Sermon from Sunday, June 12, 2016 by Bryce Kittinger. Scripture 1 Samuel 17.

Sermon from Sunday, June 5, 2016 by Bert Reynolds.

Sermon from Sunday, May 15, 2016 by Bert Reynolds.

Sermon from Sunday, May 22, 2016 by Bert Reynolds.

Sermon from Sunday, May 8, 2016 by Bert Reynolds. Scripture: Philippians 2 Matthew 5.

Sermon from Senior Sunday, May 1, 2015 by Bryce Kittinger. Scripture Matthew 4 John 1. Click Here to Read More

Sermon from Sunday, April 24, 2016 by Bert Reynolds. Scripture: Philippians 4:10-23.

Jealousy, envy, and dissatisfaction with what we have compared to someone

else has long been a problem. This is enough of an issue that God felt the need

to dedicate one of his 10 well-known "Thou Shalt Not's" against it.

It's number ten, actually. The command against coveting what belongs to

another. But Paul has landed on the secret to curbing our out of control

cravings and covetousness, to holding off frequent dissatisfaction and

misplaced desires, to ending our envy, jealousy, and non-stop comparisons. The

secret is contentment (Philippians 2:10-13).

    Contentment is such an interesting concept. It means

satisfaction, a peaceful happiness with what you've got or who you are. At

least that's what it means for us. Paul actually grabs onto a word that was

very popular in his day among the philosophers and stoics. Autárkēs, what we

translate as contentment, is a very strong belief in training oneself to be

self-sufficient so that no matter what, one could take care of oneself and be

happy and satisfied. 

    Paul is a big believer in this concept with one

slight, all-important distinction. Paul doesn't buy into self-reliance, not

ultimately. He believes in total God-reliance. That's the meaning behind his

well-known, often misused quote, "I can do all things through Christ who

gives me strength." This verse isn't about athletic achievement or

financial accumulation or career accolades. It's an unwavering belief that God

can empower us to persevere in faith no matter what the circumstances. It's an

unyielding conviction that God can fill us with peace and joy in every

situation in life. In a world that constantly tells us we need "more"

to be happy, contentment is far from easy. Yet it is absolutely possible

through Christ who gives us strength.

God's goal has always been bigger than to save us and then leave us exactly who we are and how we are until he eventually whisks us off to heaven when we die (although being with God when we die is certainly an amazing part of the story).God's goal, God's salvation is that despite our sins and shortcomings, by his grace and mercy we are becoming more and more what we were created to be. That is, we are becoming more and more like Jesus every day until the day Christ comes again to perfect us. That takes participating in Jesus' life, suffering, death, and resurrection. Click to Read More

I've had a few run-ins with famous people through the years. I knew quite a bit about each of them. I could tell you not just about things they had done, but also about experiences I had in my life connected to them-music I listened to, games I watched, championships I rooted for. Yet as much as I knew about them, I didn't know them, and they absolutely didn't know me from Adam. Click to Read More