Every great friendship has a starting point. Relationships can be traced back to having something in common, an accidental encounter, or even a fight on the playground. The point being, the birth of friendship starts with connection.

Jesus came to pave the way for friendship with God. He connected us. That’s the message we have for people who think God is their enemy. During His time on earth, Jesus was accused of being a friend of sinners. Could that same accusation be said of you? Are you making room for new connections?

Listen in as Derek and Sarah expose the enemies of friendship that can destroy our relationships and keep us from making new ones.

As a Christian, there can be a lot of pressure to lay down your life for others. What does this mean and who are our friends? Jesus actually gave up His life, but He also had boundaries in His relationships. Jesus had different levels of connection with different people and so should you.

Listen in as Derek and Sarah discuss setting proper boundaries to experience flourishing and powerful relationships.

Why was marriage chosen when the Holy Spirit (through the Apostle Paul) was looking for a beautiful example of the relationship between Jesus and the Church? Did he make a mistake? Perhaps there is something we need to discover about the union between a man and woman that unveils how Jesus really feels about His Bride.

Listen in as Derek and Sarah open up about their own relationship and discuss how the hardships and struggles of marriage can teach us more about grace. Spoiler alert…You don’t have to be married to listen to this message.

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of being connected with another person. As we all know, relationships are hard. They take work and can be a source of frustration. It can be easy to point your finger in accusation, but as much as we hate to admit it, we are half of the equation. Only when we make connection our goal can we stop seeing others as problems to be solved and start seeing them as people to be loved.

God wants to blow the lid off your limits.

Life is full of big questions.

Why am I here? What is my purpose? How should I live?

But what if there was one question that could answer them all?

Life isn’t figured out by asking why, what, and how? Real life is discovered by asking, “Who?”

Who do you say Jesus is?

The Christian life is totally dependent on what Jesus did for you and as you. You had nothing to do with your own salvation! It’s what makes Grace so amazing. This good news is what ignites our faith and renews hope. When you awaken to this truth everything changes.

What are the places in our hearts that need to wake up to this good news? All of our methods for drawing close to God must be through Christ and His grace for us, not our own works!

An awakening changes everything. It’s that “ah-ha” moment when the blinders come off and you see the light. Remember when you first realized how amazing the grace of Jesus is for you? This experience wasn’t just meant for a moment, but a way of life. This awakening way of life keeps us passionate and sensitive to Heavens plan. This awakening life overflows to others — jolting them to wake up from the darkness and experience the warm glow of God’s great love. When you wake up to the truth of who Jesus really is you find out who you really are.

The Butterfly Effect is a concept that states how small causes can have larger effects. The movie It’s a Wonderful Life is a great example of this. It portrays the impact one individual can have and how seemingly small decisions can have major consequences. The birth of Jesus set off the ultimate Butterfly Effect in all of history. It was the spark that set the world on fire. Because of this spark, now we carry the good news of God’s great love. At times, it can seem like our small acts of love don’t matter. But this love we share is drawn from the eternal flame of God’s passion for people. It is always capable of starting a roaring fire. Every decision to love will bring Heaven’s warmth to cold hearts.

Every great story starts with a dream. God conceived a dream to rescue and restore humanity through the birth of Jesus. His dream took time to manifest, but it was worth the wait. His dream suffered great opposition, but it was powerful enough to endure.

Thankfully, God’s dream has become our reality. Now the Servant King is planting dreams in us. Dreams that will advance His kingdom and exalt His name. The enemy would like nothing more than to turn God’s dream for your life into a nightmare. How you steward this dream will make all the difference. It’s time to wake up and dream again