Gvf // Grace Valley Fellowship

Both biologically and Biblically, we have reason to believe that humans need to suffer. Not horrifically, but some. Stress, hardship, trials. These are necessary for your growth and development. If you want to fully become who you are created to be, you have to suffer, and you shouldn't do this alone. You need to suffer with other people. In this message, we'll explore how suffering with others is celebrated(?!) by the Biblical authors as a sure way to become more like Jesus and find the life that is truly life.

3 years. When someone shows up at our church, that's how long we expect them to stay before a new job, a new house, or some life transition moves them away. 219 hours. According to a 2019 study from the University of Kansas, that's about how long it takes to develop a close friendship. Our vision to be a church where life transformation is normal seems to keep bumping into these two numbers. Deep life transformation requires deep relationships, and deep relationships requires time... which is the one thing we never seem to have. So what does this mean for us?

Neuroscientists, Moses, and the Apostle Paul agree: Other people are the problem... and the solution. Both. If you let other people see you for who you really are, they might hurt you. (They probably will.) But it's also true that other people are the solution. The only way to undo what has been done to you is with the help of other people. They must see you for who you really are. Hmm. What do you do with that? And what does Jesus have to do with that? That's what we'll explore in this message.

“New Year’s Resolutions,” you say? Hmmm, don’t they always seem to run out of gas before we hit February? No real changes. How about a different approach? This Sunday we’re going to let Jesus work us over a bit, just like he did Peter in Luke 5:1-11. Peter’s life was busy, calibrated…and predictable. Jesus had something else in mind for Peter and his future. Jesus’ words and actions in this interchange/encounter with Peter set a whole new course and dimension of life for him. It all started with a question, “Can I get into your boat?” He has that same question for us as well as we stand at the dawn of a new year. Read the passage to discover what else Jesus said and did so that Peter and we can see what a New and transformative Year and Life should look like.

If you are looking for a guide to help you find God in a world where he seems oddly absent, you can hardly do better than Matthew. This tax collector-turned-disciple helps us see how God shows up in a world of mass killings, refugees, & crazy leaders; a world like ours. He helps us see how God is still at work in our lives today.

In Genesis 22, God politely asks Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son, and Abraham does it. This is a story that has been called absurd, abusive, and immoral... and yet, it remains a story that we cannot shake off or just ignore. There's a reason for this: We need it. We cannot come to peace with God, ourselves, or the journey of faith without this story. This is the story of a God who provides what we cannot provide and sees what we cannot see. The question is: Can we follow a God that we cannot understand?

In the spring of 2018, Leah's life looked perfect. She had written books, trained 1000s of leaders, and was married to a "celebrity" among Christians of SE Asia. But then, that August, his secret sin was discovered, and Leah's world crumbled. Since that time Leah has been on a journey of discovery and grief; brokenness and healing; pain and beauty. This Sunday, we are going to pause to listen to the story that God is writing in Leah's life in the hopes that we might begin to better hear His Story that He's working out in our lives as well.Download this exercise (https://tinyurl.com/sermonexercisedec3) to help you reflect on YOUR story after hearing Leah's.

In Genesis 20 and 21, we come to what should be the climax of Abraham’s story. The long-awaited promise of a son is going to be fulfilled! And yet, at the very moment when Sarah & Abraham receive the miracle they’ve waited for their whole lives, they both become gripped with fear. A terrible fear. The kind of fear that makes you selfish, defensive, and sinful. The kind of fear that threatens to ruin everything and undo the very  thing that God has promised to do… In this place of fear, the question emerges: Can my fear undo the very promises of God?

In Genesis 19, the story of how God judges Sodom and saves Lot... and we aren't sure which is more shocking. The only thing more shocking than God's judgement is His mercy. At least, the destruction of Sodom was just and justified. But, why would God save Lot? He does not appear to be a particularly upstanding person. His moral judgement is suspect. His offer to let his daughters be raped… is unthinkably evil. And we're not even sure that he wants to be saved. In the end, the angels have to drag him out of Sodom… and then, along the way, he’s trying to negotiate so he can keep a little bit of his Sodom lifestyle. What kind of God saves a man like Lot?Please note: This sermon contains adult themes that are not suitable for children and might be triggering to victims of sexual violence.

At first glance, Genesis 18 appears to be a random story about three men who unexpectedly show up at Abraham's tent for a late lunch so that they can tell Sarah something. But then, about half way into the chapter, we pick up that these aren't just men... and this isn't just a meal. This is a picture of what it means to be a "friend of God." If we want to know what “friendship with God” looks like, this might be a good place to start.

In Genesis 17, God stops everything. The storyline comes to a screeching halt. God wants to have a DTR (define the relationship) talk with Abraham. This chapter is a foundational text. It gives us language for what it means to have a personal relationship with God. As such, it will not only shape & define Abraham's relationship with God, it will give shape and definition to your relationship with God.

What do you do when you are gripped by fear and powerless to change things? When we pick up the story in Genesis 16, Abram and Sarai are beyond desperate. They have been waiting more than a decade for God to fulfill His promise, so Sarai decides that God needs her help. She tells Abram to sleep with her servant, Hagar, and what follows is a tragedy: wounded people wounding people. This too is part of the journey of faith. But, thankfully, there is a God who knows you by name, seeks you out, and finds you when you are running away. He is "the God who sees me."

How do you know that you can trust God when you cannot comprehend what He is doing? In Genesis 15, we find Abram, the father of faith, afraid and full of doubt. He's trying to make sense of God's promises, but they still do not make sense. Here, in this place of darkness and doubt, God says to Abram, "Look up at the night sky and count the stars." And Abram believed God. In this message, we'll explore how this profoundly simple story shows us what it means to have full faith in God even if we cannot fully understand Him.

Today, we are excited to welcome a missionary leader from India who serves on the Lead Team of Concentric, an alliance of ministries across the globe who do disciple making movements according to the Jesus lifestyle.

Life is full of decisions. Every choice I make, sometimes unconsciously and often without examination, evidences the set of priorities that have taken root in my heart.  What are God’s priorities and how can I tap into them? This week we will be led into the Scriptures and into the lives of two Indian friends who are Christians living God’s mission in their own country as we rediscover God’s loving heart for people far from Him, why that matters, and what is being done to bring people who are separated from God His offer of reconciliation.

Our desires can blind us. The promises of wealth, success, and pleasure can stop us from seeing the promises of God. In Genesis chapters 13-14, Lot and Abram show us two very different ways of "seeing." Lot looks at what he thinks is paradise and moves his family straight into hell. Abram surrenders his desires to God and sees the promise of life with God. In this message, we'll explore why some things can only be seen on the other side of surrender.

The story of Abraham & Sarah is not just some Middle Bronze Age story about a nomadic patriarchal, tribal couple.  This is the story of the father of faith, of the journey of faith, of the family of God.  And, if you have heard the promise of God, are on the journey of faith, consider yourself a child of God… this isn’t just Abraham's story. It’s yours. This is our family history. In this message, we'll meet Abraham & begin to see how his heroic faith (& heroically bad sin) shapes our present and guides our future.

If we are not careful, we can become so busy that Jesus Himself could literally show up at your house, plop down on your couch, and you would totally miss Him. It would be just another busy, stressful, anxious, frustrating day. That's the story of Martha in Luke 10, and that's the story that many of us are living. In this message, we will introduce the practice of the Presence of God, exploring how believers down through the ages have cultivated a life-changing awareness of God's presence in their daily lives.- Pray As You Go App. https://pray-as-you-go.org/- One Minute Pause App. https://www.pauseapp.com/

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us: "Do not worry." He says it four times in a row. If you've ever struggled with anxiety, this might sound tone deaf or harsh. But Jesus doesn't leave it there. He gives us a resource for addressing our anxiety: the Book of Creation. He seems to think that if we could learn to read creation the way one reads a book, our anxieties would (with time and practice and growth) fade away. In this final message on the Book of Creation, we'll explore how God uses creation - birds and flowers - to speak to our anxiety and cultivate in us a vision of life that grows within us a deep peace with God, ourselves, and all things.WARNING: In this message, anxiety and panic attacks will be mentioned. For some, this can be a trigger. This sermon is not intended to be medical advice. If you suffer from severe or chronic anxiety, you should seek help from a mental health professional. If you need help finding help, email care@newstorychurch.life.

The modern world has blinded us to the goodness of creation, and it's destroying us. In this message, we'll explore how our experience of the goodness of God in all things - what we call gratitude - profoundly shapes us, literally reshaping our brains and spiritually reshaping our souls.