Gracehouse

How we handle trials, affliction, and suffering in the Christian life matters. Paul gives us the perspective that we can rejoice, even in our suffering, because of what God can do through our suffering. In the end, if we allow our hearts to be trained, it produces hope.

As Gracehouse celebrates its 5th birthday we remember some of the lessons that God has taught us over the years.

We serve a God who works across generations. From Adam to Abraham. From Abraham to Jesus. From Jesus to us... it's clear that God works across the ages to bring about his kingdom. How can we begin to think about and partner with God in serving the generations to come.

This psalm is an invitation from the LORD to partner with Him in a project to bring His fully glory to the whole earth. Here is our purpose; here is our great hope; and, here is the very air we breathe as His people - living in harmony with His glory.

Just like our physical senses can become dull or inadequate so our spiritual senses can do the same. So how then do we have 'eyes to see and ears to hear'. Jesus unlocks the secret in his parable of the sower. Where he gives us a paradigm for understanding and receiving revelation from God.

We understand instinctively that love is important to life... and especially the Christian life. In this sermon we examine Paul's exhortation to the Corinthians that love is more important that anything. We love because God is love.

In the opening pages of our story we find that God created mankind to be his "image bearers" in the earth. By our very nature we will begin to reflect what we worship. So it's important that we are deliberate about our worship to Jesus as the Son of God who perfectly reveals the Father to us.

When we submit our finances to the Lord and are prepared to give generously we can expect God to bless us. We find though that those blessings often come, not in the form of bigger bank accounts (though that is possible) but in an overflow of good works, righteousness, and thanksgiving to God. We as a people should expect to be blessed when we partner with the work of God.

As we continue our sermon series on money we talk about how we go about giving to God. Our heart posture and approach to being faithful generous stewards of our finances is important.

We look at the story of Hannah and discuss how the Lord works in mysterious ways. It is ok if we don't understand it all. It's ok if we feel an assortment of emotions, we just need to bring them to the Lord and not run anywhere else. May we learn from Hannah's example, to be a people who pray and release our burdens to God, trusting in his faithfulness and unfailing love all the days of our lives.