Category: community

• The Greatest Gift

  Read Mark 12:38-44 October 31 is Reformation Day. What does this mean? This is the day Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the front door of Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. This is the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. Reformation. Every 500 years, or so, the Church goes through a process of “reforming” to […]

  Ryan Stratton

  11/02/2021

  arrogance, attitudes, awakening, belief, believe, belonging, bible, Christian Life, Christianity, church, community, compassion, disciples, faith, God’s grace, good news, gospel, hypocricy, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, Martin Luther, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Uncategorized, worldview, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  compassion of Jesus, God raises up people, know Gods love, love God, love people, Mark 12:38-44, praise God, Protestant Reformation, reformation of the church, Trust Jesus, widows mite

• Confessions of a Pastor

  Sometimes I Find Myself Being A People Pleaser One of the things I hear, from many people, is, “I will do what I want, I don’t care what other people think.” This is something I have said at times also. The older I get, the more I realize I do care what people think. I […]

  Ryan Stratton

  11/16/2018

  belief, Bible, Christian Life, Christianity, community, compassion, confessing, confession, disciples, faithful, Galatians, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, Life, methodism, methodist, ministry, mission, pastor, position, praise, pray, Prayer, prayer life, relationships, trust, Truth, uncategoried, youth ministry

  being a people pleaser, Colossians 3:23, focusing on Christ, Galatians 1:10, glorifying God, it’s all about Jesus, Kingdom of God, kingdom of heaven, mission in life, Pastor confessions, who do we work for?

• Why Are You Worrying?

  

  READ SCRIPTURE: Matthew 6:25-34 NIV 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away […]

  Ryan Stratton

  08/24/2018

  anxiety, belief, believe, belonging, bible, Christian Life, Christianity, church, community, compassion, control, controversy, eternal life, faith, faithful, gifts, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, invitation, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, Life, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, poor, possibilities, power, praise, Prayer, prayer life, priority, proclaiming Christ, purpose, reconciliation, redeemed, relationships, religion, repent, revival, Spirit, Spirit led, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worry, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  earning God’s favor, gospel of Matthew, Jesus says don’t worry, live free in Christ, Matthew 6:25-34, Stewardship, stewardship sermon series, stress in life, worrying about money

• Beyond Jealousy

  

  Click here to read the passage for today: Acts 5:17-42 CEB. Jealousy. We all get jealous at times. Sometimes we don’t even want to admit we feel this emotion. Jealousy, when left unchecked, causes us to act in irrational and hurtful ways. Oh, we want to feel excitement for the accomplishments and gifts of other […]

  Ryan Stratton

  05/26/2017

  ambition, apostles, bible, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, community, control, devotionals, disciples, faith, faults, freedom, gifts, giving thanks, glory to God, God, God’s grace, Golden rule, good news, gospel, grace, happiness, Holy Spirit, humility, Image of God, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, Life, Love, maturity, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, motivations, praise, priorities, Relationships, repent, success, thankful, trust, Truth, uncategoried, writing, youth ministry

  Acts 5:39, book of Acts, finding joy in other people success, gifts of the Holy Spirit, knowing our own flaws, letting go of jealousy, made in the image of God, praising God, praying for others, presence of God, stop fighting God, Ten Commandments

• Community

  

  Click here to read Acts 2:42-47. Imagine Utopia, a perfect place were there is no conflict and everyone has what they need. Sounds like a great place? John Lennon thought of how the world would be different if we simply “Imagine”[d] doing things out of love rather than doing things out of self-preservation; but doing […]

  Ryan Stratton

  05/09/2017

  awakening, belief, believe, belonging, bible, bible study, Christian Life, Christianity, church, community, conversion, devotionals, disciples, eternal life, example, gift, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, Golden rule, good news, gospel, grace, heaven, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, Imagination, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, leadership, Life, memory, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, new life, pastor, revival, spiritual growth, testimony, transformation, trust, uncategoried, unity, worship, writing, youth ministry

  Acts 2:42-47, believers devoted themselves, book of Acts, growing in our faith, John Wesley band meetings, living as community, living in God’s grace, loving our neighbors, no individual christians, praying for revival, worshipping as communtiy

• After Hours

  

  OFFICE HOURS Ministry in the Marketplace Part 6 What are your plans after you reach retirement age? Are we only working now so we can play and relax after we retire? I have come to the understanding that we have misguided ourselves when it comes to retirement. Retirement is not simply quitting work and spending […]

  Ryan Stratton

  10/04/2016

  ambition, anxiety, belief, believe, Bible, Christian Life, Christianity, church, community, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, example, faith, faithfulness, gift, glory to God, God, God’s grace, good news, gospel, grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, relationships, Retirement, spiritual gifts, time, transformation, Truth, Uncategorized, Work

  encourage one another, Good News of Jesus Christ, life after retirement, office hours, sermon series, sharing God’s love, working toward retirement

• Investing Hours

  

  OFFICE HOURS Ministry in the Marketplace Part 3 This week, we are focusing on how we spend our time at work. Since this is where we end up spending most of our time during the week, how do we relate to those around us? Yes, our families are the most important relationships; but the amount […]

  Ryan Stratton

  09/13/2016

  Apostle Paul, belief, bible, Christian Life, Christianity, church, Communication, community, compassion, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, faith, God, good news, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Life, Lord, methodism, methodist, ministry, reconciliation, Relationships, Work

  40 hours per week, Good News of Jesus Christ, gospel of Jesus Christ, investing in people, love of God, sharing the good news, using time wisely, work life, workplace relationships

• Our Lives Look Different

  Christmas is a wonderful time of year for many and a tragic, depressing or sad time of year for many. This time of year for others is…frustrating. Advent is a time of preparation for the birth of the Christ child into the world, and into our hearts once again. How we live demonstrates our devotion […]

  Ryan Stratton

  12/02/2015

  Advent, advent devotional, arrogance, attitudes, belief, believe, belonging, Bible, bible study, born again, calling, challenge, Christian Life, Christianity, Christmas, Christmas story, church, community, daily devotionals, eternal life, faith, faithful, Forgiveness, gift, glory of Christ, glory of God, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, Gospel of Luke, grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus’birth, kindness, Life, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, new life, new year, pastor, people, pray, Prayer, preach, proclaiming Christ, reconciliation, relationships, renewal, revival, Savior, Spirit, spiritual growth, spiritual transformation, Spirituality, transformation, trust, Truth, Uncategorized, worship, writing, youth ministry

  bible study, Christ changes us, Christian discipleship, Christian life, Christmas story, Christmas time, devotionals for advent, God is with us, Good News of Jesus Christ, gospel of Jesus Christ, Gospel of Luke, live by faith, live by hope, live differently, love God love people, O come Emmanuel, return of Christ, trust Christ, Trust God, Trust Jesus

• “Prayer and Praise Week 1”

  “Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his faithful love endures forever.” ~1 Chronicles 16:34 CEB November is the time that giving thanks, or at least these words, are at the forefront of our conscience. We tend to be thankful for all we have, all we have been blessed with, and the people […]

  Ryan Stratton

  11/01/2015

  belief, bible, Blessings, challenge, Christian Life, Christianity, church, Communication, community, disciples, faith, family, gifts, giving thanks, glory of God, God, good news, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Love, methodism, methodist, ministry, new creation, new life, patience, praise, Prayer, prayer life, realtionships, renewal, revival, Spirit, spiritual growth, spiritual transformation, Spirituality, thankful, transformation, witnessing, youth ministry

  28 day challenge, beauty of creation, Christian life, discipleship, give God glory, giving thanks, God, Good News of Jesus Christ, gospel of Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, inviting someone to church, Jesus Christ, new creation in Christ, new life, new life in Christ, opportunities to serve, prayer and praise, prayer challenge, random acts of kindness, season of thanks, take this challenge, thanking God, transform the world, transformation in Christ, witnessing our faith

• “Gaining Sight: Praying the Scripture”

  We have been on this journey through Mark chapter 10 this month. Now, we are in the final verses of this chapter. To recap, we have encountered Jesus Christ in several different ways. Hopefully we have all grown closer in our faith in Christ. This week, we’re going to do something different in our devotional […]

  Ryan Stratton

  10/26/2015

  belief, bible, bible study, Christian Life, Christianity, church, Communication, community, Emotions, faith, God, good news, gospel, Holy Spirit, hope, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Love, new creation, new life, pray, Prayer, prayer life, relationships, Spirit, spiritual growth, spiritual transformation, Spirituality, transformation

  bible study, blind Bartimaeus, Christian life, God, Good News of Jesus Christ, gospel of Jesus Christ, Gospel of Mark, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, lectio divina, new creation in Christ, new life, new life in Christ, praying the scriptures, regaining sight, time with God, transform the world, transformation in Christ, worship