Church for Normies

Ever heard of "opportunity cost"? It is the potential benefit that is missed when choosing one mutually exclusive alternative over another. On a trip across the country, you'll pay a high fee for airfare, but get there much sooner. By driving, you'll see much more of the country and the people. What to choose? By choosing Jesus as the gate, you reject all other doors of opportuni...

Robert Fulton has long been known as the inventor of the steam-powered boat. Except that's not true - he developed the first commercially successful steam-powered boat. Fulton was an innovator on the work of John Fitch , the actual inventor. It's funny how a man's name can be associated with something that lost a bit (or a lot) of its meaning because of popular notions. The same could...

We don't think about it, but giving your name to someone has consequences. It's meant to. A name is more than letters that represent sounds. It's a word that defines who you are are - or maybe it's who you are that defines your name ? A name invites someone to call on you, to interact with you. It's not without risk. They could curse your name. Lie about your name. Ignore your...

In Colossians 4:2, Paul, ordained by the Spirit, wrote to the Church: "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." We've learned a lot through the past 7 weeks of Breakthrough Prayer. Many of us have seen it with our own eyes! Many of us are still waiting. Regardless, we must be watchful with thanksgiving . Why is that important? Primarily because God des...

Facts on Christian Prayer: (1) God always answers. (2) Sometimes it's no, but it always leads to something better. (3) Sometimes it's wait, not yet. But the reply is rarely, if ever, an audible "Wait." It's usually silence. We know it's not because God speaks so softly (after all, whole complex galaxies formed as easily for him as it is for us to exhale condensation cloud...

God answers prayer everytime. It's true. So many times it is YES to what we ask of Him. But just as important are the NO's, NOT YET's, and I'VE GOT SOMETHING BETTER's. (The latter, if you think about it, are still "yes's"). Sometimes we misinterpret the NO of God as his displeasure, his silence as disinterest, or the not-coming-to-pass as we'd "hoped&quot...

Lament. It's not on anyone's bucket list of things they look forward to doing, but it is an essential tool in the disciple's toolbox. David wrote in Ps. 56:8 "Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll – are they not in your record?" How did he know that God records our tears - that no matter what - every prayer is heard and considered? How did David respond with faith in...

Jesus Christ gave the world a remarkable promise: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." (Matthew 7:7-8) Of course, context demands that we remember that it's within his Sermon on the Mount - so don't sieze on the soun...

Of the Lord's Prayer, Martin Luther wrote: "Because Jesus is the author of the prayer in this passage, it’s undoubtedly the greatest and best prayer. For if this good, faithful Teacher had known a better one, he certainly would have taught it to us." It is not an exageration to say that everyday, at all times, somewhere, in various ways and languages, the Lord's Prayer is offered...

"Lord, teach us to pray." The disciples could have asked him anything: how do we preach, how do we lead the church, how do we disciple people, how do we do miracles ... But they had seen him pray and they knew that his relationship with the Father was the key to breakthrough in their lives and the lives around them. Because they were taught to pray, they had every key they needed. Did it ever occu...

"When something is important enough," said Elon Musk, "you do it even if the odds are not in your favor." Musk should know. His company, SpaceX, nearly went bankrupt. SpaceX's purpose is "to revolutionize space technology, with the ultimate goal of enabling people to live on other planets" and you cannot deny that he's been committed to that purpose. With a healthy dose of humility, Musk even rele...

The Ugly Christmas Sweater Series! "Joyeux Noël" in French is translated "Merry Christmas" in English. It comes from the Old French "Noël", which is based on the Latin word, natalis , which means "birth". In fact, natalis dies literally means "birth day." You can see the root for "nativity", "neonatal", and even the name "Natalie" in the Latin word natalis. What's with the excercise in etymology?...

Is it a subcategory of the Ultimate Meme: The Ugly Christmas Sweater? By "ultimate" I mean that Christmas (especially the nativity scene) is a meme unto itself - spanning two millenia! But other Christmas memes exist: Christmas movies, Christmas foods ... delicious Christmas fruit cakes! And suddenly - as memes always tend to do - the Ugly Christmas Sweater went from banished to the Isle of Misfit...

Sean grew up in Kansas City, MO, and knew well the stories of a writer for the Kansas City Star who was later fired because he "lacked imagination and had no good ideas." That man's name was Walt Disney. Hard to believe isn't it? History, it seems is replete with stories like that: Albert Einstein was turned down by many universities as a teacher, "Harry Potter" was rejected by 12 publishers, Vera...

In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote to a vagabond group of disciples 700 miles away from Jerusalem, the center of the events that made up the basis of their faith. Perhaps there were tired of feeling like everyone's whipping boy - the butt of everyone's joke. They were just ordinary people struggling to make sense of this Gospel they couldn't get away from. "Brothers," he encouraged...

Ever hear of a 100/500 year flood? It is a designation by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to describe the likelyhood, or percentage of probability that a flood would happen in a given year. So basically a 1 in 500 chance. On Saturday On Oct. 19th, Roswell, NM was hit with such a flood, causing millions of dollars of damage, and prompting NM Governor Michelle Lujan Grishim to declare this a...

The Afters wrote a song where the chorus went like this: "I wish we all could win | I wish we all could smile | I wish we all could make our mothers proud." Perhaps that is our desire when it comes to life after death: Why can't we all win? Why can't all roads, in reality, actually lead to heaven? Maybe all of the world religions are basically saying the same thing? With respect, that is not just...

Pop culture has relegated the Christian Bible to simply another religious book, full of fairy tales and myths. Some have even said it's a dangerous book. But most people don't know the pains taken to ensure the integrity of the Bible. The Bible describes itself as "living and active" - and one third of the world agrees! Don't miss this very candid conversation regarding the Bible that Pastor Nate...

It all started with Rick Hale and the Living Your Dash. But all good things must come to an end ... and fortunately, they have a NEW BEGINNING as well! Pastor Nathan Marsh has rebooted the podcast and we have a new name, new content, and new theme music! In this fresh start, we also talk about Pastor Nate's new series: "The God Questions!" Check it out at roswellgrace.com! Please submit questions...

Did think yesterday's announcement that ep 231 was the LAST Living Dash podcast? Well, actually, that is true. BUT what you need to know is that this is the MUST LISTEN "B-Side" - a #231.1, a bonus edition! In this special podcast interview, Sean has a remote discussion with Pastor Nathan Marsh as they are getting ready to leave the state of Kansas (which is far too humid) and come t...

The Grand Ol Opry has been in continuous service since it's first broadcast on WSM November 28, 1925. That's 98 years, folks! But even Little Jimmy Dickens had to hang up his hat and guitar after 67 seasons! Yes, all things - even good things - must come to end, and today's Living Your Dash is the last episode with our host, Rick Hale . Our first recording was on September 11, 2019 - j...

Confirmation bias is the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms or supports one's prior or favored beliefs or values. Take chocolate ice cream. Of all ice cream, nothing is better than chocolate ice cream and anyone who says differently is empirically wrong, and is probably unAmerican. "That's silly," you may say - and you'd be...

"With great power comes great responsibility." Benjamin Franklin Parker Now, the culturally astute amongst us may cringe at such a quotation (given it's source - IYKYK). But you have to admit: it slings with truth! This week, our friendly neighborhood pastor sits down with Sean to discuss his latest message in his last every sermon series, NEXT and they have grand discussions about t...

John Maxwell said "You've got to give up, to go up", meaning that you can't hold on the past, can't hold on to failures - or even successes - to reach newer, better goals. "There is no significance without sacrifice. But the good news is… you will be moving toward a better and more fulfilling way of life if you learn to give up so you can go up." This is why forgive...

"Integrity is the glue that holds our way of life together," wrote Billy Graham. "What our young people want to see in their elders is integrity, honesty, truthfulness, and faith. What they hate most of all is hypocrisy and phoniness…Let them see us doing what we would like them to do." As Grace Community Church enters into this next phase of its life - or as you might be facin...