Better Together (January-February)
Our year kicked off with a church-wide emphasis of “Better Together”, based on the “Forty Days of Community” campaign. The first couple weeks were preparatory messages, with the third lesson marking the “official kick-off” of the series.
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“Don’t Worry” (D. Buchanan)
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The God Jesus Knew (March-April)
Scripture speaks of Jesus as the “image of the invisible God”. If that’s true, what type of God does he reveal? No doubt, Jesus heard these words thr0ughout his life: “The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love.” Throughout the Old Testament, Israel used this “creed” as a defining statement of what Yahweh was like, a description provided to Moses by the Lord Himself! Throughout this series, we consider how this indeed appears to be the God Jesus knew.
The Lord is Abounding in Love and Faithfulness
Palms, Tombs, and Tables (April-May)
For our Easter season, we considered journey of the first disciples through the days leading up to, and following, Jesus’ death and resurrection. As disciples today, what impact are these universe-altering events intended to have on our lives?
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Created Anew (May-June)
This series, a walk through Romans 8, explores the process that takes place in a believer’ life, as a “natural person” is transformed into a “supernatural person”! The power of God at work in the lives of people is no small thing. For these weeks, we aimed to be increasingly sensitive to His Spirit’s teaching and shaping of us through wonderful works and astounding assessments of who are “in Christ”.
Pentecost: What Can This Mean?
Psalms Speak (July-August)
[Two summers ago, we spent time in the Psalms. Here is a second installment, completely different from the first!]
Psalm 139: Fearfully and Wonderfully Made
Psalm 73: Then I Entered Your Sanctuary
Psalms 130-131: Hope in the Lord
Psalm 88: When Darkness is My Friend (B. Schwarz)
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Christ’s Creed (September-October)
If Christ were summarizing the heart of his teaching into a concise and clarifying statement, what would it be? That might be accurately called his “creed”. And if he believed that a condensed and impacting creed might focus his transforming work in people’s lives, how might that unfold? In these weeks, we’ll consider how the Greatest Commandments are involved in re-creating the followers of Jesus.
The First Line (recording is unavailable, due to technical troubles)
Panel Discussion: My Life as a Disciple
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The Hearts of God and His (November)
The short book of Jonah may be one of the Bible’s most provocative. Its core message quickly reveals itself as an undeniable emphasis on the depth of God’s desire for those who live unaware of His loving plans and presence, and on His insistence that those people who bear His name must live with a similar passion.
The key question of Jonah is NOT: Can a man fit inside a fish?
The key question is: Can God fit His heart into His people?
For three weeks, we’ll allow God to assess the space within US for such a transplant?
Jonah 4: Rising Up or Falling Back
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Christ the King (W. Grocott)
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Unto Us A Child is Born (November-December)
The Advent season is traditionally a time of increased spiritual focus. This emphasis falls particularly along themes of anticipation and preparation. For what do we wait? Not WHAT; rather WHOM. We wait for the Promised One, for the Chosen One. We wait for the one spoken of in Isaiah 9:6, where he is called, “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” How might we increasingly experience each of these aspects of God’s presence in our lives?
Wonderful Counselor (accompanying Prezi HERE)
Mighty God (accompanying Prezi HERE)
Everlasting Father (accompanying Prezi HERE)
Prince of Peace (accompanying Prezi HERE)