Sermon Tone Analysis

Defining Moments 1

Jonathan A. Buckland

Joshua 24:14-15 14 “Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness.

Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.

15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.

But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

NIV

Opening Question - If you could go back and change one choice that was made, what would it be and why?

Do you have any regrets in life?

A. One Moment Can Change Everything

Life is a series of choices we make, each decision resolves things in our lives, but also opens up a new series of questions and determinations that must be made.

One choice has the impetus to change your reality forever!

One choice, in one moment, holds the power to determine success or failure, anxiety or peace, frustration or relaxation, health or disease, integrity or deceit, truth or lies, wealth or poverty, security or insecurity, transformation or staying the same, clarity or blurred vision, confidence or insecurity, hope or hopelessness……

Tell the story of my life and how it was defined by specific moments and choices culminating into my present reality.

B. Moments of Definition in a Personal Life

1. Day you were born or the birth of a child

2. The loss of a job or the start of a job or Promotion

3. Graduation from High School or college

4. Determining where to go to College and what to major in

5. Marriage

6. Retirement

Notable Moments that have shaped our World –

1. November 22, 1963, JFK was shot

2. November 9, 1989- Berlin Wall is taken down

3. January 17, 1991, Operation Desert Storm “Gulf War” begins

4. Series of Moments in late 1999-early 2000 led to the dot com bubble burst

5. September 11, 2001, World Trade Center Attacks

6.

Stock Market Crash of 2008

C. Reactive Moment or Proactive Moment

1.

We have an opportunity to create a defining moment, right now on January 1, 2012.

2. Moments can come in one of two ways, either reacting to something or initiating something by being proactive.

3. Joshua brings the people to the point of a decision, a choice, a moment, which would ultimately be a defining moment for them individually as well as collectively!

4. Joshua’s defining moment-

a. Was based on the reality he had already seen – where God brought them from

b.

A personal decision – “as for me”

c.

A corporate decision – “my house”

d.

Leadership decision – “we will serve the Lord”

5. Today, you can make a choice that will be both personal, as well as corporate, it will be a matter of leadership and vision for 2012, Who Will You Serve?