Search Results for: hope

Posted: 03 Mar, 2019 | Author: Steve Nelson

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that […]

Posted: 16 Dec, 2018 | Author: Dove Cranson

Life is hard.  It is not what it was intended to be.  Because of the brokenness in this world, we all experience pain, loss, and suffering.  Grief is a path we must all walk through in this broken life.  It is a product of the broken world we live in.  When we are aware of […]

Posted: 02 Dec, 2018 | Author: Dove Cranson

We live in a world where we admire the things that are better, bigger, faster.  There is often an unspoken expectation to not have weaknesses but to always be strong and capable.  But the reality is we all have weaknesses.  We all fall short in one way or another.  If we are excelling in one […]

Posted: 21 Oct, 2018 | Author: Steve Nelson

But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. The way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know over what they stumble. Proverbs 4:18-19 ESV In our early 20s, a friend and I explored Spring Cave in northwestern Colorado. Within a […]

Posted: 03 Jun, 2018 | Author: Steve Nelson

[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:7 NIV Is that the kind of love you desire? Sometimes instead of being “protected,” we get hurt by those we love. “Trust” is something that we value, but once that trust gets violated, it is hard to get it back. As long as […]

Posted: 25 Mar, 2018 | Author: Steve Nelson

Romans 8:22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. ESV Sometimes in the midst of difficulty we can feel like something must be wrong. We aren’t naive. We know life is hard; but we don’t expect it to be this hard. When we try to make […]

Posted: 28 Jan, 2018 | Author: Steve Nelson

Jesus’ heart is that all the world would hear His message of hope and grace. Our call is to spread this message. We don’t need to feel guilty about how we’ve failed at this in the past, but it would be good to think about how we can take steps down this path so that […]

Posted: 29 Oct, 2017 | Author: Steve Nelson

God has given each of us amazing stories of how He has worked in our lives. Fear can keep us from telling people about these incredible events, and as a result, they miss out on learning from us and being encourage by what God has done in our lives. However, through him, we can be […]

Posted: 22 Oct, 2017 | Author: John Houser

The gospel is the most important message in the history of the world. We are privileged to be a part of following Jesus and spreading hope to a world in desperate need. This is God’s call on our lives: the Great Commission. Download Handout

Posted: 03 Sep, 2017 | Author: Steve Nelson

We all find plenty to complain about, whether it is genuine hardships like sickness, suffering, and death, or it is the little stuff like having to eat the same thing for dinner that we had for lunch. As we see in the example of the Israelites (Numbers 11:1-6), complaining leads to misery, even in times […]

Posted: 27 Aug, 2017 | Author: Dove Cranson

Dove shares about how he has felt a tendency in his own life to isolate himself or become isolated from others.  Yet, the hope of Christ is that his family (his church) will relentlessly fight these tendencies and pursue unity.  We each have a role in building up the family of God and staying united […]

Posted: 09 Apr, 2017 | Author: Steve Nelson

Have you ever thought about the Day of Judgement—when Jesus addresses the masses of people who have lived since the beginning of the world? Will He be angry and condemning? Loving and compassionate? In this imagined account of Judgment Day, Jesus pours out his heart to those he loves—a jilted lover to those who rejected […]

Posted: 02 Apr, 2017 | Author: Dove Cranson

This message is from a morning dedicated to the upcoming mission trip to China.  Jason, who is leading the trip, explains his passion for China, his family’s experience there, and the upcoming trip.  Using the book of 2 Thessalonians as a model, Dove then leads the group in prayer as we ask God for help […]

Posted: 26 Feb, 2017 | Author: Steve Nelson

We should never be surprised when we find ourselves discouraged or even despondent. After all, we live in terrible times. Yet God offers hope in the midst of our trials. Jesus said, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” We can find life from God even […]

Posted: 05 Feb, 2017 | Author: Dove Cranson

From Super Bowl losses, to the loss of loved ones, we will all have disappointments in our lives.  In this message Dove wrestles through some of the disappointments in his own life, explaining some of the anchors he has found and continues to cling to along the way.  It is the journey to find God […]

Posted: 16 Oct, 2016 | Author: Steve Nelson

How can the church be a hospital for broken and sinful people and also hope to have a standard of behavior that reflects our higher calling? Is it possible to be loving and compassionate and yet draw a line in the sand and say that certain behaviors are not acceptable among God’s people? In this […]

Posted: 12 Jun, 2016 | Author: Steve Nelson

We know that following God pays off in the next life, but does it pay off in this life? Can we expect a blessing in following God, or is that some sort of prosperity-gospel teaching? We need to be careful to avoid both extremes in this matter. We shouldn’t expect wealth and health from following God, […]

Posted: 08 May, 2016 | Author: Dove Cranson

In this message, Dove talks about coming together as a church—not only as the local church, but as a community of followers of Christ within this city, country, and world. We were made to thrive in unity and togetherness. “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when […]

Posted: 17 Apr, 2016 | Author: Steve Nelson

This is the first of a four-part series called “There is.” Our “There is” campaign is a rallying call, to not just be a group of people who meet together on Sunday mornings, but, to be one body with one faith, following one God. It is based on this verse: There is one body and one […]

Posted: 09 Apr, 2016 | Author: Dove Cranson

In this Easter sermon, Dove talks about the beautiful story of the resurrection of Jesus. But beyond that, we explore the hope of the resurrection and what it means for us. With the resurrection, we have hope. With the resurrection, we carry the truth. With the resurrection, we have purpose.   Download

Posted: 12 Dec, 2015 | Author: Steve Nelson

Merry Christmas from the Rio! In this message, Steve talks about how, before the first Christmas, the world eagerly waited for the Lord’s first coming—and also about how we now wait for his second coming to take us all home. “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” – Psalm […]

Posted: 21 Jun, 2015 | Author: Dove Cranson

“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know […]

Posted: 16 May, 2015 | Author: Steve Nelson

As we continue our series through Philippians, we’re going to take a look at the place of suffering in a Christian’s life. Suffering is very real, not only in the sense of the persecuted church, but also in the sense of the day-to-day struggles and battles that we face regularly. These sufferings, in whatever form, […]

Posted: 04 Jan, 2015 | Author: Steve Nelson

To experience genuine love and deep relationships we have to make some tough choices in our own lives. As hard as that is, those decisions we make to be patient, humble, protective, trusting, and hopeful produce a love that is tough enough to last.   Download Handout PDF

Posted: 02 Jun, 2019 | Author: Dove Cranson

Because God is our provided and He is our hope to have all our needs met (see last week’s message), we can be content with where we are in life.  This message looks at the core of how to manage our finances with a trust in God who is a good giver and according to […]

Posted: 01 Sep, 2019 | Author: Steve Nelson

When we understand how God works in times of trouble, it helps us hold onto hope and stand strong until the time of rescue.

Posted: 13 Oct, 2019 | Author: Steve Nelson

Perhaps the greatest reason we don’t pray more is because we lack faith that our prayers will make a difference. To boost our prayer life, we must boost our faith.

Posted: 27 Oct, 2019 | Author: Steve Nelson

Perhaps nothing is better at motivating us to pray than realizing that we are in complete despair.

Posted: 03 Nov, 2019 | Author: Mike Kimball

Jesus is a life giver and we want to experience life as we engage in living actively as members of the kingdom of heaven.

Posted: 10 Nov, 2019 | Author: Steve Nelson

In the midst of the heartache of life, we are loved by a God who gives us a living hope. And for that, we can give thanks.