Generations Community Church

Would it surprise you to learn that empathy is on the DECLINE in the United States? People have less patience to wait until someone else is done speaking to talk. People are often surprised that a friend has been hurt by their words or actions (or inactions). So what can we do? How can we turn the tide? In this message, Max Vanderpool argues why empaths are wanted and NEEDED...everywhere.

Conflict is everywhere. With your roommate. With your friends and family. With your co-workers. With your boss. With your spouse. And SOME of the ways we're fighting with each other in the digital age are actually making things WORSE. In this message, Max Vanderpool offers practical advice for handling conflict in your life, so that you can live to fight another day.

Smartphones. They are ubiquitous. And there is little doubt they have CHANGED us. Changed how we relate to one another and communicate with one another. Some of those changes have been good, while others seem to be making us less human. In this message, Max Vanderpool tackles the ONE THING you can do to dial up the people in your life who matter.

Where do babies come from? That's a question parents of preschoolers get asked when they are expecting another child. And there are MANY different ways to answer that question. Where did we come from? That's another question that many adults ask, at some point in their life. How did life on Earth get here? How do we know? Where did we come from? The ANSWER to question matters now more than ever......

Our community is filled with people who have given up on God and/or given up on church. And you don't have to look hard to find them. Just live somewhere. Go to school somewhere. Work somewhere. In this message, Max Vanderpool articulates the third mark of a disciple...someone who's on mission with Jesus and who cares about the people Jesus cared about.

Is it reasonable to expect a Christian to be perfect, to love perfectly, all the time and in all circumstances? Probably not. The church if filled with imperfect people following Jesus imperfectly. So is it reasonable to expect Christians to grow & change (for the better) over time? ABSOLUTELY! In this message, Max Vanderpool articulates the second "mark" of a disciple.

Getting saved. Asking Jesus into your heart. Accepting Jesus. These are all phrases we use to describe a life of faith. But are these phrases HELPFUL? Do they get at the core of what it means to be a disciple? In this message, Max Vanderpool articulates the first "mark" of a disciple.

Teaching time from our July 2nd InterGen on uniqueness. Pastor Max shares the story of David & Goliath and teaches about cubits and knowing yourself.

We live in a world marked by chaos, ugliness and scarcity - and that makes us afraid. So we try to mitigate our fears by exerting control. But faith moves in the opposite direction. Faith is what God rewards. Faith is how we come to see God, life and the world around us. So what does that look like? What is a life WITH faith?

Go back 100 years, and you'll discover a rush of activity and activism regarding the faith by Evangelical Christians. We're busy, busy, busy doing things FOR God, and often the language we use to describe our personal relationship with God is language of doing. So what exactly did Jesus make possible if it wasn't a rich and satisfying life WITH God?

If you attended a Christian college, you may have picked up a God-filter that told you what you DO for God is the most important thing about you. It doesn't help that our culture reinforced the idea that your worth, your value as a person is tied to what you accomplish. In this message, Max Vanderpool unpacks the story of the Prodigal Son (and the lessons we can learn from the older brother).

It's no secret that America is a nation of consumers. We consume; that's what we do. We maximize EVERYTHING for our benefit. And, for better or worse, we take that same approach to our faith. We approach God for what God can do FOR us, what God can GIVE us. And when we do that, we miss out on something very, very special.

Believe it or not, SOME Christians and church-going Americans are (practically speaking) no different than atheists, secular humanists or deists. And rather than blame them, it's probably a better idea to figure out why it's so easy and tempting to trust in techniques and principles rather than trusting in God, Himself. In this message, Max Vanderpool unpacks another God-filter that can cause you...

Just like some people have a political filter, it's possible to have a God filter - a way for seeing God that flavors everything you say and do. Unfortunately, not all God filters are accurate. Not all God filters help you see God for who He is and how the world really works. The first God filter in our series (Life Under God) claims that if you live according to God's rules, God will bless you an...

If you grew up in church, there's a good chance you prayed for God's Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. There's also a good chance you thought that had to do with something down the road, in heaven or after you die. Charlotte Lacy shares how her understanding of God's Kingdom has changed and how you and I can partner with God's Spirit in advancing His Kingdom right here and right now.

When it comes to school, not everything is equally important. When it comes to successful surgeries, not everything is equally important. When it comes to whitewater rafting, not everything is equally important. Why is it that we can accept this truth in so many areas of our life, and yet forget it when it comes to the list of things we need to do? In this message, Max Vanderpool poses a question...

It's quite a common experience. You hit 30 or 35 years of age and think to yourself: How did I end up HERE? Why am I working at THIS job? Living in THIS town? That's NOT what I had hoped/planned/dreamed when I was younger. In this message, Max Vanderpool makes a case for why some people end up places they didn't intend - because that's where the river took them.

Ever been on the receiving end of condemnation or of someone who thinks they are better than you? We all have - and it feels terrible. You'd think that, because of all that negative experience, we would turn around and be humble and esteem others. Yeah, not so much. As it turns out, it's all too easy to condemn other people - because it helps you feel better about yourself. In this message, Max Va...

Sometimes, you're mad and you're not sure why. Sometimes, you're mad, and you're taking it out on ALL the WRONG people. Anger is an interesting thing. It's trying to tell us something - and we have to be WISE about what we do with the anger we feel. In this message, Max Vanderpool talks about what to do with anger, so that YOU and the people around you are better off.

In 1989, Jim Henson (the creator of the Muppets) mapped out a deal with the Walt Disney Company. Unfortunately, before the deal could be inked, Henson developed pneumonia and died at the age of 53. His son, Brian, was left holding the bag - because Disney backed out of the deal and now the voice of Kermit the Frog was dead. What do you do when you're mad at someone? And better yet - what do you do...

From an early age, we're trained that when we hurt somebody, we owe them something. Our parents make us apologize...and sometimes make us provide restitution (money taken out of our allowance to pay for the broken window). But what do you do when someone hurts you and they don't apologize? When they're not sorry? Or worse, when they keep hurting you over and over again? The Bible has a LOT to say...

There are people in life who require extra grace in dealing with them. There are people in life who, because they are emotional vampires, will suck the life right out of you. There are people in life who will do everything they can to try to control you, to get you to do exactly what they want you to do. So what do you do? How do you respond? In this message, Max Vanderpool gets very specific abou...

What do you do when someone you care about is making a bad decision? If you're like most Americans, you AVOID talking to them (about it), but you tell anybody and everybody else who will listen that they're about to walk off of a cliff. Fortunately, there's a BETTER way, and it's spelled out for us in the Bible. Max Vanderpool shares how you can be lovely truthiness for your friends and people you...

A LOT of the relational turmoil we experience is due to ego. And because we have ego, too, we have a remarkable capacity for actually making things WORSE. In this message, Max Vanderpool shares six (6) things wise people NEVER do in relationships.

Ever been to Hobby Lobby? Did you notice just how much God stuff you can purchase there? What IS it about American Christianity that causes us to put God stuff on our bodies and in our homes and in our cars? Would it surprise you to know we get it honestly? In this message, Max Vanderpool teaches on one of the most important passages in Scripture and what it will take to pass on faith to the next...