New Beginnings Lutheran Church

You were not just called to believe, but to belong. God doesn’t just pardon you, He places you into a faith family. You don’t want to miss the place to find your place. We were made for community.

Childhood behaviors are great predictors of adult actions. As William Wadsworth penned, “The child is father of the man.” And the girl, also, is mother of the woman she’ll become. How have you become more of YOU, as you live out how God designed you?

The biggest mistake you could ever make is being too afraid to make one. God’s love for us compels us to take bold steps.  We need not fear failure, because if God is for us, we cannot lose—though we may very well learn along the way.

“You  cannot be anything you want to be, but you can be everything God wants you to be”–Max Lucado. You are not a collision of particles, an evolution of molecules, or a simply speck of carbon in the universe. You are fearfully and wonderfully made … to make waves!

Did you know you have dual citizenship? Heaven is your home, but that doesn’t mean the world has lost its meaning.   In fact, our nationality as Christians calls us to social response-abilities. God has made us capable of changing the world as members of society.  This too is God at work in and through us.

What are you willing to die for? The soldier shows that a person’s work is much more than a job, but a holy calling.  God is at work through every role at every level of society--providing protection, sustenance, or even entertainment. Every occupation is best seen as a vocation: a calling.  You don’t have to be a priest to see your work as holy orders from God.

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end”, or so the song says.  Your childhood didn’t end,  but it culminated in the person you became. Every goal achieved is not a terminus, but a stepping stone, especially in faith matters. What’s next for you? God has plans for you!

Have you ever welcomed an angel into your home? The Bible says that some have hosted the messengers from God without even knowing it! God is known to wear disguises. God doesn’t steal your identity, but He assumes it for His purposes.

Sometimes the world crashes down in a moment: a sudden death, an unforeseen accident, a devastating diagnosis. Other times, the world crashes down in slow motion as we watch it burn. In these moments we are comforted by the power of a surprising hope.

Is it wrong to be angry with God?  Sometimes life leaves us in the pits and God seems distant.  This week we will learn how to voice our frustration and pain to God.

The ripple effect from ground zero results in a mass-graves exodus! Christ’s empty tomb is the starting point of people rising from the dead, and we who are waiting, to be “raptured” and join Jesus forever! Our immortality will be proven true and we will live forever!

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. This is based upon the fact that Christ is risen, indeed! Hallelujah!  The empty tomb results in lives full of God’s blessings both now and forever!

Happy tears will swell your eyes to bursting when you see the impact of your life on others from an eternal perspective. What will you leave behind? What will be your legacy?

Too many face the end of the world as they know it and regret on being truly happy. Americans believe in the ‘inalienable right to the pursuit of happiness.’ But what is true happiness?

Have you said what really matters to those you love? Too many people facing the end of the world as they know it felt they had left too much unspoken.  This week we’re going to discuss what needs to be said.

What are you living for? Are you living for temporary teases or eternal satisfaction? In what are you investing your greatest asset? When time runs out, you will want to know that you lived for what matters.

Who do you think you are? How would you know who you are? If you become like those you hang around, do you measure yourself by other people, or another standard? How do you know you have the right standard?

We all deal with regrets (even God!). It’s ok to call a bad situation bad. All things are not equal in the world. The contrast between good and bad, right and wrong, is hardwired into the world—and us. There comes a time for judgment upon what is evil.

How much faith does it take to get the answer to your prayer? What if you have sin in your life? What then? Did you not get the answer you hoped for because of something wrong with you? Many say so and they’ll quote this week’s passage to “prove it.” What does God’s Word say?

Do you want to know the answer to pain and suffering in this life? We all tried and found many responses that are not the answer. And if you don’t like the Bible’s answer, you’ll find the alternative is worse. We need to know what hope we have in the face of it all. That hope is offered in this message.

You are strange.  Pastor Joe is strange.  We are strange.  And that’s a wonderful thing!  In a world which strives to be normal, embrace your difference.  Join us this week as we uncover the beautiful reality of being a strange group of people led by the strangest leader of all.

“I didn’t mean what I said.”  How often do our unintentional or quick words bring pain to those around us, a pain which far outlasts the moment.  Join us this week as we explore the power of your tongue and ways to gain control over it.

Forgiveness is a gift, not by works but by faith.  But can you have faith without doing any good works?  How do we balance the gift of faith with the need for works?  Join us this week to explore how our faith works in the world around us.