Momentum - Week 1

Today we are beginning a new series called Momentum. For the sake of this series, I am defining Momentum as:

Momentum:
transformation gained by a series of personal wins.

Most of us want to change. We want something to move. Something to shift. We want transformation to happen in our mindset. In our habits. In our relationships. But for a lot of people, life feels stuck.

Growing up, there were many dirt roads around my home in Tennessee.  And, after a good thunderstorm or a long season of rain, those dry dirt roads became perfect roads for “muddin’.”  My friend Chad and I would ride with his dad down those old muddy roads, and his dad would intentionally steer into the mud puddles and mud.  I loved the smell of the spinning tires, the truck sliding and rocking around.  The tires would spin, the mud would spray into the treeline and cover the sides of the truck. And, when the truck got stuck, Chad and I were the ones behind the tailgate pushing the truck forward, and the mud would spray all over us.

Sometimes we would just have to give the truck a little nudge, and it would move forward.  Other times, we would be stuck for hours, rocking backward and forward, trying to build momentum to get the truck unstuck.

Getting stuck in the mud in an old, firewood hauler is one thing.  But feeling like you are getting stuck in life is – well – it stinks.  Even since I became a follower of Jesus, there have been so many times in my life when I have felt stuck. I have felt stuck in depression and anxiety. Finances. Health. But the only thing that has lifted me out of that mud in life has been the Holy Spirit.

You may feel stuck in anxiety. You may feel stuck in addiction. You may feel stuck in unforgiveness.  And, you wish you could just get a good grip with your feet and move forward.  You want a win.  You want a victory.  You just wish you could come up for air and breathe, but you feel like life just keeps knocking you back down. You are trying – your engine is revving, but your wheels keep spinning in the mud. You want just a couple of wins, because you feel like if you could get a couple of consecutive wins, you will start to be able to build some momentum to take that step into the next step that God has for you.

Jesus said if we seek first the Kingdom of God, all the other things we worry about will be taken care of. Then, he left.

As we begin this series through the first fourteen chapters of the Book of Acts, it is my prayer that you will be able to string together little wins to develop momentum to move forward.

Acts 1:1-5 (NLT2)

In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2  until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. 3  During the forty days after his crucifixion, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God. 4  Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. 5  John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

The very first thing I want you to understand – if you are a follower of Jesus -  is that…

JESUS' MOMENTUM WILL CONTINUE THROUGH YOU

If you were with us in 2023, you may remember that we walked through the entire Gospel of Luke in a sermon series called “Meeting Jesus.” In his Gospel, Luke told the story of Jesus. Luke was a medical doctor, a travel companion of the Apostle Paul, and he had been changed by Jesus through surrendering his life to Him. Like you, Luke never met Jesus.

Luke was not one of the twelve disciples.  He was not one of the crowd that followed Jesus.  At some point after Jesus ascended into heaven, Luke surrendered his life to Jesus, was forgiven for his sin, and began to live for Him. And, he wanted to know everything he could about Jesus, so he exhaustively interviewed the people who knew Jesus best.  He listened to their eyewitness testimony, he cross-examined other witnesses, and through the power of the Holy Spirit, he wrote the Gospel of Luke.

He showed us how Jesus came to seek and save the lost. He showed us how Jesus healed the broken, welcomed the outcast, taught with authority, and gave His life on the cross. And Luke had no intention that you and I would be reading his words 2,000 years later.  He didn’t write the Gospel of Luke for a church; he wrote it to share the life-changing power of Jesus with one man: Theophilus.

In the very beginning of the Gospel of Luke, Luke writes:

Luke 1:1-4 (NLT2)

Many people have set out to write accounts about the events that have been fulfilled among us. 2  They used the eyewitness reports circulating among us from the early disciples. 3  Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write a careful account for you, most honorable Theophilus, 4  so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.

In his own words, Luke carefully investigated the reports, the people, and the early followers of Jesus. So, why did I take us back in time to a sermon series from 2023? Because our Momentum Series will lead us through the first fourteen chapters of Acts. And, you will never guess who wrote Acts.  Luke.

Acts 1:1 (NLT2)

In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach

Luke wrote Acts to describe what happened to the mission of Jesus after Jesus left the earth. Jesus rose from the dead. He ascended into heaven. He sent the Holy Spirit. And the momentum of change that began in the life of Jesus continued to build through his followers in the Book of Acts.

And, the difficulty for those of us who feel stuck is that…

MOMENTUM BEGINS BY WAITING, NOT FORCING

We want to get unstuck, yesterday. We want the win, now. We want to fix it. We want to change it.

Jesus' mission is to see every single person surrender their lives to Him, receive forgiveness for their sin, and begin a relationship with Him. Nobody wants to see more and more people become followers of Jesus than Jesus himself.  But the first thing Jesus told them to do was to wait. He told them to stay in place. He told them not to move, yet.

Throughout the Old Testament, the Israelites faced war after war and battle after battle.  Sometimes they won, sometimes they lost. King Jehosophat was the King of Israel at the time when three nations joined together to wipe the Israelites from the face of the earth.  The armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir marched together to overthrow the Israelites.

When the messenger brought news of this to the King, he was terrified. If you know anything about leadership, if you know anything about being a King of a nation, you know you have people looking to you for protection, direction, and leadership.  Warriors were warriors because they had children and wives, and they fought to protect their families. Warriors do not want a terrified King – they want the King to be fearless and lead them courageously.

But, sometimes, courage and fearlessness are foolish. Sometimes, rushing ahead and forcing a plan to get unstuck is foolish, too. So, King Jehosophat called all of Judah and Jerusalem together, prayed, and said something significant:

2 Chronicles 20:12 (NLT2)

O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.”

Momentum begins with waiting, so we learn to stop trying to wriggle free of the mud and the mire by ourselves. We wait because we are often too prideful to ask God for help.
We wait because we think we can do it on our own. The more we fight and wrestle in the quicksand, the deeper we sink. But if in the waiting, we can be vulnerable with the Lord and say, "God, I do not know what to do, but my eyes are on You." "I am looking to you for help."

If we can say that and mean it, if we can say that and wait…then we are closer to getting unstuck than we realize. And maybe for the first time in a long time, we can start to build a little momentum. So, tell God, “I don’t know what to do, but I’m looking to you for help.”

POWER FOR DAILY CHANGE COMES THROUGH THE SPIRIT

The disciples had to wait for the Holy Spirit, but now, you do not have to wait to receive the Holy Spirit.  When you surrender your life to God and trust Jesus as your Savior, you also receive the Holy Spirit. Jesus told his disciples to wait because He would send them the Holy Spirit.

Acts 1:5 (NLT2)

John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

If you are new to following Jesus, please understand. The HOLY SPIRIT of God does not live inside a church building, a statue, or a painting on the wall.  The Holy Spirit of God lives inside YOU. Growing up, I was told the church building was God’s House. I had to speak reverently and quietly. I had to dress nicely. I couldn’t wear a hat. When I would run through the worship center and play hide and seek in the basement, I was lectured to behave in God’s HOUSE.

I now know that God does not live inside brick, steel, and drywall. The house of the Holy Spirit is reserved for God’s most incredible creation - you and me. The same Spirit of the Lord that created all of life lives in you. But the Spirit of God is not your shortcut.  The Spirit does not drop you at the finish line overnight. But to build momentum in your life, the Spirit will guide you, and you will begin to string together small, faithful wins.

Under the Holy Spirit's daily leadership, He will lead you to…

• One hard conversation at a time.

• One confession of sin at a time.

• One apology you have been putting off.

• One decision to walk away from temptation today.

• One act of generosity when you feel stretched thin.

• One moment of worship when you feel empty inside.

• One choice to stay in your marriage rather than running.

• One invitation to church when fear wants you to keep quiet.

• One more day of reading and praying in the Word.

• One phone call to check in on someone who is hurting.

• One more morning, you choose prayer before scrolling your phone.

• One night, you go to bed forgiving instead of resenting.

Momentum is not experienced by trying harder; it is built through small steps of obedience, stacked day after day, in the same direction. You will not fix everything today. You will not wake up tomorrow and find that every problem is solved. But you can start waiting instead of pushing forward to trust God. Start trusting the Spirit of God to lead you to the next right step.

And if you do that, if you will trust Him for today, then momentum will begin to build.

And little by little, the Spirit will do what you could never do by yourself.