Faith Church Weekly Sermon - Audio Podcast

God is working the Night Shift, just like the shepherds were watching the sheep the night Jesus was born. God is a GOOD Shephard .. watching out for us, never sleeping and always working on our behalf!

Dreams are a powerful thing. For many people, the dream we start within life takes a messy and unpredicted turn. What happens when our dream life becomes a dreaded mess? As we look at the Christmas story, we will see that the same God who gave us the dream can rewrite our dream in a new direction!

‘Twas The Night Before, Ep 2. Anxiety, stress, depression, loneliness, worry, pain, heartbreak, and shame are some of the many culprits of stealing our sleep each night. While possibly an unlikely place, the story of Christmas gives us some help in finding a peaceful, silent night of rest.

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, Part 1. Every poem has a cadence and rhythm to it, making it most enjoyable. God created our lives to follow a rhythm too. When we discover this sacred rhythm we find ourselves benefiting from God’s blessing.

Oasis of Humor. God is a God of Humor and Joy! Gideon lacked the insight of joy the Lord wanted to bring to him. Because of doubt and insecurities, he assumed he was destined for smallness in his life. As he discovered the Lord speaking to him and worked through his doubt and fears, he discovered who he was and called to be. The Oasis of God not only changed his life, but changed a nation.

Oasis of Hope. God is a God of hope! Hope can be defined as the picture you see in your mind of a preferred future, that allows you to wait and persevere with anticipation through preparation. Hope is so much more than wishful thinking or pipe-dreams. True hope comes birthed from God’s promises in Scripture.

Oasis of Humility. Humility is a learned character in our lives. And that’s good news because it means we can learn to have more humility than we have now. We get to control the amount of pride or humility we display.

Respect is often earned (and forfeited) but honor is gift God wants us to give to others. Honor is simply recognizing the value in a person, in a place, or even a position. When we choose to give honor away, God pushes His best our way.

The devil is a master manipulator. Everything He does is based in lies and deception; it’s all smoke and mirrors. When we become aware of his tactics, we can be ready to resist him when he comes roaring at us with accusations.

We are three part beings - spirit, soul, and body. God wants us to be healthy, even in our souls. There are three key components to our soul’s health that we cannot overlook — Christ, Community, and Counseling. We need all three together.

We are three part beings - spirit, soul, and body. God wants us to be healthy, even in our souls. There are three key components to our soul’s health that we cannot overlook — Christ, Community, and Counseling. We need all three together.

We live during a period of time when we are more connected than ever, yet loneliness and isolation are common. We are good at escaping, distracting ourselves from difficult times. Many people feel like their life is distant from God and surrounded by darkness. How do we become so disconnected? More importantly, how can we re-connect with God to find Life within the darkness around us?

Contrast in photography is the visual ratio of different tones in an image. This difference is what creates the textures, highlights, shadows, colors and clarity in a photograph. Similarly, when we choose to put on Christ, He becomes the contrast to the darkness around us, helping others see Him with detail and clarity.

The Remix. This series has been a collection of conversations meant to help us learn what God really said about certain subjects like suffering, greed, happiness, & the ways God works. Our goal is to acknowledge that sometimes what we say, doesn’t quite match what God said. God’s Word is the one we want to believe the most.

God Works in Mysterious Ways. One of the definitions of the word “Mystery” is “a person or thing whose identity or nature is puzzling or unknown.” Many people feel this is a good description for God. We even say that “God works in mysterious ways” especially when tragedy strikes. But what does God say about Himself? What if God never said that?

God Wants You Happy. Cue Pherrell’s hit song, “Happy.” If we are willing to be honest, the idea of “God wants you happy” normally means whatever makes me happy must be right. Whatever makes me unhappy must be wrong. But that is faulty theology. So does God want me to be happy? Let’s look at it!

Money is the Root of All Evil. Money is amoral; it's not good, nor is it bad. It's all about the person who handles the money. When we allow money to have the wrong priority in our lives, managing our heart's posture with money improperly, we then find ourselves in all sorts of trouble. What we grip tightly with our hands, creates a death-grip on our hearts.

Ever heard the phrase, ‘God never gives you more than you can handle’? It’s a nice cliche and fits well in a tweet, But the problem is that God never said that. When we face trials and temptations, we often feel like we are in over our heads and we cannot handle it. What do we do when we are in that place? Let’s look at what God did say, and find some truth to handle these challenges.

Unchurched. Jesus was known as a “friend of sinners.” Jesus didn’t come to make insiders of faith more comfortable, but rather He commissions us to go invite the outsiders to experience His life. We are the message and our we get to help others, far away from God, find God. We want to create a church everyone can belong before they believe.

I cannot tell you how many times I've heard people say, "I love Jesus; I just don't like the church or Christians." There is something special about the local church - it's not perfect, but the church is a partnership. Jesus said that the world would know we belong to Him, not from our social work nor our gospel evangelism around the world, but because of our love for each other. And when it comes...

Difficult People. Ever have to work or go to school with people that were difficult? Anytime we forget how we want to be treated or struggle with comparison, we can easily see people as difficult to be around. Jesus teaches us how to honor others, even the difficult ones.

Generations. James Baldwin once said, “Kids are not always good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them.” God designed the family, in such a way, they would have a built-in guide to a deep relationship with Him. Sometimes that can feel overwhelming for adults, but Jesus is our pattern. Like any picture puzzle, it’s best to start with the corners.

Capital “C” Church. It takes different churches to reach different types of people. Other churches in our community are not our competition, they are our comrades! We serve the same God, who sent His same Son, Jesus to save us all from the same problem, sin. We can accomplish more together than competing against each other.

Nations. The command of Jesus to “go into all the world” was truly commissioning for us all. As disciples of Jesus, we want to be a good neighbor and love people of other​ nations, and ethnic groups. We all have a call to pray and partner together as we live out God’s love.

Forward Momentum. When we truly embrace the love God has for us, we begin to trust Him, and, as our relationship with Him grows, we develop a great love for Him as well. What we once saw as duty has now become devotion. It is our delight to know Him and follow His commands. Worship is a natural response when we fall in love with Jesus. It is also an act of warfare against satan and demonic forces!...