June 7, 2026 | Modern Worship | Stained Glass Stories - Wk 1: Micah 7:8, Genesis 3:8-9

The stained glass image sets the tone: the human story begins as fractured glass in a garden and ends as radiant light in a city. Micah 7:8 becomes the creed for the journey: do not gloat over me, for though one falls, one will rise; though one sits in darkness, the Lord will be light. The human story is fractured internally, relationally, spiritually. Genesis 3 explains the cracks and the void that every person feels. God, however, is still the artist. He sees more than fragments and keeps shaping a window. Light changes everything. Before light shines through, the pieces look dull and lost, but when light comes, the story becomes visible.

Genesis 3 names the first fracture. Adam and Eve lived in unbroken fellowship. Free will was the condition of love. The fruit did not sparkle; it represented the choice of trust. The tempter pushed suspicion of God, whispering that real wisdom and freedom could be found apart from Him. That lie landed, and sin entered. Shame, guilt, and fear took their place, and hiding began. Fig leaves went on in the garden, and modern fig leaves go on now: busyness, accomplishments, wealth, a strong opinion, a joke that keeps truth at arm’s length.

The focal point turns to God. God came looking. Where are you is not a GPS query but a relational summons. The first consequence of sin is not punishment. It was hiding. God did not hide. Humanity did. Sin cracks the image but not the artist. The deeper problem preceded the bite. Sin rarely starts with behavior. Sin starts with suspicion of God, with a heart-level distrust that assumes obedience is restriction rather than protection. The persistent temptation sounds familiar: life works better when the self is in charge.

Grace interrupts that script. Testimony names the fracture not as unemployment or pressure but as being on the throne of one’s own life. Rescue arrives, and a new path of reliance opens. Micah 7:8 is not optimism; it is a vow anchored in God’s pursuit. God seeks relationship, not annihilation. The question Where are you still moves toward reconciliation. So the call lands plainly: ask what the fig leaf is, stop hiding from the only One who can heal, and step into the light where grace shines through broken glass and turns fragments into a story.

Key Takeaways

• 1. The human story is fractured. Every person carries cracks that show up internally, relationally, and spiritually. Genesis 3 is not a relic; it is a mirror that explains the ache and the impulse to hide. Healing begins when the fracture is named, not managed, and when a person lets God locate them rather than self-protect behind fig leaves. [45:05]
• 2. God the artist keeps pursuing. God moves toward the hiders with a relational question, not a hammer. Where are you is grace’s first word, revealing a God who seeks, not a deity who abandons. The image may be cracked, but the artist is not, and His pursuit reframes failure as material for beauty. [54:40]
• 3. Sin begins with distrust of God. Before hands rebel, the heart suspects that God is holding out. That suspicion turns obedience into a cage and self-rule into a prize, and then behavior follows. Repentance starts where the fracture started, with a returned trust in God’s goodness and care. [56:09]
• 4. Light in Christ changes everything. Without Christ, shame and fear distort the story and keep identity hidden. With Christ, the same shattered pieces become testimony, because light makes the picture legible and the colors come alive. Stepping into light is not exposure for exposure’s sake but the doorway to healing. [46:32]
• 5. Name the fig leaves and step out. Hiding strategies can look respectable, even religious, yet they still keep God at a distance. Wisdom asks, What am I hiding behind, and where has trust stopped. Honesty before God is the beginning of freedom, because the One asking Where are you intends reconciliation. [65:27]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [42:01] - Summer setup and Micah 7:8
• [42:33] - Stained glass story image
• [44:28] - Creed: Though I fall, I rise
• [45:05] - The human story is fractured
• [45:43] - God the artist still working
• [46:32] - Light changes everything
• [47:50] - Genesis 3: the first fracture
• [50:05] - The tempter and distrust
• [52:03] - Modern fig leaves and hiding
• [53:19] - God’s question: Where are you
• [54:54] - First consequence is hiding
• [55:20] - Image cracked, not the artist
• [58:25] - Tim’s testimony: self on the throne
• [65:27] - What am I hiding behind

1. In Genesis 3:8-9, what did Adam and Eve do immediately after disobeying God, and how did God respond?
2. The sermon emphasized that sin rarely starts with behavior but with a deeper issue. What does Genesis 3 reveal about the root cause of humanity’s fracture? [56:09]
3. How does Micah 7:8 frame the relationship between failure, darkness, and God’s role?

1. Why do you think God’s first response to Adam and Eve’s sin was the question, “Where are you?” rather than immediate condemnation? What does this reveal about His character?
2. The sermon described modern “fig leaves” like busyness or humor as ways people hide from God. Why do these strategies feel effective, and how do they ultimately fail? [52:03]
3. Micah 7:8 declares, “When I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.” How might this promise reshape someone’s perspective during seasons of failure or shame?

1. What “fig leaf” (e.g., achievements, humor, perfectionism) do you most often use to hide your struggles from God or others? How could you begin to let go of it this week? [01:05:27]
2. Reflect on a time when distrust of God’s goodness led to a choice that fractured a relationship or your peace. What practical step could you take to rebuild trust in His care? [55:52]
3. The sermon stated, “Light changes everything” when Christ shines through brokenness. What shattered part of your story could you invite Him to reframe as a testimony? [46:32]
4. How would your daily decisions shift if you truly believed God’s “Where are you?” is an invitation to reconciliation, not condemnation?
5. Identify one area where you’re tempted to believe “life works better when I’m in charge.” What would it look like to surrender control to God in that area? [57:25]