Embracing God's Call: Commitment and Transformation

### Quotes for Outreach

1. "Have you ever been in a situation where you come to that weird crystallizing realization that you have no idea what you're doing? Anybody? Have you ever been there before? Like one of those situations where you don't even know how you got in this situation, let alone what to do now that you are there in the midst of it." [01:19](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


2. "Elisha recognized the call. The first thing we can see from these verses is that Elisha recognized the calling that God had for his life. Let's look at verse 19 again. It says this, So Elisha went and found Elisha's son, Shaphat, plowing a field. There were twelve teams of oxen in the field, and Elisha was plowing the twelfth pair. Elisha went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders, and he said, So something I want to point out is the significance of what is going down here." [12:20](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


3. "Church, if we want to be part of what God is up to in our world today, I think the first thing that we need to do is to recognize that just like Elisha, God has also placed a calling on our shoulders as well. Now, sure, we all have to make a living, right? Whether that's working a farm or working at the mine or being a cashier or flipping burgers. That's not what I'm talking about. But what I am talking about, though, that Jesus has called each and every one of us to live for him, to walk in relationship with him, to spread his name wherever we go." [14:54](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


4. "Following Jesus means there will always be a cross to take up. Jesus even says as much himself in Luke 14. In verse 26, he tells his disciples this. If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, even their own life, such a person cannot, cannot be my disciple. Now, real quick, Jesus isn't saying that we literally need to hate our families. Far from it. But following Jesus, I think it ought to strengthen our love for our family. But what he is saying is that following him has a price tag." [20:14](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


5. "The hard is what makes it good. And church, I gotta say, that's not just true about baseball. But that's the truth about following Jesus. Because I'll be real with you, it is hard. Following Jesus, if I could, I am confident in saying this, following Jesus is the hardest thing I have ever done. It's the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. And it's supposed to be hard. Jesus says so himself that the chosen are many, or the workers are many, but the chosen are few. It's supposed to be hard. Because the hard, church, is what makes it good." [26:42](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


### Quotes for Members

1. "So this morning, we're going to talk about the cultural significance of the things that just happened. So this morning, as we dive in, I want to kind of peel back some of the layers here, and I want to dissect these three short verses, because in doing so, I think we can begin to see how Elisha, he was able to begin to walk into the position that God was preparing for him, and I think we'll be able to see how Elisha, even though he had no idea what he was doing, he decided to give it a shot and to go for it anyways. Amen?" [12:20](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


2. "Elisha's response is it shows us the very real costs that come with following Jesus. Because when we begin to follow him, church, he becomes our new master. You know, a number of years ago, I went to church with an older couple whose son was serving on this long-term mission to this impoverished church. This impoverished country in Africa. I don't remember what country it was, but him and his wife, they were so far from America that it actually took, what did they say, like nine separate plane flights and half a day of driving just to reach the village that they lived in. They went to the literal ends of the earth to bring the gospel to a people that knew nothing about Jesus." [18:31](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


3. "Elisha burned the plows. Write that down this morning, church. If we want to walk in the promises of God, I think some of us need to start to burn some of our plows. Verse 21 tells us this. So Elisha returned to his oxen and slaughtered them. He used the wood from the plow to build a fire to roast the flesh. He passed around the meat to the townspeople. They all ate. And he went with Elisha as his assistant. So outside of telling us about the awesome barbecue, they had anyone hungry yet? I think these verses, I think they show us something important when it comes to following Jesus. And what I think it shows us is that, honestly, we can't sit on the fence forever." [21:55](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


4. "The hard is what makes it good. And church, I gotta say, that's not just true about baseball. But that's the truth about following Jesus. Because I'll be real with you, it is hard. Following Jesus, if I could, I am confident in saying this, following Jesus is the hardest thing I have ever done. It's the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. And it's supposed to be hard. Jesus says so himself that the chosen are many, or the workers are many, but the chosen are few. It's supposed to be hard. Because the hard, church, is what makes it good." [26:42](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


5. "Pick it up anyway. It's one decision. I promise you, you will never regret. Amen? Amen. Church, as we close this morning, would you pray with me? Join me. Thank you so much for checking out today's message. I sincerely hope God was able to meet you where you're at and speak into your life in a new way today. If you want to connect with us, click on the connect link in the description. Whether you need prayer or if you just want someone to talk to, we'd love to reach out. If you want to support the ministry financially, click on the give link in the description. Every dollar goes to continuing the movement started by Jesus himself over 2,000 years ago. Lastly, if you want to hang out with us in person, we gather every week on Sunday, Sunday, and Sunday. It's on Sundays at 11 a.m. Hope you all have a great week. We'll catch you next time." [29:56](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)