Sermons

Pastor Dell looked at what it means to wait on God as part of our series, "In The Fire". Waiting on God is one of the most difficult experiences in the Christian life, but it is never without purpose. Daniel chapter 9 shows us that when God's promises feel delayed, the right response is not passivity or anxiety. It is repentance, prayer, and a deeper trust in His character. God uses seasons of waiting not just to prepare our circumstances, but to prepare our hearts. Like Daniel, we are called to turn to Scripture, humble ourselves before God, and pray with urgency and expectation. The refining fire of waiting is not wasted when it draws us closer to Him.

Pastor Rob walked through Daniel 8 as he continued our series, "In The Fire". Evil may feel like a wildfire with no containment, but Daniel 8 makes one thing clear: God has already drawn the line. Through the rise and fall of empires, including the brutal reign of Antiochus IV, this chapter shows that every earthly power has an expiration date. Evil is real, it sometimes prospers, and it causes genuine suffering. But it is never unsupervised, never unlimited, and never final. For those in the middle of their own fire right now, the call is the same as it was for Daniel: grieve honestly, hold on to what you know, and get up and go about the King's business.

Pastor Dell continued our series, In The Fire, this morning as he walked through Daniel 7. Earthly kingdoms rise and fall, but God's kingdom is eternal. Daniel 7 gives us a vivid picture of four powerful empires represented as terrifying beasts, each one ultimately subject to the authority of the Ancient of Days. In the climax of the vision, Jesus Christ appears as the Son of Man, receiving everlasting dominion from the Father. This is not a promise that God's people will be spared from suffering, but it is a guarantee that their inheritance is secure. The same spiritual forces that drove ancient empires to oppress believers are still at work today, which makes this passage deeply relevant. Our hope does not rest in politics, earthly leaders, or cultural influence. It rests in Jesus Christ alone. Live as a citizen of His kingdom now, not just in anticipation of eternity.

This week our Missions Coordinator, Kenzie MacKillop, shared a message from a familiar passage found in Daniel 6, Daniel and the lion's den. Daniel was not shaken by the threat of the lion's den because his faith had been built over a lifetime of watching God prove Himself faithful. When an edict made prayer illegal, he did not panic or hide. He went home, opened his windows, and gave thanks, just as he always had. That kind of steadiness does not appear in a crisis. It is formed in the ordinary, daily rhythms of prayer, community, and service long before the pressure arrives. Persecution is not a sign that something has gone wrong. Scripture frames it as part of the calling for anyone who carries the name of Christ into a world that rejected Him. The foundation beneath all of it is the resurrection. The world can take much from us, but it cannot take what has already been given back through Jesus rising from the dead.

Pastor Dell walked through Daniel Chapter 5 as he continued our series, In The Fire this morning. God's patience is real, but it is not the same as His permission. In Daniel 5, King Belshazzar throws a lavish feast and uses sacred vessels from God's temple to toast false gods, openly defying what he already knew about God's power. A mysterious hand appears and writes a verdict on the wall, and that very night, Belshazzar's kingdom comes to an end. His downfall was not ignorance but resistance. He knew the truth and chose pride anyway. The same warning applies today. Every day we are given is an invitation to repent, not a signal that our rebellion is acceptable. God's patience has a purpose, and that purpose is to lead us back to Him.

Pastor Dell walked through chapter 4 of Daniel as he continued our series, "In The Fire". Pride is one of the most dangerous forces in a person's life, and Daniel chapter 4 shows us exactly what God does when He decides to deal with it directly. Through the story of King Nebuchadnezzar, we see three powerful movements: God warns, God humbles, and God restores. Nebuchadnezzar had witnessed miracles firsthand, yet he continued to rule his own life and take credit for everything around him. God gave him a full year to respond to a clear warning, and he wasted every day of it. The judgment that followed was severe, but it was not the end of the story. After seven years in the wilderness, Nebuchadnezzar looked up to heaven, and everything changed. God does not humble us to destroy us. He humbles us so that He can restore us to something far better than what pride could ever build.

Our Elder, Adam West, continued our series on Daniel by looking at a familiar account found in chapter 3. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow to a ninety-foot golden statue, even when it meant being thrown into a blazing furnace. Their response to the king was not a negotiation but a declaration of unconditional trust in God. When they were thrown in, a fourth figure appeared walking with them in the fire, and they came out completely unharmed. The furnace meant to destroy them became the very place where God's glory was put on display. Modern idols may not look like golden statues, but anything that occupies our thoughts, shapes our decisions, and pulls our focus from God can quietly take that place. True faithfulness does not wait for a guaranteed outcome before stepping forward in obedience. If you are in a hard season right now, you are not alone. God meets His people in the fire, and the trial you survive can become someone else's lifeline.

Pastor Dell walked through Chapter 2 of Daniel as he continued our series, In The Fire. Uncertainty has a way of paralyzing us, but Daniel chapter 2 shows us how to respond when life feels out of control. King Nebuchadnezzar, the most powerful ruler on earth, was haunted by a dream no human wisdom could explain. Daniel responded not with panic, but with humility, community, and worship. He gathered his friends to pray, received revelation from God, and gave all the glory back to Him. The dream itself revealed that every human kingdom is temporary, but God's kingdom is eternal and unshakable. Jesus arrived without the spectacle of empire, was crucified, and rose victoriously, and His kingdom continues to advance. When fear grips us, it is often because we have placed our trust in something that was never meant to hold it. The anchor for every uncertainty we face is the truth that God's kingdom cannot be destroyed.

Pastor Dell kicked off our new series on the book of Daniel titled "In The Fire". We live in a world that constantly pressures us to conform, and the first chapter of Daniel shows us what it looks like to hold our ground without losing who we are in God. Daniel and his friends were taken into Babylon, renamed, educated in its ways, and surrounded by its culture, yet Babylon never owned them. The fire of assimilation is not a dramatic attack but a slow, quiet erosion of identity and values that happens when we stop paying attention. Like Daniel, we are called to be in the world without being formed by it. Holiness does not mean withdrawing from culture or becoming harsh toward those who think differently. It means belonging wholly to God while living faithfully among those who do not. Daniel settled his commitment to God in private long before any public moment of testing arrived, and that private faithfulness is what made him immovable. The same determination is available to us today.

Pastor Rob shared a message encouraging our families to choose to live out Joshua 24:15, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Faith is not something that gets passed down through family traditions or church attendance. It has to be personally chosen. In Joshua 24, Joshua gathers all of Israel before his death and calls them to make a deliberate decision about who they will serve. He first reminds them of everything God has already done, because you cannot choose what you do not know. Then he issues a clear challenge: choose this day whom you will serve. His own answer was bold and public: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. That declaration was not just words for a single moment. It was a commitment to live differently every day after.