Spring of Life Messages

Today is Milestone Sunday, we celebrate the milestones and the hard work it took to get there. As you enter a new chapter ask yourself what you will seek. You’ll be tempted to pursue many things but what is the most important? In the world of AI and overwhelming advertising we need wisdom now more than ever! How do we learn to seek wisdom?

Miriam was one of the three leaders God sent to free the Hebrew people, and her story—from watching over baby Moses to leading the women in song at the Red Sea—shows us that God uses ordinary things in ordinary hands to do extraordinary work. Like Miriam, we are called to bring what we already have and trust God with it.

With all of that work, Nehemiah is now ready to build! He continues the work of discernment while implementing his plan and facing opposition. It is clear to see how this is part of God’s plan for restoring Jerusalem and spreading the good news to all the people. Building the wall was just one step and that facilitated what happened in chapter 7. How do we learn from Nehemiah and follow this path?

Nehemiah is courageously vulnerable with people around him, he seeks to understand what is broken, the whole time he prays building doing what we talked about last week. He listens to God, to people, to the situation. And begins to discern how God could use him.

Nehemiah serves as a case study for discernment.  We will define discernment and ask the a simple question, “what should I do”. How do we respond to news like Nehemiah gets, how do we respond to every day choices and discern God’s will? Discernment is a tool we have a special song to sing with our lives. In order to discern we need to first, recognize God’s active presence in all things. Second, listen to the divine whisper. Third, keep God’s big dream alive. Nehemiah’s story illustrates this so well.

What does it mean to truly thirst for God? When you find yourself in a dry or searching season, where do you turn to be filled? Drawing from Psalm 63:1–5, this message explores a personal story of deep thirst, David’s longing for God in the wilderness, and how that same longing is met through Christ at Residing Hope.

The Christus Victor understanding of atonement is one that focuses on the triumph of Jesus and invites us to participate in his final victory. When we embrace the reality of salvation we are able to face the worst consequences of sin and death with hope.  Because Jesus is alive I too can overcome.

Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday walking towards the cross. If we look closely at the gospel accounts we see him moving towards the cross flipping tables, upper room, garden of gethsemane, conversation with Pilate, and more he was actively choosing the cross. This reflects the heart of God. Willingly submitting to death.

The highest expression of love is sacrificial love and the ultimate sacrifice is giving of yourself. Jesus did that, willingly for each of us. Knowing that fact, we can’t simply view the cross as a formulaic transaction but as the deepest expression of love. This is one of the purest forms of love like that of a parent for a child.

Jesus calls us to follow his example and the cross is part of that example. The cross is the ultimate example of God’s love and service. We are called not to be crucified but to walk the path of following Christ’s footsteps and serving the kingdom above all else.

Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He is our Passover lamb, salvation. Once again, God uses existing images of salvation to speak the good news of God’s saving power.

The most popular understanding of the cross is penal substitutionary atonement. Jesus completes the temple sacrifice model we see described in the Old Testament. Jesus is the sacrifice, the high priest, and the one who forgives all in one.

Jesus is the word of God. Everything he says and does is a message. Every action, spoken word, ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection communicates the heart of God. Jesus is the recapitulation making things right, embodying the good news of God all the way back to Adam.

How can you tell a person follows Jesus? It is just with their words or is it also with their actions? Service is a way we complete the cycle of our faith. Said another way, when we live out our faith by serving others we find deep joy and inspiration to continue dedicating our lives to God. If you want to go far on your journey with Jesus you need to find ways to serve.

The command to take a sabbath is not a burden to carry but rather a gift. God invites us to choose a lifestyle of work and rest. A rhythm which includes sabbath weekly. How do each of us respond to God’s invitation to deep rest?

Fasting isn’t a popular spiritual discipline. Going without is counter cultural. These scriptures explore how fasting is a spiritual gift that helps us grow in our walk with Jesus.

The Prophet Elijah has been seeking God and risking everything to be faithful. God shows up to the prophet in an unlikely way. How do we learn to find God in the silence and actively work to create space in our lives where we can listen to God?

The Bible is a gift that God gives us that helps us faithfully live out the call God places on each of our lives. By practicing the spiritual discipline of reading scripture the stories of God shape us allowing us to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and strength. The successes and failures of those who went before us guides our path.

Daniel is faithful in prayer and we can learn from his witness. He talks to God every day in many different situations. How do we allow the spiritual discipline of prayer to shape us on our good days and when we find ourselves in the lion’s den?

Every year we begin by renewing our covenant to God and submitting to follow Christ. We will reflect on the talents God has given to us and pray the Wesleyan Covenant Prayer. This is a time of deep surrender, faithfulness, and commitment to following Christ in the new year.

The Holy family flees Herod’s murderous rage, fulfilling a prophecy. Jesus is revealed as the new Moses and the humanity of his vulnerable family is on full display. God uses the tragedy to fulfill the prophecies about who Jesus would become.

The most profound part of the story of the Grinch is the ending most people skip over.  The grinch carves the roast beast, he is welcomed to the table and given the seat of honor. The heart of the Grinch grew and the hearts of the Who’s grew as well. The heart of God grew to give us baby Jesus and our hearts should grow in response. We welcome Jesus into the world and the transformation he brings.

The Grinch responded to what the Whos had done. They sang songs of Joy so instead of gleefully dumping their possessions off Mount Crumpet, he brought them all back to town. The Magi responded to what God had done with a desire to give what they had. The historic enemy is included in the celebration of Christmas.

The grinch and Joseph both had unmet expectations. The grinch expected people to cry when their toys were gone but they sang a joyful song instead. Joseph expected to get married and start a family like everyone else but then his life suddenly changes and he has a choice to make.

The Grinch was excited to expose Christmas for what it really is, a fraud. Mary gets to be a part of something big, revealing God for who God really is. Their hearts are both changed in the process and other lives are changed as well.

Zechariah didn’t believe it was possible. The Grinch didn’t believe a heartfelt celebration of Christmas was possible either, he was cynical, thought it just all came from a store. By the time John the Baptist is born, Zechariah’s heart has grown, and he believes in what God will do. 

The paradoxes about money we've explored aren't meant to be resolved privately but lived out in the context of Christian community, where we help each other discern faithful stewardship. Individually, we must examine our hearts with diagnostic questions (Am I hoarding or stewarding? Giving or spending selfishly?) while recognizing that the answers will vary based on our unique situations—but we need the church to help us see our blind spots and resist cultural conformity. As a church body, we're called to practice the radical economic sharing of the early church, create space for honest conversations about money without shame, challenge materialism, celebrate generosity, and embody an alternative economy that witnesses to God's kingdom through mutual aid and sacrificial love.

Scripture affirms both the wisdom of saving and planning and the call to radical generosity and daily trust in God's provision. The path of faithfulness isn't choosing one over the other but discerning which word you most need to hear: if you tend toward anxious hoarding, you need Jesus' call to trust and give; if you tend toward impulsive spending, you need Proverbs' call to plan and provide. Mature stewardship means saving for real needs while giving sacrificially, planning wisely while trusting ultimately, holding everything with open hands ready to release when God calls.

The Bible presents wealth as both divine blessing and spiritual danger refusing to give us a simple answer about whether money is good or bad. The truth is that wealth, like any powerful gift from God, can either serve kingdom purposes or become an idol depending on the condition of our hearts. Money is morally neutral, in biblical times people bartered a lot. How do we receive both the blessing and not fall into the dangerous traps of money?

What do we believe about death, and what does it teach us about a life well lived? We honor the saints who have gone before us and explore the hope and mystery of rapture theology. As we remember those from our community who have passed in the past year, we ask: how does their legacy call us to live with greater faith and purpose today?

How do we embrace the gifts of technology without allowing it to become an idol we are addicted to or a force that dehumanizes our neighbors. How do we have a healthy connection with technology. How do we name where we are in our relationship with technology and strive to be healthier.  We need to explore screen time, lack of human connection, scrolling, and mental health. 

Jesus cautions us against making judgment of others before doing our own self-reflection. Ultimately God is the judge of people. We should have an attitude of humility and compassion toward others.

The world feels anything but peaceful these days many of us long for peace. Not merely absence of violence but the presence of real peace. Jesus offers his disciples the gift of peace of heart and mind. How do we receive peace and how do we live as peace makers?

In pop theology we think of heartbreak as something that happens to people who engage in sinful behavior. But heartbreak is a reality of sin and brokenness. The heart of God breaks many times in the bible, the fall of humanity in Genesis 3, Lazarus' death, crucifixion, the destruction of Jerusalem, the golden calf, and more. What's happening in the world breaks God’s heart today. Do we love God enough to allow it to break our hearts too?

Ghandi once said, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” This is the disconnect between being Christian in belief but not action.  How do we allow our faith to direct all our decisions from family, to money, to work, to how we spend our free time?

What Did Jesus mean in the sermon on the mount when he said, "Don't worry" and what that means for our lives?  Why did Jesus say not to worry? Because life is more than it seems, because God is fully invested in your care, because worry changes nothing, and because God's provision is sufficient for your life.

The veil in the Old Testament that symbolized the sins of God’s people prevented them from seeing His Glory and has been removed by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Now we are invited into God’s Glory and thus the transformation of our earthly lives to the eternal values of the Kingdom.

When people have different gifts, talents, passions, experiences we have a choice in how we approach difference. We can welcome it or we can be afraid of it. The image of the body of Christ gives us a framework for how to approach differences when we encounter them. That doesn’t mean we will all agree, but it does remind us of the value of each person contributes to the body of Christ.

Jesus wants wholeness for you in mind body and spirit. The heart of God is revealed in the story of the suffering man and it also revealed some of the things his neighbors valued more than his wellbeing. How do we follow Chrit in ways that bring wholeness to ourselves and others? Do people say, I want what she has?

We are called to be in relationship with each other as people of faith because we are all part of the one body. Relationships are hard work but they are so infinitely valuable. How are you building relationships to build up the body of Christ?

Generosity is a tangible way we show we care about others. Christians aren’t the people who say, it doesn’t affect me directly so I don’t care.  Look at the witness of the Corinthians. How are you being generous with what you have? It often isn’t money.

What shapes your mind and your thoughts? Do you simply allow anything into your mind? If we are selective about what we spend our money on, shouldn’t we be just as selective about what thoughts, videos, ideas, and content we put into our minds? Do these things influence us more than Christ?

Our youth had some great stories to tell and shared their testimonies of how they saw God working in wonderful ways over the summer! Whether it was Warren Willis, their mission trip down to Florida City, or their recent mission camp, God was working through them in incredible life-giving ways.

Revelation 19-22

Revelation 16-18

Revelation 13-15

Revelation 10-12

How does the story of the Bible End? We’ll explore the book of revelation and summarize the ending of the book by remembering the story of the two other gardens and trees where God changed the world (Eden, the cross, and the new Jerusalem).

Revelation 7-9

Revelation 4-6