One of the hard things about serving in ministry – no matter the level – is figuring out which part is God working through you and when you’re trying to do God’s work in your own strength. It’s easy to confuse the two, and it requires some soul searching to get it right. Pastor Mark’s teaching today will be covering the danger of trying to do God’s work in the flesh. You’ll learn that even a mighty man of faith like Moses can slip up at times. You’ll find out how to avoid this pitfall and to rel...
Dec 31, 2021
For generations, Christians have been told – mainly by people outside the Church, but even by some inside the Church – that they’re to leave their Christianity at home. Don’t bring that ‘religious stuff’ to their workplace. The problem with this attitude is that it’s not what God planned for those who follow Him. Pastor Mark’s teaching today will illustrate how God used people in all different kinds of positions in the Old Testament to get His work done. The thing they had in common was being us...
Dec 30, 2021
Do you understand the power of God? You might say, “Of course not – He’s God, I’m just human!” And while that’s true on one level, there’s still another aspect of God’s power that people can understand. Ironically, it can only be understood by people when God’s power is working through their lives. And Pastor Mark, in his teaching today, will show you the urgent need for every Christ-follower to have God’s Spirit working in their lives every day. You’ll recognize that you can’t successfully live...
Dec 29, 2021
Most people – whether they are serving Him or not – admit to the idea of a God the Father. They also accept the idea of Jesus, since there are records of His having been on the earth. The Holy Spirit, though, that’s a different animal altogether. Many religions contain a ‘spirit-like’ entity but generally, it’s an ‘it’, an undefined force – think Star Wars. But Pastor Mark will be teaching today about the Biblical concept of the Holy Spirit. You’ll discover that the Bible’s Holy Spirit is far di...
Dec 28, 2021
Humans have a tendency to look at non-human things and to sometimes humanize them. What pet owner hasn’t talked to their pet, maybe revealing things they’d never tell another person? And there’s the history of religions who have as their focus a statue, or the trees or nature. Well, you’ll hear in Pastor Mark’s message today that Christ-followers don’t worship objects; they worship Persons. You’ll learn about the Person of the Holy Spirit. You’ll find out the ways He is a Person, and how other r...
Dec 27, 2021
Mary’s pregnancy was a scandal. In that society, sex outside of marriage could’ve been a capital offense; death by stoning was the normal penalty for extramarital sex. It was kind of up to Joseph as to how this would be handled. As you’ll learn from Pastor Mark’s teaching today, God intervened on Mary’s behalf. Even though it seems Joseph was inclined to handle the matter out of the public’s eye, God had an even different plan for them. Their willingness to submit to God’s will despite the publi...
Dec 24, 2021
Mary was a remarkable young woman. It seems she was a young woman of quality, which is why God chose her to give birth to Jesus. There are some who want to elevate her to an almost godlike status based on the fact of her being Jesus’ mom. Others, reacting to this, seek to deny her ‘specialness’. As Pastor Mark will be teaching today, both sides miss the mark. You’ll hear how she viewed herself, and how that view lines up with scripture. You’ll learn how her self-analysis is a good template for a...
Dec 23, 2021
Western society is so used to kids having sex that the idea of waiting until marriage or being embarrassed for not waiting, isn’t even considered. But God – the Creator of sex – had and has quite a different viewpoint on sex. You’ll find out in today’s teaching by Pastor Mark what a remarkable couple Mary and Joseph were. You’ll learn from scripture how their personal integrity, which was a byproduct of their devotion to God, guided them and made them the suitable caretakers for God’s Son that t...
Dec 22, 2021
What about you? Have you been a follower of Jesus for many years? What would you say your faith level is? Do you think it’s where it should be? It’s hard to go through life with its ups and downs and maintain a consistently increasing level of faith. Pastor Mark’s teaching today will remind you that faith is like a muscle; it has to be continually exercised to keep it strong or to make it stronger. One of the ways God tests your faith is to throw challenges your way, as He did for Elizabeth and ...
Dec 21, 2021
You probably know someone who was what you considered a strong Christian at one time but isn’t anymore. When you see them, maybe they try to avoid you. Or instead, they want to tell you how good life is now that they’ve gotten rid of all of that “God stuff”. They had an opportunity to follow God’s will for their lives or not. And just like your friend, the people in the story of the coming of Jesus had choices to make, too. Pastor Mark will teach you why doing things God’s way is so much better ...
Dec 20, 2021
One of the hard lessons for the Christ-follower to learn is that they’re no longer in charge of their lives. This isn’t a new problem; in fact, it’s been an issue since Adam and Eve. But once Jesus came on the scene and made redemption possible, people who chose to follow Christ have to make this decision again. Pastor Mark will be teaching today about a couple of people who thought they were following God, who had to really learn how to follow God when God upset the apple cart of their lives.
Dec 17, 2021
Mary was a remarkable young woman. It seems she was a young woman of quality, which is why God chose her to give birth to Jesus. There are some who want to elevate her to an almost godlike status based on the fact of her being Jesus’ mom. Others, reacting to this, seek to deny her ‘specialness’. As Pastor Mark will be teaching today, both sides miss the mark. You’ll hear how she viewed herself, and how that view lines up with scripture. You’ll learn how her self-analysis is a good template for a...
Dec 16, 2021
Western society is so used to kids having sex, that the idea of waiting until marriage or being embarrassed for not waiting, isn’t even considered. But God – the Creator of sex – had and has quite a different viewpoint on sex. You’ll find out in today’s teaching by Pastor Mark what a remarkable couple Mary and Joseph were. You’ll learn from scripture how their personal integrity, which was a byproduct of their devotion to God, guided them and made them the suitable caretakers for God’s Son that ...
Dec 15, 2021
The God of the Christ-follower isn’t the only object of the worship of people on earth. In the nonchristian world, there are millions of so-called gods, and people worship them in much the same way that Christ-followers worship Jehovah. They pray to their gods, too. Sadly, those gods can’t answer the prayers of their followers. Pastor Mark’s teaching today will dive into the idea of how God answers prayer. You’ll learn what it takes for you to become the kind of person whose prayers God can answ...
Dec 14, 2021
It feels good to have God save you in an emergency, doesn’t it? To know that God’s there watching over you is quite a comfort. But what about all of the ‘non-emergency’ things that happen throughout every day? Do you think of God then? Maybe not. The habit is to handle things in your own strength, leaving the ‘big’ things for God to take care of. Well, Pastor Mark will be teaching today why that way of living isn’t the way God intended you to live. You’ll learn about the right way, God’s way of ...
Dec 13, 2021
It’s fun to get what you want, isn’t it? To have your heart set on something and be able to buy it or have someone gift it to you is very pleasing. On the other hand, being denied your desire is a tough learning experience. Pastor Mark will be teaching today about the importance of prayer. You’ll be reminded how much God loves you, wants the best for you, and wants you to pray to Him so that He can answer your prayers. You’ll learn about the things God wants from you so that your prayers line up...
Dec 10, 2021
People are so inclined to believe the negative about a situation. Even Christ-followers, who have the Spirit of God inside them, can let the whispering lies of the Devil influence their thinking – and their believing. You’ll hear in Pastor Mark’s teaching today about the unknown battle Daniel had when he was praying about an issue. You’ll get a glimpse behind the curtain, so to speak, and see what’s really going on when you pray. You’ll learn that praying many times is about pushing through ‘til...
Dec 09, 2021
Do you realize that God cares about your life? Not in an abstract, overall way, but the intimate details of what to you might seem a boring life? Everything you do, say, think about, matters to God. As Pastor Mark will be teaching, this is because God loves you. He sent His Son Jesus to die in your place so that you could have a relationship with Him. And you’ll learn that part of that relationship includes prayer and reading the Bible. Through doing these actions, a deeper friendship with God i...
Dec 08, 2021
When’s the last time you attended a prayer meeting? Does your church even have them? Many churches don’t have organized times of prayer. Sadly, if they do, only a small percentage of the church attend them. Pastor Mark will be teaching today about the people who are supposed to be the models for today’s church – the Church of Acts. Pastor Mark will be contrasting their prayer life with that of today’s churches. You’ll learn how to achieve the answers to prayer by doing things the way that they d...
Dec 07, 2021
Let’s face it: at one time or another, every Christ-follower has gone against what they knew God wanted them to do. The sinful nature in every person rebels against God’s will – even those who are doing their best to follow Him. The great thing about following God, as Pastor Mark will be teaching today, is that He’s always ready to take you back. God wants to have a relationship with you and although sin can separate you from Him, He’s continually there waiting for you to turn towards Him and be...
Dec 06, 2021
Christ-followers try so hard to achieve success. Sometimes they cross the line from godly to worldly behavior to go after what they want. This puts them on the same footing as unbelievers and causes the world to not see a difference between Christ-followers and themselves. Pastor Mark’s teaching today will bring up a really important point: are you asking God for the things you want? And this will drill down to a more important question, which is: who’s running your life? You or God?
Dec 03, 2021
At first glance, the idea of Jesus passing His power on to you might seem crazy. “Me?” you think, remembering all of your insecurities and weaknesses. No way could you be used like the apostles or the great men and women of the faith. If this is your thinking, Pastor Mark’s teaching will show you that God says otherwise. As you hear about Paul and Silas’ interaction with the people around them, you’ll find out that as they lived their lives doing what God wanted them to do, God used them to brin...
Dec 02, 2021
You know those people, right? The ones who, every time you turn around, are talking about how God answered their prayers? And there’s you, with your prayers that you’re sure are just bouncing off the ceiling, not leaving your room? Well, Pastor Mark’s teaching today just might be helpful to you, although it might frustrate you at first. You’ll learn about what God’s looking for from you when you pray. Pastor Mark will teach about the attitude you should have when you’re praying, and how that mak...
Dec 01, 2021
So-called Christian TV has done a real disservice to many aspects of normal Christian activity by exaggerating and distorting them. Instead of prayer being a solemn but joyous communication with God, it can look sometimes like a shouting match, telling God what He must do for the people praying. Absurd. You’ll hear in Pastor Mark’s teaching today the proper attitude to have when you’re praying. You’ll find out what kind of prayer pleases God, and what the results are when you pray the way God wa...
Nov 30, 2021
There weren’t too many better jobs than the one Nehemiah had. He was the king’s food and drink taster. That meant that he was at the king’s side most all the time. And even though he was a servant, he had access to earthly power – the most power on earth at that time. Despite that, as Pastor Mark will teach today, Nehemiah’s heart was gripped by what he heard about the conditions in Jerusalem. You’ll get to learn today about the types of prayer that Nehemiah prayed, and how they apply to your li...
Nov 29, 2021
If you choose to follow Christ – I mean, really get serious about believing Who God is and what He promises you – people are going to think you’re weird. Jesus’ own family thought that He was out of His mind! It shouldn’t surprise you if others think that you’ve become…unusual. But what Pastor Mark will be teaching about today isn’t about public behavior; it’s about what’s appropriate for the moment and place. You’ll hear another example of Elijah’s prayers and how God answered them.
Nov 26, 2021
Some people think God’s being kinda petty to require that His followers give to Him first. Some people feel that this command is rather insensitive. After all – people have bills to pay and obligations that have to be met. If your thinking in this matter sounds like what was just said, listen to Pastor Mark’s teaching today – he’ll have the answer for you. You’ll discover that it isn’t about God’s poverty or grasping after ‘your’ money as much as it is about your attitude that you might have tow...
Nov 25, 2021
It’s hard for people to grasp the idea that the God Who made the universe, vast as it is, cares about them. As a person, an individual. But over and over in His word, God talks about His love for humankind in general, and individual people, too. And Pastor Mark will be teaching today that God’s made certain incredible promises to men and women. All you have to do to tap into those treasures is to let God rule your life. You’ll find that when you do, life becomes full of God’s peace and grace.
Nov 24, 2021
When you read the stories in the book of Acts of all the amazing things God did through the early Church, it’s easy to think that they were especially blessed people. It’s easy to forget that they had jobs, bills to pay, and many of the same challenges you have today. Pastor Mark will be reminding you in his teaching today that God worked through people in the Old and New Testaments because of His faithfulness, not because His people were perfect. What He’s looking for is people who will believe...
Nov 23, 2021
The dissonance between what you know you should believe and what you think you really might believe – but are afraid to admit – is the challenge of the Christ-follower. All around you, you see shattered dreams, both large and small. And yet Jesus says to ask and to trust the Father. It’s hard to do, but as Pastor Mark will be teaching today, it’s not impossible. You’ll learn today about God’s conditions for Him answering prayer. They might seem challenging, but they’re not hard once you start to...
Nov 22, 2021
