Aug 29, 2021
Lights in the Darkness: “Courage”
Scripture:  Daniel 3
 
Nebuchadnezzar seeks to force Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to worship an idol at certain, select times, while they can worship however they wish at others. But for God's people, that is the one thing that we cannot do, and it is the one area where we cannot compromise. In a tremendous act of courage and integrity and faithfulness, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refuse, even though they know that it will lead to their deaths, and God delivers them, again showing that He alone is the God of all creation.
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  • Aug 29, 2021Lights in the Darkness: “Courage”
    Aug 29, 2021
    Lights in the Darkness: “Courage”
    Scripture:  Daniel 3
     
    Nebuchadnezzar seeks to force Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to worship an idol at certain, select times, while they can worship however they wish at others. But for God's people, that is the one thing that we cannot do, and it is the one area where we cannot compromise. In a tremendous act of courage and integrity and faithfulness, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refuse, even though they know that it will lead to their deaths, and God delivers them, again showing that He alone is the God of all creation.
  • Aug 22, 2021Lights in the Darkness: “The Rejected Stone”
    Aug 22, 2021
    Lights in the Darkness: “The Rejected Stone”
    Scripture:  Daniel 2:29-49, Matthew 21:42
     
    Daniel explains the king's vision, which is a foretelling of four mighty, powerful human kingdoms that will rise and rule over the world. But as powerful as they all seem, they are all overcome by a single stone that turns into a kingdom that lasts forever. That stone is Jesus, whose kingdom, while oftentimes appearing small and insignificant, will last forever. When there are things in our world and in our life that seem overwhelming and frightening, we are called to trust in Jesus, and trust that he is bigger and mightier than anything in the world.
  • Aug 15, 2021Lights in the Darkness: “Incomparable”
    Aug 15, 2021
    Lights in the Darkness: “Incomparable”
    Scripture:  Daniel 2
     
    The story of Daniel chapter 2 is about how all of the things of the world that people look to for guidance and power and meaning ultimately fail us completely. But God is incomparable to all of those things. God alone gives us what we need, and it is in God alone that we can place our trust. While we like to think we don't trust in idols nowadays, we still have things that we place our trust in, and Daniel 2 is a call to trust and rely on God alone.
  • Aug 8, 2021Lights in the Darkness: Guardrails
    Aug 8, 2021
    Lights in the Darkness: Guardrails
    Scripture:  Daniel 1:8-20
     
    When faced with the decision about how much of his identity he was going to allow the Bablylonians to transform, Daniel decides to draw a line in the sand; he creates a guardrail around the food that he was going to eat. He did this out of his faithfulness to God, who responded by giving him the grace he needed to thrive in a Babylon world. When we create guardrails in our lives to support us in our living faithfully for God, God will honor our decisions as well.
     
  • Aug 1, 2021Lights in the Darkness: It’s a Babylon World
    Aug 1, 2021
    Lights in the Darkness: It’s a Babylon World
    Scripture:  Daniel 1:1-6
     
    The book of Daniel tells the story of how Daniel and his three friends faithfully live in a culture that was constantly seeking to strip away their identity and replace it with one that is ungodly. In this series we'll learn principles for how to live faithfully in a world we are called to love and serve while also resisting its pull to be conformed in its image.
  • Jul 25, 2021The Cross and the Jukebox: “The Man Comes Around”
    Jul 25, 2021
    The Cross and the Jukebox: “The Man Comes Around”
    Song:  "The Man Comes Around" - by Johnny Cash
    Link:  https://youtu.be/jiMXK9eDrMY
     
    One of Cash's last songs, and according to him, one of the most important. The song uses several images from the Book of Revelation to call his listeners to heed the warning of the coming judgment and to choose the way of love and peace found in Jesus. The song also points to a future that has no more evil, only peace and the love of God.
  • Jul 18, 2021The Cross and the Jukebox: “Turn, Turn, Turn”
    Jul 18, 2021
    The Cross and the Jukebox: “Turn, Turn, Turn”
    Song:  "Turn, Turn, Turn" - performed by The Byrds
    Link:  https://youtu.be/CHuAmsEGdGU
    Scripture Passage:  Ecclesiastes 3:1-13
     
    This classic song is an almost exact quote of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, which gives wisdom for dealing with life's many frustrations and disappointments. It reminds us that God has given us many seasons of life, so we need not miss the blessings of our current season by longing for a season long past. Ecclesiastes is a call for contentment as we live in a rapidly changing world.
  • Jul 11, 2021The Cross and the Jukebox: “What Love Really Means”
    Jul 11, 2021
    The Cross and the Jukebox: “What Love Really Means”
    Song:  "What Love Really Means " - by J.J. Heller
    Link:  https://youtu.be/PgGUKWiw7Wk
    Scripture Passages:  Luke 6:32-35, 1 John 4:11, Romans 5:8, Mark 12:31
     
    "What Love Really Means" delves into the meaning of agape love, which Jesus calls us to continually. Christian faith involves trusting that God overflows with love for His world, and that our purpose is to receive that love and then give it back out to others, especially those who are rejected and forgotten by the world.
  • Jul 4, 2021The Cross and the Jukebox: “Roll Away Your Stone”
    Jul 4, 2021
    The Cross and the Jukebox: “Roll Away Your Stone”
    Song:  "Roll Away Your Stone" - by Mumford & Sons
    Scripture Passages:  1 Corinthians 13:12b, Romans 7:15-20, Mark 2:13-17; Luke 15:11-24
     
    “Roll Away Your Stone” uses images of Easter morning and of the prodigal son to talk about the experience of trying to restore relationships broken by sin, and in so doing gives a picture of grace and of what grace looks like in our relationships with one another.
     
  • Jun 27, 2021The Cross and the Jukebox: “American Pie”
    Jun 27, 2021
    The Cross and the Jukebox: “American Pie”
    Song:  "American Pie" - by Don McLean
    Link:  https://youtu.be/iX_TFkut1PM
    special guest:  Michael Bird
     
    “American Pie” is a lament for the decline of a culture, both musically and in general. The gospel speaks to our anxiety about decay and decline by giving us the hope of renewal and resurrection when Christ returns in glory.