This week, we continue our series on leadership as modeled by Jesus. As a reminder, Jesus shows us that good leadership is about seeing people based on their potential, not by the names they have given themselves or been given by others. Good leadership takes pain and transforms it into possibility. This week, Pastor Sarah Heath looks at the conversion story of Paul to see how a life lived in the way of Jesus requires us to move from what is comfortable, to what has the power to help many. Paul will learn there must be movement in his life after encountering Jesus. A good leader helps us see where we are is not where we should stay. Even if we don't think of ourselves as leaders, we are all being invited into something more!

Leadership development seems to be a buzz phrase lately. No matter your stage of life or type of work, you're probably being offered leadership development to help you become a better leader. From mentorship to apprenticeship, it seems like we're all looking to follow a good leader and become someone worth following ourselves. But, what is healthy leadership? If we say we follow Jesus as a leader, how does he teach us to be a good leader and follow healthy leaders as well? Over the next four weeks, we'll be learning how Jesus leads by example, so we can become better leaders while also discerning who is worth following.

Listen in on this hopeful conversation on addiction as Chris Logan shares his story of recovery and how people are finding life-changing freedom.

With 12 years of sobriety, Chris Logan, CADC-II, ICADC, is the Program Supervisor at Simple Recovery, an intimate, client-centered licensed addiction treatment center that distinctively treats addiction and co-occurring disorders in Huntington Beach, California. His experience as both a counselor and case manager has equipped him with a uniquely powerful way to connect with each client. Chris oversees the residential and outpatient programming, providing one-on-one support to clients in early sobriety and overseeing the clinical programming at each facility.

You've heard about human trafficking and sex trafficking in the news, but do you really understand what it is and how it happens? Hear directly from an expert on the front lines who is working to prevent this heinous crime and helping restore victims to become true survivors. 

Amber Davies, MSW, LCSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has been the Director of Clinical Programs at Saving Innocence since 2014. Amber began her career working in group homes and alongside law enforcement in a juvenile diversion program before becoming licensed in 2011. Her professional roles include a therapist for foster youth, a professor of social work education and Team Leader, managing teams both locally and in Australia. As a part of Saving Innocence, Amber oversees a team of advocates, trains front line responders, service providers, and foster/ resource families in the best practices of working with Commercially Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC) and youth. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Westmont College, and a Master of Social Work degree from CSU, Long Beach.

Justin Massey is a program associate for Equality California responsible for organizing Southern California Pride events and supporting the organization's healthcare, immigration and safe schools initiatives. Prior to joining Equality California, Justin worked as an independent political campaign consultant for local progressive candidates in Orange County. He is active in local politics and non-profit organizations including as a board member of the Orange County Young Democrats and an active partner of the LGBT Center OC. Justin graduated with a bachelor's degree in political science from Wheaton College in Illinois, where he came out, began his LGBTQ activism and started the first-ever LGBTQ student group at the school which was ranked in 2011 by the Princeton Review as the "#1 Least LGBTQ-Friendly Campus" in the nation.

For years, we've been hearing about all the challenges with immigration in the United States. Most of us have little first-hand experience with what's happening at our borders, and that's why we are excited to hear from Rev. Dr. Bill Jenkins, founder of Christ Ministry Center, which has provided a "safe harbor" for over 6,000 refugees, immigrants, asylum seekers, migrants in detention, and families broken by deportation. Based in San Diego, his ministry has a working relationship with ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) as they bring families in need to the ministry. He grew up in Mississippi during the 1960s Civil Rights Era, and he earned a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Delta State University, where he did his student teaching at an all African-American high school in the Mississippi Delta in 1969-70. This began a lifelong passion for social justice.

Last Sunday, we learned that everyone has a story when it comes to the challenging topics of our day. Rather than metaphorically standing across the room and assuming what people think, our desire is to walk across the room to seek to understand the experiences of others. This Sunday, we have the opportunity to hear about the experiences of Pastor Cue Jn-Marie, pastor of The Row Church, a church without walls that gathers on Friday evenings on Skid Row in Los Angeles. For the past eighteen years, Cue has advocated for many of the most vulnerable in our society. Through an engaging conversation, our hope is that our minds and hearts will expand, and we'll be motivated by the love of Jesus to take action. 

Whether you're scrolling through social media or watching the evening news, it's easy to see that our nation is facing quite a few challenging issues such as race, immigration, LGBTQIA, human trafficking, and addiction. Unfortunately, many interactions with friends, family, and co-workers can be polarizing when these issues arise and ultimately leave us standing on two different sides of the room. What would it look like to walk across the room and learn their story as a way to begin a healthy conversation? Join Pastor Sarah Heath and David Trotter as we kick off a series of conversations! 

This Sunday, we end our summer series on the life of David - someone described in the Bible as being a man after God's own heart. After last week’s message on David’s actions toward Bathsheba, it's hard to see him in a positive or faithful light - much less someone running after God’s heart. This week, we see how God uses the prophet Nathan to call out David's behavior and how David still has something to teach us even as a flawed hero. His reaction to being called out and Nathan’s ability to hold fast to the unpopular truth can instruct us as we seek to be people “after God’s own heart”. Listen in as Pastor Sarah unpacks this difficult section of Scripture.

In this message, Tim Storey takes a look at a dark episode in the life of one of the Bible's most recognizable heroes. He talks about this story's place in scripture and what we can learn about a God who works in and through fallible people.