Life Together

We often have areas of our life that we declare as "off-limits" to changing - responding with pride and stubbornness instead of humility and submission.  Allowing God's Word to speak into the those attitudes and actions feels inconvenient.  Yet, when we give God permission to challenge us in every area, we move toward the full life and freedom our Heavenly Father desires for us. // Pastor Tom

The source of a complaint is when what's actual is less than what's expected.  Frustration festers when complaints go unresolved.  We have likely expended far too much energy pouring out complaints to those who have insufficient authority to bring a resolution.  Psalm 142 gives an example of how to effectively bring our complaints to our Heavenly Father - taking our complaints to a confidence that an answer is on the way.  // Pastor Tom Murray

God's undeserved favor, love, kindness, help, and spiritual empowerment is called grace.  Yet, crowds were divided when the leaders of the early church spoke about grace.  There are many today who are inclined to reject God's grace.  When we understand what our Heavenly Father is offering, we realize that grace is more than just needed - it is virtue worth pursuing everyday.

Since the beginning of the movement we now call Christianity, outsiders have been asking the question, "what should we do about the Christians?"  If you are a Christ follower, you probably have someone in your life who is skeptical, critical or possibly even hostile toward your faith.  The leaders of the early church give us a great example for responding to those who wish Christianity and Christians would just go away. //Pastor Tom Murray

Stressed.  Overwhelmed.  Anxious.  Burnt-Out.  There's a good chance that in areas of your life, you would use one or more these words to describe what you're going through right now.  We face the choice of pressing forward or giving up.  We face the choice of pushing back from or pressing into our relationship with our Heavenly Father.  Through an event in David's life, join the conversation about making decisions today that you will want to tell others about five years from now. // Pastor Tom Murray

By default, we are drawn to the material over the spiritual - the perishable over the eternal.  Jesus challenged the motives of the people who were following Him.  He is challenging us today.  Jesus compels us to lift our eyes off the temporary and set our hearts on what is most important.  // Pastor Tom Murray

God sees you not just as you are today, but as He has created you to be.  Jesus prepared Peter, Andrew, James and John for the famous, and often misunderstood moment when He called the fishermen to drop their nets.  // Pastor Tom Murray

Some live with steadiness.  They have peace and joy, even in the midst of challenges and trials.  For others, life goes into a tailspin of anxiety and worry when small struggles arise.  Psalm 92 gives a powerful illustration of building a rooted life - a life that endures and prospers through every season.  // Pastor Tom Murray

God goes to great lengths to warn about and protect against enemies that threaten to separate you from Him and other people.  Jesus said that one of the greatest threats you face is not an outside force.  Rather, it is what comes from within that has the potential to ruin you. // Pastor Tom Murray

Jesus promised a path from eternal separation from God, toward relationship with our Heavenly Father, with an immediate peace available through the Holy Spirit.  Yet, Jesus is not the only person in history to make spiritual claims, receive a hero's welcome as He entered a large city, or even to give His life for a cause.  Join the conversation about the confirmation that sets Jesus apart from the rest.

For most of us, naming the community of our physical location is easy.  We would not need to pause for even a moment if someone asked, "where do you live?"  The question to wrestle with is, where do you live spiritually?  Living life God's way makes a tangible difference in the areas of our life that matter most - our community, our family, and our work.  As you may have experienced, there are also real consequences for a lifestyle that is at odds with God.  // Deuteronomy 28 // Pastor Tom Murray

Suppressing sin in exhausting.  Yet, too often, you settle for attempts to hold captive or hide destructive appetites, habits and behaviors.  You tell yourself you have it under control, only for a resurfacing in a moment of weakness or frustration.  In this episode, hear what happened when Jesus entered a community that worked diligently to suppress a move of spiritual darkness - only to find that their best efforts were ineffective.  Jesus brought a better plan.  His answer is freedom through the eradication of evil.  This freedom is available to you as well.

We value loyalty.  This is true in our marriages, extended families, friendships, businesses, and churches.  Our Heavenly Father was loyal to us before we were loyal to Him.  He will not abandon us.  The question we wrestle with, "will we abandon Him?"  Strive toward a life where nothing can separate you from God.

Throughout the Bible, we see examples of God using food to teach and reinforce spiritual truths.  The Daniel Fast is a 21-day partial fast for the purpose of strengthening our relationship with our Heavenly Father and identifying unchecked sin in our lives.

Sexual desires, temptations, and relationships are deeply personal.  In Leviticus, God warned His people that they would be surrounded by a culture that would affirm, endorse and encourage behaviors that are outside of His plan for sexuality.  Experience the freedom that begins with allowing your Heavenly Father to speak into this area of your life, and the restoration offered through Jesus Christ.

We have a measure of time, talent, and treasure.  God places a value on the order in which we release those resources.  He rarely asks for the most of what we have - but, our Heavenly Father does ask for the first.  Experience the joy linked to building your daily life around your relationship with Christ that flows from placing Him first.

Jesus is woven throughout all of Scripture.  The Bible reveals a unified message about God desiring relationship with His people centered on the hope that comes through the death and resurrection of Christ.

That's it.  I'm out.  Someone once asked Jesus when they could stop forgiving another person.  How many times must I forgive before I end the relationship?  You may have wondered this before.  Others are bound to disappoint us and fail to meet our expectations.  They owe us a physical or emotional debt because they wronged us - accidentally or intentionally.  Jesus gave us a challenge to live out today so that we can experience better relationships and freedom from holding that debt.

This week's podcast includes reflections on the life of a faithful church member, testimony of a man who was revived on a volleyball court, and a teaching on Psalm 18:1-2.

Watching a marathon is not the same as running a marathon.  Reading about rock climbing is not the same as actually rock climbing.  Taking a campus tour is not the same as earning a college degree.  There are many experiences that are far more meaningful when we voluntarily put ourselves in the risk and challenge - instead of just observing from the sidelines.  Jesus led His closest followers into a storm so they could experience an amazement that could not be discovered from standing on the shore.