Pastor Josh talks about Prayer and talking with God. When we decide to talk with God, we should find a quiet spot. Jesus instructed His followers to go into a room and shut the door to enjoy privacy in communication with God—our communication is not for show, after all (Matthew 6:6). Make sure all distractions like radios or televisions are turned off. At first we may feel embarrassed to kneel to pray. That’s okay. We just need to realize that our Father wants to hear from His children. We do not need to be embarrassed in any way when we come to Him in prayer. Some people try to set aside a regular time of the day to pray. Both King David and the prophet Daniel found time to pray three times a day (Psalm 55:17; Daniel 6:10). We can be very thankful that we can go to God at any time—we don’t have to have an appointment!Why do we harbor such thoughts? The Bible reveals that God wants us to talk with Him and have a personal relationship with Him. But how do we do that? Communication with God is called prayer. For generations, people have wondered how to pray. Jesus’ disciples even asked Him to teach them how to pray; and in answer, Jesus gave an outline for prayer inLuke 11:1-4 (amplified in Matthew 6:5-13).

Pastor Josh talks about His Story Our Hope it was Easter Sunday. This is the morning when the Christian church celebrates what we have come to know as Easter. It is the day when we commemorate and celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead. However, instead of Easter, I prefer the name "Resurrection Sunday. May I remind you that Resurrection Sunday is not about Easter bunnies, Easter eggs or the giving of gifts. It is about celebrating the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ arose from the dead on the first Resurrection Sunday. With that in our minds this morning, let's journey back to that first Resurrection Sunday morning. Let's look in on the events at the tomb of Jesus that day and see what happened and what it means for you and me! Some Came To Look - Matt. 28:1 - Maybe they were coming to pray or to meditate near the place where His body had been buried. Maybe they were coming to make sure that everything was in order at the tomb. Whatever the reason, we are told that they "came to see the sepulchre". Some Came To Labor - Mk. 16:1; Lk. 24:1 - These verses teach is that some of the women came to perform one last labor of love for the Lord Jesus. They came to finished anointing His body for burial. They wanted to serve Him one last time. Some Came To Linger - John 20:11-18 - These verses tell us that Mary Magdalene lingered at the tomb after the others had already gone away. Here was a woman that owed much to Jesus. There had been a time in her life when she had been possessed by seven demons, Mark 16:9. Her life had been radically changed by Jesus and she loved Him more than life itself. If you will remember, she was one of the last at the cross, Matt. 27:61, and she was the first to see Him after He had risen from the dead, Mark. 16:9. She loved Him so much for what He had done for her. Surely her hear was broken that morning, but still she came to love Him and worship Him! This passage begins with a tale of life and it ends with the telling of a lie. Which has influenced your life the most? The life or the lie? I praise the Lord for the life! It has changed my life forever. The events of that day will forever reverberate throughout eternity. Those who come to Jesus by faith will be saved, and become partakers of the life of God in Christ. Those who believe the lie are damned! Let me just remind you that this was the first Resurrection Day, it won't be the last! Because He lives, those who place their faith in Him will live too! Those in the graves will come forth one day, 1 Thes. 4:13-17, and those who are alive when He comes will never taste of death. Because when He died He tasted death for us, Heb. 2:9! Thank God for that day when death lost the battle with Life forever! Thank God for the day the battle was forever won for you and me! Thank God for that first resurrection day!

Pastor Josh Continues on Storytime with the Parable of the Good Samaritan. According to the Gospel of Luke a traveler (who may or may not have been a jew) is stripped of clothing, beaten, and left half dead along the road. First a priest and then a Levite come by, but both avoid the man. Finally, a Samaritan comes by. Samraitans and Jews generally despised each other, but the Samaritan helps the injured man. Jesus is described as telling the parable in response to the question from a lawyer, "ANd who is my neighbor?" whom Leviticus says should be loved. This parable is interpreted allegorically, with the Samritan representing Jesus Christ, who saves the sinful soul.

Pastor Meko talks about the parable of the wedding feast prepared by a king. In the parable, Jesus tells of a king who prepares a great marriage feast for his son. None of the first round of invitees is willing to come, and a second group is invited. While everyone who comes is sitting at the tables enjoying the occasion, one man is singled out for attention because he does not have on the right garments. “But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless” (Matthew 22:11-12). It doesn't say he was naked, but he was missing something. He did not have on a wedding garment. 

Pastor Meko talks about the parable of the wedding feast prepared by a king. In the parable, Jesus tells of a king who prepares a great marriage feast for his son. None of the first round of invitees is willing to come, and a second group is invited. While everyone who comes is sitting at the tables enjoying the occasion, one man is singled out for attention because he does not have on the right garments. “But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless” (Matthew 22:11-12). It doesn't say he was naked, but he was missing something. He did not have on a wedding garment. 

Pastor Meko continues with Storytime and talks about the Persistant Widow and the Unjust Judge. In the parable of the persistent widow, a poor, powerless person persists in nagging a corrupt, powerful person to do justice for her. The parable assumes John the Baptist's teaching that holding a position of power and leadership obligates  you to work justly, especially on behalf of the poor and weak. But jesus focuses the parable on a different point, that we are "to pray always and to not lose heart". He identifies the hearers-us- with the woman, and the prayed to person -GOD- with the corrupt judge, a strange combination. Assuming that jesus doesn't mean that God is corrupt, the point must be that if persistence pays off with a corrupt human of limited power, how much more will it pay off with a just God of infinite power. The purpose of the parable is to encourage Christians to persevere in their faith against all odds. Also is that only God can bring about justice in a corrupt world. That is why we must pray and not give up in our work. 

Pastor Meko continues with Storytime and talks about the Persistant Widow and the Unjust Judge. In the parable of the persistent widow, a poor, powerless person persists in nagging a corrupt, powerful person to do justice for her. The parable assumes John the Baptist's teaching that holding a position of power and leadership obligates  you to work justly, especially on behalf of the poor and weak. But jesus focuses the parable on a different point, that we are "to pray always and to not lose heart". He identifies the hearers-us- with the woman, and the prayed to person -GOD- with the corrupt judge, a strange combination. Assuming that jesus doesn't mean that God is corrupt, the point must be that if persistence pays off with a corrupt human of limited power, how much more will it pay off with a just God of infinite power. The purpose of the parable is to encourage Christians to persevere in their faith against all odds. Also is that only God can bring about justice in a corrupt world. That is why we must pray and not give up in our work. 

Pastor Josh Talks about the parable of the talents. In the parable of the talents, it appears that Jesus is stressing the importance of a person using their talents. The Parable of the talents is given by Jesus right after he talks about his second coming and that no one know the day or the hour and so a believer must be using their talents. So which one are you a faithful servant or one that hides their talent and their profession of faith in christ. You can find this parable in Matthew 25: 14-30

Pastor Josh talks about The Parable Of The Prodigal Son. The Parable Of The Prodigal Son is one of the parables of jesus. According to the story, a father has two sons. The younger son asks for his inheritance before the father dies, and the father agrees. The younger son, after wasting his fortune, goes hungry during a famine, and becomes so destitute he longs to eat the same food given to hogs, unclean animals in jewish culture. He then returns home with the intention of repenting and begging his father to be made one of his hired servants, expecting his relationship with his father is likely severed. Regardless, the father finds him on the road and immediately welcomes him back as his son and holds a feast to celebrate his return, which includes killing a fattened calf usually reserved for special occasions. The older son refuses to participate, stating that in all the time he has worked for the father, he never disobyed him; yet, he did not even receive a goat to celebrate with his friends. The father reminds the older son that the son has always been with him and everything the father has belongs to the older son. But, they should still celebrate the return of the younger son because he was lost and is now found. 

Pastor Josh started a new series called Storytime. We all have a story to tell and we talked about the seeds of love through the parables. Today we talked about The Parable of the Sower. The parable of the sower conerns a sower who scatters seed, which falls on four different types of ground. The hard ground "by the way side" prevents the seed from sprouting at all, and the seed becomes nothing more than bird food. The stony ground provides enough soil for the seeds to germinate and begin to grow, but because there is "no deepness of earth," the plants do not take root and are soon withered in the sun. The thorny ground allows the seed to grow, but the competing thorns choke the life out of the beneficial plants. The good ground recieves the seed and produces much fruit. To summareize the point of the Parable of the Sower. " A man's reception of God's Word is determined by the condition of his heart." A secondary lesson would be " Salvation is more than a superficial, albeit joyful, hearing of the gospel."