Spirit Lake Campus

We live in an angry world — from social media pile-ons to air rage to screaming parents on the sidelines of youth sports. In this message from our Seven Deadly Sins series, we learn that anger itself isn't always sinful. But most of the time, we handle our anger the wrong way. We have sinful outbursts. We yell, scream, raise our voice, or assume the worst about people instead of the best. The answ...

Pride and humility aren't just personal struggles—they're universal spiritual laws that govern how God's kingdom actually works. In this message, we trace the principle of how those who exalt themselves are humbled and those who humble themselves are exalted. We look at Satan's rebellion, humanity's fall, and Jesus's stunning reversal. The God of the universe didn't grasp for glory. He emptied Him...

What is the sin of sloth? How can we rid our lives of it? Join us this Sunday at CrossWinds Church in Spirit Lake as we consider what the Bible has to say about this "deadly sin."

A riot with 25,000 screaming people. A mob chanting the same seven words for two hours straight. What caused all this chaos?... The gospel was winning! So many people in Ephesus left their idols for Jesus that the silversmiths were going out of business. They were so desperate to stop the gospel that they started a riot. But here's what's remarkable: when the dust settled, nobody could find a sing...

When a demon has a foothold in a life, do exorcisms work? Seven brothers found out the hard way when they tried to use Jesus' name like a lucky charm in their exorcism — and ended up beaten and stripped naked. Journey to Ephesus, the witchcraft capital of the Roman world, and discover the only power that always sends demons running.

Knowing about Jesus isn't the same as trusting in him. And being a Christian doesn't always mean we've left every old pattern behind. In Acts 18–19, we meet three very different people — Paul, Apollos, and twelve disciples of John the Baptist — all standing at a turning point in their faith. Their stories show us what God's next step looks like, whether you're a seeker getting close to Jesus or a...

Have you ever felt like you had nothing left? That is exactly where the apostle Paul found himself when he arrived in Corinth — alone, exhausted, and nearly broken after a brutal stretch of beatings, death threats, and disappointing results. Corinth was the most morally corrupt city in the ancient world. If anyone felt like quitting, it was Paul. In this message, we walk through four ways God enco...

How can we actively be the church for one another, for our community? Unlike our individualistic society, we are called to do faith together and to be strengthened by other believers. So, what does it really look like to live out your life as the body of Christ? Let's take insight into 1 Corinthians for the answer.

Our neighbors don't know the Bible. They don't know about sin. They don't know who Jesus is or why he matters. So how do you even begin to tell them? Paul faced that exact challenge when he walked into Athens — one of the most sophisticated, religiously saturated, biblically ignorant cities in the ancient world. Alone, outnumbered, and speaking to some of the greatest philosophical minds of his da...

One of the best yet most neglected spiritual practices is prayer. Let's delve into why it's important to keep praying, no matter the circumstance.

In Acts 17, Paul and Silas show us how to live a life that makes a difference for Jesus. It involves courage to speak about Jesus, even to people who don’t want to hear. It means knowing biblical content, so we can speak the truth. It shows us by making converts and not being surprised when we face conflict. If we want our lives to count for Jesus, this study shows the importance of courage, conte...

Beaten, bleeding, and locked in a torture device at midnight — yet they were singing. By morning, the jailer and his entire family were Christians, and the magistrates who ordered the beating were apologizing. Find out how God is about the business of growing his church in ways nobody expects.

Two women. Worlds apart. One wealthy, connected, and respected. The other a broken slave, exploited and demon-possessed. Yet both were missing the same thing — and both found it in Jesus. Acts 16 takes us to the beginning of the first church in Europe, where the gospel arrives not with fanfare, but at a small women's prayer meeting by a river. Don't miss this story of how Jesus saves the successfu...

Some people claim the resurrection of Jesus is a fictional story — fake news from the ancient world. But what if the evidence for the resurrection is stronger than you think? There are hundreds of eyewitness testimonies. Abundant evidence in ancient historical records. Prophecies written centuries before it happened. Plus an ancient creed that tells us Jesus rose from the dead that was written wit...

Easter is one week away, and that means right now, more people are open to hearing about Jesus than almost any other time of the year — but are we ready to reach them? In Acts 15 and 16, Paul couldn't sit still when he knew people needed to hear the gospel, and his passion drove him across the Roman Empire to tell them. In these verses, we find six principles of effective evangelism from the begin...

What does it look like to have a relationship with Jesus Christ? Take a look with us in the book of John this morning to find the answer.

In Acts 15, the early church faced one of its most important questions — is salvation through Jesus alone, or does it require something more? The answer changed everything, but it also raised a new challenge: will people use their freedom in Christ to build each other up or tearing each other apart? This message we see what spiritual maturity looks like in real life.

What if the way you take communion could get you killed? That's not a hypothetical — it actually happened in the early church in Corinth, where believers turned the Lord's Supper into a drunken feast while the poor went hungry. God's response was swift and severe. This week we dig into 1 Corinthians 11 to rediscover what the Lord's Supper where it came from, and why Jesus cares so deeply about how...

Should pastors be paid? If so, how much? What benefits should their family enjoy? What sacrifices should they be expected to make? In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul explains the responsibility of every church pastor. Join me as we learn how we should take care of our pastors.

Each week, we hear about conflicts. There are fights at home. Disagreements at work. Battles in government. While many things we fight over aren’t worth the disagreement, some things are worth standing your ground. As we continue our studies in Acts, we see the message of how Jesus saves us was being distorted, and why it was worth fighting for to get it right.

The 2014 movie, "Unbroken," tells the true story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who served as a World War II pilot. His plan crashed in the ocean, where he survived on a raft and was eventually captured by the Japanese. He was tortured in a Japanese prisoner of war camp until the end of the war. The movie tells the story of his perseverance through hardships. In Acts 14, we read another her...

What does it look like to forgive like Jesus? Reporter Jason Wright tells of a conversation he had with a woman next to him on a flight across the country. She was 69 and had recently lost her husband. Jason asked her about marriage and what the years had taught her about how to have a successful one. Her immediate response was about the importance of forgiveness. She told him about her first marr...

Where is history heading? Is life an endless cycle of birth and death without purpose? In Acts 13, we get to hear Paul's first sermon in this book. He presents Jesus as the one toward whom all history is moving, the one who fulfills all the prophecies about God's Messiah, and the only one who can justify us before God. If you are unsure about Jesus, join us in this study, as we examine Paul's razo...

Many of us live an average life. How could we live a high-impact one? How can we make a lasting change in this world? As we continue in Acts, we learn what it takes to be part of a church that reaches the world.

The Bible is filled with people who resisted God. Adam and Eve resisted God. It didnt' end well. It brought sin into the world. All in the world perished in a flood, except for Noah, because of resisting God. In this chaper we meet Herod, a man of great power who tried to fight God. It ended in his brutal death. Join us as we discover the wisdom of obeying God and the futility of fighting against...