Mar. 08, 2026

Discover how the power of community transforms your spiritual journey from isolated struggle to shared triumph—where encouragement fuels your faith, accountability sharpens your focus, and collective perseverance propels you toward the urgent calling God has placed on your life.

Pastor Lance's sermon begins at 22:15 min into the video. The music "Sing The Wondrous Love Of Jesus (Heavenward", "How Deep The Father's Love For Us", "I Love You Lord", "Build My Life",  and "Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)" are licensed under CCLI Copyright #2723035 and Streaming Media #22024223 licenses.

Pastor Lance opened with Hebrews 10:24–25, challenging us to wake up spiritually and stop coasting through our faith. His main point? Familiarity breeds complacency—and we can't afford to sleepwalk through the Christian life when the day of Christ's return draws nearer.

He started with a striking statistic: 77% of car accidents happen within 15 miles of home. Why? Drivers aren't paying attention on familiar roads. They're distracted because the route feels routine. Pastor Lance said the same thing happens spiritually. We sit in the same seat, talk to the same people, and let Bible reading become rote memory. His hope? To be "that unexpected bump in the road" that makes us sit up and pay attention.

1. The Day Is Drawing Near  - Pastor Lance asked how many of us think we're closer to the Lord's return today than yesterday. Of course we are—every day brings us nearer to standing face-to-face with Jesus. He quoted James 4:14 about life being a mist that vanishes, and Matthew 24:36 reminding us no one knows the day or hour of Christ's return. He clarified he's not against rest, but fears "days of rest have become lifestyles of complacency." He shared a Tim Tebow quote: "One of my biggest fears in life is that I would die and that God would call me home and that I would show up to heaven well-rested." Heaven is our rest and reward—so why enter it in fuzzy slippers? As Pastor Lance put it, "If you are not dead, God is not done with you."

2. Consider How to Stir One Another - Hebrews 10:24 says, "Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works." Pastor Lance asked, "Do our thoughts of how we love one another, encourage one another, lead us to an uncontrollable action to love one another well?" He reminded us that each of us has been uniquely gifted by the Holy Spirit for building up the body. Our stories have power—Revelation 12:11 tells us believers conquer "by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony." He pointed to small groups as a key place to share. Sunday mornings are great for worship, but we can't build deep relationships in five minutes. He said, "There are people here that need to hear your struggles. There are people here that need to hear your encouragement in their struggles."

3. Do Not Neglect Meeting Together -  Hebrews 10:25 warns against "neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some." Pastor Lance called out one of the enemy's biggest lies: "I can do church on my own." He said that's the antithesis of what church is—we come together to love, serve, and build one another up. "You cannot one another by yourself." He rattled off the Bible's "one anothers": love, accept, honor, encourage, bear burdens, forgive, confess sins, teach. There are over 50 "one anothers" in the New Testament—we need to meet together to actually do them.

4. Practical Steps and the 1992 Olympics Story - Pastor Lance encouraged us to step out of our comfort zones: sit in a different seat, invite a new family to dinner, serve on a team. Then he had us picture the 1992 Olympics 400-meter semifinal where a runner fell but refused to quit. His father came onto the track, and together they walked across the finish line while the crowd roared. Pastor Lance said, "We are both the runners on the field who need encouragement, who are stumbling, who are hurting. But we are also the father who gets to come out to encourage and to help and to support and to spur one another on towards the goal."

Pastor Lance closed by urging us to love well, finish well, and remember we're called to encourage one another as the day draws near. His message left us thinking about who God has placed in our lives to encourage this week.