Help for forgiving and seeking forgiveness
March 17, 2017This past Sunday I preached about forgiveness. Seeking or offering it can feel like having a huge weight lifted. Jesus said both are connected to our relationship to God. Yet, doing either can be very difficult. For all those reasons I want to recap a few of the insights and tips I shared on Sunday and add a few notes.
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Ignore me if you want to live
March 10, 2017In a classic scene from the movie Terminator, the protagonist proclaims to a woman being hunted by a deadly Arnold Schwarzenegger character, "Come with me if you want to live." I couldn't help but think of that line as I read one of this week's spiritual meditations from the book, Pauses for Lent. Only, the message I heard was, "Ignore me if you want to live."
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Small group meet-and-greet & ice cream social this Sunday after Access
March 03, 2017You can feel very anonymous in a large church like ours… until you join a small group. In a group, everyone knows your name, they challenge and encourage you to grow in your faith, and when you need support, they have your back.
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"We've sinned against God. We ate chocolate!"
February 24, 2017I love teens. Years ago as a youth minister two of them walked into my office and greeted me with the words of this post’s subject line. Whether they were joking or serious or a bit of both it led to a great conversation about Lent, a time period that begins next Wednesday. I want to tell you a bit about Lent and what it has to do with chocolate. I’ll even give you a spiritually enriching excuse to eat some.
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Our church is contributing to people achieving the American Dream
February 17, 2017A recent Freakonomics podcast, Is the American Dream Really Dead?, highlighted increasing income inequality in the U.S. and decreased ability of people to do better financially than their parents. The podcast shared two things that can help overcome the growing tendency to be born poor and stay that way. As I listened I realized our church is creating both of those in our neighborhood!
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Passionately disagreeing, Christian-style
February 10, 2017I love our church for many reasons including the diversity of politics represented in our congregation. The Sunday after the president’s executive order banning travel from certain countries I had memorable conversations with two church members about what had happened. One member was filled with excitement and optimism, another with frustration and dread. Yet they both came to worship God together at our church. I find great hope in that, and it got me thinking about practical advice for how to passionately disagree yet maintain our unity as Christians.
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Brings a Smile to Both Our Faces – Carrie & Martha’s Story
January 30, 2017My mom and I had been members of the church for 11 years when we stumbled into Access....
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Made to Feel Known and Valued – Natalie and Wes’s Story
January 23, 2017Our family began attending Access soon after it first began. We had already fallen in love with FUMCR and liked attending the traditional services. But, we were curious about the different format ...
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The time the nation’s leader danced in his underwear
January 20, 2017As I write this on Thursday, some are wondering how “presidential” Donald Trump will appear at his inauguration. Others question if a dignified appearance matters. One Bible story suggests God liked it when the national leader stripped to his underwear ...
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Feeling Connected - Rachel and Scott's Story
January 16, 2017We found Access the summer of 2013. The evening worship community was extremely attractive to us, as it allowed us to have another weekend morning. Once we set foot inside of FUMCR we knew we had found our church home...
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Relatable Sermons and Community - Amanda's Story
January 09, 2017When my husband and I got married we were both going to my church. We were looking for a church home we could call ours when Pastor Rich invited us to Access. We both really enjoyed the contemporary worship service and right away were introduced to a group of others in the same life stage as us...
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A Sense of Community and Accepting Nature - Cole & Jennifer's Story
December 26, 2016We had been searching for a church in the area and attended the traditional service off-and-on, but we never felt a true connection. On a whim, we decided to give Access a try and we both came out of the first service blown away...
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