Compassion Church's (SJ) Podcast

Ghost Stories | Week 2: What Went Wrong?

We don't have to look far to recognize that the world isn't as it should be. But before we can understand what's gone wrong, we need to understand what God intended in the first place.

This week, we explore two biblical ideas: shalom and sin. Shalom describes God's vision for a world marked by wholeness, peace, justice, and flourishing. Sin is more than breaking rules; it disrupts that goodness, distorts our relationships, and interferes with the people we were created to be.

As we continue our series on the Holy Spirit, we consider why we can't talk about sin apart from God's love and delight in His creation—or talk about God's goodness while ignoring the brokenness around us and within us.

God created us for shalom. Sin disrupts it. But God hasn't given up on His creation, or on us.

Where does God live?

We often think of the Holy Spirit as the mysterious member of the Trinity—harder to picture and sometimes harder to understand. But Scripture tells a remarkable story of a God who keeps coming closer: dwelling with His people in the tabernacle, coming among us in Jesus, and then making His home in us through the Holy Spirit.

As we kick off Ghost Stories: A Not-So-Subtle Series on the Holy Spirit, we explore who the Holy Spirit is, why Jesus could actually say it was better for Him to go, and what it means that the same God whose glory filled the tabernacle now dwells in His people.

The Holy Spirit isn't an optional extra in the Christian life. He is God present with us.

In the final week of Analog Life, we turn to community and the local church. Hebrews 10 moves from the invitation to draw near to God to the call to draw near to one another—encouraging, challenging, and helping each other grow. We also look at Proverbs 27 and James 2 to explore how God uses relationships to support us, sharpen us, and sometimes smooth out our rough edges. Church is not simply a place where we consume spiritual content; it is a people with whom we learn to follow Jesus. What does it look like to move from attendance toward belonging?  Analog Life W4 Q

We live in a world that values speed, efficiency, and immediate results, but spiritual formation rarely works that way. In Week 3 of Analog Life, we begin with the rhythms of creation and rest, then move to Jesus’ image of the vine and branches in John 15 and the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5. God does not call us to frantic spiritual production. He calls us to remain, rest, respond, and trust the slow work of the Spirit. Growth may not always be visible day by day, but slow growth is still growth. The goal is not maximum speed or maximum output, but faithfulness and growth over the long haul.   

What gets our attention does more than occupy our time—it helps shape what we believe, what we desire, the choices we make, and ultimately who we become. In Week 2 of Analog Life, we look at Romans 12, 1 Samuel 8, and 1 Corinthians 6 to ask what is forming us. Technology can intensify this process through algorithms, notifications, news, comparison, and endless input, but the deeper issue is not the phone—it is attention. What are we repeatedly looking at, listening to, and allowing to define what feels normal? And how can we become more intentional about what deserves our attention? 

We live in a world that makes it easy to be everywhere except where we actually are. In Week 1 of Analog Life, we begin in Genesis 2 and look at the kind of life God created us for: embodied, rooted in a place, connected to other people, and lived in the presence of God. Technology can be a gift, but distraction is bigger than our phones. Sometimes it looks like hurry, anxiety, comparison, productivity, or simply being physically present while our minds are somewhere else. What might change if we learned to notice our bodies, our “garden,” the people in front of us, and the God who is already here?

Ever thought about if the gospels were a movie or series, what genre they would be? Today Jessica presents a message about the book of John, the last one in the series "One Hit Wonders" before we start our new series, Analog Life.

Join us as Pastor Jessica delivers a sermon on Luke.

Today Jessica delivers a message about Mark 16.