Last month we made an unexpected announcement: due to very generous financial giving, we were able to pay off the remainder of our building debt! This has eliminated several more years of making a mortgage payment, allowed us to tithe to local and international ministries, and has created for us an increased budget to explore what it looks like for us to continue to be “worshipers in community eng...  Read More

Does God give us more than we can handle?This is an often-heard question that relates to the idea of being tested by the Lord. It probably comes from familiarity with 1 Corinthians 10:13: “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be...  Read More

The Bible contains a number of passages that are particularly difficult to understand, much less apply to our daily lives: Below I have listed three considerations in how to approach particularly difficult parts of the Bible:Context: Though context is always important in reading the Bible well, it is especially important with difficult passages. To read “in context” is to read what is around the p...  Read More

As we jump into the Joseph story, it may be helpful to have a big picture understanding of the flow and structure of the overall book of Genesis. Below are two short videos from The Bible Project that provide a simple visual overview of the book. Children would enjoy these too!...  Read More

Preparing to ShareIn Numbers 20 the people of God begin to move again. They have been in the wilderness for 40 years, and it is now finally time for them to resume their journey toward the Promised Land. We read of obstacles that pop up for them in their quest to move into the land, battles that must be fought, temptations that must be avoided, all sorts of things that make for interesting reading...  Read More

Five months ago I had an idea: what if we created a space for us as a congregation where the goal is to come together and play? As I chewed on it and bounced it around with the staff and elders, I thought of a hundred reasons why we shouldn’t do it. As the reasons NOT to do it escalated, I decided to try thinking of reasons we should at least try it. Here’s what I came up with:Playing together bui...  Read More