START WITH CAR RACE VIDEO
OPEN: Good Morning! Welcome to our new series called.....
! Explain video
! Many of us wouldn’t dare get into a car going that fast, yet our lives are going that fast.
! New series title is “Fast and Furious: Easing Up to Create Margin
TEXT: Please turn to Luke Chapter 5, verse 16. I will be reading this verse from the New Living Translation. Here’s what it says:
! Jesus was on the shore at the Sea of Galilee
! Verse One says “great crowds pressed in on Him”
! Then Jesus teaches Peter how to fish and Peter is awestruck
! Then Jesus heals a man with leprosy
16 But Jesus often withdrew to the
wilderness for prayer. Luke 5:16
! Then the Bible says a “vast crowd” presses in on Jesus (indicating even more than before)
! Then verse 16 Jesus leaves.
! He goes off by himself.
! He logs off of Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram and Snapchat
! And God forbid, he even turns off his
cell phone.
! And when people called him, this is
what they heard...
oPLAY AUDIO CLIP
! If the Son of God HIMSELF needed
MARGIN, how much MORE do WE need MARGIN?
Definition:
MARGIN: THE AMOUNT
AVAILABLE BEYOND WHAT IS
NECESSARY.
(Explain)
TEXT:
38 As Jesus and the disciples
continued on their way to Jerusalem, they
came to a certain village where a woman
named Martha welcomed him into her
home. 39 Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s
feet, listening to what he taught. 40 But
Martha was distracted by the big dinner she
was preparing. She came to Jesus and
said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you
that my sister just sits here while I do all the
work? Tell her to come and help me.”
41 But the Lord said to her, “My dear
Martha, you are worried and upset over all
these details! 42 There is only one thing
worth being concerned about. Mary has
discovered it, and it will not be taken away
from her.” Luke 10:38-42
(Tell Story)
! Here is what’s dangerous:
oShe was BUSY, but she was BUSY
doing the wrong thing oShe was “distracted”
! WORK is a distraction, time spent with family and close friends is NOT a distraction)
oShe wanted Jesus to DO something about it and Jesus taught her about MARGIN
oMy concern is that many of you (might I say “us”) think we are ‘doing the right thing’
oWorking hard
oGone four or five nights a week
(explain story
about Parker wanting to play ball)
oHere is what’s scary: Martha thought
SHE was right and Mary was wrong.
oOver the next few weeks, we are
going to look at “Easing off to create
margin”
oPutting our kids in everything under the sun just to keep up with others
Let me show you what happens when we don’t purposefully create MARGIN in our lives: (if you are taking notes, please write this down):
WHEN YOUR MARGIN
DECREASES......YOUR STRESS
INCREASES
WHEN YOUR MARGIN
DECREASES.......YOUR RELATIONAL
INTIMACY DECREASES
WHEN YOUR FINANCIAL MARGIN
DECREASES......YOUR WORRY
INCREASES
(WE ARE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THAT LATER IN THIS SERIES)
So, Pastor Tommy, what is the answer?
We need to have a “Come to Jesus”
Meeting.
Jesus said.......
Come to me, all you who are weary and
burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I
am gentle and humble in heart, and you will
find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28-29
oOne of the main reasons we lack margin
is we lack trust in God!
oWe feel like WE are the one’s keeping things together
oWe are the one’s making things happen
oWe are the one’s making the money come in.
oBut NONE of that is true
o18 But remember the Lord your God,
for it is he who gives you the ability
to produce wealth... Deuteronomy
8:18 NIV
oBe still, and know that I am God...
Psalm 46:10
o11 The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-
scorched land and will strengthen
your frame. You will be like a well-
watered garden, like a spring whose
waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11
oWeek 1: Introduction to Margin
Week 2: Scheduling Margin

Week 3: Financial Margin
Week 4: Moral Margin

