Finding your voice, your path and your life
“The Bible seeks to catch our lives up in a grand adventure, a great saga of God’s dealing with humanity – a saga begun in God’s journey with Israel, continued in the surprising call of God even unto Gentiles. The church is the product of that story.” – William Willimon, Shaped by the Bible The […] Related posts: Covenant People Live the Best Lives Becoming Gospel People Connect to Grow
10 SIGNS YOU ARE a Chair Two Christians Crazy Love by Francis Chan. In chapter 4 there is a list of the 10 signs you might be lukewarm (half hearted about being Christian). Lukewarm people attend church regularly, because that’s what good Christians do. Lukewarm people give money to charity and church…as […] Related posts: Will You Be Ready? Parable of the 10 Bridesmaids You Are Here pt1 Vital Signs: Heart Check-up
We all want to leave a legacy, to do something that will make a significant difference. We all want to know that the time we spent on this plant, the reason for our existence meant something to somebody. We want to leave a legacy. There are three things every legacy speaks to. (1) What is […] Related posts: Creating a Lasting Legacy Tomorrow’s Legacy Today Legacy is more than the Pursuit of Happiness
Every one of us will leave a legacy behind when we die. So the question is not "Will I leave a legacy?" But rather, "What kind of legacy will I leave?" Psalm 1 is consider by many to be the gatekeeper or the entry into the psalms in both wisdom and theology. Wisdom comes from […] Related posts: Creating a Lasting Legacy Tomorrow’s Legacy Today The Pursuit of Heaven part 4
Every one of us will leave a legacy behind when we die. So the question is not "Will I leave a legacy?" But rather, "What kind of legacy will I leave?" In his letter to the new pastor, Timothy, Paul shares his experiences and his wisdom as he mentors Timothy in his calling. Read 1 […] Related posts: Creating a Lasting Legacy Legacy is more than the Pursuit of Happiness The Children are our Legacy
Because there is a little bit of Scrooge in all of us. Christmas Past – You fear too much Are you becoming more the person you wanted to be, more the person God wanted you to be and the kind of person Christmas offers. Is there still a little bit of Bah Humbug in your […] Related posts: Lessons from A Christmas Carol Christmas Eve: The Great Story of Christmas The WHY of Christmas
There is a little bit of Scrooge in all of us. GENEROSITY is the best cure for a Heart-cold It must flow OUTWARDLY: “I will bless you and you will be a blessing to others.” Gen 12 When we bless others, we feel God’s presence flow It must flow FAITHFULLY: Give us today our daily bread. Matthew […] Related posts: Blessed Beyond Reason Prayer of Jabez ~ Blessed The Problem of Blessings
Every one of us will leave a legacy behind when we die. So the question is not "Will I leave a legacy?" But rather, "What kind of legacy will I leave?" In his letter to the new believers in 1 Corinthians 13, Paul reveals three characteristics that produce a long lasting spiritual legacy: faith, hope […] Related posts: Tomorrow’s Legacy Today Legacy is more than the Pursuit of Happiness Creating a Culture of Contagious Generosity
When we think about the purpose of Christmas we often fall back on classic hymns, but they can often be misleading. Consider "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" God rest ye merry, gentlemen Let nothing you dismay Remember, Christ, our Saviour Was born on Christmas day To save us all from Satan's power When we were gone […] Related posts: Christmas Eve: The Great Story of Christmas Lessons from A Christmas Carol Is There Room for Christ at Your Inn?
Sermon Slides: Christmas Eve Service 12.24.14 Charles Dickens published this classic work on December 19, 1848 and it quickly became a best seller. The message is timeless and the journey from miser to benefactor is one every person on earth must travel. This Christmas Eve, we consider the story of the birth of Christ learn how […] Related posts: A Christmas Carol Christmas Eve: The Great Story of Christmas The WHY of Christmas
I believe more people are afraid of the reality of grace than not. Grace, as defined in the Bible, is confrontational and deeply troubling. It demands a response and says this is the right way to live and to be human. In the face of grace all our delusions, well crafted excuses and alternative realities […] Related posts: Confronting Fear Overcoming a Monotonous Life The Problem with Cheap Grace
Jesus has had without a doubt the greatest influence on world history, social structure, political structures, national boundaries and our understanding of human existence than any other person in history. We still study his teaching, dissect and parse his words, mine his parables and seek to look through the lens of spirituality he reveal as […] Related posts: The Humanity of Jesus as the Key to Joy The Questions Jesus Asked Is There Room for Christ at Your Inn?
We all go through difficult times in our lives, times when we feel like no body else understands what we're going through or what we need. We hide behind smiles and tailored suites and dresses secure in our misery of loneliness. If only someone understood, if only someone could share the burden, if only someone […] Related posts: The Challenges of Following Jesus The Questions Jesus Asked The Jesus Promise
The value of any belief, virtue or goal in life is directly proportional to the amount you are willing to risk to achieve it, the obstacles you will face to make it come true and the time that must sacrificed to grow into it. In a world of quick fixes and sound bits, values and virtues […] Related posts: Signs of Becoming an Economic Atheist Christian Independence Living for Just a Bit More
I had this discussion with my daughter the other day, is it really possible to be a Christian, believing and serving God, and an Economic Atheist, trusting and serving yourself as your own god of money? I say emphatically, "YES." I think it happens in church and faith community all the times. There are simply […] Related posts: Vital Signs: Heart Check-up 15 Signs that your church lacks Vision Look for the Signs
The men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” Numbers 13:33 There they are, […] Related posts: Are You Ready to Move Forward in 2014? Facing Your Lions with Confidence The Future of Asking Why
There comes a moment in everyone's life when we feel our back's up against the wall, something has got to be done and God seems silent. We pray, we plead, we promise and we prostrate ourselves in the hopes that God will take away the pressure. The History of the Bible is filled with such […] Related posts: The Biggest Wall What to do in a Season of Change Enjoy the Silence – Day 7
When God appears to Moses and to the Hebrews, it is a far cry from what they had expected as it usually is with us as well. We look for God to take care of our problems, solve the predicament we've gotten ourselves into, forgive every selfish decision, overlook every grievance and in general bless […] Related posts: The Parables: The Generous Landowner Day 2 – You are NOT an Accident Expectations of Haiti Mission Team III
We all go through seasons of dryness when the joy and excitement of new life seem to be a distant memory. Actually we feel like God has abandoned us and life as we know it has come to an end. If you've never felt that way, hang on because it is a basic human experience. […] Related posts: A Leading Cause of Life is Hope Moses the Wounded Deliverer How to develop Life Altering Faith
We don't know much about the life of Moses, but we do know it was a life marked by change, disappointment, spectacular challenges and unimaginable encounters with God that would require courage and humility. Yet each of us will go through a season of change and time of become someone different. What can we learn […] Related posts: Waiting on God Moses the Wounded Deliverer Change Come to Everyone!
Moses, the great Old Testament Leader, was also deeply wounded by issues of rejection, abandonment and isolation. We can learn to face our own pain and suffering with courage because we know that God did not abandon Moses but worked through his life to build a relationship that is deeply personal and healing. Sermon Notes 08.24.14 […] Related posts: Waiting on God What to do in a Season of Change 3 Keys to Surviving Life in the Desert
Waiting on God: How to Trust in God’s Timing Have you ever been in a situation when you have been waiting on God? Maybe you have been waiting for healing, for a new home, a job, or some other kind of change that you desperately need. We're all at some time or another in a season […] Related posts: Moses the Wounded Deliverer Waiting for an Answer Evening Prayer
We each need our own Aldersgate Experience in which the presence, power and purpose of God are made real and personal. For John Wesley and for his brother Charles, that moment would be the convergence of Failure, Faith and Grace all coming together in one inexplicable moment of spiritual transformation. On May 24, 1738, John […] Related posts: Podcast – Social Responsibility in the UMC Christian Perfection A Brief History of Us
Each day we are bombarded with all kinds of advertisements, enticements to be more, have more and look more successful than we feel. In our rush to do everything we've got scheduled, to enjoy all that we have amassed and build all that we have in mind to build, we look past a certain group […] Related posts: Priorities: Is you life in balance? The Parables: The Generous Landowner Waiting for an Answer
We live in a hyper-competitive world where celebrity and champions are singled out at the highest achievement of success. This means, of course, that 99% of the world's population are not successful and struggling to reach the top. Is this really the way life was meant to be, struggle all your life, accumulate all you can, […] Related posts: The Church of the Christmas Spirit Called to be a Healing Community The Problem of Blessings
“The gospel is not a doctrine of the tongue, but of life. It cannot be grasped by reason and memory only, but it is fully understood when it possesses the whole soul and penetrates to the inner recesses of the heart.”― John Calvin, Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life Jesus says, “To what can I […] Related posts: The Questions Jesus Asks II The Questions Jesus Asked The Challenges of Following Jesus
The change in the attitudes and actions of the early disciples was evident to everyone who saw and heard them. Some where fishermen who now spoke with a passion and authority few had seen before. Some were peasants who were now willing to give all that they had to the poor even to the point […] Related posts: Becoming Gospel People The Gospel of Luke The Gospel Journey part 1
Have you ever felt lost? I don't just mean confused, disappointed, or frustrated, I mean desperately searching for a way when you've lost your way. Your heart is racing, there are sleepless nights and you feel you've reached a dead end. This way of existing, of course, leads to more stress, which leads to more […] Related posts: 3 Things the Good Shepherd Does Priorities: Is you life in balance? 7 Laws of the Shepherd
As Jesus led the disciple out of Jerusalem, they pointed out to him the magnificent buildings of their history, faith and hope that one day the Jewish people would rise to power again. Jesus all but dashes that vision by telling them that in the not so distant future, every stone, every hand carved pillar, […] Related posts: Are You Ready to Move Forward in 2014? The Parables: Glimpses of a New Reality The Parables: The Generous Landowner
Imagine standing before a judge in court about to be sentenced for your crimes or for a debt you owe. In the back of the court room stand your wife and children who are dependent upon you for their survival shivering in fear for the life they must now endure. Your sentence will profoundly affect […] Related posts: The Parables: Glimpses of a New Reality The Parables: The Generous Landowner Will You Be Ready? Parable of the 10 Bridesmaids
Each parable Jesus uses is meant to illuminate some spiritual principle or value unique to the Kingdom of God that we don't really understand very well by getting us to engage in a story that we do understand and perhaps have even lived. Parables usually begin by saying something like, "The Kingdom of God is […] Related posts: The Parables: Glimpses of a New Reality The Parables: The Unmerciful Servant I have a Vision of a Generous Church
The Purpose of the Parables “Truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” (v. 17). - Matthew 13:12–17 What is the purpose of parables? Jesus tells us in Matthew 15:12–15 that He speaks in parables […] Related posts: The Parables: The Generous Landowner The Parables: The Unmerciful Servant How Real Servants Act
In 1799, fifty years before the California gold rush, gold was discovered in North Carolina. At Stanfield in Cabbarus county a 12 year old boy found a nugget weighing 17 pounds. His father, John Reed, not knowing what it was, used it as a doorstop. In 1802 he took it to a market in Fayetteville. […] Related posts: The Easter Advantage Remember Your Baptism Remember Your Baptism
We celebrate Easter each year because it is our defining moment, it is the light in a dark world, it is the courage we need in a harsh world and it the promise of victory when confronted with pain and hurt. We, as Easter People, have a distinct advantage over the rest of world. It's […] Related posts: The Advantage of Baptism Touchstone: An Easter Legend Good News for Ladder People – Easter 2011
At some point in our lives we must all make choice either by intention or by default. Sometimes that choice is intentional based on sound reasoning and careful, even prayerful, consideration of the results and the costs associated with a particular path. Other times we abdicate our choices to time and chance and simply accept […] Related posts: The Questions Jesus Asked The Questions Jesus Asks II Are You Good?
Imagine a young man running up to you desperate to ask a question before you turned to your next appointment and the opportunity was lost. Out of breath, he captures your attention and greets with traditional politeness, "Good sir, what should I do with my life?" I suppose Jesus could have answered the obvious question […] Related posts: The Questions Jesus Asks II The Questions Jesus Asked What are You Living For?
In part I of this series we looked at the styles and reasons Jesus asked people seemingly simple questions. They were questions that drew the listener into a deeper conversation about their life, what they were doing and where it would ultimately lead. In John 5 Jesus asks a man paralyzed for 38 years, "Do […] Related posts: The Questions Jesus Asked Are You Good? What are You Living For?
Jesus constantly challenged his followers as well as the authorities that always seemed to be hovering around to think differently about the world and their place in it. We are no exception. Jesus' words challenge us, invite us, and prod us to move in new directions. As we embark on this journey through Lent, we […] Related posts: The Questions Jesus Asks II Are You Good? What are You Living For?
Every church I've ever known has been plagued by division, complaining and factions that tug and pull at the heart and soul of the Gospel often leaving it in tatters. People outside the church who are looking for something to believe in see what is happening and believe the Gospel of Jesus, a […] Related posts: I Found the Perfect Church The Future Church, Part 1 The Pursuit of Heaven part 4
Do you feel blessed, grateful, joyful and happy? Probably not. We live in a competitive world where we see each gift as a stepping stone to the next higher achievement. We want more and we're never really quite satisfied with where we are and yet never quite arrive at where we want to go. We […] Related posts: Four Laws of a Blessed Life Blessed Beyond Reason 2010 Christmas Blessings
I thought all my problems would be solved when I became a Christian. But in many ways they have increased. Maybe they didn't tell me, maybe I didn't read the fine print, maybe I didn't want to know. Cost? Pain? Sacrifice? Surrender? These elements don't fit into the American way of life of avoiding discomfort […] Related posts: Heaven 2: The Journey Home The Gospel Journey part 1 The Gospel Journey part 2
Everyone needs to belong to someone, somewhere that gives each day a reason. Without belonging or connecting to others in deep meaning relationships, we become lonely, isolated and depressed. This depressions destroys our health, saps our energy and makes a mockery of our hopes and dreams. When God created Heaven and Earth, He looked at […] Related posts: Building a Better Church: Connections Why We Belong to a BIG Church Day 17 – A Place to Belong
It was a cold Sunday morning when we gather for worship last Sunday. We gathered to thank God for the blessings of a warm homes, the ability to gather freely and desire to be part of something bigger than ourselves. Our focus last Sunday was on Putting First Things First in our lives. One of […] Related posts: Children’s Time Children Matter! Part 1 Taming the Beast of Mediocrity
Psychologists tell us that there are 3 major "wants" in life. The first "want" is to want comfort - to want food when we are hungry, to want something to drink when we are thirsty, to want a cool place when we are too hot, to want shelter from the storm. We want to be […] Related posts: Day 3 – What Drives Your Life? The Secret to Happiness Tomorrow’s Seeds
Guest Pastor, Rev. Meredith Grudger-Raines shared a message of hope everyone should hear. Enjoy. Sermon Audio:Meredith Grudger Raines 1.5.14E Meredith Grudger Raines 1.5.14L Related posts: 3 Most Important Spiritual Questions Just how far? Is Evangelism Important?
Each year it's the same. We say good bye to the previous year by celebrating the fact that we survived another one, and we look apprehensively to the coming year with unknown troubles, unexpected joys and opportunities to become more than we currently are. Life moves faster and faster and we feel we're falling […] Related posts: How to move into the future with Confidence! Will You Be Ready? Parable of the 10 Bridesmaids The People of One Book
We all have our favorite Christmas movies, the ones we watch year after year – movies that bring friends and families together, that inspire us, and that make us laugh. And sometimes, they remind us of what Christmas is all about – the timeless story of hope and joy and love – the birth of […] Related posts: The WHY of Christmas Keepers of the Miracle Christmas Eve: The Great Story of Christmas
None of us get through life without a few detours. They come at times we don't expect, they challenge us to say the course and they force us to realize that control is partly an illusion. Opportunity comes with so many different faces that we often don't recognize it. That's probably […] Related posts: When Life Gets Interrupted – Advent Study Messy Spirituality 2: Dealing with Doubts Joy is Genuine
God interrupts the monotony that is our day to day life and offer a new challenging way of life. Appointments to be kept. Tight schedules to maintain. Routines established. That’s how most of us try to live our lives. But what happens when life is interrupted with something totally unexpected? What happens when God steps […] Related posts: An Interrupted Life – Advent Study (part 2) When Life Gets Interrupted – Advent Study Dealing with Life’s Detours
To say that Mary's life was interrupted when the Angel came and spoke with her, revealed God's plan and her purpose in it is a understatement. Mary's plans of marriage, family and domestic home life was put on hold and God revealed to Mary that she was more than even she knew. She had found […] Related posts: When Life Gets Interrupted – Advent Study Joy is Genuine Does God Ask Too Much?
Appointments to be kept. Tight schedules to maintain. Routines established. Projects to be completed... The list goes on and one. That’s how most of us try to live our lives in a seemingly endless cycle of doing stuff so we can buy more stuff, so people can envy our stuff. But what happens when life […] Related posts: An Interrupted Life – Advent Study (part 2) Dealing with Life’s Detours Overcoming a Monotonous Life
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