We spend most of our lives trying to get rich. We work and scheme and worry in pursuit of this ever-elusive goal. Yet while we accumulate more and more stuff and the worries that come with it, we never feel rich. But what if we've already achieved that goal, and we don't even realize it? What if the thing we're chasing is already in our hands?
Title: God’s Great Surprise
Big Idea: Most people enjoy being part of a surprise party. The planning, keeping the event a secret and then the moment it all comes together. For thousands of years in human history God was preparing to surprise the world with his eternal plan. No one but God knew about it. Now Paul tells the Church about it. Are you ready for the surprise?
Ephesians 3:1-13
Big Idea: Treaties are signed, announcements are made, optimism flows but in the end it seems most peace missions fail. Is it possible to be at peace and experience community with people that are different than us? In this section of Ephesians Paul uses three important words to point us toward a peace that will last.
Ephesians 2:11-22
Title: It isn’t Good News if there Wasn’t Bad News
Big Idea: Given the choice we will choose good news over bad. But the thing is we are unlikely to appreciate good news if are unaware of the bad news. In this section of Ephesians Paul outlines how bad our condition is when we are apart from Christ so we can understand our need for Christ as well as the complete good news available in Christ.
Ephesians 2:1-10
Big Idea: The balance in our bank book says a great deal about our financial position and it will vary widely from those around us. In his letter to the Ephesians Paul tells us that every Christ-follower is equally wealthy. He also tells us how to live in the reality of that wealth. Do you know how to read your bank book and live in the reality of your wealth?
Ephesians 1:15-23
Big Idea: All of us have wondered what it would be like to have limitless wealth at our disposal. Paul wrote to a group of Christ-followers in Ephesus – which was considered the bank of Asia – about a different kind of limitless wealth that is at our disposal. Using familiar financial terms Paul helps us discover how rich you are!
Ephesians 1:1-14
Most dads wonder what they can do to have a lasting impact that will build up, not tear down, their children. This message provides wise counsel about patterns a dad can incorporate into family life that will benefit their children and future generations.
Often times, when talking with people who don’t share our faith, we can give off a subtle "us-versus-them" attitude that can drive a wedge between us and the very people who need to hear Christ's message the most. We do this unintentionally, but it is a reality. In this follow up to our 5 week series in January – Just Walk Across the Room – we’ll consider why it is important to point others toward God’s grace and how to talk with them so they can see the real Jesus.
In a world that is filled with people that are hungry, poor, illiterate, people that get stomped on, are oppressed and have no work, and people who are far from God and have no idea that they matter to Him or to anyone else, Jesus is looking for people who are in the compassion business.
The Christian life and the church were never meant to be static. We are not simply to maintain what we have. We have been mandated by Christ to go and make disciples of all nations. We are to have a faith that works in the real world. So, what do we do when the armchair seems more comfortable? How can we avoid going around in circles? How can we have a vibrant faith that is always looking to take new ground with God? How can we learn from the lessons of the past without being stuck in failure and fear? If the task ahead ever looks too big and scary to you then this series from Joshua is for you.
Title: Youth Are The Church of Today
Big Idea: The consequences of disobedience are far reaching and can affect a whole generation. But God is One who restores. Sometimes he raises up a whole new generation to know and serve Him - A Joshua generation that will obey and remain faithful and take new ground. Our youth are more than the church of tomorrow, they are the church of today. Are you ready to go?
Joshua 5:1-12
Big Idea: It is important that we remember the goodness of God and the lessons he has taught us in the past. How do we remember as individuals, as families and as a church? What are some of the lessons and markers here at Albright? How do we commemorate and celebrate God’s goodness? How valuable is it to have visual reminders? How can we pass on what we learn to our children?
Joshua 4
Big Idea: Ever thought you had been somewhere and experienced something before? Life can be like that. We need reminders that the God of our past experience is the God of the present and the future. What difference does it make when we risk taking new ground, knowing that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever? Do we really believe that God can still work miracles today?
Joshua 3
Big Idea: What do you think of when you consider taking new ground for God? We can have an image of reaching people whose lives are ordered, clean, in good shape and who live in good neighborhoods. The first ground taken by God in Canaan was the life of a prostitute who lied for Him! Sometimes faith is found in the most unlikely places. What was so different about her faith that got her into ‘hall of fame’ of faith heroes? What can we learn from her faith and how the spies dealt with her?
Joshua 2
Big Idea: Taking new ground means moving out of our comfort zones, through our fears, failure and discouragements. It means taking a fresh look at God who keeps his promises and who calls us to trust in him. Not only does he call us to take new ground, but curiously, he invites us to enter into his rest. What might that new ground be and what does it mean to live in God’s rest?
Joshua 1
Who are you really? Do you have a core identity? How do you see yourself? Do you wonder how others see you, and how much does it matter? It is typical for people today to protect their identification – passwords, pin numbers, personal information, etc. – so no one will fraudulently use our ID. But do we know what it takes to protect our true identity from the subtle identity thieves around us?
Title: Mugged by the Mirror
Big Idea: Look in the mirror. What do you see, someone who is beautiful and thin enough, rugged and muscular enough to actually feel good about themselves or someone struggling to measure up to the lofty standards of a culture obsessed with appearance? We’re bombarded every day by messages about our outward appearance, but what does all this tell us about our inward person? What would it feel like to have a view of ourselves that was more than just skin deep?
Big Idea: All too often culture bows down at the altar of achievement, striving to have the right education, the right body, the right clothes, the right car, the right house, the right job to prove to ourselves, and to the world, that we really do matter. Many of us believe that we are what we achieve. Yet, is that really true? In all of this scrambling for success, how does God measure success? What is it that makes us significant in God’s eyes?
Big Idea: We craft our identity and create our self-image based on others’ opinion of us, often to empty or even destructive ends. It drives some to crave romance, become people-pleasers, and succumb to peer pressure, join exclusive clubs and create cliques. But what if we could learn to just be ourselves, independent of the opinions of others?
Big Idea: Everyone experiences bumps as they navigate this life. Many of us have experienced brokenness because of things that have happened to us as we go about living our life. Is it possible that Jesus’ resurrection could be the source of strength, hope and power that can sustain you when life is hard?
Genesis 22:1-14; Matthew 27:45-28:15
Big Idea: Good Friday was a horrible day for Jesus. The pain, insults and loneliness during those 24 hours was awful. As we revisit the ghastly events of that day we discover why a day of such horror can be called good.
Matthew 26:17 - 27:66; Jn 13 & 18:1-19:42
When we first hear it, it sounds strange because it seems counter-intuitive. But what if it is actually true and not just a radical thought that freedom comes most often in life when we bind ourselves to certain fundamental commitments?
Title: Total Freedom
Big Idea: We like to hear certain messages from the Bible because they comfort us and make us feel good about ourselves. But other messages from the Bible are more difficult to hear, accept and embrace. One of those messages is that the more we surrender to God the better our life will be. We think of surrender as defeat, while the Bible says it is the road to total freedom.
Matt 16:25; Jn 12:25-26; Mt 10:39; Mk 8:34-38; Lk 14:25-33; Jn 6:66; Rom 12:1
Big Idea: How you doing? Busy. This type of conversation is increasingly typical as many people think of busyness as a badge of honor and fear that they will be thought of negatively if their life isn’t filled to the brim. But living in a constant state of busyness builds tension in our bodies and impatience with those around us. Is this really the way to live and what is the answer if it isn’t?
Exodus 20:8-11
Big Idea: Have you heard about the 25% rule? It is an idea put forward by an economist after extensive research on people and their approach to money. He found that no matter what their income level, the average person gets used to what they earn and wants 25% more than what they have now. Is there any way to find freedom from the perpetual discontent of wanting more?
Malachi 3:8-10
Big Idea: It is possible to go days, weeks and even years where what we do and who we are remain pretty much the same, but is that really living? One of the audacious claims in the Bible is that ordinary people can find freedom from the paralysis of more of the same when every moment of our day becomes an opportunity to learn from God about living a life of greater freedom.
Exodus 3 & 4; Rom 8:29; Eph 4:22-24; II Cor 3:18
He became a slave. Who became a fugitive. Who came to know Christ. And overcame it all. Hear the story of Onesimus, the slave who betrayed Philemon, and the passionate efforts of Paul to convince Philemon to change his mind…about this truly changed man.
Title: Changed Lives
Big Idea: All of us know what it is like to mess up. We know what it is like to do our best to hide what we’ve done. In Philemon we meet a guy who was a thief and ran away in order to hide. But this fugitive experienced a dramatic change and we can learn a lot about mistakes, hiding and changing from him.
Philemon 1:11-14
Big Idea: Life can be viewed through many difference lenses or perspectives. The ones we choose to view life through and live by will shape everything in our life.
Philemon 1:15-16
Big Idea: Is it possible for one person to change history? In the final week in our series about a fugitive (Onesimus) and a wealthy man (Philemon) we will learn how ordinary people (you) can leave a legacy that changes history.
Philemon 1:8-10 & 17-21
If we call ourselves “Christ-followers” it is time to walk where our leader would walk and talk like our leader would talk. That calls for treating people with God's heart for them; the way we get this done is by responding to the Holy Spirit in our ordinary, daily interactions.
Title: The Albright Heart
Big Idea: Deep in the DNA of the people who make up Albright is the desire to make a difference in this world. To live the kind of life that is used by God to be indiscriminant lovers of men, women, teens and children so that they too will discover God’s loving embrace. In week one of this series we are going to talk about our current heart condition and how we can heat it up so we can live the life that is written on Albright’s DNA markers.
Big Idea: The single greatest gift Christ-followers can give to the people in their lives is an introduction to the God who created them, who loves them, and who has a purpose for their days. But how can ordinary Christ-followers have this type of eternal impact on those they already know?
Big Idea: Making friends and being a true friend with those who don’t yet embrace the claims of Christ is both Christ’s mandate for his followers and their great privilege. But once genuine friendships are established, what’s next?
Big Idea: Every Christ-follower has a unique story about what their life is like because of Jesus. So it isn’t necessary to be a gifted evangelist in order to engage others in spiritual conversations, you really only need to know how to tell your own story.
Big Idea: When Jesus entered the scene more than 2,000 years ago he lived life with a grandeur vision. What was his grander vision? How would our lives and the lives of those around us be impacted if we lived life with Jesus’ grander vision?
As Manitobans we are very familiar with winter storms. Some are predicted others unexpected. Some are worse than expected and others are less severe. The same is true about storms that hit our life. They can be expected, catch us unaware, be worse than or not as bad as they might have been. But no matter the storms intensity we often ask, how do I find God in this storm.
Get Rich and Stay that Way 
