ScriptureLuke 3:4 (NIV)“As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'” Nehemiah 4:6 (NIV)“So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.”DevotionThis week we looked back on weeks of messages as “one brick at a time” a...  Read More

ScripturePsalm 27:4 (NIV)“One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. ”DevotionSunday ended with the song: “I just want You / Nothing else / Nothing else will do.” That’s the heart of a follower. Not, “I just want a position,” or, “I just want a breakthrough,”...  Read More

ScriptureMatthew 6:33 (NKJV)“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”DevotionPastor D pointed to Matthew 6:33 in the context of worry about clothes, food, and daily needs. Jesus doesn’t deny those needs; instead He reorders them: “Seek first the kingdom… and all these things shall be added.”Performance mode is often driven by what “all t...  Read More

ScriptureMatthew 4:19–20 (NKJV)“Then He said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ They immediately left their nets and followed Him.”DevotionPastor Darren asked a piercing question over and over: “Why are you here this morning?”To make someone else happy?To keep the preacher from texting you?To get a badge, a title, a place on the stage?Because “this is just what we do on Sund...  Read More

ScriptureLuke 9:23 (ESV)“And he said to all, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.'”DevotionPastor Darren told the story of Jack the baboon, a real monkey in the 1880s trained to run railway levers so well that he got put on the payroll. A monkey, doing a human’s job with “zero accidents.”He used that story as a stinging picture: church is ...  Read More

ScriptureMatthew 6:3–4 (NASB)“But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you."Matthew 6:6 (NASB)"But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret...  Read More

Scripture2 Corinthians 2:15 (ESV)“For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.”DevotionThe sermon began with a “mistake”: Pastor Darren slid the pulpit, knocked over the anointing oil, and broke the cap. Oil soaked into everything. Tools, floor, hands—no matter what he touched, the smell was there. “My goodness, it’s everywhere.”He took t...  Read More

ScriptureMatthew 6:1 (NASB)“Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.”DevotionPastor Darren described that moment in the car when the GPS popped up: “X miles, X minutes to work” as they were headed to church. That tiny notification exposed a big question: has this become a job or a joy? Duty or delight?...  Read More

Scripture“So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess her daughter-in-law with her, who returned from the country of Moab. Now they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest.”– Ruth 1:22 (NKJV)“Then the women said to Naomi, 'Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel! And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nouri...  Read More

Scripture“And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines had gathered together into a troop where there was a piece of ground full of lentils. So the people fled from the Philistines. But he stationed himself in the middle of the field, defended it, and killed the Philistines. So the LORD brought about a great victory.”– 2 Samuel 23:11–12 (NKJV)DevotionIn the sermon, the s...  Read More

Scripture“But Ruth said: 'Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God.’”– Ruth 1:16 (NKJV)DevotionTwo daughters-in-law had the same circumstances: widowhood, loss, uncertainty. Both loved Naomi. Both cried. Both started the journey.But at the crossro...  Read More

Scripture“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.”– Romans 5:3–4 (NKJV)DevotionPastor Darren imagined Ruth describing Naomi’s life: how Naomi lost her husband, then her sons; how grief kept coming in waves; yet, somehow, something strong and God-centered kept surfacing in Naomi.The quest...  Read More