NMC Audio Podcast

Finding a way to navigate the challenges and curve balls of life is absolutely essential to effective life in Christ. So what does your current reality look like? What’s the "this" that you are going through? Joseph, our guide for navigating tough times, gives us a clear path to victory. Yes, it won’t be easy or quick, but with God’s help, we will get through living in the land of "this."

“The days are coming,” declares the Sovereign Lord,
“when I will send a famine through the land—
not a famine of food or a thirst for water,
but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.
People will stagger from sea to sea
and wander from north to east,
searching for the word of the Lord,
but they will not find it." —Amos 8:11-12

“And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”

Forgive and forget. Put the past in the past. Move on. Popular mindsets and all the clichés push us toward the idea that we can simply leave the painful parts of our past behind. But what do we do when our past comes knocking on our door? How should we respond?

God desires us to be whole and holy. In spite of our background, our history, and our circumstances, He can do an amazing work of healing for our body, soul, and spirit. While most people receive a surface work of restoration, God desires us to experience a deep work of healing. It's a work that goes to the core of our spirit. Whether they are memories, wounds, abuse or relational pains, God, through His Spirit, has provided everything we need for wholeness and holiness.

Times of heartbreak, confusion, disappointment and chaos often mark the path God has chosen for us to walk. Yet amidst the pain, we can live with a deep confidence in God’s ability to provide everything we need. No one gets an exemption of challenges, but everyone can live in complete confidence in God’s sustaining power.

But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”—Genesis 39:8-10

It’s guaranteed—life will throw us some curve balls. Our road will not always be smooth and easy. There will reversals, setbacks, and disappointments. Amidst these, though, we can have a deep faith in God and a confidence that His perfect will can be accomplished. Learning from Joseph equips us with everything we need for our journey. No matter what happens to us, we need not live as victims but as victors over life’s circumstances.

Most businesses take inventory at the end of the year. They close the books and discover the level of profit for the year. God taught His people to mark the moment. After great victories, God wanted His people to take inventory, celebrate His faithfulness, and capture that moment as a permanent reminder of His faithfulness. What God taught His people in the Old Testament is a great reminder for His people today—mark the moment!

December 24, 2017 | Galatians 4:4, Luke 2, Matthew 24-25
Timing is everything! Whether it’s a word spoken or a deed done, doing it at the right time adds incredible value. Our God is always perfect in His timing. It was that way with the birth of Jesus, His first Advent, and it will be that way in His second Advent. Although most were not prepared for His first coming as the Messiah, it’s essential that we be prepared for His second coming as King of Kings and Lord of Lords