The Upper Room Fellowship

Sermon Summary:
In our "Unstuck" series, we explored Steps 8 and 9 of the Twelve Steps: making a list of those we've harmed and making amends. We began with Jesus' radical teaching from the Sermon on the Mount that challenges our priorities. While religious leaders of His day would never interrupt worship, Jesus said, "If you remember someone you've wronged while worshiping, leave your gift at the altar and go make it right." For Jesus, reconciled relationships matter more than religious rituals.
We then examined the story of Zacchaeus, the hated tax collector who climbed a tree to see Jesus. Instead of condemning him, Jesus invited Himself to Zacchaeus' house, taking on the crowd's contempt by associating with this "sinner." This act of radical acceptance transformed Zacchaeus, who immediately declared, "I give half my possessions to the poor, and if I've cheated anybody, I'll pay back four times the amount."
This transformation illustrates the power of making amends. We can't simply say "sorry" while continuing to benefit from harm we've caused others. That's what AA calls being a "dry drunk" – physically sober but spiritually sick. True transformation means acknowledging specific harms, understanding their ripple effects, and taking concrete action to make things right.
The process isn't easy. It requires making a list, recognizing the harm we've caused, approaching those we've hurt with humility, and offering to make things right. While some situations make direct amends impossible, we can still practice "living amends" – consistently changing our behavior to demonstrate genuine transformation.
When we take these courageous steps of obedience, we experience freedom from regret, fear, and isolation – just as Zacchaeus did when salvation came to his house.

Sermon Summary:Shame drives us to hide. From the moment Adam and Eve felt shame in the garden and covered themselves with fig leaves, humanity has been stuck in this pattern of concealing our true selves. We begin with a confession – whether we realize it or not, we're all hiding something.The "Unstuck" series explores how the 12 steps of AA correspond with Jesus' teachings. While the first four steps help us acknowledge our powerlessness, recognize our need for God, surrender control, and take honest inventory of ourselves, it's the fifth step that often becomes the sticking point: "We admit to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs."This confession step is where transformation begins. James 5:16 tells us to "confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed." There's healing power in bringing our hidden struggles into the light with another person. When we try to manage shame alone, it only grows deeper.The distinction between guilt and shame is crucial: guilt says "I did something bad," while shame whispers "I am bad." Guilt can lead to positive change, but shame drives us further into hiding and isolation.What makes confession so powerful is that it shatters shame's greatest lie – that if people really knew us, they wouldn't love us. When someone hears our worst moments and still responds with love, shame loses its grip.The good news of the gospel is that God cancels our record of debt through Christ. We are fully known and still deeply loved. There should be nothing in our lives that someone doesn't know, because connection is the antidote to shame.Coming out from hiding means reclaiming what was stolen in the garden – living as we were always intended to: open, honest, known, and deeply loved.

Sermon Summary:In our "Unstuck" sermon series, we explored Step 4 of the 12-step recovery program: making a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. This practice, which began with Bill W. in 1935 through Alcoholics Anonymous, isn't just for those struggling with addiction but offers freedom to everyone.While the first three steps are somewhat theoretical (admitting powerlessness, believing in a power greater than ourselves, and turning our lives over to God's care), Step 4 marks the transition to concrete action. Here we put pen to paper, getting specific about our defects of character instead of hiding behind vague statements like "everyone has issues."Jesus demonstrated the importance of moral inventory throughout his ministry. He often helped people see truths about themselves they couldn't or wouldn't acknowledge. The difference is that Jesus could do this for others because he was without sin, while we need to focus primarily on examining ourselves rather than others.A proper moral inventory is both searching (thorough and deliberate) and fearless (done with the confidence that we're in God's care). When we avoid honest self-examination, we tend to fall into either despair or self-righteousness – neither of which leads to growth.The practical approach involves examining four key areas: resentments, fears, harms we've caused others, and sexual conduct. Through this process, we begin to recognize patterns and underlying issues that keep us stuck. While this inventory takes time initially, it eventually becomes a natural rhythm in our spiritual lives.This process isn't about shame but freedom. At communion, we remember that Christ's sacrifice is the ultimate answer to our moral inventory – the intersection of our honesty and his mercy is where true healing occurs.

Sermon Summary:In our "Unstuck" series exploring principles from the 12-Step Program, we focused on Step 3: "We made a decision to turn our lives and our wills over to the care of God." While the first two steps involve recognition and belief, this third step calls for action and choice—the pivotal moment when we surrender control to God.The sermon used the powerful metaphor of trapeze artists to illustrate this surrender. As Henri Nouwen learned from the Flying Rodleighs, "The flyer does nothing and the catcher does everything." In that moment between bars, the flyer must resist every instinct to grab and instead trust completely in the catcher's ability. Any attempt to help actually endangers both people.Similarly, we struggle with surrender because holding on feels safe. We grab our resentments, selfishness, and need for control, carrying these burdens even though they harm us. Step 3 isn't about surrendering a single behavior but our entire will to God's care.The 12 Steps reveal a profound paradox: the direct approach of trying harder often keeps us stuck. Like Paul in Romans 7, we discover that willpower alone cannot free us from destructive patterns. Freedom comes through the indirect path of complete surrender to God.True surrender isn't spiritual negotiation where we set the terms. It means following Jesus without trying to control outcomes. We're not surrendering to an indifferent force but to a Father who loves us deeply. Jesus himself modeled this surrender perfectly in Gethsemane: "Not my will but yours be done."Step 3 invites us to experience the paradox at the heart of spiritual transformation: in letting go, we find true freedom.

Sermon Summary:In this exploration of Step Two of the 12 Steps, we journey through the remarkable transformation of King Nebuchadnezzar. His story reveals how even the most powerful among us can be trapped in the insanity of self-sufficiency. Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of ancient Babylon and builder of legendary wonders, believed himself to be the source of his own greatness until a divine intervention stripped him of everything. Through his dramatic fall from power to eating grass like cattle, we discover the paradox of finding sanity through surrender. The sermon weaves together the ancient biblical narrative with modern research about wealth and compassion, showing how success often breeds self-centered thinking rather than gratitude. We learn that believing in a higher power isn't about achieving perfect faith, but about taking the first humble step of acknowledging we're not God. The message culminates in the practical application of simple, daily prayers of surrender: "God, would you be God in my life today?" This ancient story becomes a mirror for our own struggles with control, pride, and the exhausting effort of trying to be our own gods.

Sermon Summary:We explored the universal experience of feeling stuck - not just in snow, but in relationships, habits, addictions, and behavioral patterns. Drawing parallels between AA's first step and spiritual transformation, we examined how true freedom begins with admitting our powerlessness. The sermon connected the founding principles of Alcoholics Anonymous to the transformative power of Jesus Christ, revealing how Bill W.'s encounter with Christian fellowship led to the development of the 12 steps.We discovered that the root of our struggle lies in our attempt to play God in our own lives - managing circumstances, controlling others, and medicating pain. The first step toward freedom isn't trying harder but admitting our powerlessness over our attraction to do wrong and the unmanageability of our lives. This admission isn't a one-time event but an ongoing posture of humility.The message emphasized how real community forms not through sharing our strengths but through acknowledging our shared brokenness. Just as AA brings together people who "would not normally mix," the church is called to be a place where people unite in their need for God rather than their accomplishments or resources. This surrender to powerlessness opens the door to experiencing God's transformative power, making possible what we cannot accomplish on our own.

In John 3, we explore the transformative encounter between Jesus and Nicodemus, a respected religious leader who sought Jesus under cover of darkness. Despite his extensive religious knowledge and status, Nicodemus discovered that proximity to religion wasn't enough – he needed a complete spiritual rebirth. Through their dialogue, we see Jesus challenging the notion that being religious equals being right with God. Using the concept of being "born again," Jesus explains that entering God's kingdom requires more than religious observance or moral behavior – it requires a supernatural transformation that only God can provide. The sermon unpacks Jesus' famous words in John 3:16, revealing how God's rescue mission differs from every other religious system. Instead of humans trying to climb up to God, Jesus descended to us. Through careful examination of the text and historical context, we discover how Jesus used rabbinical teaching methods to help Nicodemus understand profound spiritual truths. The message culminates in the clear distinction between mere intellectual belief and complete trust in Christ – comparing it to jumping from a burning building into a firefighter's arms. This teaching reminds us that Christianity isn't about self-improvement but about surrender to the One who came to save us.

Sermon Summary:

In this New Year's message, we explore the profound metaphor of spiritual clothing and how our heavenly Father clothes us. Drawing from Ephesians 6's armor of God passage, we examine how spiritual warfare manifests in our daily lives - from marriage struggles to personal faith challenges. The sermon weaves together imagery of animal molting, new wineskins, and the prodigal son's story to illustrate how God transforms us through seasons of uncomfortable growth. We learn that just as animals must undergo vulnerable periods of shedding to grow, we too must allow ourselves to be stripped of old patterns and ways of thinking to receive the new garments God has for us. The message emphasizes that this transformation isn't about self-improvement but about surrendering to God's work in our lives. Through personal stories of parenting, marriage challenges, and spiritual dry seasons, we see how God continues to clothe us with truth, righteousness, and grace - even when we feel most unqualified or uncomfortable. The sermon concludes with a powerful reminder that Jesus runs toward us with a ring and robe, eager to clothe us in our true identity as His children.