Riverwood Church - Waverly, IA: Sermons

These are complicated times. We live in a difficult, confusing, and often frustrating age, and more now than ever does the world desperately need households led by godly dads. Guest teacher and Minneapolis church planter Patrick Ray shares a Father's Day message from , as well as insight on #BlackLivesMatter, police reform, community well-being, and how we as Jesus-followers ought to respond in li...

Do you ever find yourself seeking a rest from life's daily grind through things like Netflix, YouTube, disc golf, or even drinking coffee?   In this week's message, Matt Townsley walks us through which shows us that God is our protection, provider, and power.  If you a desire to seek true rest from the stressors of this world, listen in to know what it means to "be still" and know a God who loves...

This will be our first Sunday back for in-person gatherings! While we are excited to be together again, most of us have undoubtedly been through some turbulent times. To some extent, we've all encountered loss, grief, frustration, and suffering within the span of these last few months. In this week's message, Worship Leader Jake Epley will walk us through , a lament that teaches us that in the mid...

Have you ever wondered what the Bible says about work?  Is it wise to put in 40 hours and be done?  Is working overtime punishment or pleasing in the eyes of God? In this week's message, Matt Townsley walks us through showing how overconfidence and overworking can lead to an unfulfilled life.  So, if you have a desire to work at home or in the office in a way that honors God, listen in!

The parable Jesus tells in Mark 4:21-25 is often referred to as "The Parable of the Lamp." But as you'll hear in this sermon from Pastor Erin Bird, the gospel story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is the lamp to the parables.

In this week's passage, Jesus surprises his listeners (and us, the readers) by declaring that true family isn't the one you're physically born into, nor is it the racial group you identify with, nor is it even our best friends at work or on a sports team. Rather, Jesus declares that true family comes through the gospel. To hear more, listen in as Pastor Erin Bird walks us through Mark 3:20-35.

We all long to be chosen. To be selected by a team, company, or that special someone feels like we have worth, and value, and are loved. So you can imagine when Jesus chose His twelve disciples, those twelve guys were on top of the world. But in truth, to be chosen by Jesus is actually very, very humbling. Why? Listen in to discover how the calling to follow Jesus is a humbling event, and yet a mo...

Ever thought you knew the words to a song, but it turns out you were singing it all wrong? Some of the Jewish leaders of Jesus' day thought they knew how to do thing likes fasting and observing the Sabbath, but turns out they were off the mark. In this week's message, Pastor Erin Bird walks us through Mark 2:18–3:6 showing how we are much like the ancient Jewish leaders who were off in their under...

What should a healthy church look like? And how do we trust God when He doesn't give us what we want? These are two questions that strangely get answered in a story about a healed paralytic. If you've ever asked yourself either of these two questions, listen in as Pastor Erin Bird walks us through Mark 2:1-12.

Too often, Americans will read a Bible story and "insert" themselves into the story. For instance, when we read the famous story about David and Goliath, we imagine ourselves as David, slaying the "giants" in our lives. But when we twist a Bible story into a personal story, we actually rob the story of having greater power in our lives. This week, Pastor Erin Bird walks us through Mark 2:1-12, sho...

In Mark 1, we see Jesus begin to become famous, but it wasn't for being rich, or for being attractive, or even for displaying talent in a sport or art form. His fame came from a display of authority. This is good news for you! Because His authority means He is with you, He cares for you, and is still in control in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Listen in as Pastor Erin Bird challenges us to...

First words matter. Whether in a speech or a job interview, your first words set the stage for what is to come. Mark strategically waited until verse 15 of his Gospel account on the life of Jesus to let us hear Jesus speak for Himself. And the first words we hear from Jesus have the potential to change your life.

All humans are tempted, the question is, what will you do when tempted? Even though He was fully God, Jesus was also fully human during His time on earth. So just like you, He was tempted. Through the gospel accounts of Mark and Matthew, we discover how Jesus faced temptation and managed to never give in.

The Bible teaches that Jesus was without sin. And yet, we see in Mark 1 that Jesus was baptized by his cousin, John the Baptizer. Why we Jesus baptized? What was significant about this moment? And what does it mean for us in 2020? Listen in as one of Riverwood's elders, Ed Pavelecs, walks us through Mark 1:9-11.

This week, we begin a series studying the book of Mark, which will allow us to see the purpose and person of Jesus. If you want to learn more about Jesus, or be reminded of His awesomeness, listen in as Pastor Erin walks us through Mark 1:1-8.

According to Barna, Americans pray for their family, for guidance, for health and wellness, and even to express thanks. But one thing they don't pray for - boldness. Maybe it's because we are already bold. But more likely, we don't pray for boldness because we like our lives safe and comfortable. But if Riverwood is going to be a church after God's heart, we need to take a page out of the early ch...

Money. (Yep, we went there!) Why do churches seem to always talk about money? Well, we can't tell you why other churches talk about money so much. But at Riverwood, we don't talk about it as much as we probably should, but when we do, we look at not what we can get FROM you as much as what God wants FOR you. And we believe  God wants you to be generous like Him. So listen in as Pastor Erin Bird te...

Perhaps you've heard the phrase, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." There definitely are times in life a person needs to move fast. But for a church to go far, they MUST go together. But that proves to be especially difficult here in America, because Americans are extremely individualistic (plus, they prefer fast!). So how is a church in the midwest of the U.S....

We believe God has given Riverwood a very important mission, to invite the spiritually disconnected of our communities to find and follow Jesus. But are we accomplishing it? On Vision Sunday, Pastor Erin Bird helps us look back at 2019 to see how we did and did not accomplish our God-given mission, and Elder Tim Corcoran helps us look ahead to 2020 to see what might be ahead to help us continue he...

Every Christmas, churches and families will spend time looking at the stories of the various biblical characters involved in the narrative of the birth of Jesus (which we have done through this Cost of Christmas series). But there is one character that surprisingly sometimes gets overlooked: Jesus. So in this week's sermon, Pastor Erin helps us see through Philippians 2:5-11 what the first Christm...

Americans love to spend a lot of money and time on Christmas. Did you know the average American will spend over $900/person and spend well over 40 hours in the month of December on Christmas related activities such as shopping, traveling, and worship services? (Yep, that's a lot!) However, if you are a follower of Jesus, God has a different plan for your money and time than just to use it all on a...

The Oxford Dictionary defines livelihood as "a means of securing the necessities of life." But often times, we confuse what a "necessity of life" truly is, fooling ourselves into thinking wants are actually needs. These false "needs" keep Jesus-followers from a closer relationship with God. In week 2 of our Advent Series, Pastor Erin Bird shows us from Luke 2 the incredible risk the shepherds took...

If someone were to ask your friends to describe you, the words your friends use would reveal your reputation. Most of us hope to have a good reputation in life. But did you know that to follow Jesus might actually cost you a good reputation? In this first message in The Cost of Christmas Advent series, Pastor Erin Bird unpacks several passages of the Bible, showing how the first Christmas cost Jos...

Launch Sermon Player

Launch Sermon PlayerEven back in John’s time, people were twisting what the Bible has to say about Jesus. Today, things haven’t changed a whole lot. Pastor Erin Bird of Riverwood Church teaches from the book of 1 and 2 John about how to walk in wisdom.