FBC Independence Podcast

My first car was an old pickup that I intended to make into a hot-rod; it was awesome! I was going to build a big motor for it and put on loud pipes, lower the front-end, and then put on really wide tires – I was so excited! One day as I was tinkering on this truck with my dad (an old hot-rodder and mechanic himself), I was going on about all the cool stuff I was going to do. I went on non-stop fo...

I remember an argument between an older brother and my Father, which went on for some time. Finally I heard my brother wail, “Daddy, what do you want from me? I just don’t know what you want!” The argument calmed after that, and I went on about my business. That was a fair question though, wasn’t it?   We may ask that of our parents or spouse, our children, and maybe even of God. “What do you want...

God is a good and gracious God; He is generous and loving, and works on our behalf in almost every situation!  We are privileged to know and worship Him, and have a sense of his presence in our lives.  !  The Apostle Paul taught those in the Roman church that because of God’s great worth and value, the best response is to worship Him, and serve Him in every way we can.  Our faith will lead us to f...

God calls us to follow Him “in spirit and in truth;” He says nothing about correct form! When Jesus told the story about the Pharisee and the Tax collector in prayer, He made it clear that the one that most thought was righteous had failed miserably before God; it was the one they thought was a ‘sinner’ that got it right! We must always be careful to not allow the form of our faith – worship pract...

One of our greatest natural enemies is from within – it is our fear!  Fear of the new, fear of the unknown, fears of nature and the actions of others – we have all experienced them.  Fear isn’t necessarily bad, in and of itself; but the way we respond to our fears can have a tremendous impact upon our lives!  After the Exodus experience, God’s people missed out on a tremendous blessing from God be...

Life can be hard, and there are times that we cannot seem to gain any kind of peace in a situation. We are all familiar with worry and anxiety, and know that sometimes we just can’t escape these feelings.  This week we talk about the ‘enemy’ of worry and anxiety, and understand that we are sometimes in a fight for our lives, as we deal with what life has brought our way.  God knows us, and has spo...

We all have ‘enemies’ in our lives!  These enemies may not be individuals, but rather experiences or situations that threaten us, discourage us, and maybe even make us feel like giving up.  We can fight these enemies!  God helped the prophet Elijah fight his enemies when he was at his lowest point – he was defeated, discouraged, and had really given up on his ministry.  God came and encouraged him...

Jesus’ death was entirely predictable – He had made all the wrong people angry, and they needed to shut him down – permanently!  Through the crucifixion those in power hoped to discredit him as a criminal, and eliminate his influence in their culture.  It didn’t work, of course.  In fact, their murderous act, intended to shut him up, was used by God to bring about an action that proved that Jesus...

God calls us to make time for Jesus, because He made time for us!  When we read Paul’s letter to Timothy, we learn that God wants us to pray for others, so that God can work in their lives, and that we might learn to love even those with whom we disagree.  Too, God has acted in Jesus because He loves everyone!  When we love others as God loves us, our lives can be filled with peace, and we will be...

Our lives are often lived response to the influences around us – either good or bad; God calls us to something better!  God used the Apostle Paul to teach us that He desires that we live our lives as “living and holy sacrifices” to him.  This is a life that is not lived in response to forces outside our lives, such as culture and friends; rather, it is a life lived in response to the movement of G...

Context: Josiah is King Israel is in idolatrous rebellion Less than 1 generation away from Babylonian captivity   What God and Jeremiah are up to: Jeremiah is one of the prophets tasked by God to warn Israel. He’s told to go to the potter’s shop:   God gives Jeremiah an object lesson Jer. 18:3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. 4 But the vessel...

When we make time for God in our life, we will find that He is constantly with us, and making an effort to help us in some way. God helps us through his written Word as He teaches us eternal truths, and calls us to live according to that Word. When we do that our lives are better, stronger, and resistant to the lies of our pagan world. Too, God helps us by giving us His Spirit, who dwells within u...

Whenever we consider something in life that is important, we understand that we need to make time for it in life.  Jesus and the Christian faith is  like that – it is as important as anything in life, and we need to make time for the development and practice of that faith in our life!  There will always be those that make claim to our lives, but we must be aware that only a few things in this life...

God wants us to be discerning when it comes to true spirituality! We have an almost unlimited capacity to deceive ourselves: we ignore facts, compare ourselves to those who are ‘worse’ than we are, and sometimes even lie to ourselves, all in order to feel good about ourselves. The church at Laodicea was doing just that; by measuring their spirituality against other churches and groups, rather than...

Even though Jesus calls us in His Church to all we can to reach the world around us, we have to accept the fact that many will reject Jesus, no matter what we do!  We must remember to evaluate our church’s ministries by the standards Jesus himself used, and make sure our loyalties remain with him that the approval of those in this world.  God rewards those who are faithful, and will care for them...

It’s all about Jesus!  We’ve heard people say that, and it is particularly true for the way the Church is to function.  Everything we do is to either explain the work of Jesus in our salvation, or to demonstrate how life can be different, and better, when it revolves around him.  The early church in the city of Sardis forgot this; they did many things well, but they had moved away from a focus on...

Those who have the ability to lead others can have a tremendous impact on a church – for good, or for evil!  It is important that church members monitor the strong in their church, to ensure that their influences are good, moral, and Bible Based.  Even as they continually test the spirits in their congregation, though, a healthy church will never let an individual or group lead them from engaging...

Jesus calls on His church to teach spiritual and moral truth, and correct those that distort that truth.  We must learn to be alert to the teachings of those in our church, and be willing to ask them to explain themselves, and even challenge them if they say something that does not sound ‘according to the Bible.’ There have always been false teachers and teachings in the church; when these false t...

From the very beginning of the Church, God’s people were often under attack!  At times they were oppressed and persecuted by those around them simply because they were different than others; sometimes it was because their faith challenged the other faiths in the area.  Too, the various political powers often chose to oppress the Christians for a variety of reasons.  Regardless, it was hard to foll...

A church’s leadership can have a huge impact upon its members’ lives. We want, and need, church leaders that are emotionally and spiritually mature.   Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep, but are really wolves that will tear you apart.” -Jesus (Matthew 7:15)   God’s people must not allow their defense of the faith destroy their loving spirit.   A church that treats people...

God loves us – and He wants to help!   Can you remember a couple of individuals that made an impact in your life, such as a family member or teacher/mentor?  We all have people in our lives that have shaped and taught us – it is one of the ways God “gifts” us - with good teachings and influences.  He does this because He loves us, and wants to instill within us an ethic for life.  An “ethic” is si...

What do you want for Christmas? That used to be an easy one for me; a car or motorcycle part, a gun or accessory for a gun, maybe even a tool; easy-peasy, right? I worried and stressed about the list this year, and I couldn’t come up with much – finally, I listed a couple of books about airplanes and engines, and then, “bacon.” Hickory smoked bacon, thick sliced. I gave her the list and she said,...

Over course of last several months, I’ve experienced great frustration with the varying “scientific” evidence regarding the Covid virus, treatments, and the effectiveness of mask wearing. I had one discussion with a good friend, trained in the science, explain it to me: “Science is never really finished; what we may know one day is only what we know that day; as we learn and study, our understandi...

Each year the Sunday after Thanksgiving our congregation members share the stories and history of common decorations used around Christmas time. We hope you enjoy this special service.   The best way you can support our Ministry is by sharing these videos with your friends and family.   We also need your financial contributions to make our Ministries a possibility. You can contribute online at htt...

It is a challenge to get along with others; in fact, it can even be painful for some, so much so that they avoid any type of lasting relationships!  In a recent conversation with a Childcare father, I told him that my favorite part of every day at church was meeting parents and their kids, and talking to them and getting to know them.  He said, off-handed, “yes, and you don’t have to talk to them...