Today we continue our series, Connecting With God, Part III, with a focus on prayer. Prayer connects us to God, plain and simple. Pastor John will share from his heart "Lessons I've Learned About Prayer From My Son Jer" and pass those lessons to us, teaching us to make prayer saturate every part and every moment of our lives. Let's ask God what needs to happen in our lives to make prayer a priourity and together becom committed to a new season of prayer!

Today we begin a new series, Connecting with God. Southside's statement of purpose is Connecting people with God, each other and our community and world. We'll look at the first part, Connecting with God, to set a foundation for who we are and where we are headed. How do we connect with God? What does connection with God look like? How do we stay connected? These are questions we will explore in the coming weeks of this new year. God, we pray 2017 will be a year of intentional, consistent connection with You!

Happy New Year! today we reflect on the year past and look ahead to 2017 with anticipation of the inevitable changes that await every one of us. Are we ready to embrace change and transformation? The Bible talks a lot about change - and Jesus promises to "make all things new". Are we flexible enough, like new wineskin, to accept the changes that God has in store for us as part of His perfect plan? Are WE ready to change?

Pastor John's message this morning is Part II of James 5, reminding us as we reflect backward to Bethlehem and Jesus' birth this Christmas season, that we also need to look forward to New Jerusalem and Christ's glorious return. Joy to the World, the Lord is coming!

Today we look at an important theme from James 5: Patience. Do you consider yourself patient, slow to anger and even-tempered when things don't go your way? Showing love to others and not grumbling in difficult circumstances requires patience, which we are only able to achieve because of our connection to Christ. Jesus shows us how to move from grumbling to gratitude by moving from impatience to patience. Are you connected to the Vine?