GraceLife Sarasota

Have you ever butted heads with someone you didn’t know all that well that turned into a precious relationship? Did you ever have a coach, or teacher who seemed to unfairly ride you, but some became a lifelong mentor you loved? They pushed you harder because they saw more in you than you saw in yourself, and later in life, you understood why. It’s precious when someone who feels like an enemy suddenly feels like family. Take that story and stretch it to eternity. Picture God, who started off as a judge condemning your sin - standing up, ripping the rap sheet in two, and saying, “Come here—call Me Dad.” This is the miracle Paul is about to unfold: the moment when God the Judge becomes God the Father. Do you feel like you have a lot of work to do in this whole ‘God’ area? You want His blessings but don’t deserve them? Does your past feel like this insurmountable obstacle between how you feel God sees you vs. who you want to be? Paul’s about to show us that the Judge doesn’t just let you off the hook - He adopts you into His family.

Social Media is full of influencers & self-help gurus preaching about hidden virtue waiting to be unleashed inside your heart. You also hear a lot of this in our recovery community, in the rooms etc. That inner strength is the key to success. It’s the core of Eastern mysticism, New Age thinking: that you can tap into some inner reservoir of goodness. That we have the power within us to conquer whatever lies ahead. But what if Scripture says the exact opposite? What if, apart from Christ, there is no divine spark inside us, but a rebellious, rotting sin nature, itching to break out? Searching for redemption within is like digging through a landfill hoping to find buried treasure. You can meditate all you want, cultivate a positive mindset, even convince yourself you hold something sacred. This is a hard truth, but it can also be liberating: There’s nothing of eternal value in our fallen hearts without Christ. We need righteousness that doesn’t come from within, a Rescuer outside of us…to expose what’s really in us. To provide the strength we cannot summon on our own as we seek to battle the sin that is within us.

How many Easters have come and gone, with familiar sermons leaving your heart unchanged? Maybe what we need isn’t another typical Easter message, but a fresh encounter with resurrection power. This morning, we’re focusing on Lazarus’s story in John 11, which happened just a few days before Jesus’ resurrection. It’s kind of a preview of the Power of Jesus, and what He can do with all the dead places in our lives, and in our world. Places of spiritual deadness, dark corners of hidden hurts, regrets, dead ends & burdens we’ve all carried here today. Let’s be honest: our world is steeped in the power of death—broken relationships, crushed dreams, spiritual emptiness. If the resurrection doesn’t speak to the daily funerals of our hearts, how can we trust it with our eternity? Because witnessing resurrection power should provide hope in every kind of “death” we might face in this life. Resurrection power isn’t just about what happened 2,000 years ago, or just what’s going to happen in the future. It’s about today. The same power that allowed Jesus to conquer death, but also breathe life into you.

Have you ever felt stuck in a relationship you just couldn’t make work—constantly trying, constantly failing? Have you ever been in a relationship that became toxic, not because of what the other person did, but it was all your fault? Ok, I see most of you with this puzzled look “No, not me, never. It's always been the other person’s fault.” Sometimes our spiritual lives feel like that: we’re trying to be “good enough,” but end up burdened with guilt & shame. Today, as we open to Romans 7, Paul uses a surprising analogy to explain how powerful grace is at providing Hope! He uses the analogy of marriage, a failing one at that, to illustrate just how powerful the grace of Jesus can be. He talks about marriage, death, and adultery… “Wait Pastor, I thought you said this was a hopeful sermon!” Paul’s example may feel jarring, but there’s a powerful reason behind it. You’re going to hear some powerful theology today, good news, your desperate, hurting heart has been longing for!

A discussion with Dr Nic Williams, pastor of South Shore Community Church in Sarasota Florida.

Let’s be honest—we love the idea of being in charge of our own lives. We don’t like being told what to do. We want to believe we’re the boss. The author. The ruler of our own little kingdom. We don’t like limits. We definitely don’t like being told we have a master, that someone or something else controls us. But here’s the truth that no one wants to admit: Self-rule is a facade. It’s an illusion dressed up to look like freedom. You’re not as independent as you think you are. You are not spiritually neutral. You are not spiritually free. We’re all serving something, or someone. The world tells us: “Be true to yourself.” “Follow your heart.” “You do you.” But Scripture says something else entirely. It says your heart isn’t free, it’s bound. It says you’re not the master—you’re the servant. It says every soul has an owner. Every life is shaped by a master. So, the question isn’t, “Am I free?” The question is, “Whose voice am I loyal to?” Who really owns me? And there are only two options. Sin will master you—or Christ will. One pays in death. The other gives life.

We love to talk about grace when we think of forgiveness—when we need mercy, when we fall short. Is that all grace is? A pass to live however you want, thinking God will forgive you? That kind of grace is cheap & boring. Shouldn’t real grace be powerful, exciting, Shouldn’t grace have a massive impact? Shouldn’t it actually change you? Has grace made you different? Or do you still struggle with the same sins, the same compromises, the same habits? Has whatever you have defined as grace enabled you to make peace with sinfulness? “Well, nobody’s perfect,” or “God is love, He understands “At least I’m forgiven”… This sermon is about the power of grace—not just to wipe your slate clean, but to write a whole new story. Not just to pardon you, but to transform you. Because if grace is real in your life, something should be different. And if nothing has changed? Then maybe you don’t understand grace at all. Today, Romans 6 will wake us up. We’re going to shake off the lies & the impotency of cheap grace, learn how to be dead to sin and alive to God. Because the greatest evidence that Jesus conquered sin is a transformed life. Are you ready for that? Let’s dive in.

Look around. The world is broken, and not just in small ways. Everything dies. Everything decays. Everything falls apart. No matter how much we try to fix it, history keeps proving that we cannot escape corruption, suffering, and death. But this isn’t just bad luck, it’s not random. The chaos, pain, deep ache inside every human heart all trace back to a single moment, a single man. And everything that was lost—everything sin has stolen—can only be restored by 1 man. Today, we’re not just asking why the world is this way. We’re asking where you stand in it. Because whether you realize it or not, your entire life is bound to 1 of 2 men. One brought sin, the other salvation. One brings death, the other gives life. One man ruins, one man restores. In the end, you’re either in Adam, or in Christ.

Have you ever needed a fresh start, a new beginning that provided some hope, just the potential for joy or satisfaction? Maybe it was a job, a relationship, new form of self-discipline that might provide that fulfillment or peace you long for. This world constantly offers false hope for peace, but none of them will ever bear the weight, the price of real peace. What happens when those things you’ve pinned your hope for peace on unravel or collapses? It’s the opposite of peace. Scripture calls it shame. That feeling of not measuring up, feeling unworthy or defective. These false hopes always fail, leaving their victims in shame, still searching, & even more restless than we were before. Shame is one of the worst experiences of human nature. I think all of us desire its opposite… Peace. But what is peace really? How do you know if you have attained it? If you have, how can you keep it or maintain it?

Many “spiritual” voices promise formulas for a blessed life: pray this way, keep these rules, support that cause. The blessed life isn’t a life of ease, comfort, or financial prosperity. If it were, Jesus and Paul missed it entirely. As a pastor, I’ve watched countless people pour their hearts into these fraudulent “blessing systems,” bending over backwards for every supposed “secret” hidden knowledge, instead of simply trusting Jesus. From rigid legalism & bogus prosperity gospels to incense, crystals or mushroom “journeys”, every alternative to faith alone in the gospel of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection is a lie, and all of them are destined to disappoint. I’ve seen so many left feeling crushed and empty from things like this, asking, “Did God fail me, or did I fail Him?” Have you ever been broken, worn out, left for dead spiritually, by fraudulent blessing systems that failed to deliver? If you’ve been let down by anything that tried to replace or supplement the Gospel this sermon is for you today. Our God specializes in raising the dead, breathing life into the most barren places, where you least expect it.

As you know, I’m a rule follower. I could talk company policies for hours! I love instruction booklets & directions. Actually, I hate instruction manuals. If I buy something that needs assembly, I’m not flipping through pages of tiny print. I’d rather just look at the picture on the box, assume I can figure it out, and start putting it together. And if something doesn’t fit? That’s what duct tape is for! Leftover parts? Toss them in the junk drawer! But imagine a rule follower, an instruction booklet reader carefully following each step, only to see this on the last page: “Oh, by the way, no matter how closely you followed these steps, you are never going to put this together correctly." “These instructions weren’t written to help you succeed; they’re designed to reveal that you can’t do it on your own.” "The only way is to have someone else do it for you.” The 1st question would be, “Then what’s the point of these instructions at all?” Well, without them you would never realize how desperately you need someone to put this thing together for you. You would just keep trying to do it on your own, and you would never be able to get it done. That’s exactly what many Jewish Christians in Rome were feeling when Paul told them the Law couldn’t save them.

Last week is what I will call the “hopelessness climax” in Paul’s letter to the Romans. The case he makes is airtight. Humanity is drowning in idolatry, enslaved to impurity, consumed by arrogance, corrupted by deceit, driven by malice. Humanity is blind to truth, utterly incapable of righteousness; religion, human spirituality, or philosophy can’t save us. In fact, Paul provides a summary statement in today’s section: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. If Romans ended there, it’s pretty hopeless. So where does that leave us? If humanity is totally depraved, what next? Thankfully Paul is about to make a drastic shift in tone It starts with “But now…”. This next section focuses on something we call “Justification”, a critical piece of the foundation of Christian Doctrine. I could preach the next 30 verses all together, but it’s so important we’ll walk through it together for the next 2 weeks.

Who gets to decide what is good and what is evil? Who has the authority to declare what is righteous and what is sin? If there is a God, why does He have the right to judge us? These are intense philosophical, deeply personal questions. In today’s world, people will try anything to explain away God’s right to judge, while inserting themselves in His place. Some hide behind religious heritage. Others trust in their own morality, sincerity, or self-made spirituality. And when confronted with the reality of divine judgment & eternal accountability, boy the excuses come fast! What if each time humanity tries to come up with an excuse against God’s moral law actually seals our condemnation? That’s the question we’ll wrestle with today as Paul dismantles every human argument against God’s right to judge.

Have you ever noticed that we church people tend to be blind to our own spiritual deficiencies? Even at GraceLife where we want to love one another, we’re constantly judging each other without even realizing it. Confident in our own superiority, we pass moral, cultural, and political judgment on others without hesitation. We gossip, lash out with passive aggression, and unleash self-righteous social media rants over society’s latest controversies. What if the very thing you’re most confident in—your supposed superiority—is the very thing that condemns you? Are you really so sure that, while you admit you’re not perfect, you’ve got this part all figured out? Having a false sense of superiority or security in any area of life is a very dangerous spiritual place to be. It blinds us to our need for grace, keeps us from examining our own hearts, and leads us further from the truth. We are all in the same boat together. Any “superiority” over anyone else in any area is a false sense of spiritual security. This isn’t about pointing fingers but facing truth together, finding real security in the life-changing grace of the Gospel.

How do you think God looks at your spiritual life right now? Do you have confidence because you assume you’re doing better than others? I mean nobody’s perfect, but you’re certainly doing better than someone like, Randy, or Scotty right? Imagine you’re sitting in the back of a packed courtroom with a despicable criminal on trial for despicable crimes. The prosecutor has just finished his airtight case against the defendant, detailing every crime, misstep, and even private sin. You find yourself stunned by the evil this criminal has committed, and that the prosecutor has exposed. You’re nodding in agreement with the prosecutor, shaking your head in disgust at the guilty party. Then the judge points at you & asks the prosecutor, “Yeah that’s bad but isn’t this person over here just as bad?” Romans 2 is that moment. After Paul’s indictment of the pagan world in Romans 1, it’s easy for us to point fingers. We agree w/his condemnation of sexual immorality, murder, lying, slander etc., All of that is bad, all of us are guilty. But in chapter 2, Paul flips the script. The spotlight shifts, & now Paul puts religion & spirituality on trial! Whether you wear the mask of the religious, the enlightened, the spiritual, or see yourself as somehow politically, culturally, or intellectually superior in God’s eyes to anyone else, Paul deconstructs that folly completely.

Today we’re talking about a topic you’ve probably heard before at GraceLife called Human Depravity. I know, Fun right? Depravity is about how sin has polluted every part of your life. That is a harsh reality, but it’s also beautiful in this way. Because without understanding this truth, you will never grasp your desperate, urgent need for the Gospel. You will never be able to grasp why God had to send His son, Jesus, to die on the cross for your depravity. You see, when it comes to depravity, we all tend to judge it on a curve. That is what makes it such a tough topic. Because when it comes to having our depravity singled out, 2 things normally, naturally happen. One, we resent the one that points it out, and two, we immediately defend ourselves, justify ourselves, etc. That’s why I’m anxious about preaching today’s passage, cause I don’t want you to judge me. These aren’t my words. They’re God’s Words. Because I’m your pastor & I love you; we can’t skip over uncomfortable portions of scripture. As a church family who loves each other, we can wrestle w/these truths together, so they lead us closer to God’s grace. This is Paul’s provocative opening statement about the desperate condition of every human ever born. Be patient ok?

I’ve wrestled with how to approach Romans. Because it’s a long, tough book with so much packed in it. Instead of dissecting every phrase we’ll approach it how Paul’s readers would have, in community, in larger sections. Because Romans wasn’t just for theological geeks. It was for everyone. But I’m nervous. Let me tell you why. Have you ever had to have a hard conversation with someone you love that you know will sting, but they need to hear it? You don’t care about being right or winning an argument, it’s being vulnerable enough to tell someone you love the truth. It’s tempting to go soft, to make it taste better, or worse, avoid it all altogether & hope the results aren’t catastrophic. But real love will risk discomfort, say the hard things because their well-being matters more than your comfort. The best way to start is to make sure they know you really do love them. That’s what Paul does first, let's look at Romans 1:1-17.

Why do we celebrate birthdays, weddings, promotions, or other milestones? Is it because we see them as turning points that provide some kind of hope in the midst of ordinary life? Maybe it’s just tradition, or an excuse to gather and indulge in unhealthy foods we otherwise wouldn’t eat? But how often do we celebrate our redemption, and acknowledge how God’s grace has turned our despair into hope? Or have these eternal moments been overshadowed by fleeting, lesser celebrations? Here is something actually worth celebrating… What God is doing in your heart and lives! Do we proclaim the quiet ways He redeems what we thought was lost, or are we too busy celebrating what won’t last? This last sermon in this series, “Power for Ordinary People,” is about a celebration that points to one far greater.

Have you ever been in a situation where you desperately needed someone to step up for you—but no one did? How did it feel to be left standing alone, knowing that there is no one willing to come to your defense? Maybe you let people down so often they’ve stopped believing in you, or the cost of standing w/you is just too high. Maybe you looked around so ordinary and felt so unseen that no one noticed you were in trouble; you didn’t matter. What about a time when someone noticed, took the risk, stood up for you & paid the price no one else would? And it reminds you that you’re seen, valued, and loved. Today’s passage is a story where redemption hung in the balance. A moment that reflects the greater story of the Redeemer who stepped forward for us, when no one else could. If you’ve ever doubted your worth or wondered if anyone truly sees you, this sermon is exactly what you need today.

What is loyalty? Why is it a virtue? Is loyalty always a good thing? What if you’re loyal to the wrong person or thing? If someone asked you, “How loyal are you to Jesus, His Kingdom, and His people, what would you answer?” What does real loyalty to God and His people look like? How can we know it when we see it? Does it come with a cost? These are all questions that pierce deep if we’re willing to ask it. Assessing your Kingdom loyalty is important though. What happens when it demands courage in a moment of fear, or grace in a moment of pain? I’m not talking about convenient loyalty when it's easy, fashionable, or socially acceptable. Kingdom loyalty isn't cheap. It’s bold, risky, and costly, & anything less than complete loyalty to Jesus & His people is really just different levels of compromise.

One day, as Jesus was approaching Jericho, a blind beggar on the roadside, heard Jesus was passing close by. Immediately, he began crying out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! His boldness offended everyone around him. They rebuked him. You’re rude! Leave Jesus alone! Be quiet, shut up! His bold desperation was seen by others as inappropriate, but he wouldn’t be silenced. He cried out even louder! Jesus stopped, called him forward, & asked, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord, let me recover my sight.” Jesus was impressed by his desperate, bold faith! He loved It! He commended his faith & healed him on the spot! Have you ever been so spiritually desperate for Jesus that you became so bold you didn’t care what others might think? I’m not talking about selfish desperation or arrogant boldness driven by a desire for something in this world. I’m talking about a bold, spiritual desperation for something this world could never provide even in its best moments. Would you be humble & bold enough to risk earthly misunderstanding in pursuit of grace, mercy, and redemption? What brings a soul to a place where they take such audacious steps that others might see as ridiculous, or even rude? Imagine a moment of desperation for redemption that leads to a humble boldness that risks others misjudging you. Could it be that the redemption you’re desperate for will require humble boldness? Would you take that step?

How often do we overlook God’s ordinary blessings right in front of us? Have they become boring, familiar, unnoticed? In a world obsessed with spectacle, have Christians also become so fixated on miracles, breakthroughs, and grand gestures that we forget how to recognize God’s quiet, powerful presence in the fabric of everyday ordinary life? What if our thirst for the spectacular has dulled our senses to everyday quiet evidence of His love and presence? Could it be that God, who can speak through fire and thunder, prefers to speak to us through those ordinary, familiar, everyday provisions; blessings so common we often overlook attributing them to God’s mercy and grace? Our quest for spiritual fireworks makes us numb to a daily meal, a roof over our heads, or community w/His people. Should we stop looking for God’s presence in miracles and look more in the ordinary things He places right in our hands?

Do you ever drift, feel disconnected from your church family or isolated by something you can’t quite identify? What’s the root cause of division between people in the church? How do we nurture unity and keep it thriving? We claim to value in unity, but do our lives and our relationships with each other in this room reflect that? Are we protecting unity, or is it being compromised by entitlement & selfishness with what God gives us for His purpose? Do we want a community where no one is more deserving than another—or just say we do? Well here are more tough questions that expose what we really want: Is church just a Sunday obligation, or a true family? Are we welcoming to everyone, or only those who fit in our culture? Do some feel more valued here than others? Are you here because you need or want something, or are you here because you desire to give something? Are we hoarding God’s blessings, or using them to serve others with generosity? These are tough questions and the fact is, unity is an easy word to pronounce even venerate but it’s not so easy to achieve. It's under constant attack. I think today’s story in our series on Ruth reveals a critical secret to transformational unity among God’s people.

"When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do?' Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.' With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, 'Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.' Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day." - Acts 2:37-41 Peter, a complete stranger, filled with the Holy Spirit, convinces foreign Jews to abandon their earthly rabbis right there on the southern steps, & be baptized, in public, in front of everyone, including their earthly rabbi, in the name of Jesus! That day, 3,000 people publicly identified themselves as disciples of Rabbi Jesus! But the number isn’t the big miracle! Remember the requirement? To be baptized in the name of your rabbi, he had to be alive and with you in Jerusalem. Their decision to be baptized in the name of Jesus was a bold public statement that they believed in the resurrection! They haven’t seen the resurrected Jesus! But they believed because of the word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit! They traveled all that way to worship at the Temple, in the name of their rabbi, but were baptized in the name of Jesus. This was a risky, profound public declaration, that they believed the Gospel & identified with followers of Jesus! They are declaring they believe their new rabbi Jesus is alive with them right now, through the power of the Holy Spirit. That’s what today is. We have people who have come to us from different places, to declare that Jesus is their rabbi. Today, they are choosing to be baptized in the name of their rabbi Jesus, the same way the travelers in Acts 2 did.

Have you ever hated your job, felt it wasn’t appreciated like you deserved a better job than the one you have? Maybe your work makes you feel unappreciated, underpaid, or that somehow the job you have is beneath you. I think that comes from how the world has determined there are “important” jobs, and then “ordinary” jobs. We fail to see the importance of our work in the “everyday grind”, feeling like it's meaningless in the big picture. What if your ordinary, even annoying work is making important contributions to the Kingdom of God you cannot see? Today, we’ll discover how every day, ordinary work holds more power in God’s Kingdom than you’ve ever imagined.

Have you ever felt the need to go back somewhere, but dreaded what you might face when you arrive? Maybe you wonder how much you've changed, or if anyone will even notice. It’s been a long time, and coming home isn’t easy, especially when the choice to leave was your own. Will people see your return as a sign of failure? Will you feel like a stranger in the place you once belonged? The fear of being seen as we really are, broken, bitter, far from perfect—can keep us from taking those first steps back. But what if the very place we’re avoiding is where God’s healing begins? What if the awkwardness, vulnerability & discomfort, is the 1st step to restoration & grace? My experience? God’s power meets ordinary people when they take that journey back to community with His people. So, what’s keeping you from coming home? Regret? Fear? Bitterness? Whatever it is, know that God is already at work—even if it feels uncomfortable. But to experience His healing, you’ve got to be willing to come home!

Do you ever wonder if your life carries any real weight? If you died tomorrow, what would your legacy be? Do you wrestle with guilt, feeling like you’re falling short? Or like you’re ordinary and insignificant? Maybe you doubt your impact in God’s Kingdom or feel like you’ve disappointed Him, or your life is too small to matter. These feelings can make us resent the mundane, feeling stuck in the routine and even resenting the simplicity of our days. But, what if those monotonous moments are divinely designed, and intended to be pivotal to God’s sovereign plan? What if you learned that your everyday faithfulness & obedience have a ripple effect beyond your imagination, impacting lives you’ll never see, and shaping eternal destinies? Even when you can’t see it, could God be weaving something extraordinary through your very ordinary life! We’re going to learn today that our Sovereign God delights in using simple, faithful obedience to accomplish His plan to rescue & redeem His people—just like He did with Ruth.

Life has a way of hitting hard. It has a way of creating defining moments that force decisions we don’t want to make. I am not talking about easy choices, like the one I make almost every day… do I swirl my froyo flavors or not? I am talking about inflection points when circumstances put you at a crossroads between faith and doubt. When things fall apart, where do you turn? Do you rely on your own strength, or do you take that step of faith? And you know, it sounds so simple, right? Just have faith! Just trust that God is in control! So easy right? But faith isn’t easy. It’s not a safety net or backup plan. It’s hard to trust God’s promises when everything says don’t. It’s messy, it’s gritty and sometimes makes no sense. But that’s where faith is required! In the crazy and the hard. These are the moments where you realize your strength was never the point. This is where the shift happens. When life hits hard, the question isn’t just “Where will you turn?” It’s “Who will you become because of it?”

In the last several weeks different people in our church have lost everything in one of 3 different storms. Do you remember what life was like before Hurricane Debbie wrecked so many lives a couple of months ago? What about those among us who lost everything during Hurricane Helene. That experience was life-changing for you. Do you remember the anxiety earlier this week as we watched weather reports, warning us about Hurricane Milton? How do you feel now that the storm has passed, and we see all this wreckage all around? Have you enjoyed the long gas lines? I have seen some fights. The Davis’ are still without power, so no bragging, please! Is it possible to find gratitude in the aftermath of a disaster? When we’re tempted to ask, ‘Why me?’—is there a deeper question we should be asking instead? Can we still be thankful, even when the world feels shattered? Even though life has been disrupted, and things are not “normal”, what can we have gratitude for this morning? There’s a certain kind of Gratitude that isn’t really a response to earthly blessings, or getting through a hurricane. It’s the capacity to experience grace, even in sorrow & chaos. Today, we’ll take a few minutes to explore how gratitude really isn’t a response to earthly circumstances. But circumstances can reveal if you understand true gratitude.

You know our country is deeply polarized, & everyone on all sides, including you, has an opinion about who’s to blame. Could one of the big reasons be the redeemed’ s disobedience, & lack of faith that God is in control? How does it affect our community when the redeemed lack trust & confidence that God is sovereign & in control? -Instead of being the light of the world, we often become just another angry voice in the chaos. Instead of proclaiming redemption, mercy, love & grace we complain, quarrel, & look for hope in other things. We begin to place our hope in economics, politics, culture wars, etc. to fix what only our Unseen King can fix. What if God’s plan is for us to rise above the chaos? Will we trust Him or continue fighting for control? What might be the effect, the impact on our community, when the redeemed fully trust our Unseen King? This is a powerful lesson our church needs to take away from our series on Esther.

Have you ever noticed how easily we remember the traumatizing events in our lives, big and small? We never forget! We all have trauma, even those of us who think we don’t, are impacted by it in daily life more than you realize. They’re called core memories that cling to us, spring up without warning, they frame how we see life. These memories can breed bitterness, strain relationships, & foster a mindset of victimhood & entitlement. Have you experienced how easily these memories distract you from following Jesus or remembering the Word of God? It can almost seem like trauma is specifically designed to keep us from remembering mercy and redemption! But when it comes to remembering what God has done for us, it seems that requires more effort & discipline. We must have frequent, regular remembrance of the powerful moments God has displayed His sovereign grace to us. Remembering His goodness a vital part of both our obedience & our transformation.

It was the summer of 1991 at the outdoor basketball courts at USF. Pastor Joe, 23 years old, was playing pickup with college players while a crowd watched from the bleachers. It was like that Ski-Lo song, “I wish I was a little bit taller…”—everyone came to see their guy dominate the game. This may surprise you, but I was by far the shortest and slowest person on the court. It wasn’t even close. The game was at a critical point—game point, in fact. My team had the ball, and our point guard, under heavy pressure, was forced to pass it to me. I could see the sadness in his eyes. A 6'9" guy, who I'd even seen play on TV, rushed out to guard me. I panicked, thinking he was going to run me over. So, in desperation, I just heaved the ball into the air. We collided, and I went sprawling to the ground. Then I heard a massive roar from the crowd. Someone even yelled, "WHITE BOY!" To my shock, my blind 30-foot bank shot had gone in. My teammates ran over, picked me up, and we celebrated. It was one of the greatest moments of my life. Have you ever experienced a victory or success so surprising and joyful that there was no room for gloating? A success so unexpected that even though you were part of it, everyone knew it was an act of God? You can’t take the credit, but you celebrate anyway. The Jews in Persia felt that same way. They celebrated a miraculous, unexpected reversal of evil, knowing it was divine deliverance straight from the hand of God.

Isn’t it fun to be the one announcing good news? To see the thrill in someone’s face because of news you shared? When was the last time you had the privilege of sharing amazing news with someone who wasn’t expecting it? How did you feel when you saw their joy, the relief, the spark of hope in someone’s eyes as they received it? Good news can be so powerful! It can lift burdens, renew hope, even change someone’s life, even save their life! Can you imagine a scenario of having good news for someone but choosing, for whatever reason, to keep it to yourself? Wouldn’t that be kind of sick, even evil? Chapter 8 is the moment of the grand resolution of the whole Esther story. It serves as a powerful reminder of what we should do with the keys to deliverance and the message of greater hope we’ve been given.

Have you ever looked at the world around you and wondered, why does evil seem to be winning? Hypocrisy, injustice, corruption, doesn’t it seem like darkness is constantly gaining ground & closing in around us? We’re confronted daily w/what seems like the wicked prospering while the righteous suffer. There’s a psalm for that: (Psalm 73:3,12-14) For I was envious of the prosperity of the proud and wicked...look at these men of arrogance; they never have to lift a finger - theirs is a life of ease; and all the time their riches multiply. Have I been wasting my time? Why take the trouble to be pure? All I get out of it is trouble and woe - every day and all day long?"

Don’t you love it when your plans or strategies come together? Especially when the outcome is super important? It's very rewarding! You feel intelligent, in control, powerful! It confirms your high opinion of your wisdom & foresight! Even our selfish, ambitious, lustful, unrighteous plans that hurt others provide this intoxicating illusion of control. While it’s good to strategize and plan, we must remember that control is often an illusion. But sometimes, despite our best efforts, our plans fail—sometimes spectacularly. And when they do, that feeling of being in control can be replaced with humiliation, helplessness, powerlessness, and sometimes even fear. Imagine the devastating humiliation when plans you were so confident in fail so badly, they cost you everything. The humiliation of plans gone wrong is something many will face on the Day of the Lord. Esther 6 gives us a powerful lesson about the peril of placing our trust in human plans, especially plans that are inspired primarily by selfishness & pride.

"Reverence & awe for the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. For by me, your days will be multiplied, and years added to your life." - Proverbs 9:10-11 Do you know people who seem prone to making unwise choices? Have you ever felt like you might be one of them? Why do people make the same silly mistakes repeatedly? While others seem to be able to learn from their mistakes? This kind of wisdom, or lack of it, reveals a deeper issue, a lack of trust in God’s sovereign plan, so we take over. What about people who seem to consistently display wisdom to make courageous, faithful, obedient choices. Why do some people possess heavenly wisdom while another seems trapped in foolishness? The kind of wisdom you consistently display has little to do with intelligence, talent, or resources. Instead, it reveals how much you trust in God’s sovereign power & plan, perhaps more than you’re willing to admit. Esther 5 presents a powerful contrast between these two kinds of wisdom and the inspiration behind each. Let's explore how Esther's wisdom differs from Haman's foolishness and what that means for us today.

Have you ever been so distraught, anxious, distressed and distracted you couldn’t eat or sleep? Maybe you were worried about your bills or you lost your job, or a huge costly catastrophe that came upon you. Maybe it was a legal decision from the judge, a medical diagnosis from your doctor, or other potential, looming bad news. Maybe it was just immense grief and sorrow over losing someone you love, a spouse, or a parent, or a child. All of us have faced devastating events in our lives, leaving us feeling helpless, that exposed our frailty or vulnerability. But these heavy moments provide the most stark of contrasts between the faithful & rest of the world. Without eternal hope, life is pretty much about grabbing what you can, and enjoying peaceful moments between bad news. But for followers of Jesus, these moments present an opportunity for our greatest expressions of worship to God.

"If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as it's own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." - John 15:18-19 Have you noticed the world seems to hate Christianity? Does this hostility towards Christianity frustrate you? Are you easily discouraged, or enraged when culture or government seems to conflict with the Kingdom of God? No matter the political persuasion, there are American Christians who are confused, perplexed & angry at society. As a pastor, I observe an American church infected with a destructive, spiritual pandemic of anxiety, fear, and even anger. Christians on both political sides are anxious, even angry at the prospect of who might be president in 6 months. Outraged or confused by SCOTUS decisions ranging from gay marriage on one side, to overturning Roe v. Wade on the other. We get worked up in culture wars, like the reenactment of Da Vinci’s Last Supper by drag queens in the Paris Olympics. How should we respond to things like this? Is anxiety, fear, or anger helpful to the cause of the Gospel & the Kingdom? Does the direction of culture and government make you fearful or anxious? Where does peace & Joy fit into this equation? Should we stand up and fight, argue, condemn, and debate? Should we double down on our political activism? Are our anxieties about the present circumstances justified considering God's sovereignty? How should we respond? I think today’s story from Esther is pertinent to this topic, especially with what’s ahead of us in the next 100 days!

Do you know what these are? Call it what it is. Ugly. Just look at them! This “art” is at best “questionable!” Everything is out of proportion. They are stick figures. Coloring outside the lines. Some don’t even resemble anything! But someone somewhere thought they were precious enough to take a picture and put it on the world wide web! These are obviously posted by people who love the kids who made this refrigerator art. To them these are beautiful. They love them, cherish them, and put them up for everyone in the house to see! To anyone else, these are worthless. Now before you say, “Pastor Joe that is mean!”, how long would you keep it up on your fridge if you didn’t love the kid? The story we will look at today in Esther is like this analogy of a parent loving ugly refrigerator art. We’ll learn that we can be grateful for how God used Esther & Mordecai without ignoring their terrible choices.

Do you know what these are? Call it what it is. Ugly. Just look at them! This “art” is at best “questionable!” Everything is out of proportion. They are stick figures. Coloring outside the lines. Some don’t even resemble anything! But someone somewhere thought they were precious enough to take a picture and put it on the world wide web! These are obviously posted by people who love the kids who made this refrigerator art. To them these are beautiful. They love them, cherish them, and put them up for everyone in the house to see! To anyone else, these are worthless. Now before you say, “Pastor Joe that is mean!”, how long would you keep it up on your fridge if you didn’t love the kid? The story we will look at today in Esther is like this analogy of a parent loving ugly refrigerator art. We’ll learn that we can be grateful for how God used Esther & Mordecai without ignoring their terrible choices.

(DEUTERONOMY 27:4-8) When you’ve crossed over the Jordan, use these stones & some plaster to build an altar on Mount Ebal to the Lord your God. Don’t use tools, build it with your hands! You shall offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God, make peace offerings, & have a feast there. You shall rejoice before the Lord your God. And you shall write on the stones all the words of the Law.

God often uses our desperation to showcase his glory & power.

"All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one." - Matthew 5:37

What kind of church would GraceLife be if everyone was like Ganon or Chris? Stunning, good-looking, great personality? Would our church be bigger, and more appealing? Would more people be drawn to Mt Lockwood Ridge? Listen, people like Chris, Gannon & myself, we are so tired of carrying that burden of being who everyone loves. Obviously, joking about Chris, But seriously, have you ever thought about how diverse & creatively God has made us all? There isn’t another person in our church close to a Raz, or Curley. There’s only one Jen, Brent, or Bob Cluckey. There’s nobody like Todd, Cean, or Jackie. No two GraceLifers are alike at all! Yet we are united under one Gospel. We need each of them, each of you, with every quirk, oddity, peculiarity, and diversity, to be what makes GraceLife so special. God’s creativity in our church is critical. We can’t accomplish His plans on Mt. Lockwood Ridge without each one.

Raise your hand if you have ever made an unwise, foolish, or just downright sinful decision. Have you experienced earthly consequences from those choices so severe that you felt there was no way back? Have you ever wrestled with the potential earthly, spiritual, and eternal impact your own free will has had on others? When we make bad choices, can our choices disrupt God’s plan of salvation not just for us, but for others? This concept has been one of the most polarizing, controversial theological debates within the church for 2,000 years. The human heart has this natural desire for independence & autonomy. But free will comes with a cost as well, right? We all cherish human free will don’t we? The right to make our own decisions, to choose our own path. Every follower of Jesus has struggled with the burden of how our decisions bring consequences on us and others. It’s the tension of trying to grasp how human free will can exist within the framework of God’s sovereign grace. Today’s passage from Esther can be a comfort to every believer who has made bad choices. Yes, even you Scotty!

How many of you have ever played chess? What are the two most important pieces on the board? The King & Queen. These two pieces are all-important; everything centers around them, and where they are dictates the flow of the game. These two pieces on the chessboard are controlled by the players, who move, direct, & use them for their own strategies. But outside the game, off the chessboard, they are pointless trinkets with no power or value. Imagine playing Monopoly, trying to use the queen to move to whatever property you desired, without the dice. It would be absurd, right? Your opponent wouldn’t allow it because the queen has no power in the game of Monopoly. Do you realize that’s exactly what earthly power and authority are really like? Like a chess piece under God’s control? Just as the queen is powerless in Monopoly, earthly rulers have no ultimate power outside their own realms. Earthly rulers like the one we will learn about today, may seem powerful within their own kingdoms, but their power is limited and doesn't extend beyond their specific context. Like chess pieces on a board are controlled by the players, Even in their own realms earthly rulers are controlled by God. They are all subject to God’s plans, purposes, and the orchestration of His sovereign plan for our redemption!

Have you ever felt like God was missing? You believe in God, you have faith, but you can’t see Him in your situation? We have faith, but we can’t help the fact that we feel this way as if God has gone silent & He’s nowhere to be found. We’ve all been there. We’ve been perplexed, suffering, frightened, in pain, and maybe even devastated by loss & pain. It’s one of those moments in life you just can’t see what God is doing. Even praying doesn’t seem to help ease it. Usually, because we cannot see the big picture, God is doing things beyond our comprehension. But we also know from God’s Word, He IS there! He knows how every detail is part of His grand plan of redemption. That’s the essence of the Book of Esther, a cherished story in Jewish history that’s overlooked by church leaders. There is a profound message of God's presence, hidden, but working behind the scenes to ensure His will is fulfilled. It’s a story about the precious fabric of our faith, woven by a God who’s always in control, even when He seems silent. We will learn that being faithful requires us to know there is far more going on than what we can see at any given time. We will learn how God's hand is always at work, guiding us, protecting us, and fulfilling His purposes through us.

Before we begin our new series in Esther, I wanted to take a week to talk about GraceLife’s stance God’s Word. With so many new faces, I think it’s important to take one week to explain why we do what we do here. A biblical church is characterized by unwavering confidence and trust in the Bible as the ultimate source of truth. A biblical church, which there are several in Sarasota, believes God’s Word is supernaturally inspired and infallible. Any good, biblical church will declare that they believe scripture is inspired, reliable, accurate, and preserved by God. But our belief and trust in God’s Word should be based on more than just blind faith. After all the stakes are high. If we’re going to have complete trust in God’s Word, shouldn’t we understand why? This isn’t the Easter Bunny There are compelling reasons why God's Word is reliable, miraculous, and worthy of our hope, trust & reverence. In fact, the Bible, the Word of God we have today, is just as miraculous as the resurrection of Jesus!

Look at the person next to you. Imagine for a moment you saw real signs this person was clearly drifting from God. Maybe you became aware of obvious signs of sin or immorality. Maybe gathering with us had become sporadic. If it's someone in recovery, perhaps you are seeing evidence their recovery is shaky or wobbly. Maybe you have witnessed very inappropriate conversations or relationships with members of the opposite sex. Maybe you’ve had theological discussions with them where it seems they are drifting away from the one true Gospel. Most of us would act one of 2 ways....we mind our own business, or we get arrogant and respond too strongly. My question for you is this. How far would you be willing to go to try to bring your wandering brother or sister back? How committed would you be to help them be restored to obedience & full community with God’s people? Did you know your willingness to help restore a wandering brother or sister is a critical test of your ropes of faith? Restoring straying Christians is one of our highest priorities because we are, in fact, our brothers’ keeper. In fact, even if your ropes of faith pass every other test in James we’ve studied, if it fails this one, it’s a serious problem.

Do you know people who just seem to have a special gift and commitment to pray for other people? If you’re like most of us, like me, several names quickly come to mind, and one of them isn’t your own! These are people we turn to, because it just seems they take prayer seriously. Their prayers seem to have power. They always seem to be much more interested in praying for others before they pray for anything for themselves. Why are some people better than others at prayer? Are they just special, more spiritual, more godly than the rest of us? I have never met someone who has this gift of praying for others that was always angry or fighting with other Christians. I’ve never heard “He/she really loves praying for other people, but man they sure are mean when they aren’t praying!” I haven’t met many people like this who were cocky about their prayers, bragging about how powerful their prayers are. People like this just seem to understand how their prayers don’t start with them. They seem to give God that credit. People with this kind of prayer life are critical to building up the church and healing relationships. We need them! So, what does James have to say about this? How can we all tap into a powerful prayer life? In chapter 5:16-18, James addresses the power of prayer and its connection to our relationships with one another.

(JAMES 5:13–15) IS ANYONE AMONG YOU SUFFERING? LET HIM PRAY. IS ANYONE CHEERFUL? LET HIM SING PRAISE. [14] IS ANYONE AMONG YOU SICK? LET HIM CALL FOR THE ELDERS OF THE CHURCH, AND LET THEM PRAY OVER HIM, ANOINTING HIM WITH OIL IN THE NAME OF THE LORD. [15] AND THE PRAYER OF FAITH WILL SAVE THE ONE WHO IS SICK, AND THE LORD WILL RAISE HIM UP. AND IF HE HAS COMMITTED SINS, HE WILL BE FORGIVEN.