What story are you willing to tell when trouble and suffering come your way? The earliest disciples were willing to proclaim the story of Jesus in spite of ridicule and rage. This morning we wonder aloud if this invitation extends to us for our world and time.

Love has become a word that defines anything we enjoy or mildly appreciate. But love for a disciple of Jesus is a choice filled with difficult people and tough circumstances. How far are we willing to look "forward" as we choose to love in our world and time? Join us as we rekindle our passion to make the choice to love with patience and kindness while keeping no record of wrongs.

Worship for the earliest disciples was never confined or reduced to a Sunday morning experience. Worship was an invitation to live a changed life while looking for ways to join God's mission in the neighborhood. Join us as we uncover the invitation to "look around" as we consider our daily worship of sacrifice and generosity.

The Holy Spirit is vital to the call of discipleship. But are we willing to embrace its mystery and disruptive character? This morning we explore the wild and wondrous invitation of the Spirit and how it can fill us with new hope and courage. Are we willing to follow where the Spirit leads?

At the beginning of the story of the church, we find a final commission given by Jesus to the disciples: be my witnesses. What does it look like to become a witness in our world and time? Join us as we look towards becoming a witness to the mission of God.

As Jesus begins to make his kingdom-mission clear, some of the disciples are reluctant to follow "all the way." One disciple asks Jesus if he can say farewell to loved ones before following. And his reply? "No one who looks back is fit for the kingdom." Today we begin a journey in following Jesus without looking back. Today we choose to look forward, see the cost of discipleship, and boldly move into the kingdom-future. Join us as we "look forward" and remind ourselves of the vision for loving, growing, and sending at the Highland Oaks Church.

Though you might think of ministers as those who work professionally in a church, Paul has a much wider view of a "minister." Join us as we hear Paul call each of us to embrace a life of ministry to our world and for our time.

Paul's world was filled with familiar images of military might and power. So why would Paul write to disciples and call them soldiers? This morning we unpack yet another way for disciples of Jesus to stand up and fight the good fight.

We occasionally sing the song: "Make me a servant, Lord make me like you." But what does it mean for disciples to embody the role of servanthood? Join us as we embrace the "upside down" kingdom of Jesus, the suffering servant.

As Paul writes to the church in Colossae, he calls the disciples "saints." This morning we unpack this rich identity marker for a church that is living in an unholy time and place.