Pursuing God with Gene Appel

The world tells us to ‘blow off some steam’ by venting our anger. But the object of our anger rarely responds the way we want. It is not an effective way to manage our anger. That’s why the apostle James tells us to be slow to speak . Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction t...

You can lose your influence for the gospel by acting on your anger. One of the great remedies for anger is to wait. James reminds us to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. Anger is a choice. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace is for eve...

Anger is a physiological response that causes us to act. The apostle James reminds us that acting on our anger often doesn’t produce the righteousness God desires. James reminds us to be quick to listen and slow to anger. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s gra...

The Holy Spirit comes alongside us to help us heal from grief and loss. God emphasizes with our sorrow and walks with us during suffering. The Bible says God is with us during loss, loneliness, and illness. He is our Comforter. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God...

The Holy Spirit gives us supernatural gifts to enable us to serve others. Each person’s contribution enriches the church community so that no one becomes burned out. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace is for everyone, each episode invites you to discover...

The Holy Spirit helps us share the good news of Jesus even when we don’t feel qualified in our own strength. He personalizes our message to others so they may hear something you didn’t even say! Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace is for everyone, each ep...

The Holy Spirit empowers us to resist temptation. Sin is fun for a moment, but it comes with consequences. When you’re filled with the Holy Spirit, He transforms us by helping us be sensitive to sin. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace is for everyone, ea...

The Holy Spirit convicts us of our need for Jesus Christ. Once we make the decision to follow Christ, God’s power lives in us. It is God’s gift to empower us to live for Him. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace is for everyone, each episode invites you to...

We set aside time to spend a few moments with Jesus at His table joining with one another in communion by eating the bread which is symbolic of Jesus’ crucified body and by drinking the cup of grape juice together which is a symbol of His blood that was shed on the cross. This is the one specific way Jesus asked us to remember Him. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, b...

The greatest way to continue to grow spiritually is to study the Bible on your own. You don’t have to be a follower of Jesus very long before you realize you need a lot of help. Reading the Bible and praying is essential for continued growth. God will speak to you through His word! Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in...

The Bible is our spiritual nourishment. It feeds us and explains how we honor God, how we can have a relationship with God, and what we need to do to continually grow in our faith. Devote yourself to the public teaching that occurs whenever the church gathers for weekend services because all of us need spiritual nutrition. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build comm...

My life has revolved around the work of God in the church of Jesus Christ for over 6 decades, not because I’m a pastor, but because I’m a follower of Jesus, I’m a part of the family of God in His church. I’m incredibly optimistic about the church of Jesus Christ for many reasons, and one of the primary reasons is because God changed my life through the church. And He will change yours! Pursuing Go...

Since the first of the year, nearly 1500  people at Eastside have declared their faith in Jesus through baptism. I want to challenge those of you who have recently been baptized, as well as those who have made that decision at some earlier point in their lives, to do the most important thing you can do spiritually for your future… and that is to dive deeply into the church of Jesus Christ. Pursuin...

Friends, every time you express generosity from your heart in the name of Jesus Christ, it’s like you are sending God a thank you note and saying, “Thank you, God…Thanks for loving the world so much that you GAVE your one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleas...

If we truly understand from God’s perspective everything we have is seed and the more we sow, the more we will reap, it’s completely reasonable to think that as we mature as followers of Jesus, we will naturally increase our percentage giving to beyond the tithe because we’ll continue reaping more. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compas...

Don’t decide your giving emotionally, don’t decide it spontaneously, don’t leave it to chance, but do your giving with intentionality and purpose. God says, “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart not reluctantly (don’t be a scrooge) or under compulsion (don’t be manipulated by spur of-the-moment emotion), for I love a cheerful giver.” Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed...

You must plant seeds in order to get a greater return. The seed you keep is all you have, the seed you sow God multiples. Do you have a plan for sowing generously? Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace is for everyone, each episode invites you to discover G...

Some of us struggle with generosity because it’s unnatural for us to give away something valuable. Our view is when you give money away it’s gone. But God looks at money in a completely different way and if we grasp this iit will change everything about how we view money. God doesn’t see the money you give away as money that’s lost and gone forever, but instead as seeds planted and will produce a...

Let’s pray this prayer every day for the next week: “God, please heal the relationship stress fractures in my life. Help me to own my stuff. Give me eyes to see the needs of others.  Fill me with hope and empower me to extend grace, just as You’ve extended to me.  Amen.” Jesus said this about reconciliation in  Matthew 5:23-24 “If you are standing before the altar in the Temple, offering a sacrifi...

The first step we need to take is to take ownership of our sins that may have contributed to our fractured relationship. A second practical step you must take toward relational reconciliation is to shift our perspective. Are you viewing the stress fractures from your perspective or their perspective? Next, say you’re sorry, and then hold onto hope that the relationship can and will be healed. Purs...

We never know what the results will be when we attempt to heal a fractured relationship. Romans 12:18 teaches us if it is possible, as far as it depends on us, we need to strive to live at peace with everyone. “As far as it depends on you” means we need to do our part, knowing that it takes 2 to reconcile. We can’t control what other people will do. So, the Apostle Paul says, “As far as it depends...

One cause of relationship fractures is unrealistic expectations. Unhealthy models and unpredictable circumstances also contribute to stress fractures in a relationship. In today’s podcast we’ll explore this more deeply. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scripture and shaped by Eastside’s conviction that God’s grace...

Maintaining healthy relationships isn’t easy. I love how the Bible is shockingly real in every area,  including relational conflicts. The Bible doesn’t try to sugarcoat them; white-wash them; sanitize them; hide them; or deny them. It’s ALL there... the good, the bad, the ugly. This week we’ll be diving into fractured relationships by looking at Jacob and Esau. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is desi...

Staying free is a one-day-at-a-time thing. It takes daily Bible reading, daily prayer and confession, daily meditation on God’s word, and finding others to share our story with. When God uses you to help someone else who is struggling, your own life is further empowered by the Holy Spirit to walk in the freedom He made possible. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, buil...

If you want to stay free you must respond to the Holy Spirit’s conviction with times of regular confession...to God, and to someone you can trust. James 5:16 (NLT) says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” This is true freedom. Pursuing God with Gene Appel is designed to help you pursue God, build community, and unleash compassion. Grounded in Scrip...