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From David in Psalm 131, we see a beautiful submission of pride, ego & ambition. Instead, we see a renewed heart that is (i) humble, (ii) content, and (iii) hopeful. There's much we can gain by spending a few minutes considering this together. Let's unpack this and more in today's message…

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A song of ascents. Of David.

3 Israel, put your hope in the Lord

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But here's the thing: There are some deeply important aspects of God (and our relationship with him) that can only really be experienced & learned when going through trials, hardships and life's "death valleys". In Ps. 77 we'll explore three movements of this trial, how they relate to God and what we're invited to learn about him in the “messy middle”.

Let's unpack this and more in today's message…

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1 I cried out to God for help;

3 I remembered you, God, and I groaned;

7 “Will the Lord reject forever?

10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal:

13 Your ways, God, are holy.

16 The waters saw you, God,

20 You led your people like a flock

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Sure, that's the Easter story. But how does it impact our world today? And if Jesus can conquer death & sin by rising from the dead, how does this shape our knowledge or certainty of what Jesus WILL do? Especially in the middle of these darkest valleys, crazy storms and life's all-consuming uncertainties?

Said another way, WWJD—how can we know for sure? Let's unpack this and more in today's Easter message…

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The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

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In these recent weeks we've all come to starkly face the reality that our “normal lives” are more fragile than we thought. And how quickly an “invisible enemy” (Covid-19) can turn our worlds upside down with uncertainty, anxiety, fear, anger...

But incredible news: We can STILL have hope. In the midst of it all, we can still remain calmly anchored to confidence, certainty and HOPE. Why? Because our hope isn't on seen things either, but on an unseen God who rules all. And we know his character: He's always good & kind, and invariably works all things together for our good, even when we can't understand or see how.

Are we “feasting” on the right things today? Let's unpack this and more in today's message…

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Psalm 23:5 (NIV) “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

THIS EPISODE:

Uncertainty & anxiety seem to have a "choke hold" on our world right now, right? With no apparent end in sight, where can we find and experience genuine HOPE right now?

Let's please invest a few minutes together with Psalm 23. Let's look with fresh eyes at our Good Shepherd, and explore how profoundly he cares for us—with kindness and tenderness—even as we face adversity, uncertainty and fear. Let's look with fresh eyes at how and why we're able to "fear no evil", even in the midst of the darkest "death valleys" we're facing each day.

Let's unpack this and more together in today's timely message...

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Psalm 23 (New International Version)

A psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

THIS EPISODE:

Ask yourself: Is Jesus in today's storm? There's no way around it: Our world's suddenly turned upside down by Covid-19. But where is Jesus in all this? In the midst of constant chaos & confusion all around us, how should we respond? WWJD? (yes, cliché—but it's the RIGHT question, isnt' it?)

In this timely message, we ask you to consider:

Let's unpack this and more together in today's timely messag

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Jesus Calms the Storm

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

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Within about the last week, the impact of the Covid-19 virus has been widespread and felt by everyone across our nation & world in unexpected ways. How should we feel & respond to this, as Christ followers? God didn't give us a spirit of fear, right? But...what else then, in these tumultuous, uncertain times? We invite you to join us for a few minutes diving a bit deeper into The Lord's Prayer together and how we can process this through the lens of Jesus.…

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Matthew 6:9-13 New International Version (NIV)

“‘Our Father in heaven,

THIS EPISODE:

To help explain the Kingdom of God, it's place and importance in our lives, Jesus uses several analogies in Mark 4—a lamp, a tiny mustard seed, a soil producing a crop by itself...

In this episode we look at these more closely and come to see 4 important Kingdom of God realities that every Christ follower should understand:

The Kingdom of God IS TO BE REVEALED.

Let's unpack this and more in today's message…

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Using Your Light

21 He also said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it to be put on a lampstand? 22 For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing concealed that will not be brought to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen.” 24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear. By the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and more will be added to you. 25 For whoever has, more will be given to him, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”

The Parable of the Growing Seed

26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head. 29 As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to describe it? 31 It’s like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. 32 And when sown, it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants, and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest in its shade.”

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So, what are the differences? What does each typically look like in today's world, and—most importantly—what kind of “heart” do YOU really have? It matters, more than you might think. Let's unpack this and more in today's message...

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The Parable of the Sower

4 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. 2 And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. 8 And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” 9 And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

The Purpose of the Parables

10 And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. 11 And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, 12 so that

“‘they may indeed see but not perceive,

13 And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. 16 And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. 17 And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.[a] 18 And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, 19 but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 20 But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

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Can you be in close proximity to Jesus, and still not follow Jesus?

Learn more in this episode, and consider Jesus' interactions with the (i) FANS, (ii) FOLLOWERS, and (iii) FAULT-FINDERS around him.

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Mark 3:7-35 (English Standard Version—ESV)

A Great Crowd Follows Jesus

7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea 8 and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. 9 And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they crush him, 10 for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 And he strictly ordered them not to make him known.

The Twelve Apostles

13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot,[a] 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

20 Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” 23 And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. 27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.

28 “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— 30 for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus' Mother and Brothers

31 And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. 32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers[b] are outside, seeking you.” 33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34 And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

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