Trinity Ministries Podcast

(Slide Document Attached)Bob Brenneman serves Northcenteral University in the College of Mission's Middle East Specialist and was one of the first Assemblies of God World Missions representatives to the Kurdish people of the Middle East, Europe, and North America. From 1981 to 1996, Bob served as a missionary to the Middle East, including four years living among the Kurds in Northern Iraq. Bob makes regular visits to mosques, restaurants and Muslim cultural events. He has a B.A. from Trinity Bible College, an M.A. from the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in education at the University of Minnesota.The second edition of his book “As Strong as the Mountains: A Kurdish Cultural Journey” has just been released. He recently visited refugee camps in Northern Iraq and Turkey and has been focused on helping people better understand the conflict with ISIS and the refugee crisis, the largest since World War II.

As recent world events seem to be centered around terror in the name of religion, what should our attitude be toward those of religions that do not hold that Jesus is the Savior? How can we be lights to them without offending or creating yet another reason for them to not love Jesus?Is. 43:1-10Acts 4:8-12John 14:1-7

Christian persecution is nothing new. Hundreds of the faithful are ridiculed, discriminated against and even killed on a daily basis. In America, we enjoy the protections of religious liberty but in most other places, they are not. How can we help? What do we do? What perspective should we have when it comes to Christian Persecution?2 Cor. 4:5-12Matt. 5:11-16

Life is the basic gift from God — not only physical life but especially spiritual life. While God’s word seems to be clear on the matter of when life begins, Christians and non-Christians alike hold differing views on the topic. What are the basic issues when it comes to abortion and how are we to respond? Psalm 139:7-162 Timothy 4:1-5Matthew 19:13-15

Our series begins with an understanding that all of us have ‘soapboxes’. Soapboxes -- metaphorically -- are platforms on which we stand to make a point. But what if God were calling us to make a difference? Romans 3:10-26John 8:1-11

Who is your lighthouse in 2016?

While Christmas is a wonderful time of family, friends and faith, often our perfect ‘snow-globe’ idea is shattered by the realities of life. How does the birth of Jesus make it all mean something. LUKE 2

God works in our waiting to make his name known. By trusting in God’s timing and focusing our life’s activities on his purposes, God gives us honor as we, like John, prepare the way for the Lord. Zeph. 3:14–20Luke 7:18-28

John’s message of repentance pointed toward the preparation for the coming Messiah. In our waiting, we seek to live a life synced up with God’s grace.Psalm 66:1-12Luke 3:1-14

When we get tired of waiting for God to do something, we often step in and try to make something happen ourselves. Yet, patiently waiting on the Lord deepens our trust in him when he does affect change. That is what the waiting for the Christ-Child is about. Jer. 33:14–16Psalm 40:1-5Luke 21:25-36 (John 11)

If you think of what the Lord has done, you can't help but explode in praise, thanks and a desire to serve and give. Our thanks is not only for that which we have but most of all for the forgiveness and resulting rescuing by our Lord Jesus! Psalm 34:1-10 Col. 3:12-17Luke 12:13-21

Stewardship of God's gifts to us is important but the bigger question is "Why?"

One of the more pointent moments of the pre-game activities is to recognize past players. Often, they come on the field and are honored in some way. Today, we celebrate our "team" called the Body of Christ and recognize those who have recieved their final victory in Christ.Psalm 149Revelation 7:9-17Matthew 5:1-12Hebrews 10Hebrews 12

Pressure Point: Retaliation. It is natural to want justice. It is even natural to desire retaliation. Yet we know that God is going to make all things right—He will bring justice. This truth shapes the way we respond to injustice. When we are wronged the Scriptures encourage us to respond with patient endurance instead of sinful retaliation. Romans 12:19-21James 5:7-11Matthew 26:47-54

Pressure Point: Conflict. We all face conflict. Most of us hate it. James is blunt about the source of our conflict. This is both painful and helpful. We can overcome the pressure of conflict by identifying its source and pursuing the humility which sets pleasing God as its chief aim. James 4:1-10Matthew 5:23-25; 18:15-17

This is the audio of the presentation our Strategic Ministry Team presented at an all church meeting on 10/18/15. In it, the team talks about vision and the potential of reuniting our two Sunday morning worship venues. For more, go to www.TrinityFutureTalk.org.

Pressure Point: Words. Our words are very powerful. Apart from the redeeming work of Christ we will only do harm with our words. We need wisdom from above to use our words wisely. Our words also reveal the state of our hearts. Psalm 62:8-11James 3:1-12Matthew 12:33-37

Pressure Point: Partiality. We all have favorites; favorite football teams, favorite flavors of ice cream or favorite entertainment activities. Should we have favorites when it comes to people? Is it okay to treat one person or group with more respect than others? How does Jesus’ interesting conversation with a women shed light out our attitude toward others?Psalm 145: 8-13James 2:1-13Mark 7:24-30

Pressure Point: Temptation. Sometimes it feels like you have no control over the temptations that you feel. These come both from your own sinful flesh and also the spiritual attacks from the enemy. How can we resist these temptations and how does Jesus example of being tempted help?Psalm 34:19-22James 1:13-18Matthew 4:1-11

Pressure Point: Trials. We often think of suffering as something that happens to us apart from God’s rescue plan. James 1:1-4 helps us see that it is part of God’s redemption. The pressure that we experience from various trials actually produces in us growth into Christ- likeness if we chose it. Through a joyful trust in God we are able to overcome our trials. As we begin our series, we ask the question, “How Do We Deal With Pressure?”1 Kings 8:56-58James 1:1-4Matthew 14:22-32