I'm made a big deal about our first and only allegiance being to the Kingdom of God, in my sermon on Sunday I addressed it maybe a bit too harshly/strong. In this Coffee with Alan, I talk about the conversation of balanced yet not necessarily divided devotion to God, Family, and Country and how we as believers hold a primary allegiance to God and His Kingdom first, and our love for everything else is served through that lens of citizens of God's Kingdom.

What is "apathy"? This question lies at the heart of our future as individuals and has eternal consequences for future generations. We learn a hard, but good lesson from Rehoboam and Jeroboam in 1 Kings 12 & 2 Chronicles 10. Apathy becomes simply focused our lives upon that which doesn't bring glory to God. This is so much bigger of a conversation than the simply things that are typically considered "religious." This is just the beginning of this conversation, but it benefits our lives and the generations to come for us to think through and carefully and prayerfully consider these concepts today.

Can God dwell with humanity? Solomon realized His temple was far insufficient for the task...but is Jesus?

The Magi were a religious caste from Persia, but who were they and why are they figure in the birth narrative of Jesus? Come discover this wonderful truth of God's purposes in bringing the Magi to become part of the gospel story of Jesus!

In the midst of the differences between the grey hairs and young hairs, how do we actually CULTIVATE a Culture of Wisdom and transformation?

“People today care less about growing up or gaining wisdom and far more about staying young, maintaining relevancy, and dressing according to the latest youth fad.” (“Pastor Paul”, by Scot McKight) In America today we have a culture defined by Juvenilization - the shifting of the focus of culture from the older/elder to the younger. What happens when the youthification of culture and the church takes hold? What happens when Peter Pan becomes everyday reality?

As we live our lives, often we can just simply live without a keen self-awareness of our personality, how we interact with the world around us, why we respond in certain ways to people or situations, so in this coffee with Alan time, we talk about the 5 Reasons to Develop a Keen Self-Awareness, in order to "pay careful attention to how we live" as Paul exhorts us in Ephesians 5:15-17.

Is there anything worth giving thanks for this year? Sure, a roof over your head, food to eat, friends and family…but if these circumstances change…what is it that truly brings a feeling of thanksgiving even when your life is tried and tested? Come find out in this week’s Coffee with Alan.

Psalm 121 - Where does our help come from?! If you've been paying any sort of attention to the news, your news feed, and the attitudes and movements of humanity, this world is in utter chaos now more than ever. What is the perspective we as the Church of Jesus Christ should have amidst the shifting sands of politics, economics, and culture all around us? Faith...faith where? Christ. So get your studded tires installed, put on your spiked ice shoes, and place your faith in the only firm foundation in this life...the LORD.