Impact: Yes Lord!

Impact: Sermon Notes Pastor Mike Snodgrass

Yes Lord! May 18, 2025

Exodus 3:1-2 MSG

Judges 6:11-12

Definition of Impact: the action of one object coming forcibly into contact with another.

An illustration that represents this first definition of a noun.

• Newton’s Cradle: It involves a series of balls suspended in a row, and when one ball is raised and released, it strikes the stationary balls, transferring its energy to the last ball in the row, which then swings up.

A second definition of impact as a verb is this: to have a strong effect on someone or something.

• Ripple Effect: The ripples are a physical manifestation of energy transfer, where the initial disturbance (e.g., throwing a pebble) causes water molecules to move up and down, creating a wave that travels outwards

Exodus 3:1-2 MSG

• He was in the wilderness on a back mountain
• He was established in a new land
• New family
• New job

Judges 6:11-12 NIV

• Working in hiding
• Using a winepress to thresh wheat
• Staying out of sight

Why are both of these individuals facing these different circumstances?

Exodus 2:11-12 NIV

• Moses became a murderer.
• Man on the run from his past.
• Chose to start a new life.

Judges 6:1-6 NIV

• Israel chose other Gods – Baal.
• Two separate nations plagued Israel – The Midianites and the Amalakites.
• Their crops would get ruined.
• Pillaged and plundered the land and people of Israel

It is in these two separate moments that we see God intervene in both the individual men and in the lives of the people of Israel.

Both Moses and Gideon are given an opportunity to be a person of impact in spite of their circumstances, location, and influence.

Exodus 3:9-10 MSG

Judges 6:14 NIV

Exodus 3:3-4 NIV

Judges 6:12-13 NIV
When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied…

• Moses and Gideon said, “Yes, Lord” to the invitation to “come” and join with God.
• They chose to engage and say, “Yes, Lord.”

To be a person of impact, we must say YES to the experience with God.

• This might seem an obvious statement, but it is not always an obvious answer.
• Both men are hiding, on the run, escaping from their problems and circumstances of life.

Moses was comfortable, Gideon was anxious…Moses had a new life, and Gideon was trying to figure out his…

We could list out all the reasons why we say no…

• Comfort
• Too busy
• Not desirable
• Inconvenient
• Not what I would do…

Or,

• I’m Good
• I have everything I need
• I just got here
• This is what I have always wanted…

We see that both Moses and Gideon, because of—and in spite of—their circumstances, chose to engage fully with their experiences and say, “Yes, Lord!”

Exodus 3:4 NIV
And Moses said, “Here I am”…

Judges 6:13 NIV
“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied…

Are we willing, as disciples and followers of Jesus, to accept and to say, “Yes, Lord” in particular situations and circumstances?

• Moses and Gideon didn’t have it all laid out to them.
• Both Moses and Gideon had this back and forth dialogue with God.
• Ultimately, both of them choose the task in spite of their lack….

Our willingness and ability to engage in the experience with God has everything to do with our choice and not God’s desire to meet with us!

James 4:8 NIV
Come near to God and he will come near to you…

Matthew 14:25-29 NIV

Jesus was already there, he told Peter to “Come”, but it was Peter’s choice to get outof the boat and engage the experience with Jesus.

• This is no different from our lives!

The beauty of this is that no matter our circumstances, whether in the wilderness, winepress or waves, God meets us right where we are!

For Moses it was the far side of the wilderness on a mountain side. For Gideon, it was out of sight from anyone in a winepress that wasn’t built for wheat but for grapes and for Peter, it was drowning in the waves.

In each of these examples, they chose to engage the experience with God over the situation and circumstance. They said, “Yes, Lord!”

To say, “Yes Lord” it requires us to not choose ourselves.

• My Plans
• My Desires
• My Preferences
• My Needs
• My Time
• My Fears

God’s desire is for you and me to be a person of IMPACT! To create something in you that you cannot do on your own. But that necessitates a “Yes, Lord” on our part!

John 14:12-14 NIV

“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

• What possibilities are there when we allow ourselves to be used by God and say, “Yes, Lord?”

When you move in faith, He moves in power!

• Ordinary becomes Extraordinary!
• Broken becomes Beautiful!
• Exhaustion becomes Energized!
• Shame becomes Strength

You must come back to the opportunity to engage God and His Will for our lives, and whether or not you will say, “Yes, Lord.”