A mind can reach a mind, but only a heart can reach a heart. It is not the mind that God places emphasis on; it is the heart of our actions. God does not tell us to love him and do things with our minds, it is the heart of what we do, that God is after. As the Bible says, "And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength." (Mark 12:30) God wants us to put our full hearts into our actions.  It is not what we do that becomes useful to God; it is the amount of heart behind our actions that God uses to create His blessings. That is why …

1.  New Hope is all about HEART.

At New Hope, you will find numerous facilities set up; tents, lights, booths and music. Everything that is done at New Hope is done with heart.  The people who put up the tents and lights, help parking, the pastor’s messages are done with all the heart they have.   When we pour our hearts out in the things that we do, it becomes useful to God.

During Christmas time, there was a woman who was in search of a craft fair.  She drove by the Honolulu campus and saw the tents, people, and cars streaming into the parking lot.  She thought to herself, “Wow this must be some good craft fair.” She drove in and a parking attendant led her to a parking spot.  She saw people and they greeted and hugged her.  She heard the music in the auditorium and walked in.  The ushers greeted her warmly and gave her a hug and showed her a place to sit. She did not realize that she had walked into a church.  But she was so touched by the service and message, she received Christ that day!

So what brought that woman to Christ that day?  Was it the parking attendant, ushers, greeters, or Pastor Wayne that day?  It was not just one person; it was all those hearts in action.  It is important to realize that New Hope is not stuff, an event or a program; it is the heart with which all that is done that is the essence. The Lord can use that heart of service to create great wonders. Jesus Himself was a great example of putting all His heart into service, "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45)

In the Old Testament, God gave the Word and the Law and it wasn’t enough. Minds were filled, but not the hearts.  God sent down Jesus and through His sacrifice, it became a ransom for many.  God gave us His heart through Christ, and in return we should do like wise. When you pour your heart into the things that you do, it becomes useful and beautiful to the Lord.

2. It's not what you do that grabs God's attention: It's THE HEART through which you do it.

New Hope did a prison outreach at Saguaro prison in Arizona to minister to the 1900 Hawaii inmates. There was a team of forty people from our church that set up and ministered to the prisoners with all of their hearts.  Pastors from other churches were invited see the heart of the mission.  After the trip, I invited one of the other pastors from another church to lunch to see what he thought.  The pastor told me that he needed to apologize and repent because at his church they said that New Hope does not know the Word, they sugar coat the word, and they are all about the show. However, during his stay, that pastor saw the New Hope team working and doing devotions with the inmates – with all their hearts. It changed his mind and heart. He knows now that New Hope knows, lives, and gets the Word with all of our hearts.

When you are willing to pour all of your heart into something, it becomes useful to God. It is not the things that we do; it is the heart of which we do things that grabs God’s attention.  In Galatians, it says the spirit and flesh can’t mix.  If we do things because of us, the Spirit has no business here.  God knows that when we do things with all of our hearts, the Spirit can use and make them useful to God. So "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus..." (Col. 3:17)

When you do things with all of your heart, it’s an act of worship to God.  The Lord knows the value of correcting the heart. Daily devotions correct one’s heart back to Christ.   In any relationship, if you take the heart out of it, the relationship will fail and fall apart. Examples of this are separated and divorced couples. The relationships fall into trouble because someone lost the heart for the marriage. Counseling and correcting the couples behavior, will not save the marriage.  Correcting the heart back to the marriage will bring it to life.  In our daily walk it is important to do our devotions to correct our hearts back to Christ. So where can we find Christ?

3.   Best place to find Jesus is in the hearts of those who SERVE.

No matter where you are in life, God can use you.  If you give all your heart to God, he will make use of it.  Some of our servants at church are young and God uses their work to create something beautiful.  God knows that when we put our hearts to serving it is the best place to find Jesus.  You’ll find Christ in the hearts of all those who serve. So remember that Jesus said, "For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? . . . I am among you as one who serves." (Luke 22:27 NIV)

You can find Jesus at New Hope in the ones who serve with all of their hearts.  I encourage you to not only serve, but to discover the heart of Jesus Christ through serving.  Every week there are different ministries that are responsible for creating services that help the church and community.  There are a total of 1108 servants that serve weekly with all of their hearts. In the beginning, I served with the Levites, scrubbing toilets. The more I scrubbed each toilet, the more God scrubbed my heart.  The more I swept, the more God swept my heart.  Through serving, I saw Jesus more fact to face and heart to heart.  The greatest treasure here at New Hope is the heart of its people. New Hope will only be as vibrant as the heart of its people who are willing to serve.  A mind can reach a mind, but only a heart can reach a heart. Live with all your heart because God will honor and bless that. Live your life in an authentic Christian way.

Discussion Questions:

1. What does it mean for a Heart to reach a Heart?
2. What is the importance of the Heart to God?
3. What does it mean to do something with all of your Heart?
4. Why is it important to guard your heart in a relationship?
5.  How does serving help you get close to Christ?