Oakhaven Church Podcast

We continue to look at Jesus’ teaching on prayer in Luke 11 . After He teaches His disciples “The Lord’s Prayer,” Jesus goes on to use humans in everyday situations to illustrate God’s care and attention to our prayers. A human in bed will get up in the middle of the night to help his neighbor. A human father will not give his child a snake instead of bread. If humans can act so well - in spite of...

Luke 11:1-13 . Today we look at two different episodes in Jesus’ life with His disciples. First is His teaching them “His” prayer in Luke 11, with a key focus on the prayer that God’s kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. Then in Luke 8 , we look at the disciples’ fear of the storm and find ourselves with them. Also with them, though, is Jesus. If we focus on Him instead of the storm, our hear...

Shepherd Brenda Wilusz discusses the many ways God shows His love. To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

We complete today our year long journey through the Gospel of Mark with a summary of his masterful storytelling. We focus on two of his primary themes: identity and expectation. Our identity is built upon that of Jesus’ the King of kings come to bring His kingdom on earth. We are the beloved sons and daughters of the Father, and the younger brothers and sisters of the King. We also check our expec...

Oakhaven Church founding member Deb Cleveland shares a special Mother's Day message featuring the women of the bible.  To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

We continue to explore life in the Age of Resurrection along with the unique ending of Mark's Gospel.  To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

After the grueling pain of Good Friday and the silent waiting of a dark and quiet Saturday, Sunday comes in power, light, and victory. Sometimes our Saturdays last a long time, but Sunday is coming! Mark 16:1-8 To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

Jesus asks for a different path in the Garden of Gethsemane. God says no. Jesus stays on the path anyway, because the only way out is through this time. His followers desert Him right and left, before and after. But Jesus stays true to The Plan despite what it will cost Him. When everyone else around Him gives in to fear, He alone faithfully stays the course. For you. Mark 14:26-52 To investigate...

Longtime Oakhaven member Duane Canon shares his testimony of God's faithfulness in his life over the years.  To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

Our journey in the Gospel of Mark brings us to a poignant, difficult final meal of Jesus with the twelve. The resonance of the past that is celebrated in the Passover meal carries forward not only to the cross and empty tomb but to our lives as well. Mark 14:12-26 To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

We are firmly in Act III of the Gospel of Mark today as Jesus is anointed for burial by a woman at the home of Simon the Leper. This anointing points to Jesus’ Kingship, Messiahship, and pending sacrifice. The woman’s total commitment to Him is shown in this “no going back” breaking of this extremely expensive vessel in order to bring Jesus honor to the greatest extreme of which she is capable. Th...

We look today at Jesus’ longest discourse in the Gospel of Mark. Mark 13 contains some of the most dramatic language and images in the gospel. As Jesus predicts the destruction of the temple and of Jerusalem, we take away five lessons:  God’s Promises and Plan are CERTAIN but Surprising.  Expect Challenging Times.  You’re Not Alone - Rely on the Holy Spirit.  Don’t Be Taken In or Led Away - No One...

We return today to the Gospel of Mark ( 12:35-44 ) and find again that Jesus/Mark have packaged 3 stories together that seem unrelated at first but in fact interpret each other. Jesus first quizzes the people about the Messiah, a descendent of David, somehow also be David’s Lord. Then Jesus warns against desiring attention and influence like the religious teachers, many of whom prey on naive widow...

Duey shares a message on Jesus' command in John 13:34. "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you , so you must love one another." To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

Stories of a lost sheep and a lost coin in Luke 15 point to how much Jesus wants us to be found, and the great lengths to which He will go to do so. To investigate this most important of stories further, go here . 

In our journey with Jesus through the Gospel of Mark we have recently arrived in Jerusalem after Jesus' triumphal entry on a donkey. ( Mark 11:11-25 ) As Mark's structure passes from Act II to Act III, the joyful pilgrims who'd shouted Hosanna! to Jesus have gone their separate ways and He is now concerned with the Jewish leaders and with how the worship of the entire nation has bee...

We return to our survey of the Gospel of Mark today and find ourselves at a key structural point in Mark’s storytelling. Mark’s gospel can be divided into three “acts.” Act I takes place in Galilee, Act III takes place in Jerusalem, and Act is the bridge “on the road” between those two locations. Today’s brief story occurs at the end of Act II ( 10:46-52 ), and is the last story before Jesus’ arri...

As a result of the grace that Jesus has showered on us, we are moved to share His story with others. Jesus is the King who comes with His kingdom to break into the present while ensuring its eternal future. in 2 Corinthians 5 (and elsewhere), we are called to be ambassadors of this King and Kingdom, first leading lives that represent well the One we serve. Those lives will be markedly different fr...

Because God has lavished His grace upon us through His Son, our lives reflect that grace in how we live with one another. Today we look at how His grace moves us to live lives of forgiveness, patience, and kindness. We love because He first loved us, and He makes our forgiving others a requirement for receiving forgiveness ourselves, starting with “forgive us our debts as we have forgiven our debt...

We’ve begun 2025 with a brief series on “The Four G’s of Grace,” examining how the grace God has lavished on us impacts our attitude and behavior. This week we focus on how grace gives us a grateful orientation, aware that God is providing all the good in our lives, striving to not take the blessings (especially the people around us) for granted. The Apostle Paul starts us off with his opening sta...

We complete the Christmas Season together as we examine the story of the Magi , the first humans to know of the coming King, and the furthest from Him both geographically and demographically. As the Abraplan reaches its climax to bless all nations, these astrologers from the east herald a new age in God’s dealing with humanity. They set so many precedents, and also examples for us all. Their gener...

On this final Sunday of Advent, we celebrate the love of God, shown most clearly in the gift of His Son to us. “For unto us a child is born… and the government shall be upon His shoulders, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Even those four titles given by Isaiah point to human and divine joined together in One Person: Jesus. We visit...

Welcome to Oakhaven Church! The Christmas Season is well under way, Advent having finished on Christmas, we are now in the “12 Days of Christmas,” celebrating with joy the coming of the Messiah. This season ends with marking the journey and arrival of the magi on January 6 and the Feast of Epiphany, so there is yet a bit more of the story to tell. Today at The Barn, however, is the fifth Sunday of...

We look at two passages from the Gospel of Luke today: Gabriel's visit with Mary in Luke 1:26-38 , and Luke's sparse account of Jesus' birth in Luke 2:1-7 . The angel's statements to Mary are incredible, as is Mary's reaction and acceptance. Then when Dr. Luke describes the Messiah's birth, he could not be more plain in his verbiage, and neither could the birth of the...

Two passages by Isaiah are highlighted in today's, both prophecies describing the coming Messiah and His far-reaching impact. Isaiah 9 and Isaiah 11 both make clear that the fabric of the universe shifts when He comes to dwell among us. Jesus walks beside us, casting His light into our darkness, showing us the way as our Wonderful Counselor and Our Prince of Peace.  To investigate this most i...