“God does not exist.”
The central claim of atheism was a familiar one in David’s world, just as it is in ours. If there is no God, the afflicted people of God have no reason to hope. Instead, all they can look forward to is a life of pain without remedy or rescue. The corruption they see all around them wins in the end, and the wicked will get away with all their evil.
Did you know there is a Psalm that deals with the atheistic claim directly? 
In Psalm 14, we find king David fully admitting the problem of human corruption and the suffering it brings to all people, including the people of Israel. But we also get to listen in as God interrogates and refutes the apparent atheism of his deniers.

By the time this short Psalm is done, we are offered a compelling reason to have hope, corrupt and afflicted as we are.

Frustrated at the timeline, yet confident in God.
Ever been there?
David has … in fact, that’s what Psalm 13 is all about. As we’ve seen over the last few weeks, David is confident that the Lord will rescue him from his enemies and bring them under His judgment for their treason against David.
But David still isn’t seeing the Lord do what He has promised; thus, Psalm 13 is written. 
Yet this isn’t a depressing song, nor is it one filled with accusations against God. Rather, David petitions the Lord to act in covenant faithfulness. David is confident that the Lord will provide, but he is still looking at the enemies at the gate and wondering when God will move.
The question of, “How long?” that fills our hearts is one that is a common theme throughout the Bible - in fact, it goes all the way back to the heartbreak of Genesis 3, traces its way through Israel’s history, crescendos in the coming of Jesus, and is, even now, the song that we sing as Christians as we long for the second coming of Jesus. 
Thus, Psalm 13 is a song that ought to fill our mouths as God’s people, as we long for Jesus and strive to live in holiness as we wait for Him. 

Often we are dismayed and even fearful about what we see around us in a culture in moral/spiritual decline. David saw the same in his day: liars multiplying and the faithful diminishing. Psalm 12 gives us the reorientation our hearts need when this is all we see around us.

Half full or half empty?
That’s the age old question which helps us see that there are two main ways of viewing the exact same situation. 
Well, these two responses are also exactly what we see in Psalm 11.
The situation? Assassins are shooting arrows, enemies are quickly approaching, and the wicked are trying to demolish the foundations of David’s life and kingship (look at verses 2-3).
The responses? Varied. One group is troubled and wants David to flee like a little birdie before his enemies. David, however, sees the same situation through the eyes of faith as he looks to what he knows about the character and nature of God (look at verses 4-7) and decides to run for refuge ... but not to the mountains. No, he runs to the Lord for refuge (vs. 1). 
As such, David pens this song and rehearses why he knows he can run to the Lord for refuge. This evening (or morning) before gathering with us, take some time to consider the reasons for David’s undaunted trust in the Lord. What, specifically, fills his heart (and his mouth through this song that he wrote) with confidence? What, specifically, drives him to God as a refuge? And we, as Christians, covered with Jesus’ righteousness, how ought these same truths fill us with confidence? How ought our lives look differently as we examine all things through the lens of faith given to us by Jesus? 
Spend some time before you gather with us reading Psalm 11 and thinking about such things and, as you do, ask God to help you understand this beautiful Psalm and how you might apply it into your life.

Psalm 10 is one of those beautiful Psalms of the Bible that expresses our raw, authentic times when we walk through unjust suffering. When we ask questions like, "Where is God in times like this?" This is a Psalm for us when we struggle to believe that God is with us. As such, it is an immensely hopeful Psalm that gives us words to pray.

For more information about The Trails, please visit: trailschurch.ca

In this sermon, we wrap up our Guest Preacher's Sermon Series with a look at Ephesians 2:1-10 and discuss what it means to be "saved".

For more information about The Trails, please visit: trailschurch.ca

This Sunday we heard from Caleb Bergmann, one of our members and pastoral interns. In this sermon we looked at the importance of love for other Christians as an essential mark of what it means to be a child of God.

One of our new members and pastoral intern, Seth Tryhuba, shared a sermon with us this Sunday. He taught on Philippians 2:25-30 as we consider the honourable service of the man, Epaphroditus. We consider the questions: what makes one worthy of honour and how can we pursue this kind of honourable life?

This week we began a four-week series of guest preachers. We will be hearing from some members of our church who have walked through a training course in preaching this year.

This Sunday we heard from Steve Kukkonen. He taught us on James 1:1-8 where we learned about how we are able to have joy and to grow through all kinds of trials in this life.

As we conclude this section of John's gospel, we see in Jesus' prayer he moves from praying for the 11 to praying for all Christians through all time. And we see the beauty of knowing that Jesus is praying for us.