PCFC Sermons

Parma Christian Fellowship Church

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Religion & Spirituality

Welcome to the weekly podcast for Parma Christian Fellowship Church. We are a community of Bible-based believers that seek to follow Jesus in all that we do. We desire to reach the world for Jesus Christ through worship, evangelism, discipleship, prayer, and service.

Jun 21

Clark, Bruce or Peter

Weekend Service for June 21Scripture Readings: Hebrews 12:7-11 / 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12The contrast between caped heroics and faithful fathering sets the frame. Clark, Bruce, and Peter all point to the same thing: under the suit are ordinary people. Ordinary is where fatherhood lives. The flash on the big screen is not the metric. God celebrates the dads who show up day after day, pay the electric bill, drive to practice, pray when nobody sees, and try again after hard days. The claim that matters lands simple and strong: the greatest superpower a father has is his presence.Hebrews 12 then steadies the pace. The text calls the church to run the race with endurance by keeping eyes on Jesus, the champion who starts and finishes faith. The cross proves his joy and his grit. The discipline that follows is not punishment for punishment’s sake. God disciplines the children he loves. That is how a perfect Father treats his own. So a “super dad” shows up, and because he shows up he can rightly shape, correct, and guide his kids.Playful presence becomes training ground. The machindano on a queen-size bed is not about winning a crocodile fight. It is about time spent that builds a foundation for voice and correction to mean something later. Joshua 24 then fixes direction. “As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” Leadership here is not domination or pretending to be flawless. Leadership owns failure, apologizes for snapping in a McDonald’s drive-thru, and points the family back to Christ again.Hebrews 12:10-11 gives the why. Discipline is painful in the moment, but it yields a peaceful harvest of right living. Correction is love in motion. A dugout talk after a long losing season shows what this looks like: stop the resignation, call for effort and attitude that can actually be controlled, and aim the team toward growth. First Thessalonians 2 adds the tone: pleading, encouraging, urging toward a life God calls worthy. Ephesians 6:4 guards the method: do not provoke; bring up with the Lord’s instruction.Practice then becomes legacy. Children learn to pray, forgive, show grace, humble themselves, and persevere by watching. A kid who tracks crops beside the house remembers more than his dad might think. Words like “son, I’m proud of you” become the inner voice a child carries. Careers, houses, and projects are fragile. The legacy that sticks is who a father becomes and who he helps his children become. The good news anchors it all: kids already have a perfect Father. In Christ, imperfect dads are made whole and can be faithful, present, leading, correcting, encouraging, and modeling Jesus in the ordinary.[00:00] Welcome[00:22] Father’s Day and superhero expectations[04:37] Clark, Bruce, Peter: ordinary men[05:50] Ordinary faithfulness of fathers[07:29] Presence is a father’s superpower[07:58] Hebrews 12: endurance and discipline[11:03] Mashindano: playful presence builds trust[13:38] Lead your family to serve the Lord[16:11] Discipline that yields a peaceful harvest[17:26] Coaching story: effort and attitude[20:19] Encourage and correct with purpose[24:57] Children learn by watching[27:33] Legacy is showing Jesus daily[29:33] A father’s self-check[30:46] Closing prayer for dads

32 min
Jun 14

The Third Generation / From Diapers to Diapers

Weekend Service for June 14Scripture Readings: 2 Timothy 2:1-14Passover sets the tone by tying salvation to a family’s story and command: obey as a lasting ordinance for descendants, and when children ask, “What does this mean to you?” answer with lived meaning, not bare definition. The question becomes the doorway through which faith moves from rule to relationship, from events to interpretation, from history to identity. Paul then names the three-generation thread in Timothy’s line, where faith first lived in Lois, then in Eunice, and now lives in Timothy, and he presses further: fan into flame the gift, refuse shame, suffer for the gospel, and guard the good deposit. The text itself links lineage to stewardship, not to nostalgia; the living gospel is entrusted and must be guarded and given, not merely admired.The contrast between binary and spectrum frames a first test of lifestyle. Some moments are rightly no, like a hot stove with a toddler, but maturing children must be coached into discernment where Scripture gives principle, not a script. The spectrum forces hard calls issue by issue, and the Exodus question stays near: why is this important to you. Presence then demands wisdom between hovering and vanishing. Lois and Eunice are known and formative, yet absent from the travel log, suggesting a posture that is available without smothering, supportive without supplanting.Wisdom itself refuses two easy ditches, either rigid rule-keeping that never requires thought or a free-for-all that never offers rails. Paul’s pattern helps: hold sound teaching with faith and love, then teach others who can teach others also. Family identity asks whether a household will live like a locomotive on fixed tracks or like a hovercraft exploring open country. Both images carry risks and gifts. The aim is not control but clarity about who the family is, what a name means, and how to hold honor when insult or confusion comes.Consequences round out the field. Some homes major on catching wrongs and keeping score. Others deny there is any wrong at all. The gracious father in Luke 15 shows a better center. He lets a son choose, absorbs the waste, keeps the road home visible, and runs with open arms when the child returns. Grandparenting gains that perspective. What used to matter shrinks, and what endures comes forward. Exodus keeps asking, what does this mean to you, and 2 Timothy keeps urging, guard the good deposit and pass it on.[00:00] Welcome[00:35] Series setup and grandpa focus[02:21] From secular kid to Christ[04:38] Parachurch and the local church[06:29] Learning to think in the friction[07:10] Two texts for three generations[09:55] Passover and a lasting ordinance[12:18] Paul, Timothy, and a family line[14:12] Lois, Eunice, and sincere faith[15:04] Grace revealed and death destroyed[16:07] Guarding and entrusting the deposit[19:56] Five challenges for grandparents[20:17] Lifestyle: binary to spectrum[24:53] Presence: hovering to absence[27:15] Wisdom: rules to license[30:27] Family identity: tracks or hovercraft[33:27] Consequences and the real stakes[34:58] Not prodigal son, gracious father[38:13] The gift of grandparent perspective[39:07] Prayer and benediction

41 min
Jun 7

From Control to Influence / From Diapers to Diapers

Weekend Service for June 7Scripture Readings: Genesis 2:24 / Luke 15:20-24 / Exodus 18:17-23Parenting names the long road from diapers to diapers and insists the road starts with the parent. The calling looks inward first, asking whether the parent is becoming the kind of person who can lead children toward healthy adulthood. The years shift. Infants need protection. Adolescents need guidance. Young adults need an influencer, not a controller. The approach that worked at 8 does not work at 18, 20, or 25. The relationship must evolve as needs change, even when emotions flip from “I’m right here” to a meltdown in a minute.Genesis 2 speaks into that shift. God builds a family that nurtures and trains, but he also sets a trajectory. A man leaves father and mother and is joined to his wife. The design is not permanent dependence but maturity and a new union. The goal becomes adult children who can stand, decide, and still remain in living relationship with those who raised them.Failure sits inside that design as a teacher. Luke 15 puts a father on the porch and a son in a pigsty. The father lets the young man choose his path and lose his money. Then love runs. No ridicule. No I told you so. Only robe, ring, sandals, and a party. That welcome echoes the heart of God in Christ, the one who forgives Peter, is betrayed by Judas, and answers the thief with mercy. Parents prepare children not by bubble wrap but by walking them through the next right step after a fall.Exodus sets another pattern as Moses receives counsel from Jethro. Influence shows up without control. Advice comes as a gift, not a demand. Adult children get to choose, and wisdom respects their agency while staying close enough to be heard.The relationship must hold when convictions differ. Children may look different, vote different, parent different, even struggle spiritually. Love keeps the door open and the fattened calf ready. Disagreement need not mean disconnection. The parent’s posture says, the voice remains, the corner is occupied, and the table is set.Trust hands all this to God. Children imitate what they see before they understand what it means. So the parent aims to look like Christ, longing not for permanent control but for lifelong connection. The prayer becomes to raise sons and daughters who carry grace and make sound decisions as they stand side by side with those who first carried them.[00:00] Welcome[00:23] From Diapers To Diapers[00:48] Parenting Begins With Self-Examination[03:42] When Approaches Must Change[04:52] The Shift To Influencer[05:16] God’s Family Design[07:40] Failure As A Teacher[09:03] The Prodigal Son Begins[12:27] The Father Runs And Embraces[14:34] Grace, Not Ridicule, At Home[15:35] Choosing A Christlike Response[19:22] Jethro’s Advice Without Control[21:16] Disagreeing Without Disconnecting[23:54] Entrusting Children To God[25:35] Lifelong Connection, Not Control

29 min
May 31

Holding On While Letting Go / From Diapers to Diapers

Weekend Service for May 31Scripture Readings: Luke 2:41-52The goal of parenting adolescents is not to control but to cultivate wisdom, character, and connection that last. The call is holding on while letting go. Early on, protection makes sense. The oven is a bad place for a toddler. But adolescence needs guidance, not gates. The cookie recipe image does the work here: measurement, patience, and practice teach reality better than grabbing the whole bag of flour. Influence learns how to let go while still holding on, and it resists the urge to overcorrect.Adolescence frustrates because what works on a tantruming four-year-old falls flat on a questioning twelve-year-old. Their pushback can feel like rebellion, but most of it is normal development by God’s design. The dog-training story makes the point plain. Daisy could be obedient, but she never gained wisdom, judgment, conviction, or faith. Children must grow those on purpose.Luke 2 lets Jesus lead the way. At twelve he stays in the temple, listens and asks questions, amazes the teachers, then goes home and lives obediently. The text holds both identity-seeking and family honor together. Mary stores it up and learns. Identity formation is the work of these years: Who am I, where do I belong, what do I believe, what is my purpose? Parents can hand down habits, but teens must own faith for themselves, or the world will gladly hand them another name.Connection out-influences control. James says be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to get angry. Coaching from the dugout illustrates it: ask, draw out fear, and then coach courage. Intentional one-on-one time builds a safe home where kids bring news, good or bad. Rules matter, but the destination is wisdom. Proverbs 4 presses it home: get wisdom, develop good judgment.Training decision-making is a gift for the day a child leaves. Bring them into choices now, while influence is strong. Luke 2 ends with a parent’s posture: obedience, treasuring, and trust. The limits of control will surface, and fear will rise. Release the illusion of control, give children to God, and lean into faithful influence. The adolescent years are not about perfect pictures. They are about deepening influence so sons and daughters grow into adults who follow Christ on their own.[00:00] Welcome[00:10] From diapers to adolescents[01:10] Cultivating wisdom, not control[02:27] Oven-to-kitchen growth analogy[03:37] Influence without overcorrecting[04:48] Toddlers vs. adolescents[07:59] Daisy: obedience isn’t wisdom[11:56] Jesus at twelve, temple focus[16:49] From parents’ faith to personal[17:46] Connection over control: listen slow[22:30] Get wisdom, develop judgment[24:32] Training decision-making for life[25:59] Mary treasures, trusting God[27:57] Releasing control, embracing influence[30:52] Raising adults who follow Christ

33 min
May 24

Roots Before Wings / From Diapers to Diapers

Weekend Service for May 24Scripture Readings: Deuteronomy 6:4-9 / Psalm 127:3 / Colossians 3:20-21Roots before wings insists that infancy and early childhood are for building roots before anyone tries to give wings. Deuteronomy 6 presses the point by calling parents to commit to God’s commands and repeat them again and again to their children; the early years are holy repetition that sets grooves into the heart. The daily clock of diapers, feeding, sleep, and messes can feel small and forgettable, but the text insists these years are formative, where a child learns rhythms like going to church, learns trust, and starts tasting a parent’s steady mix of love, grace, and truth.Psalm 127 declares children a gift and warns that work is wasted unless the Lord builds the house. That word reframes parenting as presence more than performance: kids don’t spell love L-O-V-E, they spell it time. The preference for more money, better jobs, and bigger toys yields to the memory of parents on the floor, fully there. Phones and tablets have their place, but they also steal eye contact and crowd out moments that become ballast for a child’s soul.Psalm 78 orders every generation to tell the next about the Lord’s deeds. God’s own fathering becomes the template: even with a stubborn people, God gives grace and mercy over and over. Colossians 3 then sets a home’s tone: husbands love, children obey, fathers don’t aggravate. The atmosphere matters. A climate of anger and unpredictability breeds insecurity; a climate of peace, encouragement, and consistency grows children who feel safe, loved, heard, and valued.Proverbs 22:6 pictures early parenting as planting. Seeds vanish into dirt and nothing seems to happen, yet roots go deep out of sight. Repetition feels thankless, like training a dog that still has accidents, but roots are life. Stories of kids who finally grew when they were simply fed, held, and seen put flesh on the claim that love and stability change bodies as well as hearts. Wisdom also leans on community: different kids need different approaches, and parents borrow and adapt counsel while chasing God’s pattern of patient love. The call lands in simple questions: what roots are being planted, what rhythms are shaping the home, and is Jesus being named and trusted at a pace a child can carry?

28 min
May 17

It Starts With Me / From Diapers to Diapers

Weekend Service for May 17Scripture Readings: Deuteronomy 6:4-9, Luke 6:43-45, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Colossians 3:12-15We commit to building our homes around a living relationship with God. Deuteronomy 6 commands love for the Lord with all heart, soul, and strength and calls us to repeat God’s commands to our children in daily life. We place scripture at the center of family rhythms so our words and actions consistently point to God. We refuse to start parenting with techniques, schedules, or performance; we begin with our own spiritual health and our own devotion to Christ.We acknowledge that our children learn more from who we are than from what we say. Luke 6 makes clear that good fruit grows from a good heart, and parenting pressures expose the contents of our hearts. We watch our reactions in ordinary trials, from setting up a tent to coaching a game, because those reactions shape the emotional climate of our home. We choose authenticity over curated perfection so children see a real, humble faith that depends on Jesus.We embrace weakness as a space for God’s power. Paul’s testimony in Second Corinthians teaches that God’s grace shows strength through our broken places. We model dependence on Christ by admitting shortcomings, asking forgiveness, and letting God transform us rather than pretending to have all the answers. This posture invites our children to trust God instead of idolizing parental competence.We pursue a home atmosphere shaped by mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and thankfulness. Colossians calls us to clothe ourselves with these virtues and let Christ’s peace rule in our hearts. We realize that a healthy home does not require perfect rooms or a perfect resume as parents; it requires a hospitable spirit that binds the family together in love and gratitude. We also recognize a wider call to the next generation beyond biological ties. Programs that connect adult mentors with fatherless children show how simple presence and consistent care can point young people to Jesus and alter life trajectories.We commit to daily small choices that form a lasting family legacy: truthful words, steady grace, honest humility, and reliance on the Spirit to make our homes places where Christ is known.[00:00] Welcome[00:20] Series Title and Parenting Focus[01:16] Deuteronomy 6 Context[03:24] Love the Lord and Teach Children[08:20] Fruit Reveals the Heart[09:10] Parenting Pressures Expose Us[12:53] Grace in Weakness[16:48] Creating a Christlike Home[22:29] New Heart Transformation[24:43] Serving the City[26:10] Fatherlessness and Mentoring[30:30] Prayer and Commission

32 min
May 11

What Is A Mother?

Weekend Service for May 10Scripture Readings: Proverbs 31We gather around Proverbs 31 not to chase a checklist but to recognize a pattern of faithfulness that reveals God in ordinary life. We read a portrait of steady work, wise speech, and practical care that brings life to a household. We affirm the everyday labor that often goes unseen: meal prep, prayers, last-minute carpools, and the countless small choices that shape a family. We insist that Scripture prizes faithful presence and spiritual influence over public success or polished appearance. We name that the Proverbs 31 woman models a surrendered life marked by diligence, mercy, and reverent trust, not perfection.We refuse the idols of performance and comparison. We hold that Proverbs 31 functions as poetry describing character rather than a to-do list guaranteeing worth. We embrace vulnerability about weakness, knowing God meets us there and sustains us in weakness. We teach our children how to respond to conflict and injustice by guiding them through real situations and modeling steady courage. We choose words that build identity and resilience, because our speech forms long-term dispositions more than occasional deeds.We commit to pointing our families to Jesus as the primary work of parenting, since fear of the Lord shapes priorities and provides true hope amid failure. We recognize that the most powerful ministry often happens behind closed doors, where consistent love, correction, and prayer accumulate into spiritual fruit. We encourage one another to persist in small acts of faithfulness, knowing that those acts craft character, instruct conscience, and reveal God’s loving presence. We lift up the hidden, steady service of mothers and caregivers as a faithful echo of God’s care for his people, and we ask for grace to keep showing up with wisdom, kindness, and dependence on Christ.[00:00] Welcome[00:29] Series kickoff and schedule[01:07] Stories over gifts[04:08] Reading Proverbs 31:10-31[08:12] Scripture values faithfulness[10:05] Not a checklist, a portrait[12:32] Teaching children resilience[15:52] Power of our words[17:29] Pointing children to Jesus[21:08] Hidden daily service[23:44] Prayer and encouragement

25 min
May 3

Who Am I? / Foundations

Weekend Service for May 3Scripture Readings: Matthew 22:34-40A personal anecdote about cutting shower foam becomes a lens for spiritual insight. Fiberglass dust that caused sudden, visible irritation prompts reflection on how easily others label people by what they see. The analogy of boxes captures how society confines the marginalized—lepers, a bleeding woman, Zacchaeus, the Samaritan woman, and a demon-possessed man—into fixed categories that strip dignity and identity. Jesus repeatedly refuses those boxes: touching the unclean, speaking to the ostracized, and pursuing the outcast, demonstrating that compassion and restoration precede ritual validation.Scripture scenes show healing that flows from encounter and faith rather than from fulfilling social or religious prerequisites. A leper kneels and is touched; a man born blind becomes sighted so that God’s power might be revealed; a bleeding woman reaches for the fringe of a robe and finds wholeness. These episodes emphasize that suffering does not define worth, and that God’s work can make personal brokenness a visible place where grace shines.Identity finds clarity in the declaration that believers are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, called out of darkness into light. This new identity breaks the hold of worldly labels—jobs, failures, hobbies—and anchors meaning in belonging to God. From that rooted identity comes purpose: the twin commands to love God fully and to love neighbor as oneself. Living from that identity reorients actions toward mercy and presence rather than judgment and exclusion.The practical call asks for visible faith that removes barriers: touch the untouchable, be light on a hill, set the lamp on a stand. Whether interaction looks awkward, messy, or socially risky, authentic discipleship means disrupting boxes so others can encounter healing and belonging. The closing prayer frames identity and purpose as inseparable gifts—faith received, mercy given, and a life rebuilt on the cornerstone of Christ that issues in loving God and loving others.[00:00] Welcome[00:30] Bathroom anecdote: foam and tools[02:07] Fiberglass irritation and visibility[03:52] The problem of social boxes[04:26] Examples of outcasts in scripture[06:55] Leper healed by touch[07:54] Blind man and God’s purpose[09:39] Bleeding woman’s faith restored[12:59] Living stones and 1 Peter 2:9[17:30] Greatest commandment: love God and neighbor[21:53] Identity, purpose, and practical calling[22:11] Closing prayer and benediction

25 min

Welcome to the weekly podcast for Parma Christian Fellowship Church. We are a community of Bible-based believers that seek to follow Jesus in all that we do. We desire to reach the world for Jesus Christ through worship, evangelism, discipleship, prayer, and service.

Creator

Parma Christian Fellowship Church
Years Active

2019 - 2026
Episodes

422
Rating

Clean
Copyright

© Parma Christian Fellowship Church
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