We Travel Together

In this series by Pastor Dave, he teaches us that we are better together. This is the Biblical position for God’s people. He wants us together. He said this in the creation story: “It is not good for man to be alone”. Pastor Dave said this is the DNA of Coastal Church: people being together. DNA: Deoxyribonucleic Acid, can you pronounce it, for I cannot. I remember a youth conference in the UK, the theme was: DNA: “Do Nothing Alone”.

How you or I or anyone can have their sins forgiven, become a child of God, have their name written in Heaven, and travel the “Highway of Truth” is the wonderful story that is unfolding in this series by Pastor Dave. We must travel together; we are better together. Do Nothing Alone.

We might say some of God’s servants in the Bible spent their time alone. Yes. but it was not meant to be that way. Well, not for long; because their life had no real meaning until they were amongst people.

Elijah ran away, wanted to die. God took no notice of that and sent him back amongst people to continue his ministry. Jonah ran away, he wanted to be far away from people. God caught him and sent him amongst the people of the great city of Nineveh, and his preaching got great results. He was not happy about it, but his life had no meaning until he was with people.

John the Baptist spent time alone in desert places, but it was for preparation. His life meant nothing until he was preaching to the people. The same can be said of Paul the apostle. He had years alone in preparation for his ministry. He was receiving visions and revelations, but these meant very little until he was preaching amongst the people.

Some people say they believe in God but do not go to church because they do not want anything organised. Well, you cannot believe in the God revealed in the bible if you do not believe in organisation. He organised His people in the Old Testament and He organises His people in the New Testament. His position is: we travel together.

We are better together. In the film Castaway, Tom Hanks plays the part of Chuck Nolan, an employee of Federal Express. On the way to Malaysia, their plane crashes in the south seas. He is the only one to survive. He is castaway on a south sea island. Now this could be paradise. Have you seen some of those islands? I have! Sandy beaches, clear water, swimming alongside the fish. Palm trees, flowering bushes, sunny skies, waves pounding on the coral reefs. Fish to catch, fruit and vegetables to eat… Paradise.

But!! This was no good for Chuck. He spent four years learning how to survive, and all the time planning to get off the island. He would risk his life to get off that island. He built a raft and set out to sea. The pounding waves broke much of his raft apart. Adrift at sea, he would have died if not for a cargo ship picking him up. Yes, he would have died, but he was prepared to risk his life. Why? Because he must be with people. We are better together. No good being alone, not even in paradise.

I will not forget Pastor Dave’s 1st sermon and the illustration of the roundabout. He showed a photograph he had taken. It was a small roundabout. We have some in the UK so big and busy, there are traffic lights on them to allow traffic to merge in and to exit out.

There is one in North Van. A small one like the one Pastor Dave showed us. They do work. Telling us to slow down, pay attention, focus now on this crossroad, have you seen the signs? The one in North Van has not been there very long. There were stop signs but even then, someone got killed, so a roundabout was installed. Travelling South to North it is Garden Ave. The cross street is Hope Road. The main direction is Garden, you must take the second exit and keep going north towards Grouse Mountain. Now we as Christians believe in Hope. We are saved with hope, we travel in hope of eternal life. But if you take the 1st exit onto hope, that is wrong, because Hope Road is a dead end. Hope is finished, you must turn around or your journey is over. You must take the second exit and stay on Garden. If you take the 3rd exit you are on Hope Road going west, but it still becomes a dead end because it is a one-way street. as it starts out. You must come back and get on Garden Ave… The illustration was perfect. We must stay on the right way or be left behind, maybe even lost. You can go back to our archives and listen to his first sermon. It is well worth it. We must travel together. It is better, it is safe.

Pastor Dave also taught us; it is better to travel together with love. 2nd sermon. And last week we heard we must travel as friends; we need friends helping us on this journey. It is better together. This week Pastor Fari taught us we need friends on this journey. Not just to help us, but to help us to grow. Our redemption is nearer now than when we first began. We are not getting weaker we are getting stronger. We are looking at unseen things… we are feeling the pull of God’s love… the high calling of God. You can almost hear Him saying: “Come on, come on!” Yes, we are getting better, we are growing. We are getting closer. We journey together. Bless you, as you listen to this series.