Most of us want our expression of faith to fit neatly & comfortably into our lives. It’s a natural and a good desire. But truly following after Jesus will invariably press us deeper, whether by challenging our comfort, by not waiting for our approval, or by demanding we release control. This is when our loyalties are legitimately laid bare.

Jesus speaks directly to this tension. He invites us to look beyond what feels safe now to consider what truly lasts and what truly matters. We can choose to live in a way that “protects” us in the moment, but that often stands in the way of really entrusting ourselves to Him. God invites us to trust that what seems costly now will lead to something far more glorious in the end.

#Allegiance #Loyalty #ReorderingOurLoyalties #MyCrossToBear

Most of us don’t set out to live divided lives. We make choices that feel normal, justified, or even responsible in a given moment. Over time, however, those choices often start asking more of us than we expected, and our hearts get pulled in competing directions. What follows isn’t just tension but a growing sense that something inside us is fractured on a deep level.

A different way of living can begin when we  recognize that we were never meant to carry this friction or weight. Beneath the competing voices, there’s an invitation to trust Someone who isn’t vying for control but offering something better, and trusting this Someone can reshape how we see ourselves and what we cling to. When that shift begins, life starts moving toward wholeness instead of constant strain. 

#Allegiance #Loyalty #BrokenLoyalties

Most of us probably don’t think of ourselves as "overly-loyal" in any significant way. We just make choices or follow habits, responding to what feels important or rewarding in a given moment. But over time, those small decisions begin to stack up and subtly shape the direction of our lives. Our time, our attention, our money, and our energy are all flowing somewhere already. Whether we’ve named it or not, something is already setting the terms for how we live.

The hard part isn’t discovering that we’re devoted to something. It’s realizing that our already-present devotion inevitably leads us somewhere, that what we cling to ends up shaping what we love … and what we love will reshape us in its own image. But there’s always an opportunity to notice what’s been guiding us and to consider different loyalty. Because, in the end, our allegiances will determine who we really are.

#Allegiance #Loyalty #EveryoneIsLoyalToSomething

The messages we share on Sundays each year are more than weekly moments or events. They're mile markers along the way in our journey of faith. One of our core beliefs is that God's Absolutes are Absolutely Good ... and this means that we preach, teach, and do our very best to align ourselves with what God has revealed in the Bible.

Because of this, it’s important to remember and to reflect on the truths God has spoken, the themes that we've discussed, and the Word that continues to guide us. Looking back helps us carry these messages forward, allowing them to keep speaking into the year ahead, into our own lives, and into the lives of those around us.

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (Philippians 4.8)

#Anthology #StoriesWorthRemembering #2025inReview

As the Christmas season winds down, even as today is Christmas Eve, it’s easy to feel a mix of gratitude and quiet letdown. The lights come down, routines return, and life settles back into its familiar rhythms. Even good moments can feel fleeting, leaving us wishing they lasted just a little longer.

The Christmas story reminds us that what God began was never meant to fade. Hope didn’t arrive for a moment and then move on. It came to stay. Advent invites us to lift our eyes beyond what’s temporary and trust that God is still at work, still present, and still leading the story somewhere whole, beautiful, and lasting.

#GoodNews #HeavenOnEarth #Advent #ETERNITY

On Christmas Eve, we slow down and listen to a story that began long before Bethlehem. We’re invited to encounter Jesus not just as a newborn in a manger, but as the eternal Word who was with God and is God. The Light who spoke creation into existence has stepped into our darkness, close enough to be known and close enough to bring true life.

This is the quiet miracle of Christmas, that God didn’t stay distant but came near. And His light still shines - undefeated and full of hope for all who receive Him. Christ has come… and He will come again.

#GoodNews #HeavenOnEarth #Advent #CHRIST

We’re often most comfortable with a faith that fits neatly, doesn’t ask too much, or won't really require us to move very far from where we already are. But love has a way of disrupting our regular routines, nudging us beyond what’s familiar and inviting us to pay attention to something greater.

When we encounter love like this, we all have a choice: embrace the beautiful chaos it can bring or escape into the familiar. What we choose will lead to what we cherish most, even if we don't realize it. Deciding to follow love may not be easy, but it's amazingly good. 

#GoodNews #HeavenOnEarth #Advent #LOVE

Joy is something that can feel like certain “other” people have figured out. We’ll try to hold on to it, especially when life pulls us in every direction. Even though we want it, we’re left wondering if maybe it’s meant for those other people whose lives seem a bit more put together than ours.

But the purest, the “realest” kind of joy has a way of finding us in the middle of our messes. It’s a settling of the soul that draws us toward something deeper and more majestic than our circumstances. This joy isn’t asking us to chase it at all, but inviting us to accept what’s already been offered, a gift given 2000 years ago.

#GoodNews #HeavenOnEarth #Advent #JOY

We all carry moments that have shaped us more than we expected. They leave a mark, even if we don’t notice at first.. Those moments can settle into the background, quiet but present, and still follow us into our routines. They, like rudders on a ship, can be small yet impact us in tremendous ways.

Just like we can look back and discover how these early experiences and history have molded us as individuals, there is history to this broader human experience. From the very beginning, a story of redemption in the face of brokenness has been told, beckoning us back to our roots while focusing our gaze ahead. If we listen, we’ll discover a hope beyond imagining.  

#GoodNews #HeavenOnEarth #Advent #Hope

Life has a way of exposing those things that we try to bury. Questions tend to resurface, and regrets poke through our facades. We’ll often feel the gap between who we are (or try to be) and who we were made to be. More often than not, this creates a kind of soul-level tension deep inside.

Regardless of where we’re at, here is a hope that is close at hand, drawing us toward a fuller way of living. It’s not more effort or better pretending. It’s not anything inside us at all. In fact, it is something external to ourselves that radically transforms … if we’ll only let it. This is a hope that lasts forever and can start today.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #EternalLife #AncientWords

Most of us move through life with relationships that stay pretty surface level. We talk about the little details and bigger plans, but the deeper parts of us stay tucked away. More often than not, opening up feels complicated, maybe even risky, but we still desire connections that are genuine and meaningful. We want to belong and to be valued.

The fact is, we’re all designed to operate within authentic community. None of us can truly thrive on our own, and we all feel it. We search for these kind of relationships in many places. The beauty is that God has fashioned a community that is to be all we desire and more. It’s far from perfect, but it’s beautiful opportunity to experience life to the full - if we’re willing to risk it.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #Church #Fellowship #AncientWords

If we’re really honest, we are often just trying to hold everything together. We push and plan and even try to prove to ourselves that we can actually stay in control. But beneath the surface, we know how exhausting that becomes. Somewhere in the hubbub, we all seem to sense that we’re missing something.

But really, that thing isn’t something we earn but someone we’re invited to trust. The strength we need isn’t found in pushing through but in learning to be led by a faithful companion who’s worthy of our trust. Even when we can’t see past the bends in the road to come, there is a Helper who wants to walk with us and who breathes life into what’s grown weary.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #HolySpirit #OurHelper #AncientWords

We all understand the tension between what is and what should be. We know what it feels like when justice is too slow and mercy is too small. The brokenness around us can start to seem permanent. Deep down, something in us aches for the world to be set straight, for the questions to be answered, and for some peace to finally stick.

This ache points us toward a promise bigger than what we can fix on our own. There’s a day coming when everything hidden will be seen clearly and everything fractured will be made whole. Our stories don’t end with fear or despair. They end with restoration, renewal, and a glorious light that outshines every shadow.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #Judgment #SecondComing #Jesus #AncientWords

We live in a world that doesn’t seem to stop moving. Those things that once felt steady can suddenly feel fragile. It can be easy to wonder if anyone is really holding everything together or not. History seems to remind us again and again that even a strong faith can feel small when the world is crumbling around us.

But what feels uncertain isn’t the whole story. The things that seem out of control aren’t as untethered as they appear. There IS someone holding things together, even if we struggle to see it in the moment. There IS a person and a power that maintains, even when everything else breaks apart. And in the shadow of that great truth lies both purpose and peace.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #Ascension#Jesus #AncientWords

We all know what it feels like when life doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to. It’s hard not to let loss settle into the deep places of our hearts or to start believing that maybe this is just how things are. But even in that space, many times there’s a quiet hope that refuses to give up, a kind of longing that whispers that our story isn’t quite done yet.

That’s the heart of resurrection. It’s the reminder that God isn’t finished and that what may look final right now isn't really set in stone. The power that raised Jesus isn’t just for the past. It’s for now. It breathes into what’s been broken and gives shape to what’s been shattered. It keeps us moving toward the light when we’d rather stay down in the dark. When hope like this takes hold, everything (even the hardest stuff) starts to look a little more alive.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #Resurrection #Jesus #AncientWords

We don’t usually linger on the thought of death. It’s easier to stay busy, trying to convince ourselves that (as long as we keep moving) we won’t have to face this particular fear. But avoidance never really works. The inevitable mortality of it all will catch up … eventually. And, when we do inevitably run into it, we need more than comforting words or trite platitudes. We need someone or something real.

What if hope could be found in the very place we try hardest to avoid? What if the deepest shadows weren’t proof of God’s absence but the place where His presence becomes undeniable? Sometimes the way to life begins by walking straight into what feels like the end. In fact, the way through death is in the company of One who’s already been there.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #Death #Jesus #AncientWords

We all know what it feels like to carry wounds that never seem to close. Some are physical, but many are deeper than what we can see, like the shame of failure, the weight of regret, the scars left by others’ words or actions. Left unattended, any of these wounds can harden us or hollow us out. They can remind us of our weakness and whisper that peace and healing may never come.

There is a hope that doesn’t ignore those wounds, but rather meets them head-on. It’s not a fragile optimism or some quick self-help fix. It’s something rooted and costly, but strong enough to face even death itself. It’s the kind of hope that can bring peace where there’s been conflict, healing where there’s been brokenness, and wholeness where we’ve only known fragments.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #Suffering #Sacrifice #Jesus #AncientWords

We live in a world that often makes us feel small, like we're fragile and temporary. Our strength fails, and our plans collapse. Even our bodies betray us, another reminder that we’re not in control. Questions rise in the quiet: Is there meaning to our fragility? Can weakness be a place where life is still full of worth? Too often, this world and our fears tell us that we do not matter.

But what if it's exactly at the edge of our limits that God chooses to meet us? Imagine that the ordinary details of life (our families, our daily work, even our moments of weakness) could be the very places where His power is at work. What feels impossible could become the starting point for new creation, and that could be where we begin to see our own humanity with dignity. His presence can turn our impossibilities into hope.

#Creed #ApostlesCreed #FullyHuman #FullyDivine #FullyHoly #Incarnation #Jesus #AncientWords