We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.

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If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation:

1. What does it look like in your life to be an ordinary person who keeps saying yes to God?

2. Doug challenged us not only to remember and celebrate, but also to dedicate ourselves again to God. Where might God be asking you to say, “Here I am, use me”?

3. Doug said every generation inherits a story it did not start. What kind of legacy of faithfulness do you want to pass on to the next generation?

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Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video.

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Links

Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/

Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next

Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries

Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church.

This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully.

It’s possible to show up, contribute, serve, and even love what’s happening around you without ever truly letting yourself be known.

In this episode of The After Sermon, Eric and Daniel unpack an overlooked part of Nehemiah’s story: people eagerly volunteered to rebuild Jerusalem’s wall, but actually moving inside it was a different kind of commitment.

That tension raises a bigger question for followers of Jesus: Where does participation stop short of discipleship?

They also explore why community isn’t simply another church activity, how being known shapes us into the likeness of Jesus, and why the invitation of Jesus has always been an invitation into a people—not just a set of beliefs.

Because the goal was never simply to build something people admire. It’s to become a people who follow Jesus together.

This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full sermon that this discussion is based on.

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch

You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well.

Website: https://plumcreek.church/

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.

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If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation:

1. Pastor Eric said it can be easier to build something than to truly belong to it. Where are you tempted to stay involved from a distance instead of letting yourself be known and counted on?

2. Think about Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem’s wall only to find the city mostly empty. What does that story reveal about the difference between creating a place for people and actually building a community?

3. Read Ephesians 2:21–22 and discuss what changes when we see God’s people themselves as the “building” rather than thinking of church primarily as a physical place.

4. Pastor Doug and Pastor Eric emphasized that Next is Now is ultimately about making room for more people to encounter Jesus, not simply making the building bigger. What would it look like for that same priority to shape your time, relationships, generosity, and priorities?

5. Who is one person God may be putting on your heart to invite or encourage this week, and what could taking that step look like?

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Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video.

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Links

Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/

Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next

Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries

Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church.

This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully.

God doesn’t build his kingdom only through experts, professionals, or people who feel completely prepared. He builds through ordinary people who are willing to trust him and participate.

In this episode of The After Sermon, Michele and Eric explore why we so often disqualify ourselves, how busyness can keep us focused on building our own smaller kingdoms, and what becomes possible when we simply make ourselves available to God. The conversation also turns personal as Michele reflects on the unexpected breaking and rebuilding God has used to shape her own life.

Following Jesus may cost us comfort, but a life invested in God’s bigger story is never wasted.

This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full sermon that this discussion is based on.

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch

You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well.

Website: https://plumcreek.church/

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.

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If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation:

1. Michele said people can be physically free and still live like captives. Where do you see an old mindset keeping you from fully living in the freedom God has given you?

2. Read Nehemiah 1:1–11 and discuss what Nehemiah’s first response to brokenness teaches us about praying before acting.

3. Consider the difference between building God’s kingdom and asking God to support your own plans. Where does that tension appear in your life?

4. The people rebuilding Jerusalem did not feel fully equipped, but they made themselves available. Where might God be asking you to choose willingness over expertise?

5. Think about Dave’s simple invitation to Michele’s father and the impact it had across generations. Who is the broken wall in front of you, and what faithful step could you take this week?

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Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video.

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Links

Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/

Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next

Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries

Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church.

This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully.

What is God doing when nothing seems to be happening?

Eric sits down with Doug to continue the Flannelgraph series and explore the story of Joseph. Together, they talk about the thread of God’s presence through the pit, Potiphar’s house, and prison—and why difficult circumstances are not necessarily evidence that God has abandoned us.

They also discuss the “crucible” of transformation, our cultural obsession with comfort, and how God may use painful seasons to shape us into people who are capable of humility, forgiveness, and faithfulness.

Joseph could only see one moment at a time. God was writing a much larger story.

This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full sermon that this discussion is based on.

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch

You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well.

Website: https://plumcreek.church/

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.

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If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation:

1. When faithfulness does not produce the results you hoped for, what helps you continue trusting that God is still at work?

2. Describe a season that felt like a waiting room and consider how God may have been forming you through it.

3. Joseph kept doing the next faithful thing even when his circumstances became worse, so what would the next faithful thing look like in your life right now?

4. Look up Genesis 39:21 to 23 and discuss what Joseph’s experience reveals about the difference between God’s presence and comfortable circumstances.

5. Reflect on the teaching’s reminder that hardship can turn us inward, and identify one practical way you can notice and serve someone else while you are still waiting.

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Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video.

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Links

Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/

Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next

Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries

Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church.

This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully.

Jacob’s life was filled with deception, conflict, uncertainty, and long seasons when God could have seemed absent. But underneath every twist in his story was a God who never stopped pursuing him.

In this episode of The After Sermon, Daniel sits down with Doug to explore the parts of Jacob’s story that did not make it into the message. They talk about God’s unmistakable faithfulness through Jacob’s years with Laban, the slow nature of spiritual formation, and the collection of moments that transformed the God of Jacob’s ancestors into the God Jacob knew for himself.

Sometimes we want God to change our circumstances. But what if God is using those circumstances to shape us into who he has always intended us to become?

This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full sermon that this discussion is based on.

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch

You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well.

Website: https://plumcreek.church/

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.

///

If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation:

1. Where might God be shaping you right now, even though your circumstances have not changed?

2. Reflect on a season that felt wasted at the time but later revealed God’s faithfulness or growth in your life.

3. Doug described Jacob moving from chasing God’s blessings to wanting God himself. What would that shift look like in your own faith?

4. Read Genesis 28:10 to 22 and consider why God pursued Jacob before Jacob had fully committed himself to God.

5. Who are you tempted to give up praying for, and how does Jacob’s story challenge you to trust that God may still be working?

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Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video.

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Links

Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/

Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next

Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries

Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church.

This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully.

The story of David and Goliath is often remembered as an underdog story. But what if that's not the point?

In this episode of The After Sermon, Eric Parks unpacks why David's greatest advantage wasn't his sling—it was his identity. Long before he stepped into the valley, God had been shaping him in quiet, hidden places no one else noticed.

Together we explore why God often does his deepest work in seasons of obscurity, why he never wastes our past, and how the hidden moments of today may be preparing us for tomorrow.

If you've ever wondered whether your current season matters, this conversation is for you.

This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full sermon that this discussion is based on.

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch

You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well.

Website: https://plumcreek.church/