Don't Curate, Cultivate

Formed by Jesus, Not by the Algorithm

We're in the series Recommended for You, talking about not being formed by the algorithm, but being formed by Jesus — not being shaped into whatever we see on our feed, but being shaped more and more into the image of Jesus.

Last week Pastor Louie's main thought was this: God's recommendation to you is God. God is recommending God.

He told us we could go find our own algorithm on Instagram, and I'll admit I was nervous. What's this machine going to say about me — this thing that watches and knows everything I linger on, everything I click on? What is it feeding me more of?

It turned out not to be that bad. Mine was mostly exploring global cities through their cuisine — where to eat tacos in Mexico City, dessert places in London, coffee shops in Tokyo. I got some soulful worship music in there too, which was a relief. And the World Cup.

Here's the point: God has an algorithm for us. He has instructions, thoughts, examples, and His Spirit that He wants to be the one forming us. For many of us — not people outside this building, but inside it — we are formed by the algorithms of the world. And that is dangerous.

The Sermon on the Mount and Being a Disciple

Jesus addresses this in the Sermon on the Mount, one of the most well-known passages of Scripture and some of the most famous teachings on planet earth. This is Jesus's first public teaching, as He began to take His ministry public in the last three years of His life.

Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them. (Matthew 5:1–2)

This is the spirit Pastor Louie was talking about last week: not just being cultural Christians but being disciples of Jesus. Not just saying we believe in someone, but actually learning their teachings — being pupils.

Do you consider yourself to be a disciple of Jesus? Do you want to be? For most of us, this is a way of life. I hope we see ourselves as more than cultural Christians — as disciples who want to learn from Jesus, watch Him, listen to Him, and embrace His way of life.

Just as the disciples gathered close to Jesus, you and I often need to be moving toward Him: Jesus, teach me.

Don't Curate a Playlist

Following Jesus is not about curating a playlist — picking and choosing the songs, the version, that fits me best. Sadly, most of us do that with our faith.

I like this teaching of Jesus. I like that message. I like this part. And we curate our own version that makes us feel better about the life we actually want to live on our own. We live our own way and just ask Jesus to bless it.

Instead we should say, "No, Jesus, I want all Your teachings. I want everything. My whole life for Your glory — not just part of my life." We don't curate our own playlists. We come under the entire teaching of Jesus.

Be Careful Why You Do What You Do

As Jesus moves into chapter 6, He teaches about our practice of righteousness — the things we do for God.

Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. (Matthew 6:1)

So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do... when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matthew 6:2–4)

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others... when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. (Matthew 6:5–6)

When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do... put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen. (Matthew 6:16–18)

Notice the problem back then. They were giving, praying, and fasting — but they were trying to get the most attention while doing it. In our day it would be like holding the offering bucket a little longer so everyone sees the big check. Or praying the longest, loudest prayers. Or making sure everyone knew, "I hate that you asked, but I'm fasting today."

Jesus isn't telling them not to do these things. He doesn't say if you pray — He says when you pray. Giving, praying, and fasting should be part of our lives. The issue wasn't what they were doing; it was why they were doing it.

So He says: Be careful. Beware. Pay attention. Evaluate your motivation for why you do what you do.

Curating vs. Cultivating

In the digital age, it's not only what everyone is projecting toward us — it's what we're projecting toward people.

We spend a whole lot of effort curating our public life for God and a lot less effort cultivating our private life with God.

That is a dangerous place to be. When your relationship with God is more in front of people than it is just you and God, more often than not it leads to disaster.

It might be impressing people, but it's not moving the heart of God. We pray, we fast, we give not to make much of ourselves, but to honor and worship and respond to Jesus. He's the audience. He's the One we want to bless and praise — not chasing the reward of people seeing how good they think we are.

An Iceberg Life

I want to live an iceberg life. That's when what you see is only a small portion of what's really there. Only about 10% of an iceberg's mass is above the water; the rest is underneath, and that's what makes it strong and sturdy.

I want my life with God to be an iceberg life — where there's a whole lot more that people don't see than what they actually see.

Don't Be a Hypocrite

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites... (Matthew 6:5)

We've all been disappointed by people, harmed by people, our faith hindered by people who said they believed one thing but did something completely different.

The word for hypocrite means an actor. In that time, Greek actors wore masks in their plays — projecting to be someone they really weren't. Jesus is saying: don't wear a mask in your faith, presenting one way but living another.

None of us are perfect. We're all going to fall short. That's not a license to sin, but it is a reminder to fix our eyes on Jesus. Other people can help us — Paul says, "Follow me as I follow Christ" — but at the end of the day, our eyes need to be on Jesus, because He will never fail. He is not a hypocrite. Who He says He is, is who He is. What He taught is how He lived.

God Wants Your Attention

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. (Matthew 6:6)

Ask yourself: When do you pray? Think about your rhythms.

Prayer should not be a duty to perform or an obligation to complete. It's an invitation from Jesus — an invitation to have a relationship, to commune with God. Even though it sounds simple, we make it hard, and even though it's important, our actions often show we neglect it.

Passion City, let's continue to aim to be a more praying people. I want to be a more praying person. I need to put more concentrated effort into this being a robust discipline in my daily life.

So what is God looking for from us in prayer? It's the same thing the world is looking for from us through the algorithm: your attention.

The algorithm always says, Here's something else to look at. Here's something else you might like. Just hang on a little longer. Next thing, next thing, next thing — and it's got us.

• The algorithm wants your attention.
• God desires your attention.
• But there is only One who deserves your attention — Jesus.

He's worthy of it. He's infinitely glorious. There's always more to see, always more to receive.

Set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:1–2)

He Invites, He Doesn't Force

Here's the thing: God doesn't demand our attention — He doesn't force it. He gives us a choice.

In our offices we have glass walls, so you can see everything going on. If my door is open, I'm available — come talk, let's dream, let's meet. But if the door is closed, I'm locked in, focused, just me and the work. (We've had a few people hit the closed glass door with their nose, but I won't name names.)

In your time with God, He's simply saying: Have plenty of moments where you close the door. Get rid of the distractions.

You're not going to live there — you'll eventually open the door and go out into the world. But have plenty of times when nothing else is coming in and you're not going out. I'm here to meet with You, God. And I'm praying You'll meet with me.

Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. (James 4:8)

Sometimes it'll be quick moments, but we need to have moments where we linger with God.

Give Him Space

This is a discipline we all grow in. People tell me, "Brad, that makes sense, but I sit down, block out distractions, start to pray — and then I'm thinking about my to-do list, or I'm bored, or I don't know what to say, and I'm flipping through Habakkuk, which makes no sense, so I go back to Matthew because it's the only thing I understand."

Give God space. Prioritize the relationship. Make a choice. Just sit there with consistent rhythms and see if He fills that space. Over time you'll grow to say, I really desire this relationship. I need this relationship. If we're going to grow close, we've got to spend time together.

The Utah Trip

A few weeks ago, my 11-year-old son Caleb and I got invited to the wilderness of Utah. I'm not the greatest outdoors guy, but the thing all the dads were most nervous about was this: for four days, we had to give up our phones.

There was a Pelican case, and as you put your phone in, it just read: "It'll be okay." For four days we roamed Utah not knowing where we were going, just following the guide. When are we stopping for lunch? "I don't know, we'll see." Where are we camping? "I don't know, we'll see."

We made that choice to prioritize the relationship with our sons and our friends — to give them our full attention. And we prayed, God, would You move in power as we give You more of our attention.

It's a choice. God is recommending that He wants to meet with us in the secret place and pour out His grace, mercy, help, and wisdom. It's an invitation, not a demand. If He demanded it, He'd force you. Instead He says: Close the door. Don't spend all your time curating a life for Me and forget to cultivate a life with Me.

The Example of Jesus

This is the example of Jesus Himself. Early on, Jesus got up and went to a solitary place to pray. The disciples woke up, couldn't find Him, tracked Him down, and said, "Everyone's looking for you."

Jesus lived a busy life; everyone wanted something from Him. Many of you can relate. There have got to be moments where we withdraw to a solitary place — praying the kids don't wake up for another 30 minutes. This is what our souls need.

Another time, after feeding the crowd, Jesus sent the disciples across the sea in the boat so He could stay back and pray. The Son of God needed to pray. The Son of God needed time with His Father. Sometimes it doesn't make sense — but He chose the relationship, the communion.

Just as the disciples had stories of Jesus going off to pray, I want my children and the people in my life to know that Brad pulls away early in the morning or late at night — that you might find him in that chair reading his Bible and praying.

For Passion City Church: more than asking you to come, to serve, to give, to help pull off a conference, to lead a connect group — all of which matter — what if all of us read our Bible and prayed every day? It would be a whole lot easier to invite you into everything else. And what if people knew us as a church of people who set aside time to be with Jesus, who close the door, read the Bible, and pray? That's the example of Jesus. I hope it's the example of us.

The Reward Is More of Him

Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matthew 6:6)

Human approval, public attention — that reward comes and goes. But the Father who sees everything has a reward for you. And do you know what the reward is? More of Him.

This isn't a ranking system in heaven, like a top-25 list of who had the most quiet times. The reward is that we get more of God — and there's nothing better, no one better, to get.

Instead of more content to watch, see, and listen to, God says: I want you to see more of Me. I want you to experience more of Me.

Back to my global cuisine journey — there are an estimated 7,000 coffee shops in Tokyo, and I've been to about four. With God, I don't want it to be just seeing your experience on Instagram or hearing your story. I want my own experience. I want to know God for myself.

There's more to see of God than we can fathom, comprehend, or understand. I want more of You, God. With God, there's always more.

Being Transformed

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

We often call our time with God "quiet times" — quiet because we need fewer distractions, less of the world. But the time itself shouldn't be silent. It should be God speaking to us, His Spirit moving in our hearts, and us talking to Him. This is communion, not endless content — endless communion.

When I come to that time, it shouldn't be, Well, I'm a pastor, I have a sermon next week, I guess I'll read the Bible. That's the flesh. Instead the Father's invitation is: Come meet with Me. Come contemplate My glory. Think about how awesome, powerful, majestic, sovereign, loving, and merciful I am.

If I want to be formed into His image, it starts with contemplating His glory. When we do, there's always more to see — you'll never hit the limits. His glory and grace are inexhaustible.

More Wisdom to Receive

Not only is there more to see, there's more wisdom to receive. I've been surprised to hear people are going to ChatGPT for advice. I'm not sure going to a machine is the way to go — it might give knowledge or facts, but what we need is wisdom.

Wisdom comes from a glimpse of God. Wisdom comes from the fear of God. Wisdom comes from the mouth of God. He knows best. He knows us. He knows the beginning and the end. We need His wisdom, not merely human knowledge.

More Hope to Believe

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

It's called doom scrolling for a reason — the more we do it, the worse we feel about life, the world, and ourselves. It's not a hopeful environment when we're controlled by the algorithms of the world.

But when we tune in to the Father's algorithm — He is the God of hope. He wants to fill you with hope so you overflow with hope.

Maybe you're here running out of steam, thinking things can't get better, that you'll never change, that you've just given up. What you desperately need is hope. The algorithms of the world lead to despair, depression, stress, anxiety, and comparison. But God wants you to meet Him in the secret place, where He gives wisdom, revelation, grace, mercy, and hope.

He's got it all under control. You can trust Him. He knows what He's doing. There's joy even in the suffering. He's working all things together like He said He would, and He'll always be faithful.

Cultivate a Life With the God Who Sees

Go meet with God in the secret place and overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Church, let's not be a people who spend all our effort curating a life for people to see. Let's be a people who cultivate a life with a God who sees.