What’s the Problem with my Prayer Life?

"Solving the Prayer Puzzle" Series

August 2nd, 2015

Pastor Paul is preaching.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-19

If we’re going to solve the complex puzzle that is prayer, we need first to define the problem(s).  Why is prayer such a struggle?

Is it that we don’t believe in prayer?  Maybe there’s no one out there listening after all.  Or maybe God just doesn’t care enough to respond.  Perhaps there’s nothing wrong with our belief in prayer.  On the contrary, we do expect that we can and should be able to connect with God in incredible ways, we just can’t figure out how to make it work. Whatever the case may be, week one of the sermon series is about defining the problem.

Move-In Ready

"Assembly Rquired" Series

July 19th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
1 Corinthians 3:1-17

Assembling anything is a process.  

Things must go in the right order.  You must have the right process in place.  You must use the right materials.  Once your structure is built then it is ready for its inhabitants.  It could be a store, a condo, a house, an apartment or even a car.  Our lives are the same when it comes to having Jesus Christ live within us.  Is your structure ready?

Build a Boat to Rebuild a People

"Assembly Required" Series

July 12th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Genesis 6:9-21

The earth and all its people had lost its way.

 God still remembered that what He had created was good and he had no intention of throwing it all away.  God tells Noah to build a boat so God can rebuild his people.  Sometimes we need to do some demolition work in our own lives to bring about change and renewal.  We may have to tear down to build up.

A Perfect Design

"Assembly Required" Series

July 5th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Genesis 1:1, 26-27; 2:7

“In the beginning” is how the Bible starts.

 God made earth and everything on it.  That includes each and every one of us.  He called it all GOOD.  It was all good because he was the designer and it was all God’s plan.  In order to know where we are we must look at where we came from.  Even though our lives may not be where we want them to be we must remember that He is the designer and not us.  We are His creation and not the other way around.

Love My Enemies? Are You Kidding?

"Going Against the Grain" Series

June 28th, 2015

Pastor Paul is preaching.
Acts 9:1-19

What could be more “against the grain” than loving those who seem unlovable, than showing kindness to those who have done nothing but harm us?

 Choose not to seek revenge, possibly.  Tolerate them, maybe.  But actually love them, you have to be kidding, right God?  The world would never expect me to show love to the person that mistreats me.  Yet the Bible seems clear that this is God’s desire.  Why God?  Better yet, how? Perhaps a little known man from the Bible named Ananias can start to shed some light on this dilemma.

The Gospel According To A Superball

"Going Against the Grain" Series

June 21st, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
1 Peter 5:1-6

From early on in life we are taught to be in charge of our own future.

 We are taught to be the #1 in life and to stop at nothing to be #1.  This world says that is what power looks like.  As we go against the grain this week we are taught that in order to be lifted up we must first humble ourselves.  It’s exactly opposite of what this world teaches us.  There is nothing more powerful for any human being to do in this world than to admit they are powerless.  Who is lord of your life?  You or the Lord?

Trials = Pure Joy?

"Going Against the Grain" Series

June 14th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
James 1:2-8

We all face trials, tribulations and suffering.  

he question is how do we deal with them and how do we process them.  What is their impact on the rest of our lives?  What we do in the midst of those terrible life situations can and will dictate what the rest of our lives look like.  In James there is a process in place to take those difficult life moments and turn them into power and joy on the other side of them.

Am I Really Alive?

"Going Against the Grain" Series

June 7th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Luke 9:18-27

I think that many of us think that we are alive and living in this world.   

It eventually leads to questions like, “Is this It?, What’s the point of life?, Why am I here?”, and so many other life questions.  It is in those life moments that we realize that we have only been surviving and going through the motions.  SOMETHING IS MISSING!  In Luke Jesus knows what is missing.  Those willing to lose their life will save it.  Are you willing to lose your life?

My Life on the Flip Side

"Life On the Flip Side" Series

May 31st, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Matthew 7:7-12

I have encountered Jesus in my life.  

I am in the midst of my flip side.  In the text today Jesus is telling us about what life can/should look like on the flip side of encountering him.  We need to seek God, ask God, and knock on the door of God’s heart as we live our lives on the flip side.  When we do that we will do to others as we would have them do to us.  That about sums it up.  My life on the flip side.

RRUMC on the Flip Side

"Life On the Flip Side" Series

May 24th, 2015

Pastor Paul is preaching.
Acts 2

In Acts we see that the people were all gathered together in one place as one people.

Then, right in their midst, the same Holy Spirit that Jesus gave to the Apostles shows up in a mighty and transforming way.  The church was born.  That group, on the flip side of encountering Christ through the Holy Spirit, became the Church.  RRUMC is living in the midst of the flip side of the Christian Church in the world.  What does that mean for us today?

Follow Me. No Thank You.

"Life On the Flip Side" Series

May 17th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Matthew 19:16-30 and Acts 1:1-11

Not everyone says YES to Jesus’ invitation to follow him.  

But no matter what your answer is to Jesus’ invitation, you cannot leave that encounter the same person you were before that meeting.  The rich man met Jesus and asked for eternal life.  Jesus told him what he must do.  Jesus then said, “Follow me.”  The man thought about it and then went away sad.  He thought he had it all and now all he had for the rest of his life was sadness.  He met Jesus and was forever changed even though he said, NO THANK YOU.

Jesus Doesn’t Want Someone Like Me

"Life On the Flip Side" Series

May 10th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
John 4:1-30

A Samaritan woman was the lowest of the low in Jesus’ day.  

She was despised, shunned, and looked down upon.  And then there was this one day when she went to the well to get some water, and Jesus was there.  Jesus was not supposed to be there at that time of day.  He was not supposed to talk to someone like her.  How many people feel like they are too lost, too dirty, too broken for Jesus to care about them?  Lost, dirty, broken on the flip side of Jesus Christ.

I Was Just Doing My Job

"Life On the Flip Side" Series

May 3rd, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Mark 15:33-39

The Roman Centurion was having a normal day.  

He got up for work.  He was assigned his daily tasks.  He was in charge of making sure those three men were executed that day on the hill.  The Bible said he was standing there in front of Jesus when Jesus died.  He encountered Jesus as he died on the cross and that Roman Centurion was forever changed right in the midst of his everyday, normal life.

Stranger in a Strange Land

"Pursuing Purity: Series

April 26th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
1 Peter 1:13-25

God would not have called us to purity without a purpose. 

Through a focus on purity, from the inside out, we truly become new creations.  Those passionate about purity will no longer be able to blend in with those around them with differing pursuits.  Those pursuing purity will become strangers in the eyes of those who don’t know God, and this is cause for rejoicing.  The Lord set us apart to see the world differently, and be seen by the world differently.  This is the end which we seek in our pursuit of purity.

Is Purity Still Obtainable?

"Pursuing Purity" Series

April 19th, 2015

Pastor Paul is preaching.
Joshua 7

In Bible times, purity meant not wearing clothes made from multiple fabrics, and making sure you abstained from eating bugs, except those of the jointed-leg variety.  

We live in a vastly different world in which God is doing a whole new thing.  What does it look like to strive for purity in our current context?  At what cost shall we pursue it?  The book of Joshua will point the way.  Join us as we break it all down.

Is Purity for the Birds?

"Pursuing Purity" Series

April 12th, 2015

Pastor Paul is preaching.
Romans 6:15-23

So Jesus gave His life on the cross in our stead, then was resurrected into glory.  

Now what?  God has blessed us with an infinitely deep well of His grace.  What are we to do with it?  Whether they openly recognize it or not, many would suggest we make full use of that gift of grace by sinning all the more.  Somehow, I don’t think that’s what God had in mind.  Instead, with our renewed freedom, God calls us to submit our lives to Him, striving to mimic His holiness.  Using insights from the story of the Exodus, we will consider together why it is still important to pursue holiness in God.

S. Stones

"T.H.E. R.O.C.K.S." Series

April 5th, 2015 - Easter Sunday

Revend Dan is preaching.
John 20:1-18

On Easter morning the women came to the tomb to see that THE STONE had been rolled away.  

Jesus had been set free in the world and in our lives to change it and us for all time.  What is the stone in your life that keeps Jesus from being set free in you and your life?  What is the stone that keeps you from living wholly, totally and fully for Jesus Christ and his mission in the world?

"The Full Extent of Love" - Maundy Thursday Reflection

"T.H.E. R.O.C.K.S." Series

April 2nd, 2015 - Maundy Thursday

Reverend Dan is preaching.
John 13:1-17, 31b-35
 

The gospel of John tells us that Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.

 Knowing that,  we are told that Jesus then went about the business of showing the world the full extent of his love.  How many times are we only partially living out a faith in Jesus Christ, while Jesus lives out a faith in us to its fullest?

K. Keep Quiet!

"T.H.E. R.O.C.K.S." Series

March 29th, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
Luke 19:28-40 and Hebrews 8:7-13

The journey to the empty tomb now has us along the parade route in Jerusalem as Jesus enters the city on the back of a donkey to the shouts of HOSANNA!  

Hosanna means the one who saves or the one who comes to save.  The Pharisees want the people to KEEP QUIET.  Are you shouting or will you keep quiet?  Just a few days later the crowds are shouting CRUCIFY HIM!  Are you shouting or will you keep quiet?

C. Claimed

"T.H.E. R.O.C.K.S." Series

March 22nd, 2015

Reverend Dan is preaching.
John 10:1-15

In the text today Jesus uses the analogy of the shepherd and his sheep.  

Jesus is very clear that the shepherd knows each and every one of his sheep by name.  Jesus also tells us that the shepherd will lay down his life for his sheep.  We are the sheep and Jesus the shepherd has clearly claimed each one of us.  This relationship goes both ways according to Jesus.  The sheep only follow their shepherd.  He has claimed us.  Have we claimed him?