Awaken Community

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul insists that adding anything to the gospel of Christ crucified and resurrected changes the very nature of the good news and then, Christ died for nothing. As we celebrate the life of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Micah reminds us that the work of justice related to race is not an addition to the gospel but is connected to the heart of the gospel.

We were privileged to have guest speaker Scott Austin with us this week. He spoke on the first five verses of Galatians, encouraging us to not skip over the preamble as we are often tempted to do. Even in the seeming niceties of Paul's letter to the Galatians there are important points to note.

Join in as Micah introduces the Galatians series as we step into the new year. 

This week Pastor Micah continues our advent series exploring the difficult experience of Joseph in the midst of the Christmas story.

Pastor Micah continues our Advent series with an exploration of Matthew’s visit from the Magi.  It seems that like Herod, the Magi and the teachers of the law, we’re all a mix of light and darkness. The song is always playing and the invitation is always happening, the question is whether we can hear it. 

Micah continues into Week 2 of the Advent 2019 series and looking at the Hidden: Zechariah in scripture.

Micah kicks off the Advent 2019 series entitled "Hidden - What Lies Beneath the Christmas Story" with the Shepherds of Luke 2.  What does Jacob, David, Bethlehem and Migdal Eder have to do with the Christmas story and just who were these shepherds? 

Pastor Micah wraps up the Awaken Values/DNA series teaching about justice. He used examples of injustices from current day alongside what scripture says about justice from the very beginning in Genesis through Amos and the new testament to educate, illustrate and stir in our church what his hopes are for us as we step into this value.  

Continuing our conversation about the DNA of Awaken, Worship Arts Director, Melody Olson, share about true beauty. She illustrates the difference between how culture defines beauty and how scripture invites us to see beauty. 

We enjoyed a word from Pastor Dave Johnson, formerly of Church of the Open Door, this Sunday. He spoke about what it means to be awakened - what it means to wake up to who you are, whose you are, and why you're here.

Continuing our conversation about the DNA of Awaken, Pastor Micah delves into the practice of hospitality. When we provide hospitality, we let others know we've been thinking of and planning for them. And this invitation is open to all of us - we're all able and responsible to be involved in our own way.

Week 3 of our DNA/Values series - Pastor Micah discusses the value of Authenticity by studying the story of Hannah in 1 Samuel.  As the first woman in scripture to take her struggle with infertility to God, we learn a lot from Hannah about what it means to be authentic in our lives and spiritual journeys.

Carrying on the series started last week, Pastor Micah introduces our next value here at Awaken: Holistic. In his message, he answers these three questions: What is holism? Why is it important? And what are the implications of a holistic approach to faith and spirituality?

This week, Pastor Micah launched a new series refining the values we hold here at Awaken. First and foremost, we value Jesus. In his message, Micah answers the question "If Awaken truly values Jesus, what would that look like?"

Guest speaker Stefan Van Voorst brought a wealth of his everyday experiences to illustrate the importance of connection. What does it look like in the context of culture today? And how does viewing it through the lens of our faith change or emphasize that? The slides Stefan used can be viewed here: PDF or PowerPoint

In the second and final part of the Reconciled series, Pastor Micah continues the conversation about what it looks like to be a reconciling church. Our goal as the Church should be to continue the reconciling work of Jesus on the cross - "For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (Colossians 1:19-20).

Guest speaker David Bailey, founder of Arrabon and Urban Doxology, challenged and encouraged us to be faithful fanatics of Jesus, leading us to become the reconciling Church.

It's Fall Kickoff at Awaken! Pastor Micah discusses what it means to fully be The Church and what it can look like when we bring our whole selves. Whether it's a season of breathing in, acknowledging and receiving what you need; or breathing out, giving whatever you might have to give - there's a place for us all to add our voice.

We had the privilege of hearing from Awaken's Associate Pastor Jenna Daniels on Matthew 8:18-22 "The Cost of Following Jesus". In her teaching, Pastor Jenna dives into the subtext of many evangelical upbringings where the belief was that if you were faithful in your relationship with God, you would have all you desire. Do we believe God will give us the desires of our hearts or was it turned in to "God will give you the American Dream"?