Work is not a curse to escape or an idol to worship. It is a calling to participate in God’s good work in the world.

John 15:12-16 with Matt Chin. Why does friendship feel so essential—and yet so fragile?

In this message, we explore why so many of us long for deep connection but struggle to believe it’s safe. Drawing from John 15, we listen to Jesus on the night before his death as he does something surprising: he calls his disciples friends—knowing they’re about to fail him.

We talk about loneliness in every stage of life, why intimacy feels risky, how belonging comes before vulnerability, and why Jesus insists that love and friendship sit at the very center of faith.

If you’ve ever felt lonely, guarded, tired of trying, or unsure how to build meaningful relationships, this message is an invitation to slow down, remember that you are chosen, and imagine friendship not as something optional—but as sacred.

Belonging comes first. And from that place, real friendship can begin.

Psalm 25 and 1 Kings 17-19 with Matt Chin.

Many of us approach discernment like a test. We want the right answer, the clear sign, the certainty that we won’t mess things up. In this message from our series The Intentional Year, Matt explores a different vision of discernment through Psalm 25, the story of Elijah, and his own experience of waiting through disappointment and loss.

This teaching reframes discernment not as getting a map from God, but learning to trust a guide. It looks at how trust is formed in seasons of confusion, why silence does not mean God is absent, and how familiarity with God’s heart shapes us long before clarity ever arrives. If you are standing at a crossroads, living in a long in-between, or wondering if you heard God wrong, this message offers a steady reminder. Discernment grows out of relationship, not answers, and God is closer than you think.

Deuteronomy 8:2–18 with Nathan Caddell. Many of us rush into a new year looking ahead, setting goals, and hoping things will be better. But before we decide where we are going, we often need to slow down and look back. In this message from our series The Intentional Year, Nathan reflects on why honest remembrance matters, especially after seasons of pain, disruption, or growth.

Drawing from Deuteronomy 8 and his own story of loss and healing, this teaching explores how reflection is not about reliving suffering or explaining it away, but about noticing where God stayed near. It looks at how forgetting God’s faithfulness, both in hardship and in abundance, shapes our trust, and how remembering can form us for whatever comes next. If you are entering a new year carrying grief, gratitude, hope, or unanswered questions, this message invites you to pause, remember, and ground your future in the steady faithfulness of God.

Galatians 5:22–25 with Nathan Caddell. A new year often comes with big goals and quiet pressure. Do more. Fix more. Become a better version of yourself. Before long, life starts to feel like a scoreboard, ahead or behind, winning or failing, productive or disappointing. And for many of us, faith becomes one more place to perform.

In this message kicking off our series The Intentional Year, Nathan explores a different way to begin 2026. Through Paul’s letter to the Galatians and Jesus’ words in John 15, we look at the difference between achievement and fruit, performance and formation, striving and abiding. Instead of treating spiritual growth like a to-do list, Paul describes “the fruit of the Spirit”, the kind of character that grows when our lives are shaped by God’s presence rather than pressure.

If you feel tired, driven, or stuck on a treadmill of never enough, this teaching is an invitation to step off the scorecard and stay connected to the true source of life. Not to do more for Jesus, but to be with Jesus, and let a slower, deeper kind of change take root.

Matthew 1:18–25 with Nathan Caddell.

Fear is a deeply human experience. It shows up when plans fall apart, when control slips away, and when the future feels uncertain.

In this Advent message, we explore the story of Joseph in Matthew 1 and the fear that surrounds the first Christmas. Through a surprising Joseph’s quiet crisis and the angel’s words “Do not be afraid,” we discover that Christmas is not about fear disappearing, but about God drawing near.

This sermon looks honestly at how fear shapes our decisions, why fear often tells us to run or protect ourselves, and how God responds not by fixing circumstances, but by offering his presence. Joseph doesn’t get all the answers, but he learns that he is not alone. And that changes everything.

Luke 2:1–20 with Matt Chin.

What does “peace on earth” mean when life feels anything but peaceful?

In this Advent message, we explore the birth of Jesus through Luke 2:1–20 and discover that the first Christmas happened in a world marked by fear, power, and instability. Rome promised peace through control and force, but God chose a different way. Quiet. Vulnerable. Unexpected.

From Caesar’s census to shepherds in the dark, this sermon reflects on peace not as escape or calm circumstances, but as restored relationship and inner wholeness. We look at why God comes near to the overlooked, how peace grows in ordinary lives, and what it might mean to take one small step toward hope when everything feels unsettled.

Luke 1:57–80 with Nathan Caddell. Waiting is exhausting. Whether it is for test results, a relationship to heal, a job to come through, or simply for life to feel less chaotic, most of us treat waiting as something to endure until peace finally arrives. In this Advent message, Nathan looks at the story of Zechariah in Luke 1, a priest who receives the news he has prayed for his whole life and still struggles to trust it. Instead of instant answers, Zechariah is led into a long season of silence, and God meets him there.

This teaching explores how waiting, doubt, and silence are not signs that God has abandoned us, but places where God often forms a deeper kind of peace in us. Peace that is received, not achieved. Nathan reflects on Zechariah’s transformation, the practice of silence, remembering God’s past faithfulness, and what it might mean this Advent to stop trying to control our way to peace and begin to open ourselves to God’s presence in the middle of the unfinished story.

Luke 1:26–38 with Matt Chin. In this Advent message, we look at the story of Mary and the kind of peace God offers in the middle of real life. Many of us long for clarity, control, and a future that feels predictable. Yet when God steps into Mary’s life, none of those things are promised. Her plans shift. Her questions grow. Her world becomes more fragile, not less.

What changes for her is not her circumstances, but God’s presence. Peace begins in the moment she realizes she will not walk her uncertainty alone.

This teaching invites us to slow down and pay attention to the places where life feels unsettled. It explores honest questions, the difference between control and trust, and how God draws close in the moments we would avoid.

If you are tired, anxious, or holding a part of your life that feels unpredictable, this message offers a quiet reminder. Peace does not wait for everything to make sense. Peace begins when God meets us right where we are.

John 15:4-11 with Nathan Caddell.

Many of us feel pressure to build a “fruitful” life through the right job, relationship, income, or image, yet still feel tired and restless. In this message, Nathan wraps up our “With” series by looking at Jesus’ words in John 15 about the vine and the branches.

We explore why our usual go-to sources of peace and joy fall short, what it means to stay connected to Jesus in seasons of pruning and disappointment, and how surrender can lead to a deeper experience of friendship with God rather than blind obedience. If you feel worn out from trying to hold your life together on your own, this teaching offers an honest, hopeful invitation to rest, remain, and receive the kind of life you were made for.