well. And I'll give you some time right now to fill this out. If you made that decision to surrender your life to Jesus, just check that box. You can drop it in the offering.

And then myself or somebody on our team, one of our pastors is gonna reach out to you first thing this week, answer any questions you have. It would be our honor to help you get plugged in and to grow in a relationship with Jesus here at Fellowship Church. We're gonna receive our offering right now. And we wanna thank all of you for what role you play here at Fellowship Church and investing into the future. If you're a guest, hey, listen, there's no pressure to participate. At Fellowship Church, we don't force, we don't pressure anybody, that's between you and God. We just teach what God's word says, and that's that we're blessed to be a blessing. When we bring our first 10th of what we've earned, that's called the tithe, back to God's house, we give to the general tithes and offerings. The Bible says that God's gonna open up the floodgates, so much blessing in our lives, we can't contain it. His words, not ours. Sometimes it's tangible, sometimes it's intangible. And through this, we're able to impact so many lives here and around the world. So thank you. And to all of you who've gone above and beyond to give to the Anchor Project, we're building a student center like no one's ever seen, and we're prayerful that we're gonna break ground

this summer, and this wouldn't be possible without many people going, I'm going above and beyond my tithe, and I'm committing to get to that, which so many of you have done. So thank you. If you wanna learn more, tap your seat, learn about the Anchor Project, how you can be a part of investing into the future. But I'm gonna call our host forward. Let's put our hands together for all God's gonna do through today's offering. And as the offering passes, next weekend is going to be a big one here at Fellowship Church. First of all, Saturday morning, we have our Men's Monster Truck Rally. So men, come on out, bring your sons, bring your friends. This is for single men, dads, fathers, you name it, sons. This is gonna be such a great time, not just to get together and see monster trucks and have a delicious breakfast, but more than that, to link arms, because how many of you men are out there right now, you're feeling tired, you're feeling stressed out, you're feeling just kinda like, man, I could really use some support, some encouragement in my life. Well there's nothing like when the men of the house here at Fellowship Church get together and we link arms, we encourage one another, we challenge one another, you will be blessed. So join us Saturday and then get back for Sunday because Pastor Ed is gonna be in the house doing a special Palm Sunday. We're

kicking off a series that we've been planning, dreaming about for months. I'm so excited we get to finally share it with you. Our world is louder than ever. Conflict, anger, division. Everyone claims to have the answer. Every religion says it knows the way. More rules, more rituals, more trying to earn your place with God. What about Jesus? Is he any different? Come discover the difference. I am not religious. I am NOT religious. New series next Sunday. And I love this because how perfect to, with everything going on in the world right, how perfect to have this series paired with Easter. Easter, I don't know if you know this, it's already the easiest invite opportunity. People who never come to church, they're open to coming on Easter. And now you could go, hey what are you doing for Easter? Oh man, I don't know. Well I'd love for you to come to our church and we're doing a series called I am NOT religious. That's like peanut butter and jelly. Those two things just create the perfect invite. Tell them we're gonna be talking about all the different world religions and what separates Jesus from all of it. All right, we've got Easter invites for you on your way out and check this out as you're pulling out of the parking lot. If you want, our team will spray paint an Easter invite on your windshield. Don't worry, it will come off. I've spray painted it on mine so I hope that's true. We'll find out in a couple weeks. But if it gets somebody to Easter, it's worth it. No, I'm kidding. It'll definitely come off. So let's get our Easter invite on. Be back next Sunday. Palm Sunday. I am NOT religious with Pastor Ed. We love you guys. Have a great week.