Branches Humboldt

THE VETS HALL STEPS have seen a LOT these last three years! There are so many memories to reflect on, God-enounters, and changed-lives walking up and down those steps. This Sunday will be our LAST time to worship, sing, pray, and learn together at this historic and special location. We'll take time to recognize the veterans for their service and hospitality to us, and we'll let their service inspi...

"Everything that is done in the world is done by hope." (Martin Luther) There's nothing more crushing or demoralizing than the feeling of hopelessness. When a situation feels hopeless, it's impossible to move forward... Where do you find hope in those moments? Where do "Jesus-people" find their hope? How can we discover and experience a grounded, solid hope that not onl...

LEADERS are hard to find. Have you experienced a good leader in your life? What was it about them that made the most impact? Or, have you been hurt and disappointed by leaders? Although you may have never considered yourself a "leader", did you know that everyone is a leader, somewhere? We all have a circle of influence; people in our lives that look to us and are impacted by who we are...

SUMMER IS HERE...and some days it actually feels like it! What's your summer going to look like this year? Are you imagining some travel? New experiences? Time with family and friends? How might this summer be different than any other? We're excited about bringing some intention to the summer together - and that's the key word; TOGETHER. Our last series "How To: Life" took us...

YOU WERE NEVER MEANT...to do life alone. As we wrapped up our past series last Sunday "How To: Life", we landed on the fact that leaning on each other, sharing our struggles in honesty and vulnerability, praying for each other, and doing life together is how God designed community to work. But how do we navigate the most difficult relationships in our lives? How might we grow and be strengthened t...

BEING RICH AND FAMOUS was my ultimate goal in life! At the Arcata High Talent Show audition, my guitar playing demonstration was finally cut-off after ten minutes by an exhausted group of judges! Whether it's through fame, attention, manipulation, debt, or outsmarting the competition to win at all costs, there’s a big part of us that selfishly desires to have our own way; to get what we want -...

WORDS GIVE LIFE Isn’t that true? I can remember how powerful words were as I was growing up, words that were spoken to me, or words that I just overheard - that shaped me, changed me. I can also remember words I wished I would have said, and words I wish I could take back or say differently… don’t we all? Mother's Day gives us a poignant opportunity to consider how we are all "life-givers...

DON'T JUST TELL ME...show me! Aren't actions much more valuable than words? Isn't it true that behavior should follow belief - if it's real? Last week, we began a new series through the book of James called "How To: Life". James is a "cheat-sheet of guidelines to have a full and happy life", as Cory Taylor eloquently said. And we're just getting started as C...

Do you ever wish your life could be like your favorite feel-good movie? Don't we long for a "cinematic life" in all the best ways? Sometimes it's challenging to cope with reality when it's far from the ideal we wish were living... How do we actually DO life well - especially in difficult situations? Wouldn't it be great to have a "How To" manual for living? Ente...

Once a year, the world is reminded of the hope found in Jesus. No matter what your faith journey has been like, there is a place for you and your loved ones to experience a grand moment of grace at Branches! Our Easter events were created and designed to welcome people from every walk of life. The fun of the Family Egg Hunt, the reflection of Jesus’ sacrifice on Good Friday, and the fresh start of...

I sure wish B.B. King was still alive and available to join us this Sunday at Branches! I'd rather have him sing his hit (instead of me!), "When Love Comes to Town", because it goes so well with the message of Palm Sunday... The song was actually written for him by U2, and it tells the story of how real love has the potential to change us, if we let it. The lyrics start out like this; "I was a sai...

We talk a lot about TEMPTATION, but it's a bit superficial, isn't it? Aren't the common temptations around us; food, laziness, alcohol, sexuality, just outward masks for what's going on down below the surface? Are they a cover for a deeper reality - our true, core motivations? Why are we tempted to these things in the first place? What are we running from? What are we trying to mak...

"I look for someone to help me, but no one gives me a passing thought! No one will help me; no one cares a bit what happens to me." Have you ever felt like that? If so, you're not alone. These words were written by David in the Bible (Psalm 142). David knows a thing or two about the wilderness, about feeling like an outcast, about being on the run, hiding in caves, and living in fear and anxiety....

When burnout and fatigue catch up to us, where can we go to get restored? When a simple lunch break or even long vacation isn't enough to reach our deepest soul ache, we know something's wrong - something needs to change. You're not alone in this desperate cry. Elijah was a "man of God" in every sense, and yet even he experienced the wilderness feelings of defeat and giving u...

The wilderness is a place that teaches us our most valuable lessons. If we take the time to reflect, to listen, to be open to what there is to learn in challenging seasons, we can grow in life-changing ways. God's people discovered this immediately after their escape from Egypt. Within the first days of a 40-year desert journey, they faced one of their biggest challenges and got to see how God is...

We're going to find ourselves in wilderness seasons (if you're not already in one now!), and there is a deep well of wisdom to be found in these chapters of life. It may not feel good or productive in the moment, but there is hope; vibrant life can grow under deep, winter snow. When we find ourselves in these challenging seasons, where can we find the wisdom we need, the strength to hold o...

"Ash Wednesday" is observed around the world as the first day of Lent; a six-week season leading up to EASTER - a unique chance to get together, pray, worship, and reflect on the forgiveness and grace of God. This important chapter in the story of the Church invites us all to ponder our broken humanity, our inability to be "good enough", and our deep dependence on God.

IT'S ALWAYS been about relationship, from the earliest moments of God with us. Back in the Garden of Eden - walking in the cool of the evening with Adam and Eve (Genesis 1), or today as Jesus stands at the door of our hearts and knocks (Revelations 3), there has always been God's passionate desire for relationship. It's why we were created. When you and I experience this relationship,...

LIFE can be so confusing sometimes! When the way is unclear, and when all the voices around us drown out our ability to hear the truth, there is hope. Romans 15:4 says it like this, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” This Sunday, we not only seek to disc...

This Jesus person must really be something else - truly one of a kind. One and only "Lord"? Savior? God-man? Virgin birth? Sinless life? Permanent resurrection from the dead? Ascension into heaven? Greatest teacher ever? Greatest miracle worker of all time???! There's no getting around it; our faith hinges on this Jesus character, and there's great evidence and compelling reasons...

Everyone has a religion. Even the most skeptic, "non-believers" out there live their lives along a set of beliefs. Everyone makes big decisions about how to live, vote, raise kids, or not have kids, what to do on a Sunday morning, and what to think about heaven if there is one... These choices define us. It's true; it doesn't matter what you believe, as long as what you believe doesn't matter. But...

Is God all-powerful? All-knowing? Is He good? When we grapple with the biggest questions of life - like "How did we get here?" and "What's life all about?" - our inquiries echo throughout the creation around us... and they ultimately end up drawing us back to the Creator....and to the ultimate question of all: If there is a Creator, that made all this, what's He like? I...

No scientist alive today, with the smartest minds in the world and every possible resource available, has ever been able to create life. More importantly, life has never, ever spontaneously occurred by random chance or time, absent of a creator. Could the very fact of "life" itself be an everyday miracle right under our noses? The Bible tells us how God did it, in Genesis 2:"...the...

A poem needs a poet. A painting needs a painter. A building needs a builder. A design needs a designer. A CREATION NEEDS A CREATOR. When was the last time you just stood in awe at the natural beauty around us? Especially here in Humboldt, we have so much to marvel at! Our planet says a lot about God - how He created with design and beauty this amazing home we call "earth." His goodness a...

"This most beautiful system; sun, planets and comets could only proceed from the council and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being.” (Isaac Newton) Could all the beauty and complexity we see in creation have happened by chance? Are the days and hours of your life a crap-shoot of happenstance and random events, or is there something - someone - behind it all with a purpose, plan, and design...