Grace Chapel Church: Recent Episodes
Grace Chapel Church
Listen to the most recent Sunday morning messages from Grace Chapel Church of Christ in Cumming, Georgia.
Perhaps one of the most memorable definitions of the word, faith, comes from Hebrews Chapter 11: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” The Hebrew authors then tell us, “This is what the ancients were commended for.” For the month of October, we will spend some time getting to know a few of these “ancients.” We will see just how they lived out their faith in God, and why they were commended for it. May their faith in action be an example to us! This week we will learn that when, by faith, we believe God truly has something better for us (in reality He has what is best), it enables us to leave behind what is comfortable and familiar to chase after the promise He puts before us.
As we continue in the series, “By Faith,” we will spend some time seeking to understand what faith looked like in the lives of a few of those mentioned in the Hebrews 11 list. This week we will spend our time with Noah, who, “when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family.” It seems Noah had no idea what was coming, or at least how to make sense of what God had told him was coming. By Faith, however, he chose to obey even though he did not understand. We will see the impact his example should have on us, as we also choose to live by faith.
Perhaps one of the most famous definitions of faith comes from Hebrews Chapter 11: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” The Hebrew authors then tell us, “This is what the ancients were commended for.” For the month of October we will spend some time getting to know a few of these ancients. We will see just how they lived out their faith and why they were commended for it. May their faith in action be an example to us!
This Sunday we’ll be looking at a unique way that Jesus describes the Kingdom of God and how we can invite others into it. In fact, there’s one thing we all can do that could change everything for someone.
Now that we have established that the church needs leadership, and that God desires forthat leadership to come from quality individuals, we will ask one additional question::–what should the relationship between church leaders and those they are leading look like? You may be surprised to find that the New Testament authors had quite a lot to say about that.
This month we officially launch the process of appointing additional elders to serve within the Grace Chapel family. The current leadership has taken the time to begin investing prayerfully in this process, and we are inviting you to join along with us. Elders serve as shepherds over the flock, teachers of people, and overseers of the church’s vision. As we work through this process we will learn why God values these leaders and their contribution highly, and why we should as well. This week we see just how important the quality of the leader is in the eyes of God.
Following the Exodus, Moses found himself leading a nation of people who didn’t know what it meant to be a people. In reality, Moses was a leader who sometimes didn’t know what it meant to be a leader. In Exodus 18, it is apparent that his father-in-law has been watching him struggle and out of concern for Moses, he offers some advice. In short, he tells him, “Don’t go it alone.” In this, we learn an important lesson about leadership. No leader should lead alone. This is also God’s plan for the church. We need multiple leaders with different gifts, all who have the heart of God for His people. As we prepare to appoint new Elders at GC, we will take the time to learn this important leadership lesson.
In Luke 19:10, Jesus gives his summary of Jesus’ mission on earth when he quotes Jesus saying, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.” These words come on the heels of an encounter with one of the New Testament’s most notorious figures, a man named Zacchaeus. The story of Zacchaeus teaches us some powerful lessons about God and about people as well, most importantly that Jesus is willing to be a guest of sinners. Jesus still makes His presence known in the lives of sinners today. It is His willingness to step into our sin-filled lives, to seek us out while we are far from Him, that changes everything . . . even us.
For the month of August, we will spend time in the letter that Paul wrote to the church in Philippi. Paul writes for a number of reasons, among them, the desire to guide these young Christians along as they learn what it means to live as a family of believers. The lessons he teaches them, both through his example and the words he writes, have value for us as well. This week, as it relates to relationship and community, we learn the importance of choosing to rebuild and restore what has been broken.
For the month of August, we will spend time in the letter that Paul wrote to the church in Philippi. Paul writes for a number of reasons, among them, the desire to guide these young Christians along as they learn what it means to live as a family of believers. The lessons he teaches them, both through his example and the words he writes, have value for us as well. This week we take to heart Paul’s challenge to the Philippian Christians to “do everything without grumbling or complaining…”
For the month of August, we will spend time in the letter that Paul wrote to the church in Philippi. Paul writes for a number of reasons, among them, the desire to guide these young Christians along as they learn what it means to live as a family of believers. The lessons he teaches them, both through his example and the words he writes, have value for us as well. This week we will witness the power of the attitude of humility as it pertains to building relationship and community with others. It is Jesus own actions and example that serve as both the inspiration and the pathway forward as we seek to embrace true humility in our relationships with others.
For the month of August we will spend time in the letter that Paul wrote to the church in Philippi. Paul writes for a number of reasons, one being the desire to guide these young Christians along as they learn what it means to live as a family of believers. The lessons he teaches them, both through his example and the words he writes, have value for us as well. This week we begin by learning the power of thankfulness as it relates to sharing life with others.
All human beings experience emotions. We may have different ways and degrees to which we express and feel our emotions, but we all experience them. Sometimes we work through our emotions in healthy ways, and at other times we struggle to process what we are experiencing. For some, the experience of a particular emotion can be crippling. God wants us to be emotionally healthy, and while it may come as a surprise initially, scripture actually has lots to say about this truth. As we wrap up this series, we take a look at one of the more complex and difficult emotions to manage, anger.
“My favorite team lost and I sure am sad about it!” “My favorite aunt lost her battle with cancer, and I sure am sad about it.” These two short sentences serve to quickly illustrate the reality of the spectrum across which the emotion of sadness exists. This Sunday we will explore sadness through the eyes of David as we try to understand not only how this emotion can color our life’s experience, but also as we seek to understand how Christians should process circumstances that can plunge us into the depths of sadness.
Many are waking up to the reality that as a nation, and as people we have a real problem. Far too many Americans are controlled by their emotions rather than experiencing the full freedom Jesus provides. This month we will allow scripture to speak directly into four specific areas of emotional struggle: anxiety, fear, depression, and anger. Last week we began by inviting God to teach us how to live life without being consumed by anxiety. This week we acknowledge that fear is an emotion we ALL experience, but for a follower of Jesus, our fear can actually point to something greater.
All human beings experience emotions. We may have different ways and degrees to which we express and feel our emotions, but we all experience them. Sometimes we work through our emotions in healthy ways, and at other times we struggle to process what we are experiencing. For some, the experience of a particular emotion can be crippling. God wants us to be emotionally healthy, and while it may come as a surprise initially, scripture actually has lots to say about this truth. This week we begin by listening to the words of God as they relate to our battle with anxiety.
In this series we’ll talk about how many young people are leaving the faith, why they are leaving, and how we need to respond to strengthen the faith of the next generation.
In this series we’ll talk about how many young people are leaving the faith, why they are leaving, and how we need to respond to strengthen the faith of the next generation.
In this series we’ll talk about how many young people are leaving the faith, why they areleaving, and how we need to respond to strengthen the faith of the next generation. We’regoing to be taking a step back and looking at a problem that is affecting the Church at large, particularly the next generation of believers rising up.
Can you remember the first time you took a nasty tasting medicine? You were probably a kid when you did, and I bet someone had to convince you it would be good for you. Would you believe it that in quite a few places the Bible tells us that hard times are good for us as well? If we have the right attitude, we often experience more growth by walking through one difficult situation than by living day-to-day life in the years before. This week we will allow the authors of scripture to teach us this hard, but good truth.
If God is good, why doesn’t He just make life easy for those who follow him? If He loves, us, why doesn’t He spare us from difficult times? This week, we will wrestle with these questions and see that Jesus never promises to spare us from hardship just because we belong to Him, in fact, quite the opposite. But, even though God doesn’t spare us from difficulties in life, we will discover that He IS still good!
Genesis 1:26 says, “Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’” Out of the whole terrestrial creation, human beings to our knowledge are the only creatures made in God’s image. What makes us so different from the animals, and what is it that shows we are uniquely made in God’s image? This week we will explore one of the things that sets us apart- the gift of memory. No other creatures have the ability to remember specific events, and further, no other creatures have the desire or ability to contemplate the meaning of those memories. In this, and for His purposes, we are made in God’s image.
GC’s annual Milestone Celebration is a great opportunity to remember God’s faithfulness, celebrate His presence, and anticipate future fulfillment of His promises. At milestones in life, it is important to pause in order to reflect on who you are becoming; otherwise, you may discover unexpectedly that the person you have become is not who you want to be.
Last week we spent some time processing an important truth- through prayer, God hopes to change us. The takeaway form last week’s message was that, “when we pray we often seek to change our circumstances, but when Jesus shows us how to pray, He teaches us to pray in a way that also changes us!” It is imperative that we recognize that prayer is intended to be a transformative experience, but that’s not all. In prayer we DO come into contact with the God of creation, who has the power to change things. We are called to pray in faith, and then continue to walk in faith, believing that because of His love for us, He will give us what is best.
Often when we pray, we pray with the aim of changing our circumstances. “God, help me pass this exam.” “God, help me receive this promotion.” “God, heal my wife, my, child, my friend.” You get the picture. There’s no doubt that God does tell us to cast all our cares on Him (1 Peter 5:7), but if this becomes the exclusive focus of our prayer life, we miss one of the most compelling reasons to engage with God through prayer. You see, prayer doesn’t just give us a connection to the God who has the power to change our circumstances; it gives us a connection to the God who is at work changing us. This week as we take a look at the Lord’s Prayer we will discover the powerful and transformative words with which Jesus taught His disciples to pray.
Nearly 80% of Americans say they pray nearly once a month. Prayer, in fact, is the most common expression of belief in a higher power. The reality, however, is that when the same people were asked the question, “Why do you pray?” the answers were quite mixed. In the end, it seems that we aren’t quite sure what prayer is all about, or what happens when we pray. The next three weeks we will attempt to answer some of the tough questions surrounding prayer. This week we begin with this question: “Does God even hear our prayers?”
The story of Jesus physically transforming into radiant light is one of marvelous revelation. But without knowing the greatness of God’s glory revealed to us throughout Scripture, this revelation is lost on us. Sure, we sing about God’s glory a lot. And it rolls off our tongues very easily when we pray about it. We know it’s probably a big deal. But do we really know what we’re singing and praying about? When we think about the glory of God, what comes to mind? How big of a deal is it?
The story of Jesus physically transforming into radiant light is one of marvelous revelation. But without knowing the greatness of God’s glory revealed to us throughout Scripture, this revelation is lost on us. Sure, we sing about God’s glory a lot. And it rolls off our tongues very easily when we pray about it. We know it’s probably a big deal. But do we really know what we’re singing and praying about? When we think about the glory of God, what comes to mind? How big of a deal is it?
Do you ever wonder what God thinks about you? Some are fairly certain that God is angry with them. After all, how could God still like them after all the times they have messed up. Others aren’t sure that God spends too much time thinking about them at all. After all, He has a universe to run, doesn’t He? What if we took some time to search the pages of God’s Word? What would we find? This week we will discover a God who loves us enough to call us friends, and whose thoughts are always for us.