Ruth 3 Faith is an active trust in the One who is “threshing out” the bad and preserving the good in our lives. Just as the wind blows, separating the wheat from the chaff, the wind of the Spirit blows in our life preserving the good and discarding the bad.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Ruth 2 Ruth went looking for grain, but she found so much more. She found grace. Grace opens the door to more than mercy but to covenant relationship. God’s ultimate plan of salvation doesn't end with the forgiveness of your sins, but extends to the complete transformation of your life. In this journey towards transformation, we find grace in the g…

Ruth 1 In our suffering, God is present, sovereign, and purposeful. In Naomi’s limited view of her life it appeared that God was actively working against her. However, the story points toward the hope of another harvest just on the horizon, and we often experience this hope through someone we would least expect.…

Romans 8:31-38 God went all in and it will always be enough! We may be discouraged as we face trials of many kinds, but nothing can overcome what God has already done for us. The challenge is to live as conquerors and not as victims.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Ephesians 4:1-6 A divided world needs a united Church. This is only possible through the healing and empowering presence of the Holy Spirit. This Pentecost, we ask the Spirit to reconcile, heal, and make us one in Him.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Romans 8:18-30 Our worries about the future often begin with a "what if..." question. There is so much about the future we don't know, but God’s Word declares that we are never alone in our struggle. God is WITH us and the Holy Spirit intercedes FOR us even when we don't know what to pray. The Gospel invites us to ask, "What if God is working all t…

Romans 8:1-11 Following Jesus is simple, but it doesn't happen by accident. We live in this tension of obeying the desires of the flesh or surrendering to the work of the Holy Spirit. We are invited by grace to simply cooperate with God in our salvation by "setting our mind" on the things of the Spirit.…

Romans 6:15-23 What does it mean to be human? Sin creates the illusion that we can be our best selves by focusing on ourselves. The Gospel, however, is that grace transforms our heart so that the desire to sin is overwhelmed by a desire to love God and others. It's an invitation to be "awl" in.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Romans 6:1-14 Coming to faith in Christ means we embrace an entirely new understanding of death and life. The cross and resurrection demonstrate God’s miraculous power to bring life out of the experience of death. God wants to do the same for us as we die to sin and are raised with Christ to live holy lives. We are wanted by our Creator, both dead …

Romans 5:12-19 Life under the lordship of Jesus is a new way of living like you’ve never experienced before. The grace of God mediated to us through the obedience of Jesus has infinitely more potential for good than our tendency to sin and rebel we inherited from the Fall.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Romans 5:1-11 The heart of our Easter faith is simple: God is “all in” for humanity. We’ve been forgiven and reconciled to God, something that would not be possible without Jesus going “all in” for us. In response to this grace, are we “all in” with God?By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Matthew 28:1-10 The first witnesses of the resurrection were women who left the tomb, “afraid yet filled with joy.” The resurrection of Jesus is the beginning of all things being made new. There is no fear it does not confront and overwhelm with joy that only Jesus can give.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Ephesians 4:7-14 On Palm Sunday we celebrate the mission of Jesus. Like the colt Jesus uses to ride into Jerusalem, we were made for this mission. Everyone is uniquely gifted to join with God, and “the Lord needs” your story, gifts, and talents. We are people committed to a purposeful mission.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Ephesians 5:1-2 As we continue talking through core values in our church, Rev. Bethany Acre talks about the characteristics of Christ-like living and the impact of saying "yes" to God on every step of the journey.By Rev. Bethany Acre

Ephesians 3:14-21 Because God is overflowing with abundant generosity to us, we are called to be abundantly generous to others. God uses the generosity of his people to power the Church to accomplish “immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine.”By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Ephesians 2:11-22 The Church is filled with diverse individuals who are made one in Christ. When believers walk in loving fellowship with God and each other, an unbelieving world sees what their hearts long for. Ephesians 2:11-22 envisions a life-giving community that God can use to heal the hurts and divides of the world.…

Ephesians 1:3-14 We were created to worship. Paul begins the book of Ephesians with a doxology that tells the story of salvation. This good news invites us to respond with our whole life to who God is and what he has done.

Ephesians 2:8-10 We were not created to live random and haphazard lives. We were made for a good and beautiful purpose, made known to us when we receive the grace of God and live on mission in response to what God has done for us. This is what we were made for, and there is no better way to live!By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

James 1:12-18 There’s a big difference in knowing in our heads the right thing to do and actually doing it with our actions. Temptation works the same way: even when we know something is wrong, all too often fail to resist it. Everyone will face temptation, but fortunately, God provides a way out.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

James 5:13-18 Prayer is keeping company with God. Learning to pray is like learning anything else: it won’t happen overnight. Pick a time. Pick a place. Ask Jesus to teach you how to pray.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

James 3:1-10 Pastor David shares about the weight of our words and how we can express our love for God through intentional encouragement.By Rev. David Goodwin

James 2:1-13 Jesus embodied radical hospitality and called his followers to do the same. James calls us to resist playing favorites with people who can advance our place in life and give VIP treatment to the vulnerable.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

James 1:22-27; 2:14-26 Faith without action is dead. The world needs more than talk about what we believe. Those far from God need to see it lived out with tangible action.

James 1:1-12 James is the New Testament’s book of wisdom. The journey to wisdom begins by recognizing life has inevitable trials and pressures. God provides the gift of his grace, strength, and presence so that we can grow in spiritual maturity, even in the midst of the trials.

Guest preacher, Dr. Frank Moore, shares a prayer for the New Year in which we remember what God has done and forget what might have been.By Special Guest: Dr. Frank Moore

Luke 1:57-80 Zechariah's mouth is opened when he obediently names his child John, who would grow up to prepare the way for Jesus, the prince of peace. He sings about this peace that is on the way. For those looking for peace in the midst of life's chaos, we are invited to join with Zechariah in a song of peace.…

Luke 2:1-20 The birth of Jesus isn’t a myth. It REALLY happened at a real time and in a real place. Because of the presence of Jesus in our lives, we have real hope for the real problems we face. This message of the Christmas angels is REAL good news!

Luke 1:39-56 The baby in Elizabeth's womb leaped for joy when he heard Mary's voice. More than a new gift under the tree, our joy comes from being close to Jesus. We see God's vision for the world in Mary's song. This is the kind of world Jesus is going to bring about, and this should be the source of our joy. If this doesn't cause us to leap for j…

2 Peter 3:8-16 We don't like to wait, but Advent reminds us that our waiting is not without purpose. God is patient, wanting everyone to come to repentance. God’s love waits for as long as it takes and never gives up. For the believer, we do not wait passively but in partnership with God to see others experience this love as we have.…

Isaiah 64:1-9 In Advent, we are reminded of the Israelites in captivity, asking God to intervene as he did in the past and rescue them from their oppressors. Similarly, in our brokeness, we cry out for God to break in and fix it all. Advent teaches us that He is present in our wounds, using them as opportunities for His healing light to break throu…

Mark 6:7-13 Becoming like Jesus means we shift from following the crowd to leading like Christ. Just as the disciples were sent to heal the sick and to cast out demons, the call to follow becomes the call to lead in the very circles in which we once followed. Our careers become a calling and we, who were sheep, become shepherds.…

Dr. Fili Chambo, General Superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene, challenges us to run the race set before us as we dedicate our new sanctuary to the worship and glory of God.By Dr. Filimão M. Chambo

Mark 3:1-6 Are we receptive to the unconventional ways God works in our lives, our church, and our world?By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Mark 10:17-25 Are we being good stewards of the gifts of God?By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Mark 10:35-45 Life together means we strive to love each other as much as we love Jesus. Because the people of God are commanded to love God and others, is there a better place or for that than the church? In this story, James and John learn that personal transformation is only possible through communal transformation.…

Mark 9:2-10 When it comes to decisions, where do we turn? Are you living in a posture of listening?By Rev. Bethany Acre

Mark 10:46-52 When we are healed of our spiritual blindness, we see with eyes of faith. It causes a shift in our values as we see the world in light of God’s Kingdom. The things of the Spirit become the things that are most essential to us.

Rev. Astrid Camacaro, regional coordinator of compassionate ministries for the South American Region, shares how our support of the World Evangelism Fund enables local churches in global contexts to transform their communities through ministries of compassion and justice.By Rev. Astrid Camacaro

Mark 10:13-15 The disciples were worried that the children were getting in the way, and Jesus was worried the disciples were not like children. In order to be “minded” like Jesus, we must shift from fearing God as an omnipotent taskmaster to embracing God as a loving Father.By Rev. Mark Snodgrass

Mark 8:31-33; Philippians 2:13-14 Becoming like Jesus is to absorb the mind of Jesus into ours until we think and act like him without even trying. This requires several different "soulshifts." A SoulShift is a change in the deepest part of our being that makes us more like Jesus and less like our old selves.…

Colossians 4:2-6 Paul calls the believers to pray for him, not that he would be released from prison but that God would use his imprisonment as a platform for the Gospel. Prayer connects us to the heart of God and gives us a divine perspective beyond the limited view of our circumstances. Being fully alive in Christ means our eyes are open to the o…

We spend the majority of our waking hours at work, a responsibility that is often seen as a drudgery or obligation, but in Christ it can be an opportunity for God to advance his mission in the world through us. God enables us to be fully alive in our vocation so that every part of our life is an opportunity to bring glory to God.…

Colossians 3:5-17 Who the believer is on the outside should reflect what God is doing on the inside. In this way, believers live on earth as if they are already enjoying the full benefits of Heaven, bringing Heaven to earth through the beauty of their lives. As we become who God wants us to be, we have a new wardrobe to match!…

Colossians 2:16 - 3:4 External religious regulations are described by Paul as a “shadow” of things to come. Christ is not the shadow but the real thing, whose light brings us out of the murkiness of religious entrapments and into the experience of being fully alive. Because the believer has been raised with Christ, we can find our way out of the sh…

Colossians 2:6-15 The believers in Colossae were "fully alive" in their newly transformed lives in Christ! As adopted sons and daughters of God, the community was thriving and relying upon the Spirit of God to be "life-givers" to all those they encountered. The enemy, however, was attempting to steal, kill, and destroy this life by promoting the fo…

Colossians 1:24-2:4 We become fully alive when the glory of God is restored to us. This glory is a restoration of the image of God in us, and it is accomplished when we are united with Christ, who is the fullness of God. When we understand the magnitude of this treasure in us, it impacts how we see ourselves, live with others, experience suffering,…

Colossians 1:15-23 The fullness of God dwells in Jesus Christ. He is the first and the last, the beginning and the end. He is the source of life for all that was, is, and ever will be! In worship we find life and HE is the only one worthy of our worship. Our worship must not be misdirected towards imposters that take life, but constantly refocused …

The early church father, Irenaeus, said, "The glory of God is a person fully alive." God desires for humanity to be fully alive by his grace and to fully experience the joy, hope, and love that is available through Christ. This journey of becoming fully alive begins with the forgiveness of our sins as we move from surviving to thriving!…

John 15:1-17 The vineyard in scripture is a symbol that represents Israel, who failed to give the world the fruit God intended for them to produce. The life of Jesus reveals that fruitfulness is only possible through a relationship with him through the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. This is the only way our life produces fruit that will last …

John 14:15-27 The Holy Spirit brings comfort in the midst of our chaos; truth in the midst of the world’s lies; and wholeness to broken situations. This gift is something the believer receives by faith, but is then empowered through the Spirit to share it with others. The church is a gathering of wounded healers.…