How To Trust God When You’re Afraid | Made for the Moment | Ashley Wooldridge

Hey, CCV, we're so excited you've joined us. Would you stand as we enter into worship? James 1 says, every good and perfect gift comes down from above from the Father of light, who has no shadow of turning. We're so grateful for that today, for every good gift. Can we join in worship together and thank our good God? One, two, three. Hey! ♪♪♪ Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Yeah. ♪♪♪ This is a song of gratitude ♪♪♪ from all your sons and daughters. ♪♪♪ This is a song of gratitude ♪♪♪ from the children to our Father. ♪♪♪ You keep pouring out your goodness. We keep pouring back our praise. You have no shadow of turning. So till the end of days, we'll cry, thank you, Abba, Father, faithful one. We'll cry,

thank you for all you've given, for all you've done. We'll say thank you. Yeah! ♪♪♪ Thank you, Lord. Come on, let's sing. This is a song of gratitude ♪♪♪ from all your sons and daughters. ♪♪♪ This is a song of gratitude ♪♪♪ from the children to our Father. ♪♪♪ In our lives now we can see deep down we always knew we are vessels of your glory bringing glory back to you. Sing it. Thank you, Abba, Father, faithful one. We'll cry, thank you for all you've given, for all you've done. We say thank you for all of this and so much more.

For what has been and what's in store. We praise your name forevermore. Sing it. Thank you, we thank you for all of this and so much more. For what has been and what's in store. We praise your name forevermore. Sing thank you, thank you. Come on, we sing. Thank you, Abba, Father, faithful one. We're so good, we'll cry. Thank you for all you've given, for all you've done. Thank you, Abba, Father, faithful one. We'll cry, thank you for all you've given, for all you've done. We say thank you for all you've done. This is a song of gratitude. Amen. Let's keep it going today, come on.

Come on. Oh, thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. You've been so good. I feel you in the sunrise, the heat upon my skin. I see you in the night sky, when the stars are glowing, dear I hear you when the wind blows, the leaves are rustling There's nowhere that I could go, that you haven't been There's nowhere that I could go, that you haven't been We say, holy, holy, holy I can't help but to sing it You alone are worthy And I can't help but believe it Take a look around, look at all you've done It's just a glimpse of what's to come Holy, holy, holy But if this was it, then that's enough I find you in the details of every fingerprint The presence of a father is closer than a friend In the crying of a baby, the laughter of a kid There's nothing that I could find, you aren't already here There's nothing that I could find, you aren't already here Holy, holy, holy I can't help but to sing it You alone are worthy And I can't help but believe it Take a look around, look at all you've done It's just a glimpse of what's to come Holy, holy, holy

But if this was it, then that's enough It's enough, cause you're enough If seeing was believing, I've seen enough It's enough, cause you're enough I'm living in the promise of what's to come It's enough, cause you're enough If seeing was believing, I've seen enough It's enough, cause you're enough I'm living in the promise of what's to come Holy, holy, holy I can't help but to sing it You alone are worthy And I can't help but believe it Take a look around, look at all you've done It's just a glimpse of what's to come Holy, holy, holy If this was it, then that's enough Oh, oh, oh If this was it, then that's enough Oh, oh, oh If this was it, then that's enough If this was it, then that's enough Oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh So good ♪ You're so good, always enough ♪ ♪ You're so good, so good ♪

♪ I love you Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, your mercy never fails me all my days ♪ ♪ I've been held in your hand ♪ ♪ From the moment that I wake up until I lay my head ♪ ♪ I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ ♪ Cause all my life you have been faithful, oh you sing ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so kind ♪ ♪ With every breath that I take ♪ ♪ I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ ♪ I love your voice, you have led me through the fire ♪ ♪ You have led me through the fire and darkest nights ♪ ♪ You are close like no other ♪ ♪ I've known you as a father, I've known you as a friend ♪ ♪ I have lived in the goodness of God ♪ Let's testify church, all my life. ♪ Cause all my life, all my life, all my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ With every breath that I take, I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ ♪ I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ ♪ You're so good, you're so good ♪ ♪ More than enough, more than enough, you're so good ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running after, it's running after me, I've seen it ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running after, it's running after me ♪ ♪ With my life laid down, I surrender now, I give you everything ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running after, it's running after me, oh ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running after, it's running after me ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running after, it's running after me ♪ ♪ With my life laid down, I surrender now, I give you everything ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running after, it's running after me, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ All my life you have been faithful ♪

♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ With every breath that I am able, I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ Sing all my life, church. ♪ All my life you have been faithful ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ With every breath that I am able, I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I will sing of the goodness of God ♪ ♪ So, so good, so good, so good ♪ You guys sound amazing. You can have a seat. Well, I do not like to be scared. I can kind of lean into being a little more anxious than I should anyway, so I do not like situations where I am like forcing me to be scared. Like scary movies, I do not like scary movies. This past week we watched Project Hail Mary and it is not a scary movie. It is a good movie. But the whole time, I was fearful that that poor guy wouldn't get out of space. I also hate flying. I don't like being in airplanes. I'm like an anxious ball in an airplane. I don't understand it. I feel like I've totally lost control. Other things that scare me, doing this, standing on this stage in front of you, amazing people saying words, is absolutely terrifying. If you only knew the amount of worst case scenarios that go on in my head when I'm backstage, like what if I trip walking out there? Or what if I completely space what I'm going to say? Or what if my mic stops working? Or what if a cat walks across the stage? But in those situations, I contend to lean into the fear instead of faith and trusting

that Jesus is going to carry me through. And there's a story in Luke 8 where his disciples were in the same situation. They were in the boat with Jesus, and there's a big storm that popped up. And it was a life-threatening storm. And they look over, and Jesus is asleep in the boat in the middle of a storm. And so what they notice is they go over there, and they're like, hey, dude, don't you care that we're all going to die? That's my version. That's not Luke's version. But what Jesus does is he wakes up, he calms the storm. And my favorite thing, that in verse 25 here, it says, Jesus says, where is your faith? And I think what he's trying to show them there is that they had put their faith in the power of the storm, and not in the power of the one who can calm the storm. That Jesus, the one who all authority in heaven and earth and under the earth has been given to him, he's in the boat with them, and they lean into fear instead of faith. And every week here at CCV, we do something called communion. And it's a time for us to remember the sacrifice that Christ made, that he conquered death for the forgiveness of our sins. But when we take the bread and the juice, it's not just a time to remember. We are declaring, we are putting our trust, putting our faith in the one who can calm the storm. So today, if you're in the middle of a storm, if it feels like the waves are crashing in around you and you can't see through it, in these next few minutes, remember and trust that Jesus is the one who calmed the storm. He is still in your boat, and he will carry you through. Will you pray with me? God, we thank you for your word. We thank you for the truth of your word, and that we can rely on what you tell us and the promises that you give us. God, we thank you that when we're in the middle of a storm, and maybe some of us are right

now. God, that you are carrying us through. Help us to see you in these next few minutes. God, we love you. It's in your name we pray. God, we thank you for the truth of your word, and that we can rely on what you tell us and the promises that you give us. Thank you, dear God, we love you. God, we thank you that when we're in the middle of a storm, that you are carrying us through, and that we can rely on what you tell us and the promises that you give us. God, we thank you that when we're in the middle of a storm, and we see how you care about us, that we can lean on you and we can rely on you. God, we thank you that we care about you. God, we thank you that we have you, and that we are there for you. God, we thank you for the truth of your word, and that we can rely on what you tell us and the promises that you give us. God, we thank you that we can rely on you. Well, if I haven't had the chance to meet you yet, my name is Rachel, and I serve as one of the associate pastors here. And as an associate pastor I have the privilege of championing our next steps here at CCB. And one of my favorite next steps to watch people take is the step of serving. To watch them get connected and take that step of faith and obedience and watch what God does in and through them is incredible. And we have so many opportunities to serve. But I'm sure you're thinking, in a church this size, they don't need me. And nothing could be farther from the truth. We are in desperate need of the gifts

and the talents that you bring. Someone's life could be changed because you stepped up to serve today. But this isn't something that we want from you, this really is something that we want for you. I've seen so many people's lives changed, not even the ones that they're serving, but their own, as God continues to work in them through that. So if you're interested or you have questions, you can go to our website, ccv.church slash serve, or you can head out to our Next Step Center, and someone there would love to help you get connected and answer any questions you might have. This week we are going into the second week of our Esther series. And just a reminder, after every single message in this series this weekend, we will have prayer team available to pray with you. So maybe you're walking through a storm, maybe you're carrying something heavy, they would love the opportunity to pray alongside you for that. Or maybe it doesn't just have to be the heavy things, maybe you're celebrating that God has answered so many prayers for you. They would love to pray prayers of gratitude and thankfulness alongside you as well. And if you're joining us online, feel free to drop it in the chat,

we've got a team ready and willing to pray for you there as well. So as we go into this next week of Esther, Esther steps into some situations where she probably would not have chosen, but God uses her courage and her obedience in some really powerful ways. So pull out your CCV app or whatever you use to take notes, as our Senior Pastor Ashley brings another incredible message in week two of Esther, made for the moment. When his voice seems distant or the path is unclear, when the ground feels shaky or darkness drifts your way, you are not alone. Choose courage instead of doubt, trust instead of worry, God's purpose is unfolding. This is the calling. He is working and you, you were made for the moment. Have you ever felt like God was calling you to do something, but you had fear to step out and face it? Have you ever felt like God was calling you to do something, but you had fear to step out and faith and do it? What I've found is that almost every single time God has called me to take a step of faith, what I've found is faith and fear have gone hand in hand and I have to decide which one's gonna win. And of course, we want faith to win out over fear,

but they go together. I'll give you a couple examples from my life. Just going all the way back, I was 18 years old trying to decide where I was gonna go to college. And I felt like God was calling me to this Bible college in California. The only problem is I didn't know a single person there. I would go there all alone knowing no one and I can't tell you the amount of fear that just boiled up in me because I thought if this doesn't work out, I've got no one to fall back on. Like I'm all alone and I just had so much fear. Now some of you are like, well that's an 18 year old fear. But let's not discount. Listen, there are students in the room right now and people trying to decide what you wanna do with your life or which college you wanna go to and guys, that's a real fear. Like what if you mess it up? What does God want you to do? I'll take it a step further. When I was in the corporate world, which many of you know and spent time there and I was at this large tech company and I had a big salary and I had lots of stock options and everything was good. I was so comfortable and then God called. He asked me to leave all of that behind and go spend the rest of my life serving the local church and I can't tell you how much fear boiled up in me

and once again, like faith and fear went hand in hand and I had to decide, will I choose faith over fear? I wish I always did the right thing. I wish that I could tell you this was easy. Those are easy decisions. But I think one of the biggest misconceptions about the Christian faith is that if God's calling us to something and it's clear, then we shouldn't have much fear. That is not true. I haven't found that in my life. I can't find that in scripture. Almost every single man or woman that God calls to do something significant for him or even small for him, they have fear. I mean, I go back and look about Moses and Gideon and Joshua and Elijah and David and Peter and Paul and all the disciples. For sure, today, as we continue this series of Esther, what you are going to see so clearly, this is a big idea for today if you're taking notes, is that faith is not the absence of fear. It's obedience, even if, let me say it again, faith is not the absence of fear. You're going to have fear. It's just simply deciding to be obedient to God's calling, even if. And I believe that God wants to raise up a generation of Christians, in America specifically, that are even if Christians, amen? Like, that's what we need, is people that will risk it all and not fall prey to what our culture says or comfort, but say, God, I want to be an even if Christian. I want to have that kind of faith. And I believe God brought you here today because He is going to call you and give you something very specific today that's going to require an even if faith. And some of you already know what it is. But if you don't, I want to reveal just right up front that I've been praying all week long for you. And I want to pray right now that God would reveal to you whatever that step of faith is, and that you would say, I'm going to be an even if follower of

Jesus. Let's pray. God, I thank you for what we're going to experience today in the story of Esther. And I believe with everything inside of me, God, you brought someone here to speak into their life that it's time to write a new chapter with their life. And chapter one starts with they overcame their fear, and they chose obedience, even if. God, speak to us clearly and open our hearts. In Jesus' name, we all said, amen. Well, Mark Twain said so famously, courage is resistance to fear. Mastery of fear. It's not the absence of fear. So I want to show you from the story of Esther. Again, the faith is not the absence of fear. It's obedience even if. If you have a Bible, open to Esther chapter three. That's where we'll be today. Last week, we covered chapters one and most of chapter two. And as we come to chapter three today, let me remind you from last week that God chose Esther, a hero of the faith, this young woman, the most unlikely woman like you would think to be chosen. God chose her and put her in a very godless environment. And we said last week that, man, sometimes you can't see God where you're at or what he's doing. But even though God seems invisible in the moment, he will be undeniable in the outcome. And here we are in chapter three and there's already an undeniable outcome. Esther's become queen of the most powerful nation in the world at this time, Persia. Now, we pick up in chapter three and Esther's been queen for maybe up to five years at this point. And do you think living in the palace as queen of the most powerful nation in the world, she probably has some comforts? There's probably some good stuff going on. We're told later on that she has all these attendants and servants that care for her every need. And I'm thinking that, you know, it's five years. Like every month, you probably get a little more used to the comfort, a little more entitled. But God's moving in her life. He's made her queen. And not only Esther, but we find out that God's moving in her uncle Mordecai's life as well, who's kind of her mentor. And what we find at the end of chapter two is that Mordecai discovered a plot to kill the king of Persia, Xerxes, and he had two of the inner circle were going to kill him. Mordecai hears about it, goes to the king, reveals it, and he's kind of heroic now too. So God is moving in Mordecai and Esther's life. As we pick up chapter three, here's the first thing we're going to learn from Esther today. When God is moving, Satan is attacking. I've said this to our church over the past couple years because I want you to be prepared that anytime God is moving in your life, you have to expect opposition. You have an enemy, Satan, who wants to come after you and distract you or pull you away from whatever God is doing. And sometimes we think, well no, if God's in it, it should be fine. No, all throughout scripture, I can't find one person in scripture

that God's moving in their life that they don't experience opposition. And the same is true with us. The thing that you need to know is that what I found is that the way Satan will oppose you or bring opposition or try to attack you will be in ways that you would have never thought. It's like it comes out of left field. And that's what happens in Esther chapter three. Starting in verse one, it says this, after these events, what events, Esther's now queen, Mordecai, you know, reveals the plot to assassinate the king. And so he's kind of heroic. And it says this, then King Xerxes honored a man named Haman, son of Hamaditha, the Agite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles. So a man named Haman hits the scene, and he becomes elevated to the right hand of the king. He's the prime minister of modern-day Iran. This is where this is happening. So just picture this in your mind, okay? There's the prime minister of modern-day Iran, and it says this in the verse. It says that he's an Agite, okay? That's not a throwaway line. If you've read the Old Testament, the Agites are descendants of the Amalekites who all throughout the Old Testament hated God's people, the Jews. Hated them, wanted to annihilate them. So here we have the prime minister of modern-day Iran who hates the Jews and is going to want to annihilate them. Does that sound familiar to anybody else? History is always repeating itself. And so Haman's gonna rise up to oppose God's people here, and what we find next is that Haman's a narcissistic egomaniac. He decides that when he walks in the room

that everyone should bow down to him, and the king kind of gave this order, and he loves it. But, watch this, verse three, but Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. Why? Because Mordecai knows what we know as followers of Jesus. You don't bow to anyone or anything but God alone, amen? Like, that's what we're called to do. And you just need to know that when you live in a culture like we do even in America, culture wants you to bow down to other things and even ideologies outside of God and God's word. You know this. And who knows that we are called as followers of Jesus to say, I will bow to no one or no ideology. I will bow to God and his word alone. Like, that's who we are, right? Like, that's who we are. And so, this is Mordecai, right? He's like, I'm not gonna bow down. So, when you don't bow down in a culture that wants you to bow down to other things, you know what happens? The culture gets enraged. And watch what happens, verse five says, when Haman saw Mordecai would not bow down or pay him honor, he was enraged. So, what Haman decides to do is not just kill Mordecai, he decides, I'm gonna kill every single Jew in all of Persia.

And in an act of trickery, he gets King Xerxes to sign an edict that on one day in the future, they could annihilate and murder every single Jew. It's like a historic holocaust on one single day. And when Mordecai finds out about this, he's obviously broken. So, chapter four, verse one picks up. It says, when Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, he put on sackcloth and ashes. Now, we don't understand this, but in this day and age, this was a way of just grieving, of crying out to God and saying, God, I need you. I don't know what to do. Like, we are, we're in trouble. Now, while all this is happening, where is Esther? She's in the palace, remember? She's being pampered. And it says this, it says in verse four, then Esther's eunuchs and female attendants, who just care for her all day long, right? It says they came and told her about Mordecai and says she was in great distress, but I don't know how much distress she was really in because you know her response to Mordecai being such in grief? You know what she does? She tells her attendants to go shopping at Nordstrom and Lululemon to buy him a new outfit, some clothes. Like, literally, you think I'm joking, but seriously, this is, she decides

he just needs a new outfit. Watch this, watch what it says. She sent him clothes. This is her answer. You know how some of you, when things aren't going well, you turn to retail therapy? Do you know what I'm talking about? Some of you, when you're feeling like in a bad spot or life's just not going well, you go to the mall or you go shopping and you just need a new outfit. Like, that's gonna change everything. And retail therapy has been happening for over 2,500 years. I mean, Esther's like, just buy the guy a new outfit. I'm sure he'll feel a lot better, you know? Now, remember, where is Esther? I kind of like to put myself in the story when I read scripture because I want it to come alive, and we don't know this for sure, but this is how I picture kind of Esther. I picture her just living a life of comfort and luxury. Everyone's caring for her. She has everything pampered, all of her needs being met, and Mordecai's crying out to her, and I don't know, I picture her being like, send him some clothes, you know? I don't even know why I use that accent, but it's just what I think about when you're like living the high life, you know? And for a lot of us.

As Americans, especially, this is kind of the American dream, isn't it? Can I modernize it for us? It looks something like this. Like, this is what a lot of us kind of live our life for. We think this is the goal. This is when life gets good. I'll give you an example. Jamie and I have never done, like, an all-inclusive resort before. Some of you probably have. And so last year, some people were telling us about it, and we're like, so we went. We took us and our kids to the first all-inclusive resort we'd ever been to last year, and we went down to Mexico. And it wasn't even that expensive. But when you show up, like, everything's paid for. And I'm just telling you, for a few days, what Jamie and I did, we literally sat on the beach in these, like, lounge recliners, and then everybody just pampers you and puts you in the life of, like, comfort. They're like, Mr. and Mrs. Wooldridge, what would you like? Would you like some fruit? Would you like some food? What would you like? I mean, everything. They just pamper you. And we got about a couple days in, and I started to think, this is it. This is living. Like, this is arriving. And this is kind of what a lot of us live our lives for. We live our lives for comfort, whether it's the next vacation, or it's the next upgrade to our house, or it's the next home, or it's the next vacation home, or it's the next purchase, or the next car.

We just live our lives for comfort. And I'm just picturing that Mordecai's, like, crying out. He says, Esther, I need help. And she's like, send him an outfit. And Mordecai replies, I don't need an outfit. We're getting ready to be annihilated. And then he sends Esther the edict from the king that says that all the Jews will be murdered on one day. And you know what Esther's response is to him? He says, I want you to go to the king and just beg him for mercy. And Esther says this, nah, I don't think so. Why? Maybe this. I mean, of course she's afraid, because it says, she says, if I go before the king in that culture, if you approach the king without being summoned, you could be killed. But could you imagine her sitting in an environment like this, thinking, I gotta go risk my life and risk all this? I don't think so, Mordecai. Good luck. This is literally what she says. Don't miss what's happening. God is placing a call on Esther's life. He's gonna reveal to Esther, I didn't put you in the palace for your comfort. I put you in the palace for my purposes and a calling on your life. And Esther, you gotta decide between the comfort you're in and the calling I have for your life. And here's the second thing we learn from Esther. God's calling and your comfort rarely coexist. God's calling, come on, and your comfort, what so many of us are after, that rarely coexists.

And so Mordecai says, you gotta help because there's people everywhere that are gonna die. You gotta do something. And guess what? We have a similar calling. Because right now there are people all around us that are dying because they don't have Jesus and if they literally die tomorrow, they would live with a Christless eternity. That's not okay. That should break our hearts more than anything else. And we are called to go before our King and pray and then ask God to use our lives to impact everyone around us in our spheres of influence so they can find Jesus and they can find the hope that we have. That's our calling. And I just want you to know that your calling and your comfort, they rarely coexist because God wants to get us out of our comfort zones and make a difference with our life to live for something more than just us. When did that become like the American dream? We've got it all wrong. This life is so short and it has to be lived for more than just us. And you know where you can't like execute your calling? You know where you're not going to live your calling? Chasing your comfort. Chasing the next thing or vacation. Like those are fine. Like getting on vacation and relaxing. Those are good things. But those are just to fill us back up so we can get back on mission. That's not the mission. Do you know the call on your life? and your calling? And some of us are like, I'm not sure, I don't.

Like we're waiting for something really specific, and God may have something specific for you, but can I tell you God's already given you your calling? Your calling is the exact same mission as Jesus. Jesus said his mission on this earth was to seek and save the lost, period. And that is our mission as well, to not get to the end of our life on our deathbed and realize our lives were not lived for the purpose that matters. The only purpose that matters, which is winning people to Jesus for eternity. And man, we just gotta get out of our comfort zones. Like I have to get out of my comfort zones at times. It's just so easy to chase comfort. And if that makes you feel a little uncomfortable, good! Good! One of my mentors, John Maxwell, said, everything you want in life is outside of your comfort zone. And if you wanna live a life of purpose, I'm just telling you, your calling and comfort rarely coexist. I have a friend named Matt who attends our Peoria campus, and I've got to know him over the years, and his story is one in which he had all the comforts. He kinda had all the financial stuff going on. I mean, life was good. And then God came calling, and Matt found that there's a deeper calling than just his comfort.

Watch this. So my faith was growing. My family and I were attending church regularly, and I was in the Word consistently. And all along, you know, God's blessing my business. As a financial advisor, we're growing. When I'm in the study of God's Word, I'm seeing his call in my life. He was calling me to live differently. And around that time, I started getting exposed to missions and God's global plan. As I started researching all of that, a question kept coming up that I just couldn't shake, is how can I keep living like this, knowing that there's literally billions of people around the world who've never even heard of Jesus and do nothing about it? And I realized that my faith was pretty comfortable. And so I started taking steps. We went to Rocky Point on a couple of mission trips, and then to Central America, and I saw amazing work being done in the name of Jesus. But every time I came back, that question was front and center again. What about those that have never heard? And so I was scheduled to go to Haiti on a trip. I get a call from the coordinator, and she says, hey, the team that you're about to travel with, they're backing out, they can't make it, so we're gonna have to cancel this trip or reschedule it.

And I hung up that phone, and I'm gonna be honest, I sat in that moment, I was a little frustrated with God. Over the next couple of days, through some prayer, through some reflection, I had been talking to some missionaries over in Nepal and India, and I thought, you know what, maybe I'm supposed to go and see them. So I reach out to them and say, I know there's not a lot of notice here, but if I come, will you show me around what God's doing? They both said yes, and everybody thought I was crazy. But if it doesn't require some faith, is it me or is it God? And so we get to Nepal, and one day, we're out in this remote village amongst some of the poorest of the poor. This clean water well's just been drilled and installed, and the whole community's come out to gather around as this pastor celebrates this well, and he dedicates it. And to see the joy on their faces when they're pumping that well for the first time, but then to see the pastor and the platform that it gives to this local pastor, and he's sharing Jesus with them, and they're all gathered around, leaning in, listening, and I'm just like, man, this is what it's about. Like, in that moment, I got a vision for it's not just about the water. It's about the water providing a pathway to the gospel going to where it's never been before.

In those persecuted countries, like in Nepal and India, it's illegal for someone to convert to a different faith. They could be in jail at any moment. They could be killed for their faith. They're beaten for their faith regularly. It shows me how valuable Jesus is, but it's given me an appreciation for how bold they are, first and foremost, and what they're willing to risk for their faith. At times, it's felt like a lot of pressure on me. I'm the guy who's running this organization, and is that on me if something happens? And I've been at peace that this is God's ministry, not mine, right? And He's gonna do His will through it, and it's just my responsibility to be obedient. But experiencing Him in a different culture, in a different context, with different languages and people groups, there's nothing like it. Imagine being born in a place. place where you're born, you live your entire life, and you pass away, and you never hear the name of Jesus. And that's the reality of over 3 billion people today. If you have the opportunity and those barriers are there, just trust the Lord and take that step. You're going to look back on it and go, that was one of the most important and valuable things I've done this year. We thank Matt for his faith. You know what I love about Matt's story is that he had

comfort, but he chose a calling. And listen, your calling is most likely not to go start a ministry overseas, but you know what it might be? It might be to get on a mission trip. Many of you have never taken that step, and I want to challenge you in the next year to sign up for a mission trip. You can get on our website. We have hundreds of mission trips at CCV, local, some near, some really far. And I'm just telling you, there's little you can do that will get you out of your comfort zone in the best possible way for God to just speak to you than get on a mission trip. In fact, Jamie and I next week are going to leave on a mission trip to go visit one of our missionaries, and we're going to spend time with pastors who are pastoring in some of the most godless countries in the world today. And I'm excited to pour into them and teach to them, but more importantly, I'm excited for them to get me out of my comfort zone, to realize that there's more going on globally, and what do we need to do? And there's so many ways that you can take steps of faith around here. It doesn't have to be a mission trip. Some of you, it's just to start serving. Like it's time to start using your life for something more than just you. Or maybe it's making a job change that God's going to call some of you to. Or some of you, it's just going to be to do something

financially that feels like a big risk. Some of you, it may even be to just really start sharing your faith more. And again, if that conjures up fear, whatever you feel like God's calling you to right now, that's good. Because faith isn't the absence of fear. It's obedience even if. And when we get back to the story, what we're going to see out of Esther is she's going to have her even if moment. This is one of the most epic passages of scripture, I think, in the Bible. So let God speak to you. Here's what happens. It says Esther 4 verse 12. Then Esther's words were reported back to Mordecai when she said, no, I can't help. Sorry. I like the comfort and I don't want to risk it all. He sends back, he sent back this answer. Do not think that because you're in the king's house and all that comfort you've got, that you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And then he says this, and who knows? Who knows, Esther, but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this. Who knows if God wants you to risk it all,

and you were put there not for your comfort, but for a calling and a purpose for such a time as this. And CCB, you have been put in your position and where you are today for such a time as this as well. And it's not for your benefit, it's to use your life for God's purposes. And Esther finally gets it. So what she says next is, then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai, Mordecai, go gather together all the Jews who are in Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. In other words, we have to pray. We have to pray for what God wants to do. And then she says this, when this is done, I will go to the king even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish. That's an even if kind of faith. It's one of the most bold acts of faith in all of Scripture. Someone saying, I was made for such a time as this. And I'm going to take a step of faith that requires me to move beyond my fear. And I will do it even if. And you want to know what happens next in Esther's life? You got to come back next week, all right? It's amazing, but we're not done today. Because the third thing we learned from the life of Esther, and this is going to be the takeaway for someone today, is the outcome is in God's hands. Obedience is in ours. Come on. We get so wrapped up in the outcome.

What's gonna happen, and what if? And what if I lose my job? What if I look dumb? What if this fails? What if, what if, what if, what if? And what God wants you to know is stop. If God's calling you to something, listen to me, the outcome is in God's hands, and obedience is in ours. And God's just looking for a what if obedience, just take a step of faith. And I just wonder what step of obedience God is calling you to today. And what's your what if? Can we be honest? Are what ifs pale in comparison to Esther's, and most Christians around the world today? I mean, you heard from that life story, there's Christians that are telling people about Jesus that if they convert, they can lose their life. But that's the case across the world today, and we just forget it, because we live in America. Let me give you an example, February 15th, 2015. ISIS militants kidnapped 21 Christians in Libya. And some of you may have seen this. They marched them onto a beach, and filming them, they said, we are going to behead you if you don't renounce your faith in Jesus. And all they had to do was say the name Allah, and say, I no longer believe in Jesus.

And you guys, every single one of these 21 Christians was beheaded on film. And on the tape, as they are getting ready to be beheaded, all of them are speaking the name of Jesus. Of Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. And the reason that gets me so emotional is I put myself in their shoes, and I think, would I have the even if kind of faith to do the same thing? And you guys, I want to believe that I would, and I pray to God that we have a church that would never renounce the name of Jesus, ever, even if. Now listen, I don't tell that story to discount whatever fears you have to what God's calling you to. Because listen, you have your fears, and they're not illegitimate. They're very real. But what God is calling us to today is an even if faith. A faith that's not the absence of fear, but it's just obedience, even if. Do you realize that life always requires faith over fear? I mean, think about it, every day you make this decision. I mean, when you board an airplane, do you understand that's an act of faith? You've never met the pilot, you don't know the pilot, you are not in control at all. And you know what most of us still do?

We get in the seat, we put on the seatbelt, and we say, even if, go! And I just think it's interesting that a lot of us trust Southwest Airlines a whole lot more than we do the God of the universe that has called us to something and has promised us that he will never leave us, he will never forsake us. I mean, it's an act of faith to get in your car in the CCV parking lot after the service, right? It's like, go, you know? So what I wanna do for just a few minutes is I wanna get you a little or a lot uncomfortable because your comfort in God's calling rarely coexist. So I'm gonna ask you right now to just think in your mind, what is God calling you to that will take a step of faith that requires an even if obedience? What is it for you? And for a lot of us, here's what it is. It's that we start living our lives to share Jesus with everyone around us. Like, who's the last person you've invited to church? Who's the last time that you've just talked to a coworker or a neighbor about your story and about what Jesus has done in your life? And you're like, what if I look dumb? What if I lose a friend? What if I lose a promotion? It's an even if obedience. Do you understand what hangs in the balance?

But as I've been praying for all of you this week, at my desk, I just asked God, I said, God, what would be some even if types of obedience? And I'm just gonna read you what I felt like he pressed on my heart. And if this is you, just know this is God speaking to you. For some of you, your even if obedience is to finally choose to get married. baptized, because you've held off. And here's the thing, you've got all your what ifs. I don't know if I'm worthy enough. I don't know if I'm, if you believe in Jesus Christ and want him to be your Lord, when you see someone decide to follow Jesus in scripture, there is never a delay with baptism. It happens right then. And your delayed obedience is disobedience. And let me just throw it out for who this is for. Your what if with baptism is if I get baptized and my family find out or my friends find out, they may disown me. And that's real for some of you. And I'm just calling you out and saying, do you wanna be obedient to God or to someone else? The outcome is in God's hands. Obedience is in yours. Others of you, here's your what if. You are dating someone right now. Some of you, this is the person you're gonna marry. You might even be engaged.

Here's what you know. You know it's not a God honoring relationship. And it scares you to death to break up with that person. I mean, that is like the most fearful thing in your life. And yet, you know it's the right thing to do. And I'm gonna call you to have an even if kind of faith. I met Amber last weekend and Amber came up to me and she was in this situation. And months ago, she broke up with someone she was convinced she was marrying. And here's what she told me. She said, all these months later, I have never had so much peace. And now she's trusting God to bring the right person. And I can guarantee you, he will with that kind of faith. Others of you, your what if is your finances. Economically right now, things may feel insecure. There's inflation or maybe the businesses aren't going as well. And you've decided that that's your opportunity to not give or to not tithe and not bring the first back to God. And it feels very natural to you because you have so much fear around your finances. I just want you to know that the one area of your life that God invites you to test him, this is the only area, is with your finances. And it's gonna take an even if obedience for you to finally experience the blessings of God. Because you'll never experience the blessings of God

without being obedient to God. And God makes it really clear that every single time we get paid, we bring the first back to him so he can bless the rest. And you'll never know the blessings of God until you finally take that act of faith. So I'm calling someone, you need to start today. I don't care what fear you have, you start honoring God with your finances. Because why? The outcome is in God's hands. Obedience is in yours, you trust him. Others of you, you know, you have a job change, you need to take it. God told me there's some of you that you need to stay put. Some of you, you need to go on a mission trip. You need to make that decision, get over the fear, get over how will the finances work out. God will provide. Others of you need to take a step to go into full-time ministry. I don't know who that is, I'm just saying it. Others of you, you've thought about adopting a child and it scares you to death, they're doing foster care. And God's just calling you to take that step of faith, obedience, even if there's someone watching online right now and you're all alone and you're isolated in your house. And the reason you stay there is because showing up to a campus, being around people, that kind of scares you. You've got some anxiety there.

And God doesn't want you alone, isolated. That is not how you grow. So if you live near a CCB campus, I'm challenging you, you reach out to our online team, we'll help you get connected. Someone will meet you on the campus, show you around, make sure you're not alone. Take that step of faith. There's a student here today. You have the wrong group of friends and you know it. And it scares you to death to make a change. Listen, you can't live the right life with the wrong friends. So you take a step of faith and you watch God bring the right group of friends along. Others of you parents here today, you've still not signed your kids up for camp and you've got all the what ifs, you've got the fears. Will they be safe? Will they find friends? I don't know if we can afford it. Listen, put your excuses aside because your fears are gonna keep your student away from growing in their faith. There's hardly anything you can do to help your student grow in their faith more than getting them to camp. And if finances are an issue, let us know. We will help. But I'm just saying God wants to call someone

to an even if obedience. Otherwise you'll never. or experience the miracles and blessings God has for you, most importantly, you'll miss out on your calling and God's purpose. I want everyone here to just close your eyes for a minute. As your eyes are closed, let me just ask, what is God calling you to? What fear do you need to overcome? And whatever that is, remember, faith isn't the absence of fear. It's obedience, even if. I believe God's asking you right now to have an even if kind of faith. And sure, you're gonna experience opposition because when God's moving, Satan's attacking. But remember, God's calling and your comfort rarely coexist. The outcome is in God's hands. Obedience is in yours. So I wanna pray right now that God gives you an even if obedience to him. God, I pray for the person here today whose heart is beating because they know exactly what you're calling them to. And big or small, God, the way you can write a new story in their life to finally have purpose and peace and meaning. Chapter one in their life is written this way. They overcame their fear and they took a step of faith,

even if. God, give us courage, whatever you're saying to us as a church, as people, as followers of Jesus to take whatever that step of faith is. And God, would you bless it the way you always do when we're obedient? We pray this in Jesus' name. We all said, amen. Hey, if you need prayer for that step of faith, we have a prayer team right up front. We'll see you back next week for Made for the Moment. Thank you. Thank you, thank you. Thank you, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, baby. Thank you, thank you. Thank you. Thank you, boy, thank you. Thank you Thank you, baby. Thank you. Thank you, thank you Thank you, baby, thank you Thank you Thank you, Jesus. Thank you. Thank you, Baby. Thank you, Jesus.

Thank you, Jesus.