Ten years ago God called me to pastor at Calvary Assembly of God, and we have so thoroughly enjoyed our time in Cedar Springs! One of the really cool things I get to do is teach an amazing group of people every Sunday. Here’s a recap of the series and messages from 2019.
Boldly Praying—As a general rule, God would like us to pray much more boldly than we typically do. Jesus told us that we could pray mountain-moving prayers, but C.S. Lewis rightly observed, “If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak.”
- No Asterisks
- When Your Walking Is Your Praying
- God Knows Your Name
- The Impossible Prayer
- Winning The Unseen Spiritual Battles
- What’s Your Knee-Jerk Response To Trouble?
Christ’s Passionate Journey—In action movies, the crucial moment usually is filmed in slow motion. The Gospels do the same as Jesus approaches the Cross. For example, Mark doesn’t mention anything about the birth of Jesus and only gives us one verse to tell about satan’s temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. But he uses nearly 40% of his writing to describe the last week of Christ’s life.
- One Saturday In Bethany
- Sunday In Jerusalem (Palm Sunday)
- What Christians Often Miss About Zeal (Monday)
- Jesus Prepares Us For The Path (Tuesday)
- Sabbathing (Wednesday)
- Love Securely (Maundy Thursday)
- Sovereign Love (Good Friday)
- Supernatural Interference (Resurrection Sunday)
We Are: Pentecostal—Pentecost for over 1000 years was a celebration in Jerusalem that brought in Jews from all over the world. But on the Day of Pentecost that came just ten days after Jesus ascended back into heaven, the meaning of Pentecost was forever changed!
- The Empowerment Of Pentecost
- Don’t Stop At Salvation
- 5 Lessons From An Amazing Mother (Mother’s Day)
- The Unmistakable Evidence
- Everyday Evidence
- 4 Holy Spirit-Enhanced Habits
- 3 Lessons From A Devoted Dad (Father’s Day)
Is That In The Bible?—Sometimes things that sound “biblical” aren’t actually in the Bible at all, and sometimes they are there but are misquoted.
- Is this in the Bible: “God helps those who help themselves”? No. Does Self-Help Get God’s Help?
- Is this in the Bible: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you”? Yes, but…. The Devil Isn’t Scared Of You
- Is this in the Bible: “This is how you should take Communion”? No. Not How But Who
Selah—When you see this word in the Bible it can mean either a pause from the noise to reflect on something, a preparation for an exciting accent, or a reflective time of consideration. We are working our way through the Selahs in the Psalms.
- God’s Preference Is You
- The Nearness Of God
- Awesome God, Awesome Praise
- City Of God
- Ultimate Wisdom
- Rejoicing At The Coming Of The Judge
- How To Respond To Evildoers
Major Lessons From Minor Prophets—The five major prophets consist of 182 chapters, whereas the 12 minor prophets only have 67 chapters. The volume of these prophets writing may be minor, but their content carries major messages of meteoric power!
- A Minor Introduction
- A Bizarre Sermon Illustration
- It’s Time To Come Home
- The Day Of The Lord
- Are You Available?
- The Whole Story
- Let It Go
Fading Gratitude—Looking back at the history of God’s people in the Bible, there is a distinct up-and-down cycle. I believe their slipping away from God can be directly linked to their forgetfulness. If there is a peril in our forgetfulness, there is also a power in our thankfulness!
- Forgetfulness Can Be Fatal
- Ingratitude Can Mess Us Up
- Killing Discontentment
- A Radical Change In Perspective
The Carols Of Christmas—How many “old familiar carols” have you heard Christmas after Christmas until the words have almost lost their meaning? If we’re not careful, any song repeated too often can lose the richness of its original intent.
- Humbug?!
- Why Should Christians Sing?
- Is There Room In Your Heart For Jesus?
- What Does “Gloria In Excelsis Deo” Mean Today?
We will be returning to a couple of these series in 2020, and we’ll be launching some brand new ones as well. In either case, if you don’t have a home church in the northern Kent County area, I would love to have you join us!
