Spiritual Deep Dive in Five: Recent Episodes
Christ’s Church of Flagstaff Podcast
A weekday podcast in five minutes or less that can be used to help your own spiritual thoughts, connection to God, and as a tool to help someone follow Jesus. Created by the Pastoral team at Christ's Church of Flagstaff.
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For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"The practice of Fasting and the rhythm of our Christian calendar, including seasons like Lent, give each of us the opportunity to reflect and prepare for whatever it is that God has next for us. To honestly see and remove the things keeping us from Him."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"Do you know what God thinks about you?"
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"In the historical biographies of his life, Jesus is often shown to intentionally withdraw into times of prayer and locations of retreat. Choosing to Focus and put God’s word deep into our hearts and minds requires us to also be intentional."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"Sometimes I don’t know how to pray or even where to start; and then I think about the temple and the structure that’s already been given, a proven structure that delights God’s heart and draws me into his dwelling place."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"Do expectations and a need for control lead you to unwanted places? Do the unknowns of life keep you up at night, or cause you worry during your day?"
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"We’re just lamps, shining the light of God through us wherever we are! All we have to do in this scenario is not cover up our light so others can see it."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"Prayer is our relationship with Immanuel, God who is with us."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast.
"Memorizing God’s word allows it to seep deep into our hearts and our minds, transforming us from the inside out."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"So even when things feel hopeless, remember to stop and worship God for who He is and what He does. Even if you don’t feel like it, worship Him anyway and let the act of worship begin to change you."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"I have noticed that the most effective people, when it comes to sharing about [multi-level marketing products], are those who have experienced the benefits the product boasts about."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
Jesus presents a pretty clear message:
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Hear his Words (teachings)
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Put them into practice
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Survive the storms of life
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"When someone says, “God is always with you,” is that thought comforting or frightening?"
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"…And he brought him to Jesus. Some of my favorite words found in the Bible!"
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"What would be different in your life if you could be more intentional about seeking God and make more space for Him in your mind and heart?"
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"Have you always wondered why it seems that some followers of Jesus seem to hear from Him directly and some don’t?"
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"We will also investigate practices like meditation and memorization, which can help us shift the lens we’re looking through toward a more Godly perspective."
For the full experience make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021 to view or download the written partner to this podcast
"Let’s choose to stop, slow down and recognize that God is good to each and every one of us."
Make sure to go to https://www.ccof.church/2021to view and download the written partner to this podcast
Does your day often feel unfinished? Your house, your work, your kids, or your money? Sometimes we just want things to be finished and complete.
Hebrews 10:14-18
14 "For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. 15 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: 16 “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord.I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.” 17 Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” 18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.
Your sins are finished and forgiven, you are free and loved.
Have you gone to God for your simple needs? What if the reason we don’t feel like he is our everlasting father, is that we have never asked Him to be?
Join Garrett Shelp for today’s episode of, “The Spiritual Deep Dive in Five”.
The Wounded Giver - Jospeh (Genesis 45:1-11.)
To be generous when the need is great, the cause is noble, or the people receiving will be blessed is in the end easy to do. What’s not easy is being generous to an enemy. Have you ever dished out food to someone you were upset with? Joseph shows us that generosity towards people we don’t like is a pathway to our own healing. The best correction of the wrong is the practice of the better. Is there someone or some issue God would ask you to look again at despite your negative feelings? What if God is asking you to be generous towards someone or something you don’t feel comfortable with today? I would suggest it’s more about you getting better than them.
The Eccentric Giver - Woman with Alabaster Jar (Mark 14:3.)
There are times when giving, showing compassion, and being generous is going to look foolish. There are moments that come to us when we have to forfeit what others may say of us to be able to respond to the opportunity before us. There may be a moment in our life when we realize we value perception more than money. How could being generous or showing love be at odds with how you’re seen by others? What will become of us when we are invited to follow God into the unknown of losing our reputations?
The Creative Giver - Barnabas (Acts 4:36-37.)
Sometimes what we have isn’t money. Barnabas was creative because he was free to be generous. He was also creative because the need was great. When we are open and faced with limitations, creativity can thrive. Being generous with our talent can be just as valuable as cash. A lot of us may have even come to realize that giving money is starting to feel like the minimum for us. What if my mind, my skills, my attention, my experience, even my presence could be a blessing if I was generous with it?
The Faithful Giver - The Poor Widow (Luke 21:1-4.)
This woman was doing what she felt was right. She did not intend to be seen. She wanted to be hidden. She was being dutiful. Yet, she became one of Jesus’ sermons! Imagine that. Jesus uses her as an example to teach people how to follow him. Can he do that with your life? Is your generosity a living example God can use to teach others?
The Extravagant Giver - Jospeh of Arimathea (Matthew 27:57-61.)
Joseph was wealthy and had friends in high places. This made him sneaky about his generosity to Jesus. Maybe we are too hard on him about that kind of generosity? Giving extravagantly is truly remarkable. But what Joseph shows us is that some things are so special, so tender, so important, that it’s better only a few people knew about it. This kind of generosity is more about the recipient than the giver, even if it is an immense gift. What if we did something amazing in secret? What if we didn’t post about it? What if we were extravagantly generous in a sneaky way this Christmas?
The Caring Giver - The Shunamite Woman (2 Kings 4:8-37.)
She gave and gave out of deep compassion for what God was doing through Elisha. She was only caring and willing to support without expectation. She was someone we would call good, and something horrible still happened to her. This grief hit her hard. Is that you today? Do you feel like God is maybe false hope? Or blessed you only to take it away later? This story is about a miracle. But it’s also about how God never overlooks what we do in compassion. God will not let our kindness or generous be wasted or forgotten.
The Hospitable Giver - The widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:7-16.) She gives such hospitality to someone even though she is literally preparing her last meal for her and her boy. What’s it like to be generous when you know your gonna die? Is that harder or easier? Was she acting out of emptiness or faith? Is that you today, somewhere in between? This woman reveals a mystery: be generous anyways because you may find that the bread and oil don’t run out.
The Transformed Giver - Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-19.) Being generous is better understood as a reaction than it is a command to obey. It’s like saying “go like that person.” The way the NT says it is not just to give. That’s easy to obey. The model is to be generous. People like Zacchaeus don’t have trouble being generous because it’s in reaction to how generous God has been to them. Maybe one of the reasons some of us struggle with generosity is not that we don’t want to, but that we seem to have become unaware again of the goodness of God towards us?
The Trusting Giver - The boy with fish and bread (John 6:8-13.) This kid was just there. He’s a kid so no plan, no agenda, just hungry. He ends up being used by God simply because he trusted Jesus with why he had. That’s still the lesson every day for us too: what’s at your disposal? What’s in your hands? Not only can God use anything we have, but all that we commit to God can be something someone else needed. These people were starving. So was the boy. Instead of complaining, instead of hoarding, and instead or running, he trusted Jesus. What can you trust Jesus with today? What’s in your hands that you can be generous with?
The Consistent Givers - The Macedonian churches all consistently financially supported Paul in his ministry work predominately in Corinth. Steadiness and consistency seems more rare in our modern world. When we find it we tell everyone about it. A good mechanic. A good doctor. A reliable tool. A tasty restaurant. A good tv series. When we find something we can count on, we talk about it. Get ready for God to use you if you're consistent. When it comes to being generous, there’s some stories that will only come from years of persistence and steadiness. How can you be more steadily reliable in your giving so we can see how God wants to do more, maybe even beyond our lifetime?
Have five minutes today? Join our pastoral staff for five minutes for a look at scripture, connection to God, and as a tool to help someone follow Jesus.