Today, we pray for the victims of the shooting in Uvalde, Texas. We lift up prayers of lament, comfort, healing, peace and hope. May our prayers lead us to action. Psalm 13, Psalm 91, Romans 15:13.

Josh continues our discussion of embodying a praying life and overcoming our cynicism. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul is writing to a church that he cares deeply about but that is having a hard time bearing witness to Christ in their community. Things like selfish ambition have crept their way into the church, which is always an issue for church leadership. When we develop an eye for Jesus and what He is doing in and around us, we remain in postures of gratitude and humility, which provide ways out of cynicism and help us overcome things like the challenges Paul saw in the church at Philippi. Philippians 2:1-11. 

Josh continues our series on prayer this week looking at how cynicism can get in the way of our prayer lives. Cynicism feeds the skeptical ideas we have about prayer -- what's the point of prayer? Cynicism is a strong cultural presence, and many have us agree with it without even knowing it. Cynicism acts as if it knows everything but ultimately leads to nothing. Cynicism moves our focus to outcomes rather than the trustworthiness of God, the goodness of God, and the hope we find in Jesus. But we can learn to trust again. Psalm 23; Genesis 3:5. 

Kara shares today from John 10 and Psalm 23 reminding us of the importance of learning the shepherd's voice. We can spend a lot of time listening to the best teaching and allow that to substitute our own efforts to spend time with God and learn His voice. Kara also encourages us that the shepherd knows each of our voices and comes to us whenever we reach out to Him regardless of what we need to say to Him. It may take some time to discern God's voice, but that journey is worth it. John 10:1-21; Psalm 23. 

Today, we celebrate River City's 8th birthday through testimony and the unveiling of some new language related to our vision. We also share about our updated and refreshed website. Our church's vision is upheld by four values: spiritual formation, hospitality, restoration, and missional living. 

RCC's vision: "River City Church is a place where we commit to be a people formed by Jesus, together, in community. We surrender to reorienting our hearts to God, the Ultimate Reconciler, who empowers us in building bridges with our neighbors to reflect the Kingdom of God."

Visit rivercitysmyrna.com for more information about our church. 

Josh continues our discussion on prayer and praying like a child. Praying with childlikeness. Praying out of a dependency on God. Prayer is simply being with God, and the desired outcome of that prayer is actually getting what we want -- God. There are doorways presented to us where we can enter into that space with God to offer whatever is on our hearts and minds. We don't like to cross the thresholds of those doorways in our weakness or with our brokenness. But God's strength is made perfect in our weakness. John 15:5; John 2:1-10; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Psalm 63:1-3; Galatians 4:6. 

Jessica also shared that she will be stepping off staff as the CityKids Director at the end of May. 

Josh shares from Luke 24 -- a passage that churches all over the world are reading today. We read about the women finding an empty tomb, being reminded of what Jesus had told them would happen, and then telling others about what they'd encountered. In their story, we can see many of our own stories. We have an experience with Jesus that leads to our curiosity being piqued. We are reminded of our own history with Jesus and that leads us to more of an understanding of who Jesus is and the new life that comes through journeying with Jesus. Luke 24:1-12. 

We also witnessed three baptisms today after the message. 

Josh shares a Palm Sunday message as we enter into holy week. Looking at Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, we are faced with two questions: Who is Jesus? and What kind of king is Jesus? In contrast to the Roman governor's entry on the other side of the city, we see Jesus riding in humility. We see the way of empire and the way of the cross cast against each other. We see Jesus weeping over the city -- because the people don't understand who He is and what His entry represents. By the end of this week, everyone abandons Jesus. He needs us to have the humility to see we could abandon Him too. Luke 19:28-41; Matthew 21:9-11; Zechariah 9:9-10. 

Josh shares a message inspired by the way Jesus considered the children who interacted with Him and informed by Paul Miller's book, A Praying Life, which is a helpful resource for many of us who struggle with prayer. Jesus calls us to be childlike in our relationship with Him and, thus, in our prayer with Him. Our adult approach to prayer can be so burdensome, and there is freedom in the childlike approach with the Father. Luke 10:21; Matthew 18:1-5; Mark 10:13-16; Revelation 3:20; Matthew 11:28; Matthew 7:7-11.

Paul Miller's book is available here: A Praying Life.

Dr. Cheryl Bridges Johns is our special guest today, speaking from a passage in Revelation 8. Dr. Johns reminds us that there is deep mystery in prayer. The passage speaks of half an hour of silence before the seventh seal is broken. That silence operates as a clearing out; it wraps us for the deepening we are invited into that is coming. As we go deeper with God into God, we begin to understand that we don't just pray, but we are prayer as we are becoming more like God (theosis). Revelation 8:1-5.