MCC Podcast

By Miamisburg Christian ChurchReligion & Spirituality Christianity

MCC Podcast episodes

May 15, 2023 Be Childlike
You’ve probably heard this before but Abraham Lincoln said, “The greatest lessons I’ve learned were at my mother’s knees.”
Perhaps you too.
But we also want to acknowledge something about this Sunday right out of the shoot. Mother’s Day is not an easy day for everyone. For some because you agree with Abraham Lincoln, your mom was great, but she is gone. Maybe this is your first Mother’s Day without her or maybe it’s been many, but it just hurts, especially on the day set aside to honor moms.
Or maybe your mom was not loving, or worse, and today is a very difficult day.
Or maybe you’ve tried to be a mom, and can’t. I am so sorry.
I want you to know that our hearts are with you.
But for those who have or had moms who loved you well, for those of you who ARE moms who reflect well the smile of God to your families, we want to honor you this Sunday.
So we will conclude our He Gets Us series with a message about children.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
22 min
May 09, 2023 Justice
This Sunday we will be taking a look at a red hot topic: Justice. Notice I didn’t say social justice? There’s a huge difference between the two. We live in a time that cultural pundits change the meaning of words/phrases. If you don’t define the terms, we could be misled or even worse, you could confuse the people that you are asking God to help you influence.
What is God expecting us to do? How can we show love AND tell the truth at the same time. It is not only possible, it’s our job as Christ followers! We will look at the OT book of Micah and the teaching of Jesus in the NT Gospels.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
36 min
May 01, 2023 Love Your Enemies
We seem to be living in an Age of Outrage.
Everybody seems mad, and it’s not getting any better.
It feels like we’re living in the Divided States of America.
And in America these days, Christians are often seen as part of the problem rather than part of the solution. If we aren’t careful, we can get sucked into the mayhem, and we’re just one more angry voice. Is it possible to say that sometimes there are moments when our anger gets the best of us?
James reminds us (James 1:20), “Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.”
Actually, more often than not, it produces the opposite. Our anger very quickly can turn to hatred. And no one wants to be accused of that.
Let me ask, what is your emotional response to: “Jesus loves the people we hate?”
Jesus walked our earth at a time when hatred was alive and well, so He Gets Us. The real question is, how do we respond in such a way that others see Him living in us? How do we respond, in an age of outrage, in such a way that it helps others get Him?
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
32 min
April 24, 2023 Jesus Made Space for Everyone
If I asked you to name 3 of your friends, who would come to mind? By the way, Mike is going to ask you that question this weekend.
And then he’s going to ask you, “Why do like them? Similar hobbies? Same interests? Personalities? Good sense of humor? Easy going?” Maybe you’ve just always been friends.
You know how he asks questions to set up the question he really wants you to think about? That’s what he’s doing here. He really wants you to think through this: “Why do they like you?”
What is it that people see in you that they like?
Even more: What is it that Jesus sees when He looks at you?
This weekend we are going to be reminded that Jesus invites everyone through the story of Matthew.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
25 min
April 17, 2023 Jesus is the King Who Gets Us
This weekend we are taking what we started last week and turning a bit of a corner with it. Last week we were talking about how we can be Just Like Jesus. This week we’re going to begin a look at how Jesus was just like us.
And what that means.
And why it's important.
And what difference it makes to our culture to hear that He Gets Us. Can this help our culture, which doesn’t know much about Jesus, and who doesn’t have a positive view of the church? How do we let people know Who He is and why they should turn and follow Him? We follow His lead.
This Sunday we’ll begin with a question Jesus asked His disciples about Who He is.
And this Sunday we will ordain Meghan Fritsch into ministry during our 11:00 service. Meghan has been with us since September of 2017 serving as our Director of Nursery and Preschool Programming. As part time staff she has always gone above and beyond to serve our children, their families, and our volunteers. It is a great honor to get to set her aside for ministry.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
27 min
April 11, 2023 Just Like Jesus
This week we turn a corner in our Just Like series because as we celebrate Easter, we will see how we are Just Like Jesus. Or, at least, how we’re supposed to be just like Jesus. Part of what we will look at this weekend is 1 John 4:17 which says, “In this world we are like Jesus.” What does that mean?
The corner we will turn is we will spend several weeks working this out in our He Gets Us series that starts April 16. Perhaps you have seen He Gets Us on a commercial during the Super Bowl or in the ads or on a billboard or on a race car.
This week one journey hands right off to another.
Our Bible reading plan for next week is called Jesus Revealed Pt. 13 - No Greater Love. This plan will walk you back through what happened in the upper room leading to the cross, but each day will have with it something for you to do. It will ask you to lean into what we will be reminded of this weekend: Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. (1 John 3:18)
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
29 min
March 22, 2023 Just Like Rahab
When I graduated from college, I was invited back to my home church in Columbus to serve as the Student Pastor. I would actually be the first full-time Student Pastor Norton (now Eastpointe. There is a whole story about the old and new name of my home church. I was actually part of the team who led the church in changing it. But that’s for another time. Or not).
I served as the Student Pastor for 13 years and then I was able to serve as the Lead Pastor for 7 years before coming to MCC. I’m telling you that because I learned first hand what Jesus meant when He said (Luke 6:4) that “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” Jesus was talking about the familiarity people felt with Him kept them from recognizing Who He is. I had a similar issue.
Part of what makes it difficult is that I was serving as a pastor among people who knew me from birth. And I don’t just mean the folks who served in the nursery at our church, although there were people who had literally changed my diaper. I also mean those with whom I grew up and went to school. They saw the side of me away from the church. And many refused to believe I was the Tuttle brother who was in ministry.
In a word, I had a past.
How could God use someone like me?
Maybe you’ve wondered the same thing. This weekend we’ll be looking at Rahab. If you don’t know her story yet, you will. And you might ask the same about her. By the way, you might be surprised to read her name and where you read it in the New Testament. (Matthew 1:5) What you won’t be surprised by is how you are Just Like Rahab.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
33 min
March 13, 2023 Just Like Joshua
This week we are continuing our series called Just Like where we’re looking at characters in the Bible to see how we are just like them. This weekend, our Student Pastor Eric will be walking us through the story of Joshua.
Just like Joshua, we have a choice to be bold in our faith and trust in God or to walk away scared. That tension is where a majority of us live. Scared of the battled ahead, wondering if God will do what He says. This Sunday we are diving into the story of Joshua and Jericho and learning how if we choose to be bold in our trust of the Lord, He will be faithful to us.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
33 min
March 06, 2023 Just Like Cain
This week we are beginning a new series called Just Like and we’re going to be looking at characters in the Bible to see how we are just like them.
That what is true of them is true of us as well.
And that can be encouraging. Or we’ll at least see what we’re up against.
Over the next few weeks we’ll be looking at how we are Just Like
Rahab
Joshua
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednigo
Judas
This weekend we are going to see how we are Just Like Cain. In case you don’t know who he is, his story is in Genesis 4. What we’ll see is not only how we are like him every day, but what choices we need to make so our story ends up in a different spot than his.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
29 min
February 27, 2023 Real Marriage
What is the best advice you’ve ever gotten on marriage? (Men, be careful how you answer that. A joke may be on the tip of your tongue but it is most likely best to leave it there.)
I wonder how many of us would say it was a book they have read. According to Cosmopolitan, the best book to read is The Five Love Languages. If you’ve never read that, you should. If you’re not married, you still should. It helps with all relationships in your life. Including understanding how God has wired you.
I had a friend, who was an elder in my home church, sit me down just days before my wedding with some really good words of wisdom.
Maybe you’ve received advice that you have found helpful from a podcast or retreat experience. There are a lot of places to get helpful insights, and quite frankly, if you are or plan to be married, you should continue to get all the help you can for as long as you can.
Peter told the men in the early church, (1 Peter 3:7): “Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way…” That means that we spend the rest of our lives working to understand our wives. Seems like good advice for wives as well. It’s possible that men are not as easily understood as our culture would entertain us to think (please catch what I’m saying there).
We want to be one of those places where you can find help for:
Good marriages that you want to be great
Hurting marriages that you want to have healed
What to know before you get married (or married again)
And I hope it’s obvious that we will go straight to the Bible for what God has said.
This week we have a panel of MCCers who will share what they have learned from God and how they have applied it and what happened (or not and what happened) in their home.
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Make sure to download the Bible App to help you develop a habit of reading scripture: https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Also, join Right Now Media for free as a member of our Church: https://exploremcc.org/right-now-media/
34 min