Where Do We Go From Here

Pt 5 - Living and Loving in Community

Looking at the Church it gets no better than the precious moments of the early church in the book of Acts shepherded by the Apostles of Christ. In this early church we see the idea of living and loving in community. Look at this passage with me. So what is my dream?
February 05, 2012

Where Do We Go From Here

Pt 4 - The Anchor For Our Dreams Cont

Recommit to our Core Principles – Paul says to Timothy “Continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of…” The Journey to Peace, Biblical Dependency, God’s empowering presence, Real Spiritual Growth, Building People...
January 29, 2012

Where Do We Go From Here

Pt 3 - The Anchor For Our Dreams

Recommit to our Core Principles – Paul says to Timothy “Continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of…” So this morning I want to reinforce the core principles of what we have learned and become convinced of. If you are new to our fellowship this is a great way to know what is at the heart of this ministry. For those of you who have been here for a while it’s a great refresher but for everyone these are the fundamentals that anchor our dreams.
January 28, 2012

Where Do We Go From Here

Pt 2 - Rekindling the Gift

Paul encourages Timothy in the face of fears to “kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you”. That is good advice for us. You know sometimes you go through life and you don’t realize that you have begun to simply live on cruise control. We do it in our marriages, we do it at work, and we do it in our faith. Things become familiar and routine and we like routine. We don’t like it when life is shaken up – so we put life on cruise control and sit back for the ride. That works for a while but ultimately it leads to boredom and sleep. Spiritual sleep is a dangerous thing.
January 22, 2012

Where Do We Go From Here

Pt 1 - The Case to Continue

The church in Jerusalem was growing. Amazing things were happening at the hands of the disciples of Christ. For a while there was excitement and unity, sharing and love, power and God’s presence. And all the people said the Amen – it is enough, this is wonderful, this is fantastic, great is Thy Faithfulness O God – right? The truth is that at this moment when growth and impact was at its greatest is when the trouble began. Luke writes simply – “A complaint arose…”
January 08, 2012

Come Ye Thankful People Come

A Mesa and Meribah Problem

Abraham Lincoln in his Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1863 said this: We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. His proclamation sounds resoundingly like that of the psalmist doesn’t it? We have forgotten God. We have grumbled about His provision. We have convinced ourselves that we are who we are because of our own industry. We have tested God by asking in our hearts “Is the Lord among us or not?” It’s 3,000 years later and we still can’t get it right. So what does the psalmist say is the remedy for this dreadful situation?
November 20, 2011

Thats what Faith Can Do

Pt 7 - Removing the Veil

Removing the veil of mistakes, conformity, want, fear, and self to move further into the presence of God.
November 20, 2011

That's What Faith Can Do

Pt 6 - Purpose in Life

God has made us unique, unrepeatable, miracles of His hand to fulfill all the needs of a diverse and complicated world. Though we aspire to many things – the highest aspiration in life is to simply be who I was made to be.
October 23, 2011

That's What Faith Can Do

Pt 5 - A Great Big God

How does faith make life better – It helps me know I’m not alone, I don’t face my problems alone, and it helps me believe that I can make a difference with His help. Goliath has to watch out because David is on the prowl.
October 16, 2011

That's What Faith Can Do

Pt 4 - Peace in Troubled Times

You see the disciples looked at the magnitude of their problem and their own relative power to solve it. Jesus looked at their problem relative to His own power to solve it. What was impossible for them was a trivial matter to Him.
October 09, 2011

That's What Faith Can Do

Pt 3 - Light in the Darkness

Imagine yourself for a minute arrested for doing no wrong, beaten with rods by a mob, placed in the darkest most secure part of the prison with your feet in the stocks. How would you feel? I dare say I wouldn’t feel much like singing. Yet that is exactly what Paul and Silas do. How is that possible?
October 02, 2011

Thats What Faith Can Do

Pt 2 - Faith Brings Hope

So how does this God idea we are wrestling with begin to interact with life to change it for the better? How does this faith idea make my life better – more fulfilling? My first answer is that faith is at the core of Hope – Hope is the core of peace and – Peace is the core of abundant living.
September 18, 2011

That's What Faith Can Do

Pt 1 - Wrestling With A God Idea

I have been thinking a lot lately about the idea of faith. What is this mysterious thing that changes life in the world around us? Where does one find it? What does it really mean? Can a man lose it or squander it in some way? What does faith do and how does it do it?
September 11, 2011

Common Sense Strategies

Pt 4 - The Golden Suggestion

1)How you treat others matters – in fact it determines to some degree your ability to live an abundant life. Jesus says “Just as you want people to treat you , treat them the same way.” Notice that he does not say that we should treat others as they treat us, but we should set the tone for the world around us.
September 04, 2011

Common Sense Strategies

Pt 2 - Taking Control of Life

The sad truth for many people today is that they are drifting through life. Simply reacting to the things that happen to them with no real plan for where they want to be. They have set their marriages, families, jobs, and futures on a deadly course of drifting through life. This morning I want you to look at a man who took control of his life; his name is Bartimaeus and he lived in Jericho.
August 07, 2011

Common Sense Strategies for Abundant Living

Pt 1 - Keep God Central

Truth be told for most of us faith is an afterthought of life. It’s something to be turned to in times of trouble. It’s something to be practiced in ceremonies that make us feel better about the world and ourselves, but faith that is real interacts with the fabric of daily living.
July 31, 2011

Family Matters

Pt 2 - Real Women Wear Purple

If you look at the specifics of Proverbs 31 it can be quite intimidating. But if you take a little time to study it what you will find is a series of virtues that lie at the heart of the Godly woman – These are not external adornments they are the hearts motivation.
July 17, 2011

Family Matters

Pt 1 - Real Men and Apples

Men I want to get real with you this morning about the call of God on your life – about the greatest stewardship entrusted into your hands – being a Man.
July 10, 2011

Circle of Worship

Matt McGovern Family Life Intern

How do our family relationships work to worship God.
July 04, 2011

In Moments Like These Pt 6

Radical Moments

In moments when our fears and failures overwhelm us, in moments when our lives seem too small, when our ability to cope is at its end nothing else is enough to make it ok. In a living savior a living Jesus we find radical transformation – only a living Savior takes these frightened, broken, lost men and turns them into the body of Christ.
May 29, 2011

Improving Your Serve

Pt 1 - The Fundamentals of Footwashing

How are we to take seriously Jesus direction to “wash each others feet?” What does it mean to become servants in a world full of masters?
May 08, 2011

Earthen Vessles

Each one of us deals with limitations, Personal, Spiritual, Emotional, and Family limitations that affect our ability to invest in the world around us. Because we have limitations we need desperately to begin to make better choices about our lives. If we are going to overcome the weariness of the world we need to learn balance in our schedules.
May 01, 2011

In Moments Like These Pt 5

Stone Moments

In moments like these when the future is a mass of darkness. In moments like these when we you’ve been deserted and life like the stone in front of the tomb seems immovable. Nothing in our experience, theology, or ritual makes it better. Nothing makes this ok. But a Living Jesus makes a difference.
April 17, 2011

In Moments Like These Pt 4

Cross Moments

In moments like these – when the weight of the world is on your shoulders and you feel like you are suffocating in responsibilities that are too big for you. Nothing but a living Jesus makes a difference
April 10, 2011

In Moments Like These Pt 2

Gethsemane Moments

When the dawn breaks nightmares become reality – trial, blood, crucifixion, death. In James heart he knows they are coming for him next. If they can do this to Jesus nothing will stop them from killing him too. And so we find him hiding with the other disciples when Jesus steps into the room. We find again that for James only a lliving Jesus makes a difference.
April 03, 2011

In Moments Like These Pt 3

Courtyard Moments

Looking at Peter's failure in the courtyard we find that in moments like these when it’s all crumbling down around your ears, when the brokenness catches up to you, when you feel useless, ashamed, and alone – nothing but a living Savior makes a difference.
April 03, 2011

In Moments Like These Pt 1

When it all Falls Apart

In moments like these is an Easter series that will explore moments in the lives of the disciples that mirror the moments in our own lives and experiences when the only thing that will make a difference is a living, breathing, Jesus in our lives.
March 20, 2011

Just A Closer Walk Pt 3

More than Admirers

For most of us we want this journey to be easy. We live in a fast food world that demands simple, easy, solutions to problems that don’t cost much. I want my life to be better, I want to make better decisions, I want to be blessed but I want it cheap and I want it now. The truth of our lives with Christ is that we want the crown without the cross.
March 06, 2011

Just a Closer Walk Pt 2

Things that Hinder

This morning I want to tackle that question. What is holding us back – what keeps us in the boat? What keeps us from experiencing an ever closer walk with Christ? For the answer to that question let’s look at Hebrews 12:1-2.
February 27, 2011

Just a Closer Walk Pt 1

Getting out of the Boat

Why is it that for most Christians their walk is either in a state of stagnation or even in decline? If I were to ask the question “are you at present walking with Christ more closely than ever before in your life – the honest answer for most of us would be no. Then there is the obvious question – Why? This series that we embark on today tries to tackle this very question
February 20, 2011

Doorpost Families - Matt McGovern

Matt McGovern

How do we communicate the Gospel to our children? Is passing on our faith a priority? Listen as Pastor Matt shares his heart for family ministry.
February 13, 2011

Rediscovering Community Pt 6

Building a Broader Community

We have been called, in fact, created to shine the light of Jesus into a broader world. The purpose of the church is not merely to touch us but to touch others. Jesus instruction to these first disciples is no different than the charge given to us.
February 06, 2011

Rediscovering Community Pt 5

Building a Spiritual Community

Effective change always begins at the point of most control. The space between my own ears. How can I change to build a functional spiritual community in here?
January 30, 2011

Rediscovering Community Pt 4

Rebuilding Family Community

Effective change always begins at the point of most control. The space between my own ears and then the family I am surrounded with. How can I change to rebuild a functional family community in my own home?
January 23, 2011

Rediscovering Community Pt 3

Pt 3 - The Building Blocks of Community

The real question for the apostles is how do we build a community? Interestingly the same question that we face today. We find in this passage the building blocks of a faith community - what is the glue that holds us together that allows us to buck the odds and make this all work?
January 16, 2011

Rediscovering Community Pt 2

A Cord of Three Strands

Solomon shows us in Ecclesiastes 4 the benefits of living and working in the context of Christian Community.
January 09, 2011

Rediscovering Community Pt 1

Created for Community

Is it possible for this generation to rediscover the benefits, blessings, and power of living in community with each other? I believe its not only possible but necessary if we want to thrive as a church and as a culture.
January 02, 2011

Peace in the Chaos of Life Pt 4 - It's Over

What do you do when Christmas is over and the new toy smell is wearing off of life?
December 26, 2010

Peace in the Chaos of Life Pt 3 Peace in the Journey

Find out from the journey of the Wise men how God has led us to Himself to find peace and wholeness in life.
December 12, 2010

I Am Friends Church Pt 5 - A Chosen People

Becoming the Body of Christ

It seems that this idea of being the Friends Church is a much larger responsibility that we have understood. That’s a tall order isn’t it? So the remaining question to answer is this – How – How do I live this out in my life? How do I become what I am declaring I will be?
December 08, 2010

Margins Pt 1

Martha Said What?

AW Tozer wrote this in his book success and the Christian – “Practically everyone has too much, knows too much, sees too much, hears too much, goes too many places, and comes back from too many places.” It’s simply too much too much. So for all of you for whom life is just too much sometimes – this series is for you.
December 08, 2010

I Am Friends Church Pt 4 - Taking it Seriously

Becoming the Body of Christ

Paul pleads with the church to understand the gravity of the situation. The truth is that we have been invited by the God of the Universe to become personally and passionately involved in the only cause that will last through eternity.
December 08, 2010

I Am Friends Church Pt 3 - Taking Responsiblity

Becoming the Body of Christ

If we indeed are the body of Christ – if we are indeed Friends Church – then we need to take responsibility for that. We need to understand that whatever the body of Christ is to the world around us is because of who we are.
December 08, 2010

I Am Friends Church Pt 2- Taking My Place

Becoming the Body of Christ

This sermon addresses the issues of unity in diversity, harmony, and love within the body of Christ.
December 08, 2010

Margins Pt 6

Moral Margins - A Holy Life

The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 7 about this struggle with moral limits that is deep at the heart of every person. It’s a struggle with boundaries, limits, and an enemy who’s sole purpose is to steal, kill and destroy. So why are we so bent on testing our moral limits?
December 08, 2010

Margins Pt 2

Coping

Stress, fatigue, and burnout are the predictable results of living for too long without margins. We have learned as a society to prolong the suffering. To increase the time we can spend at our limits by using a temporary fix – coping. It doesn’t solve the problem or change the results it just prolongs the inevitable.
December 08, 2010

Peace in the Chaos of Life Pt 1

The Narrative of Life

Advent is a story of Peace – come to mankind from the hand of the creator. The overarching story is God Created, Man Destroyed, God Restores. That is the message of the prophets and it is the message of the Messiah.
December 08, 2010

Margins Pt 3

Time Margins

So how do we find margin in margin less lives? How do we take control of this beast that has control over us? How can we possibly find margins in our time – there is just too much to do. Let me ask you a question – how many of you need just one more day in a week to get everything done. Here is the truth – you would just end up in the same place because this isn’t a matter of time it’s a matter of choices.
December 08, 2010

Margins Pt 4

Financial Margins

Today we are talking about finding financial margin – a place that many in our culture struggle with more than any other. We are living through perhaps the most tragic time in our nation’s financial history. Debt is at an all time high...
December 08, 2010

Train Yourself to Be Godly Pt 5 - Solitude

Spiritual Disciplines

Solitude – solitude is the art of being absent from other people and other things so that you can be present with God. Our culture is built around noise – and lots of it. We are addicted to input – and the noise of life serves to cover the emptiness of our lives.
December 08, 2010

Margins Pt 5

Emotional Margin

The constant highs and lows, demands, and frankly the people begin to wear on us sometimes. Emotional margin is perhaps as difficult to find as any of the others we have talked about.
December 08, 2010

Peace in the Chaos of Life Pt 2 When Life is out of Control

When Life is Out of Control

Find out from the life of Joseph what the coming of Messiah does for a life that is out of control.
December 05, 2010

Just a Closer Walk Pt 4

Choosing a Path

The narrow way is difficult – it often puts you in opposition to the world around you. It requires effort, diligence, integrity, and strength. The way is littered with obstacles and all the while those along the broad way call to us and jeer at us and call us names. Yet it’s end is life – not just life in eternity – life today.
March 13, 2011