Dietrich Bonhoeffer observed: "Celebrating Advent means being able to wait. Waiting is an art that our impatient age has forgotten. It wants to break open the ripe fruit when it has hardly finished planting the shoot. But whoever does not know the austere blessedness of waiting—that is, of hopefully doing without—will never experience the full blessing of fulfillment. Those who do not know how it feels to struggle anxiously with the deepest questions of life, of their life, and to patiently look forward with anticipation until the truth is revealed, cannot even dream of the splendor of the moment in which clarity is illuminated."

This week Vince discusses how "waiting is not simply "my waiting" -- waiting is relational because it means we share another's clock and another's pace. Waiting on God means that we share His clock and His pace... join us as we reflect on what this means for our lives.

Researchers tell us that the average person will spend 2 years of his or her life waiting in line, 2 years playing telephone tag, and 10 months  waiting in traffic.  That is over 7 and a half years of waiting, at best doing nothing, or at worst experiencing great aggravation! The bottom line is that even in our fast-paced world, with postmodern conveniences, we are all waiting for something. However, as strange as it sounds, during the Advent season, we discover a purpose to our waiting. Let's visit about this!

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Researchers tell us that the average person will spend 2 years of his or her life waiting in line, 2 years playing telephone tag, and 10 months  waiting in traffic.  That is over 7 and a half years of waiting, at best doing nothing, or at worst experiencing great aggravation! The bottom line is that even in our fast-paced world, with postmodern conveniences, we are all waiting for something. However, as strange as it sounds, during the Advent season, we discover a purpose to our waiting. Let's visit about this!

Click here to download this week's notes.

This week's sermon: This week we look at analogy Paul uses to illustrate how Jesus' life, death, and resurrection can continue to transform lives even after His death and resurrection. In the process we learn a promise that God intends every follower of Jesus to understand and be engaged by: while God accepts us as we are He loves us to much to allow us to remain as we are. New life, opportunity, and possibility is around the corner for all us. Here we learn that when Jesus enter lives victims become an endangered species because God intends us to be "more than conquerors" though Jesus!

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This week's sermon: Ever wish that you could be a "fly on the wall" eavesdropping on a meeting, your kids, the Oval Office, or a historic event? This week we get a chance to be the proverbial "fly on the wall" in God's court as we learn God's plans and purposes and how they are echoed by Paul in his letter to Rome (Romans 5.1-11). 

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This week's sermon: This week Vince discusses the true keys to happiness as he looks at Jesus' introduction to the Sermon on the Mount:

Blessed are the poor, 
   Blessed are the weak,
      Blessed are the ones who mourn
         Blessed are those who long for justice...

Vince says, "I used to think they were called, "The Beatitudes", because they were attitudes that you should have... like in "BE these attitudes." But that’s not what it’s about. The term beatitude comes from the Latin noun, "beātitūdō", which means “happiness".

Take a listen as Vince answers the questions: Who should be happy? Who is in a position that will result in joy?

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The Lego Sermon: This week Lorissa leads our Family Sunday with a discussion of what it means to be a community together that values and needs everyone regardless of age. While the message may be short (!) the message is timeless for all of us!

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Dancing Joy: Jesus, A Jailor, and You! This week we take a break from Romans. Jim Foreman leads our counseling ministry. His message this week is an exuberant reflection on grace, freedom, and joy... and by the way, if you think a 70 year old saint cannot rap or do slam poetry... take a listen!

RUINED by love not circumstances: how does God show His love for us? Is this love capable of sustaining us during difficult times? Can we experience God's love even when we suffer? This week Vince speaks to these questions that many of us find ourselves asking...

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RUINED by "The Good Life": Everyone want to live the "good life". Is this possible for the follower of Jesus? Is this available for the follower of Jesus? Vince explores the answer to these questions as we look at Romans 5.1-2.

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RUINED by grace: This week we look at Romans 5.1-11. Here we see what God has done and what we "have" as a result. Not only does this highlight the distinctive that makes Christian faith unique among all religions but it has huge consequences for those who follow Jesus. For starters, it means that we do not have a spiritual life that is constantly looking over our shoulders with fear or paranoia that God is mad at us, judging us, or kicking us to the curb. Have a listen!

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This week we return to Romans: A Letter From A Life Ruined By Jesus. Any community depends on relationships that generously accept one another. A Christian community depends on this AND the awareness of God's presence. On what basis does God accept us? What should we base our acceptance of others upon? These are just a few of the items that were discussed today... 

Do to a technical glitch this week's message did not record through our sound board however we have this backup version which "works" but does not have the fidelity of our normal recordings.

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This week we return to Romans: A Letter From A Life Ruined By Jesus. This week we review, reflect on what it means to live RUINED, and refocus our life before God so that we might grow in our faith, relationships, and influence. We are learning that if Jesus does not spiritually RUIN our lives, then our lives will spiritually ruin ourselves!

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Celebrating FCC: What is a church really? How do we think about who we are here at Faith Community? Who do we aspire to be? How do we know we are are investing ourselves in ministries and opportunities that are consistent with our sense of "calling" as a community? This Sunday is our annual reflection and presentation to our congregation. The audio-stream contains Mark's comments... the notes for this week includes the financials that were reviewed with our community. Please feel free to have a look... we have nothing to hide!

Click here if you are interested in seeing the 10 minute video that was presented on Sunday. Just go easy on the old man with the droopy eyes, monotone voice, and low energy-- he obviously is not a media-savvy personality!

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A King and His Kingdom: Jim Scott, director of Foursquare Missions International, will challenge you on how to think about Jesus and the kingdom He announces. What does Jesus mean when He announces that He has come to "preach the Good News that the Kingdom of God is at hand"? Who is this "King"? And what are the characteristics of this Kingdom He announces?

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Eating Right was our Family Sunday message. Prior to the recording Mark spoke on foods that are "posers". Products that are offered as "healthy choices" that are anything but! Cereals that claim to be nutritious but have less nutritional value than a package of M&M's. Fruit juices boasting that they will improve your body and brain but have more sugar and calories than a can of Coke. Protein bars that have more sugar than a Snicker's bar. Posers pretend. To spot them you must examine their label and make a decision to honor your body. In 1 Corinthians 11.20-32 Paul talks about the Lord's supper and warns us that we can be "posers". The only way to avoid it is to examine our lives and make a decision to honor the Body of Christ (His presence and His people). 

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The story of Zechariah is the story of two men who are overwhelmed, discouraged, and powerless. God sends Zechariah to inspire these men that they may gain confidence to complete the task that God has set before them. Today we will discover what prophetic encouragement is and how we can share it with others...

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The story of Bezalel is a story of an ordinary man with an ordinary job being used by God in extraordinary ways. God used Bezalel's work to bring his presence close to the Israelite people. Today,  God still uses the occupations of ordinary humans to bring his presence, his transformation, and his loving care to the world.

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Jesus is being revealed to the world. Some people believe Him. Some people are adverse to Him. But there are these people who are around Jesus who are living proof that Jesus is who He claims to be. They testify that He has the power that He claims to have; that He conquers death and brings life... Lazarus is one of those people and we can be too!  

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This week we look at Mephibosheth – try saying that name 10 times fast! Here is a man orphaned and crippled when he was 5; self-exiled to a region whose name literally means, "the land of nothing"; and a self-esteem he, himself, describes as "a dead dog." Watch what happens when David, the King of Israel, intentionally seeks to imitate God's compassion in his care of this broken man.

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