Joy to the world! It's just that simple, right? Sometimes exuding "joy" feels like an expectation during the holidays when it can be the last thing that we are feeling. What does it mean to have Biblical joy despite the ups and downs that life throws at us? In this week's message we looked at what scripture says about how to cultivate joy in our every day lives.
12.09.18 - Peace
"Peace on earth and mercy mild"? Where is this peace on earth that the birth of Jesus was supposed to bring? Nations are still at war. Violence still rages in our streets. There is often not a sense of peace in our own families. In this week's message, Pastor Chris Barras looks at the peace that Jesus brings to us and look at how we can truly access it.
12.02.18 - Ready & Waiting: Hope
At Christmastime, a lot of people make a wish list. It’s a list of things they hope or wish would happen. But for followers of Jesus hope is more than a wish. It’s more like a certainty that hasn’t been fulfilled yet. In this week's message, as we launch the Advent season, we look at the concept of hope and how we can live in the space where our hopes are not yet fulfilled.
11.25.18 - Lay Down Your Life
In theory, we like the concept of sacrifice - where someone gives up something they love for something they love even more. But to be the one who sacrifices? To be the one who gives up something that they love? That’s hard.
In this message, we look at the hero/anti-hero named Samson from the Old Testament and look at how in spite of all his failures he still give up something he loved for something he loved more.
11.11.18 - Rage Monster
It seems that these days outrage is all the rage. And men in our culture seem to be pretty angry. But why? And what can be done about our anger? Should we stuff it down, or should we fully express it?
In this week's message, we looked at the ancient man in Israel named Samson and see where his anger got him in trouble and how we can better handle our own.
11.04.18 - Unchecked Desires
When you survey the landscape of our culture you see a few places where men consistently stumble and make a wreck of their lives. There are some desire inside of me that if left unchecked will burn men down. In this message, we will look at the ancient account of Samson and see the places where he fell and see what lessons we can learn about how to handle the temptations that face us now.
10.28.18 - Born for What?
Masculinity in our culture is a hot topic right now. What does it actually mean to be a man in America today? What is expected of men? Where are men getting it right? Where are men dropping the ball?
In this new series, we will look at what God calls men to be and learn how we can live that out in a rapidly changing culture.
10.21.18 - Dealing with Difficult People: Myself
Sure, the world is full of difficult people - at home, at work, at school. But if we are really honest, the most challenging person we ever have to deal with is ourselves. How do we handle it when we are the problem?
In this week's message, we will look at that by looking at a time when Moses blew it and had to suffer the consequences of his own failure.
10.14.18 - Dealing with Difficult People: Family
Sometimes family just doesn't understand you. In this series, we are looking at how we can handle the difficult people of the world by looking back at an ancient leader who was surrounded by difficult people in a tough situation. This week we looked at how Moses dealt with family issues, and learn how to deal with it when you past comes back to haunt you.
10.07.18 - Dealing with Difficult People: Friends
Close friends sometimes drive us crazy. Family members can criticize and make life hard for us. And, if we are honest, sometimes we make ourselves crazy.
In this three-part series, we will look at how we can handle the difficult people of the world by looking back at an ancient leader who was surrounded by difficult people. In this first message, we will look at the challenge of having difficult friends.
09.30.18 - Roll Up Your Sleeves
When you are standing in the midst of the mess, what do you do? How do you dig yourself out of the hard spots in life?
In this week's message, we will address those questions by looking at the final two A10 core values and wrap up our series on A10 2.0.
09.23.18 - 10 Things I Love About You
Area 10 Faith Community turned 10 years old this week, on September 21st! Can you believe it? We are so excited, and we want to celebrate God’s faithfulness to us.
In this week's message, we looked at 10 things that are distinctive about our faith community and dream a bit about where God is taking us next.
09.16.18 - Game Changer
Throughout history, many people have seen their lives change because of Jesus Christ. But how does that change happen? What shifts take place inside of us to bring about real transformation?
In this message we will look at what it means to be a transformative church that changes lives in the city for the city and we will examine one of the first people who ever had their life changed by Jesus.
09.09.18 - You Belong Here
Area 10 turns 10 years old this month and BIG things are on the way! In this series, A10 2.0, we are rolling out the vision of where we are headed as a church. This week we will look at the value of our Sunday gatherings and how they help us grow in our faith.
09.02.18 - The Pearls
In his most famous speech, the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declares that true growth happens from the inside out. This week we will talk about healthy boundaries and how judging others causes us to miss the good news that Jesus was trying to bring.
08.26.18 - The Plank
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus wasn't just concerned with what you did, but why you did it. He believed that true growth happened from the inside out. This week we will explore how the simple act of introspection can transform your spiritual life.
08.19.18 - The Root
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus wasn't just concerned with what you did, but why you did it. He believed that true growth happened from the inside out. This series will explore a few key themes from the Sermon on the Mount.
08.12.18 - What To Do When You're Out Of Options
At some point in our lives, we end up feeling stuck. We feel like we are just treading water and not making any progress. And it is very easy in that situation to start giving in to fear and feeling like we are out of options and have no hope.
In this hopeful message, we are going to look at how God intervenes in a powerful way to the ancient Israelites when they were feeling hopeless and afraid.
08.05.18 - How Does God Save Us?
The longer you live, the more you realize how much the world is broken and, if you are very honest, how much you are also broken.
In this week's message, we will look at one of the hardest and most disturbing account of the Exodus in the Bible and how God not only handles our brokenness but also how He saves us.
07.29.18 - Digging Ditches
Big things are on the horizon. Good things are coming. But how do you prepare yourself for the changes? In this message, we will look at a relatively obscure story in the Old Testament that teaches something important about how God works in cooperation with our efforts.