Flagstone Church of Christ

There are a variety of things that people value and are most passionate about, from sports teams to vacation spots to favorite foods and more. It's easy to tell how much a person has a "heart" for something based on the time, energy, or effort they spend devoted to it. But how many of us have a heart for other people - a passion for helping those in need or sharing our faith with those who have no...

Psychologists and sociologists will say that you can tell a person has a heart for something if they have an intense interest or curiosity in it, if they "light up" or get excited when talking about it, if they actively seek opportunities to engage in a certain activity or to spend time with a certain person even if obstacles get in the way. The question is...do any of those characteristics descri...

The bridge between Christmas and the new year is a tricky one. How can I reflect on the infant Christ while also preparing my mind, body, and spirit for the coming new year? Diet and Exercise are common goals for the new year, but I would wager that the biggest goal you can set for 2025 is to Treasure Jesus Christ more. Investing in a steady diet of God's word and exercising our faith are two cruc...

Every nativity scene has some common characters included - obviously the Baby Jesus, his mother Mary, and his father Joseph. You might also see an angel and maybe some farm animals nearby as well. But there are also some characters that probably shouldn't be there...or at least we wouldn't expect them to be. And yet they are vital to the story of the birth of Jesus and vital to our full understand...

The story of Jesus' birth is full of surprises - angels appearing, life plans changing, the Creator of the Universe becoming a vulnerable little Baby. Just like Joseph, Mary had plans for her life, and those plans got completely disrupted one day when she was visited by an angel. What did she do when God revealed an unexpected change to her plans? And what can I learn from Mary's experience so tha...

We make lots of plans on a fairly regular basis - plans that range from simple decisions like where we're going to eat lunch to more complicated choices like relationships or career paths or finances. But our plans don't always work out the way we see them in our minds, do they? In the story of the birth of Jesus, we see a man who was a planner, a man who had his whole life figured out...until he...

Several moments in the Christmas story were unexpected. One of the biggest surprises is how Jesus chose to enter our world in the first place. It wasn't with a parade or nationwide proclamation. It wasn't as a conquering warrior or a popular politician. The Son of God, the Messiah, chose to enter our world as a defenseless Baby. That was a surprise! That was unexpected! But why does that matter? W...

There are many who believe that the United States is more divided politically than at any other time in our history. Competing political viewpoints on a variety of topics have fractured friendships and families and even churches. In the middle of such a volatile political climate, can the church really be a source of peace in our communities? As our country heads to the polls this Tuesday, how can...

As God invites me to experience His peace in my life, He also calls me to become a "peacemaker" in this world. But I can't produce the kind of peace in someone else's life that He produces in mine. So how do I help bring peace into my community and my relationships in spite of my own limitations? In a world full of hostility and conflict and anxiety, how do I plant seeds of peace?

God calls us as Christians to be "peacemakers," to be people who generate and produce peace. As we try to understand what it means to be a peacemaker, we need to first look at how Jesus not only provided peace to His followers, but how He provides it to us as well. And I can't share something I don't have, so before I become a peacemaker, I need to honestly ask myself, "Am I experiencing God's pea...

Sailors know the value of anchor points when storms hit. They know that it's important to have something solid to anchor to when the winds and the waves come crashing against their boats. And it's important to try to anchor one's vessel ahead of time if possible, before the storm arrives. Anchor points are important for Christians too - solid truths that we can grab hold of and rely on when we exp...

We all face temptations on a regular basis. Some of these enticements are fairly easy for us to turn away from. Others can often take hold of our hearts and dictate our actions. Eventually, giving in to temptations can cause a variety of challenges and "storms" in our lives. But what if I could prepare for the struggle before I faced it? Would that help me say "no" to that temptation? How do I get...

No human relationship is completely perfect and without problems. Whether it's a marriage, a friendship, or a dating relationship, there will inevitably be issues to deal with - conflict, miscommunication, misunderstanding, etc. What might even start as a small issue can blow up quickly into an all out storm. But what if I could prepare for these negative encounters ahead of time? How can I go abo...

Many people keep a stockpile of supplies for whenever severe storms come - batteries, flashlights, water, rain gear, etc. It makes sense to try to keep a healthy supply of necessities on hand before the storm hits. What about our personal storms though? Do we keep a healthy supply of "necessities" to help us endure the struggles, temptations, and problems that we might wrestle with? What...

Throughout world history all kinds of buildings and bridges have crumbled or collapsed for a variety of reasons. One of the most common causes is a faulty foundation. Jesus himself emphasizes the fact that we need a solid foundation in order to weather the storms that come up in our lives. What does a storm proof foundation look like? And how can I make sure I've got a solid foundation to help...

As people of God, we are designed and called to love and serve and help other people. It's one of the things that God expects His people to do. And the amazing thing is that serving others doesn't just meet the needs of people who need help. Serving others gives us the opportunity to foster connections and build stronger relationships with each other. How does that work? How can volunteeri...

We have a variety of different communities that we are a part of - work communities, school communities, gym communities, neighborhood communities, online communities, etc. One of the key places we should crave community is in the church. As we launch into our Connection Group Kickoff at Flagstone, we want to remember that signing up for a group is about more than just membership. It's about b...

Our mission at Flagstone is to reach out, connect, and serve, and we feel that God is consistently giving us abilities and opportunities to accomplish this mission. But when it comes to getting "connected" with others, some of us may struggle to know exactly how to go about doing that. What does it mean to be connected? And how do I go about connecting with someone else in order to accom...

It's a special Sunday for the Flagstone family! We're meeting at Green Valley Bible Camp for worship and fun. It's the time of year when kids go back to school and many of us experience new transitions in our routines. While life changes can often be exciting, they can also be challenging. Starting school, starting a new job, changing something about ourselves - these things can produc...

We believe that it's important to have actions and attitudes that reflect our faith in Jesus, especially when it comes to how we interact with others. We also believe that God puts open doors in front of us - opportunities to connect with someone or show kindness to someone. But do we believe that each of us who is a follower of Jesus has a responsibility to actually share our story, to actual...

It's important to look for the open doors of opportunity God puts in front of us and to take advantage of those moments God gives us to share our story with others or do something kind for others. But we also need to pay attention to aspects of our lives that might keep us from walking through those open doors. Are my habits or words or even certain attitudes keeping me from experiencing an op...

God consistently gives us opportunities to share our story, share our faith, invite someone to church, or do something kind for someone in His name. So if God is willing to open doors of opportunity for us, why do we often not see them? Why do we not take advantage of the chance to do good? We need to be honest about some of the reasons we miss the doors God opens, and we need to discover at least...

One of the things we see repeated multiple times in the book of Acts is Christians sharing their faith with others, often in the face of threats and even imprisonment. The early Christians seemed to be so compelled by their new found faith that they couldn't help but tell others about it. Could the same thing be said about Christians today? What are some factors that keep me from sharing with...

For almost as long as the church has been in existence, there have been countless threats against it. When the church first began, it experienced a lot of jealousy and unfair treatment from those who didn't believe in Jesus. To be quite honest, not much has changed over the last 2000 years. Christians still come under attack because of their faith, although the method of attack may not be exac...

There are a variety of reasons that churches have found themselves in conflict from the seemingly ridiculous to the downright destructive. Satan has always been skilled at getting church families to focus on and fight each other over differences of opinion so that the growth of God's church can be stunted. The early church in Acts was no different. In the middle of growth and life-change, the...