Midweek at The Compass

Join us for this episode as Greg talks about recognizing the pain in the world while still worshipping a good God. 
Next week and the following, we'll be diving deeper into the concept of Deconstruction with Greg, exploring why our young adults are deconstructing their faith: what causes it, and what can we do about it? You won't want to miss it!

This original message was preached last summer at the Compass.

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If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Have you ever struggled in your faith journey? We're in a new series called "Deconstruction: A Doubter's Journey" where we unpack what it looks like to wrestle with our questions and doubts in a way that increases our hope and deepens our relationship with God. Join us for the first week of our companion podcast, Midweek at the Compass, as Jake shares his personal experiences with the following:
➡️Church Hurt
➡️Christian Hypocrisy
➡️Personal Failure
➡️Life Disappointment
➡️Countercultural Ways

Here at the Compass, we want to support you as you seek answers to your questions about faith, the Bible, and God. If you'd like to connect with a pastor, fill out a connection card here: https://www.thecompass.net/ContactUs

Check out the full weekend message, Why Faith Falls Apart, on the Compass Church Podcast.

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Jeff joins us to discuss all things Chicago Cubs... and of course, The Chase! How did this series impact him? Where did the construct come from? What does it mean about evangelism? We'll also dive into a preview of our next series, Deconstruction.

Timestamps:
:30 - Let's talk about the Chicago Cubs!
1:30 - Expectations for this season's Cubbies
2:13 - the spiritual truths found in baseball
2:39 - What was the Chase series all about?
4:42 - What resonated with Jeff as he prepared for this series
5:22 - Evangelism can be scary - who is the primary Evangelist?
7:00 - the PEARL: a relational evangelism strategy
8:25 - Intentionally joining God in His pursuit of the people around you
8:36 - Dovetailing The Chase with the Pearl concept
8:57 - Relational Evangelism in an oppositional culture
10:26 - The topic did we not quite get to: God's sovereignty conveyed in Nebuchadnezzar's dream
11:43 - the prophecies of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, validated
13:06 - God humbles the proud
14:49 - Nebuchadnezzar's shift of focus
14:58 - Where is our focus?
16:47 - the study of our current culture
17:12 - How did you land on Deconstruction for our next series? What can we expect?
17:51 - Jeff's deconstruction experience
19:49 - Deconstructing as a result of culture
20:27- Jake's deconstruction experience
21:48 - the Cubs & deconstruction
23:10 - Scripture we'll look at this series
24:10 - Goals of the Deconstruction series

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Darrell Cloud our executive Pastor guest hosts and talks with our ministry partner from Sheridan Correctional Facility and they discuss prison ministry.

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Today, Jake interviews worship leader Jane Hoshell & Campus Pastor Adam Gascho about the dreams - God-given or otherwise - they've pursued in their life. 
Listen to learn some ways to discern whether a dream is your own or God-given, how to persist in pursuing your dream amidst adversity, and God's primary objective in giving us dreams. 

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Have you ever wondered what the bible says about taking care of our bodies? In our conversation with Pete Sutton this week, we use Daniel chapter 1 as a starting point to break down some misconceptions about how Daniel and his friends ate in Daniel 1 and what we can learn from it. Spoilers: it's not to eat only vegetables and water!

Far from being a conversation solely around caring for our physical bodies, Jake and Pete also dive into how God is the main character of every story, the purpose of Scripture, dependence upon God, how work has changed since the writing of the Bible, unity and diversity, why the Bible doesn't talk much about exercise, how to deal with shame and guilt, and so much more.

Join us for this rich conversation that will give you a new perspective on the relationship between yourself, your body, and your God.

Episode notes:

• Who is our guest, Pete Sutton?
• Context of Daniel Chapter 1
• Origins of the Daniel Diet
• What can we learn from the Daniel diet?
• God is the main character of every story
• Scripture is the revelation of God
• Are fad diets biblical?
• How does the Bible describe our bodies?
• How the Trinity reflects unity & diversity
• Our appetites allow us to experience the fullness of God
• How our needs force us to depend upon God
• Sabbath rest
• the result of the Fall on parenting
• How are body and work tied together?
• How can we care well for our mind & body?
• Functional joy
• Dealing with shame and guilt
• Balancing life & family
• Struggling with body image? 

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Jeff wraps up our Angels series with some bonus information about Angels that didn't fit into any of the messages. Listen in to hear all the highlights including friendly banter between Jeff & Jake, the kinds of angels that didn't make it into a weekend message, and how there's always more to the story. Also: Jeff apologizes for not letting Jake know he was going to Ottawa (Jake's hometown).

Timestamps: 
1:02 - Highlights from Christmas service
2:23 - Jake gets a flat tire in the worst storm of the winter
3:59 - "Peace on Earth" Original Christmas song 
4:49 - Silk snow makes you cough 🤧
6:37 - Why Angels?
8:52 - Nephilim: Offspring of Giants
11:24 - Visiting Ottawa (and modeling reconciliation)
14:16 - Additional stories of Generosity
18:30 - Worshipping with angels
20:27 - Are UFOs real?!
21:47 - There's more to the story
22:36 - Coming up: the Chase series
24:44 - God chases after us
25:44 - the angel in the Fiery Furnace
26:47 - the agonizing side of being a preacher
27:07 - the angel of the Lord
28:30 - Jacob & the ladder
30:34 - next week's episode

Midweek at the Compass, Season 3 Ep 2

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

This week, Jake interviews retired Angelology Professor Fred Dickason. Fred studied Electrical engineering in the Navy, taught at Moody Bible Institute, and has spent 52 years studying about, teaching, and counseling on angels. Fred has written several books on angels, including Angels Elect & Evil.

Join us as Fred shares his insights on the history of angels, the role of angels in our everyday life, Satan, spiritual warfare, and more.

From understanding who angels are and what they do to overcoming spiritual warfare, this is a conversation that will give you a deep understanding of angels and their role in your life.

Timestamps:

• :24 - Biblical perspective on angels and the role they play in our everyday lives
• :51 - Introduction: Charles Frederick Dickerson Jr
• 3:40 - 1966: how & why Fred began studying angels
• 5:19 - When did Fred know that he wanted to teach a course on Angels?
• 6:26 - What are angels?
• 6:35 - Timing of Angels' Creation (Colossians 1:16)
• 7:27 - Primary functions of angels throughout scripture
• 8:08 - Angel Stories
• 8:45 - Where do we see fallen angels in scripture? (Genesis 3)
• 10:08 - Common misconceptions about angelic beings
• 11:46 - Angels don't have wings
• 12:26 - Angels are Watchers
• 13:10 - What can we learn about God through studying angles?
• 15:01 - Can we each have a guardian angel?
• 16:14 - God elects different angels for different purposes
• 20:45 - Fred's books & where to find them

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

Our pastors encourage us to slow down and participate in Advent during December - but who has time for that? December is one of the busiest months of the year for almost everyone.

So how can we create time for the "reason for the season"? How can we implement some spiritual practices that will ground us in the goodness, peace, and love we're promised through Jesus Christ?

Tune in for a rich conversation between Jake and Spiritual Director Dre Nell about some simple spiritual practices we can use to connect with our Prince of Peace this Christmas season.

Resources for Spiritual Direction found here:
Sustainable Faith: sustainablefaith.com/ssd-find-a-spiritual-director
Soul Care: www.soulcare.com/spiritual-direction
Grafted Life: www.graftedlife.org/spiritual-direction/find

Timestamps:
1:31 - Introduction: Dre Nell
2:20 - What is a Spiritual Director?
2:35 - The difference between a counselor and a spiritual director
6:06 - How Dre shifted into becoming a spiritual director
8:25 - What is the best part of being a Spiritual Director?
11:00 - Prominent, recurring themes in people's spiritual journeys
11:58 - The parental portrayal of God & effects on children
13:54 - Ways someone can naturally connect with God
14:37 - Identifying where you feel stuck
16:30 - Practices to experience God in this busy season
16:50 - Holy Pause
19:55 - Breath Prayer
22:20 - Nativity & Scripture Meditation
26:12 - Slowing down with song
28:10 - Deciding if you want/need a Spiritual Director; How to find a spiritual director

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give

We all know that the best way to spread Christmas cheer is... Singing loud for all to hear!!
Do you create a Christmas ambience by playing your favorite Christmas music at home? Join Jake & Rachael as they talk through their favorite Christmas songs: Past, present, and future! Head over to our Socials and share what your favorite Christmas songs are!

Timestamps:

• 1:51 - Rachael Farnum introduction
• 2:41 - Have you always loved Christmas?
• 3:39 - Rachael singing a Christmas song from childhood
• 5:13 - What is your favorite Christmas song?
• 7:18 - Jake's favorite Christmas song
• 8:58 - Top choice funny Christmas song
• 9:51 - Joy to the World's back story
• 13:24 - Three meanings of celebration
• 14:50 - The purpose of "Joy to the World"
• 16:19 - How digging deeper into the meanings of songs can affect worship
• 17:41 - Christmas past: Highlights at the Church
• 19:58 - Guitar intro teaser
• 20:53 - A Thrill of hope
• 24:14 - Christmas Eve service plans
• 26:21 - Additional notes for listeners from Rachael Farnum

Let us know you're here! If you have a need or prayer request we can support you: thecompass.net/connectioncard

If you call The Compass your church home or you'd like to partner with us in what God is doing here, near, and far, you can visit thecompass.net/give