Ecclesia Houston

What do we mean when we say "Love"? Pastor Sean Palmer begins a new series called "Sacred Frames". For the next few weeks, we will look at redemptive themes in cinema. This week Pastor Sean takes a look at the story of To Kill A Mockingbird to examine what it means to love your neighbor.

As we enter 2023, Pastor Mike invites us to reorder our lives in this new year. He encourages us to continue showing up; to the discomfort of a new habit, to the inconvenience of messy relationship, to the often frustrating silence of prayer, eventually we will encounter God, perhaps in ways we could never have anticipated.

Pastor Chris finishes the last Sunday of Advent by inviting us to examine what it means to love all people. Pastor Chris invites us to reconsider the way we view God’s love, and in turn how that affects the way we love others in our life.

This week, Pastor Chris invites us to give more in this season of Advent, giving meaningful gifts to others and to being generous with our finances as we raise money for clean water. He suggests that we offer the gift of ourselves to others as a way of inviting deeper relationships.

Pastor Sean continues into the second week of advent and invites us to spend less on things this season and instead spend more of ourselves for the people in our lives.

In a world that primarily values commerce, the invitation to worship fully this advent season is an invitation to embrace a set of values that honor God above the market. Pastor Sean, through the book of Exodus and the story of Moses, invites us to embrace a season and life that worships God more fully.

Ericka Graham closes out our series on the Theology of the Body by discussing what it means to be the Body of Christ. Ericka explains that we all have a connective call to the body of Christ that invites us to participate as our authentic selves.

There is nothing more human than the experience of living in a body. That comes with joy, pain, trauma, and everything in between, but those experiences are what tie us together as humanity. This week we are joined by Pastor Chris and Ericka to discuss and wrap up the current sermon series about the body and take a deeper look at what it means to be human.

Our minds shape the reality we live in. How we view, care for, and develop our mind is essential to how we view ourselves, God, and our community around us. Pastor Sean Palmer continues in our series on the Theology of the Body talking about our mind and is importance to our faith.

This week on the podcast Mitzi Mak & Manuel Sanchez discuss our beloved Nostoi Community. Our mission with the Nostoi Community is to empower our friends who are unhoused and in housing transition through loving relationships that support transformation, provide resources, restore dignity and bring hope to their lives.

Pastor Chris Seay continues our series around the Theology of the Body and explores the topic of sexuality. For many of us, our experience with this topic is connected to shame. Pastor Chris aims to offer new insight and perspective for how we view our own sexuality and how we view other people.

This week on the podcast Josue Trevino, Wayne Brown, & Alexandra Rieke discuss Ecclesia's multi-campus approach to ministry across Houston. Much like the chairs in our downtown venue, each of our campuses downtown, at Westside in Piney Point, and near Northside in Lindale are incredibly unique and diverse. This diversity is necessary to accommodate the different cultures and demographics of each o...

Over the past several years, many of us have endured the trauma of the pandemic and are beginning to experience those affects in our body. Pastor Chris continues our series on the Theology of the Body by examining the ways that trauma affects our bodies and looks at how the Scriptures point us to healing.

This week on the podcast Alexandra Rieke & Mike Yager discuss and breakdown the Rhythms of Ecclesia. We believe God is present in ordinary days and invites us into rhythms which bring about joy and peace. Together, as we live in pursuit of Jesus, we have found these rhythms guide us on a path to experience the divine in the midst of the ordinary and live in awe and wonder.

Pastor Sean Palmer begins our new series around "The Body" by asking the question "What is a Body for?" Pastor Sean explains that the body is the mechanism to express our soul and that we would enact in our bodies what God is doing in our souls.

This week on the podcast Pastor Chris & Pastor Sean sit down to talk about the early days of Ecclesia.

Pastor Chris Seay continues our conversation on the distinct nature of Ecclesia as a church community. Through the prayers of Jesus and the unique teachings of Jeremiah Burroughs, Chris suggests some of the ways we find unity and cooperation within our great diversity, that certain doctrinal differences need not divide us, and that our differences in fact enrich our family.

What does it mean to be a local church in Houston, TX? Pastor Mike Yager poses this question to us as we can become quickly default to the comforts of homogeneity over the messiness of inhabiting and navigating that diversity, clinging instead to those that look like us, live like us, worship like us, vote like us. Pastor Mike invites us to consider how we are seeking the welfare of our neighborho...

Pastor Chris Seay continues our series "Who is Ecclesia?" by inviting us to have a posture towards life that allows us to be missional. Pastor Chris suggests that a life lived missionally would radically alter the way we view and interact with the world around us.

Pastor Sean Palmer introduces us to a new series we are calling "Who is Ecclesia?" Sean invites us to consider that our church has historical roots in a larger story beyond ourselves and our local community.

Pastor Chris preaches from Argentina and shares about Ruth & Rene Padilla. Rene’s work and concepts of “misión integral” are formative to the formation of Ecclesia.

Pastor Mitzi Mak explores the life and ministry of Mother Teresa. She reminds us that if we desire to love and serve Jesus, that he can be found in the overlooked and lonely, for they are image-bearers of God.

Pastor Chris introduces us to Houstonian Brene Brown as we continue our series focusing on the voices of women. Through her teaching of vulnerability, we gain insight into the life of Jesus and the action He calls us to take. Pastor Chris encourages us to not give up when faced with pain, but to continue serving and loving others with courage.

How do we pray with hope and honesty? Pastor Sean Palmer introduces us to beloved author Anne Lamott and her book Help, Thanks, Wow. Anne’s words on three simple prayers guide us into simple and universal types of prayers.