In His incarnation, Jesus not only identified with our humanity but also revealed the true essence of what it means to be human. As we begin Advent in our Like Us series, Pastor Ryan Schlachter highlights the deep significance of our Savior’s arrival on  earth — inviting us to ask, What does it truly mean for us to be fully human, just as He intended?

Children often ask insightful questions about their environments and how things work, but often we lose that curiosity as we grow up. In our relationship with God, it can become easy to have a diminished curiosity, but there is so much value in asking God questions and sharing in life with him. In this week’s Leadership Lesson, Kids Ministry Director Steph Rivas shares three ways to reignite curiosity in your faith today.

We are invited to live in God’s house as celebrated, loved children. Joyful and free, to ultimately become like the Father to a hurting world: generous, patient, welcoming, gracious and full of mercy. Through Jesus, we are empowered and propelled into the good works he’s created in advance for us to do. In this Sunday’s message, Pastor Kathryn Myers surfaces a soul-piercing question from this parable: will we mindfully say yes everyday to the many invitations God is extending us?

On this week’s Leadership Lesson, Pastor Ryan Schlachter talks about the importance of faithfulness that is only shaped over time. While our culture places importance on instant growth, 2 Peter 1 states that we have everything we need by His divine power—and growth occurs through incremental steps faithfulness.

Ecclesiastes states that life is fleeing, like a vapor. What we do with our life matters, and we have the opportunity to waste it or to invest it. We have a responsibility to be intentional with the time God has given us. Instead of spending our time chasing accolades and worldly success, He invites us to use it to sow into the eternal. In this week’s message, guest speaker Micah McElveen encourages us on ways to steward our lives here on earth.

As followers of Jesus, our identity is not defined by achievements, influence, or anything of worldly value. Above all, we are sons and daughters of God, graced with a unique purpose. We are entrusted with gifts and responsibilities, and how we respond to these reveals the condition of our hearts. In our series, Wasted Grace, Pastor Luis Guerrero uses the parable of the Prodigal Son to guide us in understanding what it means to live a life that recognizes God's grace and embraces the purpose He has given each of us.

At our ALLIN Night, Pastor Ryan Schlachter encouraged us that we are obligated as believers to continue to mature in our faith so that we don’t fall away into apostasy. Being able to eat solid, spiritual food is not achieved by becoming really intelligent but by becoming really obedient. May we be a people who walk in faithfulness to God more and more each day.

Idols can be produced when good things can become ultimate things. More often than not, they stem from a deeper desire that can only be filled by our connection with God. On this week's Leadership Lesson, Pastor Amy Perez breaks down idols and how they can take hold of our lives.

Grace is a gift — God’s closeness to us is pure grace. But as the parable of the Prodigal Son reveals, we can miss the fullness of it. In the parable, Jesus shows how both sons waste the grace of their father’s love, whether through rebellion or resentment. As we begin our new series, Wasted Grace, Pastor Luis Guerrero reminds us that our identity as His children remains unchanged, and we serve a God who longs to be close to us.

As much as the world talks about money, so does the Bible. Jesus serves as our guide, helping us become not only wise stewards of our finances but also generous givers, for generosity reflects the very heart of God. In concluding our series The Lowly, Pastor Ryan Schlachter emphasizes that spiritual maturity is evident in how we approach generosity toward God and others. True humility involves letting God have the final say over our finances, inviting Him into our financial decisions with open hearts.