This week we wrapped up the book of Ezra by seeing how God’s people responded when called out for their compromise. Through godly sorrow, honest confession, and a holy sacrifice, we can undergo significant renewal when we have gotten way off course. May we posture our lives before the Lord in such a way that we can be corrected and changed when we lose our way.

Ezra is now confronted with the brokenness and sin of the people of God. Instead of blaming others, or ignoring the problem, he faces it head-on. Through this story, we get a powerful example of how we should deal with the brokenness in our own lives and in the church. May we all approach sin and repentance the way Ezra did with honesty, humility, and true godly sorrow, so that through the power and grace of Jesus we may be forgiven and changed.

Just as Ezra was called to journey from Babylonia to Jerusalem, the Lord will often call us to risky journeys of faith. May we learn from Ezra’s example to use wisdom to plan well in preparation, while ultimately trusting in the Lord and not our own strength. It’s tempting to just leap out in faith unprepared, or give ourselves a false sense of security by trusting our own wisdom and planning. But God would have us plan and prepare, and then in prayer trust Him to guide and protect us all along the way.

In Ezra chapter 7, we move into the period in Israel’s history when Ezra leads a new wave of returning exiles. He brings with him a sound anchoring in the Word of God and needed reforms to the people of God. All that Ezra will experience and accomplish comes through God’s good hand upon him, and his own heart posture to submit to the Lord's yoke, through his “skilled” study, application, and teaching of God’s Word. May we adopt a similar heart posture as we live under the gracious hand of God, whose yoke is easy and burden is light!

In Ezra chapter 6, we see the conclusion of this long journey of rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem. This leads to a time of dedication, being set apart as God’s people, and worshipping Him in joyful celebration. Now, because of the salvation we have through Jesus, God’s Presence resides with and in us. We are His Temple. May we be dedicated to Him - cleansed, set apart, and full of joy in His Presence!

In Ezra chapter 5, after a 16 year stoppage, God’s people obey His call to get back to the construction of the Temple. They face immediate opposition to this work, but due to God’s faithful presence and His word of assurance through Haggai the prophet, the people find the courage to continue the work. By God’s grace and through a surprising and often painful process, the obstacles we face become a compassionate gift that exposes our fears, sins, and idols. Our God will redeem and use these difficulties to help us realign in faithful obedience, so we learn to entrust the things we cannot see or control into the hands of the One who is always Faithful.

This week, Shawn Stutz teaches on Ezra 5: 1-5 and explored how the Israelites stopped rebuilding the temple for 16 years because comfort, distraction, fear, and spiritual disengagement slowly replaced obedience to God. Through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, God called His people to return to Him, reminding them that obedience is not about striving harder but about living a “with God” life empowered by His Spirit. True obedience flows from a relationship with God, affects the people around us, and becomes possible “not by might nor by power, but by God’s Spirit.”

This week, special guest Pastor Dave Buehring joins us and teaches on the pacing of Jesus. Jesus modeled a life that was purposeful, unhurried, and fully surrendered to the Father’s will. Rather than being driven by pressure, demands, or urgency, He lived from a place of secure identity, obedience, healthy rhythms of rest, and intentional investment in others. The message challenges us to compare our pace with the pace

of Jesus and consider whether we are truly following Him. As disciples, we are invited

to slow down, listen to God, serve others humbly, and multiply the life of Christ in those

around us.

This week, Krystal walked through Ezra 4 and the opposition the Israelites faced as they rebuilt the temple, showing that the resistance was not simply political but spiritual. Zerubbabel refused to let the surrounding pagan nations join in the building because God’s people were being called back to a life of holiness, devotion, and being set apart unto the Lord alone. She emphasized that God was not interested in outward success mixed with compromise, but in a purified people whose worship and lives belonged fully to Him. Just as Israel struggled under pressure from the surrounding culture, the church today faces the temptation to blend in with the world rather than remain distinct and shaped by Christ. Krystal challenged believers to examine where compromise, fear, influence, or divided loyalty may be shaping their lives more than devotion to God. Even though choosing holiness creates opposition and contested ground, God calls His people to trust Him as their protection and presence, just as He promised to be a wall of fire around Jerusalem. The message ended with an encouragement to live boldly set apart, displaying the love and glory of God in a world that desperately needs a true picture of Jesus instead of a reflection of itself.

This passage reminds us that God is not calling His people to admire the work, but to join it. As the foundation of the temple was laid, the people worshiped in the middle of uncertainty. While some grieved the loss of former glory, God was inviting them to release the past and step into the new thing He was building. In the same way, we are called to follow Jesus, be shaped by Him, and actively participate in His mission— trusting that what He is building now will carry a greater glory.