Generations Community Church

Faith: trusting in what you can't see because of what you can see.

Have you ever noticed that you NEVER see a Mormon missionary come to your front door ALONE? They’ve always got a partner. They’re always “on mission” with someone else or with a team. That's not by accident. Isolated and alone, we tend to be overly critical (of ourselves and others), overly discouraged (by the results of our efforts) and overly prone to giving up or walking away. Jesus KNOWS we ha...

Have you ever noticed that you NEVER see a Mormon missionary come to your front door ALONE? They’ve always got a partner. They’re always “on mission” with someone else or with a team. That's not by accident. Isolated and alone, we tend to be overly critical (of ourselves and others), overly discouraged (by the results of our efforts) and overly prone to giving up or walking away. Jesus KNOWS we ha...

In 2009, Tim Keller told his congregation in New York City, “We want to feel beautiful. We want to feel loved. We want to feel significant. And that’s why we’re working so hard.” And those people “had lived their whole lives with parents, music teachers, coaches, professors, and bosses telling them to do better, be better, try harder.” In America (like ancient Rome), we applaud and celebrate the a...

In 2009, Tim Keller told his congregation in New York City, “We want to feel beautiful. We want to feel loved. We want to feel significant. And that’s why we’re working so hard.” And those people “had lived their whole lives with parents, music teachers, coaches, professors, and bosses telling them to do better, be better, try harder.” In America (like ancient Rome), we applaud and celebrate the a...

On any given day, we can feel happy, sad, angry, betrayed, frustrated, delighted, excited, scared, or bored. More often than not, these feelings are not simply random occurrences. They are frequently connected to our thoughts, to what we are thinking on a regular basis. A Jesus-based, Jesus-infused identity will require us to CONFESS (thoughts/beliefs which are untrue) and BELIEVE (that Jesus is e...

On any given day, we can feel happy, sad, angry, betrayed, frustrated, delighted, excited, scared, or bored. More often than not, these feelings are not simply random occurrences. They are frequently connected to our thoughts, to what we are thinking on a regular basis. A Jesus-based, Jesus-infused identity will require us to CONFESS (thoughts/beliefs which are untrue) and BELIEVE (that Jesus is e...

We've all known people like Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent who have been marked with a curse or marked with a blessing. And in our community, their stories have been shared in two places: (1) In our county jail – one STORY after ANOTHER - of men addicted to drugs, because they are trying to mask the pain of their upbringing and lack, and (2) At Asbury’s outpouring – one STORY after ANOTHER – of men an...

We've all known people like Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent who have been marked with a curse or marked with a blessing. And in our community, their stories have been shared in two places: (1) In our county jail – one STORY after ANOTHER - of men addicted to drugs, because they are trying to mask the pain of their upbringing and lack, and (2) At Asbury’s outpouring – one STORY after ANOTHER – of men an...

A part of our identity is forged in our childhood - from what we receive (or don't receive) from our parents. But it shouldn't surprise us when we receive a curse from our parents. Why? Humanity's first parents, Adam and Eve, decided that they couldn’t trust God, they had to figure things out for themselves, they had to determine what’s right and wrong, and they wanted to be in charge – so they to...

A part of our identity is forged in our childhood - from what we receive (or don't receive) from our parents. But it shouldn't surprise us when we receive a curse from our parents. Why? Humanity's first parents, Adam and Eve, decided that they couldn’t trust God, they had to figure things out for themselves, they had to determine what’s right and wrong, and they wanted to be in charge – so they to...

Unlike traditional cultures, we tell people in America to find certain dreams, feelings, or intuitions they have (on the inside) and assert them, express them, follow them, and MAKE them HAPPEN! Don’t let anyone (else) tell you what to do (or how to live your life)! Especially your parents. But this way of identity formation nearly always leads to comparison, anxiety, and condemnation. In this mes...

Unlike traditional cultures, we tell people in America to find certain dreams, feelings, or intuitions they have (on the inside) and assert them, express them, follow them, and MAKE them HAPPEN! Don’t let anyone (else) tell you what to do (or how to live your life)! Especially your parents. But this way of identity formation nearly always leads to comparison, anxiety, and condemnation. In this mes...

Adults and students alike are plagued with social media feeds of everyone else's best moments and highlights, perfectly cut and curtailed to LOOK amazing. As you scroll through, you wonder why YOU have to struggle so much when it seems like everyone else is flying. But this way of living is fragile and exhausting...and it's NOT the Gospel way. In this message, Max Vanderpool, explores what it mean...

Adults and students alike are plagued with social media feeds of everyone else's best moments and highlights, perfectly cut and curtailed to LOOK amazing. As you scroll through, you wonder why YOU have to struggle so much when it seems like everyone else is flying. But this way of living is fragile and exhausting...and it's NOT the Gospel way. In this message, Max Vanderpool, explores what it mean...

For the past several decades, pastors, church leaders, and Christian conferences have told folks to get up early in the morning. Read your Bible (alone). Pray (alone). Journal and reflect on your life, your life issues, and where God might be at work in your life and the world around you (alone). So when Americans READ or HEAR Ephesians 6 and the Apostle Paul's admonition to put on the armor of Go...

For the past several decades, pastors, church leaders, and Christian conferences have told folks to get up early in the morning. Read your Bible (alone). Pray (alone). Journal and reflect on your life, your life issues, and where God might be at work in your life and the world around you (alone). So when Americans READ or HEAR Ephesians 6 and the Apostle Paul's admonition to put on the armor of Go...

American Protestants divide over all kinds of issues: what type of music to use, what type of programming to employ, whether women can be pastors, and whether speaking in tongues is a thing or a thing that's over. The trouble is we value being right MORE than we value being together. And if Jesus and the Apostle Paul are to be believed, God cares more about unity than about being right.

American Protestants divide over all kinds of issues: what type of music to use, what type of programming to employ, whether women can be pastors, and whether speaking in tongues is a thing or a thing that's over. The trouble is we value being right MORE than we value being together. And if Jesus and the Apostle Paul are to be believed, God cares more about unity than about being right.

On the one hand, the Church (with a capital "C") has sinned and erred and hurt and (at many different times) born a bad witness for Jesus. On the OTHER hand, how it is even possible to talk about experiencing God's LOVE apart from His Body? In this message, Max Vanderpool makes a case for why the most profound experiences of God's love are found in relationship and communion with other believers w...

On the one hand, the Church (with a capital "C") has sinned and erred and hurt and (at many different times) born a bad witness for Jesus. On the OTHER hand, how it is even possible to talk about experiencing God's LOVE apart from His Body? In this message, Max Vanderpool makes a case for why the most profound experiences of God's love are found in relationship and communion with other believers w...

We introduced the virtue of FORGIVENESS (which we define as "deciding that someone who has wronged you doesn't have to pay"), and we looked at an encounter with Jesus, a Pharisee named Simon, and a woman who had done many things requiring forgiveness. But she wasn't the ONLY person in the room who needed to be forgiven.

We introduced the virtue of FORGIVENESS (which we define as "deciding that someone who has wronged you doesn't have to pay"), and we looked at an encounter with Jesus, a Pharisee named Simon, and a woman who had done many things requiring forgiveness. But she wasn't the ONLY person in the room who needed to be forgiven.

Marwan Bishara, writing for Al-Jazeera in 2002, explained that it's obvious why Palestinians HATE Israelis. But he couldn't understand why Israelis hated Palestinians so much. As it turns out, one ethnic group HATING another is normal. It's THE normative experience for human history. Which is why Paul's statement in Ephesians 2 is so striking. The Apostle Paul claims that Jesus KILLED ethnic hosti...

Marwan Bishara, writing for Al-Jazeera in 2002, explained that it's obvious why Palestinians HATE Israelis. But he couldn't understand why Israelis hated Palestinians so much. As it turns out, one ethnic group HATING another is normal. It's THE normative experience for human history. Which is why Paul's statement in Ephesians 2 is so striking. The Apostle Paul claims that Jesus KILLED ethnic hosti...