Upon This Rock: Keys to the Kingdom

Having settled our identity, we move into the authority of the community. This series explores the "Rock" in action. The Church is not a social club or a self-help workshop; it is the unique place on earth where the things of God—the things that actually regenerate and change lives—are delivered and applied. We are diving into the "Office of the Keys," exploring the staggering reality that Jesus has entrusted His people with the power to bind and loose, to forgive and to hold fast. This is about the "Power of the Keys" as the primary currency of our common life and not just the weekly exercise of the Divinely Called. It’s where the theology of the cross meets the sidewalk, asking what it looks like to be a community where forgiveness is practiced, where presence is a systemic necessity, and where our unity is a miraculous byproduct of the Gospel rather than a forced uniformity. We are looking at the Church as a "Kingdom Glimpse," a space where heaven and earth are bound together in the simple, profound acts of communal life.

From the overarching theme ‘Upon this Rock’ based on the text from Matthew 16 where the disciples confess Jesus as the Christ, we hear Jesus say something peculiar - a reference to the ‘keys’ of the Kingdom. 

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Mt 16:19.

But what does this mean? That people, mere humans, are granted the power of forgiving and withholding forgiveness? Does this mean that you and I get to decide ‘hmmm…should I forgive this person or should I not - thereby sending them to hell?’ BY NO MEANS 

Upon This Rock: Who Are You?

Before we can define our mission, we must be defined by our Maker. This series is a deep dive into the identity that precedes all action. It is a "Day One" audit of the soul, stripping away the labels the world tries to stick on us and the "Who do people say I am?" noise of the culture. We are leaning into the radical Christian reality of the Extra Nos—the truth that our value and identity are located entirely outside of ourselves, in the person and work of Jesus. By exploring the Solas and the Sacraments, we aren't just learning facts; we are being reminded that we too are renamed and remade daily and progressively into the image of Christ. We start with who we are because of Him, acknowledging that our ability to confess "You are the Christ" is a gift of revelation, not a feat of intellect. This is a time of foundational comfort, where the congregation is invited to see themselves not as a group in transition, but as a people firmly rooted in an eternal lineage of grace.

This series will serve two but possibly THREE purposes.

• The PRIMARY purpose is: a reminder of (at the core level) who we are in Christ. The question Jesus asks is ‘who do YOU say I am.’ But we start rather with ‘Who are WE because of HIM’ because our confession of who Jesus is comes as Holy Spirit revelation to US. Then we respond and proclaim ‘Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.’

• Secondly, this series has opportunity for the congregation to recall/remember/reinforce herself of her particular personality. Here we have some creative opportunity to ‘Tell Luke the stories’ of St. Matthew.

• Third - least important and what ought to be just naturally occurring is that the congregation will start to get to know Luke.

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I’m Complicated- June14, 2026

I’m Human- June 21, 2026

I’m Learning- June 28, 2026

I’m Unconventional- July 5, 2026

Resurection Stories

“Coming Face to Face With Jesus”

A few weeks ago I was talking with a friend of mine – a young guy about 30 years old. We were talking about God-stuff and applying it to our lives when all of a sudden he looks at me with a smile on his face and a sparkle in his eye and says, “Imagine how it would change you if you came face to face with Jesus right now! Wouldn’t that be amazing?

What do you think? What if YOU came face to face with Jesus right now?

In the next few weeks, we are going to focus on people who actually did come face to face with Jesus AFTER He rose from the dead. We are going to see – and just perhaps marvel – how He connected with them in their tears and fears, doubts and emptiness, offering and giving to them new life in relationship with Him and with it peace and certainty, hope and fullness, direction and power. We will see how it changed them and the difference it made in their lives....And how it can for you and me as well as through these stories the living Jesus mysteriously comes face to face with you and me!

For the “Resurrection stories do not end with those we read in the Bible. I see and hear them every day! They are happening all over the world as well as right in front of us, even in our own lives! Jesus came, finally, to bring His story into our stories of brokenness, emptiness, doubts, fears, and death! Jesus is alive and He is on the move! Through these stories by the power of the Holy Spirit He comes “face to face “with each of us to give each of us our own “Resurrection Story!” Where do you especially need this in your life?

In Great Fears, Peace- April 12, 2026

In Great Shadows, Light- April 19, 2026

In Great Doubts, Certainty- April 26, 2026

In Great Needs, Family- May 3, 2026

In Great Uncertainty, Clarity- May 10, 2026

Living in Anticipation- May 17, 2026

Wind and Fire- May 24, 2026

The Bottom Line Story- May 31, 2026

Running the Race (Passing the Baton)- June 7, 2026

Prayer In Light of the Cross

Welcome to Lent! For a millennium and longer, Christians have used these 40 days before the great celebration of the Resurrection victory of Jesus for reflection, repentance, and a renewed focus on living in the reality of the cross of Jesus.

Repentance, at its root, is a “changing of our mind,” a turning away from everything that is not of God and turning toward the cross, embracing anew our life with Jesus through the forgiveness of our sins by grace through faith.

Have you ever heard someone describe “intimacy as “into-me-you-see”? In our Wednesday services we will consider how our Savior teaches us how to pray, the link between the blessed kingdom of heaven and the gracious will of the Father, and how our prayers draw us into a life of intimacy with God; He sees into me, and I see into Him.

Click here to view the videos and Lenten devotions

Dear Children- Holy Name! Ash Wednesday- February 18, 2026

Kingdom/Will- February 25, 2026

Bread- March 4, 2026

Forgiveness- March 11, 2026

Temptation/Evil- March 18, 2026

Kingdom, Power, Glory- March 25, 2026

Diamond Vision

Jesus –and what He means to us – is like a many faceted diamond. In one sense, He means the same for each of us….but in another, who He is and what He offers to us is different for each one of us depending on what we are going through in our lives. Further, even as we individually live our lives in the constant change of circumstances and struggles, He is there for us every day exactly as we need Him to be, a multi-faceted diamond! Perhaps this is why the Bible has four different books that narrate Jesus life – to begin to show us this many-faceted diamond that IS Jesus! Perhaps this is why, in the first chapter of the book of Romans alone, the word Gospel – Good News – is used seven times concerning Jesus! Jesus is Good News for each of us in every facet of our lives!

In the next few weeks, we will explore Jesus in “Diamond Vision,” looking to understand a little better the many faceted ways that His love would touch our lives and the lives of all in the multifaceted realities of our lives. This is Good News!...to receive and to give away! Where/how do you need a Savior in your life?

Click here to view the videos and Lenten devotions

Falling Plates February 22, 2026

Freedom Within- March 1, 2026

Paper Hats- March 8, 2026

Flow- March 15, 2026

The Search- March 22, 2026

Newly Forged- March 29, 2026

Immanuel: God IS With Us!

What do you do when God seems far away?...or when you feel really alone and you wonder if –or how – He is there with you?...or when you can’t figure Him out, especially given what you are going through?...or when...well, you get the picture. The name given in prophecy to Jesus – recalled by the angel Gabriel with Joseph – was Immanuel. Immanuel means God with us.  Jesus is God with us! You want to know God and what it means that He is with you?...Jesus is where to look...for His voice, His heart, His touch, His wisdom, His power IN OUR LIVES. In Jesus is the answer to our questions and to our longings...Come and see!

January 11, 2026- Hearing His Voice

Jesus said, “my sheep hear my voice and I know them...” Jesus is with us, right now in our lives. He is Immanuel – God with us!  But what is His voice saying to us?...to you? Come and hear!

January 18, 2026- Knowing His Heart

What does Jesus think of me?...What does Jesus think of me when....?  Jesus is Immanuel – God with us always! So, what  is His heart toward me in every moment?

January 25, 2026- Feeling His Touch

Throughout the Gospels Jesus touched people. What does this say to us about Jesus being with us in our lives? How is He touching me right now?

February 1, 2026- Seeing With His Eyes

Is the glass half full or half empty? Mindset/worldview is so powerful in our lives, is it not? It makes a world of difference in how we see things and how we live our lives. What is the vision of Jesus as Immanuel – God with us? How does He see me? How does He see what I am going through? How does He see others? What does it meant that He would give us this vision for our eyes?

February 8, 2026- Living In His Power

We all need power from somewhere in our lives. We look for this power in so many places and ways but finally, all these fall short – do they not? If Jesus is God with us – and He is -  what does it mean to know and live in His power right now? One thing we can be sure, this power will never dimmish or disappoint!

February 15, 2026- Transfiguration Sunday

This is the Sunday that this series is all pulled together. On the mountain we see that GOD is with us!...But then He leads us back down...to live in Him here. What does this mean for you and for me?