Faith Forward Podcast - CFC Ashburn

In this final episode of We Over Me, Brian and Jon close out the series — and the season — by returning to the resurrection and asking the question that has driven every conversation: how do we pursue this life with God together? One of the great obstacles on this journey isn't "them" — it's the culture closest to you. Comfort, efficiency, and busyness are the most ignored yet most persistent riva...

You might have all the right gifts, all the right theology, and all the right convictions — and still be in the way of the Way. Paul's famous love chapter isn't a wedding reading; it's a warning and an invitation tucked inside the middle of a letter about church unity. In this episode of We Over Me, Brian and Jon dig into 1 Corinthians 13 and the both/and of love and truth — because truth without...

Most of us have been told, explicitly or not, that some people are called and some aren't. That some gifts matter more than others. That the spiritual life is for a certain kind of person. 1 Corinthians 12 dismantles all of that. In this next edition of We Over Me, Lee and Jon explore how God gives gifts not as rewards or rankings, but as a way of weaving us together into something none of us coul...

We all have defaults — patterns, preferences, and routines we return to without much thought. But dedication to a shared mission requires something more: the willingness to ask not what makes me comfortable, but what does this person actually need? In this episode of We Over Me, Brian and Jon explore what it looks like to stay genuinely Spirit-directed — not as an occasional resource, but as the s...

What you can do isn't always what you should do. As the We Over Me series continues, Brian and Jon explore one of the most practically challenging aspects of life together: navigating personal preferences, convictions, and freedom with objective Biblical truth in a way that genuinely serves others. Drawing from 1 Corinthians 8, we introduce a helpful framework — guardrails and compass — for distin...

Some falsehoods are harder to spot — especially when everyone around us believes them. In this episode of We Over Me, Brian and Jon turn to 1 Corinthians 3 and challenge one of the most common assumptions in the church: that spiritual maturity is simply a matter of time. It isn't. Spiritual growth isn't automatic — it's the result of actively and consciously submitting more of our heart, mind, and...

The resurrection rewrites our story — but how do we live that story together? In this opening episode of We Over Me, Brian and Jon turn to 1 Corinthians 1 and explore what it means to be a church genuinely united — not by ignoring our differences, but by learning to distinguish personal preference from truth. Drawing from Paul's language of shared mind and conviction, this conversation challenges...

As we continue the Resurrection Rewrites Our Story series, Brian and Jon explore how the resurrection reshapes not just our identity and hope, but our source of power. The invitation of the empty tomb isn’t to try harder—it’s to surrender. Many of us begin with dependence on God but slowly drift back into relying on our own strength, attempting to manage life on our own terms. But the resurrection...

As we continue the Resurrection Rewrites Our Story series, Lee and Jon explore how the resurrection reshapes one of our deepest needs: hope. Not all hope is the same—and when we place ultimate hope in temporary things, disappointment can easily lead to despair. So let’s examine the kinds of hope we carry and how misplaced hope can make the heart sick. The resurrection offers something different: a...

As we begin a new series leading toward Easter, let's explore a powerful idea: the resurrection doesn’t just inform our story—it rewrites it. From the very beginning in Genesis 3, humanity has been trying to manage shame by hiding, comparing, and sewing our own “fig leaves.” But the invitation of Jesus is not self-repair—it’s transformation. In this conversation, Brian and Jon look at how shame di...

As the Illuminated series concludes, Brian and Jon turn to John’s final emphasis: confidence. Not the kind that comes from having everything figured out, but the kind that grows from knowing who we really are and what He's really like. John reminds believers that faith in Jesus anchors our identity as children of God—and that identity reshapes how we pray, how we discern truth from deception, and...

As the Illuminated series draws to a close, Mike and Jon explore how the lens we see through shapes the way we love. It turns out the issue isn’t usually effort—it’s sight. When we love from our own strength, love easily becomes transactional, conditional, or self-protective. But when we receive God’s love first, it reshapes how we love others. Many of us carry hidden lenses: believing life with J...

As the Illuminated series continues, we turn to one of the clearest markers of walking in the light: love. Specifically, how our love—or lack of it—reveals whether we’ve truly been illuminated by the truth and passed from death to life. Brian and Jon examine the power of judgments and inner agreements—how repeated judgments quietly shape our hearts and can become strongholds that limit our ability...

This week, John’s words invite us to consider what it truly means to live in the light: building our lives in Christ by not just believing in Him, but abiding—remaining and dwelling—in Him. Salvation is not something we earn; it is something that inevitably reshapes how we live from the inside out. So join Lee and Jon as we explore the reality that many of our struggles with sin are not merely beh...

As we continue the Illuminated series, we address a difficult but necessary theme: deception. John warns that deception rarely looks like obvious falsehood; more often, it closely resembles the truth, borrowing Jesus’ language and values while quietly reshaping the story. Join Brian and Jon as we explore how our desire for comfort, control, safety, or certainty can make us vulnerable to subtle dis...

In this episode, Brian and Jon reflect on 1 John 2:12–17 and invites us to consider a challenging question: What are we building? John writes to believers who already know God, yet still feel the pull of the short-term — comfort, captivation, and validation that promise satisfaction apart from Him. Using the image of this world as a temporary rental, the conversation contrasts living like renters...

How can we know if we’re truly “walking in the light” as 1 John describes? In the third week of the Illuminated series, Lee and Jon invite us to examine how we know God, how we obey God, and—most importantly—how we learn to love like God while being loved by Him. John’s invitation to love like God calls us to confront the places where hatred has quietly taken root: resentment born from past wounds...

In this episode of Faith Forward, Brian & Jon explore John’s invitation to walk honestly in the light of Jesus rather than hiding behind closed doors. Drawing from 1 John 1:5–2:2, the conversation reframes sin not simply as bad behavior, but as separation — moments where we quietly close parts of our lives off from God’s presence and care. Using the image of a house with locked rooms, we’re invite...

Join Brian and Jon as we explore the opening focus of 1 John — to illuminate the truth of who Jesus really is and to ground believers in reality, not opinion, outcomes, or labels. And since it’s Faith Forward, we’ll remind ourselves of the core rhythms that help us stay anchored in that truth: daily devotion, prayer, sacrificial generosity and service, freedom from strongholds, sharing our story,...

If God is speaking, how do we know what His voice sounds like? In this final conversation of the Encounter series, Brooke and Jon explore the heart behind the voice — the Father who longs for connection, gives direction through relationship, and brings correction that restores rather than shames. Scripture paints a consistent picture of a Father who adopts with delight, forgives with compassion, a...

If God really communicates with us, how do we recognize His voice? In this conversation, Brian and Jon walk through why hearing God matters — for direction, correction, and most importantly, connection. Scripture paints a picture of a God who speaks, guides, reveals, and leads His people into truth. We explore the many ways God communicates — visually, auditorily, kinesthetically — and how each of...

If we live in a world at war, why don’t we feel it? In this episode, Brian and Jon uncover where the real conflict is happening — in the realm of words, thoughts, and truth. Scripture describes a spiritual battle not fought with physical weapons, but with ideas, voices, and agreements. God’s words create life; the enemy’s words distort reality. We see this tension from Eden to the life of Peter to...

Before we can understand who Jesus is, we need to understand the story He stepped into. In this episode, we explore the larger backdrop of Scripture — a world created in love, invaded by an enemy, and desperately in need of rescue. Genesis 3 reveals what humanity lost: connection with God, life in the Spirit, and the authority we were meant to exercise. But it also reveals why Jesus had to come —...

In this final conversation of the Thankfulness series, Brian and Jon explore how gratitude becomes more than a moment or a holiday — it becomes a steady rhythm of life with God. Thankfulness begins by naming what is good and who is good, grounding gratitude in God’s character rather than our circumstances. It grows as we taste and see for ourselves, noticing how gratitude heightens our awareness o...