The Passive Christian, 'It's not a big deal, I can handle it.'

Have you ever said to yourself, ‘I can handle it’?  Maybe you were with your friends, and they were doing something you know you shouldn’t be doing, but you said to yourself, ‘What’s the big deal?’ Maybe the discussion was becoming gossipy, judgmental, or critical, and you just went with it.  Maybe you are scrolling, and you begin to see things on your social media feed you know you shouldn't be looking at, and you think to yourself, ‘It’s not that serious’.  Is there anyt

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Why Is Following Jesus Hard Sometimes?

The journey from Egypt to the Promised Land was about getting the Children of Israel from slavery to freedom.  But something bigger was going on.  God was trying to spiritually transform them.  How?  God placed them in the desert to experience hard moments.  He wanted them to realize that with every challenge, they could trust and relax in Him and that He would care for them.  

Do you remember Sam’s talk last week?  Sam shared that the challenges they faced became harder an

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Why Christianity Is Both Harder and Easier

The last time I spoke with you was in Numbers 12 and I told you I really enjoy that story, well today we are picking up where Ken left off in Numbers 14 and to be totally honest Numbers 13 and 14 have a very different vibe, it’s sad, it’s intense, and frankly, there is some wording we will read today that has always caused me some tension.  So, I’m going to warn you on the front end: if you don’t like to think that your actions or choices matter, or that there are ramifica

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Can You Be Passive and Be A Christian?

We have received such great feedback from this series.  So many of us in this spiritual family are walking through very difficult things.   And this series has really hit home.   Today we continue the story.  If you were with us last week, you heard about the rebellion.  Sam told the story about Moses’ brother and sister starting a rebellion.  It was pretty intense because Scripture said, ‘God heard them.’  What was the cause of the rebellion?  Comparison.   Sam explained

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The Comparison Trap and Family Drama

Welcome back to our summer series on the exodus journey of the Children of Israel that we are calling “Who Would Do That?” Now, if you have been tracking, we made a little transition in the series last week when Ken took us into the book of Numbers. Did that seem odd that we are studying the exodus journey, but left the book of Exodus and went to Numbers?  Well, that is because the book of Numbers gives us a lot of detail about the wilderness journey.   Last week, Ken took

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What Does Complaining Reveal about me?

Today is going to be so much fun.  I’m going to start off with a scripture.  And we are going to see if scripture has anything to do with real life.  Ready?  Brace yourself.

Philippians 2:14 Whatever you are doing, do not complain. And do not argue. 

Isn’t that fun?  Can you feel the fun we are going to have today?   Let’s keep reading.

Philippians 2:14 Whatever you are doing, do not complain. And do not argue. 15 Then you will not be guilty of anything that is wrong. You wil

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The Golden Calf - Idle Can Lead To Idols

Welcome back to our summer study of the Exodus journey.  This has been a lot of fun so far, not just learning about what they walked through but seeing just how much we can relate to what they are walking through.  It’s easy to read this incredible story and think, “Who would do that?”  Who would experience God in miraculous ways, watch God protect, provide, and just do one incredible thing after another, and still struggle to trust God and love Him most?   Well, we would.

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I Want to Quit on God

I want to give you context for our story today.  Moses confronted Pharaoh.  And because Pharaoh was so hard-hearted, he simply would not submit to God.  So, God sends the plagues.  They are epic, dramatic, and undeniably a move of God.  Sadly, Pharaoh’s son dies in the last plague.   Pharaoh’s will is finally broken, and he frees the slaves.  By the way, I must point out, isn’t it interesting that, like Pharaoh, we normally fight God until we experience pain or are broken?

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When Reality Falls Drastically Short of Our Expectations, Hopes, and Dreams

Have you ever had a moment where life just didn’t match what you expected it to be?  It can be more than a little disappointing, can’t it?  Maybe a moment where you have just been pushing through life, and you stop, and look around and think, “Really…is this it? This isn’t how it was supposed to go.” At some level, we all carry expectations about how things are supposed to work out for us. We may not even realize we have them; we may never have spoken them out loud, and ty

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Trapped, Vulnerable, & Afraid -Then The Sea Parts

Today, we move further into the Exodus story. Moses has said yes. God has sent the plagues. Egypt has been broken. Pharaoh has finally released the people of Israel. After 430 years of slavery, they are free. Can you imagine that moment? Families gathering what they could carry. Parents telling their children, “God heard us. God has not forgotten us.” People celebrating. Singing. Laughing. Dreaming about a future they had never been free enough to imagine. And as they begi

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Moses Obeyed God. His reward was failure.

The story we are in this summer is a story about God.  God wanted to rescue the Children of Israel out of slavery and lead them to the promised land.   The problem was, they didn’t trust God.   Even after experiencing God, they struggled to trust God.  When you read this story, it makes you wonder, who would do that?  Who would experience God saving them and then not trust God?  The answer is, we would, we do.  Their story in scripture is a story about us.

The Bible gives u

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It's Not Who I Am. It's Who God is!

This summer, we are studying the Exodus journey of the children of Israel. We are calling this series “Who would do that?” because that is the question that will be on your mind as you watch these people experience God in miraculous ways, while they doubt, complain, and just fight God every step of the way, often just wanting to go back to slavery, rather than follow God to the Promised Land.  Their journey went from a two-week stroll to a forty-year beatdown because they

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Your Burning Bush Moment

This summer, we are walking through the story of God delivering the Jewish people from slavery and leading them into the promised land.  What makes this story incredible is that what should have taken around two weeks became a 40-year, two-generation story that covers five books of the Bible.  Why?   They didn’t trust God.  And it makes you wonder, ‘Who would do that?’  After experiencing what God did through the plagues of Egypt, after God walked them on dry ground throug

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Don't Be Naive and Self-Confident

This summer, we are walking through the story of God delivering the Jewish people from slavery and leading them into the promised land.  What makes this story incredible is that what should have taken around two weeks became a 40-year, two-generation story that covers five books of the Bible.  Why?   They didn’t trust God.  And it makes you wonder, ‘Who would do that?’  After experiencing what God did through the plagues of Egypt, after God walked them on dry ground throug

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It's All About What You Love Most

I’m going to start today with a quote that I’ve shared with you before…it’s one of my favorite quotes because it literally explains the essence of our lives, how to live as God desires, and also why we humans struggle internally, and I think it’s a great way to start our new summer conversation. 

“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.” St Augustine

Life can be so much easier than we make it.  Christianity can seem so compl

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