GOD IS GREAT

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

Welcome to the Awakening Church Podcast. We pray this message encourages you and provides the hope and light of Jesus Christ. Thanks for tuning in.

SPEAKER_2 (0:21)

We live in strange times, don't we?

Yeah.

We live in uncertain times, we live in turbulent times, we live in transient times.

It just feels like the world is moving faster and faster. AI is raising the questions about the future of work, how we live, what does it even mean to be human? And we're trying to navigate all of this while just figuring out our own lives.

Works, school, dating, marriage, kids, future. Life is becoming increasingly confusing and complex.

Got a little confession for you. I've been loving trees lately. I know, hard right turn, there you go. And one clapper in the front for the trees.

It may be because I'm getting older, and that's just something that happens. I don't know. This is my first time getting older. So it's like, maybe that's just part of it. You start to love trees more. But I think it's because like, when you begin to look in God's word and how often he uses trees to describe our spiritual life and what he wants to do in you, you begin to look at him differently. You know, Psalm 1 describes the flourishing life, like a tree planted by streams of water. I lived across the street from a park. Every morning, I wake up and I have like my coffee and my time with Jesus at my kitchenette, and I just look at the park. There's these beautiful, mature redwood and oak trees. This is one of those trees. This is an incredibly awesome oak tree. It's filled, the park is filled with these.

There's something like majestic, breathtaking about a mature tree. Like, it's strength, it's beauty, it's presence. And this tree, like, if you got up close, if you show up to my house and you're welcome and go across streets of the park, like you would say, like, it's seen some things.

I wonder how many seasons it's been through. How many storms it's weathered or years of drought. It's endured. And yet it's still standing, still growing, still giving life. It's so deeply rooted that whatever comes its way, it can face with confidence.

But if we're honest, most of us don't feel like this sturdy, mighty oak tree. We kind of feel like this little ginkgo tree.

I purchased this a few weeks ago because we're trying to plant a couple of trees in the front of our house. This ginkgo tree has had a rough go already. Like literally this morning, I was loading it into my car and I broke a branch on it. And it's droopy, trying to keep it alive, you know. I'm trying to use it as an illustration and keep it alive to plant. The branches are broken off. It's easily shaken. It's in this pot, and so it's like, man, I can shake it. If a strong wind comes, it's just going to knock it over. If a heat wave hits like today, it will wither and die. And honestly, I think we probably feel a whole lot more like this little ginkgo tree, easily shaken than the oak tree. In fact, when we hear words like rooted, resilient, strong, you're gonna be like, honestly, I'm just trying to make it through the week without getting knocked over.

And yet, we long, there's this long, this hope. How do you like experience this rooted, resilient, established life? The question we're asking throughout this series is, how do we become a deeply rooted people in a transient world? Our prayer for awakening, our prayer for you, for us, is that God would establish us as a strong, mature, life-giving church for generations to come. And so we're embarking on a six-week series together called Rooted. Would you say that with me? Rooted. Oh God, I was nervous. I wasn't sure how I was gonna go. You did great. Rooted, yes, rooted. And this is more than a series for us at Awakening. This is actually a new season God is inviting us in to as a church. That's why you have this book, this Rooted Guidebook. Would you grab it? It's on your chairs. Grab it, pick it up. I wanna take some moments before we dive in to the sermon to walk you through this, because this is significant. This matters. And if you would open your guidebook up to the very first page, it says, this book belongs to. Write your name in it. This is beautiful. It's got great content to help you grow. And we spent money on it, so value it. This book belongs to, and if you flip the next page, you'll see the table of contents. I just wanna walk you through what you can find and expect. You'll notice that down on week one sermon notes, page 16, you're gonna see there's sermon notes, there's daily devotional, and there's small group curriculum. Bring this book with you every week. This will take place for our notes and bulletin every week. We're gonna have this for six weeks. There's a place for you to take notes, and then at the end of the sermon, there's reflection questions, so you can begin to apply and put into practice the very things that we're talking about and learning together. Then you'll notice there's a daily devotional. To get into God's word regularly each day, whether it's in the morning or over lunch or before bed, keep this guidebook somewhere where you can see it and use it, and then small group curriculum. All of us are going through this together. If you're not in a small group, get in one. Join one. There's a table right outside. The delkis are there. They would love to meet you. And if you're like, I don't know if I could commit to a small group, that seems a little intimidating. That's okay. We have a class starting tomorrow, rooted, and it's six weeks, and you just commit to six weeks. Just go like, okay, I can join Mondays at, I think it's seven o'clock, at our offices. Join us there. Okay, so what exactly is rooted? Well, let me tell you. Rooted is a season of us deepening our faith and preparing a ministry home for the mission God has entrusted to us. Now, there's two parts to this journey. First, rooted is a six weeks teaching series through Psalm 90 We want to long to be a rooted people in a transient world. Psalm 90 is a prayer of Moses. It's the oldest Psalm that we have in the Book of Psalms. It's attributed to Moses, the great leader and liberator of the people of Israel. Moses knew what it was like to lead a people on the move toward a future home, setting up and tearing down not just the tent of tabernacles and the tent of meetings, but their houses and everything else, wandering through the wilderness, constant change, living with uncertainty about what tomorrow would bring. He knew what it meant to lead a transient people who needed to be rooted in an unchanging God. It's a timely psalm for our world and for us, because we're asking a very similar question they're asking. How do you live rooted when everything around us keeps changing? So over the next six weeks, we're going to dive into the Psalm 90 together, and we're going to look at how do we become rooted in his presence. That's today. Next week, rooted in eternity, rooted in holiness, rooted in wisdom, rooted in mercy, and then rooted for generations. Our prayer is that we become so deeply rooted in God, grow strong in our faith, and that our lives would bear fruit for generations to come. And part of the way God deepens our roots is by calling us to take a step of faith. And Rooted is also a two-year generosity initiative to prepare and secure a permanent ministry home, a rooted people in a transient world, and a place of rootedness in a transient world. To fill the mission God has entrusted to us, we need more than a Sunday gathering space. We need a permanent ministry home where people can belong, be formed, put down roots, a place where we can gather through the week, grow as disciples, and be equipped to carry the love of Jesus to Silicon Valley and beyond. A home that helps us live out our mission to awaken this generation to new life in Christ. And here's what I love. We get to help prepare a place for people we haven't yet met. People will discover Jesus, families who will find community, kids who will grow up knowing they are loved by God and have a place in his family. Rooted in Silicon Valley for this generation, we are for this generation and for generations to come. Okay, now that you got the lay of the land, let's get into this rooted journey. You ready? You with me?