Mercy Culture

Pastor Sean Gleason continues the Spiritual Warfare series by confronting the orphan spirit, a demonic stronghold that convinces believers they must live for acceptance, approval, and survival rather than resting in their identity as sons and daughters of God. Teaching from Luke 15, the story of the prodigal son, Pastor Sean reveals that both sons in the parable were wrestling with the same orphan spirit, one through rebellion and reckless living, the other through performance and resentment, even though they had a good father.

Pastor Sean opens up about his own journey with the orphan spirit, tracing it back to a childhood moment of rejection and through his deliverance from depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. He shares a recent personal story of wrestling with ambition and rebellion when he felt pulled to start his own ministry, and how the Lord used spiritual fathers and mothers in his life to expose a transactional, orphan mindset still at work in his heart.

Drawing from Romans 8:15, Philippians 2:3, and Hebrews 12:5, Pastor Sean breaks down how the orphan spirit causes people to sell short their inheritance, chase counterfeit sources of acceptance, and either rebel against authority or exhaust themselves trying to perform for it. He contrasts performance with presence, reminding the church that nothing they do can impress God, only please Him, and that sons and daughters are able to receive correction as love rather than rejection.

The vision of Mercy Culture is to take people from corporate encounters with God to daily personal encounters with God. At Mercy Culture, one of our unique characteristics is that we are a presence driven church. We are not built around any person or ministry. We are built around the presence of God. Each week, you will hear a teaching from our Lead Pastors, Sean and Natalie Gleason or another leader in our community. To learn more about Mercy Culture, visit https://mercyculturewaco.com

Pastor Will ford teaches on Joy Based warfare.

Noleen Sedra is back on Holy Disruption, and this time she and Heather Schott are breaking down Islam — not as a religion, but as what Noleen argues it actually is: a political ideology with no concept of freedom. Co-founder of Echo Church in Sydney alongside her Egyptian-born husband Andrew, Noleen has spent years debating Muslims and studying the Quran, and she walks through what the text says about women, child marriage, jihad, and the "infidels" — and why she believes the so-called radicals are simply the faithful ones. This is a conversation most Christians are afraid to have. Heather, Jasmine and Noleen go there anyway: why the West is romanticizing Islam, how Christian freedom is being used as a loophole, what's happening in Egypt, Iran, and Columbus, Ohio — and four practical ways to actually share Jesus with a Muslim friend. It ends with intercession for America and the women of Iran.

Spiritual battles require spiritual strategies. In “Your War Cry is a Weapon,” Senior Lead Pastor Landon Schott teaches how holy ground prepares us for spiritual warfare—and how a true war cry is not simply a loud shout, but an expression of faith, obedience, and agreement with God. Discover how surrendering to the Commander, dying to the flesh, and being filled with the Holy Spirit prepares you to become an instrument God can use in battle.

Most of us picture spiritual warfare as getting louder and more aggressive. What if winning the fight starts with going lower?

In this episode, we continue our series on spiritual warfare and look at James 4:1-7, where the battle is described as the war inside us over who rules our will. We start by clearing up a common mix-up: humility is not timidity. Jesus flipped tables and David faced Goliath, and neither of them stopped being humble when they started being bold.

From there we look at what keeps us from humility: pride, which blinds us to ourselves and puts us in opposition to God, insecurity, which convinces us God can't use us, and false humility, which tries to make itself low without God's help. Then we cover four practical ways to walk in humility: daily encounters with God, seeing yourself the way He sees you, going low in service, and giving Him the glory.

The key point of the message is this: submission isn't preparation for spiritual warfare, it is spiritual warfare. Humility-based warfare means coming under God's authority so you can fight from His victory.

Hear Pastor Les Cody teach us how to identify and combat the spirit of Jezebel in our lives!

"I didn't really want what God wants. I wanted it my way."

What if the way you fight your spiritual battles matters more than whether you win them? In this message, we go to the hill at Rephidim, where Moses' raised hands, Joshua's sword, and the steady support of Aaron and Hur show us what it looks like to stand in the fight together, and to stand for God's glory rather than our own victory.

We start with the surprising science of willpower and the anterior midcingulate cortex, the part of the brain that grows when we do the hard things we'd rather avoid. From there we see why the battles we fight tomorrow are shaped by the flesh we deny today. Drawing on Matthew 16, Galatians 5, and Romans 8, we explore what it means to consecrate ourselves so God can do amazing things among us.

Then we get practical. What does it look like to storm the hill? Get under spiritual authority, surround yourself with people of integrity, embrace your role in the fight, and refuse to lower the staff. Moses' moment at Meribah is a sobering reminder of what happens when ambition takes over. We unpack the difference between ambition-based warfare ("It's my job to make it happen!") and joy-based warfare ("It's my job to stay in His presence"), and discover why the joy of the Lord really is our strength.

Whether you're weary, striving, or wondering if the fight is worth it, this episode invites you to trade the emotional rollercoaster for trust, and to die on hills your children will one day conquer.