Living Church

So what do you do while fasting? What do when your stomach growls, when the headaches come, or the urge to grab a Cheez-It and cheat the fast begins to take over? You pray.

Prayer is often, if not always, associated with fasting. In this message we answer the question, "What can you pray while you fast?", by looking at four kinds of prayers God's people prayed while fasting.

Mark continues our series on Prayer and Fasting looking at 3 Basic Principles about fasting from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.

Should a follower of Jesus fast? Is it required? Should we want to fast? If so, why? In today's message Mark unpacks Jesus' answers to these questions.

Mark continues our study in Matthew 6:1-18 looking into the discipleship practices of Prayer & Fasting. Today we unpack a pattern for prayer Jesus gives in what is known as the Lord's Prayer.

Mark also shares four practical tools to help our prayer lives.

One of the things Jesus expects His followers to be doing in 2019 is praying. But that's easier said than done for most of us. Do you struggle with praying? What is prayer actually? If God knows what we're going to ask before we ask Him, then why pray at all?

If you've experienced or asked these questions then listen in as Mark answers these questions and shares 4 Practices of Prayer from Jesus' famous Sermon on the Mount.

Did you know that 30 days after Christmas is the most depressing day of the year? According to Welsh psychologist Dr. Cliff Arnell, January 24th is on record as being the most depressing day of the year. Just 30 days after one of the most joyful days of the year is the most depressing. What’s that tell us about the kind joy we experience around Christmas? It fades.

But what if there is a joy that doesn’t fade? Imagine a joy that’s present whether it’s Christmas Day or January 24th. Imagine a joy that's with you regardless of your circumstance. Imagine a joy like that.

This is why Advent and Christmas is such good news, because with the arrival of Christ is the arrival of this kind of joy.

Listen as Mark explores the gift of joy that arrives with Christ at Christmas.

Today is the second Sunday of Advent where we remember the first arrival of Christ. With his arrival come the arrival of gifts like hope, peace, joy, love. Today we explore the gift of peace.

We long for peace, but a peace that not only is the absence of conflict, but a peace that makes us whole, that makes us complete. Chasing after peace is exhausting. We try to find it in our work, relationships, our achievements. The reality is, many of us live out lives exhausted trying to find this peace. Why? We feel incomplete. We feel like we’re missing something.

Imagine a peace that says, "You're not missing anything, you have all you need. You're whole. You're complete." Imagine the freedom that would bring from chasing to try to find the missing peace? Imagine the rest that kind of peace would bring to your soul? Is there a peace like that?

Mark answers that question in this message as he explores the meaning of the word "peace" in the Christmas story.

Today is the first day of Advent. Advent marks the time in the Christian church calendar where we remember the first arrival of Christ, God's promised Rescuer. With His arrival come the arrival of gifts like hope, peace, joy, and love. Mark will explore each of these gifts over the next 4 Sundays leading up to Christmas. The first is Hope.

Do you struggle with despair? No matter how optimistic you may be, all of us experience moments, seasons of despair. This is why hope is so important to us, because hope defeats despair.

This is why Advent, why Christmas is so important and such good news, because with the arrival of Christ comes the arrival of permanent, lasting hope and the defeat of despair at the cross.

Hope arrived at Christmas and defeats despair at the cross.

Why talk about obedience? Why talk about surrender? God’s heart is to be with you, and one of the ways those who follow Christ experience His presence is through our daily Obedience and Surrender to Him.

A.W. Tozer said, “The resolve of my obedience is an encounter with God.”

In this message Mark shows how from the Old Testament and New Testament we see God's people encountering and experiencing His presence as they obey and surrender to Him.

Josh and Carissa share life with our Erlanger, KY House Church and this morning we hear their story. It’s a hard and painful story, but one where we see God’s presence during suffering. As they share, listen for the ways God made Himself present to them in their valley of suffering.

One of the places God’s presence is experienced is in the valley of suffering (Psalm 23:4).

For Josh and Carissa, their valley came just over a year and a half ago. This is their story.

Jesus said, "Where two or three of my followers are gathering together, there I am among them" (Matthew 18:20).

God’s heart is to be with you, and show you He is with you. Like Moses He wants us to Come Up the Mountain, to experience His presence. We’ve discovered through this series God makes His presence known in Scripture, in Silence & Solitude, and during Suffering. But, where else?

Throughout Scripture we see God making His presence known in and thru His people.

Everywhere the people of God are, the presence of God is.

In this message Mark unpacks this truth and gives implications this has for God's People, the Church.