Generations Community Church

We've all known people like Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent who have been marked with a curse or marked with a blessing. And in our community, their stories have been shared in two places: (1) In our county jail – one STORY after ANOTHER - of men addicted to drugs, because they are trying to mask the pain of their upbringing and lack, and (2) At Asbury’s outpouring – one STORY after ANOTHER – of men and women who, often in spite of or instead of – are now redeemed, forgiven, beloved, treasured, and set apart for God’s work. In this message, Max Vanderpool maps out five (5) key elements of a Biblical blessing.

A part of our identity is forged in our childhood - from what we receive (or don't receive) from our parents. But it shouldn't surprise us when we receive a curse from our parents. Why? Humanity's first parents, Adam and Eve, decided that they couldn’t trust God, they had to figure things out for themselves, they had to determine what’s right and wrong, and they wanted to be in charge – so they took matters into their own hands. And they spent the rest of their lives laboring under a curse.

And so do we. The good news is that God can take a curse and turn it into a blessing. And it all starts with a decision.

A part of our identity is forged in our childhood - from what we receive (or don't receive) from our parents. But it shouldn't surprise us when we receive a curse from our parents. Why? Humanity's first parents, Adam and Eve, decided that they couldn’t trust God, they had to figure things out for themselves, they had to determine what’s right and wrong, and they wanted to be in charge – so they took matters into their own hands. And they spent the rest of their lives laboring under a curse.

And so do we. The good news is that God can take a curse and turn it into a blessing. And it all starts with a decision.

Unlike traditional cultures, we tell people in America to find certain dreams, feelings, or intuitions they have (on the inside) and assert them, express them, follow them, and MAKE them HAPPEN! Don’t let anyone (else) tell you what to do (or how to live your life)! Especially your parents. But this way of identity formation nearly always leads to comparison, anxiety, and condemnation. In this message, Max Vanderpool identifies the PRIMARY way we go about identity formation in American and why it (simply) doesn't work.

Unlike traditional cultures, we tell people in America to find certain dreams, feelings, or intuitions they have (on the inside) and assert them, express them, follow them, and MAKE them HAPPEN! Don’t let anyone (else) tell you what to do (or how to live your life)! Especially your parents. But this way of identity formation nearly always leads to comparison, anxiety, and condemnation. In this message, Max Vanderpool identifies the PRIMARY way we go about identity formation in American and why it (simply) doesn't work.

Adults and students alike are plagued with social media feeds of everyone else's best moments and highlights, perfectly cut and curtailed to LOOK amazing. As you scroll through, you wonder why YOU have to struggle so much when it seems like everyone else is flying. But this way of living is fragile and exhausting...and it's NOT the Gospel way. In this message, Max Vanderpool, explores what it means to be BORN AGAIN and how it's more than just going to heaven when you die.

Adults and students alike are plagued with social media feeds of everyone else's best moments and highlights, perfectly cut and curtailed to LOOK amazing. As you scroll through, you wonder why YOU have to struggle so much when it seems like everyone else is flying. But this way of living is fragile and exhausting...and it's NOT the Gospel way. In this message, Max Vanderpool, explores what it means to be BORN AGAIN and how it's more than just going to heaven when you die.

For the past several decades, pastors, church leaders, and Christian conferences have told folks to get up early in the morning. Read your Bible (alone). Pray (alone). Journal and reflect on your life, your life issues, and where God might be at work in your life and the world around you (alone). So when Americans READ or HEAR Ephesians 6 and the Apostle Paul's admonition to put on the armor of God, they think, "Oh, yeah, I should do that. I should have done that this morning...when I was alone." But is that what Paul meant? In this message, Max Vanderpool unpacks some of the larger issues

For the past several decades, pastors, church leaders, and Christian conferences have told folks to get up early in the morning. Read your Bible (alone). Pray (alone). Journal and reflect on your life, your life issues, and where God might be at work in your life and the world around you (alone). So when Americans READ or HEAR Ephesians 6 and the Apostle Paul's admonition to put on the armor of God, they think, "Oh, yeah, I should do that. I should have done that this morning...when I was alone." But is that what Paul meant? In this message, Max Vanderpool unpacks some of the larger issues

American Protestants divide over all kinds of issues: what type of music to use, what type of programming to employ, whether women can be pastors, and whether speaking in tongues is a thing or a thing that's over. The trouble is we value being right MORE than we value being together. And if Jesus and the Apostle Paul are to be believed, God cares more about unity than about being right.