Faith and Life Podcast

Given that our culture continues to define away personal sin, relativize truth, and lift up the individual into the positon of being one’s own god, this sermon will wrestle with the question whether repenting is still relevant.  After hearing this sermon we hope that regular, authentic, rigorous and gospel-centered repentance becomes habit as you seek to grow as a fully devoted follower of Jesus....

This sermon will teach what to do to promote faith among those you love the most, especially those who may not yet believe. It appears from the gospel record that some or all of Jesus’ immediate family did not initially believe in him. We know that at least some of his family (Mary, James, Jude) became fully-devoted followers of Jesus.    After hearing this sermon we hope that you will follow the...

This podcast begins with Pastor Trover reading a letter from ELCA Bishop Eaton on the recept shootings in Charleston, South Carolina.   God's transforming power moves us from fear to faith. After hearing this sermon we hope that you will stop being afraid and go on living by trusting God's goodness to all.   Lessons: Lamentations 3:22-33  and Mark 5:21-43 .

God responded to Job, and those who were listening, with a series of rhetorical questions. After quieting a storm at sea the disciples asked a deeper rhetorical question, “who is this?” Paul invites us to keep looking and asking questions until we see God, face to face. Lessons: Job 38:1-11 , 1 Corinthians 13:9-12 , Mark 4:35-41 .   

According to Jesus' early parables, God's kingdom is everywhere, mysterious, and actual. This teaches us of the radical grace of God's rescue mission centered in the death and resurrection of Jesus. We will glance over the fence at Christian universalism, i.e. that everyone is actually saved through the work of Jesus.   After hearing this sermon we hope that you will not doubt that you are in God'...

Being caught in a challenging position can have us backpedaling, trying to find a way to minimize our failure. But in the end, the cover-up almost always becomes worse than the original offense. With God we have the freedom to come clean, because God knows all about us in the first place. Too often we fail to recognize this and we run and hide, and cover ourselves, as if God cannot see us. True fr...

As followers of Jesus, we are not done learning and growing in discipleship. A fully-devoted follower of Jesus always remains teachable and continually seeks out opportunities to learn and grow with an open heart and mind.    After hearing this sermon, we hope you will evaluate what your discipleship learning agility is and add one way you will put yourself in a position to learn and grow in disci...

In our culture we have become so busy and surrounded by so much noise that we can't hear what God might be telling us. In this message we will look at how we need to be still and listen to God's call to us.   Lessons: Acts 2:1-21 , 1 Samuel 3:1-10 , Matthew 11:25-29 .

Enough said right?  But when it comes to us, we need more words, we need more reminders, we need more images, we need more promises, we need more proof, we need deeper understanding… and when it’s all said and done, when we ask Him who He is… I Am.  Luckily He knows out weaknesses, He knows our limits, and so he gave us words, deep, broad, heavy, and powerful words to display who He is.  We will l...

One way to be rich towards God is to unleash God’s love through sacrificial acts of generosity and compassion. This lessens our grip on our wealth and its grip on us, and makes an eternal difference in our lives and the lives of others. After hearing this sermon, we hope you will extend your participation in the Be Rich campaign beyond what you would expect by continuing to financially donate, ser...

The way to make sure that you hope does not migrate from God to your wealth is to pre-decide to be rich in giving a generous percentage of your income to unleash God’s love to meet the hopes and hurts of others. After hearing this sermon, we hope you will have a generosity planning session where you will prayerfully pre-decide what generous percentage of your income you will give to unleash God’s...

There are unintended and destructive side effects that we may experience since we are rich. These side effects can build up to where we eventually put our trust and hope in our wealth more than in God. One way to lessen the  side effects is to be generous and serve others in response to the riches we have been given by God.   After this sermon, we hope that you will be aware of how rich you are an...

We are to witness to the resurrection of Jesus by being rich in doing the good work of being extravagantly generous and serving those in need. In this way we follow the example of Jesus and become the shining stars that point people to Jesus.    We hope you will participate in the Be Rich campaign beyond what you would expect by giving an extravagant donation above your normal offering, serving at...

We are going to look at as many Old Testament figures who "in faith" followed God's call wherever it led. What inhibits us from following these calls? What encourages us? How do we have faith like this? How do we join them in our world? Lessons: Jeremiah 20:7-11 , Hebrews 10:32-39 , and Mark 9:17-24 . Music Video:  When the Saints - Sara Groves

Because Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, so shall we. In heaven we will experience the riches that God has prepared for us and that are beyond compare. These riches are already ours through faith in Christ.   After hearing this message, we hope you will live each day rejoicing and glad in the riches of the eternal life Jesus won for us. Let the reality of your eternal riches shap...

Using the gospel lesson, this sermon will teach that in inclusive 7th petition of the Lord’s Prayer we ask that our heavenly Father would save us from every evil to body and soul, and at the last hour would mercifully take us from the troubles of this world to himself in heaven. This four-word prayer may be the most complete and universal prayer to pray in any circumstance where we are facing a tr...

Contrasting the behavior of Jesus and Peter, this sermon will teach that God tempts no one to sin. We ask in the Lord's Prayer that God would watch over us so that the devil, the world, and our sinful self may not deceive us and draw us into false belief, despair, and other great and shameful sins. We also pray that even though we are so tempted we may still win the final victory.    After hearing...

Through the shepherding guidance of one’s pastor, the corporate guidance of one’s church family, and the individual guidance of a spiritual director, we place ourselves in the good soil where God works in our lives to change us.      After this sermon, we hope you will be open to and value the guidance that comes from the Holy Spirit through your pastor, your church family, or spiritual director. ...

Our sin separates us form God. We must be forgiven to be with holy God. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God has graciously forgiven all our sins. In response to being forgiven, we forgive others.  After hearing this sermon, we hope you will believe that your sins are forgiven and in response forgive others.  Lessons: Isaiah 59:1-2 , Hebrews 8:7-12 , Luke 7:36-50 . Sermon Outline

The Christian discipline of solitude puts us in the place to hear the whisper of God.    After this sermon, we hope you make time to find solitude and hear God's voice.   Lessons:  Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 , Mark 1:35 , Luke 6:12 , Matthew 14:13a, 22-23; 26:36-46 .   Sermon Outline

God has an overwhelming desire to meet us in all of our needs, not so much because we are insufficient, but more so because in our fallen state we are unable to experience life to the full without him interceding on our behalf (whether we ask for it or not!) We hope you will identify where you are dependent on God now, where you are NOT dependent on God, and where you think you “got it covered”, a...

The Christian discipline of simplicity is an inward reality that results in an outward life-style. Simplicity is freedom and brings joy and balance. Duplicity is bondage and brings fear and stress. The evil one is choking us with our abundance.  We you will consider making 10 moves that flesh out the outward expression of living simply as listed in the sermon outline. Lesson:  Matthew 6:19-33 Serm...

The purposes of fasting are to glorify God, deepen our understanding that God is primary in our lives, and to place ourselves in the good soil where God will change us. Although “fasting” from things other than food will be mentioned, this sermon will teach the Biblical understanding of fasting from food.    After this message we hope you will try fasting from food for a 24-hour period of time.   ...

The Kingdom of God comes in three ways: 1) Through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus; 2) When Christ comes again to defeat the evil one and his legions; 3) Every time a person, through the work of the Holy Spirit, hears and believes the gospel, repents and takes a next step along the path of discipleship to live a godly life.  After this message we hope you will pray that God's kingdom wil...