NextStepCC

Hey Family,

There’s only so much you can take before you snap. Shields are great, breastplates protect, helmets are helpful, but there’s a certain point where you need to be able to strike back. In our series called THE WAR, we’ve been looking at the spiritual armor that God gives us in order to combat any difficult time in our lives. But how, after defending ourselves, do we move forward?

The answer is by using the Sword of the Spirit. The Sword of the Spirit is the solution to combating all the noise in our head and the noise that surrounds us in the world . It's the solution to be able to think clearly in difficult times. The Sword of the Spirit is our way of getting through moments that make you feel like you can’t get through. I really look forward to seeing you on Sunday and talking more about this.

Hey Family,

How can I get over the depression, how can I cope with my ailments, how can I endure a difficult marriage? They’re all dealt with by picking up the shield of faith. In fact, every struggle, heartache, difficulty and pain that we have to go through can be managed with the shield of faith. But not only are we enabled to go through difficult moments. If we’re going to do something great for God--if we’re a 47-year-old person thinking about going back to college or a 38-year-old woman who’s thinking about having children, for example—if we’re going to do something audacious, something beyond our capabilities, we all need to pick up the shield of faith. In either moments of difficulty or moments of triumph, come to hear how we wield the shield for the glory of God and our own benefit.

Hey Family,

How can I get over the depression, how can I cope with my ailments, how can I endure a difficult marriage? They’re all dealt with by picking up the shield of faith. In fact, every struggle, heartache, difficulty and pain that we have to go through can be managed with the shield of faith. But not only are we enabled to go through difficult moments. If we’re going to do something great for God--if we’re a 47-year-old person thinking about going back to college or a 38-year-old woman who’s thinking about having children, for example—if we’re going to do something audacious, something beyond our capabilities, we all need to pick up the shield of faith. In either moments of difficulty or moments of triumph, come to hear how we wield the shield for the glory of God and our own benefit.

There was a lot of discussion after pastor Mark Marchak's message last Sunday. He asked us all to think to ourselves, Am I useful to God, or am I useless to him? I'm glad it made so many people think.

This week Pastor Gus will speak on Sunday at 10 a.m. In the midst of our circumstances, pain, and struggle, God knows, sees, hears and responds. There is a God who cares about you, and Jesus comes to rescue us all. So whatever frame of mind you might be in right now, come on Sunday to hear a word of encouragement and hope.

There was a lot of discussion after pastor Mark Marchak's message last Sunday. He asked us all to think to ourselves, Am I useful to God, or am I useless to him? I'm glad it made so many people think.

This week Pastor Gus will speak on Sunday at 10 a.m. In the midst of our circumstances, pain, and struggle, God knows, sees, hears and responds. There is a God who cares about you, and Jesus comes to rescue us all. So whatever frame of mind you might be in right now, come on Sunday to hear a word of encouragement and hope.

Are you using the gift of salvation for Gods good

Are you using the gift of salvation for Gods good

Hey Family,

It was great to see so many of you last week and talk about the topic of peace in our lives. No Jesus, no peace, a lot of us already knew. But KNOW Jesus, KNOW peace is what we learned!

This week our sermon series THE WAR continues by talking about the concept of faith. What do we mean when we say the word faith? Is it confidence that things will go our way? Or is it that God's word guarantees that what we hope for will actually happen? Many times we use the word faith as though it means having a strong feeling. This is different from what the Bible calls faith. When the Bible says to "take on the shield of faith," it does so with a specific goal in mind: so that we can extinguish the arrows of the evil one. This week we're going to learn how we can use the faith that God has bestowed upon us in Christ to experience a greater level of freedom and joy as we guard ourselves from the deadly thoughts that Satan can throw at us.

Hey Family,

It was great to see so many of you last week and talk about the topic of peace in our lives. No Jesus, no peace, a lot of us already knew. But KNOW Jesus, KNOW peace is what we learned!

This week our sermon series THE WAR continues by talking about the concept of faith. What do we mean when we say the word faith? Is it confidence that things will go our way? Or is it that God's word guarantees that what we hope for will actually happen? Many times we use the word faith as though it means having a strong feeling. This is different from what the Bible calls faith. When the Bible says to "take on the shield of faith," it does so with a specific goal in mind: so that we can extinguish the arrows of the evil one. This week we're going to learn how we can use the faith that God has bestowed upon us in Christ to experience a greater level of freedom and joy as we guard ourselves from the deadly thoughts that Satan can throw at us.

Hey Family,

All of us struggle with this concept of being a good person. We tell ourselves that we're not that bad, we compare ourselves to people who are worse, we try to persuade ourselves with whatever evidence we have that we are good people... but this is a losing battle. Our goodness is not found in our actions, in our station in life, even with how many people we help. It's not found in anything we do but in the finished work of Jesus on the cross.

So am I good? No. But there was one who was good for me, and it's his righteousness that I put on, and therefore I'm able to walk with head held high, not with shame, guilt, and regret, but walking in His goodness. Come this Sunday at 10 a.m. as we continue our series called The War, and find out how to apply the goodness of Christ to your life. Invite your friends and family and I will see you there.

--Edwin