There are many books of the bible that we can find life lessons from, learn about history, and also see the character of God throughout it all. Acts is one of the books of the bible that is filled to the brim with stories and adventures of the early church exponentially growing because God is real, He is alive and has an infinite amount of love for the people on this earth. That's why we are taking eight straight weeks to cover the whole book of acts and learn from the stories and many life changing truths that are found in this book. Tune in this week to part one of this series, "Wait."

This week we are capping off this series with more than just some pointers on how to pray. Prayer builds our faith more than we know. It is a vital piece of our relationship with God. The past two weeks we've covered a multitude of truths about prayer, but we end this series with one that sums up what God really wants from us. God doesn't just want some time with us, He wants our lives. Much like a couple just getting married, going from just spending time together to spending their lives together, we see that God wants us to spend our lives with Him. Tune in this week for a challenging message about prayer.

Prayer can be a tough thing at times especially when we are used to conversations always being two ways. When we look at the bible we see Jesus praying to His father often. This week at Venture we want to share the humbling truths about prayer and the help Jesus gives us on this topic. First thing is first... We need to know who we are praying to. God is always there and always listening. Let's listen in and follow Jesus' example of prayer.

Sometimes prayer can be a hard thing to swallow. Looking at prayer and what encompasses it, we can easily feel like there is no power behind it or just coincidence. At Venture, we look to the Bible for the answers to life's most important questions and questions about prayers are extremely important. Prayer is a vital part of our relationship with God and that's why we want to kick this year off with the truth about prayer. There is absolutely power in prayer. Not only is there power in prayer but we can have bold faith that through prayer God hears us, answers us, and always provides for our needs. Tune in this week to an excellent faith building talk on why we should pray.

Jesus had a good amount of irregular responses to statements that were made about him. Throughout the first four books of the New Testament, commonly called "The Gospels," we have a great amount of accounts with a group of people called the Pharisees, teachers of the law. They questioned Jesus' authority, thought he was blaspheming, and straight up didn't like him because he was paving a new way that they couldn't comprehend. Today we dive into three wonderful responses that shows the heart of Jesus and how he celebrates when the lost are found. He loves sinners. So much that He doesn't care what people think about the perfect Messiah sharing life with the lowest of the low in society. He just wants to show compassion to the people in need. Tune in this week to hear Jesus' mission to seek and save the lost.

This week we cover a topic that may have tainted a lot of views of the church. Either by miscommunication or unbiblical teachings talking about money in church will be the point of when people stop coming to church or hate the church for that matter. At Venture Church we want to teach the truth that Jesus taught. The living record of the New Testament in the Bible is all truth that we share on Sunday mornings and this week we do talk about money and how to bring God glory through it. We talk about misconceptions of money and how God doesn't hate money or the rich, but He does have specific principles that deal with money that are extremely valuable that we can't look pass. This week is a great week no matter where you are in your faith towards Jesus to hopefully help us understand that God wants what's absolutely best for us.

Compassion International's missions is "Releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name." They do such a great job that we as a church have what is called a "Compassion Sunday" where we share the heart of God for His people, especially children, and give a practical way through compassion to meet the needs of kids who live in poverty. Through Compassion you can sponsor a child for just 38 dollars a month and that pays for their food, education, medical needs, and most importantly gets them plugged in to a local church body. It is a wonderful organization. This Sunday we talk about God's heart for the people on this earth and how we can make a difference in those same lives for His glory.

We are ending this battleground series with a battle we are all up against. The writer of Ephesians closes out his letter with a powerful message that all should know. We are up against more than flesh and blood. There is a spiritual battle going on that surrounds this world and we need to know that God has given us tools for our protection and for our fight. Join in this week as we go through the last chapter of Ephesians and learn about the armor of God.

In our day and age it is easy to sway with what looks, feels, and seems good at the time. There's normally a "better" option or even seems to be the best option until we realize that there is something greater coming and we switch. This week we go through the last couple of chapters in Ephesians and see what it truly means to stand firm and realize that Christianity is not about convenience. It isn't convenient to be a Christian, but, it is absolutely worth every second. God in all of His glory provides beyond means we can imagine. Listen in to this week as we continue in to the truth and confidence we have in Jesus.

Somewhere in our lives we have cracks on the surface that lead to something more at our core. Depending on the situation, it is easy for us to paint over the cracks or take those problems and brush them under the rug. This week we hear from Venture's Worship Minister, Aaron, to continue through the book of Ephesians. Is there a crisis at our core that we are ignoring? Is there a better way in life to address these situations and let God show us the way he designed us to live? Listen in to this week as we continue this series battleground.