29 in your pew Bibles.
After the uproar ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them, he
said farewell and departed for Macedonia.
When he had gone through those regions and had given them much encouragement, he came
to Greece.
There he spent three months, and when a plot was made against him by the Jews as he was
about to sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia.
Sopater, the Berean, son of Pyrrhus, accompanied him, and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus
and Secundus, and Gaius of Derbe and Timothy, and the Asians, Tychicus and Trophimus.
These went on ahead and were waiting for us at Troas, but we sailed away from Philippi
after the days of unleavened bread, and in five days we came to them at Troas, where we stayed
for seven days.
On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked
with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.
There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered, and a young man named Eutychus,
sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer.
And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead.
But Paul went down and bent over him, and taking him in his arms, said, Do not be alarmed,
for his life is in him.
And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while
until daybreak, and so departed.
And they took the youth away alive, and were not a little comforted.
But going ahead to the ship, we set sail for Assos, intending to take Paul aboard there,
for so he had arranged, intending himself to go by land.
And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and went to Mytilene.
And sailing from there, we came the following day opposite Chios, the next day we touched
at Samos, and the day after that we went to Miletus.
For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he might not have to spend time in Asia,
for he was hastening to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost.
Well, Christians need encouragement.
I don't know about you, but there are a multitude of things that can easily weigh us down,
distract us, confuse us, intimidate us, divide us, steal our joy, undermine our hope,
and weaken our faith in the Lord.
Maybe it's the feeling that you are alone.
Perhaps you're new here in New Haven.
Maybe you're working in a busy, advancement-driven environment,
and you go home at night to a quiet but empty apartment,
and you wonder how long it will take or whether you will ever find true friends here.
Maybe you've been here for a long time,
but some of your closest brothers and sisters in Christ have left town and scattered across the world,
and you feel weary of the revolving door syndrome.
Or maybe you're growing older,
and with every funeral you attend,
your circle of family and friends becomes gradually smaller.
Or maybe it's the pressures of the world that weigh you down.
Maybe you're wrestling with questions and doubts that you haven't had to face previously.
Perhaps you're surrounded by people who are smarter and seem more accomplished than you
and seem happy and content,
with no need or expressed desire for God,
who seem perhaps vaguely respectful toward you,
but inwardly dismissive of Christian beliefs.
Or maybe you live in the midst of chaos.
Maybe in your family or your neighborhood or your workplace,
there's pervasive gossip, rivalry, addiction, deception, manipulation, backstabbing,
and you're tempted to become entangled in some of these toxic patterns.
Maybe you've become disillusioned with the church.
Sometimes conflict in the church is the most discouraging,
because as Christians we sort of expect to have trouble in the world,
but we know that Christians are called to rise to a higher standard.
And when we don't, when our sinful natures express themselves,
we can easily become deflated or embittered or distant from one another.
Well, I could go on and on, but I think the point is clear.
Christians need encouragement.
And that's what this morning's passage is about.
It's about encouragement from God for us individually and for us as a church.
It's about how we can participate in actively encouraging one another.
Verses 1 to 12 in particular are bookended by references to encouragement.
Verses 1 and 2 talk about how Paul encouraged the disciples at Ephesus
and then in the region of Macedonia.
Verse 12, after Paul raised Eutychus from the dead, it said the people were not a little comforted.
That's actually the same word that's translated encouragement earlier on or encouraged earlier on.
Now, this word encouragement has a broad range of meaning.
Mostly, I think we tend to think of it in terms of comforting or assuring or consoling someone.
It can also mean exhorting or even warning someone against potential future dangers.
But both of these together, the word encouragement, it's as if a coach is speaking to their team
and urging on the runners to finish their race well.
And so, whether it's a warning or a word of comfort, it's a word that motivates us to press on toward the goal of following Jesus Christ.
So, this morning, I want to look at not just the reasons that we need encouragement,
but three ways that God provides encouragement for those of us who follow Jesus.
The first way that God provides encouragement is through community,
through Christians spending time and sharing resources together.
And what we see in this passage is that the Apostle Paul went to great lengths to spend time in person with God's people.
Verse 1, he was in Ephesus, and there had just been a riot.
If you were here last week, Pastor Matt talked about that.
It says, after the uproar ceased, it doesn't say Paul immediately ran out of town.
It says he sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them, he said farewell and departed.
He very intentionally stayed in a city where there had been this furious uproar.
But before he left, he wanted to speak to the disciples and encourage them to persevere.
Then verse 2, he went through Macedonia and gave them much encouragement.
Most scholars believe that this verse 2 actually refers to a period of one or two years.
Paul refers to some of his travels in this period in 2 Corinthians chapter 2 and chapter 7.
And then it says he spent three more months in Greece, and then he returned through Macedonia again.
He spent a lot of time traveling around, and his main purpose was to encourage the Christian believers in these different places.
For much of Acts chapter 16 through 19, we've seen Paul traveling around and preaching the gospel
and planting churches in cities where none had previously existed.
But in this chapter, he changes his focus.
He goes back around to those same cities where he had planted new churches,
and he spends time with these believers, encouraging them and building them up.
You know, Paul wasn't just concerned about preaching the gospel to as many people as possible,
as quickly as possible, as extensively as possible.
He was also concerned that these people who had come to believe the good news of Jesus
would grow and go on to maturity.
And so we invested this time, this probably a two-year period in this chapter,
encouraging these Christian believers.
Now, we see not only the Apostle Paul, but also ordinary Christians spending extended time together.
In verse 7 through 12, between…
Verse 1 through 6 sort of focuses on Paul's travels,
and then 13 through 16 again focuses on Paul's travels.
But in the middle sandwiched between those two sections,
we get a little insight, a glimpse into one particular Christian community,
the one at Troas.
And verse 7 says,
they met on the first day of the week, that is, on Sunday.
Now, in the pagan Roman Empire, most people had to work on Sunday.
Sunday was not normally a day off.
And so Christians would either meet very early in the morning, sometimes before sunrise,
or in this case here, in the evening, after work.
And Luke tells us they gathered together to break bread.
And that phrase was a common expression for sharing a meal together.
The Christians didn't just meet in a building, hear somebody talk,
and then go their own separate ways.
It seems that every week they sat down and shared a meal together.
As an expression of mutual trust and love,
they were treating each other like family, like close friends.
And this was the common practice of the early Christians in several places.
Acts 2 talks about the Christians in Jerusalem who broke bread in their own homes.
1 Corinthians 11 refers to a common meal that Christians in Corinth routinely share together.
And it was in this context of regularly sharing meals together
and sitting around a table and spending extended and both formal and informal time together
that Christians also celebrated what we now call the Lord's Supper.
1 Corinthians 11 also talks about this.
Share eating bread and drinking from a cup to remember Jesus' death and resurrection
and to celebrate His ongoing presence with them by His Holy Spirit.
So the Lord's Supper wasn't just a time where individuals connected with God.
It was celebrated in the context of a community of people
who were committed to each other and sharing their lives with each other.
So just imagine, right, at the end of a tiring day of work in Troas,
which was a port city where people were constantly coming and going,
Christians found refuge and joy in gathering together.
And they were reminded as they gathered together,
they were reminded of their true identity,
that it wasn't just whatever work they had done throughout the day,
but they were God's beloved people,
welcomed into His household, empowered by His Spirit,
and provided for by their loving Heavenly Father.
And so they were encouraged.
Christians spent time together,
and they also shared their resources with one another.
Verse 4, interestingly,
tells us that Paul was accompanied by seven other guys
from five different cities.
And in verse 5,
Luke seems to include himself in the mix
because the pronouns turn from they to we.
So it seems that Luke also joined them,
and Luke may have been from Philippi,
which would have been a six-different city.
Now you wonder,
well, why does Paul have this group of people
that seem to be randomly mentioned as traveling with him?
Luke doesn't tell us here why they were together,
but we learn later in Acts, Acts 24, 17,
and also more extensively from 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 and Romans 15,
we learn that at this time,
Paul was in the process of collecting a large amount of money
from the churches throughout Macedonia and Greece.
And the reason he was collecting a large amount of money
is because the Christians in Jerusalem,
the Jewish Christians,
were going through a time of extreme financial hardship.
And so Paul wanted to collect a generous gift
to support these brothers and sisters.
And it was a sign of solidarity
between the Gentile churches scattered throughout the Roman world
and the Jewish Christians back in Jerusalem
where it all began.
And it was a generous gift that showed the unity of the church
across geographical boundaries
and across ethnic and national boundaries.
And so most likely,
this team of guys in verse 4
were a team of representatives from different churches
who were going together
to deliver this gift to Jerusalem.
Because as we'll see,
this is where Paul's going.
Luke gives us a lot of the stops along the way,
but he's heading to Jerusalem,
and he gets there in the next chapter,
in chapter 21.
So these Christians were spending time together,
and they were sharing their resources with one another.
Now, what can we take away from these examples?
You know, this passage doesn't give us rules
for how or when or where we should gather
for weekly Christian worship services.
But it does give us a glimpse into what I think is an attractive community.
So let me say two things.
I want to say, first, it's worth it
to gather together in person
with other believers.
Now, I know it's not always easy.
Maybe, you know,
it wasn't easy for you to get here this morning.
Paul had to travel long distances
to meet with believers in different cities.
The Christians in Troas had to work all day
and then meet in the evening.
That's probably why Eutychus fell asleep, by the way.
Eutychus was a common name for a slave.
And he had probably spent all day,
I don't know, loading ships in the port
or working in the field
under the sweating in the hot sun.
And then he was listening to Paul talk for hours
in a hot and stuffy room.
No wonder he fell asleep.
We'll get back to him later.
The point is, it's worth it to spend time together.
Even if you're tired.
Even if you have to travel some distance.
Even if coming to church delays
your kid's regular nap schedule
one day a week.
Even if there is disorder and rioting in the city
like there was in Ephesus.
It's worth it.
Because when we come together,
God encourages us.
We're reminded that we're not alone.
God has called us to himself
and God has called us into his family.
And so I want to encourage you.
Take advantage of the opportunities
to not only come on Sunday
and listen to the message
and participate as we sing and pray together
but also to connect informally with one another.
As the Christians did
by sharing a meal every week in Troas.
Stay for fellowship hour
or come to the picnic in the park today
or join a small group
that meet either here in the building
or in people's homes during the week.
Christian community takes time to develop.
It can't be rushed.
And so that's why it's worth it
to spend time together.
And yet it's as we spend time together
and as we encourage one another
that God builds us up
and strengthens us
for the challenges that we're facing.
So it's worth it to gather in person
with other believers.
It's worth it to share our resources
with other Christians more broadly.
And we have some great opportunities
to do that as well.
That's why we're supporting
the New London Church Plant
and wanting to send this group
of believers off
as they prepare to launch a church
in the next few months
by praying for them,
by investing in them personally,
and by giving generously to them.
That's why we have ongoing partnership
with missionaries
and campus workers like Laura
and missionaries like Hannah Massad
who's coming next week.
And there's all kinds
of other opportunities
that we'll be sharing
in the coming weeks
about how we can share resources together
with other churches in New Haven,
with other churches throughout the world,
and how we can learn to give
to one another
and receive from one another.
And that's one way
that God builds us up
and encourages us.
So God encourages us
through community.
That's the first thing.
Second, God encourages us
through His Word.
Verse 2 says,
Paul went through the regions
and gave them much encouragement.
Literally, it could be translated,
some other translations
say something like this,
having encouraged them
with many words.
Specifically mentions words.
And words are some
of the most powerful means,
well, both of cutting people down
as well as building people up.
And in this passage,
we see three forms
of encouragement through word.
First, we see preaching
or teaching,
public teaching.
Verse 7 says,
Paul prolonged his speech
until midnight.
He didn't,
it seemed like he didn't
do this routinely,
the all-night preaching marathon,
but he intended to depart
the next morning.
He had one night,
so he took advantage of it.
And he wanted the people
to get the most out of it.
In the second half of this chapter,
we have another example
of one of Paul's speeches,
which we'll look at
in a couple,
in two weeks,
where he's encouraging
and exhorting the elders
of the church in Ephesus.
Paul was committed
to faithfully preaching
and teaching the Word of God
because he believed
that God would change
people's lives through it.
Isaiah 55 says,
For as the rain and the snow
come down from heaven
and do not return there,
but water the earth,
making it bring forth
and sprout,
bringing seed to the sower
and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be
that goes out from my mouth.
It shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish
that which I purpose,
and it shall succeed
in the thing for which
I sent it.
And you know,
at Trinity,
we really believe this.
That's why the sermon
is a central part
of our worship service.
It's not the only important thing
that we do on Sunday,
but it's central
because we believe
that God works
through the preaching
of His Word.
So come
and prayerfully expect
God to be at work
when we hear from His Word.
Praise God
that He uses something
so ordinary
as spoken words
to enliven our faith
and strengthen our hope
and motivate our love.
You know,
if you're looking
for a new church,
let me urge you,
find a church
where the pastor
and the leaders
believe
that God changes
people's lives
through His Word
faithfully proclaimed
and applied
in the power
of the Holy Spirit.
But, you know,
it's not
only preaching
that God uses
to change people.
It's also conversation
and dialogue.
The words used
to describe Paul's teaching,
he talked with them,
verse 7,
he conversed with them,
verse 11,
they don't only refer
to sermons
or speeches.
In many contexts,
they can refer
to dialogue
and discussion.
And so,
Paul certainly
spent time
preaching
and proclaiming
the Word,
but he also spent
time interacting
with people
about it.
Deuteronomy 6,
Moses instructed
the people of Israel,
he said,
these words
that I command you today,
let them be
on your heart.
And he says,
you shall teach them
to your children
diligently,
and you shall
talk of them.
when you sit
in your house,
and when you walk
by the way,
and when you lie down,
and when you rise.
In other words,
what Moses was saying
was,
don't only,
don't limit
the truth about God
to formal gatherings
where the law
was read
in the Old Testament,
for example.
He was saying,
let the reality
of who God is,
God's character,
God's promises,
God's commands,
God's mighty acts,
let that shape
your informal,
ongoing conversation.
He applies it
particularly to parents.
I think for those
of us who are parents,
let us look
for opportunities
to communicate
and dialogue
with our children
about spiritual matters,
not just expect
the Sunday school teachers
to do that,
and not even just
limit that
to a formal time
for family devotions.
But look for opportunities
throughout the day
as questions come up,
as situations come up,
to share truths
about God
and to point
your children to God
and engage with them
throughout the day.
But it also applies
more broadly,
not just to parents.
So when you get together
with another believer,
or when you talk
with somebody
perhaps after church
this morning,
don't just immediately
go to,
how's the weather?
I mean,
that's,
come on,
it's sort of boring.
Right?
That's the conversation
you have when you can't
find anything better
to talk about.
I mean,
it's better than nothing
sometimes, right?
Sometimes it's a way
of loving people
by engaging with them
at whatever level
you can find.
But we're Christians,
and if we're Christians,
we can go further than that.
Ask questions like,
what did you take away
from the sermon today?
Or,
what has God been doing
in your life lately?
Or,
are there any ways
I can be praying for you?
Questions like that
can open the door
to encouraging one another
by sharing what God
is teaching you
and doing in your life,
and by,
and also how we can pray
and support each other.
And it's one way
that God encourages us,
not only through formal
preaching and teaching,
but also through
informal conversations.
The third form
of encouragement
through word
is that God encourages us
through writing,
through His word written.
It doesn't say,
it doesn't tell us this
in this passage,
but Paul wrote
some of his most
extensive letters
during this period of time.
He wrote 2 Corinthians
during the time of verse 2
when he was in Macedonia.
He wrote Romans
during the time
that he was in Greece
in Corinth, actually,
in verse,
well, it mentions that
in verse 3,
verse 2 and 3.
So some of Paul's
most lengthy letters,
written letters,
he wrote during this time.
And he took the time
to write these letters
to encourage Christians
that he couldn't be with
in person.
And so,
you know,
it's,
if there's,
if there is a Christian believer
that you can't be with
in person,
who needs encouragement,
take the time,
it's,
it can be worth it,
take the time to write to them
as Paul did.
And you know,
part of the,
one of the main purposes
of both Romans
and 2 Corinthians
and most of Paul's letters
was literally this,
to encourage the believers.
2 Corinthians begins
by talking about
the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ
who comforts us
in all our afflictions
so that we may be able
to comfort others
who are in any affliction
with the comfort
that we ourselves
have received from God.
and toward the end
of Romans.
He says,
whatever was written
in former days
was written
for our instruction
so that through endurance
and the encouragement
of the Scriptures
we might have hope.
And then he says,
may the God of endurance
and encouragement
grant you to live
in harmony with one another
in accord with Christ Jesus.
You know,
there's a lot of stuff
in 2 Corinthians
and Romans
and all of Paul's letters,
but one of the main purposes,
one of his overall purposes,
was to encourage
these believers
in Corinth
and in Rome
to warn them
against potential dangers,
to comfort them
and reassure them
of God's promises
and God's love for them,
and to motivate them
to persevere
in faith
and in hope
and in love.
So through his word,
preached,
discussed,
written,
that God gives us wisdom
to face life's many challenges,
understanding of his character
and his ways,
warning against spiritual dangers
and reassurance
of his promises.
God encourages us
through his word.
That's the second point.
So God encourages us
through community,
he encourages us
through his word,
and third,
he encourages us
through his mighty deeds.
This passage begins,
the central part
of this passage,
as I said earlier,
is the story
about Eutychus.
And so I want to
camp out there
for the rest of the time.
Right?
Eutychus falls
from a third-story window,
and he's apparently
raised from the dead.
Now you might wonder,
of all the stories
that Luke
could have chosen
to include
in the book of Acts,
why did he include
this one?
What's his point?
Besides the fact
that Luke was there,
and Luke seems
to enjoy
telling good stories.
But what are we
supposed to take away
from this story?
Well, let me start
with two,
what I think
are minor points
that are not
the central point
of the passage,
but I think are still
worth a brief mention,
and then I'll get
to the main point.
Number one,
if you've ever
fallen asleep in church,
you're not alone.
The way Luke
tells the story,
he actually seems
quite sympathetic
to Eutychus.
Verse 7,
he says,
Paul prolonged
his speech
until midnight.
Now that means
if they started
at 8,
Paul had been going
already for 4 hours.
Verse 8,
he explains,
there were many lamps
or torches
in the upper room,
which meant
it would have become
hot and stuffy
by that time.
Eutychus was sitting
at the window,
trying to get some air,
gradually dozing off,
and Paul goes on
and on.
Verse 9,
Paul talked
still longer,
and finally,
Eutychus was overcome
by sleep.
I mean,
you can't blame the kid,
right?
In this case,
if you have trouble
staying awake
in church
or paying attention
during the sermon,
let me say two things.
Number one,
do what you can
to stay awake.
This is God's Word
we're here to listen to
after all.
So, you know,
if you can,
get a good night's sleep
on Saturday night.
Don't stay up
until 4 a.m.
Wake up,
eat a little breakfast,
drink a little coffee
if that helps you,
stand at the back
if that helps you
not fall asleep
on these hot
summer Sundays.
But second,
don't stay away
out of the fear
of falling asleep.
Even if you're
coming off
an overnight shift
or you're taking meds
that make you drowsy,
know that there is
a place for you
in the church.
I'd rather you come
and hear half the sermon
than stay home
because you're afraid
to fall asleep.
You can also sit
next to someone
and say,
I need you to help me.
And God gave you
an elbow,
so just,
you know,
help me stay awake.
It's part of how
we can help each other.
I'm serious,
actually.
Sometimes that's
a way to love
your neighbor
is to gently
help them
to stay awake.
All right.
Second minor point.
God doesn't just
care about adults,
He cares about
young people.
Verse 12 says,
Eutychus was a youth.
That word was
commonly used
for a boy
between about
nine and 14 years old.
Now,
if you're a middle schooler,
maybe you can identify
with Eutychus.
Maybe you feel like
it's sometimes hard
to track
with a long sermon.
Maybe you feel like
the adults in the church
don't really notice you
or understand you.
Maybe you wonder
whether you really belong
here in the church,
but let me say to you,
God sees you
and God knows you
and He cares about you
right where you are.
And there is no
minimum age requirement
for the Holy Spirit
to be powerfully at work
in and through
your life.
Samuel the prophet
heard the voice
of God as a boy.
Josiah became king
of Israel when he was
eight.
And Eutychus,
the otherwise unknown
middle school age boy,
was rescued after
a terrible accident.
And in verse 10,
it says,
when Paul went down
to Eutychus,
it says he took him
in his arms.
Or literally,
he threw his arms
around him.
The same word is used
in the story
of the prodigal son.
when the father
ran to him
and threw his arms
around him
when he had come home.
And the father said
he was lost
and now he's found.
He was dead
and now he's alive.
Imagine if you were
Eutychus,
falling asleep
on the windowsill
and waking up
with the apostle Paul
throwing his arms
around you
and bringing you
to life.
I mean,
that'd be pretty amazing.
All right,
those are the side points.
The main point is this.
The raising of Eutychus
is meant
to greatly encourage us.
Verse 12,
Luke gives
an ironic understatement.
He says,
the people took
the youth away alive
and were not
a little comforted.
They were,
I think,
very greatly comforted.
And the raising
of Eutychus
was a physical reminder
that God brings
life out of death.
Every time
that those Christians
in Troas
gathered
and saw that boy Eutychus,
they'd be reminded,
our God brings
life out of death,
just like he did
for this boy.
Now, of course,
most of the time
we don't see miracles
like this.
In the Bible,
the only people
who saw dead people
restored to life
were Elijah and Elisha
in the Old Testament
and Jesus,
Paul,
and Peter
in the New Testament.
So, even in the Bible,
it's not a common occurrence.
It's not something
that we should expect.
And even in this very chapter,
the Apostle Paul
is on his way
to Jerusalem
and he's talking
about being persecuted
and being put in prison
and even being willing
to die.
Eutychus was raised
from the dead
and sometimes God does.
Sometimes God still does.
Powerful miracles.
Amazing,
divine intervention.
But we still live
in a world of persecution
and sickness
and war
and all kinds of losses
and crosses.
But every once in a while,
God breaks into our world.
He breaks into our world
that's under the power
of sin and death
and He gives us
a little picture
of what is to come
when one day
Jesus Christ
will come again
and make all things new.
And on that day,
there will be healing
and peace
and joy
and wholeness
and life
and Jesus will reign
forever and ever.
And every time,
they would look at Eutychus.
when they gathered
on a Sunday,
on that first day
of the week,
they remembered
not only did God
raise our Eutychus
and restore Him
to life
so that He could be
with us
for the rest
of His earthly life,
God raised
our Savior,
Jesus Christ,
from the dead.
Never to die again.
You see,
every miraculous
healing,
every providential
deliverance,
every answered prayer
is an extension
of the greatest
resurrection of all,
the resurrection
of Jesus Christ.
And it's a foretaste
of what God will do
one day
to take us up
in His arms
and give us life
forever in His kingdom.
Brothers and sisters,
the resurrection
of Jesus
is the most encouraging
reality of all.
If you're feeling alone,
remember Jesus'
final words
to His disciples.
Behold,
I am with you
always,
even to the very end
of this
present evil age.
If you feel surrounded
by the pressures
of the world,
remember that you serve
a risen Savior
who said,
in this world
you will have trouble,
but take heart,
for I have overcome
the world.
If you're weary
because of your labors
in the church,
listen to the words
of Paul.
Therefore,
he said,
my beloved brothers
and sisters,
and this was at the end
of his great chapter
on the bodily resurrection,
1 Corinthians 15,
he says,
in light of the resurrection
of Christ,
let nothing move you.
Always be abounding
in the work of the Lord
because you know
that your labor
in the Lord
is not in vain.
Brothers and sisters,
be encouraged.
Be encouraged
in community,
be encouraged
through God's Word,
be encouraged
as we see God's mighty deeds.
Let's pray.
Our Father,
we thank you
that you
care about us
all the way
from the beginning
of our lives
to the end.
And Lord,
from the first
moment
when you open
our eyes
to see you
and believe in you
and begin following you
all the way
to the end
of our lives
and to the day
when you will return
in glory.
We thank you
for how you have
given us
one another,
for how you've given us
your word,
and how you have acted
in history,
in this world,
to encourage us.
Lord,
we pray
that we would
be encouraged
today
and that
by your Spirit
that we would
encourage one another
so that we might
press on
toward the goal
that you have set
before us.
We pray this
in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Please stand
and sing with us.
Thank you.