The ECC Podcast

Life is full of seasons—times of joy and ease, and times of struggle and hardship. No matter where we find ourselves on that spectrum, the invitation remains the same: to fix our eyes on Jesus. Why is this so important? Because circumstances, whether good or bad, are temporary. They shift and change like the weather, but Jesus remains constant—our rock, our anchor, and our hope.

Our circumstances (marriage problems, illness, death, etc.) are not an indicator of God’s absence. In the story recorded in John 11, we see Jesus actually engineer a situation in life in order to teach someone, something about God.

Jeff Golby will explore the concept of grace and truth as lived realities, asking: What does it mean today that God became human? Are these verses (John 1:14-18) - and the message of Christmas itself- just a historical account, or is it a present-day reality? A reality where we can still encounter the Word made flesh in our midst.

There have been incredible journeys by famous (and not so famous) people over the centuries. Maybe you are familiar with a more recent (1980) one: Terry Fox’s journey across Canada? But nothing has ever changed our world like the journey Jesus made from heaven to Earth. Not just from heaven to earth, but from eternity (without time) to our time, our clocks. From a heavenly being to an Earthly body, and even a common name. And even more amazing, from deity to humanity.

We observe the start of the Advent Season by lighting the first candle on the advent wreath, the candle of Hope.  We live in a world that is in desperate need of hope. But is hope just the feeling that things will turn out for the better? Is it the same as optimism or a positive outlook?   
Reflecting on Isaiah 9:1-7, Dwight will share about the special hope we celebrate at Christmas - a hope that changes everything. 

We conclude our year-long journey exploring what it means to be "Shaped by Jesus" by reflecting on His challenge to be true followers. In Matthew 7, Jesus delivers a thought-provoking and sometimes controversial teaching that invites us to examine what truly defines a follower of Christ. Our goal is to get to the heart of this vital question.

Joy is this inner condition of the heart of Jesus that we take on in our own heart as we are shaped by Jesus. Our relationship to joy isn’t just passive, it’s also active.  Joy isn’t just something we feel; we DO feel it, but joy is something we also choose.  In this message we will look at Paul’s advice for choosing joy in our life from Philippians 4.

The Christian life is often likened to a walk, a journey of faith. We are told, as Christians, to “walk by faith” (2 Cor. 5:7). Our faith journeys can have times of wonderful blessings and other times of confusing struggle. A full understanding of faith is something that enables us to keep walking no matter what life throws at us.

Self-control joins the list of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23. Many would agree that self-control is something to be prized in athletic training, but would many agree that self-control is a good thing to have personally?

In this message, we will consider self-control from a decidedly Christian worldview and hopefully come to an appreciation for the vitally important role self-control plays in spiritual formation. Self-control is not really about denying ourselves happiness and consigning ourselves to leading dull, boring lives but rather a matter of changing our thinking about how to live life and valuing what God values and living abundantly in step with the Spirit.

The goodness of God is seen throughout scripture and experiencing it on our own lives lead us to praise. He's very generous with His goodness. How can we be people who are generous with our  goodness?
Join us as we continue in our Fruit of the Spirit series and listen to stories of goodness from several folks in our community.