Elevation Year In Review

Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick.

I'm the pastor of Elevation Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank you for joining us today.

Hope this inspires you. Hope it builds your faith.

Hope it gives your perspective to see God is moving in your life.

Enjoy the message. I thank you that one thought of you today, one thought can change the way we see ourselves.

When God puts something significant in me, the enemy sends something significant after me.

Find your tambourine and figure out how to praise even in the waiting.

And the proof that I know that God still has something amazing ahead for your life is that you're still here.

Hi.

Everyone, Welcome to church. I hope that you had a wonderful Christmas. I hope that you were surrounded by the people that you love. I hope that you ate all of the amazing foods that you love, because you know calories don't count on Christmas. I hope that you had time to rest and nap and enjoy the peace that this season brings. Now, this is the one Sunday of the year where our entire church is epham, So I want to see the comments flying right now. Let us

Not from your state.

Pastor Steven and I are continually amazed at the people that God has brought together across the world who make up the people of Elevation Church. And it is the honor of a lifetime to get to do ministry with you. Today is evident that you are finishing the year strong. You're making church a priority, and that is something to celebrate because twenty twenty four has been an immeasurably more.

Year for our church.

We have seen some true, incredible blessings. We've reached new communities all around the world. We've continued to be a resource for those in need, and we have seen thousands of lives transformed. The impact of our church and our ability to share the hope of the Gospel is greater than Pastor Stephen and I could have ever thought possible.

Looking back on twenty twenty.

Four, my heart is overflowing with gratitude for the ways that we have seen God move, and as.

We look ahead to.

Twenty twenty five, I'm feel with expectation, knowing that even greater things are yet to come. So today I thought it would be fun to take a moment to reflect on the incredible moments from the past year and then maybe take a peek ahead to all of the amazing things that God has for us in the year to come. And I thought that I would invite some friends to join us. It's going to be a great time, a great conversation, and I'm glad that you're here with us.

I can't, I can't believe we're what almost twenty years in.

Yeah, we released our.

Seventeenth worship album maybe eighteenth nineteen.

You can see exactly exactly.

That's a long story, all these years in almost two decades. It's crazy how God allows our ministry to go places that we may physically never show up or set our feet, but the Word of God goes there, and a lot of times that's happening through our shorge.

Yeah, I feel like there are so many people who have found our church through elevation.

It's incredible, so grateful. It is a crazy year. When Wind meets Fire.

Okay to say, I think When Wind meets Fire is my favorite Elevation Worship album.

It's incredible. People ask me what, what's my favorite song? What's my favorite album? The favorite album? Answer is always what's the most recent one?

We just did? So I agree it's my favorite too, but for good reason.

Nowavorite song?

See, it's a album it is you got we might get there, but I'll say sure, been good.

Yeah, I love sure been good to the day I died.

Yeah, Jesus are the albums and the songs are like your kids.

Like you know, you can't choose a favorite.

I have a favorite take, you have a favorite favorite song?

Okay, all right, I'm going to say it.

No when win means fire though the song it's it's a rock opera. We got like God is Not against Me is on there? Which was what a sermon? It turned into a song that also made.

Chapter in a book.

Yeah, exactly, and one of the mindsets. I mean, it wasn't just a chapter, it was like a section in the room.

Absolutely. I mean, new Thing Coming, which is so fun. Also, I mean, what a great song to to end one year. So many great songs. I can't believe it's seventeenth album.

I can't believe it is.

It's incredible.

Also, I mean, we got a shout out rhythm for Goodbye Yesterday.

How good is that song?

It's so good, so good.

Also, actually another perfect song to end one year, And.

That's true.

I love worshiping of that song.

It just makes me so happy and you start like shouting.

I have decided to follow Jesus.

I feel like at a youth I mean, I got a rhythm night and to hear are you declaring that?

Yeah?

But then to see it on a Sunday morning and balanine'e and I mean it like.

They're going strong, it goes crazy. Also, I mean selfish.

I'll shout out praise too, because praise just kept released it well over a year ago, not not this year, but it just kept reaching more people. So the way God's working through our ministry, how He's using the songs.

Is it's incredible.

I think we have a clipless show saying, hey, I.

Got you don't get it what we what we call don this sol thing. You've never run out big? Put it?

Put it.

By God. He's not a dance He's a shires as this says a little little wayes Hi.

Do the songs on the bed room right down.

Sons to get ready.

For done the one because I done. The money's a.

Great shop thing, incredible, amazing, It's amazing how many good songs, so that many.

Song after song after song. I just am blown away.

Okay, So, Chris, one of the things I want to put people on the spot that are on the sofa, and I want to know, are there any secrets.

Five.

I want to know, are there any.

Secrets that's the people watching today can can get O?

All right? All right? So well, can I let me share a little story?

Okay? Stories?

May of this year, I got a phone call. I think you happen to be in the car.

Okay.

I got a phone call from your husband, Pastor Stephen, and he says, you know, all these songs that have been sitting on our phones, We've never recorded them, we've never sung them in church, We've never figured out what do we want to do with them.

I got the idea.

What we need to do is get our friends together, Brandon, Lake, Channer, Moore, Leland, Pat, the two of us, and let's just have fun and let's record these and let's let's start a new group, a new a boy band, if you will, but not really a boy band, but a new twenty four twenty five man band. And it's going to be called Sons

But it's coming, Sons of Sunday. I'll tell you what you need to do.

You actually need to go on socials right now and search up Sons of Sunday because I mean we kind of.

Have been king and then you'll know when it's out exactly and every song is so good and okay.

Do we have a little.

All right, so the secrets out?

Okay, secrets out. Check us out.

God gets a hold of you.

It's no town. Watch alluded, nom time, watch.

Alloud, my gad, fight my key free.

But if you back, come out, I'm bing out on me.

I got fawing out.

Okay, we needn't.

That's all you get right now.

So sometime in twenty twenty five.

I'll say sometime very soon, okay.

And then of course elevation worships on tour.

We we saw what sixteen cities with elevation nights this past year and it was incredible nights in ministry. Yeah, and then we're headed right back out in February of this year. Yeah, eight more cities in February. Can't wait to see what God does.

I mean, tour is amazing.

And the thing that I love about tour is it's not just Elevation Worship.

It's like it's like.

Elevation Church came to your town. It yea and filled an arena exactly. And so you get like all your favorite songs, and then you get a word from Pastor Stephen, and you get Epham you know, in the not the lobby, but like whatever it's called the concourse. Of course, you get to meet Chad and all of our e fam gets to come together, and they're just such incredible nights. And we're going back out again and I'm so excited.

We have the dates.

But we got another video. We got another video video.

All right, all right, check this out. Here's Elevation Nights.

It's amazing because this last time we had I think over one hundred and sixty thousand people who showed up this year and it is crazy, I mean you were saying it, but to gather in person. A lot of these people are part of our e fam who watch online and so to get everybody in a room together is crazy. One of the things I love that we do, though, is when we get to meet with a lot of the fan people who call Elevation Church family out in the concourse. As you were saying, we have these little

It's awesome, it's so special. It's my favorite thing that we get to do. So we have an area where we get to pray with you, and so you can write a prayer request down and even to this day, if you've written a request down, we're still praying for you. We have our teams hereas that pray over you, your family or whatever it is that you need prayer for. And so you mentioned it, it's a night of ministry and it goes deeper than just like a room full

Yeah, yeah, that's awesome, and we're pouring out as a ministry into people. But I will say how much I feel like, yeah, I get filled when I get to read testimonies or you know, read the cards that someone wrote a prayer request down and then months later have in fact heard the test mony how God answered that prayer.

We're getting to meet people even there.

We've done that backstage and gotten to hear personally from them. How you know one of our songs carried them through a sleepless night and that's just I mean, that's so fueling. And it's like I have no business being in the position i am, but thank you Jesus. And we just get to be a part of a ministry like this.

Yeah, and we're not just at our campuses and on tour, but we also do pop ups.

I mean pop ups have been amazing.

We've been doing these for a few years now, and it actually started kind of right out of COVID. We were like, well, everybody's watching online, now can we actually take church to people on Sunday.

It's not an event, it's just.

Literally we bring some of the Elevation Worship crew and we get people from all over the world who say, hey, I'd love to be baptized.

I'd love to take that step, and we thought, well, let's bring a baptism. Thanks to that. Yeah, and let's do baptism.

So this year we've been able to do twelve pop up and we're all over the United States.

We wrapped up this year in Los Angeles.

We've seen over fifteen thousand people join with us at these pages and we've got the opportunity to baptize over fifteen hundred people.

Incredible it is.

It is absolutely incredible, And every stop it just never ceases to.

Blow a mind.

There's people lining up around the building. But what's cool is every place that we go, it's like it feels like church.

It feels like this is family.

Yes, and we really try to make it feel that way. From you know, if you attend to campus, we want you to come and attend one of these and think I want you to see the banner and it's like, oh, that's my church. They're here, and so as people are coming in, you're what you're seeing familiar faces, but as

Are One of my favorite things that we did in twenty twenty four was my husband released a book, and it was his first book in eight years, and.

The book was called Do the New Year.

Yes, and the book, I mean, besides like releasing it to the world and like all the things that came along with it, I just so loved this book. Like I'm just continually blown away at how God continues.

To use our pastor's words.

So it's it could be when he's preaching, it could be through the songs that he's writing, or through the words of a book.

And this particular book.

He gave us the six mindsets and then the chapters within the mindsets, and it was just I mean, it was just so much fun to get to read that book and release it and to hear people talking about it and to hear how it was ministering to all of you.

And I don't know any of you, I think we do have to thank God for the way that he used your voice because.

If we remember, oh I remember, if we remember pastors, I mean, by the power of the Holly Spirit, God, God use your voice to be able to.

Say, well, it was special for me because you know, like everybody needs moments where you feel like, oh, God does hear my prayers. God does answer prayers. And it was like one of those moments. And we shared the story many times where you know, I had just been praying, Like we had many conversations and we had this one like I wouldn't.

Say it was a fight, but it was.

It was a little heated conversation and intense.

And I just felt, you know, like that's enough, Like when you know, and sometimes you're having a conversation with somebody that you really love and you're really trying to push them, but then you know that like you've said enough and it's time to just move on. And and so whenever that happens to me, I have said enough to that. But then I know that a guy can say all my thanks to God, and so I just

We had a song, we had the sermons.

Week, we had the book to discuss, and then we had E groups that were discussing all of it.

And it was such a great moment. Fun facts about twelve thousand people in our church. I'd love to know who you are like went through this study together. So it was also such a special unifying time in our church.

But we did. We unpacked these mindsets.

I love.

If you've been around, maybe you've heard of say this.

E groups make our church, a big church feel small, and so it's one thing to hear it, it's another thing to unpack it and make it personal in your life. And that's what we got to do for these six weeks together, and so we got to take them to another level, really get them in our hearts that we can really love them out. And so we loved our time together and it was just really special.

It really was. You let us so well through it too. Thank you for videos. Yeah that one, I'm like every single one of us were a part of that.

Yeah, that's true.

Yeah, it was a really special time together.

Oh, it was awesome.

And I just I love the e groups of our church because it's a place where I feel like God can take what he's speaking to you when you listen to the sermon, but it takes It's like the roots go deeper when you are able to discuss it with other people and you hear other people processing what God is speaking to them, and it just solidifies what God is speaking. And so I just think it's so powerful and you can still be a part of any group an elevation. There'll be a link in the description.

Okay, other fun things that have gone on. Tell us a little bit about outreach.

Okay, you've said this, Pastor Holly, and it has stuck with me. You said that if the groups are what make a big church feel small, yes, then outreach is what makes a big church feel big.

Yeah, And that is so true.

Outreach is such a special part of our ministry because it really is one of the areas where we get to live out our faith. And I feel like if you've been a part of it, then you know that you've walked through this all year long. I mean, we do everything from Dream Week. We kick off the Ears Strong with Outreach Love Week, I mean, and then we also like go into like you guys remember the response that we did, Yeah, Hurricane Helene, Hurricane Milton.

What was crazy?

Was like in my mind, I thought we were just gonna be asking our campuses.

To show up and bring stuff. But Epham was like, oh no, you're not doing this without us, and.

So you can created an Amazon wishless And I don't know if anybody remembers this, but the Amazon guy we did this video.

It made me cry because the Amazon delivery man.

Was like, we haven't seen this many packages since the week before Christmas last year and we're all being delivered here and yet like it was so incredible because you know, we're a big church and sometimes you need to feel how big it is. And it was like mobilizing an army of people who are like I'll send something, I'll sort something, i'll deliver something, everything.

I mean, it was so immediately, like you guys showed up immediately. I mean we just started getting like packages and people showing up giving their time.

And it was such a powerful time to just be like, this is the church.

Yes.

And it made me so proud of our church because I feel like it was a moment where we got to see how all of the strategic systems that we've been building and how all year it was like everything sort of culminated because you know, we say this all the time, but twelve percent of every dollar given to Elevation.

Church goes to our outreach efforts.

And so when a disaster happens, we're we're ready with funds. You don't have to wonder should I give to this organization?

Is this is this?

You know, somebody who's being honest with you already give to your church, so you know that your church is going to support whatever it is. But then throughout the year we have events where we're whatever you know, Love Week or the Dream Weekend where we're packing backpacks or we're making flood kits, and so then whenever disaster happens,

I love how our church shows up in these moments where it's these national disasters, but I think sometimes people don't realize that there's outreach events happening all the time. You know, We've had people going back and forth to Ashville since that. We can't like it wasn't just the one time and there left. Yeah, I'm proud of the

Breakfasts and things like that. So that's just the heart of our church showing up.

It's happening all the time, all the time, all the time. So we get to do both in the moments that it's desperate and we got to show up, and then when it's just showing up for people on a day to day basis.

Our church does that too, all right, So God is expanding so many areas of our church.

Chet tell us about some.

Of the really fun things that we have coming in twenty twenty five and some of the things that we accomplished in twenty twenty four.

Well, one of the strategies that you know, we implemented I guess a few years ago is that we just really wanted to be focused on having some permanency in the communities that we were in. So we just wanted to focus on what campuses were we setting up and tearing down, and maybe we were at the whim of the school or whether or not we could have church

Their new building this year.

So yeah, Taylor and Nikki Seidel they had a.

Parking lot party.

I saw it.

I saw it for three hundred people to come just to have a night to be ab to worship before they open up the building.

A thousand people showed up.

That's crazy.

They had ten salvations that night in the parking lot before we even open up the building at Columbia.

Okay.

So then coming into twenty twenty five, Greenville. Greenville will be opening up hopefully summer twenty twenty five. Then we have Uptown, who should be opening summer of twenty twenty five.

We got a really cool location, really cool location.

When you step out on the Fourier, you're able to look up and see the skyline of the city of Charlotte. That's pretty amazing. And then Toronto East. Toronto East was a new campus that we actually launched this year. No, no, don't apologize. It was at the end of last year that we launched Toronto East. God's doing so much in Toronto. Last,

Yeah.

And the one that I think about this and think about the mission of our church so that people far from God would be raised to life in Christ. And so, yes, we're talking about these buildings. You're seeing some of the renderings and all of that, but what we're really excited about is the ministry that's going to be happening in these walls.

People.

I just want to thank all of you faithfully give an Elevation Church so that when an opportunity like this opens up, we're able to jump on it.

That's right. We have resource set.

Aside, we can get ahead of projects because of your generosity to be able to jump in and see what God can do through through our church.

Yeah.

And I love how when people people give, it's this spirit of of like, well, this ministry has touched my life so much and even though I attend a camp, you know, like University City, that is already a permanent location the generous spirit of I need.

I want other people to experience that too. I want to create a seat somewhere else.

It's just such a beautiful thing to see when we come together. I mean, it's another way that a big church feels big, because when every gift matters, because when we pull all of our gifts together, God is able to do miracles. Before we leave, I have to spend some time talking about some of the amazing sermons that we heard just this year, twenty twenty four.

Now I looked last night.

I looked at a list of all of Pastor Stephen sermons just in twenty four, just the titles, and I was blown away.

I was like, how does this man do this?

I preached three four, I preached four baby sermons, Okay, okay, but this man preached like thirty five times and his titles are brilliant and they come together. And we had, you know, we had do the New You. We had ghost Writers series. We had this series that was towards the end of the year. I don't know if it ever got a name, but you know, it was like God is Oh, now I can't remember all of them working in.

Can you do them all?

Don't challenge?

God's got the hard part.

And then the last one, I'm cheating. I'm looking at my nose.

Oh, God gave it to me.

I mean, those were incredible messages that we ended the year with, but we started the year strong. And so I had everybody in this room come with their favorite sermon and we're just gonna watch a clip and chat about them. Chris, what was your favorite sermon of the year?

All right?

So I mean also kind of like picking favorite kids, Yes, but totally for the exercise.

Totally.

In August, he preached two titles, Me and.

God getting back together, got Back Together and breaking the bondage of wrong belief. So it's in Judges six he's talking about Gideon. Gideon's hiding in a wine press because the nation of Israel has been in captivity for seven years and God shows up. Gideon's feeling like a whimp and God. The first thing God says to him is, hey, mighty warrior. So he's feeling a certain kind of way. God doesn't speak to how he's feeling. God speaks to how God sees him, and then this is really where

It's so good.

So I mean kind of a perfect way as we step into a new year, like what old mindsets have no business going into twenty five with us?

I think I've got a clip.

Let's check this out.

I see some people that I preach to. You're trying to build your life back. You're trying to build your hope back. You're trying to build your business back. You're trying to build your family back. You're trying to build your sobriety back. You had eighty one days and now

Because because if all I.

Do is build an altar while Pastor Stephen is preaching. And if all I do is say, Okay, I'm going to stack some new habits and I'm going to do some new things, and okay, the Lord is peace.

Found out something that you cannot have God's peace and keep it without having God's priorities. God's peace without God's priorities is always temporary. The kind of peace that you've been seeking in your life, craving in your life, crying out for in your life, that kind of peace, that that permanent peace, that storm speaking peace, that lay your head on the pillow of a lion's main kind of peace that I'm in a fire. But I see the fourth Man kind of peace.

The kind of peace that can know that greater is he that is in me than he that is in the world, and there's more with us than with them. And I don't have to be afraid about any of it.

That kind of peace only comes from priorities.

Yeah, I'm good.

I wrote this.

I wrote this in my notes. I thought this was so powerful. No breakup, no breakthrough.

Yes, And it's like until you break up with those habits, with those ways of thinking, with those like you said, those those mindsets that you've believed about yourself aren't true.

Until you break up with those things.

You don't get to have breakthrough.

And we all want breakthrough, but a lot of times we don't want to do the work that it takes to get that breakthrough.

And it was just such a convicting message.

The whole idea of God's peace is connected to God's priority.

Yeah.

I mean that's enough to go into right there and just say, Okay, how am I going to count my day? Is this a lot with what God has for me? And not be mad when you don't experience the peace of God and you haven't taken time to be able to prioritize your effect your life effect.

Is like the daily thing though, because a lot of times I think that it's like a moment where it's like Okay, I'm gonna go destroy that altar and then that's done, like okay, and it's not really that well, it's like a daily thing. Every day. God's calling you a mighty warrior. Okay, okay, I'll do it today. So that's the thing that I feel like I miss a lot. It's like it's not a moment, it's a daily decision to believe that.

Okay, God, I'm a mighty warrior. That's tough.

Yeah. The thing that you need to make real practical, right, Like you got to write some of these down. You mentioned looking back at our notes. That's a great sermon to go back look at your notes. You got to write it down. You need to schedule it. You mentioned that, like, what does your calendar look like? Like are you scheduling according to the priorities that you feel like God's put in front of you, and so making it as.

Practical as you can to be as successful as we can at this all.

Right, Britt, Okay, you like the Easter sermon.

I love the Easter sermon.

The Easter sermon was so good, and I mean all of pastors Steve and sermons speak to you. This one was the one of the year that I feel like I felt the most scene because maybe it's just because of how I'm wired.

I don't know, crazy though, how he can do that. How like he'll just.

Say something and you're like, oh my gosh, yes for me, I'll actually think I'm like he better stop because I really.

Feel like he's talk about me.

But I'm not.

That's just the Holy Spirit just speaks through him and it just like cuts straight to you and sorry interrupted, No.

No, this is great.

This sermon was called something in Between maybe you remember it, and he preached from Matthew twenty eight and so this was our Eastern sermon. So he preached about the Mary's going to the tomb. Yeah, and he really camped in a verse and you know scripture, and you know, I don't know, like maybe you have a tradition where like I don't know if you read the Easter Story. Like my in laws they read the Easter Story of the Christmas Story every holiday. And I'm like, I have read

Yeah, we got a clip. We gotta clip yellows.

SHOT's watch it.

And I love this phrase because this is how I feel afraid yet filled with joy. This is not a translation error, by the way, because most of us think like you're either going to be afraid or filled with joy. I had somebody ask me the other day, I was going to do something that was a big deal, and they said, are you looking forward to it or are you dreading it? And I was like, are those the only two options? Because I'm not exactly looking forward to it. I'm not exactly dreading it.

I'm something and it can change from moment to moment.

I'm like, really grateful for this life God has given me and this influence that He gave me. And then sometimes that anticipation feels like anxiety, and sometimes my anxiety feels like anticipation, and sometimes listen to this. The difference between anticipation and anxiety is the way you label it. I stand before you today excited and afraid. I stand before you today a sinner and a saint. I stand before you today a flawed man and a child of God. And I'm never all of both.

I'm something in between.

Okay, now I know you guys see why I felt so seen because I feel like that is literally me, Like we're all Our faith is just a constant journey, and it gets so frustrating when you're like, you see where it is.

That God would have you be.

You're like, okay, Lord, you say love my enemies, to pray something, to be kind and to be generous, and then somebody says the wrong thing on the wrong day and you're like, oh, I was working so hard on this, you know, and I'm got slipping, But like no, sometimes it is both like yes, like I want to be like holy and I want to be closer to God

You know what I loved from the sermon when he said, even when it's not all good, it's all God. And man, that's like, that's real faith to trust that, even when it's not all good, whatever you're going through in your life, to be able to say, I know this is all God, and I know that it's not good now, but it's going to be good. That's right and so powerful.

He also said it similar like this.

He said, we're all something in between, so we can all find ourselves in this, he said, and we need Jesus in between. And sometimes that's the part that I think is so easy for us to forget.

Okay, let's get to mine.

I wanted to go all the way back to the beginning of the year when Pastor Stephen got out his guitar, so we had worship Pastor Stephen.

And this sermon. It just really touched me.

So check this out.

It's amazing when you're in tune with the grace of God. It's amazing when you're in tune with the voice of God. When I'm in tune with you, Lord, I don't have to fight so much when I'm in tune.

With you, Lord.

I don't have to manipulate so much. When I'm in tune with you, Lord, I don't have to defend myself. You fight my battles when I'm in tune with you, Lord. Somebody say, Lord, I want to be in tune.

With you.

When I'm in tune with you.

Lord, my problems look small. When I'm in tune with you, Lord. It feels like all things are possible when I'm in tune with you, Lord, I can scale a wall. When I'm in in tune with you, Lord, the giant looks like an opportunity, not a problem. When I'm in tune with you, Lord, I'm able to laugh at what used to make me cry. When I'm in tune with you, Lord, I'm able to cry and know that tears don't last always, but joy comes in the morning.

When I'm in tune with you, Lord. It's a beautiful thing to be in tune.

This sermon was just like it's just one of those beautiful, comforting sermons.

He said. I just thought this.

Sometimes, don't you feel like somebody's pastor Steven will say something that sort of like sets.

You free from a certain way that you were feeling.

And he said, from the same heart comes your greatest fears and your greatest faith.

And so then he said, therefore, your heart is a harp, and it has to be tuned to truth.

And the whole sermon he's talking about tuning your heart to truth and being able to hear what God is saying to you.

And so then like as the sermon.

Progressed, though like first I got a hug and then I got a little what would we say earlier, a little.

Push because he said.

Tuning feels like tension.

And it's like, when you think about tuning your heart to God's word and to God's praise, you.

Think it's gonna be like warm.

And fuzzy feeling, but actually it feels like tension because there's something that happens.

That draws you closer to God.

And then I just like again he ended gave us some homework, and the homework was so good.

He said, pause, tune, praise.

Repeat, and it's like, oh, okay, so Monday morning, when I feel the tension, pause tune, Praise repeat, over and over and over again. And it was just something so practical that really just gave me the momentum.

For the year that I just really needed.

Yeah, so good. He said, this is how I wrote it down. God's not changing his standard to fit you. He's going to bring you up. And that was so powerful. Sometimes I don't know if it's just a weird thing I do, but sometimes after I hear sermon, I'll write down in my notes like how I'm feeling or like what it's speaking to me.

Yeah, And.

I literally wrote to myself. This is really funny. Reading it back, I was like, I know, it couldn't have just been me. This had to be thousands. I was like, but something shifted in me during that sermon. I've got some tuning to do. Yeah, And so it was one of those types of messages. And so I'm so glad that you picked that one because it's really great to just sit here and even revisit it going into the new year about like we've got some tuning to do going into twenty twenty five.

Yeah, And he talked about how setting our heart is a decision. Yes, yes, it's not as not default, which, by the way, I mean one of the greatest illustrations truly, but like if also, like heading into this next year,

He's us guitar players tune in between songs, you know, what I mean. It's this, It's this rhythm of the constantly tune one part of the message. He was talking about being tuned to tradition, and that's the hardest to change.

You know.

How do you tune to truth when this is what my mom did, this is my granddad, this is and I'm tuned to something that I've seen over and over and over again.

But pause and ask yourself the question, is it the truth? Is this what God says?

Yeah?

And if not, that tension, yeah, you know what I mean. Being able to commit to that, I think is faiful.

Yeah.

This has been so much fun talking with all of you, And I want to encourage you. If you're watching right now and maybe you have some downtime, The week between Christmas and New Year's is like the weirdest week of the year, and it's like time between so slow, and so I just want to encourage you to go back, find your favorite sermon of the year, watch it again, find your notes, read through them, and rediscover some of the things that God spoke to you in twenty twenty.

Four as you look forward to twenty twenty five. We've got the links to all of these sermons.

Our favorites of the year, but you've got yours too, and they're all there available for you right here on the Elevation Church YouTube. And so I just want to encourage you to take some time to go back and think about the things that God has spoken to you this year and the things that God has done for you this year, because it has been an incredible year and God has sure been good to us, and as you've seen today, there is so much more to be

I cannot believe it. So in February we will.

Celebrate our nineteen year nineteen, but that launches our twentieth year of ministry, and we're making plans to celebrate big all year long.

So more to come on.

That, but make sure you stay tuned to Elevation because twenty twenty five is going to be incredible. So as we close out this year, I just want to take a moment to thank all of you who have stepped out in faith to be a.

Part of our year in offering.

We didn't get to talk about that together, but your generosity is a powerful testimony of the impact that we're making together and it's helping to fuel the next season of our church.

So thank you, thank you, thank.

You for your partnership and what God is doing through this ministry. As you've seen today, this is solid ground to put down roots in and stay planted. This is a place where you can experience community. It's a place where you can hear from God every single week. It's a place where you can serve, and it's a place where you are truly making a difference. And if you hadn't had a chance yet, there's still time to be

I hope you have a.

Blessed and happy New Year and I'll see you next Sunday.

Thank you for joining us.

Special thanks to those of you who give generously to this ministry. Is because of you that this ministry is possible. You can click the link in the description to give now or visit Elevationchurch dot org slash podcast for more information and if you enjoyed the podcast, you can subscribe.

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Thanks again for listening.

God bless you.