IT'S TIME TO FIGHT - Fighting Failure, Part 1

June 1, 2015

"Your problem isn’t that you aren’t worthy of God’s love. Your problem is that you don’t believe it."

Kicked off a new series yesterday about a topic that everyone can relate to...FAILURE. Feeling like you're not good enough, or that you'll never get past your struggles, or that you've let God/others/yourself down. We're talking about what to do with guilt and shame and doubt and despair and all the other feelings that come with failing time and time again.

The theme of the series is this: God wants to work THROUGH your mistakes and shortcomings, not IN SPITE of them.

LOVE IS LIFE - Love Is, Part 5

May 18, 2015

"Love isn't supposed to something we DO; love is supposed to be who are ARE."

Love Is series finale yesterday and we ended up with a bang!

Yes love is action and love is attitude and love is local, but it's way more than that as well. Love is a way of life. It's a life "consecrated" to God. Consecrating your life doesn't mean you need to quit your job or become a monk or nun or anything like that. It's something we all can/should do.

Why? Because that's the only way you'll be able to walk on water. Check out the video and you'll see what I mean.

And special thanks to my good friend Dalia Fam for her cameo role in the message. Make sure you watch till the end to hear her story.

Is God a Deceiver?

May 15, 2015

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:28-29)

"Come to me" God says and you will have "rest for your souls". Ok, great. Sign me up! This is a direct promise from God and we God never lies, right? Go to Him and you will have rest. Simple and straightforward, right?

Not exactly. I don’t know about you, but I’ve found myself at times being tempted to call God a deceiver. I’ve found myself angry that the simple truth found in a promise didn’t seem apparent in my life – even as I watched others seemingly delight in the very same words.

Lessons Learned from a TV Miniseries

May 13, 2015

It’s now been one month since Easter. Can you believe it? One month since the most glorious and life-changing week ever... one month since we confidently believed that a new life was ahead of us and we’d never go back to our old ways or old habits or old lifestyles.

It was one month ago that we were filled with hope and everything looked bright.

But how about now? Are you still feeling that way? Do you still believe that “life will never be the same again?” Do you still feel the invincibility that you felt when you beheld the empty tomb and proclaimed boldly, “Christ is risen from the dead!”

In other words, are you still living in the power of the Resurrection? Or is back to “same old, same old” for you?

LOVE IS LOCAL - Love Is, Part 4

May 11, 2015

[NOTE: Audio missing for the first 3 minutes. Technical difficulties. My apologies.]

"Love isn't just loving your neighbor; it's also loving your neighborhood."

Week 4 in the Love Is series and this week we looked at the fourth characteristic when it comes to Christ-like love: LOVE IS LOCAL.

In this message, you'll hear me talk about one of the foundational principles upon which STSA was built: Genuine Love for our Community. More importantly, you'll get to hear someone else share about how fulfilling this principle made a huge impact on their life and deepened their relationship with God and with His Church.

Check out the video about and see for yourself. And get ready to start seeing your neighborhood in a whole new light!

A Modern Example of Life After Death

May 6, 2015

In the midst of a devastating tragedy, the Nepalese people hold their breath and burst into cheers when a fifteen year-old boy was rescued from the rubble of a multistory residential building in Kathmandu on Thursday. This young man is alive despite being hidden in the debris caused by an earthquake which took the life of more than seven thousand people.

As I was listening to the news this morning, goosebumps gathered along my skin. What an amazing scene. In the midst of death life can be found! I started to think about that boy some more, and I wonder if he will ever live life the same way again? He saw his own death, and lived through the misery of five full days and nights of darkness and hopelessness in the pits of despair.

How much more of a modern-day reminder can God give us during these days where we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord for 50 glorious days?

LOVE IS ATTITUDE - Love Is, Part 3

May 4, 2015

Yes love is action, but it is more than just action. Love is a mindset...it's a way of thinking... LOVE IS ATTITUDE!

If we are going to love like Jesus loved us (see John 13:34), then we need to shift the way we think. Check out this week's message as we go through the famous parable of The Good Samaritan to discover three attitude changes we need to make to walk in Jesus' footsteps when it comes to love.

I Can’t Believe It’s Been 3 Years!

April 29, 2015

Happy Easter everyone! Christ is risen and THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING! I hope you had a blessed Holy Week and Easter (regardless of when you celebrated it) and that you're now living in the light of His glorious resurrection and viewing all things in light of that truth. Last week was also special because it marked the FOUR YEAR ANNIVERSARY of STSA on April 28.

So in order not to let such a historic day pass, I am reposting some thoughts I put together last year as we celebrated the 3 year anniversary. Enjoy

LOVE IS ACTION - Love Is, Part 2

April 27, 2015

Part 2 of the Love Is series and this week's topic: LOVE IS ACTION!

We all know that true love is more than words, but did you ever stop to think why you struggle so much to give that love to others? If we all know we need to be more loving, what stops us?

The answer? In order to love God and love others in a healthy way, I must first LOVE MYSELF in a healthy way.

What does that look like? Check out the video above and see for yourself. You'll hear me give my opinion of what that looks like and you'll also hear from a very dear friend of mine who courageously agreed to share her experience on the subject as well.

Enjoy!

What’s Playing on Your Record Player?

April 24, 2015

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

Ok, so, have you ever read this passage... prayed this passage... meditated on it... wrote it out and stuck it to your bedroom mirror... and STILL FELT ANXIOUS? Anyone???

I think God showed me a little secret a few years ago and He’s highlighted it again this year. Bear with me a little, please, while I get to the point.

THE CALL TO LOVE - Love Is, Part 1

April 20, 2015

Kicked off a new series yesterday and it's the perfect post-Easter and post-Holy Week topic...LOVE!

During His final days before death, no other topic was on Jesus' heart more than love. He spoke about it. He demonstrated it. And He called us to follow in His footsteps. In this series, we delve deeper into what "LOVE IS." It's more than an emotion and it's more than a feeling. It's something much deeper and much more divine. Love is ACTION and love is ATTITUDE; love is LOCAL and love is LIFE.

Check out the first part in the series above.

And please note: there is a portion of the message that we did not upload due to copyright restrictions. Sorry for that. But that's just more reason to come in person next time!

Are you Living or “Just Surviving”?

April 17, 2015

I have this friend that has the same debate with me often. It typically goes like this, “What’s the point of it all? Why can’t Jesus just end it all now so we can go to heaven?”

It’s a hard question to answer when you think about it because… I mean, life is hard, many people are suffering – wouldn’t we all prefer to be in heaven? This begs the question of whether life is meant to be “just surviving.”

Christ is risen...so now what???

April 15, 2015

The day we’ve been dreading has finally arrived. It’s here and we don’t know what to do with it. Do we run and hide? Or do we succumb to its pressure and surrender? What to do, what to do, what to do... What day is it?

It’s the day when LIFE GOES BACK TO NORMAL AFTER HOLY WEEK!

(insert dramatic pause)

Discovering the Power of Pascha Week

April 3, 2015

While most of the country prepares to celebrate Easter this weekend, we in the Orthodox Church appear a little behind once again. Our calendar has Easter falling on April 12 this year. That means that this coming weekend is the weekend of Palm Sunday and the kickoff of Holy Week, or Pascha week as it is more properly known.

Therefore, I thought it would be fun to start off with some Holy Week trivia for you.

Is the Orthodox Church for everyone?

April 2, 2015

I believe our Orthodox church is not for everyone.

I know that sounds arrogant, intolerant and insensitive of me, but just hear me out. Believe it or not, I am actually making that statement for the purpose of bringing people TO the Church, not to push people away.

The Orthodox Church is not for everyone. It isn’t for people who are just looking for entertainment. It isn’t for people who are lonely and just looking for some soothing words to make them feel good again. It isn’t for people who are looking for an emotional high to just make them feel close to God.

It just isn’t.

So who is it for then?

CAN I GET A WITNESS? - The BodyShop Part 6

March 30, 2015

So often in our spiritual lives we talk about what we want God to do for us; but did you ever think about what you can do for Him? Did you know that you hold the key to God's heart? And that you have the ability to put an everlasting smile on His Face?

How? The key to any father's heart is his children. And as members of Christ's Body, we have the opportunity/responsibility to be witnesses of God's love to the world around us. And that's what evangelism - the 5th and final pillar of a healthy church member - is all about.

God isn't looking for salesmen; He's looking for witnesses. Check out the video above to find out what it means to be a witness and what we need to do to accomplish.

In the Synagogue with Jesus

March 27, 2015

I woke up this morning with a really heavy heart, overwhelmed by a lot of things. I could feel my Spirit longing to nourish himself with the word of God and I knew I just needed to vent out so much emotion to Jesus. I felt like a balloon about to pop!

Fortunately my friend the Holy Spirit pushed me to pop in His presence and not on my own, otherwise I would have sunk in a deep cycle of negativity and self-pity. Nothing feels better or more intimate than pouring your heart out to your God, raw emotions and all. After a few seconds of silence I begged the Holy Spirit to speak loudly to me, to hush all the noise in my head, and I opened my Bible.

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS - The BodyShop Part 5

March 23, 2015

What is undeniably the one characteristic where our lives differ the most from that of the early church? Is it prayer? Or fasting? Or witnessing? NOPE! Check out these passages from Acts 2 and Acts 4 and see for yourself:

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.” Acts 2:42-45

“Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.” Acts 4:32-35

The answer is GIVING! But not giving the way we do it - a "tip" we put in the donation box once every few months. No way. The early church was known for its lifestyle of SACRIFICIAL GIVING - where each one "sold their possessions and goods" and laid the proceeds at the feet of the apostles.

Sounds crazy doesn't it? But maybe it's not. Check out Part 5 in The BodyShop series as we continue to look at what it means to be healthy member of the Body of Christ. I guarantee you won't want to miss this one!

How Long, O Lord?

March 20, 2015

I'll be honest; the past few weeks have been tough for me. Have you ever had one of those weeks when everything seems dim and nothing seems to go your way?

You're tired and lacking sleep. You forgot to pay a bill and now have to pay interest. Your friends are angry with you because you don’t have the time to sit and talk with them. Your family is dismayed at your inability to complete daily tasks at home. Your boss and coworkers are making you feel inferior. Your next assignment is due tomorrow and you have no idea how it will get done in time.

You feel exhausted and long to get away from everything…forever. And on top of all that, just when you don't need to add anything else to your plate, you feel that God isn't there either! You're tired and frustrated and you just want to complain and let out a loud SCREAM!

AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GROWING OLD VS GROWING UP - The BodyShop Part 4

March 16, 2015

"God uses COMMUNITY to lead us to MATURITY."

God's plan for humanity has always been clear - that we "may GROW UP in all things into Him who is the head—Christ” (Ephesians 4:15). As any parent, God isn't content for us to merely be born into His family; He desires that we would grow and reach the point of maturity. His desire is that we wouldn't just grow OLD, but that we'd grow UP as well.

How does that maturity happen? I believe that a major portion of the process takes place in the context of community. Without community, you'll never reach the level of spiritual maturity that God desires for you life.

How can I say that? Check out Part 4 in The BodyShop series as we continue to look at the different markers that make for a healthy member of the Body of Christ.