October 30, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Have you ever looked at all of the prescribed maintenance suggestions in the owner’s manual for your vehicle? It takes a lot to keep a car drivable and in good repair. But, just doing maintenance and repair will not ultimately get you there – to your desired destination. There is still one more step you have to take! Listen as we conclude our Road to Financial Freedom Series and put our faith in drive! Together we will read and study Malachi 3:6-12. Don’t forget that this is Commitment Sunday. We will have an opportunity during worship to discern our commitment to God for 2012. What a gift it is to be able to respond to God’s generosity towards us! Let us commit individually and collectively to accelerating our joyful generosity. Let us Put It In Drive! Following worship we will participate in a ribbon cutting for the newly renovated St. Mark’s Park and enjoy a Financial Freedom Reception in the Triunda.
Blessings,
Pastor Ben
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October 9, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Life is a highway and we do ride it! This Sunday we begin a four part sermon series entitled, The Road to Financial Freedom. We will look at the current financial highway we are barreling down and talk about where it leads. For way too many of us it is debt highway and it leads to bondage and brokenness. But Scripture tells us that God wants us to be free – free to follow his lead and to pursue his will. So how do we get off of debt highway and onto The Road to Financial Freedom? Come find some answers, some help, and a new mapyou can follow on Sunday. We will study the story of The Rich Young Ruler (Matthew 19:16-26), listen as Jesus diagnoses his problem, and seek to learn from the remedy Jesus offers him. If you or someone you know is in financial bondage, you will not want to miss these next four Sundays. No matter where you may be on debt highway, please know that it is never too late to turn around and head in a new direction. Remember – with God all things are possible! Come and hear how to be set free!
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October 2, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Ever feel like you are running the rat race or at a minimum that you are running in the wrong direction most days? The apostle Paul did but then one day he ran smack dab into God when he least expected to and discovered that what he needed was to make a major course correction. So he stopped running the wrong race and instead turned and set out on the original Amazing Race toward life in Christ. Along the way he invited others to join him. This Sunday, as we conclude our Rules of Engagement sermon series, we will read Philippians 3:4b-4:1 and hear the invitation to lace up our shoes and join The Amazing Race. Come prepared to run!
Blessings,
Pastor Ben
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September 25, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Do you remember as a child playing dress-up, putting on crowns, waving around wands, and pretending you were the prince or princess of your own kingdom? Most of us eventually grew up, stopped dressing up, and left the magical fairy tale world of make believe behind. While we may have stopped wearing crowns, have we really outgrown the mentality or do most of us still live in our own little kingdoms? Do we still live with the idea that we are in charge and that we call the shots? In our text for Sunday - Philippians 2:1-13 – we are going to hear a call to leave our own kingdom behind and to enter into the Kingdom of God. The invitation will be to put down our crowns and follow after the example of Christ. You might call it a LIFESwap. Come Sunday and hear about life in a different kingdom with different rules and values. Come and learn that life in the Kingdom of God is so much better than any kingdom we might create!
Blessings,
Pastor Ben
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September 18, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Have you looked at our vision for St. Mark’s lately? I have, and it is absolutely ridiculous! We want to make disciples, transform lives of children and youth, update our facilities, relieve hunger in our community and around the world, and launch an alternative worship service. Whew! I get tired just thinking about that list. It is really an impossible vision…if we try to do it alone. Yet, in our scripture passage for this Sunday, Philippians 1:21-30, we hear Paul’s encouraging word to the Philippians Church: “strive side by side with one mind for the faith of the Gospel.” Despite the suffering he is experiencing, he is joyful and passionate for God’s work. It won’t be easy, but if we labor TOGETHER for the Gospel, our unrealistic vision is indeed possible. What is your part in our vision?
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Tawny
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September 4, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people of all ages: we have an exciting announcement to make! Reality TV is coming to St. Mark’s. Starting this Sunday with the hit series Rules of Engagement we will experience a wonderful year of Reality TV. For more on this announcement join us on Sunday as we study Romans 13:8-14 and kickoff our fall season.
Blessings,
Pastor Ben
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August 28, 2011 – 11:59 pm
This Sunday our Hot Summer Reads Series starts to really heat up as we encounter the story of Moses and The Burning Bush(Exodus 3:1-15). For many Moses is a big time biblical hero. We hear his name and the image of Charlton Heston in the movie The Ten Commandments comes to mind. But do you know Moses’ backstory? Do you know about his checkered past? In reality he is actually a most unusual suspect for God to use to deliver God’s people. Or is he? What kind of person does God typically call and use to deliver God’s people? Come Sunday as we learn about The Usual Suspects God calls to deliver his people out of bondage and suffering. Who knows – maybe even you are a likely suspect!
Blessings,
Pastor Ben
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August 21, 2011 – 11:59 pm
We continue our Hot Summer Reads sermon series with the second half of Joseph’s story. Last week we read how a family was torn apart by jealousy, revenge, and the ultimate deception, and Pastor Ben challenged the congregation to examine ourselves and identify places where we have feuds within our own relationships. We will now turn to Joseph’s Secret Identity, a heartwarming tale of how one man’s reunion with his family saved the life of a nation -Genesis 45:1-15. The reality is that Joseph isn’t the only one with a secret identity, but once we come clean about who we are, we can begin to grow into who God wants us to be. By understanding how Joseph was able to forgive his brothers, we will consider how we might begin the hard work of reconciliation in our own relationships.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Tawny
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Pastor Tawny??!
August 14, 2011 – 11:59 pm
We begin a three week sermon series entitled Hot Summer Reads with a story from Genesis 37:1-28 - Family Feud: a family torn apart by jealousy, revenge, and the ultimate deception . In week two we will look at the conclusion to the story – a heartwarming tale of how one man’s reunion with his family saved their life. (Genesis 45:1-15) The series will conclude on August 28th with the story of Moses’ encounter with the burning bush. (Exodus 3:1-15 ) If you think it is hot outside wait until you see how hot things get in these three stories! Listen, as we explore the ‘fun’ in the dysfunctional dynamics of Jacob’s family and hear a call to reconciliation.
Blessings,
Pastor Ben
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August 7, 2011 – 11:59 pm
Psalm 126, Habakkuk 2:1-2 , and John 15:1-4
Author, speaker, and workshop/retreat leader Enuma Okoro shares her thoughts on The Discipline of Dreaming.
Enuma was born in the United States and raised in Nigeria, Ivory Coast and England. She holds a Master of Divinity degree from Duke University Divinity School where she served as Director for the Center for Theological Writing. She has served as a Spiritual Formation Leader for seminarians and continues to lead worship and retreats for both youth and adults. Her writing has been featured in ABC News Good Morning America, Christianity Today, The UpperRoom Disciplines, as well as many others. To read more about Enuma, click here..
The Discipline of Dreaming
