The Fingerprints of God

Contributed by:
Tyler Ward
spiritual formation pastor

This past weekend we continued our Q series by exploring a variety of evidences for the existence of God.

Dr. Chad Meister talked with us about God as the creator and the grand designer of the universe. He pointed out that our faith in God should not be a belief in something irrational. Rather it is a belief that is bolstered by evidences and good reasons. He explained that the biblical word for faith is the Greek word – pistis. It implies a trust and confidence that is based on the evidence.

A Stone In the Shoe

Contributed by:
Natalie Ward
care ministries director

“A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.”- Author Unknown

Be bold. Stand up. Be fearless. Be passionate. Speak truth. These are often terms that are taught as foundational when sharing the gospel with a non believer. Unfortunately, terms like aggressive, argumentative, pushy and persistent, though, are also associated with these kind of interactions. Many times Christians will engage in what ends up being a debate of theological positions, and then after silencing the non believer with a “blow to their position,” will wave the flag of victory after perceived or assumed defeat of their “opponent.” On the contrary, there has been no victory. Few, if any, individuals come to recognize the Lord as their Savior through an aggressive exchange of terminology and heated debate.

"W" #7: Branching Out

Contributed by:
Eric Dunaway
small groups pastor

The previous post in this series was all about the exponential benefits of leaders who reproduce themselves. The reality is that there are dozens, if not hundreds, of groups just waiting to be formed. All we need are leaders who are willing to step up and take the lead. In fact, I have a theory that many of our groups are full of would-be-leaders who just need a word of affirmation, or a gentle kick in the pants, to stand up and take a step toward leading a group of their own. Leaders reproducing leaders, therefore, is a win that leads to another win, and that’s when these new leaders branch out to form a group of their own.

From Bitter to Sweet

Contributed by:
Staci Overbeck
ministry assistant

What if your blessings
come through raindrops?
What if your healing
comes through tears?
What if a 1000 sleepless nights
are what it takes
to know you’re near?
What if trials in this life
are your mercies in disguise?

Blessings

Laura Story

Q: Faith and Science

Contributed by:
Tyler Ward
spiritual formation pastor

For many people, science and faith represent two opposite ends of a spectrum, and you can only choose one or the other. Is it possible that science and faith are not necessarily at odds, though? Rather than rejecting God -his existence and the truth that he's revealed to us - could science, instead, somehow support that he is real and is up to something absolutely amazing?