The Gathering

Gratitude may be the purest measure of our character.

Church gives you a community in which to live out your faith and values.

The church is meant to be a community, not an institutional bully.

"People outside and inside the Church get the same message, the same offer, same promise through Christ, from God. People outside of the church age 16-30 think of church as anti-gay, judgmental, hypocritical. Sad reality is that this is not a false impression - this is often reality of the church. If so, then the church that is charged with proclaiming God’s love for the world is actually obscurin...

What is the state of your offering? Tips or tithes? God takes something simple and normal and changes it into something complex and beautiful. First it must be offered to God. Sacrifice - to turn over something to the holy, not to give something up. More like an offering. Our whole life is full of holy possibilities. Often we give our leftovers for God’s ministry.

Sin is something that keeps us from God. Anxiety can rob us from seeing God’s presence. Our worries and anxieties keep us from seeing the joys around us. Anxiety about things we don’t have keeps us from appreciating what we do have.

The parable of the tenants. The results of treating something not ours, as if we own it, can be devastating. What do I make available, from my own life, for God to use?

Along the journey of following Jesus are you a stepping stone, stumbling block or doormat?

Inaction is one of the worst mistakes you can make over the course of your life. In the long term, you will regret your inactions/missed opportunities, more than your actions. Paul pictures a fully mature faith for the church in Ephesus. Maturing requires more than just the passage of time. If you are growing, it is helpful to have an image of where you are going. God's work continues through us....

Jesus expects more and more as people follow him. The wealthy man asks Jesus, what do I need to do so inherit eternal life? What is the price for being all in? If you want to fully develop your faith, you need to be willing to give up everything you have. When God invites us into new ways of living, there is always something required of us. We need to invest ourselves in a new way if we want faith...

Parable of the Sower, Jesus's message has a huge front door, but being a follower of Jesus also has a big back door. At some point, God is going to challenge your expectations. At some point, the church is going to disappoint you. At some point, our self oriented faith (initial milestone of faith) is going to enter into a stage of crisis. Things aren't going to go as we expect. In addition to God...

Everyone has gone through a wilderness.

God's gifts are for everyone, not just a few. What does God want from you?

The shape of your heart determines the shape of your life. Is anger defining your heart?

We experience the power of God on the other side of our fear. Did Peter allow his fear to control him?

There is wisdom in a collective crowd or community of people. Was food the only miracle of "feeding the 5,000"?

Parables have different meanings like people have different God experiences.

Transition is grounds for growth. What happens after you leave the wilderness?

The wilderness is the only way to something new. What is the Wilderness Experience?

Life is a continual transition; a cycle of endings or losses.

What will make people feel comfortable and welcome? What will help people encounter us as disciples of Jesus? A UMC congregation was unsuccessful at these things so they formed a hospitality committee and started greeting people, giving small gifts, feeding them. Nothing improved. Jesus instructed on hospitality, sent the disciples out with what they had to offer the world and prepared them for th...

Is there hope for the Church today? Isaiah announced a message of hope. There is hope for the church today. God has appointed us as a covenant to those whom we encounter. We are to be the embodiment of God's relationship with humanity. Jesus is with us in our work as His people.

What is Jesus calling me to do in the Great Commission? Jesus tells his disciples, even though they were unsure and doubted, to go and make disciples. The great commission points the disciples to the people that they are supposed to impact. Faith is built by engaging those away from you. Yet, we tend to have a consumer culture in regards to church. The great commission is the birthing of a communi...