Community Christian Church - GA

From this point on in the book of Acts, things begin shifting in surprising ways. The Church is beginning to see the Holy Spirit behaving in ways they didn't expect. Because you can't keep God in a box. Just like Jesus constantly surprised the disciples during His time of ministry on Earth, the Holy Spirit begins leading the Church in surprising ways they must respond to. In Acts 8, we see the apostles surprised that people in Samaria have been baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. And then Philip is led by the Spirit to an Ethiopian Eunuch who wants to be baptized as well. Philip certainly never could have expected all of these outsiders - Samaritans, Ethiopians - being brought into the Kingdom. But interactive life with God continues to expand beyond any of their preconceived categories or notions about what God is up to

On this episode we look at the story of a brave woman who followed God even when it was difficult. Jesus People is a podcast to families gain a bigger imagination for interactive life with Jesus in His Kingdom.

Most communities and societies function around an unwritten rule: whoever holds the most money, holds the most power. The more money you have, the more influence you have. The more money you have, the more security you have for the future. The more money you have, the more respect and admiration you have. What's interesting about the first community that was formed by the Holy Spirit - the Early Church - was that it seemed to function around the inverse of that rule. In the Early Church, people saw it as powerful to give their possessions and money away for the sake of others. And it seems that those who did so held a certain level of honor in the Early Church, because in Acts 5 we see a couple - Ananias and Sapphira - who want to steal a little bit of this honor. They sell a plot of land, give some of the money to the Church, but want the credit and honor as if they'd given the whole thing. So they lie, and because of this, they die. This is not a case of God striking someone dead, because they didn't give enough money. If so, we all better learn what that dollar amount is so we hit our quota each year. It was their deception that was the problem. It was their pride. Their desire to keep some of the money, while pretending as if they'd given it all, was a scheme to deceive the entire community. For what reason, we're not sure. Maybe they thought they would gain some honor and admiration from others. Maybe they thought it would give them a little more influence or authority in the community. Maybe they thought God would bless them more. But what Peter makes clear to them is that the issue isn't the money they deprived from the community (Acts 5:4), but that they were “conspiring to test the Spirit of the Lord” (Acts 5:9). Ananias and Sapphira were not giving due to listening to the Holy Spirit - or from their interactive life with God - but in order to trick the Spirit. We see a picture of generosity led by the Spirit at the end of Acts 4. That from time to time people were led to sell their possessions and entrust it to the Apostles to distribute to those who had need. And the result of this was that there were no needy persons among them. And Luke makes clear this is not just the result of human financial wisdom or a good economic strategy, it's the result of God's grace at work in their community (Acts 4:33-34). A community centered on interactive life with God is a new kind of society. It's not a club or organization or government, it's a family. And families share with one another. This means if we are to be this kind of community, we must become a community of regular generosity.

On this week's episode we look at the story of two women who followed Jesus - even unto their deaths. Jesus People is a podcast to families gain a bigger imagination for interactive life with Jesus in His Kingdom.

When Jesus was doing ministry on Earth, He would regularly send out His disciples to perform healings and good works “in His name”. And it was clear, the source of this power did not come from the disciples. The source of the power was Jesus. But after His ascension, the question becomes - can the disciples continue to bring healing in the name of Jesus if He's no longer on the planet? But when Peter and John are able to heal in the name of Jesus in Acts 3, they make clear (Acts 3:12) they were not the source of this power. It was Jesus who healed the man, and this was proof that Jesus was alive and active. Because dead men don't have power to heal. But Jesus was in fact alive, and currently living a life on Earth. He was doing it through these men. Here's the application for us: where might Jesus be sending His Church to provide healing in His name for people in our world? With the current mental health crisis in our world, we at Community Christian are convinced - Jesus would have us step into those problems, in the name - the likeness of Jesus. Because we believe Jesus is alive and active in our world, and He too has something to say about the problems people face in our world.

This week we look at a story about speaking truth to power. Jesus People is a podcast to families gain a bigger imagination for interactive life with Jesus in His Kingdom.

Church was not created by the writing of the Bible or by a group of people who just wanted to get Jesus' philosophy and teachings out to the world. It wasn't even created in the moment of the resurrection. After His resurrection, Jesus told His followers not to rush out and start preaching the gospel (or even making disciples). He told them to wait. Wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them. The Church was founded when the Holy Spirit descended, and a new kind of interactive life with God was available. A life with God that did not rely on Jesus' physical presence on Earth, rather it was Jesus living within believers. And what's the first thing the Holy Spirit does? Fulfills the words of Jesus' prayer in John 17 - He unites believers from around the world in love for Him. The Church explodes, and immediately we get a picture of the kind of unity and community that the Holy Spirit creates.

This week we tell a story about a wealthy man who gave up his money for the sake of God and others. Jesus People is a podcast to families gain a bigger imagination for interactive life with Jesus in His Kingdom.

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On this first episode, we tell a story about interactive life with God at a young age. Jesus People is a podcast to families gain a bigger imagination for interactive life with Jesus in His Kingdom.

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When Jesus was on Earth, He was the physical embodiment of the Kingdom of God. He was walking, talking, breathing interactive life with God. A person's physical proximity to Jesus' body was their physical proximity to the Kingdom of God. But Jesus did not intend for the Kingdom to be limited to His physical presence on Earth. Jesus came to make interactive life with God available to people from every nation. His goal was to fill all of Creation with His presence. In order for this to happen, Jesus needed to return to His Father. For when He did the Holy Spirit could descend upon His followers, and fill them with His presence. And as His followers spread to the ends of the Earth, the Kingdom would go with them.

On this week's episode, Molly and Nathan outlline the first three parts of the parenting Rule of Life, and have a quick announcement about something that's coming soon. SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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After the resurrection, the question on the disciples' minds is - “what does interactive life with God look like now?” In His Great Commission, Jesus answers this question. If life in the Kingdom looks like joining our life to what Jesus is doing in the world right now, what is Jesus up to? Making disciples. This is the mission, and this is where He's sending His people. This is what a full and satisfying life looks like.

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In a world that convinces us that we must make the most of our own stories, what do we do when our own failure rips away the ending we always wanted? Our world doesn't have an answer for guilt or personal moral failures. There is no path to redemption. We live in a world of ruthlessly canceling others for their sins and failures, which also means we live with a lot of self-condemnation for our own failures. It's an endless cycle of sin, guilt, shame, and ostracization. What can save us from this? Interactive life with Jesus. Peter's greatest moral failure came in the time of Jesus' greatest need, and Peter was convinced that life with God was over. Not only because of Jesus' death, but because of his failure to be faithful to Jesus. Even after seeing Jesus' resurrected, Peter returns to his old life of fishing. It's not until an interaction with Jesus on a beach did Peter understands that there is no failure or sin too great that can kick you out of interactive life with God. There is always a road back.

Starting good habits can be just as difficult as ending bad habits. On this week's episode, Molly and Nathan share some good tips when it comes to starting new habits, and building a rule of life. "Raising Disciples" Book: https://shorturl.at/gyQX8 SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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What do we do when the story we scripted for our lives falls apart? What do we do when it becomes clear things won't work out the way we dreamed them up? The common refrain in our world is to “have faith”. But the question is: in what? For Christians, the answer seems obvious - have faith in God. But what do you do when your life situation is so difficult or the event you went through was so catastrophic that it's caused you to doubt God. This is where Thomas, the disciple of Jesus, was after Jesus' death. The death of Jesus was the most heartbreaking, disastrous ending to the story of the last three years for Thomas. He no longer could have faith in Jesus if Jesus was dead. But soon afterwards, Thomas' friends begin telling him that Jesus had risen from the dead, and that life with God was possible again. But Thomas couldn't believe. He doubted. It took a personal encounter with Jesus to convince Him. What we can learn from this is that our doubts are not a barrier for our relationship with God. In fact, they can become the place where Jesus will show up in our lives. If we choose to interact with Him in the midst of our pain, our doubts, and our questions.

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We all want to hear from God. We all want to know the purpose of our lives, and where our stories are going. Especially in those moments when our stories seem to be falling apart. In those moments, it feels like God is entirely silent. After His death, the disciples were convinced their interactive life with God was over. They had heard the voice of God out of the mouth of Jesus, but now He was dead and buried. But on the road to Emmaus, Jesus encountered two disciples, and through His interaction revealed a new way in which they could experience the guidance and voice of God in their lives even though He would soon not be physically present with them. Through explaining how to find Him in the Scriptures, and through the experience of their “hearts burning within us”, a new way to have interactive life with God became clear - life in the Spirit.

Whenever you create a system or a rule of life, you need to begin with the end in mind. What do you want to produce? On this week's episode, Molly and Nathan discuss what our end goal should be for parents focused on discipleship. SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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The climax of God's story is all summed up in Easter weekend - the death and resurrection of Jesus. The disciples had one story they thought their life was going to tell, but Jesus changed all of that when He died. And in His resurrection, the shape of the story started to become clear. In His interaction with Mary Magdalene, this story that has cosmic implications for every person's story, gets as small as the relationship between two people. Mary's love for Jesus is so clear that it reminds us the story God is telling is primarily one about God loving us and inviting us to love Him too. For Him to be the greatest object of our affection. For all of our desire to make a difference and to leave a legacy, and for our story to have a big and lasting impact, the greatest story our lives could tell are the words, “Jesus loves me, and I love Him.”

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Every parent has some kind of structure that rules their life. For hundreds of years, disciples of Jesus have used a structure called a 'rule of life' to help them be more intentional in remaining connected to Jesus, so they can prioritize Him above all other things. In this new series, Molly and Nathan will talk about how to develop a rule of life for our families to better disciple Jesus. SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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God, I come to you as I am. It is all I have, really. And the next one I'm conscious of will be the same. I can feel the way I move, moment to moment, without the comfort of “solutions.” It seems wild to me now how I imagined any once-and-for-all cure for this, or a master plan to ensure things will work out. But, truth be told, that's always been my secret hope. So, Lord, let's try again. I'm begging for a new plan. I want a plan that is an “unplan.” I must keep moving and planning, trying and changing, knitting my days together even as they unravel. So can we do this together? Remind me to pray: come Lord and quiet the worry. I step, and you steady me. I give, and you keep my hands open. I act, and you fortify me with courage to try and try and try again. This life is uncertain, Lord, but your love is not. You tell the story of my life regardless of how little I know about how it ends, except to say, you were there since the beginning and you appear on every page.

The relationship between a child and their grandparent can be one of the sweetest and most meaningful for any person. But every family structure looks different. On this week's episode we talk about the role of grandparents in the family's life. SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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None of us think that we are greedy or too materialistic, but most of us think money is a necessary tool to provide the story we want our lives to tell. This is why we think of money as a blessing, and those who are rich in this life as “blessed” or living the “good life”. But when Jesus interacted with those who are rich, He consistently challenged them to stop storing up treasures on earth, but instead to sell their possessions and use them to store up treasures in heaven. Because the story Jesus is telling is one where God generously provides all we need, so we don't need “bigger barns”. We get to interact with God in being generous as He has been generous to us. When we interact with His generosity, we might become God's way of providing for others needs.

What's the best thing about having siblings? The fights! On this week's episode, we talk about how sibling relationships can teach us how to deal with conflict, and still remain committed to one another. SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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Faith is a very misunderstood concept in our world. For many, faith is just a power that helps you get what you want out of God. It's a tool to insure you can write the story of your life the way you want it too. But that's not the idea of faith we see in the stories of Jesus' life. Faith is the way that we align ourselves with the story God is telling. Faith is the crucial ingredient to interactive life with God. In the story of the Centurion we see that Faith is taking Jesus at His word. Like a soldier follows the command of their superior officer, those who live with Jesus as King follow where He leads no matter the command. And when we do this, when we live by faith, we find ourselves caught up in a story bigger than ourselves. We find that impossible things can happen, and our lives can be transformed.

Each of our children are unique in the way God has wired their personality to receive love. If we want to bless our children, we need to learn how to speak their language. "A Grown-Up's Guide to Kid's Wirings" Book: https://shorturl.at/krEF7 SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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For the people of Israel during Jesus' lifetime, their national story was one where they were the “chosen people of God”, and no one else was. But Jesus came to change the story. The story God had been telling since the beginning was God rescuing all of humanity, through interacting with specific people and a specific nation. But the goal was always “all people”. Jesus' interaction with the Canaanite woman reveals His heart to bring the gospel to all people from all nations and ethnicities. He does this by confronting the deeply imbedded biases and prejudices of His day. When we live an interactive life with God, Jesus too will uncover our own biases and prejudices to draw us to love all people, and to seek out those who are different than us to love them like Jesus.

Each of our children are unique in the way God has wired their personality to receive love. If we want to bless our children, we need to learn how to speak their language. "The 5 Love Languages" Book: https://shorturl.at/ejDLQ SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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For many of us, the story we want our lives to tell heavily involves building a family that we can be proud of, but Jesus introduces a different way to view family. Interactive life with God is life in the family of God. Our greatest allegiance is not to our blood or legal relatives, but to Jesus and those He has made our brothers and sisters. This is why we as a Church are passionate about being family together. From our children's to student to parent ministries we are convinced no one should raise children alone. Nor should anyone have to grow old alone. We want to help one another.

All of us desperately want our parent's uncondtional approval and acceptance, and God intends for us to give our children this blessing. On this week's episode, Molly and Nathan discuss how to do this for our kids. "The Blessing" Book: https://shorturl.at/aeMN1 SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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We all want our lives to make a difference. We want our story to have an impact on others, but often we're not sure how to do this. But when we live an interactive life with God, He will send us out to share His Kingdom with others. We need to see our stories as being one about us joining God in His mission to draw people into His Kingdom. In order to do this we need to be constantly aware of what God is up to in the world around us. We need to have eyes to see, ears to hear, and hands ready to give. This is how we disciples of Jesus fight the spiritual battle with His approved weapon of love.

Unmet and unconscious expectations can breed resentments within our relationships, so how do we hold good expectations for our children without breaking them down? "Emotionally Healthy Spirituality" Book: https://shorturl.at/hwFOS SEND US A QUESTION: https://forms.gle/RbePzE93HbHtCvuZA

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