Keep Your Eyes on Jesus. In both the Old Testament reading and the Gospel reading for Sunday, we’re given some very harsh realities from the Lord. In Isaiah 5, we hear the disappointment He feels after giving us so much over and over again – and yet… His desire is to love us and forgive us. That’s what He wants to do! In Luke 12, Jesus talks about how tough it is to follow Him. It’s challenging. Yet… keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. The writer to the Hebrews in chapters 11 and 12 talks about what the Old Testament people of faith endured, and yet they didn’t give up – they had faith, even in the hardships of life, they kept their eyes fixed on the Promise, the Messiah, who we know to be Jesus. This is a message full of encouragement to not give up, especially in the face of the trials, challenges, and hardships of life.

Live By Faith. No one would debate that life these days is challenging.  But as followers of Jesus, our calling – to live by faith. That sounds great but what exactly does that mean and how do we do it? That’s what we’ll explore this Sunday as we’re inspired by God’s people of old from the Bible’s great “Hall of Faith” chapter in Hebrews 11. Jesus adds another dimension to what living by faith looks like in the Gospel from Luke 12. 

“Eat, Drink, and be Merry!” Yep, you read that right! Curious?  “Eat, drink, and be merry” is undoubtedly a theme for life that many either strive for or hold to. But is that really what we’re called to do – to take life easy? Not according to Jesus and the story He told in the Gospel reading. We hear a similar sentiment from the writer of Ecclesiastes. St. Paul expounds more on this in Colossians 3 as far as where our hearts and where our minds should be. As always, our Lord and His Word (through St. Paul), speak so clearly to us when it comes to the lives we’ve been given and the lives we’ve been called to lead.  Give it a listen!

You Only Need ONE Thing. Our Nuggets of Truth summer series continues as we focus on some of our Lord’s words in Colossians 1 and the account of Jesus in the home of Mary and Martha. What we hear has to do with some of the basics of life. We’ll have the opportunity to think about priorities and about Jesus.  Don't miss this one!

Bear Fruit – It’s Not That Hard… The Lord tells us in the Old Testament reading from Deuteronomy 30 that the commands He’s given us are given out of His great love for us – the Word is very near us and His Word is not too hard for us! Paul writes in Colossians 1 how the Gospel is bearing fruit and so it is that we, too, are to be bearing fruit by every good work we do. Jesus puts this in very practical terms by way of telling the story of “The Good Samaritan.” This story is fruit-bearing exemplified!

Nuggets of Truth series - ""Who are You Trying to Please?"  St. Paul speaks pretty clearly when it comes to who we should be trying to please regarding the lives we live – and why. Life isn’t about us. It’s not about doing what makes us happy. It’s not about following all the rules. It’s about Jesus. It’s about our relationship with Him and how that impacts our relationships with each other.  In this week's message, Glen shares the practical implications for our lives in a powerful reading from Galatians 6.  

On the eve of our nation’s celebration of independence, we hear from St. Paul in his letter to the Galatians about what real freedom is all about. We’re told in the first verse of chapter 5, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” Then in verses 13-25, Paul goes on to explain in very practical terms what our freedom in Christ is all about. There’s some contrast and certainly some parallels as we think about the lives we lead and the freedoms we enjoy in the United States. 

This week's message from Pastor Glen is another Nugget of Truth - "You Can’t Do It." Is “You Can’t Do It,” really a Nugget of Truth?? And if it is, it sure doesn’t sound very encouraging… What the Old Testament prophet Elijah experienced when it came to some highs and lows are some pretty relatable experiences. What’s interesting here is that no, the Lord wasn’t overly encouraging to Elijah – but what He reminded Elijah (and us), truly are some Nuggets of Truth that we can take home with us!

This Sunday, we began our new summer series, Nuggets of Truth. We’re going to lay the foundation for the summer by talking about what “truth” is, particularly as Jesus expressed it. The cool thing is that Jesus didn’t just talk about it but He provided some pretty powerful gifts to each one of us when it comes to Truth.   We just don't know THE TRUTH as if it were a "thing," we know THE TRUTH because Jesus IS TRUTH!  The truth isn't a what, but a who!  Listen for a good foundation in knowing TRUTH in life!  

Pentecost is all about the miracle of the Holy Spirit. Jesus had promised it before He went to the cross and the coming of the Spirit was dramatic! How is the Spirit continuing to breakthrough in our lives and in our world today? Jesus talked of what the Spirit would bring, and we’ll hone in on those elements from John 14 and Acts 2 as we consider the ongoing work of the Spirit today, breaking through hearts and lives with the Gospel.