Grace Hills Church: Recent Episodes
Grace Hills Church
Located in Bentonville, Arkansas, Grace Hills exists for broken people to find healing in Jesus, experience authentic community, and grow spiritually.
When it comes to walking with God and Him working in my life, what’s on me and what’s on God?
My emotions are not to be obeyed. They give me information and then I am led by the spirit of God, not my emotions.
Some of us live our lives in a state of constant offense, but God wants you to live in the freedom of consistent grace.
I can be satisfied and content in whatever situation I’m in because what empowers me is not the things around me, but the God who is inside of me.
Our fruitfulness is not stunted because we are against God’s instruction, but it is stunted because other things get all of our attention.
It is obedience to God’s instructions that gives you hope for fruitfulness in your future.
It is our privilege and responsibility to carry the hope of God into the world, and we are empowered by God to do so.
While we can read God’s Word and know what it says, our fruitfulness depends on what we do with what He’s said.
God wants to free you from the burden of your future so you can succeed in the present.
The Holy Spirit is the presence of God that lives inside of those who have trusted in Christ as Savior, but so many of us either don’t understand the Holy Spirit or have distanced ourselves from it because we have seen the Holy Spirit blamed for a lot of weird things.
To get your emotions to align to your belief, you have to shift your focus to what you believe.
There's a difference between knowing ABOUT God and really KNOWING Him. Knowing Him and engaging in a relationship with Him brings life.
A lot of us have lived in dead religion because we thought the only part of what Jesus did that was for us was his death.
Repentance is not resisting your sin, but it is leaving it behind so that you can pursue all the good that God has for you.
Confession is being honest about your past so you can find strength for freedom in your future.
We will never reach the full potential of prayer until we pray with God not just at God.
Jesus paid the price for you to have victory over the enemy, and he wants you to experience the benefits of what he paid for.
When I don’t know which way is right, God does. I can rest in asking for him to do what is best.
We tried all we knew to do but we still had no hope, so God stepped in and did what we could not.
When the Christmas story talks about peace on earth, it is all about your relationship with God.
Jesus demonstrated with his life that the cost of giving pales in comparison to the reward of giving.
Being spiritually adopted into God's family brings about a profound transformation in our relationship to God and others.
We can no longer hold our heavenly father hostage for the sins and omissions of our earthly one.
Each of the four Gospels has a specific purpose to reveal to us a specific part of Jesus. John came to tell you who Jesus is.
God speaking wisdom, direction, and conviction to you is to partner with you for your good, not to control you or beat you up.
Each of the four Gospels has a specific purpose to reveal to us a specific part of Jesus. Luke is an investigative report that confirms that Jesus truly is the savior of the world.
Each of the four Gospels has a specific purpose to reveal to us a specific part of Jesus. Mark tells us that Jesus actively brings us salvation.
Each of the four Gospels has a specific purpose to reveal to us a specific part of Jesus. Matthew’s Gospel tells us: God always fulfills his promises.
Become the type of person that God can increase by being faithful with what you have now.
God’s guidance is something you actively seek, not something that passively happens to you.
God wants you to experience his peace, and there are practical things you can do to receive it.
You are able to walk into God’s blessings in your life as you listen and obey him in your life.
Just as we provide for those around us physically, we should spiritually protect, provide, and stand up for those we love.
God’s will for your life and his great desire is for you to be a kingdom-first family, partnering with the Holy Spirit to bring the kingdom of heaven to earth.
Jesus not only sent us to continue his mission, but he sent us with the same empowerment.
The reason for Jesus’ settled confidence is that every question that typically leads us to fear and doubt was already settled in his mind by God.
If we are going to carry on the mission of Jesus, then we have to recapture the heart of Jesus.
The ceiling of your faith can be the floor for the next generation if you’ll pass your faith on to them.
God is moved by people who come to him with faith, and the pathway to faith-filled prayers is praying scripture over your life.
God wants to not only provide for you; He wants to bless you. And His ability to do so is not dependent on culture or people.
The key to having hope that is undefeatable is having hope rooted in Something that is unbeatable.
Because God is the trustworthy shepherd, we don't have to carry the weight of our burdens.
There’s a fine line between conversations that are constructive and ones that are destructive. Recognizing that line is vital to the health of your mind, heart and relationships.
Sin that isn’t overlooked and dealt with can become ministry to others and brings some glory to the Glory-Giver.
There is a peace, joy, and rest that is stolen from your life when unforgiveness goes unchecked.
Easter reminds us that God is still working even when it feel like he is silent.
Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023
In the same way that God leads people in the Bible to people he wants them to impact, He wants to lead you.
When the people of God are visibly different than the world, evangelism stops being about convincing someone what you believe and becomes explaining to someone what you have in Jesus.
God’s instructions around sex are there to guard the gift he gave you, not rob you of your freedom.
Resting is no longer an obligation that we do, but it is a privilege we have as followers of Jesus that we build into our lives.
When we realize that God blessing someone else is just evidence of his goodness and faithfulness, not a decline in his ability to bless us, then we can rejoice with our friends and trust our infinite God to bless us too.
When you begin to trust God--rather than your money--as your provider, it positions you for peace, joy, and rest.
God created relationships for your good, but you will never experience all that they are intended to be until your relationships are rooted in God.
God first decision making looks like: being founded on the word of God, being led by the Holy Spirit, and using our God-given wisdom.
The Holy Spirit is the one who brings the power of God into your life, so when you pray, asking him to work in your life and in the lives of others is truly a difference maker.
Jesus did not merely forgive us for our sins, but he defeated the power of the enemy in our lives.
Your relationship determines your conversation, and that is true for prayer. Knowing God as your Father impacts the way you pray in multiple ways.
The way you live your life matters. What would change in your relationships and in the spaces you inhabit if you decided to live each day with purpose and intention?
The story of Christmas is really the whole story of the Bible — the story of God’s rescue mission for you.
Advent 2022, Week Four.
The amazing God above us not only loves us, but embodies everything we could ever need.
Advent 2022, Week Three.
You are not called to be a spectator in Gods story; He wants you to be an active part in what He is doing.
Advent 2022, Week Two.
Immanuel, or, God With Us, means we have a Father who understands our struggles and wants to step into the messy parts of life with us.
Advent 2022, Week One.
The enemy cannot stop God’s purpose for your life, but he can get you to sideline yourself if you’ll believe the lie that God can’t use you because of your past or your failures.
We have the responsibility to pass on our faith to the next generation (Judges 2:8-13; Romans 10:14) in a way that emphasizes the goodness of God's character and relationship over rules.
You are responsible for leveraging your influence to plant seeds in people’s lives, but God is responsible for the results.
Prioritize making room for God in your life by spending time with him, not just doing things for him.
Real life-giving relationships happening in real life-giving churches. They involve connection, community, commitment, and consistency.
There is a God-given potential inside of you that you will never reach in isolation. The system that God created to bring you to maturity in your life is the local church.
Repentance is a tool from God to help you find healing. Shame is a tool from the enemy to keep you in your hurt/failures.
Being a person God can use is not about your abilities, but your willingness to follow and trust in Him.
God promises to lead us continually throughout life and provide divine direction when we trust Him with our whole heart and seek His will in everything. (Proverbs 3:5-6)
It is your faithfulness in what you have now that allows God to bless you in your life because if you are faithful with little, you will be faithful with much.
There is an enemy, and his purpose is to cause destruction in your life. The good news is that the Bible not only tells us how to battle his schemes; it tells us how to be victorious against EVERY attack of the enemy.
We are called to make disciples by modeling the mandate (aka living out the instructions in the Bible, our life as an example worth following).
The only way to have hope that is unwavering is to build it on the only person who is unwavering.
If you believe that God is mad at you when you fail then you will get stuck in a cycle of failures because you will run and hide from the one person who can help you overcome.
Jesus shows us how to pray with both expectation and trust, which leads us to a place of both hope and peace.
When we assess our baggage and leave behind what is holding us back, we are free to move forward into the life God has for us.
If we can identify and counteract the enemy’s strategy in our lives, then his strategy loses power.
A conversation between Josh Firey and Zac Cunningham, our new Family Pastor, about our vision for our church’s role in discipling the next generation.
We want people to know Jesus, who he created them to be, and help them live out their God given purpose.
Your faith and your faithfulness are making a difference in the lives of others, even when you can't see it.
Building a firm foundation in your life is not just about knowing God’s Word but about doing it.
Jesus died to free you from your past, but he rose from the dead to change your life now.
God saw us in our brokenness and He paid the penalty of our sins for us so we could have eternal life with Him. That is the beauty of the cross and the beauty of the love of God.
Truth without love is just mean, and love without truth is destructive. We as Christians are in a unique position to fully embrace both because of what Jesus did for us.
James teaches us that an alive faith will always produce good works from us. We are full-heartedly invested in being a church that puts action to our faith and makes a difference in NWA.
God created us to work in relationship with each other, but community only succeeds in the context of authenticity and honesty.
Pastor Josh Firey's debut message at Grace Hills Church. We are a church for the broken to find healing in Jesus.
In chapter ten of the Gospel of John, Jesus refers to himself as the Good Shepherd. What that means for his followers is that they are seen, known, protected, and eternally covered by Him.
When we choose to walk in the light, Jesus heals us of our spiritual blindness and shines through us so that we can be light and encouragement to those around us.
Jesus knows what is best for us, so when we live with a faithful focus on Jesus and His teaching, we will find true freedom.
Jesus cares greatly about our physical needs and as the Great Physician, has the power to heal whatever ails us. But even more than physical healing, it is a deeper, soul-level healing that he desires for and offers to everyone who will follow him.
Jesus has a pattern in how he relentlessly pursues us that always ends with him offering himself as the solution to our hunger and thirst.
When we become followers of Jesus, the Spirit of God becomes our identity; Jesus enables us to live out a new story; and God’s Kingdom’s value system replaces our own.
Whatever you think of Jesus, his place as the most influential and captivating person in all of human history is unavoidable.
The book of John was written to introduce us to Jesus Christ, who he is (God in the flesh; the Living Word) and what he did, all with the sole aim of leading us all to embrace the saving work of Christ in faith.
God’s plan is for those who belong to Jesus to be ambassadors carrying with us the light of Jesus and his love for all people.
Joy isn’t optional in the life of a follower of Jesus. It’s not fully complete; it’s not fully experienced; but it isn’t optional, and it should be experienced.
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Embedded video details, That’s My King:
➤ Speaker(s): S M Lockridge ➤ Original Sermon(s): https://www.sermonaudio.com/saplayer/... ➤ Music: 1. 13 Hours Ending Scene Music 2. Out In The Cold - Josh Leake ➤ Footage: Copyright Free Content from Storyblock & FILMPAC, A.D Bible Series and Videos from Youtube ➤ Edited By: Robin Måhl
Jesus died on the cross so that your trespasses against God could be forgiven and so that the Holy Spirit could fix what is broken in you and me. This is God’s plan to restore people to himself.
Because Jesus was born, this broken world can be restored, what's broken in us can be restored, and our hope can be restored.
Jesus himself demonstrated servant leadership, marked by humility rather than pride. When we follow this model of leadership, we reap many rewards.
In church life, we should expect those leading the church to both seek out and value accountability; our leaders should exhibit a willingness to be held responsible for their actions. And as followers of Jesus, all of us should value mutual accountability with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
The story of Ruth and Naomi found in the book of Ruth displays the characteristics and determination required to be a true, intentional friend to God and others.
Because of Jesus, we can have peach WITH God, and OF God. This peace is deep, rich, and abiding.
Earthly wisdom results in disorder & sinfulness, and godly wisdom results in righteousness. (James 3:13–4:10)
James 3:1-15 lays out the responsibility we carry to speak with wisdom because our words are powerful. What if every time we communicated, we kept in mind the opportunity to spread the message of the Good News of Jesus?
In James Chapter 2, we are reminded of three things: 1. Prejudice contradicts God’s original design and ultimate eternal plan. 2. Prejudice breaks the greatest commandments, “to love God with your whole heart, soul, mind and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself.” 3. Good works are the natural, expected outcome of authentic faith.
Chapter One of the book of James encourages us that even though we will face trials, how we walk through them makes all the difference.
Three questions that may just change your life: What is God doing ahead of you? What does God desire to do around you? How will you join in that vision?
In Acts 20, when Paul is saying goodbye to the Ephesian Elders, he passes along three reminders that pertain to anyone who professes to know Christ.
As followers of Jesus, we must study scripture in order to know Him and become more like Him. Studying the scriptures both individually and together is vitally important.
Our missionary to Papua New Guinea, BJ Sanders, with a message on the two important questions Saul asked Jesus, and how we should be asking those same questions.
We need to be in constant prayer asking God to reveal where He is at work, and then join Him there.
Matt Rule, missionary to the Middle East, with a message on how God is moving in the hearts of this land overseas.
The only reason God’s Church has not only survived but continued to grow over the course of time is that our sovereign God has always been the driving power behind it. And yet, God uses fallible people who have put their faith in His Son Jesus to spread the word about His Kingdom.
When we were kids and teenagers, the question was often asked, “What will you be when you grow up?” And while that is a somewhat important question, the truly more important question is, “WHO will you be when you grow up?”
In 1 Timothy 3:14-16, Paul explicitly connects the Gospel with the church. It may certainly be necessary for us to rebuke or abandon ungodly practices of the church, but never the church itself.
We were created to worship, be in community, be like Jesus, minister to others, and share the Good News of Jesus. But it’s not by our own power that we are able to accomplish these five purposes; it’s by the Holy Spirit working in and through us.
Mike Campbell takes us through 2 Peter 1:3-7 to answer the question: What does it mean to be spiritually formed?
In Matthew 22:37, we were commanded to first and foremost, love God with all our hearts.
When we meditate on and understand how greatly God has loved us, it is then that we respond in worship and grow in our love for him. Our love for God naturally overflows into loving our neighbor, which is God's second commandment. (Matthew 22:39)
Having a healthy view of the church (God’s people called together to use their God-given gifts to further His Kingdom) naturally leads to an eagerness to serve. As we serve others, we grow in humility and deny our sinful pride.
Mike Campbell dives into Nehemiah as an example for us in how revival can be birthed in our lives, church, and community.
Grace Hills exists for broken people to find healing in Jesus, experience authentic community, and grow spiritually. This is the mission that we started with and will continue to live out as a church.
Pastor Brandon Cox's Final Message.
Romans 15:5-7 NRSV May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
We’ve been taught to believe that doubt is the enemy - that if we doubt the faith we’ve been handed, it will all fall apart. But the truth is…
When doubt leads you to deeper faith, doubt becomes your friend.
We who are Christians believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died for the sins of the world and rose again on Easter and was enthroned as King of a heavenly kingdom and is therefore worthy of following.
Palm Sunday
Life is not about performance. It’s about knowing and loving King Jesus and loving others with him.
Life takes on deep meaning as we begin to understand and identify with the suffering of Jesus.
The BAD NEWS is that we live in a world lost to sin, and sin leads to death and condemnation. The GOOD NEWS is that God’s love moved him to act to save the world through the redemptive work of Christ.
The Kingdom of God declares the eventual end of every system that causes suffering and injustice in the world.
Jesus gave us the secrets to following him all the way. The choice is yours. You can do with your own life what you want to do in your own power, or you can trust God to do more than you’ve begun to imagine.
God never intended for you to walk alone, so he gave you his Son, his gospel, and his church to strengthen you on the journey.
When you follow Jesus, you’re called to join him in a ministry of serving the needs of other people.
Every disciple of Jesus lives as one sent into the world with the good news of God’s Kingdom.
Being a disciple (literally, a student) is about getting closer to Jesus and becoming more like him. And Jesus is always inviting you one step further into fellowship with himself.
Jesus’ baptism was a public announcement of his ministry as God’s Messiah. When we follow Jesus-which we publicly announce with our baptism, we are entering into a whole new life!
God’s favor is when he shows you his good character and keeps his good promises to you. And when God wants to show you favor, you have to decide in advance to be ready with your YES.
The good King Jesus’ agenda for his people is good, and when you receive his agenda, you will rejoice for eternity.
History and its prophets paved the way for Jesus' first coming. We get to prepare the way for his second coming, and we also get to prepare the way for him to take full possession and ownership of our lives as Lord and Redeemer.
In the midst of the darkness of our circumstances, it’s easy to lose hope. But the message of Advent tells us that there is something greater coming to make all things right. The King is coming.
Sometimes we express our values in the form of good intentions. Sometimes we express our values in the form of real action.
Do we live out the values we say we believe in?
We think and give big. We plant churches, partner with our community, and go to the ends of the earth with the gospel.
We engage the world with a gospel that cares for the poor, seeks freedom for the oppressed, and speaks for the marginalized.
We strengthen marriages, partner with parents, and pour energy into raising up a generation for Christ.
We empower men and women to influence their culture with the gospel and change their world for good.
We grow from consumers into contributors. We bring out the best in people and refuse to use people.
We all bear God’s image and the gospel is for everyone. We welcome people of every ethnicity and every kind of story.
We keep it real, fight against fake, and carry each other’s burdens with love and grace. We commit to each other.
We are driven by purpose, not by programs, personalities, buildings, or budgets. We keep things simple.
We are here for the broken. We do what we do to reach people who are far from God. We get our hands messy in ministry.
JESUS FIRST - Jesus is first in everything! We trust his Word as truth, listen to his Holy Spirit, follow his lead, and honor him in all we do.
God will prepare you for his purposes in the Cave, but he uses you to accomplish his purposes in the world outside.
It is in the spiritual caves of your life that God will prepare you for his greatest purposes for you!
While we are never in control, prayer is God's gift to us in which he invites us to influence the future.
When materialism and consumerism become a way of life, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
REMEMBER: Life is hard, but God is always good. God gave his church the mission of showing the world his goodness.
Conflict isn’t always bad, but it exposes the darkness of our rebelliousness toward God and others.
The primary way you will influence your world, for better or for worse, is through your words.
We need more than a faith that simply speaks the right lingo or feels all the feels. We need a faith that is authentic enough to actually act.
With special guest, Reverend Stephen T. Ivey
The church has a responsibility to eradicate favoritism of every kind, including racism and classism. We’re required to see the image of God and full humanity in every person.
You can regress or make progress and the difference is the choice to be an action taker.
God's purpose is to build your faith through testing. Satan's purpose is to bury you by tempting you to sin.
At the end of this hard season, you may be stronger than ever... Or you might be exactly where you were before it started... It’s all about three choices.
God is not surprised by anything going on in our world right now. He has a plan that He's at work on, and you play a part in it!
Because of the Holy Spirit within us, we can grow bolder even in the midst of opposition to bring eternal hope and healing to a hurting world.
Historically, when the world has fallen apart, the church has come together - to worship, to pray, to show love to hurting people, and to keep spreading the message of hope in Jesus Christ!
Jesus regularly chose the misfits and "least of these" to do his work. He invites us and empowers us to come together, and by following his example, to go into the world spreading his message of LOVE and HOPE!
You can make a BIG difference! An eternal difference! All you have to do is love people.
If you pay attention to the headlines, you know there are a lot of scary, bad and worrisome things going on all around. But the GOOD news is that God is still in control! And therefore, as followers of Jesus, we don't have to worry, no matter how dark the world gets.
In dark seasons, the hardest thing you can do is simply to keep on living. Fight to get to Jesus; he has your healing!
The human race is full of difficult people--ourselves included--but following Jesus means loving everybody, even our enemies! As one of His followers, you CAN be a peacemaker.
Waiting is hard, but we can CHOOSE to believe powerful truth in the midst of the waiting that will change us for the better.
There are human limitations that hold us back from truly being able to do anything we set our minds to do, but when we lean into Jesus, we CAN do anything God wants us to and calls us to do.
When you break free from bondage, Satan stands ready to drag you back in, but when you walk consistently with God's spirit, it is possible to experience true, long-lasting freedom.
The battle for our freedom has already been won. God has equipped us with all we need to walk fully in the freedom his death and resurrection provided for us.
You might be living under a cloud of shame and regret, but that is NOT God's intention for his children. Shame is a terrible motivator and a tyrannical master. And regret just covers up today's joys with yesterday's pain.
Now is the time to discover who you are, why God made you, and what he wants you to do with the rest of your life.
Together, we can show the world what it looks like for an overflowing church to practice radical love and generosity. We can share our faith better together. 1 Thessalonians 3:12
To have a life overflowing with gratitude is to receive and respond to the grace given through Jesus.
Generosity overflows from the lives of those who recognize that they've been given much. In fact, it's more blessed to give than to receive, but we've received so much. In other words, receiving = great blessing. Overflowing = massive blessing.
Paul said, "May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you." Would the people who encounter you each day say they've been loved by you? In today's message, we'll talk about how to love people in ways that people take notice of.
In spite of the fact that God's favor and blessing are secured for us in Christ and freely offered by grace through faith, the experience and the enjoyment of his full favor and blessing are reserved for those who will do the work of taking full possession of all that has been purchased for us.
God is entirely good, and fills our lives with good gifts - salvation, the Holy Spirit, provision, etc. - and wants to fill us to the brim, to overflowing.
The Bible gives God's children the promise of more beyond this life - more in eternity. In this message, we'll explore what the Bible has to say about the quality of external life believers will enjoy forever.
There are no born losers. You were meant to win. God made you to be "more than a conquerer," so losing isn't even an option for you if you're part of the family of God. The question is, how do I LIVE like a winner?
You'll never experience ALL that God has for you by yourself. You were always meant to be part of his family. He made you for more than just doing life alone. That's why God made this thing called the church. It's messy, but it's a beautiful mess, and God wants you in it!
You were made for more than being crazy busy and stressed out. God never intended for you to be living with zero margin, no rest, and no balance. There's a way to break free and experience more. (Matthew 6:25-34)
You were made for more than being financially strapped. Keeping up with the Jones' getting old? Learn a whole new way to live - not by comparison, but in confidence in God's affirmation. Matthew 6:19-24
You were made for more than a mundane, mediocre life. If your life feels like a broken record, you're missing out! When you follow Jesus, life becomes an adventure! Matthew 4:19
You were made for more than the dysfunctional cycles. You can break out and experience healing, learn new patterns, and change for the better, forever.
You were made for more than you've even imagined. God didn't intend you to simply survive in mediocrity. In this message, we'll talk about the "plus ultra" life God intends for you to live!
What does it look like for a family to make a difference in the world together? And to prepare kids to be sent into the world as missionaries for a lifetime?
Parents want to know - should I discipline my kids? How? How often? But discipline isn't merely correcting past wrongs. It's discipleship for a lifetime!
How we communicate will either lead us toward closeness or separation. Intimacy or division. With a few practices, your home can become the safest place on earth to communicate.
What makes a healthy, growing, thriving family is far more than a list of rules, or people fulfilling the correct "roles." If you don't establish a foundation of loving connection within your family, you will always struggle.
Even in the middle of grief, doubt, and questions, it is important for our faith to grow to the point that we understand not only CAN Jesus make it all better; someday, he WILL.
Fear will sink you, while faith will allow you to walk on water with Jesus. The supernatural power of God is released in our lives, in the presence of Jesus, when we take the next step of obedience to what Jesus has said to us.
We often feel that our pain goes unnoticed in God's eyes, but Jesus is well aware of all of our suffering and comes to walk beside us in the middle of it.
What does it look like to partner with Jesus in a miracle? Watch this message to learn how to be willing, resting, and trusting while partnering with God.
We often live life just going through the motions, expecting nothing extraordinary to happen. But when you follow Jesus, you're following a miracle worker! And what King Jesus has in store for your life is always greater than what you've even imagined.
God promises you a forever, free from all fear, worry, and anxiety. And he also gives you promises to live out so that you can live life here and now, free from fear. It's time to repent of fear and claim those promises!
You have no idea just how amazing life can become when you live the life God has always wanted for you. He desires to give you abundance and peace, healing and mercy, and he wants his goodness to follow you all the days of your life... even the worst ones.
Hard times will come, but Jesus is always present in the valley and can be trusted to bring comfort.
FOMO (the "fear of missing out") is a real thing, and it's more intense than ever. We're afraid we'll miss out on all the cool stuff. We'll miss out on doing something significant with our lives. But God has a purpose for every one of us - a unique pathway to walk. And he also sets the pace for us to walk that pathway.
We naturally live with a sense of scarcity, but when you follow the Great Shepherd, you'll have everything you ever really need to want because he provides for his family.
Healing can happen in a moment. But healing is also a lifetime journey. Healing is the ongoing process of becoming the healthiest, holiest, happiest version of yourself, and it's ultimately a work of God that takes a lifetime.
The resurrection of Jesus isn't just a historical event (though it is that). Jesus' resurrection is actually filled with promise for our present, everyday lives. We get to live daily in the very power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead - the same power that will someday raise all who believe in him to everlasting life.
Yes, it's possible to have peace with God, with self, and with others, when we understand, embrace, and put on display the truth, the unconditional love, and the grace of God.
The Bible says a lot about the life change we experience when we come to know Jesus. Is that real? Is it actually possible to overcome our sinful behavior and become a different person? Yes! It's not fast or easy, but it's possible!
The pathway toward purity and cleansing isn't perfection. It's confession! To live with a pure heart and clean mind means that we are hiding nothing, and therefore that we have nothing to hide. When we come clean with God, he cleanses us from the inside out!
We are control freaks! We try to control others, our circumstances, and our own will power. We're afraid that if we let go of control, we'll lose what we have. And that's true. The only way to have the healing God wants to give us is to let him have the controls of our lives.
Because of our brokenness and our sin, we wind up believing lies about who we are, who God is, and what life is all about. We need to embrace the biblical truth about God's identity and our identity as God intended it.
We're all broken, and we stay broken because we learn to fake it and play God. The first step on the pathway to healing is when we get real, admit our spiritual brokenness, and acknowledge our need for God to heal us.
We all experience brokenness and we all have hurts, habits, and hangups that result from our brokenness. While we can wish this weren’t the case and try our best to cover it all up, all we really need to do is come to the God who heals our brokenness by faith.
When you follow Jesus with absolute abandon and believe the very best about God, demonstrating your faith with radical obedience and massive action, God comes through in ways that make other people wonder what's so different about you.
We're severely limited by limiting beliefs. The fact is, success (the way God defines it) is a good thing, and therefore, it's a good thing to desire it with a white hot passion. God gives us dreams of a Promised Land and a framework of truth to guide us into possession of it. It all starts with letting God get into your head and have the throne.
Some decisions are so radical that there is simply no going back. If you want to enjoy God's massive blessing, you must take massive, no-going-back action. Just as Joshua (and Caleb) chose to break with the rest of the spies even if it meant standing alone, you must decide to be true, stand out, and to risk it all!
God wants to bless you MASSIVELY! In fact, he intends to bless you with far more life and far more leadership and influence than you're currently ready for. That's why you're in a season of preparation. Each season of life is preparation for the next, and all of life is preparation for eternity.
God has chosen prayer as the means by which we effect real, lasting change in the world around us. When we learn to pray boldly as the disciples in Acts did, we'll see miracles happen in, around, and through us as a result.
Effective Bible Study enables spiritual growth. Brian Wise shares some intentional practices worth implementing into your study time to get the most out of the Word of God in as little as fifteen minutes a day.
God has not remained silent. He has revealed himself in ways that are general, such as in nature and in our circumstances. He has also spoken in ways that are specific, especially through the Bible. And he speaks in ways that are personal, through the Holy Spirit.
It's possible to have a real, personal encounter with the Almighty Creator God. And when you do, it changes you from the inside out.
A daily quiet time with God is the ONE practice that has the power to positively change every area of your life.
God's judgment toward our sin leads us to ask what we should do to be right with him, and He lovingly answers, clearing the way for us to receive the Messiah and all of his wonderful gifts.
You may feel like the world is against you and that it would be easier to give up or to check out. But that's never true. You can remain faithful.
How do you choose joy even when you feel sad? It can seem impossible in the midst of depression, sadness, or other hardships. But no matter what, it's always possible to hang onto hope and fight against your feelings in order to CHOOSE JOY.
We take a look at how the early church gave joyfully even in the midst of their poverty and how we too can become generous givers even when we feel we might not have anything to contribute.
After reading Philippians 2:1-11, we take a look at why humility is a game changer in our relationships with others, ourselves, and God.
We often struggle with dissatisfaction and discontentment. Gratitude flows faithfully and consistently when it bubbles up from the deep well of a heart fully-satisfied in the identity and works of God.
It's so easy to give into our feelings and allow our emotions and surrounding circumstances to rule over our lives. But there's a better way to live!
Watch to learn more about what it means to choose hope when you feel hopeless.
The church isn't perfect, but we are under the promise of progress. Jesus is building his church and inviting us to build it with him. Jesus was clear. The defenses of hell are no match for a Spirit-empowered church. We get to take back territory for the kingdom of Jesus!
God's purpose for the church was never that we would be a comfortable place for Christians to hide from the world.
He commissioned us to keep on going, keep on loving, keep on doing the work and ministry of healing people and sharing his truth. Not only did he promise to go with us; he left us with a strategy by which to complete our mission.
Jesus' idea - the church - isn't perfect. Far from it. But is the church good? While there are plenty of flaws to see, Jesus' followers can never lose sight of who we are.
We, the church, are the local, visible, outposts of his kingdom, and we all get to be part of building the church into what Jesus intended it to be... Good.
Jesus had a bold and audacious idea once. He knew he'd be leaving earth for a while, so he left something behind to do his work while he is gone...he called it the church!
Jesus gave his life for the church and commissioned the church to go show the world his love and share the truth and grace of God for the healing of all nations.
Haman invested his life into the eradication of God's people, and he lost it all. Mordecai and Esther gave their lives to the salvation of God's people, and they reaped benefits and blessings beyond their imagination. How are you investing your life?
In the life and times of Esther, God manages to use one single woman inside the palace and one single man outside of the wall, in one single fateful moment, to bring down a corrupt leader and his plot to wipe out an entire nation of people. Will you be the ONE voice for God in your generation?
The world is severely broken. We've all sinned, and the effects of sin abound all around us. Governments are corrupt, millions are oppressed, equality seems out of reach, etc. What do you do when everything around you is broken? You grow your character, you let God break your heart, and you get involved.
It's not about you, just like the book of Esther isn't really about Esther. It's about God, the Creator and Savior of the world. He's the main character of this book of the Bible, and whether you realize it or not, he's the main character in your story too. Have you met him yet?
Understanding the Gospel and its four essential elements (God, Man, Jesus, and Response) leads to a confidence in stepping out of your comfort zone and sharing your faith with others.
There are different ways to worship God. Understanding what those are along with being able to identify what barriers keep us from freely worshiping will help lead us into a more authentic worship experience.
How do you get started and stay engaged in growing as a disciple? Look no further than the example of Jesus himself.
No matter who you are or what you have done, Jesus desires, more than anything else, to have a caring and loving relationship with you.
The battle won't last forever, and when it's over, God's desire is to present you with an award - not based on your performance, but on your persistence at holding true to the faith!
The secret to walking in the power of the Spirit is to live in submission to the authority of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
The Bible, as the Word of God, has the transformational power to change our lives and shape us perfectly into the likeness of Jesus Christ.
There is no name on earth more powerful than the name of Jesus. Claiming the authority of Jesus absolutely starts with your decision and declaration that Jesus Christ is absolutely LORD of your life.
Because your family is at the center of an intense spiritual conflict, it's vital that you be committed to the fight!
Because the war is a spiritual one, and our weapons are spiritual in nature, the real victory in our lives always comes through prayer.
When you rehearse and believe a lie on repeat, you're in what the Bible calls a "stronghold," and God gives you the power to break free.
Your life will be the fruit of your thoughts. Your mind is the real battlefield. Change your thinking, change your life!
Ephesians 6:11-17. God has given you every single resource you need for the battle. He equips you with his armor for protection and his weaponry for conquering. But it's up to you to wear it and use it daily.
There is an unseen spiritual world all around us that interfaces with the physical world in which we live. And while we can't see or sense it, it has just as much of an effect upon us as anything else. And this is where our biggest battles happen.
Because Jesus rose from the dead, conquering sin, death and all darkness, all who follow him get to walk daily in his resurrection power and authority. We get to walk in victory instead of defeat!
God wants to give us life and blessing, but we all choose to go our own way. So God gave his Son on our behalf so that we would be free and empowered to turn back to him. When we do, we are blessed richly under his grace.
The difference between a pipe dream and a dream come true is action! Twelve spies were given a simple assignment and ten of them rebelled and refused to move forward in faith.
In this fourth message in our God of the Movement series, we'll talk about the command to build a tabernacle and the significance of making our lives places of worship. When we learn to worship as we walk, we never lack God's power and presence.
In this third message of our God of the Movement series, we'll ponder the fact that Israel was continually guided by the cloud of God's glory and presence. Our personal goals and aspirations are always secondary to the necessity of following the Cloud.
In this second message of our God of the Movement series, we look at the moment God showed up and provided the miracle of the manna, which sustained the nation during their forty years. God shows up in our Red Sea moments, but he also provides every day for the journey he has called us into.
In this first message of the God of the Movement series, we take a look at the Red Sea moment and talk about how to trust God in moments when nothing but a miracle will save us.
It is possible to live a generous life with great freedom and joy when we apply biblical principles to our financial management.
We embrace God's process of transformation through growing as a believer in three areas of spiritual discipline: our walk with God, our walk with others, and our walk with the world.
When we follow Jesus, we enter into a continual state of change from what we once were into the likeness of Christ.
God comforts us by reminding us that he has walked through grief himself, that he is willing to walk through it with us, and that some day he will remove every reason for grieving for all of eternity.
When you give your problems to God, he will give you his comfort. When God gives you his comfort, you can give comfort to others.
When you let Jesus be king, live a day at a time, and lean on God's faithfulness, he will guard your heart and your mind with his peace.
We are in the middle of a real battle in the spiritual realm, but we are already equipped with the armor we need and the ultimate Victor on our side.
God has called you to and equipped you for a ministry of intercession (praying for others)!
God's desire is for you to walk clean and forgiven at all times so that you can experience his power and victory daily.
Prayer is how we affirm God as our Provider and trust him to be faithful to his promises.
God made you so he could enjoy you. And God made you so you could enjoy him. And God is glorified when you find your greatest joy in him.
Sometimes, even when you feel you've done all you can to improve the relationships in your life, some of them still break and don't get fixed. When that happens, you lean into the sufficiency and immensity of the love and grace of God.
The deepest level of any relationship is total vulnerability. At that level, we're confessing our sins to each other and speaking and praying healing words over each other.
At the core of how we relate to others is the issue of how we see ourselves. We have to move past pride and find humility. And in humility, we have to refuse to judge the hearts of others.
One of the hardest things for us to do, especially when we've been hurt repeatedly, is to show grace and mercy. But when we do, it changes everything and everyone around us.
The tongue is like a poison. And a fire. And if we can tame it and control our words by letting the Holy Spirit control our thoughts, our conversations will be far more fruitful.
Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to get angry. If we could do that, we could improve our communication skills in all of our relationships 1000%.
When you follow Jesus, you are living toward an uncommon destiny, but daily, you are choosing the pathway you'll walk on the way there. Does your current trajectory line up with your eternal destiny? Where we're headed for the hereafter should make a powerful difference for us while we're living in the here-and-now!
God wants you to have an uncommon strength, so the problems and the pressure you face in life are ultimately tools in his hands that he allows so that, after enduring the trial, you'll emerge stronger!
Once I KNOW, understand, and embrace the good news of the gospel, I can start living the uncommon life. What I know will make all the difference.
If you want to make a difference and change the world, choose to care about people and to be the best YOU that you can be so that you become the bridge people cross to knowing Jesus personally!
1 Kings 3:3; Proverbs 1:1-7 Solomon followed his father's (David's) footsteps in loving God BIG! God blessed Solomon by giving him the keys to a life of accomplishment--even of success. God's vision for success will turn this world upside down.
For David, it all fell apart in a single evening. From his example of failure, we find a path to victory. And when we've already blown it and lost it all... there is grace when we repent. You've never gone too far for God to find and forgive you!
We've been taught that worship isn't about us. It's about God. That's true. It's extremely, unquestionably true. It's just not the full story.
The fact is, worship might be "for God," but when we worship him, for him, it changes us. It grows us. It thrills us. It invites God's response to our praise. And when God responds, and our minds are focused correctly on God, we wind up blessed!
And out of that blessing... we worship!
When you become a child of the King, you can walk in the confidence that you are chosen, blessed, and anointed! You enjoy the rights and privileges of royalty, forever! So...live it up!
The big key to spiritual success - to becoming all that God wants you to become in this life in preparation for the next - is dying to yourself and fully embracing God's perfect will for your life.
Jesus is gathering to himself a family, a community of the broken and rejected - the least, the last, and the lost. And all who will enter are welcome!
If you really want 'success' as God defines it, you're going to go through a fire. You're going to walk through testing.
We all live life on a trajectory -- a pathway -- and it's either pointing upward or downward. We're moving toward God's purposes for life and eternity or away from his purposes.
If you want to be successful, you're going to have to fight for it, so be sure what you're fighting for is a worthy cause. Know your "WHY."
There are plenty of ways to define success, but most of our definitions are shaped by comparing our lives to the lives of those the culture deems successful. God has a different metric for success!
Experiencing a real breakthrough starts with a holy discontent and turns into action. But if we want to have breakthrough for the long haul, we're going to need to access our most valuable resource on earth - people.
It's not enough to be burdened about problems or to define our values for life. At some point, we have to decide to act on those values and do something about our burdens. In this message, we'll talk about the four big reasons why you need to seize the moment.
God is looking for some people who will get sick and tired of the brokenness they see in and around them, and who will rise up and do something about it.
Is real, abiding peace possible? In a season when tension often runs high, yes, it's possible to discover deep peace at the soul level.
Every time you say YES to Gods invitation to join him in what he is doing and allow him to transform you, you will come to know him more deeply and walk with him more closely.
God loves you where you are, but he loves you too much to leave you there, so he uses his truth to transform us into the likeness of Jesus Christ.
When you know God's will, you'll face a crisis of belief. Trust and obey? Or walk away. And when you trust and obey, you join God on an amazing adventure!
God speaks to us by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and people. Knowing and doing God's will requires that I spend my life learning to hear and recognize his voice.
God is always at work around you, and he is inviting you to join him and to do even greater works than the works of Jesus by carrying out the Great Commission.
God is alive and actively at work in and around you. And he has been pursuing you your entire life to invite you into a love relationship with himself. In this message, Pastor Brandon Cox talks about the three simple practices that lead to a simple and fulfilled life.
Humanity faces two big questions. Is God real? And can I know him? The answer to both is "yes," and in this first message in the series, The God Experience, Pastor Brandon talks about how to know that God has always been actively working all around you whether you've noticed him or not.
Wherever God's grace has been at work, generosity follows. In the final message in our 'Finding Your Groove' series, Pastor Nathan Brewer teaches about the habit of giving and generosity.
Reading our Bibles, praying, and gathering with other believers are all important habits for every Christian to form. But, spiritual formation and growth is still a work of God. In this message, you’ll discover the difference the Holy Spirit makes when we are willing to say, “I need help!”
If you're a Jesus follower, you need to have some other Jesus followers in your life for mutual encouragement and accountability. It's one of the habits of spiritual maturity - gathering with the church as a body for worship and scattering with small groups to do life together.
The first habit of a growing disciple of Jesus is talking to God in prayer and listening to what the Holy Spirit is saying through God's Word, the Bible.
We love the idea of "home." But no matter how hard we search, we can never quite find it. Nothing fulfills us the way we'd thought. Why? Because we weren't made for a world like this one. We were made for the next world, our real home, and God is preparing it for his entire forever family.
If you think God likes the nice, 'normal', religious people better and that his goal is for us all to be happy and comfortable, you've believed a cultural version of Jesus. Instead, he came on a rescue mission for the least, the last, and the lost, and he invites us to join that mission with him.
We are all prodigals, and we are all invited to return home to a relationship with the good, good Father. Listen in as Pastor Brandon teaches part two of 'God of the Prodigals.'
You have probably heard the parable of the prodigal son, but you might have missed one of the major points of it. We are all prodigals. We are all lost in our own way. And there is hope and grace for all of us.
Most people believe that the church is all about following rules and being against things. But what are we for? We're for liberty and spiritual freedom. Listen as Pastor Danny Kirk explores this.
The church is often known for being against things, but there are some big values that our church stands FOR, and we believe they were God's ideas to begin with. On week one, we talked about standing for equality. On week two, we talked about standing for justice. And in this third installment, Brian Wise teaches about why and how we stand for mercy.
Justice is when all things are fair for all people, when wrongs are made right and right is rewarded. But we live in a world of injustice, and God has a plan to fix it, using all of us.
We need to be thinking bigger than a single cultural moment and have a global, eternal perspective. God created us as equals. Because of sin, we've failed to live as equals in every civilization, every age, and every part of the world. But God has a plan...
In the final message of our marriage series, In the Ring, Pastor Brandon and his wife, Angie, share some pieces of their own story along and some biblical truth about how to stay married for life.
It is possible to walk in victory in the area of sexual purity in marriage, and God's Word gives us the plan for doing so.
You were meant to be more than roommates or business partners. You were meant to be lovers and best friends. To make that happen… get together (spend time face-to-face, talking), get away (and embrace the adventure of life), get personal (open up), get physical (make love!!), and get back (if all of this seems like it can never happen again).
Your spouse is not the “one.” Your spouse is the “two.” God is the One. So seek the One while you seek your two. Or seek the One with your two. What does that mean? It means living a life of worship, as an individual, and as a couple.
The whole idea of “marriage” is tough today. The odds are stacked against us. We follow a generation that really struggled to stay married. We live in a generation that has lost the definition of marriage. Is it possible to recovery God’s ideal for marriage? Of course! But, only as we discover and dive deeper into his grace – the kind of grace that helps us start over!
Brian Wise wraps up The Ghost series with a message about the three ways the Holy Spirit continues to work out God's purposes in our lives.
The kind of fear that keeps us from living life to the full never comes from God. What God gives, instead, is power and confidence, love, and self-control. The Holy Spirit wants to replace our fear with faith!
What does it really mean to “be spiritual?” Pastor Danny Kirk explores that question in this message about how to walk in step with the Holy Spirit.
God loves you, and when he saves you, he saves you completely and forever, fills you with his powerful presence, and leads you into growth and maturity. But you still sin. So what happens when we fail? In this message, we learn that God invites us into a posture of repentance and he faithfully forgives and heals.
The Holy Spirit is the great Difference Maker in history, in the church, and in our lives. And he’s also the great difference maker who wants to influence the world through his church. If you really want to make a difference, become part of a community of difference makers.
God, your Creator, has invited you into an intimate conversation with himself through prayer. You can call on him anytime, from anywhere, in any circumstance. And when the Holy Spirit gets involved, you can discover a whole new way to pray.
Change is hard. And it’s hard because, usually, it starts from the outside in. We experience changes in employment, health, finances, family, and friendships and then our hearts must adapt quickly to keep up with those external changes. But what if our Creator himself were willing to move into our hearts and change us from the inside out? We’d be prepared for anything the world brought our way.
God Himself invites us to be under his direct influence, for his glory and for our good, through the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The Bible calls this direct influence being “filled with the Spirit,” and in this message, we explore a passage of the Bible that spells out how to live under God’s influence continually.
We live in a world plagued by frustration and anxiety. Why? Because we’re trying to be “good enough” for other people, and even for God, but without any real power. Jesus died and rose again to give us an entirely new purpose for living.
In the Old Testament, there were three kinds of leaders who were anointed for their specialized areas of service – the prophet, the priest, and the king. The New Testament demonstrates how Jesus fulfilled all three offices, including being our High Priest who grants us access to God’s presence and prays on our behalf before the Father.
Jesus is a Prophet, Priest, and King, as well as a Friend and sacrificial Lamb. In this first message in our Simply Jesus series, Pastor Brandon Cox talks about Jesus as a Prophet with a message for your life that is both good and honest.
God loves us, which enables us to love others. It's possible to show others what God's love is all about through our actions and attitudes.
Yes, God loves you. But what does that mean? Most people think God might love them but that he's just mostly disappointed with them. But that's not the story of the Bible. The Bible is the story of God pursuing a relationship with you because he really does love you.
Is it possible to discover and recognize real, true love in a world full of counterfeits? Absolutely! God has made his love known through his Son, Jesus. And he describes his love in his Word, the Bible.
We so often fall into the trap of believing that if we can just be liked enough, it will finally feel like love. But God wants us to know and receive his love in a way that transcends human popularity. And he demonstrates his love through the cross.
Once we find freedom from guilt and condemnation through Jesus, freedom from the bondage of sin, and freedom from legalism and empty religion, it's time to really live life the way God intended - fruitfully!
If religion is merely a keeping of arbitrary rules and strange rituals in order to earn the favor of God, it's useless and unhelpful. There's a better way. Jesus came so that we would be able to have, not a religion called Christianity, but a personal relationship with God.
We're all caught. We've all sinned. And Jesus said, "whoever sins is the slave of sin." But because of the amazing grace of God, shown through his Son, we can be freed from sin's penalty, power, and someday, its presence.
We're caught. We're guilty of sin. In fact, we're enslaved by it. That's the reason Jesus came - to give his life for ours, to set us free forever, and to remove the condemnation we deserve for our rebellion. The very first step to living in spiritual freedom is placing our trust in Jesus alone.