Vertical Church Sermons

"Secrets of the Psalmist" - A stand-alone message from guest speaker Pastor Greg Haswell (He is retired from Northlands Church; He and his wife Michelle are great mentors in Pastor Phil's life)

God gives us freedom, but do we fully operate in that freedom? As believers we are free people, but our hearts are often in chains of negative thought patterns that are not from the Lord. This week, Pastor Greg Haswell encouraged us to actively choose freedom in our minds. He led us in a very practical prayer pattern we often neglect... the layout of a Psalm.

This week, talk to God like in the Psalms:
1. Describe to Him what’s going on in your life (He already knows, but he wants us to talk to Him about it)
2. Ascribe to God who He is. Declare Truth about Him from His Word.
3. Prescribe what you are asking of Him. Call on Him for help.

Through Christ, we are learning to be content in Jesus in all circumstances. This week, we talk about how helpful it is when we listen to healthy sources, run from comparison, and remember that some things will take time. Pastor Phil leads us in wrapping up our sermon series on the Book of Philippians and shows us what Paul says about contentment in all situations.

We have so many thoughts throughout the day, and some of them aren't the best, right? But the Bible teaches us of ways to think like Christ, through what thoughts to dwell on and what thoughts not to, through contentment in Christ, how to intercede for others, and so on. Pastor Phil dives into this topic and shows us how the Bible gives us wisdom and insight.

The Bible tells us that Paul wanted us to know Christ and experience His power. Lord, help us to live for You and not live in our past. With You there is fullness, purpose, and joy! Amen.
He has things in store for you!

This week we talk about practical ways we can be spending time seeking to live like Jesus. Pastor Phil walks us through leaning into not giving up with the Lord when life gets difficult, staying mature in times of difficulty, and how to stay consistent with Christ. Here are three things Pastor Phil encourages us to think on. Check out more about these topics in the message:

1. Let’s learn to trust God’s plan rather than trying to control everything in our life.
2. Let’s look to go deeper in what the Lord is teaching us.
3. Don’t give up praying for those around you. No one is too far gone for Jesus!

This week, Pastor Phil led us in a conversation about holy conviction. Lord, help us to look like You, love others humbly like You, and respond to Your holy conviction wholeheartedly. We believe and trust that your guidance shows us you love us and have the best for us! As we walk through this message, let's ask the Lord to help us remember that while we don't have to agree with other believers personal convictions, we do need to work together to share the love of Christ, out of God's holy conviction.

Philippians 2 says "Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless." We lean into this Truth, Lord. Amen!

Let’s live in a way that says that our citizenship is in Heaven. Let’s give the Lord all areas of our lives, not some, amen? Let’s live glorifying God, honoring those around us, and showing the attitude of Christ. It’s worth it. Lord, go before us!🙏

This week, we continue in week 2 of the Philippians summer series. In Philippians 1:12-14, while the Apostle Paul was imprisoned for His faith, he focused on how God was working behind the scenes, saving souls through this situation. Romans 8:28 says that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love Him. So when the world is hard and when people are difficult, we can trust that God will make it all work together for His glory and our good. We live in a broken world, but will we submit to the world or submit to God who can turn all things for good? Check out this message to hear more on this!

This week, we launched a series on the book of Philippians, and Pastor Phil walked us through the topics of God continuing to work in our hearts and the importance of praying for other churches.

Lord, help us to stay humble and willing to be taught by You. Philippians 1:6 says “I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” So Lord help us to be willing to be worked on from now until Your return, always praying for other churches and believers along the way. Amen.💚

This week, one of our elders Morris Gurr reminds us that ​the Lord is ALWAYS present and working in the waiting. Check out this message where he walks us through a few ways we can be present with the Lord and press in in the waiting as well.