Week 2 of Altared Carbon

You don’t just have a body, you are a body. Our souls, minds, and physical selves are all interconnected. We are told to love God with all of our hearts, souls, minds and strength-all of these parts of us are valuable and intended to glorify God. We tend to swing too far in different directions here, either over-emphasizing our intellectual self and diminishing the importance of our bodies and physical needs or becoming completely beholden to our bodies and physical image. God intended for us to be whole, integrated people whose worship and relationship with God is found in every part of us, bodies included. What does it mean that we are not just brains on legs, but whole people?

As we begin the new year, join us for Liturgy of the Ordinary, a 2019 Damascus Road series. Instead of trying out a big and flashy resolution we forget by February, let's look at the ordinary in life, faith in small moments, spiritual formation in its daily, molecular form, because the only way we are formed and changed into the likeness of Christ is day by day... So what we do in this one, ordinary day matters.

Part 2 of Liturgy of the Ordinary

We live in an instant world with immediate gratification, high speed internet, freaky fast delivery -- now, now, now, now. But stuck in traffic, we are plunged into the ancient spiritual practice of waiting and lose the illusion that time is ours. It is in waiting that we are formed and honed, developed and matured, and when we are sometimes forced to wait, we are reminded of who is actually in control of our time.

As we begin the new year, join us for Liturgy of the Ordinary, a 2019 Damascus Road series. Instead of trying out a big and flashy resolution we forget by February, let's look at the ordinary in life, faith in small moments, spiritual formation in its daily, molecular form, because the only way we are formed and changed into the likeness of Christ is day by day... So what we do in this one, ordinary day matters.

Part 1 of Liturgy of the Ordinary

When we wake, we are sleepy, smelly, and have yet to have done anything of worth or note in the world. But in this moment of vulnerability and unproductiveness, we learn to embrace our true identity and worth -- found not in how put together we are, how right we are, how intelligent we are, or how much stuff we've gotten done, but simply in being God's beloved.

Week 1 of Altared Carbon

In Genesis, we read about how God formed our bodies and blew life into us. We are made by God out of dust and wind, body and soul. Genesis not only gives us an account of how God created humanity, but also of how God intended for humans to be. Let us return to the garden and what it means to be created by God in the image of God and declared to be very good.

Week 4 of Come to Worship

Christmas is here! Our waiting is over and the King is here. When Jesus was born he was greeted with joy and worship. Let us remember what we were waiting for and what it is we still wait for.

Week 3 of Come to Worship

What do I have to give? The holiday season can leave us wondering what to give to others, or feeling like we are already stretched too thin in our time, money, and energy to give any more. But what if there is more in the relationship between giving and joy than we realize? What does it mean to bring our gifts to God in worship?

This Christmas season, let's revisit a series of Christmas pasts. Join us for The Gift, a 2020 Damascus Road series exploring the significance of the gifts the wise men brought to Jesus (gold, frankincense, and myrrh). We will connect the symbolism within the story of Christ’s birth to our relationship with Jesus. We will seek new insight on the birth of Jesus to gain a deeper understanding of who He is.

Part 4 of The Gift    

The final gift was not brought by the wise men. It was not presented to Mary or her son. The gift was the child, and he was a gift given to the world. Let us celebrate the greatest gift ever given to the world as the God of creation comes to us as an infant, humble and meek.

This Christmas season, let's revisit a series of Christmas pasts. Join us for The Gift, a 2020 Damascus Road series exploring the significance of the gifts the wise men brought to Jesus (gold, frankincense, and myrrh). We will connect the symbolism within the story of Christ’s birth to our relationship with Jesus. We will seek new insight on the birth of Jesus to gain a deeper understanding of who He is.

Part 3 of The Gift   

The third gift, myrrh, was a valuable gum-like substance used to embalm the dead. It is quite an odd gift to give to new parents, yet it points to another role Jesus would one day grow into - the suffering servant and the lamb of God. This gift from the beginning of the story points towards its ultimate destination. This Christmas season, let us reflect on how this story of a baby born and laid in a manger means so much more than this.

Week 2 of Come to Worship

In a culture where many are clamoring to be seen and heard, the posture of kneeling can feel the most strange. We don’t want to submit, we don’t want to surrender, and yet many of us find ourselves (figuratively) bowing before our work, our pursuit of pleasure, or something else. How might learning to surrender and release control, bowing before our Savior, help us to draw closer to God and find new strength and purpose?

This Christmas season, let's revisit a series of Christmas pasts. Join us for The Gift, a 2020 Damascus Road series exploring the significance of the gifts the wise men brought to Jesus (gold, frankincense, and myrrh). We will connect the symbolism within the story of Christ’s birth to our relationship with Jesus. We will seek new insight on the birth of Jesus to gain a deeper understanding of who He is. 

Part 2 of The Gift  

The second gift, gold, is still known and prized for its value today. It is a symbol of wealth, status, and power. It is a gift fit for a king. What kind of king will this child be? The Jewish people had long hoped for a ruler to lead them to freedom, the political leaders were fearful he could be a threat to their power, and the wise men came to this poor family and worshiped this awaited king in the child before them. As Christmas approaches, let us worship the King!