No one ever plans to be an addict. It happens incrementally as we indulge in unhealthy behaviors and repeatedly make bad choices. “I can handle it” is the lie we perpetually choose to believe. Eventually, we realize that we can’t handle it. Such is the roller coaster ride of addiction. This message will suggest ways to overcome rather than submit to unhealthy behaviors.

Few words elicit more emotion than the word “divorce.” We all evaluate it differently, but when we experience it, there are no words. In this message, we will learn how to help everyone involved in the emotional tug of war get to a place of healing.

There’s a great story in I Kings where Elijah challenges a group of 450 false prophets to a “duel” of sorts and wins a resounding victory. In the very next chapter, we watch Elijah run 100 miles into the wilderness, where he sits under a tree depressed and begs God to take his life. In this message, we’ll learn how God can minister to us in the dregs of depression. 

“Fear.” Just the sound of the word brings a variety of emotions. It asks the question, “Fight or Flight?” Fear can unnerve us or empower us. Spur us on or hold us back. Everyone struggles with fear, and there are all kinds of fears to stare down in life. In this message, we’ll look at ways to pray away fear’s slimy grip on our lives.

The level of fear, worry, and anxiety we experience is connected to the amount of time we spend staring at and scrolling through images on screens. What we’re looking for in technology can be found in God’s love for us and the joy it delivers when we surrender to it and train our minds to think about it throughout the day. 

In many ways, convenience has replaced common sense when it comes to our eating habits and our physical bodies pay the price. Instead of neglecting physical health, we should do everything we can to respect and strengthen what God has blessed us with.

Our cultural mantra is, “If it feels good, do it.” We’ve compromised purity for the sake of pleasure. God loves us enough to give us sexual boundaries that are meant to protect us from emotional and physical harm. True sexual freedom is experienced in the safe confines of a committed marriage relationship.

The laundry room is where we turn dirty clothes into clean clothes. The same is true in the church. It’s a safe family where we don’t hide our hurts, habits, and hang ups, rather we surrender them to the transformational power of Jesus.

In the construction world, a foundation has to be solid before anything can be built on it. The same is true with the Christian faith. Everything we believe is grounded in the reality that every word in the Bible is true because it’s author is trustworthy.

We often live as if doubt is the opposite of faith. But what if doubt is a gateway to greater faith? Today, we'll ask "What to do with doubt?" And discover, to struggle with one's faith is often the surest sign we actually have one. 

If you want to get stronger you only need one thing. Resistance. In Paul’s second letter to Timothy he continues to challenge him to get stronger by giving him three vivid pictures. Soldier. Athlete. Farmer. All three know a lot about facing resistance. Soldiers fight. Athletes compete. Farmers work. If we want to become stronger followers of Jesus we have to embrace the resistance we face on a daily basis as an opportunity to become stronger and more effective.