Favored One with Bill Winn Listen in as host, Anthony Mullins and guest, Bill Winn, unpack these lectionary passages: December 6 Isaiah 40:1-11 “Glory Revealed” December 13 Isaiah 61:1-4; 8-11 “Good News!” December 20 Luke 1:26-38 “Favored One” December 27 Luke 2:22-40 “The Lord’s Messiah” If you get a chance to rate and review the show, that helps a lot. And invite your fellow preachers and Bible lovers to join us! Read the article
In this episode, host Anthony Mullins interviews George Strub, who serves as the Hope Avenue Champion in Grace Communion Big Sandy. Together they discuss the role of the Hope Avenue Champion within the GCI Team Based – Pastor Led model. “The Hope Avenue Champion is all about what happens within the four walls (of the church). Essentially from the parking lot to the pew, and back. The focus is to give hope to the people who come through the door. People that come to church are wanting to have some form of hope in their lives. And our God is a God of hope!” -George Strub, Hope Avenue Champion Main Points: What is the role of the Hope Avenue Champion & why does the role matter? (1:00) What does a typical week look like for... Read the article
GCI Creative Christmas Ideas As we approach Advent and Christmas many of our Hope Avenue leaders are thinking about creative ways to celebrate the season while still holding digital services. Check out the ideas below generated by our GCI Creative Community Facebook Page . Drop a comment below with any additional ideas, and join the Facebook group to share and garner tips, hacks, and new ideas. Christmas Service ideas: Wear the holiday on your sleeves: Ask members to wear Christmas sweaters and other holiday gear. If you're using Zoom snap a pic of the group. Deck your halls: incorporate Advent candle lighting into your digital service, and then have a manger scene or other Christmas symbols in the background for your... Read the article
Psalm 148:1-14 • Isaiah 61:10–62:3 • Galatians 4:4-7 • Luke 2:22-40 The theme for this week hope in the God who is always in control. The call to worship Psalm encourages the whole world, from the smallest creatures to the mountains, to ring with praise for God who is over all. Isaiah 61 gives us a gorgeous picture of God’s bride, Israel, prepared for his love. Galatians 4 tells about the over-arching narrative of hope—God’s plan through the law and now the gospel. Our sermon is from Luke 2, the story of Simeon who blessed the newborn Jesus. He connects this baby into the story of hope that had been centuries in the making. Advent Also Starring: Simeon and Anna Luke 2:22-40 ESV Read, or have someone read, Luke 2:22-40... Read the article
Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26 • 2 Samuel 7:1-11,16 • Romans 16:25-27 • Luke 1:26-38 The theme this week is God with us, which reminds us that we are never alone. The Psalm 89 call to worship confirms God’s abiding presence with us, as it was with David. In 2 Samuel we read the story of David’s desire to build God a house, and God’s correction to him through the prophet Nathan that “I [God] have been with you wherever you went.” Romans 16 speaks of God’s strengthening and the revelation of the mystery—we are not alone! Last, our sermon text from Luke tells the story of the angel Gabriel breaking the news to Mary that she would bear Jesus, if she were willing, with the affirmation that God would “overshadow” her and be with... Read the article
Psalm 126:1-6 • Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11 • 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 • John 1:6-8, 19-28 Our theme this week is Jesus brings restoration and joy to all. Our call to worship Psalm praises God for his restoration. The passage in Isaiah 61 focuses on the joy God’s people will feel because of the renewal brought about by the Messiah. Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5 that we should “rejoice always” because of Christ. In John 1, John the Baptist bears witness that Jesus has come so that all people might believe. Restoration Begins Today Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11 Today is the third Sunday of Advent—a time when Christians celebrate the incarnation—when God became man through Christ, whose birth we celebrate. It is also a time when we... Read the article
Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13 • Isaiah 40:1-11 • 2 Peter 3:8-15a • Mark 1:1-8 This week’s theme is Comfort in God’s faithfulness. The call to worship Psalm recounts God’s faithfulness and encourages us to be comforted by God’s words of peace. The readings in Isaiah and 2 Peter both speak words of comfort to people in very uncomfortable situations on the grounds of God’s faithfulness to his promises. The Gospel reading in Mark quotes Isaiah 40 to announce the good news of God’s faithful promises being fulfilled in Jesus Christ. A Word of Comfort Isaiah 40:1-11 (NRSV) There’s a humorous story of a teenager who comes home and tells his dad: “Dad, I have some good news and some bad news about your car. The good news is—the... Read the article
As all GCI churches are making efforts toward better church health, one key focus across all avenues is the development of new leaders. Through mentoring relationships, ministry leaders are developed and the lives of both mentor and mentee are enriched. Check out this month’s Church Hack about the mentoring relationship. Read the article
The impact of the pandemic has touched every area of our lives, including the life of the church. Because of Jesus’ call to love our neighbors well, we have found innovative ways to safely worship together and developed new policies to keep one another safe. This means that there are new ways to serve within our ministry teams. A GCI best practice is to have job descriptions for every ministry worker for clear expectations and training. Click on the link to explore the new roles that might be a good fit for your congregation. Read the article
If you are using PowerPoint for your worship service, here are a number of tips to make things run smoothly. By Tim Sitterley, U.S. Regional Director, West In the not-too-distant past, movies were delivered to theaters on large rolls of film. The skill of the projectionist was to sync the film so that when one reel ran out on one projector, the next reel was already playing on the next projector. If they did their job, well the audience seated below was never aware of the reel change. Several years ago, I was in a theater watching the major motion picture Midway. It was the height of one of the battle scenes. Planes were flying in and out of the screen. Bombs were exploding. Everyone was on the edge of their seats. And the screen... Read the article
