Flagstone Church of Christ Flagstone Church of Christ

The book of Acts provides depictions of some of the events that took place at the start of the church after Jesus' ascension into heaven, including amazing miracles, challenging sermons, and people coming together as a community. All these stories help to provide a blueprint of how God wants His church to function. But one key aspect of God's plan for His church that we often overlook is the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. So how does the Spirit fit into the church's framework? And how do I connect with and allow myself to become filled with the Spirit in my own life?

"Forgive and forget." How often have we heard that sentiment? How often have we said that to someone else? Maybe the tougher question - how often have we actually practiced that? There are lots of us who try to convince others or even ourselves that true forgiveness also means forgetting whatever caused the hurt. But usually the hurt caused by others is quite painful; it leaves a scar; it becomes difficult, maybe even impossible, to forget. So how what does it really mean to forgive others? And how can forgiving someone else for what they did to me actually set me free?

In Luke 4, Jesus says that one of the reasons He came to this earth was to give freedom to the prisoners. He wasn't talking about setting people free from the prison cells they occupied because of crimes they committed or laws they violated. He was talking about setting mankind free - all of us! He came to set us free from our choices and our hurt and the ways we've hurt others. He came to set us free from sin...even if we didn't realize we were imprisoned by it. Does it really matter that God wants to give me forgiveness and grace? And if so, what do I have to do in order to experience that freedom?

A recent survey revealed that 62% of Americans believe they need more forgiveness in their personal lives. Forgiveness is something we seem to value, and yet it's something we sometimes not only struggle to offer to others but struggle to accept for ourselves. We say grace and forgiveness are important, but we aren't always consistent in forgiving others or living like we've experienced grace ourselves. Why do we miss out on the freedom that comes from being forgiven? And how we can get better at living in the grace we have received?

This Sunday we are celebrating our Mothers and wrapping up our series "Exploring Questions that Jesus Asked" with a story found in Luke 2. Mary, the mother of Jesus gets separated from her son for 3 days only to find him sitting in the temple in "his Father's house"... So what kind of mom does it take to raise the Son of God? What does Jesus question to his parents mean for us today? And how can God use regular, everyday, average moms faithfully serving God to achieve His great purposes?

Imagine being one of Jesus' disciples and getting to be an eyewitness when He demonstrated His supernatural power over nature and diseases and even spiritual forces. One would think that His disciples would have no problem trusting in His ability to overcome problems and protect those He cared about. And yet on one particular occasion their faith seemed to be diminishing, if not completely crumbling. It prompted Jesus to ask them a very pointed question - a question I still have to answer for myself today.