Bread & Circuses

We’ve all heard “You’re not yourself when you’re hungry.” But what if the opposite is true? What if something as basic as hunger shows us our true selves? When we’re not the masters of our desires, we will miss what God wants to do in our lives and in our world. Jesus shows us how to master our desires so we can be present to God.

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Food and Fun

Some of our strongest temptations involve our cravings – food, sex, attention, connection. Why is desire so powerful? And how do we live with our desires so they connect us to God rather than poison our lives, relationships and faith?

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The Path of Wisdom

Knowing how to follow Jesus today can be complex and difficult – especially because our world of polarized politics, social media and technology is so foreign to the worlds of the Bible. That’s why Scripture invites us to grow not in knowledge, but wisdom. How can we know the Jesus who is still with us, leading the way?

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Making All Things New

We often struggle to see where God is at work, especially in times of personal or cultural hardship. How can we learn to see God all around us, continuing to create new goodness? How can we learn to live in faith that God’s not finished with us?

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How to Beat a Rigged Game

So much of our world is grounded in competition – who gets the most votes, has the most money, the best looking family, best grades and so on. No wonder they call it a rat race. It’s nothing new – we’ve been fighting to be on top for thousands of years. What sets Jesus apart is not that he’s strong enough to win – it’s that he refuses to play the game at all. What does that mean for us today?

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Good and Evil and Spaghetti

We all want to know why bad things happen to good people. But Scripture is much less interested in the origin of evil than the goal – to poison humanity against our creator. Jesus shows us what a faithful human response to sin looks like – and how God proves God is the one we can trust to protect and provide for us!

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God the Creator

JR. Forasteros - January 17, 2021

God the Creator

From A to Z

To say God is our creator is to insist we live in a particular story - one that believes that God created all people to enjoy peace and justice. How can we identify the barriers to flourishing for everyone, and join Jesus in creating a better world?

Discussion Guide     Manuscript

More From "From A to Z"

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What’s the Point?

Life is miraculous and – from the perspective of the universe – much rarer than we realized. How does the miracle of life invite us to know God as our creator. What can we discern about our purpose from the fact that we’re alive?

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A Plan Comes Together

The New Year is a great excuse to soar up to 30,000 ft and look at the big story of God’s plan. Christmas isn’t a day or even a season. It’s a new reality Jesus invites us into. Now we can all be part of God’s giant story of redemption!

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New Year, New Name

None of us can wait for 2020 to be over – but secretly we all know that nothing *magical* happens at midnight on January 1. Fortunately, our assurance for the future comes not from a calendar, but from the Christmas story: God is with us!

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