The Fellowship Podcast: Recent Episodes
The Fellowship Sandy Utah
God speaks to us in so many ways, and in this message Leslie Loveday and Stanley Doll describe through scripture and stories the amazing ways God speaks to us non-verbally. God uses all creation and all our senses to speak to us about who he is and how he loves us. Job 12:7-10, “Ask the animals, and they will teach you.” or the birds or the earth, or the fish. “In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.” God speaks to us and when we respond, we receive more about who he is and understand more clearly.
“How do I know if I’m listening to Satan?” This week Sarah looks at the fruit of the voice of Satan in contrast to the fruit of the voice of God, so we can recognize the temptations of Satan and turn to trust and rely upon the voice of our Good Shepherd—Jesus.
“Those who love the truth listen to His voice” (Jn 18:37). In this message, Vivien takes us on a journey of exploring God’s voice from the beginning to the end of the Bible. After learning about some of the Bible's "first and last mentions” of God’s voice as well as the story of Ruth, you’ll want to listen, consider and incline your ear (Ps 45:10-11) to the Lord. Vivien concludes with a prophetic word from Song of Solomon 2:12 “The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land."
In this message in two parts, Kay Rudd speaks about overcoming the difficulty of listening to God and then about increasing our expectation of God speaking to us. Raelynn Longhat takes us on a journey of evaluating our own listening skills and then she give us some excellent practical tips for listening to one another.
Laura Francis opens this message with a moving story about the power of prophetic words. Then Sarah concludes our Gifts of the Spirit series with some final thoughts about cultivating the gifts in our midst and not being offended by Jesus in the process.
How does prophecy work? Is it for the church or for outside the church? Listen to this encouraging message by Stanley Doll to learn more. And remember, the person who prophecies introduces Jesus to the listener. Revelation 19:10 Amplified Version puts it this way, “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy [His life and teaching are the heart of prophecy].”
The Holy Spirit moved over the waters at the beginning of creation, creating order and life. In the same way, Holy Spirit moves over our lives today with healings and miracles. We live in the tension and paradox of believing for and operating in the gifts of healing and miracles and at the same time trusting God—even when healing and miracles don’t happen when or how we expect. But let’s press in and pray for an increase in faith for healing and miracles in our midst.
Holy Spirit gifts? Yes, we want them all, but even more than the gifts, we receive the giver. In this talk, Sarah explains the differences between the Romans 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Corinthians gifts and she introduces our series on the Gifts of the Spirit. Brenda Wanke finished the talk with a beautiful story of the work of the Holy Spirit in her life—through the blessing of a prophetic word.
Sunday was pretty special! Normally, we spend more time in the Bible for a time of equipping, but this Sunday, Sarah started by talking about vision and journey, and then she talked about some upcoming hopes, dreams and specific changes we’re believing for as a church family. Finally, we voted on a new name—Sego Lily Church! Thank you for your patience with our technical difficulties. We’ve got a new camera system still being calibrated and other upgrades still in process.This coming Sunday, we’ve got baptisms, financial information to prepare us for our Sego Lily Project updates, and we start our series on the Gifts of the Spirit. We’d love to see you again this Sunday to celebrate all that God is doing. See you soon.
Often like Jesus’s disciples after the resurrection, we can’t see Jesus. Grief, fear, disappointment, skepticism, and failure blind us to the love and touch of Jesus. In this talk, Aaron leads us through Jesus’s response to us when we are blinded. Listen and discover Jesus’s heart for you—see the Lord.
Each of us experiences wounding, and often we become the one who inflicts the wound. During Holy Week we remember how Jesus responded to wounding and how he leads us through it, if we dare follow. We celebrate his triumphal entry into our hearts; and at the same time name the wound, attend to its effect, place our wounds before our wounded savior, and learn to tell the story.
There’s a problem—we inherit sin. So what do we do? In this talk, Sarah looks at iniquity, God’s response to the problem (Psalm 103), and what we can do about the problem (Isaiah 30:15). It’s all really good news.
Don’t be afraid, but yes, we’re talking about sin. Aaron opens this series describing how we commit sin, inherit sin, and experience sin, and he explains why we want to talk about it. He looks at legalism over integrity, a failure to love, a failure to prioritize the weightier things, and unjust systems. From a bird’s eye view on the topic, we are reminded that Jesus wants to bring healing, wholeness and freedom from sin. And this makes us all the more eager to be honest about and confess our sin today.
Sometimes we’re keenly aware of our need for God. Other times, we’re on autopilot and think we have everything under control. Regardless, we can’t forget our frailty and need for God. Being aware of and honest about temptation and our own sin opens us up to the good news of the Gospel and the joy of salvation. Looking at 2 Samuel 11-12 and Psalm 51, Sarah talks about a time in David’s life when he committed a royal sex and murder crime, but God’s amazing love was still there to redeem him.
Jesus tells three stories in Luke 15 about going after lost ones because he is passionate about us inviting everyone to his banqueting table. In this message Sarah talks about going after the one humbly. You will hear definitions of humility from our youth, a story about King David bringing someone to his table (2 Samuel 9), and stories from several people in our congregation about inviting others into the kingdom (Luke 14).
We explore how David bringing the Ark of the Covenant (The Mercy Seat) to Jerusalem foretells of Christ being our mercy seat (2 Samuel 6). The mercy seat was where the presence of God resided for the Israelites during the times of the Tabernacle and the Temples. David lay aside his kingly robes and donned a priest robe even though he was not a Levite. David put the Ark in an open tent for all the people to see. The people were given access to the manifest presence of God. Just like we have been given access through the shed blood of Christ. We also learn the presence of God must be borne on the shoulders of his servants, the priests, which we have become in Christ. (Revelations 1:5, 6).Due to some technical difficulties, there are a few places during the message where the sound cuts out momentarily.
Do you wonder why we sing and worship the way we do? Then this message is for you! David teaches us an expansive vocabulary for worship, and when we embrace that vocabulary, our worship experience is transformed and enriched. In this talk, Sarah teaches us 7 different Hebrew words for praise and what a selah represents in the Psalms. You can be changed by God (and experience so much more freedom) when you immerse yourself in fuller expressions of worship.
When you finally make it to your goal, sometimes you discover not everyone is there with you. In this story, David is finally made king of Judah, but the house of Saul still fights the house of David. As hard as David tries to establish new culture and a new way of responding to opposition, his family and people continue in old patterns. Don’t be discouraged when the Sons of Zeruiah seem like too much. Stop, inquire of the Lord, and focus on the Lord, the one who gives life (2 Samuel 2-3).
It can be easy to celebrate when people we don’t like experience trouble or failure, but if vengeance is what we are waiting for, we may be missing someone more worthy of our wait. In this talk, Sarah looks at how David responds to the deaths of Saul and Jonathan in 1 Samuel 31. We also learn about lament and explore how to grieve the “enmity of Saul” and the “love of Jonathan” (2 Samuel 1).
David and his group find themselves in a crisis situation. How do they respond? We explored David’s responses, as well as how others responded around him. Our text was I Samuel 30 and we reviewed five areas for us to consider how we might respond in our lives: 1. Strengthen ourselves in the Lord, 2. Inquire for direction 3. Walk in compassion towards others 4. Recover all that has been lost and 5. Give generously to all.
If you’re human, you know about the “messy middle”—that strange, difficult and wandering space between moving toward your goals, dreams or calling and actually being there. The Bible has lots to say about these wilderness times and David himself spent 10 years wandering from the Cave of Adullam to Philistine land and then back again to the Plains of En Gedi. There are treasures in the wilderness. Like David, may we be honest about the pain of the mess, offer it to the Lord, cry out for mercy and command our hearts to be steadfast.
Sometimes when we are looking at our next steps, we imagine everything we need to do, when perhaps we should be waiting to learn what God will do for us. In this message Sarah speaks from 1 Samuel 22 when David finds himself in the Cave of Adullam—gathering family and a multitude of discontents. Listen to discover how you might want to posture yourself when you find yourself hiding in a place of refuge.
Today’s message focused on the shepherds and their inclusion in the birth of Jesus. As we read from Luke 2, we explored how the shepherds received the favor of God, were included in the Jesus story, and were significant for Mary, Joseph, Jesus and their community. Just like the shepherds, we are favored, included and significant and are invited to come to Jesus.
Let’s go spelunking with Isaiah, Joseph and Jacob. In this message, Sarah looks at times when God’s people found themselves in the dark—needing help, light and direction. Just like God brought Joseph dreams and directions in the night, he wants to provide direction for you.
There’s good news for you. Just like God favored Mary, God wants to favor you with grace. In this talk, Sarah speaks about the promises of who the Son of David would be, the beauty of how Jesus came as the Son of God, and the wonder of how he, as the Son of Man would favor us with the gift of grace.
The story of David and Goliath is iconic. We explored how important this story was in the history of Israel. It was a crucial turning point. We also explored how David had to overcome challenges from his family, his king and Goliath himself. Lastly, we looked at the parallels of David to Jesus and what Jesus’ victory looks like.
On our anniversary Sunday, Sarah’s pottery instructor Kyle came to church and demonstrated the truth that we are clay in the hands of a master potter (Jeremiah 18, Isaiah 64). Amanda, Leslie and Raelynn spoke about how we humble and surrender ourselves to God’s creative, faithful and expert hand while he fashions us as beautiful vessels. The process is messy, requires patience and includes fire. And sometimes after all that work, we find ourselves broken, but we serve a God who heals the brokenhearted and binds up our wounds (Psalm 147:3). Aaron concluded by reminding us that we are created to carry treasure in jars of clay to reflect the light of God’s glory (2 Corinthians 4). Post Sunday tip: Given the visual nature of this message, you may prefer to watch the video podcast instead of only listening.
Like David we are anointed to rule and to work, but sometimes we work for bad bosses in tough places. Regardless of our circumstances, we can learn to rule by serving because we’re called as a royal priesthood to proclaim the praises of God. In this message, Sarah teaches about reflecting the image of God at work, and we explore our hearts to see where we may have bitter root judgements about rulers and ruling. Then we commission one another for royal service.
Do you know your heart condition? When looking to anoint a new leader, God was looking into the heart of David—not at his appearance. In this talk, Sarah talks about what God values when anointing us. We also look at 3 skills David learned while being a shepherd: service, care, and tending to his own heart.
In this talk, Halen guides us through David’s most well-known song, Psalm 23. With humor and word study, she takes us on a journey of discovering how Jesus takes care of us through fear, friction, famine and flies! Like David, we can learn how to trust and be led by our Good Shepherd.
As we continued to look at the life of David, we explored three areas: 1. King Saul and the temptations he experienced 2. King David and his heart after God and 3. God’s commitment to David to build his house. We discussed how the stories of these men might apply in our lives and how we can develop a deeper walk with Jesus.
This week you meet the Philistines who were often at war with the Israelites. In the bloody process they all treat God’s presence (represented by the Ark of Covenant) like a magic box, and it doesn’t go well for anyone. In this message, Sarah talks about ancient warfare in the Old Testament and why we talk about it today. From the stories of 1 Samuel she asks: how do you deal with God, and does God have permission to deal with you?
Do you feel like the word of the Lord is rare and visions are few? Learn from the stories of Samuel and his mother Hannah—who made themselves available to God’s voice and vision. Samuel is a key character in David’s story, as God would use Samuel to bring the word of the Lord to David throughout his life.
You can experience God’s amazing presence in all sorts of ways. In this more casual talk, Sarah tells stories about God’s presence in our community and in our larger church family (specifically with David’s Tent UK). She also introduces our new series on the life of King David.
Don’t let sin be the boss of you. In this message, Sarah looks at Psalm 19, and we explore five different ways to respond to sin. Spoiler alert: God handled and can handle sin!
In this 3rd Sunday of our Prayer Playlist series, Stanley spoke from Psalm 61:2 about Jesus being the rock we run to, the one in whom we put our trust, and the place where we dwell.
Adding to the playlist, Kay shares with us a prayer from Psalm 40:13 for the Lord to save us and to help us on an everyday basis. We need to acknowledge our fears and how we are poor and needy so we will desire to "love the Lord [our] God with all [our] heart[s], and with all [our] soul and with all [our] strength." (Deut. 6:5 NIV)
When old playlists aren’t working any more, we try a new one. For the next 6 weeks, we are playing some new prayers and classics from scripture. Sarah starts this week with the ancient Jewish confession of faith—the Shema from Deuteronomy 6—because who we pray to is more important than how we pray.
As we continue our series on Rest, we focused on how God wants to increase our understanding of who He is for us. As we rest, wait, and trust in God, we will gain an increased vision of his attributes. The Lord wants us to find rest, stop fretting, and have our strength renewed. The Lord has given us an invitation to rest; an invitation to experience a greater measure of who God wants to be for us.
From God, the ultimate provider, generosity overflows! He freely gave us his son, forgiveness, the Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit along with wisdom and protection. In Sunday’s message, Mike also teaches us some good tips from scripture on finances, and he finishes with some updates about our community finances. Be encouraged to trust God and give from a place of rest.
Hebrews 4 presents another paradox of “laboring to enter rest,” and Sarah teaches about how the gods of this world make every effort to keep us from that place of rest. But we are not simply producers and consumers in commodity exchanges. No, we were made for enjoyable relationship with God and one another. Hallelujah that our God isn’t a slave driver, but he actually provides for us with a Sabbath rest as provision for life.
Sarah talked about the mystery of paradox and introduced the kingdom principle of working and worshiping from a place of rest. We were reminded that the Hebrew 4 promise of rest still stands for us today. Next Sunday will be part 2 along the same theme.
On Sunday we heard from Cheryl, who lives in S.E. Asia where she serves people who have never heard about Jesus. Cheryl spoke about the challenges of ministering cross-culturally, learning a new language and living in a different climate. But her joy and passion for the people she serves and for the name of Jesus to be known everywhere far outweigh the challenges. Listen and be inspired to pray, to be a witness, and to live in new expectation for what God can do.
Speaking from Acts 1:8 and 2 Corinthians 5, Ben challenges us to be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and to be witnesses of the Gospel. Where there is Holy Spirit power, the Good News and growth follow. May we be a people filled with the Spirit, compelled by love, declaring a message of reconciliation and hope to all people.
In preparation for Utah Global Day of Prayer, Sarah gave a brief introduction on God’s command that we love the foreigner (see Deuteronomy 10, Matthew 25, Mark 11:17, Acts 2), and then three panelists spoke about their experiences being loved by and loving foreigners. We heard some insightful stories from Joe, Kelly and Henry about what we gain from the new Americans among us, as well as what we miss if we don’t love the foreigner.
We continued our series on Matthew 25 where we looked at the parable of the three servants. In this story, Jesus was encouraging his disciples to be faithful in their use of the gifts that the Lord has given them. The Lord gives first and to each of us has been given gifts and faith. There is joy as we partner with Jesus in using what he has given us in ways that reflect his kingdom. As Theodore Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy…” We have been given so much; how can we faithfully serve like Jesus and not become distracted or sidelined by comparison?
When times are dark and we anxiously wait for Jesus’s coming, what do we do? Jesus prepares us for such times by giving us three parables in Matthew 25. In the first story, the Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids, Jesus encourages us to be prepared for Jesus by keeping oil reserves for our lamps. Sarah talks about what this might look like and reminds us that there’s joy in waiting for the bridegroom.
David was called a man after God’s own heart. There was a long period of around 15 years from the time David was anointed King and he actually became King. During this time David had to flee to the cave of Adullam and live on the run from Saul. How did David live during this time? David hid in the Refuge (Psalms 142 and 57); he gathered the distressed, bankrupt and discontented; he continued to live on behalf of Israel while their king was rejecting him; his Kingdom increased as Saul’s decreased. David lived the Sermon on the Mount and demonstrated the heart of Jesus… “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Are you able to see God in others? Guest speaker Tiffany Buhler spoke about how we can see God’s image (imago dei) in each other and how meaningful that connection can be. She unpacked Martin Buber’s writings on “I-Thou” and “I-It” relationships and encouraged us that when we see and love one another, we have the opportunity to experience God. 1 John 4:12 says "No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”
After celebrating resurrection power in our lives, we go back to “normal” life with all its challenges. We know the kingdom is here, but we also pray for God’s kingdom to come. Looking at God’s promises to the exiles in Babylon (Jeremiah 29), and specifically the life of Daniel, Sarah speaks about how prayer and worship enable trust and obedience leading to a hope and a future.
On this resurrection day, we celebrate the risen Christ by remembering the story of Martha, Mary and Lazarus (John 11). Sarah tells the story of Jesus’s interaction with his family friends in Bethany, and we watch him battle grief and death. Sarah encourages us to invite Jesus to come and see the tombs in our lives and believe in his resurrection power. We are reminded, Jesus is here and he wants to see us.
For Palm Sunday, we explored Jesus going from hero to zero during the Holy Week. In Matthew, Mark, and Luke the writers include Jesus’ quotation from Psalm 118 that he was the “stone that the builders rejected” … but that he would become “the cornerstone.” Jesus experienced both the praise and rejection of people. Palm Sunday illustrates a high point of praise; the events of Holy Week illustrate the rejection. How can we live as followers of Jesus, not being dis-oriented and distracted by the praise and rejection of people? Is Jesus the cornerstone of our lives and our church? We concluded by reading the end of Psalm 118: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.”
Paul the apostle wrote that Christ crucified is the power of God and the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1). In this message, we remember Jesus’s journey to the cross and what it means for us today. In the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “Christ on the cross is God’s enduring Word to the world saying, ‘See how much I love you. See how you must love one another.’”
In Matthew 9-10, Jesus is traveling around ministering in different villages. Matthew records the following events at the end of chapter 9 and the beginning of chapter 10: Jesus had compassion, called his disciples to pray for workers in the harvest, sent his disciples out to minister in different towns, called them to give as freely as they had received and to be intentional about where and to whom they went. These verses guided the message as we discussed “Our Time” as a community to step out in compassion, prayer, action, generosity and intentionality.
When Jesus announced his ministry of good news for the poor, freedom for the prisoner and oppressed, and the opening of blind eyes, he didn’t just say it, he did it! His preaching was followed by power, and the power was fueled by prayer. Jesus modeled a new normal for his community, and he invites us into a new normal today.
In Isaiah, the prophet writes “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” We explored how the Lord wants to take us individually and corporately into new things and how the River of God will help us perceive what the Lord has for us. Listen as we look at how: new things begin in the river; New things don’t look like old things; Jesus is the River of Life; All things are made new by the River; The River is made to flow out of us.
Does danger, darkness or distance keep us from coming home or coming to the table? In the final message of this series, Sarah talks about tables here in our community, the table the Father set for the Prodigal Son, and tables in Ukraine; and we explore the importance of what happens around the table in the household of faith.
When it comes to caring for orphans and outsiders, how do you do it? In this message, Sarah talks about our posture when reaching out to others. Kelly Jo shares about the preparation process in adoption. And we finish with a look at how we have lots of plans, but we should be ready for God to re-direct our steps.
When we’re born again, we receive a spirit of adoption and become part of the family of God and a household of faith. In this message, Sarah talks about 4 things that happen when you receive that spirit of adoption. See also the attached handout (in English and Spanish) comparing the heart of an orphan to the heart of a child and take some time this week to ask Holy Spirit how you can grow more secure as God’s child.
The Apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 8, that we have not received the spirit of bondage to fear, but we’ve received the Spirit of adoption. There’s a spirit of fear that tells us we are orphans and outsiders who need to fend for ourselves, but God says, “I’ve adopted you. My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Let’s ask Holy Spirit this week to show us when we live as orphans.
There are different seasons of time in our lives. As we walk with Jesus, we are called to discern the Holy Spirit’s timing in our lives and ministries, to walk in wisdom as it relates to the times of our lives, and to redeem time.
If we are certain about what is going to happen next, there’s no need for faith. Instead, our faith grows and matures when we believe in God even when we cannot see and cannot know. “So, take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees.” God is at work. Just as God led generations before you, you are being led, and you have brothers and sisters along the journey with you.
We explored Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.” The Lord gives us the light we need to navigate life. Sometimes we experience night seasons where the words of the Lord show us where to step next and how to navigate challenging times. At other times the Lord gives us daylight for understanding the larger picture and long-term vision. In all times, the Lord provides light for our journey.
When we are on mission, we encounter new information as well as changes to plans and to trajectories. Looking at examples from NASA mission control, Sarah reminds us of the one thing we must do in life—if we don’t, we can do nothing.
On Sunday we were blessed to have Ben, Rachel and Noah with us. They serve overseas with World Outreach but were able to be home for the holidays. Ben spoke from Ephesians 5:1-2 about living lives filled with love and shared stories from around the world of extravagant love that compels people to live sacrificially. He encouraged us to walk, talk, pray and invite people to our tables because of God’s great love for us. When we live like this, rejoicing follows.
We encourage you to support Ben and Rachel in prayer, encouragement and finances. If you’d like to sign up for their newsletter and/or support them, email us at admin@tf-sandy.org
Matthew 2 records the story of what happens in the lives of Joseph, Mary and Jesus after Jesus’ birth. We see three main events: The wisemen’s visit, Herod’s response to the wisemen, and the journey of Jesus’ family. Through this story we discover how God was providing for them, protecting them and directing them. This is who God wants to be for us, a provider, protector and leader.
During the Christmas season, we continue to open our hearts to Immanuel—God with us. God has always been with us and present—seeking to dwell with us, but we sometimes are unaware or inattentive. In this message, Sarah invites us to be present to God’s presence, where there’s freedom, rest and good news.
On Sunday, Steve and Brenda shared the miraculous story of how God redeemed their marriage from addiction and abuse. Their experience was messy, ugly and dark, but Jesus came in and changed everything. As you listen, please remember that no one should stay in places of abuse, so if you are there, do seek help and safety right away. If you’d like to reach out to us, we can help you find resources and support. We share these faith stories because we want to talk about the hard things in life and encourage you to open your heart to the hope, courage and freedom that Christ brings to your own unique redemption story.
During Advent we remember God’s promises about the Messiah, and we prepare for his coming again in our lives today. God’s promises are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through him, we speak the ‘Amen’ (2 Cor. 1:20). In this talk Sarah speaks about God’s promises towards us (i.e. God is doing a new thing!), and like Mary and Elizabeth we say, “Amen!”