Proclaiming the Gospel Locally
In the last couple weeks, I have been asked one major question – how do you feel after your first sermon? There are a few words that come to mind:
Relieved. The preparation for the sermon was quite different from my weekly routine of youth ministry. The sermons during weekend church are twice as long, and I needed to think through and provide different examples that would connect with adults rather than teenagers. This took me out of my comfort zone, which is great, but I am relieved to be back in my comfort zone of youth ministry.
Excited. I am excited to be able to teach again in the future to the Church body, Lord willing, because this experience has helped me to grow. I love to teach, and learn about the Word of God. The Romans 15 passage was not one I had studied deeply prior to the weekend’s teaching, so I was able to learn a lot in my preparation. It is a tug-and-pull situation where, while I want to remain comfortable, I know that the most growth happens in these new experiences, and I always want to grow, especially when it comes to my faith and understanding of the Word.
Inspired. I started out my message talking about how I was inspired by the text to share the Gospel locally. How have I been doing this? I go to Starbucks to get my wife coffee every morning. A lot of the baristas there know who I am. I have been very intentional with my verbiage when I talk with them. Also, when I was checking out at Target the other day, I said, “God bless you” to my cashier. While these moments may seem small or fleeting, my prayer is that these words and interactions will plant a seed.
The two scriptures that I will leave you with are Mark 16:15, “And he said to them, ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.’” As well as Matthew 13:1-9, “That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.’”
As we proclaim the Gospel to those locally, let us pray that those seeds that are planted are in good soil and produce grain of a hundredfold.
Matt Arnett
Youth Ministry Intern