Salem To Go: Recent Episodes
Salem Church, Bostic, NC
Salem church is a community committed to the well-being of all people. As a community, we discover that well-being through our connection, commitment to each other, and our pursuit of continual growth. The Salem To Go podcast is a reproduction of the core teachings of our church offered by lead pastor, Samuel Burleson. Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/salem-church-bostic/support
They say music is good for the soul. While this may be true, it's particularly true when not all is good in our souls. Music has a way of confirming where we are and curing what is wrong. It's in that space that we are once again able to say it is well with my soul. Come along in this episode as we finish our series on the hymns with one of the greatest hymns of all time, It Is Well.
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They say you can’t beat the classics! This week's hymn definitely fits that description. With over 5,000 different recordings, this is the most recorded gospel song of all time. It sticks with us not for its tune, but for its message: a message of hope for tomorrow and an urgency for today. So let’s sing along to a timeless song and find out how its lyrics might have something more to tell us today. Join us for the next part of our series, How Sweet the Sound!
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Chaos crashes on us like waves. Sorrow finds us in our lowest valleys. But in the midst of the storms and the darkness, there’s a strength greater than our own found in the arms of a friend who sticks closer than a brother. He offers redemption deeper than any pain. This week, we will sing that song of hope as we remember those we've lost in the storms of this past year.
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Hymns are like the oral history of our faith. They are passed from generation to generation. While every generation has its anthems, sometimes it's the timeless music of our predecessors that our soul longs for. In this new series, we will delve into the meaning behind the lyrics and breathe new life into these melodies as we connect the meaning of the song to biblical truth and apply it to our everyday lives.
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The power of evil at work in the world is far beyond our control, but we can recognize the lies that it tricks us into believing. To take our final steps into the dawn of a new reality, we have to call out the deceptions of the night that draw us away from the light. This week, we will examine three lies that keep us from experiencing the fullness of our new life in Christ.
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In order to live like you're dying, you have to be willing to embrace death. In order for us to embrace the new life that can be found in Christ's resurrection, we have to embrace the real death that lies in front of us all. On this special Easter edition of Salem on the Go, we will remember that Dawn HAS come, but it came because one man was willing to live like he was dying so that others might live even while they are dying.
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Early in life, we learn that order is in everything, and to everything, there is an order. Yet somehow the trials of life seem to stretch that assumption. In the middle of trials, we lose track of the order. Things start to seem 'out of order.' Peter's message this week to the scattered struggle churches is simply this: Things end up out of order when you don't do them in the right order because order is everything and order is IN everything.
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None of us enjoy submission in life, even fewer enjoy it in the context of marriage. Yet the apostle Peter suggests that the way that we can follow the Way of Christ is by submitting ourselves one to another. Through the act of mutual submission, we find the mission of God carried out in the context of our community.
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Our new life together leads to life with others even when we aren't too fond of the others in our lives. So how do we navigate life with those who hold power over us? Follow Jesus' example of submission. When we submit to others around us, we no longer imitate the world or isolate ourselves from it. Rather, we infiltrate the very system that continues to dominate the weak and vulnerable among us.
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The holy life is not only a happy life for you. It's a happy life for every life your life bumps into. When we choose to take on God's life of holiness, we will live open-handed and invitationally. We will live open to the possibility that others are searching for happiness, and we will eagerly offer that to them right where they are.
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Trials always feel like they will last forever and when they come they take all our attention. But if trials are temporary and triumph is eternal, then all of our challenges will conclude. Don't waste your precious time just focused on the pain. Choose love. Choose to live and love others even when it's hard. And choose love now while you still have the time.
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The longest part of the night rests just in front of the most brilliant part of dawn. Sunrise is impressive, but JUST BEFORE dawn is where all the beauty of a new day rests. In life, it's the darkness just before dawn that's hardest to step into, but that's also where the brilliance is found.
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Memory is the fuel that powers tomorrow's dreams. When our lives are disjointed and chaotic, we can continue to press on as we remember that yesterday's victories create tomorrow's promises. In this 3rd and final part of our study in the book of Habakkuk, we will look to the future and find our hope reborn.
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What do we do when we encounter something we don't understand? Listen, learn, and wait. In some of life's darkest valleys, we are called to the rest and wait upon the Lord. In this week's lesson, we'll find the strength necessary to wait in this uncomfortable space.
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Ever notice how many questions in life are difficult to answer? Or how many questions are so hard, we have a hard time asking? The prophet Habakkuk had a lot of hard questions to ask and he wasn't always satisfied with the answer God gave. In this new series, we create room to sit with unanswered questions and confront hard answers in life.
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Some questions are too big for one person to ask. They rest in our social consciousness and together we wrestle with them. The last question in all of Scripture is one of these questions. It's ultimately a question of where our confidence lies. What can we place our hope in and what have we placed our hope in? In this episode, we will finish this series out by looking at the final question asked in Scripture and examining where our trust lies.
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Words, tone, and context matter, but sometimes one of the most important pieces of a good question is found in who's asking it. In this episode of First Questions, as we turn to the first question asked in the New Testament, we will discover an old question asked by a brand new people group. And when they ask this question, they open the door for a new way of connecting with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
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The first human question recorded in Scripture is a question of human responsibility. Who are we responsible for? How far does that responsibility go? When Cain asked this question to God, he asked it from a fear of scarcity. If he cared for others would there be space for him? If his brother succeeded would there be room for his own success? Unfortunately, this question did not end in Genesis 4. In this episode, we'll explore God's universal response to this question of human responsibility.
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Restoration of what went wrong begins with a discovery of where we were, where we are, and where we want to be. After humanity experienced the brokenness of their relationship with God, God sought to rebuild that relationship by discovering where humanity was and meeting them in that spot.
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The most important question that a lawyer will ever ask in their case is the first. So what are the first questions asked in Scripture? This new sermon series will explore the first questions that are found in Scripture.
In this first episode, I'll explore the very first question asked in Scripture: the serpent's question to Eve. He asked, "Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?" The first question found in all the Bible questions God's goodness. Is God really good? Is He worthy of our trust? Is he really for us and with us? This is the first question that always proceeds a life full of faith.
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Many of us look forward to days like today because we are looking for the happiness that is possible in a brand new year. Maybe this New Year can be different. Instead of waiting for the new year to come, perhaps we can commit to becoming the new year. In this first episode of 2022, we'll explore the transformation that is possible when we explore the new you in this new year.
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As Americans, we tend to overspend, over-decorate, overeat and - in general - overconsume. In this final week of Advent, we’re coming to terms with what it means to overdo things during the holiday season. The innkeeper in the Christmas story might be the first clue we need to look at on our path towards simplicity.
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We all know that picking out the right gift is hard work. We don't always give the right gift, and we definitely don't always receive the right gift. And being on the receiving of the wrong gift is frustrating, and disheartening. When Gabriel announced the good news of Jesus to Mary, she felt a lot like this. She felt like she was receiving the wrong gift at the wrong time. In spite of her frustration, she found joy, and can so can we as we learn how to care for the unwanted gifts in our life.
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Joseph’s Christmas story is one about how to unwrap the Christmas gift placed in his lap. Joseph had choices when he faced the reality of Mary’s miraculous pregnancy. Follow the law, dismiss her quietly or his own third way...embrace the child as his own. Our question this Christmas is similar. How can we embrace the Christ-child this season by adjusting how we unwrap Christmas?
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Every year people unpack Christmas. They get the boxes down, they either excitedly or begrudgingly prepare for the season. Zechariah was not sure he could believe the season was coming and was silenced until it arrived, as a way of inviting him to reflect on where God’s Spirit might be moving. Elizabeth on the other hand simply prepared step by step and when Mary arrived, she was the first one to celebrate with her. Though each approached the season in different ways, each one was surprised by the gift that awaited them. In this episode, we invite you to discover what surprises God may have packed away for you in this season of anticipation.
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Individual identity is often created from what we are not. And what we are not lies on the other side of an imaginary boundary. These boundaries become tools of isolation, separation, and ostracization. This is why Jesus reframed sin around the boundaries. He didn't focus on unclean people. He highlights unrighteous partitions. These partitions create different classes of people (clean and unclean), and they set the stage for some of the greatest atrocities in all of history.
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One of the most painful legacies of 20th century American Christianity is purity culture. This culture was built on the premise that contact plants corruption and avoidance is the only solution. The result of this worldview is that while all sin might be equal, not all sin has been experienced in equal ways. This inequity has led to trauma and this trauma has left a trail of tears. This week, we'll explore a new path of moral engagement that calls us beyond the purity paradigm.
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The incarnation event is one of the most shocking and disgust-inducing events in all of Christian theology.
The idea that the creator and sustainer of all things would dip into the realm of mortality is shameful. It seems this way because when God takes on flesh, God takes on human need. To live in our bodies is to take on the daily fight against decay, and to recognize our neediness. Each time, we avoid the full weight of the incarnation, we overlook our neediness. When we overlook our own needs, we quickly overlook the needs of others.
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We avoid infection to avoid our own mortality. We find ourselves disgusted with anything that reminds us of our inevitable fate. But as Norman Brown reminds us, "In the last analysis Christian theology must either accept death as a part of life or abandon the body."
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Humans are naturally conditioned to avoid infection. It's gross. It's dirty. It's disgusting. And disgusting things are always avoided things. As it turns out, this natural inclination might be the very thing that needs to be avoided in a church that is marked by mercy instead of sacrifice. In this episode of Salem on the Go, we'll examine those things that disgust us in light of the boundary-crossing mercy that we are all called to.
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When joy is bound to relationships, what happens when the relationship fractures? What happens to our joy? We've all had those moments of bliss that come when relationships form, and we've all felt the sadness that comes when relationships dissolve. But is there hope to rise above the sadness? Is there a way to maintain our joy in the middle of the breakup? In this week's installment, we will explore the place of joy in strained relationships, and the path to reconciliation that our hearts long for in every conflict.
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Companionship and connection soothe our anxious minds and satisfy our souls. Long-term joy is grounded in life-giving partnerships that remind us that we are not alone. We aren't alone in our suffering, shame, or pain.
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Joy is often held in balance with control, and when control is lost so is our joy. Power plays a critical role in the level of joy we experience, but the key to maintaining that balance may surprise you. Real joy can be found in how we relate to power. Our strong demand for power is the one thing that keeps us cycling in and out of joy. When we let loose of this demand we can find lasting joy.
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In seasons of suffering, everything becomes so serious, because everything becomes a matter of life and death. However, in life's toughest moments, joy is not discovered in our finding life instead of death. We find real joy when we find life in death.
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We are all looking for the finish line. We want to see our projects complete. We want to reach our goals, accomplish our mission. We really want to see the end of this COVID-19 pandemic. But there is something about the difficult world that we are living in that makes the finish line seem impossible to reach. This is the same type of world that Paul was living in when he wrote to the church that met in Philippi. In his world of hardship and trial, he discovered that the gospel holds the keys to unlocking real joy and peace even from the inside of a prison cell. In this new teaching series, we'll discover the same tools are available for us today.
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In a world of too many extremes, it turns out there there is a right kind of extreme. Resilient disciples discover this new type of extremism is the path to lifelong discipleship. What is it, you ask? A Faith that is found in actions.
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Our work becomes the place where our faith is tested and refined. Resilient disciples discover God's purpose for their lives in the work of their hands.
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A faith that loves deeply, listens empathetically. When social norms and customs change, the first rule of engagement is deep listening to where the Spirit might be blowing.
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The next generation doesn't need our information, but they do need our interpretation. On this episode of Resilient Faith, we will examine the role that intergenerational relationships play in the development of a resilient life of faith.
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Relationship, not religion is the needed foundation in a world of shifting tides. In order to develop a faith that is resilient in a world that is reckless, we need to reimagine what intimacy with God actually looks like.
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Do you ever feel like the world around you is completely foreign? What if that is more than a feeling? What if you aren't the only one who feels this way? In this new series, we'll spend some time exploring how to develop a faith that survives in a new digital world, a resilient faith that rises above the shifting social tide.
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In our personal failure, it's tempting to look at what went wrong. What if we stopped looking for what went wrong and start focusing on where things are right. This can perspective shift can make all the difference in being counted out or counted in.
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There is no pain in the world quite like the pain of rejection. But Jesus' actions move us from rejection to acceptance. In the 3rd installment of this series, we'll discuss how this can be our reality every day.
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What we deserve is always grounded in what or who we serve. We will always serve someone or something in our lives and we will likely serve well. And in the end, we will be rewarded for our faithful service. In this episode, we will continue our honest assessment of those things that we all deserve by looking at condemnation and mercy.
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How different would the world look if everyone got what they deserved? Would your salary be the same? What would our prisons look like? Would nice guys finish first or last? Or would things be a lot worse? In this new teaching series, we'll take a look at the things we actually deserve that God's forgiveness spares us from death, condemnation, rejection, and being counted out.
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Living an everyday faith requires an every space type of faith. This Sunday, we will explore what it means to live our faith in the public sphere and how we are called to have the type of faith that engages every level of public life.
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There are few activities that occupy more of our week than our work. So how do we honor God in our working hours? This week, we'll discover the space and place of work in our discipleship journey.
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Meaning and purpose are often grounded in the things we say 'YES' to. But there is a discipline in scripture that reminds us that meaning and purpose are not grounded in what we do, but in who we are. We are granted meaning because we exist not because we produce. This is the essence of this deeply spiritual un-spiritual discipline of saying NO.
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Nobody likes to be lost, but sometimes it's the lost moments in life that enable us to find gratitude and better connect with those around us who are lost.
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The new community of faith that Jesus sought to create is one that can find connection everywhere. The practice of our faith is not limited to sacred things but is grounded in all of life. He came to show us that God is in everything not just in holy things.
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