Fear & Desire

JR. Forasteros - January 10, 2016

Magic Tricks

Fear & Desire

We think faith is like magic, and spiritual people like excellent magicians. Trying to figure out God's Will sounds like a lot of work, so it's no wonder only a few spiritual experts figure it out. But the true magic of faith isn't something we work for. It's a free gift from the Spirit.

From Series: "Fear & Desire"

Discovering our calling is a matter of discerning what we love. Contrary to popular belief, we can trust the desires of our hearts as guides to how God is inviting us to change the world. Everyone has a calling. Everyone matters to our future. We find our calling at the intersection of our loves and the needs of our world.

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Discovering our calling is a matter of discerning what we love. Contrary to popular belief, we can trust the desires of our hearts as guides to how God is inviting us to change the world. Everyone has a calling. Everyone matters to our future. We find our calling at the intersection of our loves and the needs of our world.

What are you afraid of? What do you love?

What to Expect When We’re Expecting

JR. Forasteros - November 29, 2015

Learning to Fly

What to Expect When We\'re Expecting

We don't like to wait. Especially when change is on the horizon, we'd rather just rush into the change. But growing is waiting, and waiting is an opportunity for faith. The journey of coming to know begins with naming our desires. To learn to name our desires, we listen as Jeremiah gave Israel the vocabulary to hope for the long-awaited Messiah.

From Series: "What to Expect When We're Expecting"

The future can be a scary thing – especially because it doesn’t come with a roadmap. But when God calls us, we rarely get all the details. How do we move forward faithfully when we don’t know where we’re going? Advent invites us to anticipate well, to look to our fathers and mothers as they longed for God’s rescue. Their stories teach us how to hope well and move forward faithfully.

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The future can be a scary thing – especially because it doesn’t come with a roadmap. But when God calls us, we rarely get all the details. How do we move forward faithfully when we don’t know where we’re going? Advent invites us to anticipate well, to look to our fathers and mothers as they longed for God’s rescue. Their stories teach us how to hope well and move forward faithfully.

What is God calling you to?

Catalyst to the Future

JR. Forasteros - November 1, 2015

Catalyst to the Future

Catalyst to the Future

Catalyst creates spaces where everyone can embrace their God-given calling. How will we love in the next 10 years? How will we grow? How will we serve?

From Series: "Catalyst to the Future"

Catalyst creates spaces where everyone can embrace their God-given calling. How will we love in the next 10 years? How will we grow? How will we serve? Join us as we listen to God's call and follow into the future!

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Catalyst creates spaces where everyone can embrace their God-given calling. How will we love in the next 10 years? How will we grow? How will we serve?

Who will Catalyst become? How will you be part of it?

Monsters

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Tommy Cash - October 4, 2015

Vampires

Monsters

Vampires scare us because they are creatures that live by taking life from others. Our culture encourages this sort of behavior, but we know it’s death for us. We find freedom in the way of the cross – Paul shows us that God is not a taker, but a giver. If we want to find life, we must follow the way of Jesus, allowing the cross to kill the vampires in us that the Spirit might bring us new life. Then we become ambassadors for God’s way – self-giving life for the world around us.

From Series: "Monsters"

Why do we love stories about monsters? Vampires, werewolves, zombies and ghosts fascinate us - which is strange. Monster stories aren't really about monsters - they're about us. Monster stories externalize our deepest fears about ourselves. If we're willing to face our monsters head-on, we can find freedom and hope. Let the monsters die that the humans can live!

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[/one_half][one_half_last]Why do we love stories about monsters? Vampires, werewolves, zombies and ghosts fascinate us – which is strange. Monster stories aren’t really about monsters – they’re about us. Monster stories externalize our deepest fears about ourselves. If we’re willing to face our monsters head-on, we can find freedom and hope.

Let the monsters die so the human can thrive!

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SOCIAL

We don’t naturally think about technology from a theological perspective. But since everything is spiritual, we must learn how to approach technology with God in mind. While the first questions that come to mind about screens in particular is a question of time (and the most natural answer is a list of rules, recommended hours, etc.), we want to move our questioning toward where is this screen time leading me? Knowing where you’re going, setting a goal, makes it easier to know how to use the technology at your disposal to get there. The proper use of technology should be moving us toward heaven on earth, while improper use of technology would bring hell to earth.

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Top 10: Songs

JR. Forasteros - June 14, 2015

I'm a Believer

I\'m a Believer

The way we’re told to follow God often seems like a bewitchment – ignore our problems and questions and just believe. But in John 6 we see that what Jesus calls us to is not blind faith, but a carefully considered commitment to follow him to the Cross. Coming face-to-face with Jesus’ sacrificial love makes believers out of all of us.

From Series: "Top 10: Songs"

Our Top 10 series are all about listening to popular culture. This summer, we engage the messages of 10 popular songs from the last 50 years. As we listen, we interact with those messages out of the Scriptures, to celebrate how God is working all around us.

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Our Top 10 series are all about listening to popular culture. This summer, we engage the messages of 10 popular songs from the last 50 years. As we listen, we interact with those messages out of the Scriptures, to celebrate how God is working all around us.

How does God speak through these Top 10 Songs?

Summer Break ’15

JR. Forasteros - May 31, 2015

Avengers Assemble!

Summer Break \'15

We tend to surround ourselves with people like ourselves, but we actually need each other. Just like the Avengers.

From Series: "Summer Break '15"

Each Summer, we give our KidMin volunteers a break, which means our kids worship with us. These sermons are designed to be more accessible to kids, and could be about just about anything!

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Each Summer, we give our KidMin volunteers a break, which means our kids worship with us. These sermons are designed to be more accessible to kids, and could be about just about anything!

It’s Summertime!

Go There!

JR. Forasteros - April 5, 2015

Fail to Win

Go There!

We’re all well-acquainted with failure – in our personal lives, our vocations, our dreams and aspirations. When we fail, fear of failing again can paralyze us. But what we don’t see is that God is working, even in our failures, to bring life and hope. Peter shows us the difference Jesus’ resurrection makes, the freedom and power that pushes us to take a risk, to go there!

From Series: "Go There!"

What lines are you afraid to cross? In the years immediately following Jesus’ resurrection, his followers had to reimagine what their religion looked like. The Holy Spirit compelled them to take the good news of resurrection and new life far beyond every border they’d ever known. The book of Acts helps us imagine the dangerous and exciting mission God is calling us to today. Don’t Go There!

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What lines are you afraid to cross? In the years immediately following Jesus’ resurrection, his followers had to reimagine what their religion looked like. The Holy Spirit compelled them to take the good news of resurrection and new life far beyond every border they’d ever known. The book of Acts helps us imagine the dangerous and exciting mission God is calling us to today.

Don’t Go There!

Can You Hear Me Now?

Tommy Cash - February 22, 2015

War & Peace

Can You Hear Me Now?

Say the word "Repent" and many of us get flashes of fire and brimstone. But in this first week of Lent, we see that Jesus' call to repent isn't judgment and condemnation. It's the fulfillment of God's promise not to war with humanity. Jesus' call to repent is a proclamation of God's peace!

From Series: "Can You Hear Me Now?"

Throughout history, God has made covenants with humanity. These covenants are promises to be faithful, to trust, to live together in peace. And over and over, humanity has broken those covenants. But now that God has come in Jesus, he is restoring broken covenants, healing broken relationships, reestablishing peace between God and humanity. This Lent, we look to Jesus to transform us and make us whole.

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Throughout history, God has made covenants with humanity. These covenants are promises to be faithful, to trust, to live together in peace. And over and over, humanity has broken those covenants. But now that God has come in Jesus, he is restoring broken covenants, healing broken relationships, reestablishing peace between God and humanity. This Lent, we look to Jesus to transform us and make us whole.

Jesus is saying, Can You Hear Me Now?

Is This On?

Ask most people if God speaks to them and they’ll wonder if you’re crazy. Most people think God only speaks to the very religious or the not-quite sane. But what if God is speaking to everyone? What if – because Jesus has come – God’s voice is all around us, in our every day lives? How can we hear God’s voice? What does God sound like? What is God saying? In this series, we’ll learn how to hear the God who is speaking to all of us.

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