Last Sunday, December 27, Ryan Silvia, our Director of Youth Ministries, talked on "epiphany". What is an "epiphany"? Have a listen and find out! and you will be encouraged to learn about God's desire to give you one!
Last Sunday, December 20, Scott Sabin, Executive Director for Plant With Purpose, talked on why we can expect, express, and empower Más Hope this Christmas. Extreme poverty and the environment are not two separate issues. A healthy environment is vital to a community’s ability to fight poverty. Listen, be inspired, and engage! Click here for examples of how Plant With Purpose moves whole communities from despair to hope
The Advent/Christmas season is all about God's faithfulness to dwell with people amidst their darkness, disappointments, and dread. Advent/Christmas is God's defiant initiative, on our behalf, to free us from the limitations life imposes upon us by engaging us with hope, peace, joy, and love. These four encourage us to expect more because God always promises to bless us with more than life can give. His presence is His abiding promise inspire us to expect more. Expectancy may be a risk for many because with risk comes the possibility of disappointment. But we need not fear because God "... rewards those who sincerely seek him." (Hebrews 11.6) This Advent/Christmas season dare to "expect mas".
This past Sunday (29 November) we launched this new series during a week when our community experienced the sudden death of a member of our staff team – Calvin Nolan who died on Monday, 23 November. This week's recording contains a remembrance time for Calvin as well as the kickoff of this new series by Pastor Vince. Advent/Christmas announces that God is present in our grief and triumphs in our sadness.
This past Sunday (22 November) we continued our new series based on Romans 8 -- NEW Forever. This week Mark reflected on the question: "Are Christians Different?".Media surveys tell us that Christians in U.S. culture are perceived to be different-- meaner, more intolerant, arrogant, judgmental, and exclusive. If Christians are different, then what is that difference?
You can view notes and resources for this message through our link to our LIVE EVENT.
This past Sunday (25 October) we continued our new series based on Romans 8 -- NEW Forever. This week we discussed that we all need a mind shift... Faith is not about the bad we are avoiding but the good God we are pursuing. In a life like this we will see the Spirit lead us into courageous acts of faith and love.
PLEASE NOTE: We use LIVE Events as a resource during our Sunday gathering - it has links to our message slides, Scriptures used, and additional resources you might find helpful.
Click here to view this week's LIVE event. For this week's study notes click here.
This past Sunday (11 October) we continued our new series based on Romans 8 -- NEW Forever. This week we reflect on the question: What is a Christian? The answer to this question may surprise you! Have a listen and see if you agree...
PLEASE NOTE: We use LIVE Events as a resource during our Sunday gathering - it has links to our message slides, Scriptures used, and additional resources you might find helpful.
Click here to view this week's LIVE event.
In this letter we learn about God– Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We learn about who we are and how to live with strength, integrity, love, meaningful relationships, and the value of community. In Romans we learn that out of RUIN rises lives that are new, relevant, compelling, and life-giving.
This past Sunday (4 October) we began our new series based on Romans 8 -- NEW Forever. On Sunday we reflected on Paul's description of a Christian -- a follower of Jesus-- as the one who is "in Christ" and the benefits God promises.
PLEASE NOTE: We use LIVE Events as a resource during our Sunday gathering - it has links to our message slides, Scriptures used, and additional resources you might find helpful.
Click here to view this week's LIVE event.
This Sunday (27 September) Paul writes his favorite church describing the community there as shining stars in the darkness as they "hold fast the Word of Life". As we understand the identity of the "Word of Life" we learn how the Word of Life-Living (Jesus) and the Word of Life - Written (the Bible) foster a vibrant life that can rise above circumstances and overcome challenges. This week Mark reflects on Philippians 2.14-16 as we consider how we can live a lively life.
We use LIVE Events as a resource during our Sunday gathering - it has links to our message slides, Scriptures used, and additional resources you might find helpful. Click here to view this week's LIVE event.
This Sunday (20 September) we reflect on Vital Signs of authentic community. Along the way we examine relational viruses that hurt and healthy habits that heal. Experiencing God and experiencing authentic spiritual growth does NOT happen without an experience of community. What are the vital signs of people who desire to experience authentic community? Mark looks at 1 Thessalonians 3.6-13 for insights understanding.
We use LIVE Events as a resource during our Sunday gathering - it has links to our message slides, Scriptures used, and additional resources you might find helpful. Click here to view this week's LIVE event.
This Sunday (13 September) Roma Korniiko from Kiev, Ukraine teaches us about God's heart for orphans and refugees in a nation torn apart by war. We also learn how God uses children to touch the heart of a nation, exemplify mercy, and introduce real change... Many thanks to Slavic Elliot for interpreting on our behalf. We just are not that fluent in Ukrainian!
This Sunday (6 September) was a family Sunday – a day our entire community gathers. This week we briefly reflected on what it means to be a community of "olders" and "youngers". Have a listen – Mark was brief this week! This week there were no slides to support the message so there was no LIVE event support.
How often have you answered this question: "What would I do with a million dollars?" Well, this week we ask the question: "How will you spend your millions"" That's right, you! Because the average person in the U.S. will spend between $1.5 and $2;5 million in their lifetime. So how will we think about our spending? This week Mark provides a framework for how to think about "how we spend our money". By the way, did you know that "money" is one of the top 2 subjects Jesus spoke about?
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week we have had people declaring: "I call hump!" when they get into a car. Where did they come up with that?! Well they heard it last week... Therefore, by popular demand we are leaving up the message Vince gave last week: Driving -- When You're On the Road. We will spend 4.3 years of our life driving and over 5.75 months sitting in traffic... should we just write that time off? Or is it possible that driving might give us opportunities that are essential and meaningful? Click here for the video referenced in Vince's message...
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week our topic is: Driving -- When You're On the Road. We will spend 4.3 years of our life driving and over 5.75 months sitting in traffic... should we just write that time off? Or is it possible that driving might give us opportunities that are essential and meaningful? This week Vince takes us back on the road again...
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week our topic is: Creativity -- Live Artfully! Creativity is more than the creative arts. Creativity is everywhere around us. In homes, in classrooms, in the games we play, the things we create, the meals we make, and the stories we tell. Everyone has been endowed by our Creator with a capacity for life-giving creativity. This week Mark invites Mark Wymore (our Worship Ministries Director) and Brian Leonard (architect and leader of our Creative Confidence workshop) to share some practical thoughts on creativity. Have a listen and be encouraged!
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week our topic is: Food -- Bite-Sized Gifts From God. Food and related references are found in every book of the Bible. What does it mean that God created every creature to eat food? We take it for granted but the truth is that He did not have to create us to eat! We explore how food connects us to God and others, and we reflect on the moral obligations and social opportunities food uniquely provides us...
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week we look at "play" because life is more than worship, work, and rest! H. L. Mencken, a fierce critic of the Christian faith once said: "Christians, are people who have a deep, foreboding fear that somebody, somewhere, might be having a good time.” Nothing could be further from the truth. What does "play" teach us about God and about ourselves?
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week we look at "sleep". This is a pretty important topic! Just think -- over the course of your lifetime you will devote over a third of your life to sleep! Is it possible there is more to sleep than sleep?!
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week we look at rest... in fact we will learn: lazy is the person who does not seize the opportunity to rest!
As part of Sunday morning we are using the LIVE resource courtesy of the YouVersion Bible app. The "LIVE Event" includes Scriptures, links to this week's sermon slides, additional Bible readings, and articles that you may find helpful.
This week we introduced our summer series with a "10 minute" infomercial that we did not record... Here is the gist of it!
Look at the pie chart on the left. This is a picture of the hours we spend sleeping, eating, driving, working, surfing the web, watching TV, and exercising... (you can read the article here or follow this link to a google query to access more articles). So what are we to make of the :"normal" life we all share in common? Does God care about the activities that fill our normal lives? Is it possible that there might be an organic interrelationship among our weekly activities of work, rest, sleep, play, friendship, worship, reading, ETC? Is it possible that there is a big picture that we are missing that will create a life-giving framework? One approach is surely unacceptable: it is not our task to simply and unthinkingly "baptize" the ordinary and call it good. Instead, we have the opportunity to embrace a radical alternative -- to possess an extraordinary perspective on the ordinary that is informed and inspired by the promise, power, and presence of God in our lives. ETC - the rest of life is our summer series that will explore these themes...
This summer we are also offering seminars that will support this series and give us an opportunity to experience and discover that embedded in our ordinary is the opportunity to learn, discover, overcome, and thrive. We will be offering summer seminars on personal finance, creativity, culinary design, fitness, nutrition, fitness, personal performance (learning what habits allow us to thrive), discovering your strengths, and how to study the Bible. Check back here on July 5 to sign up online. These seminars have limited capacity and will fill up fast!
This week we recognize dads and grads. As we do so we recognize that learning never ends and we wouldn't want it any other way. To stop learning is to stop living.