Happy Thursday Reader,

You had the Sunday.

You responded. You surrendered. You meant it.

And then Monday came.

The same patterns. The same pressure. The same pull back toward who you used to be.

If that is where you are, this message is for you.

Today at Mars Hill Anywhere, we closed out the bridge from five weeks of second chances with one question nobody asks:

What do you actually do after God gives you a second chance?

We went back to the one verse most people skip in the Zacchaeus story.

Luke 19:8, before the dinner ended, before any further conversation, before the feeling could fade, Zacchaeus named the amount. Named the people. Named the action. Out loud. In front of Jesus.

He did not sit on the second chance.

He moved through it.

The Big Idea from today: God gives second chances not so you can feel better, but so you can move differently.

Your one move this week:

Name it out loud. Not in your head — out loud.

I am done with ___.

I am starting ___.

I owe ___ a conversation.

Then do the Zacchaeus thing: one specific, slightly costly action before next Sunday.

The second chance becomes a second life when you move.

Watch today’s full message → [YouTube link]​

This week’s prayer call devotional → app.sermonsend.com/sermon/pastorstowers​

Read on Substack → clarencestowers.substack.com​

This Sunday, we start something new.

Five weeks ago, God gave you a second chance.

Now the question is: what do you do with it?

This Sunday, we open a new 6-week series, GIVE ME MY MOUNTAIN.

It is the story of Caleb. A man who waited 40 years in the wilderness, not because he failed, but because the people around him were not ready. He never lost his fire. At 85 years old, he walked up to Joshua and said the seven most audacious words in the Old Testament:

That is not a desperate man. That is a man who knows exactly what God promised him and is finally done waiting for permission to go get it.

God gave you the second chance. This series is what you do with it.

See you Sunday.

Also: the podcast has a new name.

Still Standing with Clarence E. Stowers, Jr. is live now.

The bridge episode is up this week: “Thirty Years In. Here’s What I Finally Stopped Pretending.”

Thirty years of ministry. What ended. What it cost. And what this show is now, and exactly who it is for.

This show is not for everyone. It is for the high-capacity adult who built something, survived something, and is now renegotiating everything without a roadmap.

If that is you, or if you know someone who needs to hear it, this is the episode.

Listen now → still-standing-bridge-episode​

See you this Sunday.

We are starting something new.

Hey there Reader,

Five weeks ago I published something that hit differently.

Not the loudest article I’ve written. Not the most confrontational title. But it’s the one that directly converted a paid subscriber the only article in the last three months that did.

​The title: They Wanted a Reaction. I Gave Them Nothing. That Was the Smartest Thing I Did All Week.

If you opened it back then, you already know why.

If you missed it, here’s the short version:

Someone came for me publicly. I had a full response ready. I didn’t send it. I waited. Their own words answered the question before I said a thing.

That was not a passive move. That was the most active, controlled choice I had.

The piece is about what strategic silence actually costs, and why the leaders who never react on instinct are the ones nobody can predict, anoran control.

​Read or re-read it here.

One line in particular is the one people keep coming back to:

“My response was the only thing keeping the story alive.”

If that lands, the paid tier is where I go deeper: the decision filter, the timing rule, and the scripts for staying still when the pressure is real.

Here’s to your success,
Clarence E. Stowers, Jr.

Happy Thursday, Reader

This past Sunday, Reverend Marcie Stowers-Wilson preached a word that hit the heart and lifted our heads: you are not random. You are handpicked and handmade by God.

If life has been loud, complicated, or heavy, Psalm 139 reminds us that God’s workmanship is precise, personal, and intentional.

And this weekend, we’re stepping into another moment of grace: Jesus Stopped at Your Tree (Luke 19:1-10). If you’ve been watching from a distance, this one is for you.

This Sunday’s Message: Handpicked and Handmade by God

The Big Idea this week:

Key Takeaways:

⓵ Your life is not accidental. God was “knitting” you together with detail and purpose. The way you are wired is not a mistake.

⓶ You are wonderfully complex on purpose. If you’ve been labeled “too much,” remember: God’s craftsmanship is marvelous. Complexity is not a curse.

⓷ What is spoken over you matters. The words we speak to children and to one another become anchors, even before people fully understand them.

This Week’s Practice: Speak Psalm 139 over someone this week: your child, your spouse, your parent, a friend, or yourself. Say it plainly: “You are fearfully and wonderfully made.” Then name one specific gift you see in them.

​Watch the replay on YouTube​

​

This Sunday: Stop Waiting Until You’re Worthy

Scripture: Luke 19:1-10 | Series: THE GOD OF THE SECOND CHANCE (Week 5 of 5)

What would you do if Jesus called your name before you cleaned yourself up?

If you have been watching from a distance, too far gone, too compromised, too long away, this message is for you.

Zacchaeus did not get his life together before Jesus showed up. Jesus stopped at his tree first.

That is how grace actually works.

The bottom line: Grace is the aggressor. Jesus pursues before you perform.

To prepare for worship this Sunday, listen to this playlist.

Stop Waiting Until You’re Wo… Broken Vessels • Travis Gree… PREVIEW   ​

This Sunday at Mars Hill

This Sunday, we are online only at 10:30 AM (CST).

Worship with us live ⤵️

📲 Log on from anywhere:📺 Watch on YouTube | Watch on Facebook​

You Built the Right Life for the Wrong You

There are seasons where everything looks “right” on paper. But your soul is still tired, still numb, still searching.

This new Substack piece names that tension without flinching, and then points you toward the deeper work: becoming whole, not just successful.

If you’ve been carrying the pressure to keep performing, keep proving, and keep producing… this is for you.

Read it slowly. Let it confront you. Let it free you.

And if one line hits, share it with someone who needs language for what they’ve been feeling but couldn’t explain.

📖 Read the article​

My Prayer Request

This week, we’re praying for Mars Hill as a hybrid church, with people in our seats and people watching from screens.

Both need the same thing: someone praying that the wrong place stops being comfortable and the right place starts feeling like home.

Pray with us.

Giving

If this message moved you, consider making your giving recurring. One decision.

Consistent impact.

Every week, someone’s locked room gets light because of what you do.

Give Securely

Support the mission securely at marshillchicago.org/giving, in our mobile app, or by texting MHGIVE to 33777. You can also mail checks to:

Mars Hill Baptist Church
PO Box 6159
River Forest, IL 60305

With love and expectation,

Pastor Clarence E. Stowers, Jr.

P.S. This week:

• Watch Sunday’s replay → YouTube​
• Next week: Stop Waiting Until You’re Worthy | Week 5 of THE GOD OF THE SECOND CHANCE. Same time Sunday.
• Podcast: Latest Episode​
• Substack: https://clarencestowers.substack.com/​
• ⬇️ Download our app: https://get.theapp.co/c277​