Watermark Bible Church, Portsmouth, Virginia

If you’ve ever tried to climb a mountain you know it can be tough. Maybe one look at it and you’re ready to give up, but if you can make it to the top you know the view would be incredible. Well, this Sunday we will be scaling a difficult mountain of text. It’s a passage that is often skimmed over or skipped entirely. However, in taking the time to do the hard work of navigating this passage we see a fuller picture of the extent of God’s love. Be prepared to think, be challenged, to wrestle through some tough verses, knowing that the view from the top is worth it.

Easter is the ultimate celebration of life and hope! We believe it is the single most important event in human history. On Easter, a Divine Exchange took place. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus made a way for us to exchange our burdens for His power, our sorrow for His joy, our regret for His hope, and our death for His life. Experience the life-giving promises of Easter with us.

If you were to start listing off the laws in our country about how many do you think you could name? How many laws do you think we have? It’s interesting, humanity’s laws are always burdensome, excessive, so vague you need a mountain of judges and lawyers to determine what they mean. God’s law is simple, precise, and clear. We’re jumping back into the book of Exodus and our study, Hope for the 757, and this week we’ll learn about God’s standards for His people. Standards that when followed hope reigns.

At one point or another, in one context or another we’ve all had that defining the relationship experience. Peter thought he was the rock, but he had fallen worse than he ever could have imagined. He had denied his relationship with Jesus. And now that relationship needed to be defined. In fact, it is healthy for all of us to define our relationship with Jesus and what that means. This Sunday will help with that.

This Sunday you will be blessed by Toby Debause. He leads the Crisis Pregnancy Center here in the Hampton Roads area and is a passionate about seeing people live out the truths of the gospel.

This week we will get into John 21 where Jesus appears to his disciples again. This time it’s over a meal. There is something about coming to the family table where you learn who you are. The disciples would need that reminder again and so do we.

Faith can be hard. Jesus’ disciples knew their Messiah was dead and they hid behind closed doors for fear of the Jewish leaders. They had seen Jesus perform miracles, but they weren’t prepared for the greatest miracle of all. Sometimes we hide as well – behind closed doors, behind social pressures, behind our own insecurities and doubt. Once the disciples experienced the reality of the resurrection their fear was replaced with courage. During this next series, we will study from John’s gospel how the miracle of the resurrection ignited Jesus’ disciples. It will be sure to ignite your heart as well with a vision for how you can best share Jesus and impact people.

Have you ever had a really important meeting? If you have, then you know all the preparation and emotion that goes into a meeting like that. One of the most amazing things about God, is that He, the creator, would want to meet us, His creation. It really is a big deal. This Sunday we’ll examine what happened when God called a meeting with the Israelites. There are so many challenging and encouraging implications for us. You will be filled with awe and wonder that God would want to meet with you.

Have you ever experienced burnout? We probably all have at one point or another with one thing or another. As we continue your study of Exodus and Hope for the 757 we will learn perhaps the greatest lesson in avoiding burnout. So, if you need an energy boost and a little motivation you don’t want to miss this week. This is a practical for all leaders.

“It’s too cold outside! I’m hungry! This is the worst!” These are probably a few complaints you have heard recently whether it was from you or someone else. Complaining can begin to wear you down if you experience too much of it. We see this from the Israelites after God graciously provides for them and protects His people. This Sunday, we will see how Moses and God respond to this behavior and if there is still hope for the Israelites.