Public Church

Easter is marked by bright colors, but this Easter season feels dark. Covid-19 has turned our lives upside down, and some wonder if we will recover. We can easily ask questions like, “Is God silent? Does he even exist?“. 2,000 years ago, some people thought God was silent and were wondering if they just watched God die. However, their story didn’t end there and neither does ours. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Description: During Covid-19, many points of tension and conflict are heightened, which can leave us in a mental place where we are easily frustrated and on edge. We need a strategy that shifts the atmosphere of our homes and minds, and Jesus clarifies what worship is and reveals its potential impact in our lives. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

We are in a global crisis, and a crisis can immobilize us with fear, anxiety, and uncertainty. However, a vision mobilizes and inspires us to love and serve others even in these uncertain times. We invite you to serve as a Public Church. One way you can do that is dropping off food for our temporary food pantry. Here are items we need: Pasta, Pasta Sauce, Peanut Butter, Crackers, Rice, Boxed Mac and Cheese, Canned Veggies, Canned Soup, Jelly, Instant Oatmeal, Cereal, Chips, Biscuit/cornbread mix Drop Off: Wednesday and Thursday from 12pm – 3pm We discuss more ways to serve in the talk! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

When you look at the COVID-19 situation, what do you see? That’s an important question because our experiences and bias cause us to look at the same situation and see it differently. Also, what we see influences our levels of anxiety or peace…fear or confidence. We look at a story where Jesus sees something that no one else does, which challenges us to evaluate what we see. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Our default mindset in a global pandemic is often self-preservation, and it’s so easy for us to be consumed by our own interests. Paul, the author, wrote it while sitting in a prison cell. Therefore, we can find guidance for our mindset through Paul’s perspective from prison. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

When we experience hurt from people we are close with, it’s easy to get a firm grip on the pain, anger, and possibly even hatred. This grip on anger, if undealt with, with cause more damage on the inside that will in turn have a negative impact on others. The solution to this is forgiveness that we see patterned and displayed in the life of Jesus. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

In Galatians 6, Paul challenges the church to love and restore struggling people which goes against our natural tendencies to shame and distance ourselves from them. God has given the gift of a Church family to walk through struggles together. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Do you ever want to sit down with someone farther along in the journey to ask question and glean insights from their life? That’s exactly what Todd Stevison does in his conversation with Phil Taylor, CrossNet’s Lead Missions Strategist. Phil provides incredible wisdom through his experience, and he even speaks to a vision the Holy Spirit gave him of our campus. A vision we are now living in! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Why do we often couple our generosity with arrogance? Can we serve people while honoring their dignity by acknowledging that they are made in the image of God and have something to give as well? To finish our series, we dive into these tensions as we articulate our mindset for serving. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

How do we get so easily distracted from becoming love displayed? As we discussed last week, Jesus is clear that love is the one thing that will change everything, but often we are focused on so many other things. In the letter called Galatians, we find a church who is distracted, but Paul writes to refocus them. As we dig in, his challenge can refocus us, too. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Many of us can distract ourselves from thinking about the brevity of life, but when people die at young ages, we come face to face with the reality of our death. As we consider our own mortality, this question can give us perspective: what is one thing that could change everything? If we can find an answer to this question, then we can live lives that count. Lives that matter while we are on earth, and lives that set us up well for life after earth. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

James was the leader of the church in Jerusalem, the birthplace of the church. In chapter 2 of his letter, he writes an intense and direct passage about the relationship between our faith and action. Did James’ writing contradict other church leaders? Or is it an inescapable challenge that every Jesus followers must embrace? --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Do you ever want to just tell someone, “Prove It.”? It can really frustrating and even destructive to be around people who claim to be one way, but their actions say otherwise. When we look in the mirror, we realize that sometimes we are the duplicitous person, even though we want to make sure our actions and words match. Therefore we begin our series with this question: where do I start? --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Join us today as Collin Cooke unpacks 2 Corinthians 5:1-6, where Paul challenges us to truly consider the cost of following Jesus and challenges Jesus followers to live as bright lights, pointing to Jesus, in a world where eyes are veiled from seeing Him. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

What kind of church does Jesus want Public Church to be in the next decade? To answer this question, we dive into a prayer Jesus prayed for us about 2,000 years ago. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Have you ever felt disappointed by God? If so, how do you process these feelings? Todd Stevison and Nathan Eaton have a conversation about Nathan’s journey, which includes feelings of disappointment towards God. Nathan challenges us to ask the God who did the impossible on the first Christmas, to do the impossible in our lives. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

Could it be that God sometimes invites us into impossible situations, that are pre-packaged with pain, so that he can display his limitless power and change lives? Mary’s story, which begins in Luke 1:26-38, leads us to ask questions like this and offers some answers. Mary shows how to respond when Immeasurably More doesn’t look like we thought it would. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

The Christmas story is the story of the impossible, and many of us are facing circumstances that look impossible. As a church, we’ve been praying for God to do immeasurably more all year, but when faced with situations that look hopeless, do we still believe he can do what we’ve prayed for? In Luke 1:5-25, we meet Zechariah and Elizabeth, who had no hope of having a child. Yet, God did the impossible. Their story gives us backdrop for how we can approach our circumstances. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

This week is a special Sunday as we kick off the Christmas season with a lot of laughter, smiles, and a powerful opener by Public Worship. We also took time to read the Christmas story with our kids, and share an impactful Jesus Connection. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message

In the holiday season, or really any season, we can fall into a “Survive and Advance” or a “Let off the Gas and Coast” mindset. In Philippians 3:12-16, Paul discusses a better approach through a vivid athletic metaphor. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/apublicchurch/message