Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and we are in the second and third verses of chapter 1 of Isaiah; and while this prophecy was written centuries ago to a country that is half way around the world, do your best to consider how it pertains to today.

Listen, O heavens, and hear, O earth;
For the Lord speaks,
“Sons I have reared and brought up,
But they have revolted against Me.
3 “An ox knows its owner,
And a donkey its master’s manger,
But Israel does not know,
My people do not understand.”

The two words from this scripture that have captured my attention are:  “revolted”, and “not understanding”.

Because I have heard from many who say, “we just don’t understand how how have we revolted against God; we are just trying to do our best”

Let me just say this, our monies have the motto on the In God We Trust; yet compare what that might actually look like with the day to day happenings of people. How often do we see people complaining about the weather, or worried over money, or angry that someone else got their dream job?  Might trusting in God change the way we go about such days?

Friend, if God is God, why have we chosen to stray from Him.  And, if God is God, there is nothing holding us back from returning to Him

Choose to follow Him, my friends

The post A People in Revolt — God’s Call to Return appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and we are beginning a teaching series in the book of Isaiah.  We will begin with the very first verse

which announces the vision he received.

And just as this vision came during a specific time in history, God continues to give visions to His people; and —as in Isaiah’s day—, such messages will provide warnings to heed and/or blessings to receive.    

Now, this vision declared that the Nation of Israel decided to stray from God’s leading; and there are Christians today saying the same thing about our nation. 

We can observe this as our society is becoming desensitized towards evil.  Consider just one example:  60 years ago, nudity was rare on television, but now it shows itself on prime time and one too many are showing little concern over this

Now, all this has been happening because we have chosen to disregard Truth.  Namely, we have dismissed the protection of Absolute Standards in place of individual rights.

The Book of Isaiah has much to say for today. Will we be open to learn?

The post The Vision of Isaiah appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the last  in a series of sermonettes on the Abundant Life and this is taken from John 10:27

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me

Abundant living necessitates cultivating a listening ear towards the Lord to know where He is leading us. This, alone will give us a confidence and a peace in any situation…regardless.  

And yet,  I have found people confused about hearing God.  And, I know of -at least- two reasons for this.  First, they have never heard the audible voice of God; and secondly, they discount the importance of memorizing His word.

Now let me address these two reasons:  First, don’t get hung up in whether of not God speaks audibly to us. Since HE IS GOD, He will certainly do this if needed. 

And secondly, I urge you to memorize Scripture, for you WILL  find how the Holy Spirit recalls His word to help us in time of need, to show us where He is leading…so we can follow

The post His Voice Changes Everything appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the seventh  in a series of sermonettes on the Abundant Life and this one is from the book of Proverbs 29:25 

The fear of man brings a snare, but he who trusts in the Lord will be exalted

Friend, living well means marching to the beat of a different drummer, namely God; and, not being swayed by others’ opinions. 

And we will do that as  we learn to trust in the Lord with each and every decision we make which alone helps us pull away from unhealthy influences,

Friend, all this takes time, and yet is achieved one day at a time

For as we become more aware of those things that trip us up, that make us hesitate or second guess ourselves, we can more readily take them to our Lord in prayer, trusting Him to work these things out for His good pleasure

So in closing let me ask this question, what is one thing that you can do today to step away from the unhealthy influences of others so that you can step towards cultivating a deeper relationship with the Heavenly Father

The post The Approval Trap appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the sixth  in a series of sermonettes on the Abundant Life and this one is from Philippians 3

Friends, the most satisfying journey that we could ever be on is  one of knowing God.

And, since He loves us, won’t we want to spend time with Him?  For who among us doesn’t want to spend time with Someone  who deeply cares for them?

And so, here, in this portion of God’s word, we are encouraged to reach forward to lay hold of that for which our Savior already has in His possession for us, namely His grace filled and mercy ladened salvation.

And this salvation -being freed from the shackles of sin because of Christ’s life and death- brings us an incomprehensible peace regardless of the turmoil around us, refocuses our perspective to see every one else as made in the image of God regardless of their station in life, and equips us with a motivation to share this Message of Hope to those around us wherever that may be

The post The Abundant Life appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the fifth  in a series of sermonettes on the Abundant Life and this one is Philippians 2:12-13

12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

Your life as a Christian has to involve more than just going to church for then you are not only missing out on what the abundant life is all about but you are feeding into the Devil’s scheme to destroy God’s creation by displaying a power powerless faith, a sickly relationship with God, and a purposeless life

It takes energy to swim against the tide of a secular society in order to bear witness to the Gospel and when you grasp the magnitude of this call, you will stand in trembling awe as you seek God’s good purpose each day of your life.

The post Work out your Salvation appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the fourth  in a series of sermonettes on the Abundant Life and this one is Ephesians 4:1

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,

 Those interests of yours, that personality of yours, your perception of the world around you has been gifted to YOU by the Lord Almighty.  God’s call upon you is not inspite of all that you gone through;  rather, His call has been forged in you  THROUGH of them

So, friend, do not despise those little things, or the hard times, or the sufferings for in and through these God has been willing and working for His good pleasure.  And, why is that.  

Well I can think of a couple of reasons:  First, He desires to display His love for others through you, and secondly, to show you how to begin experiencing His full and freeing life both here and now…then, even more so in Heaven.

The post Your Calling appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the third in a series of sermonettes on the Abundant Life and this one is on 1 Corinthians 12:4-7

4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

While it is true that our purpose in life is to live for God, we inadvertently create for ourselves unplanned sorrows if we fail to pursue the uniqueness for which God created each one of us; for there will, inevitably, be a deep longing, a haunting desire that there is ‘just more to life’ than we know so far.  And that disillusionment with your current circumstances will only continue until we discover those gifts God has endowed us for the common good

Namely…to share the message of God’s love through those gifts our Heavenly Father has graced us with.

The post Our Uniqueness for His Glory appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and this is the second in a series of sermonettes  on the Abundant Life is from Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.

This verse runs across the grain of a life that has been screwed up.  How can anyone, let alone God, want to help someone who has sowed a life of poor choices, of one who has turned his back on wisdom in order to look for -what has come to be— only fleeting pleasures.

The truth of the matter is that we all deserve to reap the  consequences of how we have chosen to live with what we have or have not been given.

Yet, there is a greater truth:  Namely that God in His grace and mercy can…and will… and desires to redeem us from such hopelessness

…because His plans for us are good.  

His way for us already takes into account the mess we have made out of our lives as He provides us with that which we don’t deserve, namely a peace-filled life 

I can not think of a better plan!

Can you?

The post God’s Plan (no 2 on the Abundant Life) appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.

Good day, this is Michael De Rosa and I am going start a series on the Abundant Life.  This sermonette will look at Psalm 139:13-14

For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.

I have found that the first step in knowing our purpose is to believe that God created us for His glory.  For that core truth will keep us tethered to Him through the highs and lows of life.

God tells us that we ARE awesome in His sight.  And, that when we experience that reality it becomes an anchor for our soul.

So, when we realize that all the trials we have gone through, whatever they have been and whoever they have been with are being used by our Father to show us His immense love towards us, we will rejoice

May I encourage you today to see your trials not as problems or setbacks but as opportunities to see the resources our Heavenly Father has graced you with in order to walk tall through them to know Him more….for you have been fearfully and wonderfully made and your soul can know that fully well

The post Purpose in life (no 1 on the Abundant Life) appeared first on Moutainside Community Church.