This year’s Retreat speaker was Dr. Carla Gober Park. Carla is currently the Executive Director of Faith Community Strategy at AdventHealth in Florida and the Special Assistant to the President at AdventHealth University. Before moving to Florida, she was Assistant Vice President for Spiritual Life and Mission at Loma Linda University Health and director of a center for whole-person care. Carla has degrees in four different fields: nursing, counseling, public health, and a Ph.D. in religious stu...
Mar 04, 2020•40 min
Great Question 2020 - This annual series invites questions from young adults about Christian beliefs they would like explained more thoroughly. This week's question: How can I keep from having doubt with such ambiguity in the Bible? This week our final #fhcTAKEAWAY, EVER… asked: Does the fact that the Bible contains poetry, idioms, hyperbole, etc. diminish its authority? How would you answer that question for someone who’s wrestling with the validity of Scripture? As always we'll take your quest...
Feb 26, 2020•30 min
Great Question 2020 - This annual series invites questions from young adults about Christian beliefs they would like explained more thoroughly. This week's question: How Does Conscience, Free Will, and Compliance To A Denomination Fit Together? This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: How hard is it for you to abandon rebellious independence and let God be God? How have you been able to let God be God? Let us hear your thoughts and we’ll share them on the next podcast! Use one of the following:...
Feb 19, 2020•25 min
Great Question 2020 - This annual series invites questions from young adults about Christian beliefs they would like explained more thoroughly. This week's question: Is the Bible meant to speak to my culture today? This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: How has God revealed himself to you in nature, your family, the Bible, and through Jesus? This is a discussion that we should all be having and getting ourselves ready to be unified and “all in” as we become WholeLife Church! What do you think...
Feb 12, 2020•25 min
The Hospital Church Vision: “to be a church without walls fully engaged in serving the people of our community.” Wherever we are for our whole life, no matter who we are with, they are our community, and our whole lives are lived to serve. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: What will it take for you to be “all in” on our church’s Mission, Strategy, Values, Metrics, and Vision? This is a discussion that we should all be having and getting ourselves ready to be unified and “all in” as we be...
Feb 05, 2020•26 min
When we segment our lives into the sacred and the secular, we end up using the wrong measures. When we live an integrated whole life, then we can see the importance of measuring or having markers to let us know how we are connecting. Our church Metrics relate to our whole life. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: When will you do a self-reflection to mark your progress in becoming a lover, worshipper, volunteer, and giver? What do you think? Have questions, answers, or a tip on self-reflec...
Jan 29, 2020•15 min
Ours is a divided culture. We each see things from our own perspective. Too often there are values we live at home, different ones at work or school, and still a different set when we come together to worship. The Hospital Church has four Values that we believe should oversee our lives 24/7: Love, Acceptance, Forgiveness, and Grace. They are to be with us, enmeshed in our whole life. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: Where are you participating in the life of our church family? What do y...
Jan 22, 2020•23 min
The Hospital Church Strategy is a strategy for friends, family, and strangers, and it encompasses our whole life: Connect with people – Demonstrate compassion – Meet their needs – Win their confidence – and Invite them to join us in following Jesus. It doesn't fit in a box, and it can't be applied to just one part of our life. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked a very simple but profound question: Who needs you to love them with specificity? Did you answer “who” needs you to love them this...
Jan 15, 2020•26 min
We are stewards of the love of God that he has poured into our hearts. There is no place, no time, no persons who are not part of our whole life loving. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS got super-personal and asked us self-check ourselves: What barriers to love are most attractive to you? Ethnicity-Economics-Social-Political-Religious-Gender-Sinfulness…. How will you self-evaluate and work to remove your barrier? Let us hear your thoughts and we’ll share them on the next podcast! Use one of th...
Jan 08, 2020•24 min
Whatever was in (2019) or might be in (2020), God’s loving, continuous call to us is: "Be still and know that I am God.” Javier Diaz is a member of the Hospital Church and serves as a Pastoral Ministries Field Associate for Florida Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. You can follow him on twitter: @javid21 This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS takes us to the bible in chapter and asks us to consider multiple questions: Psalm 46 leads us and inspires us to grasp that, no matter what may come our w...
Jan 01, 2020•26 min
God doesn’t just reach down into our world and snatch us out. He must be consistent with himself. Humanity has messed up and, in love, that circle of unbroken unity is willing to alter itself for all eternity. The Son will come—the incarnation of God, fully human and fully divine. We are torn by the loss of a loved one from our family, and it is all so very temporal. God is willing to forever be the human and divine. Jesus doesn’t put on humanity like we put on our jacket in cool weather; he bec...
Dec 25, 2019•22 min
It was a good, perfect, generous plan gone bad. Here is a side of the story we may not easily associate with Christmas Joy. Have we ever considered the disappointment of God? There had been a battle in heaven. The accusations had been harsh—that God is an inappropriate glory hog, that he is arbitrary and selfish at his core, and that living within borders of his design is unnecessarily restrictive. Before we hear the gospel story, there’s the promise of wisdom and freedom in doing your own thing...
Dec 18, 2019•14 min
A whole life of service to others reveals the life of Christ and the joy of Christmas. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked the question: Diversification is a “safe” investment strategy. Why do you think God wants us all in with our whole life? Why do you think God wants us all in? Let us hear your thoughts and we’ll share them on the next podcast! Use one of the following: ■ Text/Voicemail: 407-965-1607 ■ Email: podcast@hospitalchurch.org ■ FHC Mobile App: Media Tab/Podcast Banner and Use T...
Dec 11, 2019•21 min
Love is relational, and God has always existed in the relationship of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The God of all abundance invites humanity to share in Trinity life. This amazing, generous, self-less open plan is where the story of Christmas Joy begins. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked the question: How different is God’s love of knowing all the pain to come but still valuing the relationship enough to go through it? What do you think about God’s love and His value of a relationship wi...
Dec 04, 2019•14 min
Where is the link between gratitude and generosity? It lies in a similar place as that space between having a great experience and telling someone about it. When we awaken to the enormity of the inexhaustible gift, we just may transform into a follower of Jesus known for our generosity. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked the question: Of all the people you know, who most needs you to practice generosity towards them? So, what are you thankful for? We would love to hear your thoughts and yo...
Nov 27, 2019•16 min
The late 20th Century brought new sounds to old stories. The rise of different musical instruments and musical styles have confused many. Is God still moving through music today? How do we respond to new sounds that we don’t like? What kind of music does God like? Psalm 96, Psalm 98, Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16 As mentioned in this episode, you can find Robert J. Morgan’s book series; “Then Sings My Soul” trilogy of books at his website: https://www.robertjmorgan.com/shop/collections/then-si...
Nov 20, 2019•25 min
Musical Stories of Faith: The Golden Age Most well-known hymns were written between roughly 1700 and 1900 AD. Charles Wesley and Fannie Crosby together wrote around 14,000 hymns. Hymn singing influenced both society and politics. Who were these writers, and what are some of the stories that shaped these timeless songs? This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked the question: What are the gifts you have been given with which you could be more effective? Have a comment or question for Richard? Leave...
Nov 13, 2019•31 min
Psalms is the most-read book of the Bible. It is one of the few shared by Jews, Muslims, and Christians. It’s the book most quoted by Jesus, and it’s the only book written to God instead of from God. The bulk of the psalms come from David - the shepherd, poet, warrior, exile, king, and ancestor of Jesus. What kinds of stories of faith are here, and why are they important today? This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked the question: Who around you needs to be “adopted” into your family? What do y...
Nov 06, 2019•30 min
Do Not Judge Matthew 7:1 - Here is a text for our pluralistic culture. Is this evidence that Jesus is on the side of our highest contemporary cultural norm of tolerance? Is there ever a place for Christians to criticize or find fault with a person’s choices? This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked the question: Was Jesus “too easy” on “sinners”? What do you think? Leave a voicemail or text by sharing from the FHC Mobile App or use one of the following: ■ Text/Voicemail: 407-965-1607 ■ Email: po...
Oct 30, 2019•25 min
The Truth Sets Us Free John 8:32 A life built on truth is the route to a life with more personal freedom (no need to keep up with your lies). However, what Jesus is saying here is so much larger and more significant than even this. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS was a prayer and one I’d challenge us to pray every day: Lord, take my heart; for I cannot give it. It is your property. Keep it pure, for I cannot keep it for you. Save me in spite of myself, my weak, un-Christlike self. Mold me, fa...
Oct 23, 2019•18 min
Philippians 3:13 We love this text! After all, we’ve all made a bunch of mistakes, and who wants to look back and dredge up all that pain? However, is this text about the grace that allows a new start or God's call to move forward in a life of service and sacrifice, bringing his Kingdom to the world? This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: Read Philippians 3:13-14 in more than one translation. Then take some time to write it in your own paraphrase. How might it become more meaningful and perso...
Oct 16, 2019•22 min
Matthew 18:20 "For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.” This is a text regularly misused in an attempt to force an answer from God. We may be surprised to see the context and the call to settle things in community without negating our private devotion to God. This week one of our #fhcTAKEAWAYS asked: While Jesus is explicitly clear that we are to have no part in leading into sin, how do you feel about “not looking down” on the sinner? Send us your thoughts ...
Oct 09, 2019•24 min
Rachel Held Evans said, “The Table reminds us that, as brothers and sisters adopted into God’s family and invited to God’s banquet, we’re stuck with each other; we’re family. We might as well make peace. The Table teaches us that, ultimately, faith isn’t about being right or good or in agreement. Faith is about feeding and being fed.” Jesus left his disciples with a concrete way to remember his grace and their purpose – by sharing a meal. When Christians come together to celebrate Communion, it ...
Oct 02, 2019•23 min
Here’s a text we love because we are the star in our own movie, and we like the sound of God’s voice in this declaration. We like the idea of God’s plan being to prosper us and not to harm us. It could easily be the weekly verse to cite among those who preach a prosperity gospel (which is not gospel at all). Without context, it appears to offer a guarantee that in the end, life will be okay, and that the general path we are on is one of prosperity. If we’ve adopted this understanding and then re...
Sep 25, 2019•12 min
This is the quintessential pep talk passage. It is most often used to pump up a spirit of achievement and even pride – like the Little Engine’s, “I think I can!” What is the real context? Paul is here considering how God has enabled him, strengthened him to be content in times of plenty and times of shortage. Paul writes this from prison, and from the way the text has been abused, you might think it is positive self-talk to break out of jail. This isn’t a passage about going out and accomplishin...
Sep 18, 2019•29 min
Didn’t Jesus say we must be as perfect as God? Or, did he? Didn’t Jesus say if someone hits you once, let him hit you again? Or, did he? Matthew 5:38-48 This week our message was by Dr. Ernie Bursey. Dr. Bursey earned his PhD in New Testament Studies at Yale University, where his dissertation topic was Exorcism in the Book of Matthew. He also earned an M.Div. from Andrews University and a Master's in Religious Studies from Yale University. He has been a Professor of Religion in the Department of...
Sep 14, 2019•31 min
Didn’t Jesus say we must be as perfect as God? Or, did he? Didn’t Jesus say if someone hits you once, let him hit you again? Or, did he? Matthew 5:38-48 This week our message was by Dr. Ernie Bursey. Dr. Bursey earned his PhD in New Testament Studies at Yale University, where his dissertation topic was Exorcism in the Book of Matthew. He also earned an M.Div. from Andrews University and a Master's in Religious Studies from Yale University. He has been a Professor of Religion in the Department of...
Sep 12, 2019•4 min
Jesus’ call to proactive kindness is not to just not do what we wouldn’t want done to us, but it is proactive: DO for others what we wish for ourselves. What do we wish for ourselves at the end of a hard day of work? What would we wish for ourselves if we were without resources to care for ourselves or our child? What would we wish if facing oppression in the land of our origin? We have unending opportunities for proactive kindness. God’s kindness to us compels us to proactive kindness toward ot...
Sep 04, 2019•21 min
“God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.” Facing opposition, suffering persecution and unfair accusations, and being misrepresented is difficult. These experie...
Aug 28, 2019•22 min
In a world where everything is changing so rapidly and where fortunes can be made or lost in a moment, we may feel compelled to defend and protect “my stuff,” “my ideas,” “my wealth,” “my religion,” and “my tradition.” This doesn’t leave much space for peace. Imagine helping people collaborate instead of competing, cooperate instead of fight. God has made peace with us and calls us to make peace with one another. Matthew 5:9 “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the chil...
Aug 21, 2019•20 min
