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When we see how diverse and different Jesus’ table is, and how different our own group might be, we start to realize this might be harder than we thought. If we all sit down at the same table, how can we maintain unity over the long haul? How do we commit to one another when we have more differences than similarities? And why is it worth it?

God is passionate about filling his table. So much so, that He desires that ALL are invited and that all accept the invitation. As Christians, we partner with God by committing to a full table. We need to both take our seat and invite others to sit with us.

Jesus opened up the gates to the kingdom of God not just to good people or bad people, but all people. The non-religious and religious are welcome, but more than that: the sinners, the tax collectors, and those who hate God are invited to dine with Jesus. How is this possible? If Jesus has welcomed us in this way, maybe this would help us understand how we might start to form our community.

Thanks for joining us for a very special milestone in the life of Awakening Church. We’re stoked to celebrate six years of growth, community, and freedom in Christ.

Fall is in full swing. School has started. Summer vacations are a thing of the past. The pace of life is picking up with rapid speed. Join us this Sunday as we stop and allow our hearts to catch a breath, remembering the power and wonder of the God’s reckless love for us.

In our final installment of “SAFE: it’s killing you”, we will look at the importance of having conviction to truly live a life of significance. In a world filled with pressure and where compromises lurk around every corner, how do you rise above the fray to be a person of character and integrity?

How do we live with confidence in a confusing world? Life’s hard. If it’s not a relationship issue, it’s a health problem. Or maybe work is falling apart. You have prayed but nothing seems to change. Where is God in all of this? This week in episode 2 of our series SAFE we will be looking at the life of Esther. Her story gives us a powerful reminder that God is still at work even when we cannot see it.

You are not created to play it safe. The Roman historian Tacitus noted, “The desire for safety stands against every great and noble enterprise.” The great needs in our world will not be solved by governments, more education or new programs. The great needs in our world will be solved when followers of Jesus stop settling for a status quo, mediocre existence and start living out what they were placed on this planet to do. This is why the most repeated command throughout the Bible is, “Do not be afraid,” with the promise that God is with you. The reason for this is because the call of God on your life requires courage. What would you do if you were absolutely confidant that God is with you? Join us as we look at the life of Joshua and discover how to take courage and lean into the life of purpose for which you were made.

Our family pastor Kirstin Nolte was formerly a winemaker. Come hear more about how her experience as a vintner relates to our relationship with Jesus.

When Jesus taught his followers to pray, he desired that they would learn to pray “and not lose heart.” But due to life’s difficulties and the various circumstances that invade our lives, we often lose the ability and the desire to pray. How does this happen? And how can we prevent it from happening? Is it possible to live a long life of prayer and partnership with God? Join us as we discuss the ways in which we can stay focused, encouraged, and energized in our prayer life.

Do our prayers affect the way God acts? Would things turn out the same whether we pray of not? This week, we will see that prayer is the tool God has given his people to use in order to partner with him on earth. With all of the mystery surrounding this subject, we can be sure of this: prayer changes reality. Through God’s gift of the Holy Spirit, Christians wield tremendous power in their prayers. Join us as we discover just how much our prayers matter.

Life in prayer begins with who we are before God. When Jesus’ closest followers requested that he teach them to pray, he told them to begin by calling God “Father.” While our own earthly experience may have polluted this term, it is the key through which we learn our primary posture in prayer: dependance.

As we begin this important series on prayer, we are reminded that prayer is a divine invitation to dialogue and relationship, mission and partnership with the Lord. We will examine heartfelt questions that God’s people have asked from the moment God invited them to pray: If God is in control, does prayer matter? Why should we keep praying after making our requests? Why are our prayers sometimes unanswered or takes a long time before we see answers? We will also discover that all of us can cultivate a deep inner life of prayer while being active in work and ministry.

What do you do when nothing in life makes sense and it feels like the world is falling apart around you? Do you grin and bear it? Well, you don’t have to. You can turn your grief, pain, and suffering over to God in a process called lament. Lament is the honest expression of what is going on in our lives. We can bring all the mess of our lives to our loving Father and He will respond. Lament is about running to God with your pain and petitions. It’s not complaining but communicating to a Father who cares. God cares about everything that concerns His children and He wants to walk with you through the stuff of life.

In our modern age of instant gratification, we tend to believe God’s work in our life will follow suit, that everything should happen quickly. But as the body of Christ, the church is called to something deeper: faithfulness. God does not call his church to solve problems quickly, but to obey him faithfully. Join us as we discover what it means to commit to the slow, good work of God in a culture of speed and productivity.

When we join churches, we often think of our needs first: how will this community help me? What does this church offer for someone like me? But the work of Jesus transforms us to consider others first, changing us instead to ask: how can I help this community? Where can I contribute? Join us as we discover how God transforms people not for the benefit of the individual, but for the benefit of the community.

Our expectations for what the church should be might be detrimental to our spiritual growth. How can we adjust our feelings about church even if we’ve been hurt by it?

Join us as we dive deeper into the meaning and history of communion during our worship service.

Having the Gospel allows us to share it boldly. This Sunday, we’ll look at what it looks like to grow in boldness when talking about God.

There is cultural rejection that we face as well as individual rejection of those we love and care about. Fear often stops us from doing what we know God has called us to. Knowing what our calling is, to share our faith/gospel and to be a witness, how do we overcome the obstacles that stand in our way, and live out this mission that Jesus calls us to in a way that honors God and honors others?