We are called to grieve but as those with hope. But how do we do that? Psalm 77 gives us a window into how a faithful follower of God lamented the sorrows and pain of this world. He entered into genuine questions while lifting his eyes to remember the promises of God. The way to trust God's character today and his future promises are to remember his former mercies. So when life feels overwhelming and God feels distant, tune into Psalm 77 and listen to the soundtrack of lament.
Read MoreWhat are you afraid of? We live in a world where fear flies at us continually. What if there was a way to walk through fearful situations and experience peace and stability? In Psalm 46, we see that God is present and powerful in the midst of fear. When we trust this reality, though hard situations remain, we see God as huge and here to help. That makes all the difference.
Read MoreAs we continue our series through the Psalms, we have seen God's heart for humanity for his people to be blessed on his terms. Psalm 1 & 2 speaks on how we are to be blessed as we walk on the path towards and with God. Psalm 32, however, tells us what to do when we find ourselves off this blessed path. Confession is acknowledging that our path away from the LORD is sinful, while God's way with the LORD leads to life. Confession is not a beatdown but given to us by God to be a blessing. So let's courageously confess our sins before the LORD and celebrate his grace over us!
Read MoreWhat do you do when you see the chaos of our culture? In Psalm 2, the Psalmist looked up to the one truly in control over the chaos. When the world feels like it is bearing down on you, it is easy to be consumed by fear. Yet, in those moments, God calls us to look up, above the chaos, to Him. When we do, we can have confidence, compassion, and courage no matter the chaos around us.
Read MoreThe Psalms give us words to our emotions and language to our prayers and praise. As we launch or Psalm series, we are tuning into the soundtrack of Jesus' life. The more we dwell on this playlist, the more it shapes how we think about God, ourselves, and others. Psalm 1 begins with the blessed man and the path he is on. All paths lead you somewhere, and the blessed man meditates and delights in God's word, will, and way.
Read MoreWelcome to the Kids Service! This week we brought the Kids ministry to the main stage and got a taste of what our kids experience each week. Songs, dancing, skits, and the gospel is presented. This week we talked through the key idea of responsibility by looking at the parable of the talents. Responsibility is simply doing what God has called you to do. God has given us different gifts (time, talents, and treasure) to steward for his glory. When we are responsible for what God has given us, it is for our good as we bring him glory.
Read MoreThere is no better way to close out the book of James than prayer. Prayer always connects with God as we bring our joys, pains, fears, hopes, and desires before the throne of grace. Regardless of your situation, prayer is the best and right response.
Read MoreWhat do we do between now and the return of Christ? James tells us to be patient. Patient means "long-suffering." Then, Jesus will return, and we will give an account to him of how we stewarded our lives. So we look to the farmer, the prophets, and Christ to grow in our ability to suffer well as we wait for our salvation to come.
Read MoreIf you want to know how you are doing in your walk with Jesus, take a quick look at how you spend your time and what you spend your money on. Planning and profits are not sins, but presumption is. When we omit God from our time and money, we fall into the self-focused sin of finding security in our plans and money. Putting God in the center allows us to walk in the freedom that God has for us.
Read More"If my kids would just...", "If my spouse would just...", "If my boss would just..." When there is conflict, we naturally blame others. We think outside of ourselves and blame others. But what if the problem isn't outside of you but within you? What if you are the problem? In James 4, we see that the root of our conflicts is a selfish desire to be our little god. So if the problem is within us, then the answer must be something outside of us. God deeply loves his people and desires them to have life abundantly. We are the problem, but God is the solution. We humbly submit to his will and way as he offers his love and grace.
Read MoreSticks and stones can break your bones, but words can build up or break down. Not quite the motto we were told growing up. But according to James (and our own experiences), words are immensely powerful. They can bring life and blessing to those around us or break down and destroy. How we use our words matters. But nobody can tame their tongue. We need something outside of us to transform what is within us so that what comes out of us are words of life.
Read MoreMartin Luther famously said, "Faith alone saves, but the faith that saves is never alone." As believers, our faith is shown by our good works in the LORD. This does not make us righteous before God, but it shows our righteousness before others. Faith without works is a dead faith, but a faith that gets to work blesses all those around you.
Read MoreIt is human nature to show favoritism to those most like you or most likely to benefit you. This is the sin of partiality. It is inconsistent and unbalanced love. James will give us four warnings about partiality as we continue our series. Finally, he will end with an invitation to truly love the way God loves. So who in your life have you thought less of and need to love more? Move towards them this week with the impartial love of Christ!
Read MoreWhen was the last time you heard God's word and thought, "I have to go do that right now!?" Like a good dad, God desires us to not only hear what he has to say but actually do it. As we do God's word, it leads to freedom, blessing, and joy in this life. As we continue our series in the book of James, God will call us to not only receive his word but also respond to it. When we do, it transforms our lives as we love others in his name.
Read MoreAll of us face trials of various kinds. Some of those trials come from the broken world we live in, and some come from our own brokenness. During trials, we are called to be steadfast in Jesus as we rely on him for wisdom. As trials come, temptation is soon to follow. When we remember the goodness of God, temptations and trials can become triumphs in our lives.
Read MoreWelcome to the book of James! James is known as the proverbs of the New Testament. James went from skeptic to servant to shepherd to sufferer. His whole life changed when he met the risen King Jesus. In this letter, James shows a picture of full devotion to Jesus. This is not a burden to win God's love, but the appropriate response and results of knowing God's love. This is the book of James.
Read MoreHE IS RISEN! Jesus is FULLY ALIVE. Because he is fully alive, we can be fully alive as well. As we celebrate his past victory over sin and death, we look forward to his future victory as well. His first victory over death was his own resurrection. His full and final victory over death is raising to life all who would believe in him. God has won the victory for you and wants his victory for you. This is why we sing and celebrate the risen King. He has won, and he will ultimately win again.
Read MoreWhat makes Jesus angry? Several times in the gospels, Jesus becomes angry. Yet, each time we see Jesus angry, it is always out of compassion for people. The compassion of Jesus leads to his anger over sin and always leads to action. When Jesus sees something hurting people, he always moves towards that hurt. When Jesus saw the ultimate thing hurting people, sin, he took our sin on himself. Our sin led to the death of Christ. As we sit in the darkness of our sin, the diamond of Jesus shines all the brighter.
Read MoreWhat do you think about when you think about heaven? Is it a sky palace or a New Creation? Many of us have false views in our minds when it comes to eternity. God's heart is to create a space where He and His people can dwell together forever. It is a life without death, sin, weakness, or end. You will have real experiences, with a real body, on a real earth with our resurrected Christ. The resurrected life is a life with God in which we will be full of joy, full of peace, full of love, and fully Alive.
Read MoreWould you say your faith is firm or fragile? Many of us have a firm foundation in Christ, but our faith can feel a lot more fragile when our beliefs get intellectually or situationally challenged. God wants you to have a firm foundation in who Jesus is and what he has done. He has rooted our faith in the historical reality of the resurrection of Christ. When we see this, we see just how important the resurrection of Christ is and just how much of an impact it has on everything in our lives. If Jesus hasn't risen, then nothing matters. If Jesus has risen, then nothing else matters. As we build our life on his firm foundation, we find the life we were made for.
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