The Trails Church

Psalm 6 contains the typical features we find in nearly every Psalm of lament. It is a prayer in pain that leads to trust. As we walk with King David through this sorrow, we will notice how he has left us markers along the path that teach us the practice of biblical lament. Here are the four steps we can take as we learn to lament: 1. Cry Out to God in Prayer, 2. Bring Your Burdens to the Lord, 3....

In Acts 1:12-26 we journey between the mountaintop experiences of the Ascension and Pentecost to learn valuable lessons in the valley of ordinary life. The simple practices of obedience, being with other believers, waiting on God, and prayer are hallmarks of the Christian life. While we will discover how it came to be that “Again There Were Twelve,” we will also see what we might glean spiritually...

The "Ascension of Christ” recorded in Acts 1:9-11 details one of the most significant events in the life of Jesus. This occasion has massive implications on the church through ages past, in our lives today, and even our future. As we study “The Ascension of Christ” we will focus on its reality, its meaning, and finally, the comforts that come with it.

The Book of Acts tells the story of “The Continuing Work of Christ.” Following Jesus’s death, resurrection, and ascension, the Father’s plan is continued through the Son as the Spirit empowers his disciples for gospel ministry. From the opening verses of the Book of Acts we are met with certain programmatic themes that are crucial to the entire book. As we set our course today, we discover three o...

In the final stretch of Psalm 51 David anticipates how he will respond to God’s mercy. The psalmist first approached the Lord in a spirit of repentance as he confessed his sin (1-5). Next, he prayed for restoration (6-9) asking to be washed and purified. This led him to pray for complete renewal from within and a clean heart (10-12). The last lyrics in verses 13-19 are written from the perspective...

In Psalm 51:10-12 we come to the very heart of this Psalm and hear firsthand how the cry of David’s heart was not for forgiveness alone, but for complete renewal from within. This trio of verses are a prayer of complete dependence built of six verbs – each one pleading with God to do a deep, redemptive, restorative work in David’s life. We will organize our thoughts around those verbs as we pray w...

As we began our exploration of Psalm 51 with genuine repentance of sin, when God’s Word exposed David’s sin – his eyes were opened. Rather than blame shifting or any excuse making, he felt conviction, he experienced deep contrition, and he confessed his sin to the Lord. David was transformed from a calloused sinner to a penitent man. In Psalm 51:6-9 the prayer of David moves from honest confession...

Psalm 51 is the prayer of a soul that is aware of its depths of sin and desperate need of God’s grace. These first four verses cast every hope of forgiveness on God’s mercy in ‘repentant faith.’3 The lyrics remind us about the trappings of sin, instruct us what to do with our sin, and teach us how to restore fellowship with God. As we will hear, the theme of this song is not sin. The theme of this...

In our reading of Psalm 50, we will see God shine forth and make a declaration to His people about the nature of their worship towards Him. We will also see a warning to those who do not call upon the name of the Lord. Today’s sermon is titled “TRUE WORSHIP”.

I’ll be in after that Our passage today is like a commentary on “The Parable of the Rich Fool.” 2 We find in Psalm 49 a song filled with wisdom, teaching us where to and where not to find our worth. By contrasting two ways to live and die, we learn the futility of trusting in wealth and the blessedness of trusting in in Christ. I pray each of us would hear through the lyrics of this song that our...