Sermons by Lucas Maciel
Have you ever tried to resist having that extra slice of cake or piece of chocolate sitting in front of you? What helped you decide, for better or worse, or helped you make a choice that you were happy with? Or has there ever been a time when you could not stop thinking about something – maybe a new car that seemed out of reach, something you believed was essential to do your work, or even a new relationship? There are times when our thoughts can overpower us and we may do or say things that seem out of balance. We might start stressing about it or giving it more importance in our daily lives than needed. You might think you just need extra will power to keep the right perspective. What if the ability to resist comes from rest? We’ll explore that concept as we talk about Rest is Resistance.
A Disney animated film Inside Out is the story of a young girl depicted through the five emotions that live inside her mind, and how each emotion fights for control over how she perceives the world around her and how they color her memories of the past. What better time of the year than summertime to explore… our emotions. We’ll spend the month of July in the Book of Psalms. The Psalms were actually written to be songs, and like songs today, they contain a wide variety of emotional expression, everything from happiness and rejoicing to sorrow and despair.
Do you want to know about love? Maybe take a bit of time to detox your soul? Have you been looking at your life lately and wondering, hey, what’s in it for me these days? Well, a lot. Join us this July for a look at how the Bible actually encourages us to pour out our hearts and find what we’re really looking for.
A Disney animated film Inside Out is the story of a young girl depicted through the five emotions that live inside her mind, and how each emotion fights for control over how she perceives the world around her and how they color her memories of the past. What better time of the year than summertime to explore… our emotions. We’ll spend the month of July in the Book of Psalms. The Psalms were actually written to be songs, and like songs today, they contain a wide variety of emotional expression, everything from happiness and rejoicing to sorrow and despair.
Do you want to know about love? Maybe take a bit of time to detox your soul? Have you been looking at your life lately and wondering, hey, what’s in it for me these days? Well, a lot. Join us this July for a look at how the Bible actually encourages us to pour out our hearts and find what we’re really looking for.
Have you ever noticed how meetings might get more frequent or the pace of work intensifies as you get closer to a project deadline? Maybe you’re planning a wedding, preparing for exams or nearing the launch of a new product. Even rehearsals for a theatrical play might change as the director focuses on those parts that need to be refined so that the show can go on as planned. The story of Jesus and his time on earth as told in the gospel of Mark changes gears in the latter chapters of the book in much the same way. Jesus starts to prepare his disciples for the ultimate goal of his mission here on earth. He continues to reveal who he is with greater focus on his purpose and how this will come about. Join us as we continue in the book of Mark and watch how Jesus reveals his identity and intentions and what it means for us today.
Go down the list of the most popular questions asked about God and the Bible and you’ll find questions like – “Can people actually look down on us from heaven?” and “Do pets go to heaven when they die?” to “What is God’s view on cloning?” and “Why are there so many Bible translations?” But probably one of the most difficult questions many people ask is “How could a good God allow suffering?” You can’t listen to the news without hearing about a disaster or tragedy in some part of the world. For some of us, tragedies or suffering hit closer to home. Do we just accept this as a natural part of life or is there another perspective? We’ll talk about it more as we continue our series “UNFILTERED. Big Questions. Honest Answers.”
We often hear the word diversity used to describe the culture of our country. It is popular to support diversity… of thought, of people groups, and ways of doing things. It is often viewed as a requirement for a mature society – to be able to embrace what is different from our views or background. And it’s used as a means of generating original fresh new ideas – a result of bringing people together with different perspectives and life experiences. But reality is, diversity often produces disagreements and tension in relationships. Left to our own devices, we can use our differences to make comparisons of who is superior to the other, or who is more highly regarded in another’s eyes. But grace changes everything. Grace never produces this kind of pride. Why is that? What can we learn from the book of Galatians in the Bible, that will change everything? Join us as we continue looking at the apostle Paul’s letter to the people of Galatia.