As we continue the summer series getting to know each other through listening to the stories and faith journeys of one another, today we get to hear from Marianne Jones! Marianne is simply an amazing human. With a deep passion for the arts, listen in on this important conversation to see how faith and the arts have intersected in Marianne's life. You will be richly blessed - promise!

As we carry on with our summer series discovering the faith journeys of those from within our church community, we get to listen to Amy Purton, a relatively new Christian, share about how she came to faith over the past year and what this journey has meant for her. Amy is a retired palliative care nurse who lives with her husband and two German shepherds in Kaministiqua.

Before theology or anything else concerning our faith exists, there is story. It is the great connective tissue between our lived experience and our beliefs. Guest speaker Brad Woods, professional storyteller, shares a message on the power of story and its ability to impact us, encouraging all of us to be willing to share our stories.

Our summer series commences with a different approach to Sunday sermons. Less sermony and more interview-y/podcast-y. We'll be listening to Pastor Steve have a conversation with various Grassrooters on their faith journeys, showing what faith looks like in the every day life of our community. The first conversation is with Russell Pinson, husband and father of 2 young girls, who shares about the work he's done on the intersection of faith and vocation/work, among other topics. Tune in!

Visiting speaker Michael Pahl suggests truth Christian spirituality should be centered on the person of Jesus - rather than on concerns with who is in and who is out. That said, there are many Jesus' we could "centre" on so which one should we choose? Listen in and find out!

As we close the series, Pastor Steve offers a challenge to consider pain and suffering not as an obstacle to be avoided at all cost in our pursuit of happiness, but, in fact, as a gift to be embraced as it serves as an invitation to deeper meaning and forming us into the likeness of Jesus.

Using John Mark Comer's "multi-polar view" approach to understanding theodicy, Pastor Steve uses the 5 different wills that help us understand, at least in part, why evil and suffering exists in our world, conceding, once more that a perfect theodicy is beyond our grasp as humans. This message helps set up the final message in this series in which we seek to find meaning in our suffering.

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Pastor Steve continues to develop a hopeful and robust theodicy by looking at the idea of God being "all powerful." Using a "theology of the cross," he looks at how God's strength and power is not revealed through control or domination but instead through the self-emptying and vulnerability we see at Calvary. This "kenotic" love is not just shown at the incarnation but in fact points to who God is at his core.

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The series in Theodicy continues with Part 4 as Pastor Steve begins to address the question of suffering with a loving God directly through beginning with a discussion on God's sovereignty. What is God's will? Does it always get accomplished? How much free will do we have? These and other questions are raised and discussed as Pastor Steve dives into theological waters discussing Calvinism and Arminianism.

Cory presents the next part in our series on theodicy. Using scripture, theology, psychology, and literature, he explores how suffering unravels our sense of order, plunging us into chaos. Yet, he argues, the biblical story holds both chaos and order in tension, showing us a God who enters the chaos through Christ’s suffering and redeems it through resurrection. Through Genesis, Job, and the wisdom literature, Cory reflects on how we rebuild meaning after trauma, and how Christian hope enables us to remember order—even when surrounded by disorder.Download the Discussion Guide for this message.