Church at the Well Podcast

When the Jewish people returned from exile to rebuild the temple, they hit a wall of discouragement and shifted their focus from God to themselves, neglecting the temple and focusing on their own houses. In this sermon, Adam invites us to consider our ways just as the prophet Haggai invited the Jewish people to do in their time, trusting that God is with us and strengthening us as we roll up our sleeves and focus on him.

As we follow Jesus, it's not unlikely that we will face seasons and changes that feel like they require much more than we have in our own strength. Thankfully, Jesus promises his disciples the gift of his Spirit for moments just like this. This week, we take a look at two stories from the book of Acts that show the Spirit showing up for people in need of words, wisdom, and direction. 

Jesus invites us to ask the Father for what we need, assuring us the Father delights in giving good gifts to his children when they ask. In this sermon, featuring a guest interview with Rick Pacukonas, we explore Jesus’s invitation to ask, several ways of thinking that can get in the way of asking, how God might be at work in our lives when we must wait, and why we can ultimately have hope even when our prayers go unanswered. 

Welcome back! This week, Adam shares four questions to consider while searching for the right home church. 

Sabbath is meant to be a blessing, not a burden, but we may hold assumptions about Sabbath that weigh it down and hinder us from receiving the gift of Sabbath rest God longs to give. In this audio reflection, Abby offers three approaches to thinking about Sabbath that will help us ponder and practice Sabbath with fresh perspective.

In a society that values excessive work and honors extreme productivity, the practice of Sabbath is quite counter-cultural. Yet, Sabbath remains a remarkable invitation from God to stop, rest, worship, and delight. This week, ahead of our Summer Sabbath series, Adam shares some of the dangers of living a "hurry-sick" life, and invites us to consider how God might be inviting us to engage Him in Sabbath. 

Our culture is saturated with cynicism, and the church is not immune to it, but Jesus calls us to a different way. In this sermon, Ian examines several powerful moments in Jesus’ life and ministry when he resisted cynicism and concludes with three spiritual practices that can help us counter cynicism.

Joy does not depend on the elimination of suffering because it transcends suffering and can even co-exist with suffering. In this sermon, Adam offers a biblical definition of joy, shares a story about the co-existence of joy and pain in his own life, and offers a concrete practice that has helped him cultivate joy.

Josh Riggs, pastor of Church at Prison, shares the story of his surprising calling to work with inmates in Vermont prisons and gives us a glimpse of the heart of God for people the world considers unapproachable.

How is kindness different from niceness? In this sermon, Abby offers a biblical definition of kindness, teases out what we can learn about kindness from the story of David and Mephibosheth, shares a story from her own life about experiencing kindness, and looks at three kindness killers.