Go Ahead. Ask.
Let's Lean In Together!
We may try to ignore them, but the truth is, they are there, those challenging questions that just keep coming up. This weekend we begin a new sermon series, "Nagging Questions???" where we lean into some of life's biggest questions and go to God's Word for answers. This weekend we'll get started with a study of Romans 1:20 where we ask, "Is God Real?"
No one likes to deal with the delay or inconveniences of repairs or reconstruction projects. At times it can be frustrating. But the most important reconstruction project that affects our lives is the one going on inside of us - in our hearts. As we celebrate the festival of Pentecost, we consider the most important repair God is doing in our lives as we study Psalm 51:10. King David's prayer is also our prayer to "Have a Heart".
Do you know where you are?
Check out the view!
Imagine you've been given a weekend get-a-way at a beachfront home on the ocean. But when you're there, you just hang out inside and watch tv because that's what you normally do. Pretty lame, eh? Talk about missing out on an opportunity! Well, this weekend we wrap up the Easter season with a study of Ephesians 2:4-7 to help us take advantage of what we've been given, life that is "Above and Beyond."
Did you know that the average thunderstorm in Wisconsin lasts approximately 90 minutes? So what? Well, we tend to think in terms of "forever" when we are in the middle of a storm and have little appreciation for its benefits until the storm passes. I [Pastor Krause] keep hearing all kinds of promises made by various leaders and businesses that soon things will be back to normal, that this will pass. Truth is, only God knows for sure. And only God can make the kind of promise we study this weekend as we look at James 1:12 with the theme "Better Days Ahead".
The Greatest Gift. For You. For Her. For Them. For All.
This is a unique, but special weekend. As we celebrate moms, we come together to worship online and celebrate the greatest gift we've ever received and the greatest gift that will ever be passed on. Let's study 2 Timothy 2:8-10 and celebrate the "Living Legacy."
Quarantine Accomplishments
I've [Pastor Krause] been reading about people getting a lot done during the virus quarantine: home projects or learning a new language. But I've also read some pretty humorous things too: getting caught having a Zoom meeting without pants and stores refusing to let people return thousands of rolls of toilet paper they obviously didn't need. What if I told you that your greatest quarantine accomplishment could be embracing the gift God wants to give you: learning to suffer well while trusting God's plans? That's our lesson this week as we study 1 Peter 1:18-21 with the theme "For You."
Nothing left to give? You're in the perfect spot! Some days, and perhaps especially during these challenging times, we feel like we have nothing left to give. We've reached the end of our strength and don't know how we're going to move forward. That is when we are perfectly positioned to experience the power of Easter. This weekend we continue celebrating Easter with the message "Finish to Start" from 2 Corinthians 1:8-9.
So, how are you spending your days during the quarantine? We miss normal life, but don't worry because something better is on its way. And I'm not just talking about normal life. I'm talking about the next lesson of our Easter sermon season "Something Better". We will study Hebrews 11:35 as the author tells us about a "Better Resurrection".
What's your story?
No matter how your story seems right now, this weekend we celebrate that we our part of "A Better Story."
Good Friday really is a Good day! We journey with Jesus to the cross where we see Jesus win our freedom by being "Sacrificed."
As we enter Holy Week, we begin a series of days where we see in action God’s love for us. This is the love we trust in and celebrate with our words!
As we continue our "Ouch - the 7 Deadly Stings of Sin" midweek Lenten series we ask a very important question, Who Is Jesus? as we see that He was "Condemned."
Have you asked recently "What In the World Is Going On?" In this sermon we asked this very question to gain some much needed perspective on the current events by studying Romans 8:31-33.
Our midweek Lenten series "Ouch-the 7 Deadly Stings of Sin" continues with a message from Psalm 41:7-9, where we see how Jesus absorbed the sting of being "Betrayed."
We continue our "JUST in Time" series with a study of Romans 5:8-11. "Are We Good?"
"Scorned" is the 4th lesson in the Lenten Mid-Week sermon series "OUCH - 7 Deadly stings of sin" in which we focus on seven different Old Testament passages and prophecies telling the world what God's own Son would suffer to pay for sin.
What Time Do You See?
See the Season You You're
There are some events that change the way the world looks. There are some experiences that make you see something different. We may very well be living in one of those times now with the concern over COVID-19/coronavirus. But however the current concerns may or may not change the way you see the world, there is a far greater event that can change the way you see the world and make you see something different. This weekend we studied Romans 5:6 and learned about the special gift of how we get to "See the Time."
What was broken has been mended.
The 3rd installment of our midweek Lenten series "Ouch: The 7 Deadly Stings of Sin" takes us to Isaiah 53:5, where we see how we are healed because Jesus was "Pierced."
It is an epidemic!
Lately a lot of our Abiding Shepherd family has either been fighting illness or have had surgery of one kind or another. Fortunately, no one has contracted the coronavirus (nor have we begun to panic as if God were not in control). But we all are part of another epidemic known to us as sin.
This weekend we tackle the next lesson in our "JUST in Time" Sunday Lenten series. We dissect Romans 4:25 and see one of the laws of nature at work: "Equal and Opposite".
Sin Hurts.
In this sermon we consider the love our Savior has for us that moved Him to choose to be "Forsaken" for us. This is the 2nd installment in our "7 Deadly Stings of Sin" midweek Lenten series.
Are You Ok?
How Do You Know?
How do you know if you're doing ok? How do you know your life matters? How do you know if things are going to turn out alright? How do you know that you're part of something incredible? This weekend we begin our new weekends in Lent series "JUST in Time" with a message from Romans 3:28 about how you can know exactly where you stand, "Faith or Works."
We begin our Lenten mid-week sermon series "OUCH - 7 deadly stings of sin" with a lesson from Genesis 3:14-19, "Cursed",
Blindspot
The other day I [Pastor Krause] pulled the last can of soda out of the fridge. I went to the pantry to find some more to restock the fridge, but couldn't find any. I mentioned this to my wife who immediately found three six packs in the very place I had just looked. What's that about? Sometimes we can be looking right at something and still not see it. Not a big deal when it comes to soda, but very dangerous when it comes to our faith. This week we study our final Epiphany lesson and it is part of the Transfiguration account. We take a deep dive into Luke 9:29 and ask one thing of God - "Lord, Open My Eyes!"
I Can't Stand How Dark It Is!
Walk in the Light!
While the cold and snow during winter can be tough, the hardest part for many is the lack of sunlight. The days are short. The night is long. Darkness wears on a person. Dark places can bring fear, anxiety and pain to a person. But this weekend we study 2 Peter 1:19-21 where we learn how to walk firmly, full of hope and joy, with "Night Vision."
Significant.
You Are!
Sometimes we can get bogged down by the daily grind. But how differently you could carry your load if you saw how significant you are. This weekend we study 1 Peter 2:9-10 and celebrate how this life Jesus has given us is the most incredible "Honor."
I didn't know that, did you?
I recently ran across a website explaining the use for many everyday objects I did not realize. Without someone telling or showing you, there are certain design features we may overlook or never fully appreciate.
Our lives can be like this - certain design elements God wisely gave us that we have never fully realized. Our good works, our outward lives as Christians is one of these areas. This weekend we study the second part to Matthew's epiphany lessons to "LIGHT-en our load". The lesson is Matthew 5:14-16 and our focus will be: "Designed to Shine".
Can you see it?
With all our modern technology so many skills of the past are being lost. As an example, when we want a picture of something we pull out our smart phones and just snap away.
Lost is the fine are of focusing. In times past good pictures required the skill of understanding your camera, how it operated, and what exactly was need to get the best results. Could the same be true of our faith, both in the skills that are lost over time and the necessary steps to get the best results? Let's find out this weekend as we study Matthew 4:12-17. Our theme is "Focus".
Running on an old version?
Is your system outdated?
It can be incredibly frustrating when we're stuck with a computer or mobile device that's running on an old version. It lags & doesn't work right. Could it be possible that some of our frustrations in life come because we've been trying to run on an old version of living? This weekend let's study together John 1:14-18 and learn how Jesus has given us a much needed "UPGRADE."
Eureka!
Don't you just love those moments in time when everything finally comes together and you just get it? What about such moments when God connects all the dots and something we have been wrestling with, something we have been trying to get our heads around, suddenly the Holy Spirit shows us the light?
This weekend we began our Epiphany sermon series: "Light-en Your Load". Our first lesson is from John 1:1-14 and God shows us how just one day can make all the difference in our lives and in this world.
The Journey Has Just Begun...
Where Are You Going?
Happy New Year! 2020 is here which means we've just begun a new year & new decade! What do the months and years ahead hold? None of us know for sure. But this weekend, as we wrap up the Christmas season, we study Matthew 2:23b and celebrate the One who joins us on and transforms for us "The Journey."