Discovery Christian Church

Experiencing depression goes much deeper that experiencing sadness or doubt. Depression seeps into every part of who you are making it nearly impossible to see hope or relief or any amount of change towards a life that is different. It feels lonely. It feels hopeless. It feels dark and meaningless. So what does our God say about these very real and consuming parts as a result of living in a dark and broken world?

Anxious thoughts are constantly taking up space in our minds. They can easily take over our day to day lives causing us to live on edge and as far away as possible from any sense of peace. But we aren't alone...we all struggle with these thoughts & God is our only and truest source of peace that has truth to speak to our anxiety.

We all have situations or relationships that left us in hurt or broken places. Whether we were done wrong by or did the wrong doing....life is full of grudges. The enemy wants us to give into hold pain against those who have done us wrong which keeps us trapped in a cycle of hurt and unforgiveness.

It's often hard to come to grips with finding peace in a restless world. How do we find and embrace peace when situations in life seem less than ideal? We start at the character of who God is...He doesn't shy away from our pain or questions and embraces the messiness of us looking for peace while holding our questions and pain in the other hand. God can handle our mess. He embraces it, and us...no matter what. And comes to give us rest and peace.

God gives us a number of titles of what Jesus will be and how he will relate to us. And it says that this child will be called Wonderful Counselor.The Christmas season is like a magnifying glass. If you are in a season where things are going well — relationships are solid, business is good, you're healthy then Christmas is going to magnify those warm feelings. But for others who are battling anxiety, depression, past traumas, conflict in relationships, things in their professional life are struggling — well then Christmas is going to magnify those things as well. So when we hear Jesus being described as a Wonderful Counselor that's something we all need in very tangible ways.

When Jesus came to earth He came to be many things. To be a Savior, friend, guide, brother, servant, and our Father.

What kind of relationship does God really want? Your relationship to God has many aspects. God is your Father. He is your Creator. He is your maker, he's your judge, he's your master, he's your Lord, he's your Redeemer, he's your Savior, and he's many, many other things. But most shocking of all is this — God wants you for a friend.

What would be different in your life if you were 100% confident that God's presence was with you?God's presence is always around us because He is the God who is always with us. And when we truly recognize that God is with us, we can start to believe more that God is truly for us in all things.

Our homes are our safe havens. It's the place where we feel the most like ourselves. Just like our physical homes, when we choose to follow Jesus invite Him into our hearts to create a home that will always remain. So if He is going to dwell in us then how do prepare a home where we can rest with Him, dwell with Him, remain with Him?

When we choose to follow Jesus, we choose a beautiful life-long journey that He invites us on. Along the way we find important and catalytic moments that shape our faith in Jesus. And today we focus on three of these major milestone moments.

Who is someone who is close to you but far from God? Another way we say it around Discovery is “Who is your 1?” Jesus told the story of the good shepherd who had 100 sheep. He brought them back from a day of grazing and there were 99. Jesus left the 99 and went after the one. If you are a disciple of Jesus you are part of the 99 which means God has put people in your life who are close to you but far from Him for you to help introduce to Jesus and to help disciple them.

God wants each of us to go on a life-long journey with Him and with others. That word “with” is a powerful word. If we were to ask you “Who are you with?” What list would you begin to formulate? When we surround ourselves with great partnerships we get to take part in a relationship going in the same direction making a last impact in the arenas we live in.

We underestimate the power we've been given as individuals, as a collective group, as a a local community. It's a convincing lie from Satan that we're helpless and it keeps us complaining, blaming, and waiting. But the truth is from every angle, that the people have the power. The people have always had the power. We don't need a king, because we already have one. The king down here needs us, we don't need them. We just need to put on our prescription glasses and do what can see to do right now.

Samson was a broken hero, just as you and I are broken people. But Samson points to a better hero. His life as a fallen and imperfect judge points to the perfect Judge who was to come in Jesus.

Jesus finishes what Samson started. Jesus is the Leader we do NOT deserve. Both were announced and miraculous births but Jesus was never led by his impulses but by the Father's will.

We all have that one 'junk drawer' in our house that is a catch all. We also have another junk drawer that we are probably unaware of when it comes to beliefs in spiritual things. Where people pick and choose their virtues from here and spiritual ideas from over here and sprinkle in this one thing that I heard about on social media and they mix it together to form their religion which looks nothing like the way of Jesus.

Traps can cause problems for a few generations. But grace, love, compassion, mercy—with God's help—can have an impact for a millennia. These values learned from God can break cycles, stopping them dead in their tracks.

Gideon is not your typical hero. When we first met him last week he was hiding out on his farm threshing wheat in a wine press. But God calls him “my mighty warrior” because he doesn't see him for what he currently is but what He can do through him with His power. He does the same with us.

What would life be like, in any situation, if you knew God was with you? God is in control and on our side. When we were at our worst and hopeless because of our sin God turned it for his plan and our side. So we know he can do the same in the dark times in our lives too.

Men and women are created equally by God and called to partnership with Him and each other. As we look further into the book of Judges we see the story of Deborah which shows us a leader of Israel that brought wise counsel and judgement.

It's not about the right hand of your ability or strength, but the left hand of weakness offered to God in availability...God does his work in the world through ordinary people, just obeying him in ordinary ways…faithfully serving as a mother; faithfully sharing Christ with a friend; faithfully caring for your neighbors or serving in our kids' ministry.

If we view our faith and relationship with Jesus, it helps us to see where we are. The places we need to grow closer to God and how we can expand or challenge our faith. Tune into this week 1 message of our 'All Rise' series to hear about how deeply God wants a personal and flourishing relationship with you.

Tune in to hear our Discovery Students share their stories of faith and how God is moving in the lives of the next generation.

It's all about the going, the sharing, the inviting…And you keep on going and you keep on sharing, and you keep on inviting to the ends of the earth. What's keeping you from doing just that, going, sharing, inviting? Embarrassment? Fear? Busyness? You and I are continuing to write this story as Jesus fans and followers. Will you respond?

Relationally, physically, it's all about small things leading in a direction of big things over time that change us. Paul was focused! He regularly did what other people only sporadically did. And here's the deal…we become what we repeatedly do. Paul lived his life with the end in mind. How about you?

God made a difference in Paul so that He could make a difference in the lives of others. The Holy Spirit's purpose is to empower us to live a spirit-filled life, not for self-gratification but to bring others closer to faith.

Imagine what would happen if each one of us found one other person in your lives and said the words, “ICNU” to them? And then you began investing in them and doing life together, teaching them what God is teaching you, serving together side by side. Could it be that God is just waiting for you to speak words of encouragement into them so that He could unleash their God given potential and begin using them in extraordinary ways?

Do you have any prejudices or preferences that are affecting God's purpose for your life?Do you have any prejudices that are keeping you from reaching out to people whether it's political or skin tone, or religious or education, or income level, special needs, maybe people that you're not reaching out to because they're different than you and you don't understand that? Maybe it's not just time to repent, it's time to build some relationships like Peter, I gotta go out the door of that house. I gotta hop over that fence and shake some hands and reach out to somebody that I gotta get uncomfortable for the sake of the last.

You're not too far gone for God's grace...In Acts 9, we see too people (Saul & Ananias) on two different pages of faith. Some of us feel too far gone in this life for God to reach us and turn around things in our lives that we've done. And some of us have people in our lives that God has put there on purpose...to love, reach, & share the Good News that we have already as believers. Either way, the grace and love of God is never out of reach.

Have you ever been in one of those situations where you think that you're in a place for one reason, but God has you there for a completely different reason? God has a funny way of using us in the times and situations where we least expect it. We call these divine appointments. Listen in as we learn how we can make a difference if we did what it says in James “Don't just listen to the word. Do what it says.”

Partnership with God always means partnership with His people....God brings good people around us to help bring out the best in us. This is by design. This is the way God meant for us to thrive … and not just survive. We were meant for partnership.

God uses our gifts to change our world but He also changes us as we give...We're not just changing lives and meeting needs, but we're also saying thank you when we give it's like “God, you've given us so much. Thank you. Here's some back.” The question is, are we giving? Like it's all God's? Or are we gripping? Like it's all ours? There's a big difference.

There's no bottom that you can hit that Jesus won't restore and redeem you....Guest speaker Jon Tisevich joins us in week four of our Ghost Stories series to remind us that with God, things can change. There isn't anything we can do to make God love us less and even in the darkest of places, God will meet us there and bring us back to Him.

“We have been partners in spreading the Good News of Jesus.” This is what we are going after. We want to make people alive again through Jesus just like he has done in us. We want everyone to come alive in Jesus. So who are the people close to you but far from God? We are a fellowship on purpose built around people coming alive in Jesus.

We want to feel good about ourselves. We we want to go to church and just get a little pick me up. “Just tell me God love me and send me on my way...."If we're just encouraged all the time we may never change. We need to be convicted because there's things in our lives where we are not in step with God's best for us.

If we're going to be people of faith...we've got to wait. We've got to pray. We've got to ask, we got to depend, we got to trust, not in ourselves but in the gift that God promised in the one that He's given us the Holy Spirit.

Jesus says, "It's not about time. It's about priorities in your life.” If it's Jesus, then you're simply going to find a way to serve and to live this life that he's called you to. He set the example. He's called us to follow. If the God of the universe can get down on his knees and wash my feet I will figure out a way that I can serve somebody else. I'll get out there and pick up the towel and do it.

How prepared do you feel?...We never know the time or the place where we get to share the News about Jesus. There are moments in our lives where we could be the hope for those looking for purpose and meaning. How we prepare our story of faith and journey with God matters because it greatly impacts those who are searching around us.

Idols want to take our life...They can never give us anything. They can only take from us but Jesus the true God gave us his life. While idols want to take, Jesus came to give. While idols threaten to enslave us, Jesus promises to free us and in him is life and love and peace and joy and freedom and truth. He is everything we're looking for and everything we need, why are we still looking? Why are we still longing? Why are we still lusting and running towards things that will never fulfill us.

What if marriage and singleness aren't about a relationship 'status' and more about who & what we are becoming?...In week 3 of our "Let's Be Real" series, Todd & Kate both talk about different views of marriage and singleness. We dive into the meaning, purpose, and design of each and how we can be authentic in all of our relationships.

It takes community to make a church....We are the called out ones who assemble ourselves together under Jesus's leadership, to fulfill Jesus's mission, for Jesus's glory. It's who we are. It's what we do.

Jesus calls us into a real relationship with Him.... Many of us settle instead for a stale and complicated system of rule-keeping and religious “Churchianity.” But God has and wants a much more personal connection with us.

Even if you've given up on God, He hasn't given up on you....God loves you too much to let you go your own way. He was crucified for you. He conquered the grave for you. And he's coming back for you.

If Pilate were on trial before Jesus. How would that conversation go?...Jesus didn't play the power-hungry, status-quo-keeping games. He let them fight it out while he invested his little life. He chose to suffer with us through messy compassion, he took responsibility for things that weren't remotely his problem, and he sacrificed so much of what he could have had—romance, income, popularity, and even his own life. Because dying, suffering, losing for something that really mattered…like you…was better than living for nothing.

What if the man that betrayed Jesus could teach us something?We are all like Judas. It is often hard to remain patient with Jesus. Because what if the greatest sin that Judas struggled with wasn't greed … but impatience? There were a lot of unwanted thoughts and voice in the mind of Judas that he needed to leave behind. Holding onto unhealthy things in his life led him to do some crazy things and this should spur us towards letting go of the things in our lives that hold us back from fully knowing God.

Failure often causes us to get stuck but Jesus offers us victory in our weaknesses...Peter is a guy whose mouth runs faster than his brain. He's a do first, ask questions later kind of person and he has made his fair share of mistakes. But none of this fazes Jesus because He loves us. Nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable - absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love.

Fight like Mary...In the fourth week of the 'Choose Your Fighter' Series, Lead Pastor Matt Mehaffey talks about how choosing to fight like Mary will allow us to be fully present with Jesus. And being present means we can be fully honest with Jesus about our weaknesses which allows us to grow and trust God more and more.

Our battle isn't against people...In the third week of the 'Choose Your Fighter' Series, Lead Pastor Matt Mehaffey talks about how our battles are against the enemy and his demons of darkness who are at war with God and His people.

Jesus successfully battles the enemy using the Word of God.In the second week of our Choose Your Fighter Series, Lead Pastor Matt Mehaffey talks about how immediately after Jesus' baptism the Holy Spirit led Jesus to wilderness for solitude and a complete fast for 40 days and nights. Satan chooses to come at Jesus at his weakest point to tempt him to derail the mission God has sent him on.

Jesus' kingdom purpose & gospel is for everyone. No matter your social status or what you have done throughout this life...Jesus loves you no matter what.

There are many Christians who by their attitude and actions make us want to cringe. We need a new brand of Christians who will reflect who Jesus is in our everyday lives.