South Hills Church - Costa Mesa

You are God’s Plan A to reach the world, and there is no Plan B. This may feel overwhelming at first, it’s important to note that His strategy doesn’t require you to change careers, memorize every scripture, or become a missionary on the other side of the world. In fact, for most of us it means staying exactly where we are. So what part do you have to play, and what is God inviting you to do?

Everybody knows that just like a road trip isn’t complete without music, a church service isn’t complete without worship. We may not know how we know, or why it’s true, we just know it is. Obviously, there’s something powerful about music, but why do we need to sing (what amounts to) love songs to someone we can’t see, hear, or touch? Especially with other people. It’s kind of weird. Why has worship been essential to religious gatherings since humans started having them? Is it something God requires? Are we obligated to do it? Is it how we prove our worth and earn His blessing? Or is it about something else altogether? How might knowing what God intends worship to be change how we approach it and how fulfilling we find it?

Life is busy, and it shows no signs of slowing

Making room for and compromising with other people can be uncomfortable and annoying. Which is why a lot of us would rather go it alone. We drive alone, eat alone, and binge our shows alone. The catch is: doing so much alone is…lonely. We all want to find people we just click with—people who share our interests, opinions, and preferences. In other words, people just like us. Is that so bad? Doesn’t God want us to have meaningful relationships? If so, how come so many of us feel unwanted and disconnected? What if we’re missing the kind of connections we long for because they’re inconvenient and too much work? What if the relationships we need come from building community with those who are nothing like us as opposed to magically finding those who are? If that were true, what would we do about it?

So much of what we think we need is dictated by what those around us have. We feel the pressure to keep up with and occasionally one-up our neighbors. But social media has expanded our community of comparison to everyone in existence. Which is a little overwhelming. Why is so much of our self-worth tied to what we have, and why do even those who have a lot often feel worthless? How do we break our addiction to more? And how do we teach our kids there’s more to life than having the best stuff?

Statistically, most Americans live paycheck to paycheck, barely making ends meet regardless of how much they make. It’s easier to make money than to make a plan for your money. We tend to just spend what we get on whatever we need in the moment, not realizing that some of our needs may just be wants in disguise. How can you tell the difference? Is it the same for everybody? Is it even realistic to stick to a budget in a modern age? If so, how?

Most families don’t talk about money, especially to their kids. Which is a shame because money is a big part of life. A lot of us leave home without much of a financial compass. What we do know we’ve cobbled together from peers, commercials, and social media. Most of that advice leads us to crave what we don’t have and spend what we haven’t earned. Few people have taken time to think about their philosophy of money, but Jesus talked a lot about just that. He seemed to think the way you spend has a lot to do with what you value and that you could redirect your values with the way you handle your money.

Getting started with something new is tough enough but sustaining a habit long-term is even harder. To create lasting life-change, make what’s important easy to do, and what’s unimportant hard to do. So, how do you do that?

It’s not enough to know what’s most important; you have to say no to what’s not. Most of us are aware we should say no, and maybe even what or who we should say no to. But we’re nervous about the repercussions. So, how do we courageously navigate no with the least amount of collateral damage?