That's Grace Podcast

Many of us have complicated relationships with God. We view as distant or detached from our lives. We might see Him as a the judge of all wrong and pouring out punishment on those who do wrong. What if our complicated relationship with God stems from incorrect information about who He really is? This week, we see 3 different characteristics of God that can completely shift what we thought we knew about God.

You would most likely say that you know of God. You probably know some of some stories in the Bible and have your own images and ideas about who He is. But is it possible to really KNOW Him? How can someone or something so complex be known or understood? In this series, we will see how the Bible describes the complexities of God with simple words because the more accurate your understanding of who God is, the more meaningful your relationship with Him will be.

Through technology, we have access to more content and more conveniences than ever before, but we feel more disconnected than ever before. And while conveniences are great and can improve the quality of our lives, the danger is that we can soon prioritize convenience over the meaningful things in life. If you feel like you've been conveniencing the meaning from your life, there's hope to readjust and bring more meaning and quiet to your life.

After a life full of disappointments and sacrifice with little thanks, we see George Bailey, the main character from It's A Wonderful Life, wondering if everyone and everything would have been better off in this life if he has never been born. As we wrap up our Christmas At The Movies, Pastor Sean asks the question, what would be different if Jesus has never been born? Would it really affect your life? And if so, how does it affect your today, your tomorrow, and the rest of your life?

We are encouraged in our world to find our own identity. To either associate our lives with a certain label or to break free and create our own. But when you choose to follow Jesus, your identity shifts. The way you see yourself should change as well as the way that you see others. Just like in the Christmas movie The Santa Clause, when Scott puts on the Santa suit it changes everything about his life. So how does our identity shift as followers of Jesus and what does that mean for us?

Sometimes, it just feels like something is missing. You’re not complete. You might be able to identify exactly what it is that you need or you might not be able to put your finger on it. But for whatever reason, you feel unsettled inside. Unrest. All you know is that something needs to change. What we do with that feeling of incompleteness says a lot about what we treasure and what matters to us.

With Thanksgiving being a Holiday focused on gratitude and Christmas focused on generosity, you'd think that this time of year, we would all be in a pretty good mental and emotional state. But according to new reports, 3x more of us are dealing with mild to severe symptoms of depression since the beginning of the pandemic. So how can we replace the negativity all around us with something more positive and how can we change our focus so that we can live with the joy God intends for us?

Life has a way of throwing us curveballs. Just when you least expect it, things start to not go your way and often, it feels like our life, our happiness, and our plans unravel quickly. You find this theme in Home Alone where Kevin is unexpectedly left by his family and when burglars try to take advantage, he is left with a choice on how to respond. In the same way, we have a choice on how to respond when things don't go our way, and we learn from the life of Joseph principles to help when life seems to be at its most difficult.

We'd all agree that our world needs more compassion and empathy. To find more common ground and less to fight over. To prioritize unity with those that we disagree with. The problem though is that we don't want to be the ones to do that. We can be compassionate to those we love and those we deem deserving, but we have a hard time finding compassion for those that have wronged and opposed us. But living with an uncommon compassion just might be what it takes for the world to see the love of God in you.

Most people would aspire to being known as generous. Whether it's time, talent, or resources, we know the impact generosity has in our world. This is the kind of uncommon life that God would have us live. A life lived using things to help people rather than using people to get things. But when we look at our calendars and bank accounts, can we really say that we live with uncommon generosity? And maybe that has a lot more to do with our own hearts than how busy we are or how much margin we have in our income.