St. Paul Lutheran Church

We all want to be a part of something great. Yet many times we give up on greatness because it seems so out of reach and we settle for something less. Perhaps our failure at greatness is because we have been pursuing greatness in the wrong way. What if greatness was less about you and more about the Greater One with in you? What if the Greatest One of all invited you to be a part of something greater than you could ever think or imagine? Listen in as we begin this series and a search for greater purpose, greater peace, greater love, greater joy, greater assurance, greater belonging, and a greater legacy

It can be kind of depressing to think that all of those gifts that we will get and give this Christmas will break, wear out, and decay. But even more discouraging can be the withering and decay that surrounds our lives. Yet God knows exactly what we are going through and gives to us something that lasts, endures, and never fades! His Word! His promises can always be counted on to endure and last forever!

Gift exchanges can be a big part of our Christmas celebrations. Yet our exchange of gifts usually involves some rules like price limits. When it comes to the great gift that Jesus has for you this Christmas what He wants from you are the things you don't really want to keep anyways and instead desires to give you gifts you could never earn for yourself.

When it comes to Christmas, giving gifts is great but receiving is even better especially when it comes to what God has to offer you. So what does God want to give you this Christmas season? Listen in to the first week of this series as we begin to explore Isaiah 40 and the double measure of comfort that God has to give to his people!

When Jesus told the story we call, "The Parable of the Talents" he wasn't simply giving investment advice but was showing us how things work in the Kingdom of God. As followers of Jesus we are not owners but managers of that which belongs to God therefore we want to be found faithful with what he has entrusted to us. What we do with not simply our money but His money matters!

God reminds us through His Word in Psalm 46 that he still remains a Mighty Fortress for us in the midst of a broken and hurting world and the great comfort we have knowing that He has won the battle! Listen in this week as we remember the Reformation and the blessing of the truth of scripture that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone!

"I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Close to 2,000 years ago in prison, a few years before the end of his life, the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to the church of Philippi that contains some reflections as he thought about the things that were most important in his life...well actually when you get down to it was just one thing...really one person...Jesus. In complexity of this world, in the midst of pain, in struggles of life, in the confusion and chaos, there is one person to turn to...Jesus.

Some of our struggles with doubt come when our family and especially the children in our lives are experiencing pain. We try all that we can to fix it but sometimes there is nothing we can do. So we turn to Jesus hoping that he can and will do something about it as we honestly come before him in need wanting to believe but struggling with unbelief. Be sure to listen to the 5 steps to dealing with doubt and questions as we wrap up this series of messages.

It is the question we ask after personal tragedy and when life doesn't turn out the way we want. That question starts with the word, "Why?" Yet why do we ask why? What do we hope the answer to our why question will be? Listen in for the third week of Doubt Factor as we explore the Why question and learn how to move past the why question to something deeper and more satisfying than the reason why.

In week 2 of the Doubt Factor, we look at the account of Jesus and Peter walking on the water. Along the way we will see that it really is all about Jesus who rescues even people who have doubts and questions.

Doubts and Questions. We all have them, but it is what we do with them that really impacts our faith. Do we hide them and keep them to ourselves or do we take them to the place we can find answers? As we begin this series we look at one of the most surprising doubters in the Bible who is also called by Jesus, "one of the greatest persons ever born." He knows what to do with his doubts do you?

We have learned a lot concerning how God's Story comes to and through us at St. Paul the past couple of weeks. The fullness of God and His Story comes to us in Our Savior Jesus Christ. Join usas we walk through part 3 of our series, God's Story

Part 2 of our sermon series: God's Story. Learn how all things come together in and through Jesus Christ!

Pastor Dustin Kear deliver's his first message as our Associate Pastor as he shares with us the first part of a three part series from the book of Colossians.

It's not supposed to be this way, those are the words we may say when death strikes our loved ones. Yet when the Lord of Life, Jesus Christ, crosses paths with death, life comes bursting on to the scene. Jesus has answer to our the great enemy of death!

On Palm Sunday and the days before it Jesus has gained a huge fan base because of the miracles he has performed. Yet Jesus doesn't go to Jerusalem to get more fans, He goes to die, to give his life for sinners and as he does most of the fans will leave. Yet Jesus invites us to be his followers and being a follower is a lot different than a fan.

Forgive us our sins as we forgive that's how Jesus teaches us to pray. Yet most of us struggle both with forgive others and even forgiving ourselves and yet Jesus says we compromise our forgiven standing before God when we refuse to forgive. To grow in this area of our prayer it is not a matter of trying harder but spending more time at the cross of Jesus being reminded that of all that we have been forgiven and that Christ has died not only for our sins but the sins of those who have sinned against us. And that they only thing necessary to forgive them is for them to have sinned against us.

In the fourth week of our prayer series we focus on the petition of Lord's Prayer that asks from the Father for our Daily Bread. When it comes to our daily bread and the needs of our body we are tempted to focus on the things we are lacking instead of many and abundant ways we have been blessed by our Father. When we pray for our daily bread it is an opportunity to remember what we have been given and not just what we are lacking.

No. It is a tough answer to hear to our prayer requests but it is one that the Father gives to us. When the answer is, "No" and we are praying for the will of the Father to be done, we can still have peace. And from the place of peace as we learn from the Apostle Paul we can begin to ask how the Father might use even the worst circumstances in our life for something good.

What do you do when God says, "No" to a prayer request? This week in Why Do You Pray we listen to how Jesus models for us a way to pray that regardless of the answer to the prayer we can have peace when we pray, "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done." For resources on this series of message visit 31prayer.com