We sing together, pray together, grow in faith together, and encourage each other. We are an intergenerational church with thriving ministries for children, youth, adults, and seniors.
It is no surprise that the disciples wanted to learn how to pray like Jesus. When Jesus prayed, things happened: people were healed; demons fled; and God acted. Our text this week does not inspire us to ask, "how should we pray" as much as "why should we pray?" As we will see, if we learn "why" we should pray, the question of "how" fades in importance. Come and continue our journey into prayer.
This week, we are going to explore an example of real prayer in Daniel 9. Throughout the Bible, we see examples of real prayer lifted up in every imaginable circumstance by all kinds of different people. Real prayers that cut to the heart of common human experience no matter what century you may live in. Real prayer does not describe saying the right words in the right place at the right time. It is living in communion with God. Our goal this week is to learn ways to distinguish in our own prayers when they are real and when they are just a bunch of words. I hope that you can join us.
On Sunday, we begin a sermon series on Prayer that we are titling, "The Bridge." Prayer is that amazing bridge between humanity and the Divine. It is far more than just asking God to do things we need help with. It is, as we learned last week in John 15, abiding in the vine, which is Christ. It is listening for the still small voice of the Spirit of God.It is the bridge between mortality and eternity. We are beginning with Jesus' teaching on prayer by exploring "The Lord's Prayer." As common and memorable as this prayer is, it is important to peal back the layers and allow it to capture our hearts in new and fresh ways.
This week we are exploring the amazing, wonderful gift of human friendship through the lens of the life of King David. Godly friends are essential to our spiritual growth and our journey of faith. Our challenge today is to commit ourselves to deep, abiding, life-giving, trans-formative friendships so that we will understand more fully what it means to be a friend of God.
When we look at the similarities and contrasts between the stories of Mary, the mother of Jesus and the couple, Zechariah and Elizabeth, we can't help but come to a profound conclusion, "Nothing is impossible with God!" On this fourth Sunday in Advent we celebrate the LOVE of God and recognize that in spite of all of our failings, all of our sin, all of our fears and doubts, the fact remains, nothing is impossible with God.
It is one thing to say that we pray and another to be changed, challenged and recharged when we pray. One of the ways we learn to pray is to read and pray the prayers of scripture. Psalm 25 is a wonderful prayer that helps us learn the ABCs of Effective Prayer.
The Prophet Malachi provides creative imagery and direct teaching about the necessity of being pure before the Lord. In this second week of Advent, let's prepare our hearts and minds to meet God.
There are some very big questions that humanity wants to ask God. These questions are at the center of why some people refuse to believe that God is good and loves them. The penetrating question we are going to as we ponder the reality of living in our worst nightmares is, "When does God weep?"
There are many examples in scripture of God giving people a second chance. The story of Peter's do-over with Jesus after the resurrection gives of great hope that God is merciful and forgiving of our sins and worst thoughts and actions. If you are praying, "Can I get a Mulligan?" then make sure you listen to what this story has to tell you.
When Jesus met Nathanial he asked him, "What do you want?" Jesus was not asking Nathanial to make a Christmas list, he was asking him to identify the core of what he was looking for in life and more specifically, what he wanted from God. This is the first of 4 penetrating questions that we are going to explore. "What do you want? What do you REALLY want?"
Rev. Tyler Menssen serves as Director of Solid Rock School of Discipleship. Tyler is Ordained to Word and Sacrament in the Evangelical Covenant Church, and holds a Masters of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary. When not overseeing the operations of Solid Rock, Tyler enjoys Mountain Dew, golfing, running, reading, iced mochas and conversations, and spending time with his Australian Shepherd, Milo.
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
