Hey, Carpool Crew. I'm Pastor Justin. Happy Friday. Now, you know that sign-up sheet on the door with the empty lines that's exactly the right size for your name, and you walk right past it many, many times? Well, I know what that's like. Let's jump in with the one thing I want you to remember for the ride: show up. That is the first move. Now, listen to this from Jonah 1:3. Now, Jonah is one of my favorite books of the Old Testament, And here's what it says, "Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish from the Lord's presence. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. He paid the fare and went down into the ship." Now, here's what's going on. God told Jonah to go to a city called Nineveh and preach there. Jonah didn't wanna do this, so he went down to the harbor and found a ship going in the opposite direction and got on. Now, he tried to get away from God, but look at one detail. He paid the fare. Jonah spent his own money not to do the thing God asked him to do. See, running away wasn't free. It cost him, and it kept costing him. The Bible says that God sent a storm so big the ship almost broke apart. Jonah's plan to skip the hard thing turned into a harder thing. And he also got swallowed by a big fish. It's such a big deal. Now, here's the thing, and here's what fear does. It makes not showing up look free. Now, if you just don't sign up, nothing happens. Nobody says anything. You're fine, except you're not, because you wanted to try, and now you'll never know. I wanna be honest with you. Tryouts are hard. I've tried out for teams before, and I didn't make it, and you might not make it either. That part is real. But not showing up doesn't protect you from that. It just costs you the chance. Maybe it's a tryout. Maybe it's auditioning for the play. Maybe it's the spelling bee or an art contest or asking to sing at church. Hey, this week, I want you to try something. Maybe go to your mom or dad tonight and just say it like this, "There's a tryout. I wanna sign up," or, "There's something at church that I wanna try doing." Then go for it. They will help you. If it's as easy as signing up, you can do that. And if you need your parents to help you talk to someone at church to try something new, go for it. Now, let's go back to the one thing I wanted you to remember. Show up. That is the first move. Remember, no matter where you are or how you're listening, God loves you. And parents, real quick, tomorrow on Carpooling with Jesus, we're on the scary thing your kid caught nine words of on the news and how God is their safe place even then. And Sunday, we're on the second right after the teacher says, "Find a partner," when no one has turned around yet. For less than a snack stop at a Buc-ee's, which is a really nice gas station, you could be a subscriber. I'd love to have you consider it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. One more thing, we have a bonus episode for Questions From The Backseat that's coming up on why do I get scared at night for no reason? Now before we go, let's answer this question together. What is something you talked yourself out of, and what did it end up costing you? I'll see you tomorrow or next Monday on Carpooling With Jesus.
