Capital Church Messages

Everyone wants our reviews. Businesses send a text or email asking us to leave a review of our experience. We get a prompt to leave a review for our Uber and Lyft drivers as soon as we get out of the car. Rotten Tomatoes is built on those of us with no experience in writing and producing movies leaving a review of the film we just watched. We’re so conditioned to leave reviews that we think it’s o...

Most people know how to explain their “type.” Maybe you find a sense of humor attractive. Maybe a specific kind of job or hobbies draws your attention. Maybe it’s someone who champions a cause you’re passionate about. Or maybe your type is all built on someone’s looks. This week in our series The Way, James shows us what true beauty looks and acts like.

Jack Russel terriers can be trained to fetch slippers and throw items in the trash. Dolphins and sea lions have been trained in the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program to detect and clear underwater mines. And carrier pigeons were trained to transport vital messages that were crucial in the Allies winning WW II. But humans can’t seem to train or tame their tongues. This week in our series The Way, we...

Everyone has had the experience of being picked last or not being picked at all. It hurts to be on the negative side of favoritism. Yet, more often than we realize, we are the ones creating negative experiences for others with how we show favoritism.   This week in our series The Way, the Apostle James warns us of the dangers of a treating one group of people with more respect than anoth...

There’s nothing better than a carton of fresh blackberries. So, there’s nothing worse than opening that cartoon and finding blackberries covered in mold.  This week in our series The Way, the Apostle James reminds us that we as believers must constantly check ourselves to get rid of anything “molding” in our lives so we may continue to be the best representation of the sweetness of life in Go...

Someone handing you a check for $100,000 sounds nice. But not if you’re being pulled deeper into raging river rapids! If they keep trying to “bless” you with $100,000, you’re probably going to scream, “I need a life preserver more than I need a check!” We’re all guilty of less extreme versions of this everyday. We think we’re being helpful when we offer our input or advice. But maybe…maybe there’s...

Someone handing you a check for $100,000 sounds nice. But not if you’re being pulled deeper into raging river rapids! If they keep trying to “bless” you with $100,000, you’re probably going to scream, “I need a life preserver more than I need a check!” We’re all guilty of less extreme versions of this everyday. We think we’re being helpful when we offer our input or advice. But maybe…maybe there’s...

How do you feel about rain? It probably depends on your circumstances, doesn’t it. If you just got a new book and a fresh bag of coffee beans, the rain may be the perfect companion to a day inside enjoying two of life’s greatest delights. But if it rains on the day of your outdoor wedding…you may not find the rain so delightful. Regardless of your circumstances, the rain is good. It waters the fie...

You want to get from your house to work in under 10 minutes, but it will require you to drive 120mph. You know exactly how to accrue a six-figure income in a way that requires you to go against your morals. You are able to have your cake and eat it too if you don’t share it with anyone else. You can accomplish your will in all of these situations. But they all require you to go outside the will of...

Having a good job is such a blessing. And a good job can help us create a comfortable bank account. That bank account may afford us the means to healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle that results in a healthy body. And that healthy body may draw the attention of someone of the opposite sex that could lead to a healthy relationship and a healthy marriage. But as good and healthy and wonderful as a...

If you hire Gordon Ramsey to teach you to run a restaurant, you’re off to a great start. If you follow his instructions for how to organize your kitchen, you’re really on the right path.  But if you ignore his instructions for how to properly sear Ahi Tuna, you’re going to set yourself back.  If you then ask for his guidance on plating and presenting Bananas Foster, he may have some ques...

Lifting weights is a ridiculous endeavor. You literally engage in an activity that tears and breaks down your muscles. And you’re sore the next day. Why! Why do you do this to yourself! Because you know that this is how you grow stronger. As we kick off a brand-new series called The Way, learning from the timeless wisdom of the letter of James, we’ll explore one of the most difficult, yet most imp...

When we think of Easter, we think of bright colors. We think of flowers and trees blooming to life. We think of family coming together to celebrate hope. But what if life feels dark because it truly is a dark season? What if your dreams or even your soul feels like it’s wilting? What if mourning feels more appropriate than celebrating? This Easter, we’re examining a story in the life of some of Je...

What’s your Happy Place? The cabin your family went to every summer? A trail that leads to a peak with a view that never ceases to take your breath away? The restaurant where you had your first date? As we think about our Happy Place, we wish we could find a way to bring the joyful, peaceful feelings our memories evoke into reality. To embody, and in a sense, become what our Happy Place has the po...

Let’s play a game of Would You Rather.  Would you rather have a reputation for being gracious to people or a reputation for building systems that get things done? Would you rather be known as a compassionate person or the most creative person in your field? Would you rather your friends respect you for your patience or for your ability to build Fortune 50 companies? This week, we examine a Ps...

We all have our rituals. The sign we tap before leaving the locker room. That special exchange between us and our loved one before we leave the house. The song we pump before every big meeting. The restaurant we eat at every year on this day. But these rituals aren’t an end in and of themselves. They always serve to connect us to something, usually someone, that we care about deeply. This we...

We guard the password on our phone and laptop to make sure our information stays protected. We guard our banking information because we know if it falls into the wrong hands we could be left penniless. We even guard our homes with deadbolts and security systems because we want to protect ourselves and those we love.    But do we go to the same lengths to guard our hearts? To protect our hearts fro...

Your favorite restaurant no longer offers your favorite item on the menu. Your favorite team just traded your favorite player. Your favorite band just canceled the tour date in your city.  It seems like nothing in our world is certain.  Except the relentless love of God. In the final message in our Psalm 23 series, we’re sitting in the certainty of God’s faithful love.

Some like a packed house. Some like an intimate dinner. Some like it to be a surprise. Some like to know it’s happening ahead of time. When it’s done in a way that meshes with your personality and preferences, everyone loves a good party. This week, we’re taking a break from Psalm 23 to have a serious discussion about the importance of fun and celebration. Most importantly, we&#8...

If you only focus on the crowds and lines, you’ll miss out on the joy of the theme park. If you only focus on the wait time, you’ll miss out on the upscale dining experience. If you only focus on the page count, you’ll miss out on the stories that have shaped our world. This week, we come to a portion of Psalm 23 that invites us to question what we’re focusing on and how it...

We all know what happens when our favorite character roams through the forest and happens upon an adorable bear cub joyfully playing in a stream. The character slowly approaches, attempting to get an epic outdoor pic. That’s when Mama Bear emerges from thicket and chases away the foolish character in order to protect her cub. This week, we continue our meditation on Psalm 23, reflecting on God’s p...

There’s nothing like the first time your parents go away for the weekend and leave you to take care of the house. Yes, the sense of freedom is exhilarating, but there’s nothing like the validation of being trusted with such a big responsibility. And one of the reasons they trust you with the responsibility is they’ve equipped you to handle yourself – and the house! This week, we’re pausing our Psa...

It’s one thing for your car to not start. It’s another thing for it to not start even after you change the battery. It’s a whole other thing to have it start once you change the battery, only for the dashboard to light up like a Christmas Tree full of warning lights and then die on your way to the mechanic. We come to the portion of Psalm 23 where the road goes dark, and the valley is full of drea...

We all have “that friend.” The one who comes to us in earnest, asking for advice. But when we give them our advice, they don’t take it. So they talk to another friend, who gives them the same advice, which they don’t take. Then on to the next friend, and then the next friend, until they finally find someone who says what they want to hear. It’s easy to criticize this...

Writing your college application essay. Interviewing for your dream job. Planning your first date with the person you’ve prayed about for years. Preparing for all of these can be anxiety-inducing. You desperately want to get it right because you desperately want to be accepted. Acceptance is the end goal. But what if you started at the end? What if you lived like you’d already been acc...