We all have that friend or have met that person who always has an “excuse” for everything. We ask them to hang out or do us a favor and they never fail to have a reason as to why they can't do something. Typically our emotional response is one of annoyance, frustration, confusion, and distrust. The sad reality is that this is often the case when it comes to us and Jesus. He has clearly laid out His desires and commands for us in His Word and yet we will come up with all the excuses in the world to not do them - especially sharing the Gospel. We must decide this day if we are going to just "say" we are a disciple of Jesus or if we are going to bury our excuses and actually "live" like a disciple.

A lot of times when we pray to God and ask Him to do something, we already have it planned out in our minds how we think God should do it. And then when He doesn't or it doesn't go exactly how we thought, we become frustrated and even angry at Him. As we will see in today's message, we must remember that God's ways are higher than ours and He knows best. It is up to us if we are going to trust Him by faith or try to figure things out on our own. It is only by fully surrendering to Him we will experience the answer or "healing" to our situation that we are looking for.

In today's culture, if you don't have a degree, don't have a career job, aren't making a lot of money, don't have a boyfriend/girlfriend or spouse, then you simply aren't successful and living the "American Dream." This is pushed upon us everyday from everywhere - from friends and family to social media and coworkers. The sad reality is this mindset of the "American Dream" has crept into the church and disguised itself in the form of the "abundant life." Because of this, a lot of our thoughts, motives, and directions in life are driven by our pursuit for these achievements. But is that what it truly means to follow Jesus? To be a "disciple”? What if we lived each day or each week as if it was our last? What if we treated this Earth and our possessions as things given to us to lead others to Christ? Today we are going to dive deep into what it would look like if we were to abandon a "comfortable" faith and instead embrace a biblical faith.

The Bible truly is the most amazing book to ever exist - not just because of the life changing truths contained within it but because it was written by God Himself! Over thousands of years and across numerous continents, He inspired writers to use their personalities and talents to convey the exact message He wanted to be said. As believers, Jesus calls us to walk worthy of the calling He has given us and because of this, we should seek to become more like Him, study His Words each day, and share them with everyone we meet.

We have finally arrived at the end of the book of Romans! This has been a very amazing and even convicting series as we have seen from beginning to end the whole scope of God's justice, mercy, and love. Today we take a look into the POWER of the Gospel and how Jesus truly can change everything. When we allow Him to work in our hearts, we will begin to become more LIKE Him in our thoughts, actions, and words. We will start to see people as God does and be moved with compassion to tell them how THEIR lives can be changed JUST like ours was.

A lot of times, we love messages and sermons that talk about the love of God and everything He has done for us. While this is good, sometimes we tend to struggle with messages that challenge our thinking or way of living and when a call is given to change. At the root of this struggle is how we view "authority." When it comes to the Christian life, there is one ultimate authority: the Lord Jesus Christ. But there is a huge difference between simply "knowing" that to be true and actually "living" like it is true. We must humble ourselves to not only obey God's authority but also the authorities that He Himself has put into place on this Earth.

Today is all about celebrating the fathers in our lives! Some of us have had good relationships with our fathers while others may have a rocky (or even non-existent) relationship with their father. Whichever category you find yourself in this morning, one thing is for certain: for those who have given their lives to Jesus, you have a PERFECT Father in Heaven who smiles down at you and is pleased with you. He rejoices over you, leads you, guides you, teaches you, corrects you, and LOVES you. Let's spend some time today with our Father who has promised to NEVER leave us and ONLY wants the best for us.

If you have watched the news at any point in the past several months, no doubt you would have seen Israel mentioned quite often. It can be scary and yet exciting at the same time when we hear Israel mentioned in current world events. After all, Israel will play a massive role in the fulfillment of many end time prophecies. Because of this, it is good to reflect on how thankful we should be that God chose to open salvation up to us Gentiles (non-Jewish people). Jesus Christ is still Israel's Messiah and while they reject Him now, how marvelous it is that someday soon the nation of Israel will finally see and believe that He truly is the Lord and Savior they have been waiting for. Let us continually pray for Israel.

 The Gospel is the most beautiful message anyone could ever hear. Not only is it beautiful, but it is also so simple that even a child can believe. To be forgiven of your sins and begin a relationship with Jesus, all you must do is repent of your sins and believe Jesus died in your place and rose again. There is NOTHING we can do to earn God's forgiveness or love. It is ONLY by trusting in what HE has already done! It is a free gift and ANYONE can receive it. Have you?

The Bible says that God's ways and thoughts are not our ways and thoughts. This can be a difficult truth to process. Especially when things happen in our lives that we don't understand or don't go the way we expected. It is during these times, however, when we must CLING to what we know about God's character. The Devil would love for us to doubt and question God and His ways but we must remember He is loving, wise, holy, sovereign, and just - ALL of the time. And while God is in control and allows things to happen, that does not exclude our responsibility to make decisions and be obedient to Him. It is a beautiful picture and profound dance of sovereignty and free will.

“What is the will of God for my life?" Perhaps that is a question you have heard or even asked yourself before. Or a similar question: "How would you describe God's will?" Many times we think there must be a long, complex answer when in reality, it's not as confusing as one might think. Today, on this exciting "Graduation Sunday," we will look at the life of one individual from the Bible and discover the amazing truths we can actually KNOW about God's will and even apply them to our own lives!

Happy Mother's Day!!! What a beautiful joy it is that we can set aside a complete day to celebrate mothers and thank God for the impact and influence they have had in our lives. Today is part 2 of our deep-dive into Romans 8 - where we see the AMAZING truth and reality that in Christ, we have an unfathomable, invincible freedom that is ours to discover!

 If someone came up to you and said they had a video of every single bad thought you've ever had and every bad action you've ever done and they were going to show it to your friends & family, how would that make you feel? Nervous? Anxious? Nauseous? But what if I told you that when they played the video, it was absolutely blank and there was nothing on it? Well that is EXACTLY the case for everyone who trusts in Jesus to forgive their sins. Jesus has the power and ability to completely erase EVERY bad thing you have ever done and ever WILL do. You see, when we repent and trust in Jesus, we are essentially saying, "Jesus, I know I am wicked and can do nothing to become righteous. I believe You took my punishment and you can cover me in YOUR righteousness." And when you believe in Jesus for salvation, God says to you, "My child, I do not find any fault in you nor condemn you. I see My Son's perfect life. Go and live in this freedom and become more like Me." THAT is the unbelievable message of Romans chapter

For many reasons, Abraham Lincoln is regarded as one of the most influential individuals of all time - primarily for his successful efforts to give slaves their freedom and independence in the United States. But as amazing as Lincoln was, there is One who has made a way for EVERY human being to experience true freedom: Jesus Christ. Each one of us is born into a sin-cursed world and because of that, we have a sin-nature: it's in our DNA as a result of the Fall. We seek to be set free from this; however, the things we run to can never liberate us. In God's laws and commandments, we cannot find freedom because it only convicts us of our crimes and shines the spotlight on our faults. In our own "good works," they can't give us freedom because no matter how much good we do, we are still found to be guilty of breaking His Law. No, the ONLY way we can find freedom is by trusting in Jesus' sacrifice and resurrection on our behalf. He died to purchase us and set us free from our slave masters (sin, death, the works of the Law, the Devil, etc.) - will you believe & follow Him today?

What would you do if you were walking down the street and someone came out of nowhere with a weapon and tried to attack you with it? No doubt we would all do one of the following: run away, call for help, step out of the way, or try to fight the attacker. The one thing that NO ONE would do is just stand there and do nothing. The situation just described actually takes place every day in our lives and we may not even realize it. The Bible says that the Devil is a “roaring lion” and goes around looking to devour us. Spiritual warfare is very real and it is critical that we learn how to fight and defend ourselves against the attacks of the Enemy and his demons. But at the forefront of our minds must ALWAYS be this: no matter what, the war is already won and our King Jesus IS victorious!

 If you are a disciple of Jesus, why do you think Jesus saved you? Was it JUST so you wouldn't be punished for your sins? Was it so you can become a "better" person, go to church, and live a moral life? Some of those things are important but ultimately, if that is ALL we think Jesus saved us for, then we have DRASTICALLY missed the big picture. The reason Jesus saved us is for us to KNOW Him, become more LIKE Him, and to lead others TO Him! Praise GOD He saved us from Hell the MOMENT we trusted in Him! But that wasn’t the end of the story - that was only the BEGINNING! Jesus has so many amazing adventures planned for us and all of them involve us falling more in love with God and pointing others to His saving power. THAT is why we are still on this Earth. Are you living out that mission?

 A common definition of insanity is: "Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Sometimes life can feel that way - we try and overcome something but fall back into the same habits, the same hard times, or the same way of thinking every time. The trials we face can seem impossible to overcome and like we will never win. If we’re not careful, we will begin to believe Satan’s lie that all hope is gone and things will never change. The glorious truth is that for those whose lives have been transformed by God’s redeeming power, we have ALREADY won! Because of Jesus' resurrection, He proved His absolute dominance and sovereignty over the Devil, sin, and death. The Bible is full of individuals who faced extreme suffering and yet God not only helped them through those dark times, but they came out on the other side stronger and better than before. Whatever it is you are going through, your victory is on the horizon. All we have to do is keep trusting that God will bring it in HIS timing and that no matter what happens, He is ALWAYS good, ALWAYS faithful, and ALWAYS worthy of our worship.

Have you ever wondered what the significance is of "Palm Sunday"? Or why is it even called that in the first place? Well today we will take a deep-dive look into the meaning behind this wonderful day! It's worth mentioning that each writer of the four Gospels placed great attention, detail, and emphasis on describing the final years of Jesus' life, especially the final week leading up to His death and resurrection. How miraculous and amazing is it that our King Jesus not only made His triumphant entry into Jerusalem thousands of years ago but He CONTINUES to make His entry into lives & hearts today on a DAILY basis!

Have you ever ordered something in the mail that you were SUPER excited for and you got a message that it was "running late"? That can be a very frustrating and disappointing feeling. On a more serious note, isn’t it SO reassuring to know that our God is NEVER late? He is ALWAYS on time. The greatest example and evidence of this can be seen in the cross of Jesus Christ. The Bible says "at the right time" Jesus died for the "ungodly." Who are the "ungodly"? It is me, you, and the entire world. And within this miraculous salvation, there are SO many more blessings and benefits that God wants us to discover and delight in!

Have you ever ordered something in the mail that you were SUPER excited for and you got a message that it was "running late"? That can be a very frustrating and disappointing feeling. On a more serious note, isn’t it SO reassuring to know that our God is NEVER late? He is ALWAYS on time. The greatest example and evidence of this can be seen in the cross of Jesus Christ. The Bible says "at the right time" Jesus died for the "ungodly." Who are the "ungodly"? It is me, you, and the entire world. And within this miraculous salvation, there are SO many more blessings and benefits that God wants us to discover and delight in!