Arrows Out

Jul 12, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Resting in the Wrought Iron Chairs

When life becomes a checklist of obligations, even spiritual practices can become hollow tasks. True restoration begins when we withdraw like Jesus did – not to escape responsibilities, but to reconnect with the Father through raw, honest prayer. This kind of rest transforms exhaustion into worship as we trade performative spirituality for gut-level conversations with God. [05:01]

"Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." (Luke 5:16, ESV)

Reflection: Who in your life notices when your soul drifts into autopilot? What one honest sentence could you pray today instead of reciting religious phrases?

Day 2: When Golf Clubs Become Crutches

Escapism masquerades as rest when we prioritize numbing activities over true restoration. Like a misaligned golf grip, temporary distractions only worsen our aim. Jesus modeled purposeful withdrawal – not to avoid storms, but to face them with renewed strength. Real rest equips us to re-engage life’s demands with clarity. [13:30]

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28, ESV)

Reflection: What activity do you use to numb stress instead of addressing it? How could you convert 15 minutes of escape time into intentional connection with God?

Day 3: The Snap of a Friend’s Courage

Authentic community acts like spiritual defibrillators – the timely word that restarts a stalled heart. Joe’s unexpected encouragement didn’t just comfort Dave; it realigned his perspective. God often uses others’ obedience to spark our healing before we articulate our need. [16:38]

"Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together." (Hebrews 10:24-25, ESV)

Reflection: Who have you avoided because you don’t want them to see your struggle? What courageous kindness could you offer someone this week without knowing their full story?

Day 4: Greeting Teams as Gym Equipment

Serving others functions like spiritual weightlifting – the more we exercise compassion, the stronger our love grows. What begins as awkward obedience (like forced smiles at church doors) gradually reshapes our instincts. Every "How can I help?" flexes atrophied generosity muscles. [22:14]

"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s varied grace." (1 Peter 4:10, ESV)

Reflection: What act of service feels most unnatural to you? How could doing it anyway become your next step in spiritual fitness?

Day 5: Arrow Fletching in the Storm

Storms reveal what our arrows are made of – whether they’ll fly true or snap under pressure. Dave’s season of selfishness became the very story God uses to aim others toward hope. Our messiest moments become fletching that stabilizes others’ flight when we share them boldly. [30:07]

"They triumphed by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony." (Revelation 12:11, ESV)

Reflection: What struggle have you been hiding that could become someone else’s survival guide? Who needs to hear your "I survived this" story this week?

Sermon Summary

Arrows Out names the difference between a life bent in on itself and a life pointed toward other people. God takes struggles and turns them into testimony, even when the story starts with wrong motives, fake smiles, and serving just to “get in good” with somebody else. The hard season did not come from one huge disaster. The hard season came from being worn out, tired, busy, anxious, and slowly drifting until even time with God became “checking a box.”

The drift made everything smaller. The relationship with God slipped out of first place, guilt made it harder to come back, and control became a way to try to meet every need. Arrows in looked like selfishness, pressure, escaping, and trying to manage all the variables. Arrows out looked like trusting God enough to meet somebody else’s needs and let God handle the rest.

John 16:33 gives the needed warning: trouble is not strange, storms are coming, and Jesus has overcome the world. The first help in the storm came through the right people being close enough to notice something was off and bold enough to say the hard thing. Rest like Jesus then becomes the first turn back. Luke 5:16 shows Jesus often withdrawing to lonely places to pray, not just numbing out or avoiding responsibility. “Venting to other people may feel good, but venting to God is worship” becomes a different way to pray, a way to get real before God instead of hiding behind churchy language.

Give like Jesus turns the arrows outward again. Proverbs 11 says the world of the generous gets larger and larger, while the stingy world gets smaller and smaller. Generosity is not only something God wants from a person. Generosity is something God uses to change a person.

Serve like Jesus keeps that same direction. Mark 10 says the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life. Love takes the shape of meeting needs, whether in marriage, friendship, church, or daily life. Serving gets the focus off misery and onto people God actually placed nearby.

Lead like Jesus rejects competition and status. Philippians 2 calls for humility, valuing others above self, and looking to the interests of others. The church’s mission, helping people know God, find freedom, discover purpose, and make a difference, is basically arrows out. The church becomes a gym, a training ground where giving, serving, loving, encouraging, and leading get practiced until those habits go out into the world.

Key Takeaways

1. Drift starts quieter than rebellion The drift away from God did not begin with some dramatic decision to walk away. The drift began with busyness, exhaustion, box-checking, and guilt that made returning feel heavier than staying stuck. Spiritual danger often looks ordinary before it looks destructive, which is why honest friendships and regular attention to God matter so much. [05:01]
2. Real rest brings God the pressure Rest like Jesus is not the same thing as escaping, numbing out, or finding something to avoid responsibility. Jesus withdrew to pray, which means true rest brings the pressure into the presence of God instead of simply trying to forget it. “Venting to God is worship” because it treats Him as present, trusted, and strong enough to hold the real thing. [12:47]
3. Generosity makes the world larger Proverbs 11 gives a picture of two shrinking and expanding lives. Stinginess makes a person’s world smaller because everything has to be guarded, counted, and protected. Generosity makes the world larger because God uses giving to loosen self-protection and open the heart to what He is doing. [17:14]
4. Serving turns misery outward Serving like Jesus changes where attention lands. When irritation, conflict, or self-pity starts taking over, looking for a need to meet can break the cycle of arrows in. Service is not denial of pain, but it refuses to let pain become the whole room. [19:59]
5. Church is a training ground The church is not meant to be treated like a place that only meets preferences, likes, and needs. The church becomes a gym where people practice giving, serving, loving, encouraging, and leading so those muscles get used outside the building. Hebrews 10 calls believers to consider how to spur others toward love and good deeds, which turns the whole posture outward. [27:12]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:30] - Getting Raw Instead of Joking
[01:05] - Arrows Out and Personal Testimony
[03:05] - Worn Out and Drifting
[05:01] - A Hard Question About God
[07:10] - Getting Back to What Worked
[10:23] - Preparing for the Storm
[12:47] - Rest Like Jesus
[14:09] - Venting to God as Worship
[17:14] - Give Like Jesus
[19:26] - Serve Like Jesus
[22:46] - Lead Like Jesus
[26:19] - The Mission Is Arrows Out
[27:12] - Church as a Training Ground
[29:28] - Testimony That Helps Others

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
- John 16:33 (ESV): “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
- Luke 5:16 (ESV): “But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.”
- Proverbs 11:24-25 (ESV): “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.”

Observation Questions

According to John 16:33, what does Jesus say about trouble in the world, and what assurance does He give?
How does Luke 5:16 describe Jesus’ habit of rest, and how does it differ from simply “numbing out” or escaping responsibilities? [12:47]
Proverbs 11:24-25 contrasts two types of people. What happens to the generous person versus the one who withholds?

Interpretation Questions

Why might Jesus emphasize His victory over the world before acknowledging the reality of trouble in John 16:33? How does this order matter for believers?
In the sermon, it was said that “venting to God is worship.” How does this idea connect to Jesus’ example of withdrawing to pray in Luke 5:16? [14:09]
Proverbs 11:24-25 suggests generosity expands a person’s world. What might this “expansion” look like practically in relationships, faith, or daily life?

Application Questions

When stress or busyness creeps in, what specific step could be taken to prioritize “rest like Jesus” (e.g., withdrawing to pray) instead of defaulting to escapism? [12:47]
Stinginess often starts with small, guarded choices. What is one area of life (time, money, energy) where you could practice generosity this week, even in a simple way?
Serving others can shift focus away from personal struggles. What need could you intentionally look for and meet in your marriage, friendship, or community? [19:59]
The church is described as a “training ground” for outward-focused habits. How could participating in a group or team help you practice generosity or service in a way that impacts your daily life? [27:12]
Reflect on a time when someone noticed you were “off” and spoke truth or encouragement. How could you cultivate relationships where this kind of honesty is possible? [10:23]

Sermon Clips

40s

#TurnArrowsOut

“``when we turn that, that's when our arrows turn from facing in to facing out. And when our arrows point outwards, something changes. Okay? Something we start to grow. We start to rest more like Jesus. We start to give more like Jesus. We start to serve more like Jesus. We start to lead more like Jesus, and it takes effort to keep those arrows out, the whole point is is the goal of following Jesus isn't, you know, isn't just becoming a better version of ourselves. It's actually thinking about ourselves way less. That's the whole point, is dying to ourselves.”

36s

#ServeToMeetNeeds

“And God wants the exact opposite for us. God wants us to be arrows out meeting other people's needs. You go listen to a marriage seminar or we you know, we have the XO marriage conference, things like that. They always talk about man, focus on meeting your partner's needs and trust God to do the rest. And that has actually shown to be very true in my life, not just in my marriage, but just in life in general, meeting other people's needs. all that to be said said, I had developed quite a selfish mindset.”

49s

#LoveByServing

“so I got to thinking, how do we normally show love? Okay? So there's a book. If you're married, you may have heard it. I think it's an older book, but the five love languages. Have you guys heard you heard of the five love languages? Okay. The five love languages are all how you can serve your spouse and what what language to speak when you're serving them. Okay? So, obviously, you know, when we're showing love to somebody, we're serving them. And that's what Jesus did. He served people. So my thing is is, man, if you're fighting with your spouse, why don't you look to meet a need? Serve them. If you're irritated by a relationship or something, why don't you try to look to meet a need? Serve them. You want to love like Jesus? Look to serve people. Look to meet their needs.”

49s

#ServeIsContagious

“And what I learned is, man, we have a place where we get to practice giving. We get to practice serving like Jesus. We get to practice loving like Jesus. We get to practice encouraging and leading. And we learn that here and, yeah, we do it here, but also the goal is, man, we want god to change us where we're practicing here and we're lifting weights and we're getting pumped up on on how we can do this and how we can do all those things. And then we go out in the world and we do it out there too. And what happens then? Well, man, that's infectious. That makes people wanna wanna hey, what's different about them? Man, I wanna I wanna go see what that's all about. I'd love to tell you that I'm just attracting people to this church left and right. I don't think that's the case. I still got a lot of growing to do, but I know that that's what this church is doing, and I know I've changed a lot.”

47s

#ChurchTrainingGround

“If you're an Arrow's End, what does Arrow's End look like when you're coming to church? Maybe it's a did I did I like the music today? Did was pastor's message alright? I mean, he's kinda boring today or, you know, little jab. Little jab. Just a little one. But, anyway, you know, did I do they meet my needs? No one came and talked to me. No. You know, here I am. I walked in, and no one even acted like I was there. They didn't even care. You know, you wanna talk about arrows in, that's arrows in. But when you get plugged in, I got plugged in on a team. I started growing, and all of a sudden, my arrows started turning out, and I didn't even think about that. But I can tell you what this church is is think about this church kinda like a gym. It's a it's like a training ground.”

71s

#PlugInForChange

“I believe that God used this struggle, this season I went through, and hopefully someone in here needed to hear it, and this is where it all comes down to. You guys all have testimonies, every single one of you. And as we grow and we serve in our church and and we grow and we become more arrows out, we're all gonna develop these testimonies. God gives us those stories so that we're able to share them with other people, so that they're able to hear something that they needed to hear, and God speaks to them through our testimonies. And so that's why today I wanted to do more of a testimony style message. Never really done it before like this, but I felt like somebody needed to hear this because, honestly, I believe there's some big change that can happen, you know, when you get plugged into church, when you start giving at church, when you're focused on your relationship with God. So, I just encourage you, man, if you're not on a team, get plugged into a team. If you're not involved in in a life group, man, get plugged into a life group. The next time we have sign ups, get get signed up because God can change your life. God's going to change your life. He can change your life. And I can tell you, he did it through this church for me.”

62s

#ChangingOthersChangesYou

“the quote I wanna I want you guys to hear is is changing others changes you. So whether we're giving to others, serving others, you know, all of all of that, when we're focused on other people, for some reason, because God designed it to be this way, it actually changes us. So we can be focused on helping other people and changing other people. I can't tell you how many times I have conversations with people whether it be a Sunday morning or I've run into them or whatever and they're sharing with me something they're struggling with and, you know, it's something that whether I heard a heard a message one time or whatever, and it's always something that just randomly I had just heard a message on, and I'm like, oh, actually, I just heard this. I should share this with you, and I'll tell them, and but then you walk away and it's always like, man, I actually needed to hear that myself. Isn't that crazy how it works? I can tell you pastors talk to me about that before it's when I'm asking him questions and stuff, he'll, you know, he'll say something. He's like, man, I actually need to hear that myself. That's just the way it works.”

34s

#ChooseGenerosity

“the world wants us to accumulate and protect and it's mine and I don't think you have to teach a little kid to be to be selfish. Right? But that's not what Jesus did. Jesus actually lived the opposite life which is he gave. He was generous. He wants us to trust God. And so what I have learned through my giving is what if generosity isn't just something God wants from us? What if it's something he wants to do for us?”

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Arrows Out

Devotional

Day 1: Resting in the Wrought Iron Chairs

Day 2: When Golf Clubs Become Crutches

Day 3: The Snap of a Friend’s Courage

Day 4: Greeting Teams as Gym Equipment

Day 5: Arrow Fletching in the Storm

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Arrows Out

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