God's Sermon

God’s Sermon

By Hayley Mathews, Class of 2014

Asheville, North Carolina

I can do all things through Him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13

            I was going through the lunch line when Lura McCraw came up to me and asked, “Can you preach for Junior Sabbath?” Usually I would’ve hesitated and politely declined, but for some reason I agreed. I had never spoken in front of a large crowd and had never even been to one of my class Sabbath services! I asked Lura why she had chosen me and she replied, “I feel like you would make a good sermon.” She must’ve had a lot of faith in me, which made things scarier.

            I began forming my sermon. I got some advice from Pastor Brackett which helped me tremendously. My sermon was about worldly influences, focusing on music. I even had a personal testimony. With all the researching I did, my eyes were opened more and more. It was definitely a difficult process. Some nights I was sick with nervousness and others I was filled with excitement. Junior Sabbath came just a few days later. I couldn’t stop shaking from excitement! While sitting up on the platform, waiting for my turn, the only thing that was going through my mind was the Bible verse Philippians 4:13.

            I finally gave my sermon and felt like everything had gone perfectly. I didn’t mess up and people seemed to listen and like it. It was one of the best days of my school year.

            Through that experience I learned that God really does help us communicate His will.  It could be something small or something big, to Him it doesn’t matter what the challenge is. I feel like God used that experience to not only open my eyes but to also grow closer to Him. Sometimes it’s good to step out of our comfort zone. If I never had done that I never would have known how much I enjoy public speaking. I know that God pushed me out of my comfort zone because I know I never would have volunteered for that on my own.

            God is so good!