Joy!cast

The world still needs heroes. God provides the armor we need to fight against the injustices in our world and the enemies that attack us.

This sermon explores the passages in the Bible that have left the divorced out in the cold, the victims of scripture misuse, left feeling worthless. Our hope is that by gaining a better understanding of the text that we will see God’s actually intent and heart behind the story being told.

This week we focus on the scriptures that make life difficult for women.

This week we examine some of the scriptures that make being part of a church difficult.

Today's message focuses on how good Christians used scripture to justify slavery.

On Easter we remember that nothing can stop heaven from releasing hope into the world.  

Love, according to Jesus, has everything to do with serving others, even in the most detestable work. This is the manner of love he taught his disciples in John 13, on a night when he understandably might have chosen a different path for himself. Right before he was crucified, Jesus shunned the power that was rightfully his; instead, he chose to perform a demeaning task for the benefit of his disciples. My hope is to explore what it means to humble ourselves and serve the people in our world.

On the first Palm Sunday, as they lined the streets greeting Jesus' arrival, they shouted "Save Us!" They wanted a king to save them. He turned out not to be the king they wanted, but the king they needed. And so do we!

Scripture says to trust God with all that we are. And we can because God is trustworthy, but sometimes we miss it. Listen and learn how God demonstrates his trustworthiness to us.

In the darkest moments when all hope seems lost we can still remember God's faithfulness.

When we are going through trials, we have asked God our questions,  we have listened for God’s response, we have prayed for God to intervene, and then we... WAIT!  As human beings, most of us do a poor job of waiting.  We are anxious and want our answers or action NOW, but God doesn’t work on our timetable.  He calls us to wait with faith in the knowledge that He always keeps His promises, and His timing is always right!

In difficult time, it is perfectly ok to ask God the tough questions. Asking God questions isn’t a lack of faith. When we ask God the tough questions we still believe that even though God has not answered yet, God will. And after all those tough questions are asked, it’s time for us to do something evermore difficult. Stop talking and start listening. Hope in the darkness begins when we are willing to ask God the tough questions. Hope in the darkness continues when we choose to stop talking and start listening.

When going through through difficult circumstances, it’s ok to go to God with our questions and doubts.

Jesus reminds us we should only care about an audience of one - God and God alone.  

An exploration into the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. featuring an interview with civil rights lawyer Aurie Pennick.