Storyside Church

John 1:42 — Then Andrew brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, the son of John. You will be called Cephas.” (“Cephas” means “Peter.”)



Matthew 16

15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.


Do you know who Jesus is?



John 13

37 Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I am ready to die for you!”

38 Jesus answered, “Will you really give your life for me? The truth is, before the rooster crows, you will say three times that you don’t know me.”




Peter is making promises that he won’t keep.



Peter underestimates the power of peer pressure.



How do you handle broken promises?



How do you treat people who fail?




Luke 22

61 Then the Lord turned and looked into Peter’s eyes. And Peter remembered what the Lord had said, “Before the rooster crows in the morning, you will say three times that you don’t know me.”

62 Then Peter went outside and cried bitterly.





Mark 16

5 The women walked into the tomb and saw a young man there wearing a white robe. He was sitting on the right side of the tomb. The women were afraid.

6 But the man said, “Don’t be afraid. You are looking for Jesus from Nazareth, the one who was killed on a cross. He has risen from death! He is not here. Look, here is the place they put him when he was dead.

7 Now go and tell his followers. And be sure to tell Peter. Tell them, ‘Jesus is going into Galilee and will be there before you come. You will see him there, as he told you before.’”





John 21

15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”

16 He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”

17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.




Do you love me?



Has God ever had to ask you the same thing twice?



What is it that God is asking of you right now?



Simon must see beyond selfishness.



Jesus calls Simon Peter (again) to Kingdom involvement.

Am I trustworthy?


Do I trust those around me?


Where do I place my trust?



Psalm 20:7 — Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.



Do I trust God?



Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.



What is the area in your life that you are struggling to trust God?



Mark 9:24 — The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”




Our trust is often tested in loss.


Job 1:21 — “When I was born into this world, I was naked and had nothing. When I die and leave this world, I will be naked and have nothing. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Praise the name of the Lord!”



Our trust is often tested with timing.



Our trust is often tested with outcomes.



“I will pray that you trust God.”
— Mother Teresa



Romans 15:13 — May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 150

1 Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his Temple!
Praise him in heaven, his strong fortress!

2 Praise him for the great things he does! Praise him for all his greatness!

3 Praise him with trumpets and horns!
Praise him with harps and lyres!

4 Praise him with tambourines and dancing!
Praise him with stringed instruments and flutes!

5 Praise him with loud cymbals!
Praise him with crashing cymbals!

6 Everything that breathes, praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!



Revelation 21:4 — He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

Who are your friends?
What is a friend?
Why do you need friends?
Are you a good friend?
Are you friendly?

Proverbs 12:26 — Good people are careful about choosing their friends, but evil people always choose the wrong ones.

James 4:4 — You people are not faithful to God! You should know that loving what the world has is the same as hating God. So anyone who wants to be friends with this evil world becomes God’s enemy.


A friend loves you.

Proverbs 17:17 — A friend loves you all the time, but a brother was born to help in times of trouble.


A friend helps you.

Ecclesiastes 4

9 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.

10 If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.


A friend doesn’t leave you in the low points of life.

A friend knows how to forgive.

Proverbs 17:9 — Forgive someone, and you will strengthen your friendship. Keep reminding them, and you will destroy it.

A good friend helps you become…

Proverbs 13:20 — Be friends with those who are wise, and you will become wise. Choose fools to be your friends, and you will have trouble.

A good friend has faith in you and for you.

Mark 2

3 Four men tried to bring a crippled friend to Him;

4 but since the crowd prevented their carrying him close enough to get Jesus’ attention, they climbed up onto the roof, opened a hole in it, and lowered the paralyzed man on his mat down to Jesus.

5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.

Sin
Pain
Grief
Trials
Heavy
Sorrow
Trouble
Forsaken
Despised
Weakness
Temptations
Discouragement

Can we find a friend so faithful?

A friend that loves me.

A friend that helps me.

A friend that doesn’t leave me in the low points of life.

A friend that knows how to forgive me.

A friend who helps me become…

A friend who believes in me.

What a friend we have in Jesus.

Storms can get our attention.

Storms can show us the fragility of life.

Storms can help shape our lives.


Luke 15

4 If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?

8 Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it?

24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. So they began to celebrate.



Some leave by circumstance.
Some leave by choice.


Some people are saved by the search.
Some people are saved by searching.


Sometimes we are found by others.
Sometimes we need to find ourselves.



11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons.

12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

13 “A few days later the younger son gathered up all that he had and left. He traveled far away to another country, and there he wasted his money living like a fool.



Far away…



Romans 1

24 People wanted only to do evil. So God left them and let them go their sinful way. And so they became completely immoral and used their bodies in shameful ways with each other.

25 They traded the truth of God for a lie. They bowed down and worshiped the things God made instead of worshiping the God who made those things. He is the one who should be praised forever. Amen.

26 Because people did those things, God left them and let them do the shameful things they wanted to do. Women stopped having natural sex with men and started having sex with other women.

27 In the same way, men stopped having natural sex with women and began wanting each other all the time. Men did shameful things with other men, and in their bodies they received the punishment for those wrongs.

28 People did not think it was important to have a true knowledge of God. So God left them and allowed them to have their own worthless thinking. And so they do what they should not do.

29 They are filled with every kind of sin, evil, greed, and hatred. They are full of jealousy, murder, fighting, lying, and thinking the worst things about each other. They gossip

30 and say evil things about each other. They hate God. They are rude, proud, and brag about themselves. They invent ways of doing evil. They don’t obey their parents,

31 they are foolish, they don’t keep their promises, and they show no kindness or mercy to others.

32 They know God’s law says that anyone who lives like that should die. But they not only continue to do these things themselves, but they also encourage others who do them.




Luke 15

14 After he spent everything he had, there was a terrible famine throughout the country. He was hungry and he needed money.

15 So he went and got a job with one of the people who lived there. The man sent him into the fields to feed pigs.

16 He was so hungry that he wanted to eat the food the pigs were eating. But no one gave him anything.

17 “The son realized that he had been very foolish. He thought, ‘All my father’s hired workers have plenty of food. But here I am, almost dead because I have nothing to eat.

18 I will leave and go to my father. I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against God and have done wrong to you.

19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But let me be like one of your hired workers.’

20 So he left and went to his father. “While the son was still a long way off, his father saw him coming and felt sorry for him. So he ran to him and hugged and kissed him.

22 “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet.

23 And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast,

24 for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.




The Father saw him coming…



Amazing Grace

When We Worship, God Will Work!

Where is Your There?

Are You Stuck in the Middle?

Perhaps You Were Made for this

The Best Place to Live is on a Prayer!

YOU ARE NOT ALONE


ISAIAH ‭41:9-10‬ ‭

9 I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away.

10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.




YOU BELONG

PSALM 100:3

Know that the Lord is God— he made us; we belong to him. We are his people, the sheep of his own pasture.



ISAIAH 43:1

Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine.



YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

TIME
TALENT
TREASURE



YOU ARE WORTH IT


ROMANS ‭5:8

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.



YOU ARE LOVED


1 JOHN 3:16

We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. This is why we must give our lives for each other.


JOHN 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

“I don’t wanna live without your love…” - Chicago

Underestimated Outcomes



What am I underestimating?



Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you would ever want to pay.



Undesired Outcomes



Lawrence H. Pfaff, Sr. was born in Belmont, NY, on April 16, 1941. He passed away on June 27, 2022, living a long life, much longer than he deserved. He is survived by his three children, no four. Oops, five children. Well as of 2022 we believe there is one more that we know about, but there could be more. His love was abundant when it came to himself, but for his children it was limited. From a young age, he was a ladies' man and an abusive alcoholic, solidifying his commitment to both with the path of destruction he left behind, damaging his adult children, and leaving them broken.

Lawrence, Sr's hobbies included abusing his first wife and children. He loved to start projects but never followed through on any of them. He enjoyed the life of a bar fly for many years and had a quaint little living space, studio, above his favorite hole in the wall, the club Nashville.

Lawrence, Sr. did spend over 20 years in the NYPD, but even his time in service was negligent at best. Because of his alcohol addiction, his Commanding Officer took away his gun and badge, replacing them with a broom until he could get his act together.

Lawrence, Sr. did claim to be clean and sober for over thirty years, but never worked any of the twelve steps, including the eighth and ninth steps with his children, making amends. He possesses no redeeming qualities for his children, including the ones he knew, and the "ones he knew about.”

It will be challenging to miss Lawrence, Sr. because he was narcissistic. He was incapable of love. Lawrence, Sr.'s passing proves that evil does eventually die, and it marks a time of healing, which will allow his children to get the closure they deserve. Lawrence, Sr. can be remembered for being a father to many, and a dad to none.

Posted online on July 02, 2022
Published in Florida Times Union




When we learn from experience, the scars of sin can lead us to restoration and a renewed intimacy with God.
— Charles Stanley



John 6

66 After Jesus said these things, many of his followers left and stopped following him.

67 Jesus asked the twelve apostles, “Do you want to leave too?”

68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, where would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.

69 We believe in you. We know that you are the Holy One from God.”




God’s Word


Hebrews 4:12 — God’s word is alive and working. It is sharper than the sharpest sword and cuts all the way into us. It cuts deep to the place where the soul and the spirit are joined. God’s word cuts to the center of our joints and our bones. It judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts.



God’s Spirit


Romans 8:6 — If your thinking is controlled by your sinful self, there is spiritual death. But if your thinking is controlled by the Spirit, there is life and peace.


Romans 8:14 — The true children of God are those who let God’s Spirit lead them.


Romans 8:26 — Also, the Spirit helps us. We are very weak, but the Spirit helps us with our weakness. We don’t know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit himself speaks to God for us. He begs God for us, speaking to him with feelings too deep for words.


Galatians 5

16 So I tell you, live the way the Spirit leads you. Then you will not do the evil things your sinful self wants.

19 The wrong things the sinful self does are clear: committing sexual sin, being morally bad, doing all kinds of shameful things,

20 worshiping false gods, taking part in witchcraft, hating people, causing trouble, being jealous, angry or selfish, causing people to argue and divide into separate groups,

21 being filled with envy, getting drunk, having wild parties, and doing other things like this. I warn you now as I warned you before: The people who do these things will not have a part in God’s kingdom.

22 But the fruit that the Spirit produces in a person’s life is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these kinds of things.



The Body Of Christ (The Church)


Colossians 3:16 — Let the teaching of Christ live in you richly. Use all wisdom to teach and strengthen each other. Sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God.


Acts 2

46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,

47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.


Hebrews 10

24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds,

25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.




Can we make the fire burn again?



Revelation 2

4 “But I have this against you: You have left the love you had in the beginning.

5 So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first. If you don’t change, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

Always
Another



What are inner voices telling you?



I am the subject of depressions of spirit so fearful that I hope none of you ever gets to such extremes of wretchedness as I go to.
— Charles Spurgeon



2 Corinthians 10

4 We fight with weapons that are different from those the world uses. Our weapons have power from God. These weapons can destroy the enemy’s strong places. We destroy men’s arguments.

5 And we destroy every proud thing that raises itself against the knowledge of God. We capture every thought and make it give up and obey Christ.




The Mountain Of Provision


Genesis 22

7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”

8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.

13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son.

14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”



FAITH

F — Focus on the positives

A — Affirm yourself

I — Imagine God doing something good

T — Trust God always

H — Hope for the best





The Mountain Of Protection


2 Kings 6

15 Elisha’s servant got up early that morning. When he went outside, he saw an army with horses and chariots all around the city. The servant said to Elisha, “Oh, my master, what can we do?”

16 Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid. The army that fights for us is larger than the army that fights for Aram.”

17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “Lord, I ask you, open my servant’s eyes so that he can see.” The Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and the servant saw the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire. They were all around Elisha.




The Mountain Of Perseverance and Purpose


When you’re about to quit, remember why you started.


John 19

17 He carried his own cross to a place called “The Place of the Skull.” (In Aramaic the name of this place is “Golgotha.”)

30 After Jesus had taken the vinegar, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and died.


Hebrews 10:35 — So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you!

The Broken Road



Who is to blame for your brokenness?



Lost Direction
Lost Dreams
Lost Time



What have you lost in life?



Our life is full of brokenness — broken relationships, broken promises, broken expectations. How can we live with that brokenness without becoming bitter and resentful except by returning again and again to God's faithful presence in our lives.



Psalm 34:18 — The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.



Brokenness is often the road to breakthrough. Be encouraged.
— Dr Tony Evans




The Road to Damascus


Acts 9

1 In Jerusalem Saul was still trying to frighten the followers of the Lord by saying he would kill them. So he went to the high priest

2 and asked him to write letters to the synagogues in the city of Damascus. Saul wanted the high priest to give him the authority to find people in Damascus who were followers of Christ’s Way. If he found any there, men or women, he would arrest them and bring them back to Jerusalem.

3 So Saul went to Damascus. As he came near the city, a bright light from heaven suddenly flashed around him.

4 Saul fell to the ground. He heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul! Why are you doing things against me?”

5 Saul said, “Who are you, Lord?”
The voice answered, “I am Jesus. I am the One you are trying to hurt.




The Road to Ephesus


Acts 19

1 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples

2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”

3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied.

4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”

5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.




The Road to Emmaus


Luke 24

13 That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem.

14 As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened.

15 As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them.

17 He asked them, “What are you discussing so intently as you walk along?” They stopped short, sadness written across their faces.

21 We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.




The Road To Ephrath


Genesis 48:7 — “Long ago, as I was returning from Paddan-aram, Rachel died in the land of Canaan. We were still on the way, some distance from Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). So with great sorrow I buried her there beside the road to Ephrath.”


What is trying to stop you?




The Road To Eternal Life


Matthew 7

13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.

14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.