Rock Hall Charge

START RECORDING PRAY ACTS 22 I've always been a tinkerer. I'm pretty mechanical. I like taking things apart and putting them back together. I like to figure it out rather than read the directions. So you can imagine my excitement when I figured out how God works to accomplish his will in the world. It's…

We had a birthday party for Michelle's mom yesterday. It was a great party. And she was surprised… always a plus. What a Welcome! Small group of disciples on their way back to Jerusalem. It's about 65 miles up hill from Caesarea… The small group has grown thanks to some friends from the church in Caesarea…

Bottom Line: The key to courage and confidence is understanding our identity. ME: Personal Connection Is this the right thing to do? Early on, once I started following Jesus, I developed a strong desire to know God's will in a major decision I was wrestling with. I felt like I had just sort of stumbled…

Introduction Remember the theme of our series through the book of Acts is the UNSTOPPABLE POWER OF THE GOSPEL No matter what comes… it keeps doing what God intended… spreading… saving… transforming… recreating His Kingdom Acts also serves as a connection between the Old Testament and the New Testament…

We are in Acts 17 today So I was struggling with where to go with this text all week. I read old sermons… I read commentaries… I read from the book of Thessalonians… I listened to other pastors preach it… nothing seemed to click… then something happened and a thread that many of those articles and sermons,…

A Visit to Remember Go back and remember a couple weeks back… a couple verses back and remember… this is important; Paul and the others felt the Lord leading them to Macedonia. Recal their travels Recal the Dream 11 From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day on…

We have spent the last couple of weeks in our study of Acts looking at some pretty important events. Moments of conflict in the early church that actually proved to have dramatic changes in the church back then and they had tremendous impact for us today. First, there was a public conflict over a public…

We are studying Acts 14:1-20 … Dr. Luke, the author, gives us a great picture of staying focused on our mission in spite of difficulty… you can say perseverance in the face of persecution. But before we get there I want to tell you how I found this message. So I was riding my horse the other day around…

FCA Huddle ministry - students leading Discovery Bible Study - an intentional study of the bible led by their peers. A student came in and was noticed as his 2nd time. As they gathered, the kids were playing a game but this kid wasn't interested in playing. It was obvious he was upset. Hearing the power…

A Spirit Led Mission Set apart for the Holy Spirit --- for the Work of God 1 In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting,…

I was recently talking to someone who just broke up with a girl he had been seeing for three or four months. When I asked him what happened, he said “It just didn't have that ‘it factor.'” He said everyone who meets her thinks she is the most amazing person in the world? She is warm. She is attractive.…

Something much greater than just what we see is happening. BIG IDEA: THE MIRACLE OF HEALING OPENS THE DOOR FOR THE GREATER MIRACLE OF SALVATION Looking at 2 examples of the church growing as a result of the Gospel impacting remote areas INTRODUCTION: In the case of the early church we are going to see…

I was in the gas station… rude to customer I was in grocery store… rude to cashier I was in hardware store… didn't seem to care At traffic light… guy drove right through Waiting to park… pulled in and took two spaces Politicians… want power… everyone else is the problem Pastors… frustrated b/c they don'tt…

Ball one: Stephen's defense, defending himself against the accusation of denying their history - telling the history - from a Jewish Christian POV Ball two: That's ball two - sharing the gospel - he is evangelizing the Sanhedrin Ball three: For us to apply the Gospel Lessons from Stephen's teaching that…

Why do we do things that we know aren't good for us? I eat too much bread. I put too much sugar in my coffee. I don't eat fruits and vegetables like I should. Those things I do but rarely feel conviction about them. But over the last few weeks I've noticed that I watch and read too much news. It's not…

Too good to be true Today is the first Sunday of Advent. You may know already that Advent, the 4 Sundays before Christmas are a time of preparation. We know this because we are getting our houses ready … decorating and all Spiritually we look back to how God was preparing his people for the arrival of…

Thanksgiving … for being here Next Sunday Christ the King… celebration of our being a part of the GMC Thanks to Clyde and Pastor Phyllis Today as you could tell by our scripture reading, we are getting back into our study of the book of Acts. Went home… mom not well… visited her in the hospital… met…

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? What happened? When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest…

UNBROKEN… almost supernatural ability to withstand torture We have this ability, but it's not the life God wants for us Today we are looking at the Tortured soul… WE ARE NOT A BODY WITH A SOUL . • WE ARE A SOUL WITH A BODY . 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their…

I've been thinking for several weeks where we would go after our series on the the theological foundations message series. I was talking to Michelle about it and she made an offhand comment about being tired. I hadn't thought much about it, but it is true that when we get stressed with responsibilities…

WHAT is the church to do: The church of Jesus Christ exists in and for the world. The local church is a strategic base from which Christians move out to the structures of society, providing the most significant arena through which disciple-making occurs. It is a community of true believers under the…

Memorial Day Weekend - Pentecost Memorial day weekend is a national holiday in which we remember those who gave their life for our nation. It's a day that our nation pauses to remember and honor those who gave their lives. There was a phrase many of us have heard before that I think used to be true,…

Happy Mother's day. Mom, the rest of the family it seems doesn't appreciate all you do, but let me assure you… we know our very existence got started with you and seems to depend on you daily. If it weren't for you… we wouldn't exist… and we would have buried ourselves in dirty clothes and dishes way…

So, yesterday our churches had a very important vote. We voted to .... SO what does that mean? I can't tell you completely. What I can tell you is exactly what I've been talking about the last few weeks. The Bible is reliable and authoritative. God our Creator, our heavenly father, and he acts out of…

Our inadequacy release God's sufficiency Don't know what you don't know But when you realize you don't know… and allow yourself to be taught There is a 28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. It's time Finally Jesus arrives at Jerusalem… Palm Sunday… it's been a long time…

Seeing Jesus changes everything in life Blinded by Expectations 31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. Moses and Elijah 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will…

Lessons different from skills... There is always another option Confidence comes from taking action Clarity comes from execution No is a complete sentence Be Flexible Ask for help Trust the process Failure is a blessing The Kingdom of God The Kingdom of God is both right now and not yet 13 For he has…

Lessons different from skills... There is always another option Confidence comes from taking action Clarity comes from execution No is a complete sentence Be Flexible Ask for help Trust the process Failure is a blessing The Kingdom of God The Kingdom of God is both right now and not yet 13 For he has…

I was reading the other day about the early church and their celebration of Advent and how different it was from how we recognize it today. I was struck by their attention to the words in scripture that refer to fear being associated with the coming of the Lord. How often have you associated fear with…

I was reading the other day about the early church and their celebration of Advent and how different it was from how we recognize it today. I was struck by their attention to the words in scripture that refer to fear being associated with the coming of the Lord. How often have you associated fear with…

Hope for the Defeated "God recycles." He transforms lives. He restores. The messenger of this hope is Zephaniah. We don't know much about him, but we do know his ancestry: 1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during…

Hope for the Defeated "God recycles." He transforms lives. He restores. The messenger of this hope is Zephaniah. We don't know much about him, but we do know his ancestry: 1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during…

Season of preparation… season of getting ready. Who'd ready for Christmas? Christmas is coming, but even more importantly, Jesus is coming. Now one of those is good news… We are excited to think that Jesus is coming back… our world is in such a mess. How we long for that to be. But Christmas???? We just…

Season of preparation… season of getting ready. Who'd ready for Christmas? Christmas is coming, but even more importantly, Jesus is coming. Now one of those is good news… We are excited to think that Jesus is coming back… our world is in such a mess. How we long for that to be. But Christmas???? We just…

While y'all gathered at RHUMC… I went home this past weekend Remember all the things that used to direct my life For many years… I was running from my past… driven by my past Many live for the past… dragging it around. Others live for the present… getting everything they can. Still others have goals…

While y'all gathered at RHUMC… I went home this past weekend Remember all the things that used to direct my life For many years… I was running from my past… driven by my past Many live for the past… dragging it around. Others live for the present… getting everything they can. Still others have goals…

A Chain Reaction Lets play a game. I”ll describe a situation to you and you tell me what has just happened. You are watching the jumbo tron and you see a woman crying… jumping up and down saying yes yes yes… what just happened? What about this one: A group of kids wearing matching pajamas all looked…

A Chain Reaction Lets play a game. I”ll describe a situation to you and you tell me what has just happened. You are watching the jumbo tron and you see a woman crying… jumping up and down saying yes yes yes… what just happened? What about this one: A group of kids wearing matching pajamas all looked…

On Tuesday night, I was invited by some students at Washington College to join them for a student government association meeting. I serve as a the field ambassador for Fellowship of Christian Athletes here in Kent County and the students there wanted my help in getting a club started at the school. We've…

On Tuesday night, I was invited by some students at Washington College to join them for a student government association meeting. I serve as a the field ambassador for Fellowship of Christian Athletes here in Kent County and the students there wanted my help in getting a club started at the school. We've…

In the previous chapter, Jesus told us a parable of prodigal son. It was actually a story about the prodigal's older brother as Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees, who were hard hearted towards those who sought out forgiveness. He compared them to how the elder brother reacted when the prodigal came…

In the previous chapter, Jesus told us a parable of prodigal son. It was actually a story about the prodigal's older brother as Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees, who were hard hearted towards those who sought out forgiveness. He compared them to how the elder brother reacted when the prodigal came…

Four things to see: 1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” It's what you would do if you were Jesus 3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you…

Four things to see: 1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” It's what you would do if you were Jesus 3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you…

Marshmallow Experiment video The Long Game We've been in a series of messages based on the book The Circle Maker. We've been learning to pray bold prayers because bold prayers honor God… my hope is that we would become a people desperate for God to move through our prayers. Desperate for our most important…

Marshmallow Experiment video The Long Game We've been in a series of messages based on the book The Circle Maker. We've been learning to pray bold prayers because bold prayers honor God… my hope is that we would become a people desperate for God to move through our prayers. Desperate for our most important…

There's power in prayer WE as a church community have some big things going on… as a denomination we are being asked to make some pretty big decisions… locally, as a community we are beginning to ask again if we might be better together as one church on one mission in one community… or is it better to…