Even while we face trials of all kinds one thing we do not lose is agency: our ability to do, to cause something to happen, to influence. As long as we have breath we have agency because it is God-given, God-sustained, God-affirmed, and God empowered.

Jesus was political. Many voices in the church have politicized Jesus to support their politics. The response is generally that Jesus was not political. This is not true. Jesus was political in the sense that he addressed the issues that affected all areas of individuals and the community's lives. Listen to this message about the politics of Jesus. Matt 25:34-40

As we begin this advent season anticipating celebrating the birth of Jesus we do so with a spirit of gratitude. We begin this series taking a look at the value of Jesus's genealogy in Matthew 1. It should cause us to reflect on our own heritage or family. We have something in common with Jesus here. We all, like Jesus, have a family line that has both great and deeply flawed people that make it up. The good news is God preserves (the greatness) and redeems (the sinful). | Matt 1

How do we follow the instructions found in the James 1:2-4 to "consider/count it (trials) all joy?" How do we at times like what we've all collectively experienced in 2020 still find joy in the midst of it? This message unpacks how that is at all possible.

In our lives, especially during times of transition and change, we may trust God, but it is perfectly ok if we wrestle with God in prayer. We would be following in line with Jacob in Genesis 32 when he wrestled with the man of God until he blessed him. We would be following in line with Paul in 2 Corinthians 12 where he kept praying for God to remove a "thorn" from his "flesh." We would be following the example of Jesus in Gethsemane where Jesus prayed in agony as he neared the suffering he had to endure according to the will of God. It is necessary and healthy to wrestle with God not so much because we do not want to do God's will, but because we do and we know it will be challenging in the process. Genesis 32

As we transition, and in fact in any season of our lives, we ought to adopt the concept of setting a table. This is the idea of hospitality that welcomes God (the vertical relationship) and others (horizontal relationship) to a sacred space of fellowship. Conversely, we must also be open to accepting the invitation to the table of others (God and our neighbor). We should not go through the uncertainties and challenges of changing seasons alone. It is at the table that we find encouragement, wisdom, insight, counsel, correction, and affirmation. We need to set at table and come to the table (with wisdom). | Matt 26:26-29

During seasons of change when so much is uncertain and so much is lost, we get so focused on what's next we forget to grieve what is being left behind. Not only is this important for transition, it is also important in other times in our lives when we should know it is ok to lament, to grieve loss, pain, suffering, etc. Jesus modeled lament yet planted seeds of hope. | Matt 23:37-39

Jesus's encounter with the rich young ruler was more than a test of the young man's heart to see if he was willing to sell his possessions, give it all to the poor and follow Jesus. It was an invitation to activism. The instructions were not to sell his things for profit, but for philanthropy. Giving to the poor and vulnerable in the community, tending to their needs. Every season prepares us for the next season of out lives. Each season God invites us to is to live a life of activism like Jesus embodied activism with his life. | Matthew 19:16-22

If we choose to follow Jesus it will require the willingness to sacrifice. It is in the willingness to give of one's self, entrusting one's life with Jesus, that we gain the fullness of life in this world and ultimately beyond. This message is about desire, sacrifice and risking all to live out our faith as culture-changing witnesses of Jesus.

During times of transition we must no only pray, but we must also take steps to participate in what we are praying for God to do. In this series we take a look following the steps and the teachings of Jesus as he began a transition toward his suffering and subsequent death and resurrection. We begin with Matt 16:21-23. Set your minds on the things of God during the uncertain and often scary seasons of transition.