Gifted Part 4
Spiritual gifts are by their nature, supernatural because they are gifts from God. One of the most misunderstood spiritual gifts is The Giver. It’s often confused with the gift of Help and many times misunderstood to mean that a person must have this gift to give. In God’s economy, it’s understood that all will give. The person with the spiritual gift of Giving lives to give.
Gifted Part 3
The church needs all the spiritual gifts working together, complimenting each other to be the complete body God desires. The spiritual gift of Teacher helps keep the church doctrinally pure, while the gift of encourager spurs us on to become more like Jesus.
Gifted Part 2
The Apostle Peter wrote that God has given each follower of Jesus a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. They are great and varied and help us in not only spiritual things, but in practical matters as well. When it comes to problem solving, you need someone with the Spiritual Gift of Prophet or Servant in your life.
Gifted Part 1
God shaped you and molded you from the womb to do something great. Your greatest growth in your life will occur when you lean into that design for your life - and we see that design in our Spiritual Gifts.
Unchained - Part 4
We all understand that physical characteristics get passed down from one generation to another. It’s genetics and environment - the children bear the mark of the parents. But physical DNA isn’t the only thing at work, the only DNA that gets transferred. There is a Spiritual DNA that gets transferred - an unseen reality that gets passed from grandparents to parents, from parents to children.
Unchained - Part 3
A stronghold is a jail built on a foundation of lies. Strongholds start with deception, lies. The lie temps you, temptation leads to desire, and then you act. The temptation is simply bait, it’s not the temptation that traps you, but the sin. When you continue to believe the lie, a stronghold is built.
Unchained - Part 2
If anyone is in Christ, the old has gone, the new is here. There is now no condemnation for those in Christ…and yet many people experience the stronghold of guilt in their life. Condemnation means punishment, but we are free from punishment because of Jesus, we are no longer found guilty. Because God no longer condemns you, you should extend the same grace to yourself when it comes to the stronghold of guilt.
Unchained - Part 1
It’s for freedom we have been set free, yet many Christians never truly experience freedom in their life due to strongholds, habits, and patterns in their life that have a strong hold on them.
Faith in Uncertain Times - Part 3
Jesus is coming back - that much is certain. What’s uncertain is when. Jesus said only God the Father knows when. Until that time, we’re to live our lives with meaning and purpose.
Faith in Uncertain Times - Part 2
There have been many end time events over the years, most recently Y2K and COVID. The uncertainty around end times has been around probably since the beginning of time. In his second letter to the Thessalonians Paul describes signs of the end of the age when Jesus returns. For Christians, the return of Jesus and the end of the age should inspire Hope.
Faith in Uncertain Times - Part 1
People have been trying to make sense of uncertain times probably since... the beginning of time. But as followers of Jesus, our view of time - even uncertain times - is to be neither circular or cynical because God has established a clear timeline.
The Patterns of Jesus - Part 4
When we look at the Patterns of Jesus’ Life, he not only instructed us in the new way to live, but he demonstrated it. In the upper room Jesus stooped low and performed the job of a servant in washing the disciples his feet. He told them “I have set an example for you…” to humbly serve others. Jesus stepped out of heaven, "not considering equality with God something to be used to his own advantage, but rather, he made himself nothing by taking the vary nature of a servant.” Jesus set the greatest example of service to others in rescuing us. In response, we as served people, are to serve people.
The Patterns of Jesus - Part 3
In the parable sometimes known as The Shrewd Manager, Jesus uses an everyday example of working for someone to demonstrate the pattern of how we should treat wealth - money and possessions - in our life. Make God your master and money your servant.
The Patterns of Jesus - Part 2
At creation, God blessed three things: animals, man and the Sabbath. The blessing on animals and man was to be fruitful and multiply, to fill the earth with life. But then God blessed a day, the Sabbath, a life giving day of rest to also fill the earth with life.
The Patterns of Jesus - Part 1
In Christ we are new creations, the old is gone, the new has come. As new creations, we're to lay aside old patterns that may have shaped our lives and adopt new patterns. Jesus is more than an example, but he is our example when it comes to spiritual matters. Spiritual disciplines help us learn and follow the Patterns of Jesus.
Seek the good of the city - part 2
In Jeremiah 29:7 we see that were to seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which God has carried us. One of the ways we do that as a faith community is to be a Unifying Community - that we’d seek to overcome the cultural and theological differences between Jesus followers to show our unity. Unity is not uniformity - we can be unified and still have minor differences in belief.
Mountaintop
Father’s Day
There are many fathers in the Bible. Probably the most famous, yet we one we know very little about is Joseph. Husband of Mary, Father to Jesus, reading between the lines we can learn many good fatherly attributes to apply to dads even today.
Seek the Good of the City
As spiritual exiles, God instructs us to “seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you…” Peace and prosperity, two words in English, but one word in Hebrew - Shalom. It means wholeness, wellness, prosperity, goodness, and health in mind, body and estate. As a church and community, how do we accomplish that?
Grow In Grace - Part 4
The return of Jesus is a promise Christians have placed their hope in since the ascension. Shortly before his death at the hand of King Nero, Peter re-assured the church of this reality with four certainties about the return of Jesus.
Grow In Grace - Part 3
Wherever there is something good and true, there will be counterfeits. Jesus, warned of false teachers, comparing them to wolves in sheep’s clothing. In 2 Peter, the apostle warns of false teachers as well, saying they will secretly introduce heresies; will influence people to follow them, but they will most certainly be judged by God. Don’t be fooled by the counterfeit.
Grow In Grace - Part 2
In verses 12 of 2 Peter 1, Peter wrote "I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have.” His readers were being confronted by false teachers, so Peter reminds these followers of Jesus that when faced with false teaching, go back to the truth, that your faith is built and firmly established upon.
Mother’s Day
God has numbered your days, ordered your steps, knew you before you were formed in the womb. He’s a personal God, that’s involved in the everyday moments of your life. But there are special moments in your life that God has arranged specifically for you.
GROW IN GRACE - PART 1
In his second letter to followers of Jesus, Peter urges them to continue growing in the grace they’ve been shown. Grace is a state of kindness or favor towards someone, and we’ve been shown the greatest grace in God’s salvation. For Peter, the primary way to grow in grace is to know God, not just know about him, but know him in real and personal way. In Jesus we have been given everything we need for our good and God’s glory.
DELIVER US FROM EVIL - PART 4
The language used in describing the Whole Armor of God tells us that we should put it on and leave it on, that we are in a spiritual war and you never know when you will have to fight. But we’re also to take up and use the shield of faith, the sword of the spirit and the helmet of salvation. We’re not ill equipped to fight the battles of doubt, temptations and frustration.
Deliver Us From Evil - Part 3
To fight a spiritual war against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms requires more than human strength or guile. Something more is needed, we need to put on the whole armor of God.
Deliver Us From Evil - Part 2
We are at war, it’s not a political, philosophical or cultural war. It’s a spiritual war. Whether you want it or not or believe it or not Spiritual warfare is occuring all around us.
Deliver Us From Evil - Part 1
Scripture has a lot to say about spiritual warfare. Whether we believe or not, like it or not, or we're ready or not - it’s all around us and we need to be prepared.
The Wonderful Cross - Easter Sunday
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
The Implications of Easter - Part 3
On Friday of Passion Week, we see the followers of Jesus, scattered and fearful. After Sunday we see them boldly declaring that Jesus has been resurrected, that he is alive. What transformed them from fearful to faithful? Why were they suddenly willing to lose everything, including their lives? No one willingly dies for what they know is a lie. The greatest testament to the resurrection of Jesus is the changed attitudes and actions of his followers. The resurrection was the foundation of their faith.
The Implications of Easter - Part 2
The resurrection of Jesus points to the new Kingdom that is to come. God is not abandoning the physical world, He’s rescuing it. Because Jesus is alive, we can be sure, that we will experience both a spiritual and physical resurrection.
The Implications of Easter Part 1
Easter celebrates the resurrections of Jesus. It’s considered the most important and oldest festival on the Christian calendar. It’s celebrated by people of various cultural backgrounds around the world. Even those who don’t believe in the resurrection participate in various Easter tradition customs like egg hunts and Easter baskets.
But for followers of Jesus, Easter - the resurrection is the foundation of our faith. Christianity has no point if the resurrection didn’t happen.
1 Thessalonians Part 3
In the last chapters of his letter to theThessalonian church, Paul explains the impact of the Gospel on the lives of those who are followers of Jesus. Rather than a one time event, their belief in Jesus should be an energizing agent that influences their lifestyle, inspires hope and invigorates the church.
1 Thessalonians Part 2
After revisiting the truth of the Gospel in chapter 1 of 1st Thessalonians, Paul then reminds them of how the Gospel came to them, how they received it and how it binds them all together. The Gosple's affect is not only vertical but horizontal.
1 Thessalonians Part 1
What is the Gospel. By its very definition it’s news, Good News. In his letter to the Thessalonians Paul reminds them of the Gospel they heard and how it worked in their lives. The Gospel is more than news, more than words, it’s the very Power of God.
All Things New Part 6
The end of the book of Nehemiah is a bit anti-climatic. God demonstrated his faithfulness throghout the rebuilding of the wall. The citizens of Jerusalem were reminded of all God had done for them in the reading of The Book of the Law of Moses. And then we find them slipping back into old patterns and habits, one compromise at a time.
All Things New Part 5
When Nehemiah and the people complete the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem, they celebrate and Ezra the priest reads from the Book of the Law of Moses. They hear God’s promises and plans for his people and mourn their failures to live as God’s people. But they also hear of one who is to come, to make all things new. God’s word does more than reveal our sin, it reveals our savior.
All Things New Part 4
The rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem required great leadership skills from Nehemiah, but none greater than his self-leadership. It’s been said that of all the biblical characters, Nehemiah best demonstrated the principle of “nearness”, the practice of being in the presence of God. He doesn’t just believe, he acts because of God’s presence in his life. It’s what allowed him a s leader to have an attitude of faith; allowed him to act in Fatih; and resulted in him achieving in faith.
All Things New Part 3
In Chapter 3 of Nehemiah we see the phrase “Next To”- 19 times in the 32 verses of Chapter 3, as Nehemiah describes all kinds of people joining together to work on the wall of Jerusalem. It's a beautiful picture of the people of God, doing the work of God, for the glory of God.
All Things New Part 2
The constant theme in the book of Nehemiah is the a persons relationship with God is the most important thing in life. In Chapter 2 of Nehemiah we see three truths about our relationship with God. In Nehemiahs praying and fasting we see that Waiting is important in our relationship with God; In his preparation and during his meeting with the King, we see the Importance of Prayer. As Nehemiah travels to Jerusalem and meets withe the residents, we see that People play an important part in our relationship with God.
All Things New Part 1
It’s never too late for a new beginning. Sometimes it’s a fresh start, but often times it’s rebuilding, Nehemiah shows us that seemingly impossible things are possible through prayer, hard work and when people determine to trust and obey God.
Turning The Page
The new year is a great time to start new things, turn over a new leaf, to turn the page on old things in life. In Christ, we’re not only invited to turn the page on the old things of life, we’re challenged to take on a new way of living.
God with Us Part 3
There's a lot of joy throughout the biblical Christmas story, especially early in the story. But the joy isn't separate from pain and disappointment. Muich of the joy is born out of long seasons of trial and pain.
God with Us Part 2
On a dark night in Bethlehem thousands of years ago, everything changed. Luke tells us the angels proclaimed “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased.” When Jesus, God Incarnate, stepped into our world, peace came with him. Peace with God is not the absence of conflict - it’s the presence of something else.
God with Us Part 1
In his Gospel, the Apostle Matthew wrote “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means "God with us”). When Jesus stepped out of Heaven and became God with flesh on, it was not only the fulfillment of Hope that God would do what he promised long ago, but it also fanned the flames of Hope, that one day Jesus is coming back.
The Names of God - Week 5
Jehovah Nissi - the Lord is my banner - means that for followers of Jesus, battles you’re engaged in are not fought for victory, but from a position of victory. The battle has been won, victory is assured.
The Names of God - Week 4
One of the best ways to get to know God, is to understand His many names. God’s ability to provide comprehensively for the needs of your life are found in two of His names - Jehovah Rohi – the Lord is my Shepherd and Jehovah Jireh -the Lord will Provide. Both of these names reflect the fact that God is our great provider, that He cares and provides for His people.
The Names of God - Week 2
Jehovah is a powerful and personal name of God, because it’s the name God gave Himself. He told us His name because He is a relational God. Adonai is a name that means Lord and Master. It’s possible to know God as Jehovah, but it’s only in knowing Him as Adonai that you can know and understand your true purpose.
The Names of God - Week 1
If the names of man, who comes and goes so quickly, matter, how much more the names of God?
Set Apart - Week 4
We don’t have to go looking for evil, trials and troubles. They will find us in this broken world. But in the midst of suffering and trouble, it’s possible to live a life that brings blessings.
Set Apart - Week 3
To this point, Peter has focused on why and how we are foreigners and exiles, sojourners in this world, that it’s not our true home. In 1 Peter chapter 2 Peter begins laying out what that means for us in our life, how we navigate living good lives, yet resist being assimilated into the culture.
Set Apart - Week 2
To be Set Apart is to be distinct - different yet a part of the whole. God has set us apart to be his people, that as his people, we’re here in this place, and yet he is building and gathering to Himself a new people, living stones, that are to be joined to Jesus, the corner stone.
Set Apart - Week 1
Peter writes the followers all over the word and addresses them as exiles - not tourist, not immigrants, but exiles - temporary residents. As exiles, we’re urged to be holy just as God as Holy. Holiness is so much more than morality - it’s not less than morality - but so much more than that. To be holy is to be set apart for God.
The Story Changer - Story Tellers
Jesus, The Story Changer, has changed our lives, bringing them in line with God’s story. Our response to this great story that we’re a part of is that we should become Story Tellers, sharing the story of God and His goodness and greatness with everyone. In fact, Jesus has commissioned us to do just that.
The Story Changer -The Back Story
A back story are the things and events that happened to a character that help explain a character in a story. Our story in Genesis 1 started out very good. In Genesis 3 that all changed when sin hijacked the very good story God intended, and our story and relationships became fractured and out of line with God intended story. In 1 Corinthians Paul writes to a church experiencing the frustration of life out of synch with God’s intended story and he reminds them of their backstory…and the turning point in their new story.
The Story Changer - The Inside Story
What’s the story you tell yourself…about yourself? The Inside Story that lives inside your head. We all have one. It’s the first one we hear in the morning and the last one we read at night. In many ways, it’s the most influential story in your life. But when the lies of the enemy hijack our story, what was meant to be a good story can turn bad.
The Story Changer - The Failed Author
Because of sin, we’re all born wanting to write our own story apart from God. But our story was never meant to be a autobiography, nor was it meant to be a biography written by someone else. Instead, our stories are this fantastic and wonderful sort of hybrid where GOD is writing a story about Himself, and yet we get to be one of the key characters, with a backstory of Grace - written by the Author of Life.
The Story Changer - Our Messy Story
We’ve all tried to stray from God’s original plan, a VERY GOOD story for us – one with meaning and purpose. We’ve all been guilty of hijacking God’s Story for us. We’ve all tried to be the Author of our stories - we’re born wanting write our own story. But God can change our stories with His Story. He’s The Story Changer.
Titus - Different House
In chapters 1 & 2 of his letter to Titus, Paul had addressed how the Gospel was to change and transform people, resulting in a different church and a different family - different from the culture around them. Paul ends his letter explaining that followers of Jesus are to live holy lives, live at peace with others, and to live in community. Our motivation and message in all of those is to be the Gospel.
Titus - Different House
Doctrine is foundational to the Christine faith - core beliefs that are grounded in scripture. But it’s not enough to say that you believe something, your actions need to reflect what you say you believe. How we live matters.
Titus - Different Church
The church on the Island of Crete was great impacted by their culture and history. The Cretans believed their island was both the birth and burial place of Zeus. Because they formerly worshipped Zeus, their behavior mirrored his - they were lazy, deceptive…today we’d say they were shady. Paul leaves Titus on the island to correct things and in the letter to Titus Paul lays out instructions for a Different Church, Different House and a Different World.
Summer Playlist - God of Generations
God introduced Himself to Moses as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, not just three individuals, but three generations. He is eternal and until Jesus returns, He is the God of generations.
Summer Playlist - Let Your Light Shine
Jesus told us, YOU are the light of the world. We’re to let our light shine in a dark and weary world. But what does that look like? How do we do that. Chapter 6 in the Gospel of Mark provides some very clear and relevant help and instructions for us.
Summer Playlist - Make a Difference
Scripture is full of promises. Some of have come to pass, some will in the future, but some are happening in our time. In Isaiah 19:23 something big and beautiful is promised, something life changing and life giving. It’s happening in our time, and we’re invited into the midst of it by our Great God.
Summer Playlist - Free as a Bird Now
Jesus said that all scripture testifies about him. Sometimes it’s hard to see that in the Old Testament, sometimes its jumps off the pages at you. In Leviticus 14, what’s true of lepers is true of sinners - we need a healer.
Summer Playlist - Fathers Day
Being a father is more than biology - it’s a choice. In the Book of Esther we see a picture of this in a man named Mordecai. While he wasn’t Esther’s biological father, he chose to be a father to her. Fathers choose, fathers show, fathers teach.
Summer Playlist - Plan to Pray
Prayer keeps us connected to our Heavenly Father. Prayer reminds us of our dependence on God - for all things. Jesus urges his follower to remain in him, as he remains in us. Prayer is the lifeblood of remaining and staying connected. Plan to pray.
Summer Playlist - Teach Us to Pray
Prayer and praise are marks of the Christian life. In the Gospels, the only recorded instance of the disciples asking Jesus to teach them anything - is when they asked him to teach them to pray. In what we know as The Lord’s Prayer, we see 7 marks of prayer.
James - Live Like Jesus Is Coming Back
Jesus is coming back…therefore we ought to live our lives based on that reality. For James, the simplest way to do that is to live your life with the right attitudes coupled with the right actions.
James - Two Paths
Who is wise among you? If we were to answer that question we might think about someone that is smart, or knowledgeable, but wisdom is different that knowledge. A wise person takes what they know and applies it to their lives.
Mothers Day
Being a mother is not a one size fits all description. from the garden to the cross there have always been mothers - mothers in waiting, sacrificial mothers, spiritual mothers, imperfect mothers. Mothers plan an important role in God’s redemptive story of man.
James - It’s On the Tip of My Tongue
Our tongues are small but powerful. They can control us like a rudder on on a ship, be as unpredictable as a wildfire and dangerous as a wild animal. How do we keep our tongue - the words we say - from poisoning our lives and the lives of others?
James - You Look Like Your Dad
The life of a follower of Jesus is to be marked by growth. We become more and more like the one we follow. In James chapter 2 he explains how those who say “I believe” should live lives that are marked by evidence of that belief.
James -How to be Fruity
For James, the Word of Truth that has been given to us is like an active change agent at work in us. It’s been planted like a seed in us to grow and do it’s work to transform us in children of God. James tells us to not just be hearers of the word, but doers of the word.
James - A Work in Progress
The book of James, written by the half-brother of Jesus, provides practical but sometimes hard guidance for the life of a Christian. “Consider it pure joy…when you encounter trials of many kinds.” Hard to read, harder to live.
Revealed - Easter
The Resurrection is the tipping point of Christianity. It was an extraordinary, supernatural event that has extraordinary, supernatural implications for your life, your fears and your hopes.
Revealed - Week 2
In his Gospel, Mark progressively shows us the authority and power of Jesus through a series of miracles. In Mark 2 Jesus heals a paralytic, demonstrating his authority over disease. In Mark 4 Jesus calms a storm, demonstrating his authority over the natural world, and in Mark 5 we see Jesus deliver a demon possessed man, demonstrating his authority over the supernatural. In the midst of our struggles, we will encounter things far greater than us, but nothing greater than God.
Revealed - Week 1
The story of the healing of the paralyzed man in Mark chapter 2 is full of spiritual insights. Not only does it highlight Jesus’ power over the natural world but it also highlights our role in the new Kingdom. Whose stretcher do you need to pick up and bring to Jesus?
Colossians - Christ Alone (Week 6)
To be a new creation means that some things have change, and others must change. In Chapter 4 of Colossians Paul provides last instructions on what kingdom living looks like, and also provides very real examples in his own life.
Colossians - Christ Alone (Week 5)
Since we are new creations in Christ and have put off our old self, that should impact every facet of our life, not just our individual conduct. In the last part of Chapter 3 of Colossians, Paul lays out God’s plan for family relationships.
Colossians - Christ Alone (Week 4)
In chapters 1&2 of his letter to the Colossians, Paul has been laying out the doctrine of the sufficiency of Jesus - that he is all that is needed to be reconciled back to God. In chapter 3 he begins explaining what a life changed by Jesus looks like. These are not aspirational things - it is Christ in us, the hope of glory.
Colossians - Christ Alone (Week 3)
In chapter 2 of Colossians Paul issues three challenges: Believe the right things - they’re to explore the depths of the Gospel. But it’s not enough that they know the right things, they should Behave like they know the truth, they’re to Know and Grow. Finally, Paul issues a warning - he urges them to Beware of any arguments and systems that add to or take away from the work of Jesus.
Colossians - Christ Alone (Week 2)
In Jesus all things were created. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together, so that in everything He would have supremacy. Is Jesus supreme in your life?
Colossians - Christ Alone
In a world that increasingly rejects the idea of absolute truths and subscribes to the idea that there are many paths to God, the book of Colossians shines like a beacon of light to explain that there is one way back to God, and it's always, only, Jesus.