Faithwestwood Umc

Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto. Friends bring buoyancy to our lives, so we can rise above our challenges. In the New Testament there are no solo Christians. All are born again into a family, into a net of friendships that hold us up when we fall

If you invest in a company, you hope its stock rises. If you invest in a person, you hope it has a long-term, positive impact on them. God has invested in you. When you belong to Jesus, the Holy Spirit gives you gifts, so you can bless others. And when you discover your gifts and put them to use, God gets a great return.

Let’s say you’re in your car on a cross-country road trip. A friend calls and asks, “Where are you?” You say, “I’m in Montana, but I’m not sure where.” The friend asks, “Where are you headed?”, and you know exactly. “I’m going to see my aunt and uncle in Portland.” You even remember the address. Not knowing precisely where you are is okay, as long as you know where you’re going. It’s the same in life. Who you are isn’t as important as where you’re headed. God sees not just who you are today but who you are becoming in the future. What do you see?

Ask any coach. A team will not win a game if it expects to lose. Players must expect to win, even if it means aiming for an upset. If they come prepared, work as a team, follow the game plan, and give maxed-out effort, they believe it will put them in a position to come out ahead. And even if they didn’t win the previous game, they have to come into the next one with high expectations. Jesus dared people to raise their expectations about what God can do in their lives. Many believed and saw amazing things.

If you’re packing for a trip, the last thing you want to forget is your phone charger. A drained phone battery is disastrous. For many of us the phone is our lifeline to home and work. In airports you see people everywhere plugging in and recharging. And it’s the same with us personally. We can’t run on empty; we need to recharge. That’s what Jesus did, and that’s what hope-filled people do.

An inventor comes up with an idea and gets to work in the hope that it just might work. A composer plays with a simple tune and then develops it in the hope that it might become a great song. Why do parents have children? Because they have hope that their offspring will become a blessing to the world. We all deal with difficulties and discouragement, but hope has the power to lift us up so we face life with confidence.

Special Guest, Pastor Ron Dotzler shares his vision to change our city. Ron shares how God called him and his family to live and serve in the inner city of Omaha, Nebraska. Pastor Ron is the founder of Abide Network.

Everyone has an opinion! Unfortunately, you’re going to hear it, whether you want to or not. But when we belong to Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit, how does that affect our opinions? When is it our opinion and when is it guidance coming from the Holy Spirit? And how do we know the difference? It’s never easy, but the first step is always humility.

Student Mission Sunday 2016. Hear stories from the 2016 Middle School and High School mission trips!

Nobody just shows up expecting to compete at the Olympics. You have to train with great coaches. You have to earn the privilege of representing your country on the global stage. Jesus came to get us in the game of a godly life. With his help we train ourselves. The goal is to please God in all we do: in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity – that’s godliness.

When you watch the Olympics, often the announcers are former competitors in that sport. They see details the rest of us don’t notice. Through years of training and experience they have developed an eye for technique and excellence. Jesus’s followers train with God’s word. If we don’t want to remain novices, we must learn to recognize good and evil. Godliness requires a distinguishing eye.

Success never happens without sacrifice. The glory of accomplishment requires dedication and self-denial. For those who belong to Jesus, we look to the needs of others and not just to our own. We sacrifice our privileges out of love for a sister or brother. We put aside the easy way because we want to please God. Sacrifice leads to godliness.

With special guest Derrick Jamison How many times have we said in exasperation, “Why doesn’t God do something?” It’s a fair question. It assumes that God is good and wants to do something about this terrible situation. And that’s where we end up sometimes, between the unfairness of life and the justice of God. But one day God’s justice and mercy will prevail – just what the world needs. That’s why we hang on

We have little experience with unfailing love. We’ve broken promises to others, and promises made to us have been broken. We’ve let people down, and people have let us down. Our love has failed many times. And if God is the same way, then God is not good. But once you discover that God’s love never fails, life becomes more hopeful.

It’s easy to think of God as an administrator who’s out of touch with what’s going on here on earth. A God like that is not good. But the Bible says that God feels compassion for his children. When you open your heart to God’s heart and begin to trust, it changes you. You want to praise God with all that you are.

Most Americans sing the national anthem. We pledge allegiance to the flag. As Christians, we appreciate our freedom to worship. We strive to be law-abiding citizens. And we pledge allegiance to an authority higher than our country.

June 26, 2016 / Guest Speaker Jason Buss Everybody loves love – or at least their version of it. But there is a love that is strange to this world. Jesus calls his disciples to demonstrate a love that is so unexpected, so shocking, it could only come from God

What do you see when you look to the future? Death of loved ones? Decline of your mental and physical faculties? Further spread of war and terrorism in the world? Yes, but. There are those strange people who see all those possibilities and still look to the future with hope.

We evaluate the day based on how it was for us. Was it a good day? A bad day? An easy day? A hard day? And then there are those strange people who don’t respond the way you’d expect. They find joy in their hardship. They rejoice when insulted. They exhibit strange joy.

Guest Speakers - Micah Corps Interns Micah Corps, a summer internship sponsored by the Great Plains United Methodist Conference. These young adults are spending their summer exploring different prayer practices, studying scripture, linking faith with social justice, and practicing leadership skills. Based on Micah 6:8, “What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God,” they are eager to share with and learn from congregations across the conference!