Willow Creek Weekend Podcast

April 18 & 19  | Ray Johnston

Throughout the pages of the Bible, calamities strike, desperation is on display, and empires rise and fall. But God has not changed, an unshakeable presence even when all of history has been in tumult. Even in troubled times we can let God love us, change us, and use us.

The invitation to follow Jesus is not filled with comfortable or predictable answers. In fact, even Jesus' disciples were struck with how sobering the reality of following Him was. In what ways have we made following Jesus about ourselves and our comforts? Where do we need to sacrifice? In what areas of our lives can we begin walking in courage and faith instead of timidity and fear as we follow Him? Pastor Albert Tate teaches from the book of Mark.

Jesus made himself comfortable with the ones who made most people very uncomfortable. Jesus saw that all of us are like the sick and dying, and like a doctor with the cure, he rushed into the middle of the pandemic. Who doesn’t measure up to our standards? Who have we deemed beyond help? Who would we prefer to cordon off from our lives?

Most of us believe in the idea of second chances... in theory. But when it comes to giving second chances to others or receiving them ourselves so many things can get in the way. Pride, fear, failure, and unforgiveness can hold us back. What can we learn from Jesus about offering second chances? And what can we learn from those who were willing to take him up on the offer?

To go, we have to leave. To take something up, we have to lay something down. If we follow, we can’t lead. The call of Jesus is courageous and uncompromising: to be a part of the world reshaping work of Jesus, we will need to leave our old world behind. Pastors Steve Gillen and Ray Johnston teach on the book of Mark.

What’s next? If we’re to have hope for tomorrow, we have to look to the past. Who has God been? What has God done? Psalm 68 is a love letter, extolling the triumphs, the character, and the heart of the one who made the universe.

PSALM 139: ALL THE LOVE February 22/23 - Megan Marshman

What if you really knew me? We get used to living life like we’re on a perpetual first date, hiding our quirks, our baggage, our past, and our innermost thoughts and feelings. After all, how could anyone love all of that, right? Psalm 139 is a close-up examination of our intimate God, the one who sees it all, knows it all, loves us all, and has all along.