Faith Sermons and Studies

Chesley Sullenberger III was born in Denison, Texas in 1951. As a child, Sullenberger built model planes and aircraft carriers and eventually became interested in flying after seeing military jets at an air force base near where he lived . . . But you wouldn’t know Sullenberger from those achievements. Upon discharge Sullenberger flew for US Airways from 1980-2010. You might recognize him from his...

Listen to our Sunday School series on revitalization as we talk about evaluating perspectives and people in helping churches move forward.

Join us for our Sunday school discussion on priorities and pace in church revitalization.

I like quotes. I like to read quotes—sometimes I read something and the author just has a way with words and it just kind of sticks out to me. Quotes about ministry, quotes about the church—I just like them. And I have collected them in my memory and every once in a while I come back to them. Here are some quotes I enjoy . . . ‌‌ Here’s one that I read in Bible college, in a missions class, from a...

Join us for week 5 of our series on church revitalization as we discuss eight characteristics of dying churches.

I want you to think with me this morning, think of some things that are both difficult, both taxing, but also rewarding. Things that are hard, but if you persevere and push through, you'll end up reaping the benefit of your labor. Can you think of anything like that, both taxing and rewarding? ‌‌ I thought of some things that came to my mind. For the kids here, school, school, school's difficult,...

Today missionary Bryan Surrett talks about trials and temptations.

Join us for week 4 of our Sunday school series on church revitalization. This week we talk about knowing your community and characteristics of dying churches.

Are you a risk taker? Some people are inherent risk takers. They’re the type of person who is always pushing the limit, trying to see how far they can go or what they can do. If I’d have to admit it, I’d say I am not really a risk taker. Nobody who has ever known me well has called me a daredevil. I like to play it safe. Part of this I guess is being a dad, but there’s more to it. I’m just not the...

A recording of our Sunday school series on church revitalization. In this session we talk about the typology of churches that need revitalized.

Have you ever made an investment? People make all sorts of investments today. Some people make investments in property—you have rentals that you lease out to people, or condominiums. Recently, cryptocurrency like Bitcoin became the buzz, and some people made out quite well investing in things like bitcoin. or certain types of cryptocurrency. Some people invest in the stock market, and they invest...

A recording of our Sunday school series on church revitalization. In this session we talk about internal and external factors that affect the need for revitalization.

There is a sense of satisfaction that comes from finishing a project. Have you ever experienced that? Whether it be a big project or a small one, there is satisfaction in completing it. ‌‌ One of the biggest projects we had recently was our basement. Many of you know the saga—we went for the final inspection on our home in July of 2023 and found water seeping into the utility room in the basement....

A recording of our Sunday school series on church revitalization. In this session we give an intro to the topic of revitalization and define key terms.

Are you a forgetful person? I must admit, at times I can be very forgetful. At times I have the experience of putting something where I know I will remember it, and then forgetting where I put it. And I run around the house frantically—where is this item, I know I put it somewhere, I just can’t remember where. And I start blaming people—who moved this item? It was right here, I know it was, now it...

Have you ever lacked desire to be involved in something? Maybe you had a project that you were supposed to be involved in, but you lacked the passion to finish? Maybe you started well on something only to lack the desire and ended up not finishing the project? ‌ I had this scenario growing up. I had this project for science class, it was as science fair project, and I decided for this project I wa...

Anyone here ever went sailing? Few of you. I don't know why, but I've always been kind of infatuated with sailboats. To me, there's nothing more tranquil than watching a sailboat go across the horizon as the sun sets, and imagine the warm wind blowing, pushing the sailboat across the ocean. Well, I've had one opportunity to be on a sailboat, I was in college, and one man at the chu...

A sermon by church member Tim Neubert

A message by church member Gene Peterson

Love is an interesting thing. I wonder how would you describe love? In today’s world love means different things to different people. Some describe it as a feeling; others a choice. Love can be an admiration you hold for your life’s hero, an affection you feel towards an animal, or a passion that rages inside. You can love you brother, you can love your dog, you can love spaghetti, and you can lov...

Have you ever received a speeding ticket? I can tell by some of your reactions that you have. If you drive the same route to work every day you begin to know where the police officers like to sit—right? For me when I was driving into the cities for work, I knew that under specific bridges I needed to be careful. It’s funny to watch people’s reactions when they come around a curve in the highway an...

Have you ever felt the weight of crushing sorrow? The fear, anxiety, or worry that comes over you when something happens that is just out of your control? The grief and pain that happens when life seems to be unraveling and you don’t know how to stop it? These feelings are things that most of us have experienced in life. The crushing weight of life that seems to be caving it. Have you felt that? C...

For hundreds of years, men have searched for endless life and youthful vitality. According to tradition, the quest for youthful vigor led conquistador Ponce de Leon to Florida in search of the ever-elusive Fountain of Youth. Men have spent much of their lives searching for the mythical spring which supposedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks or bathes therein. But the search for the Fountai...

Have you ever seen or heard something that is too good to be true? Perhaps you got an add, email, phone call, saying you won something or you were a grand prize winner, only give out your banking info, or send a small payment, and you will get what you supposedly one. There is something in those types of things that intrigues us. Even though many times we might even see through it, there is usuall...

The average person today wastes a lot of time. I read some statistics this week for 2024, talking about the average time a person spends on their phone or in front of a screen. I learned that:‌‌ The average person spends 7 hours and 11 minutes in front of a screen every day‌ Screen time accounts for 38-43 percent of waking hours; in some countries as high as 60%‌ A typical internet user spends 4 h...