March 24, 2013: Palm Sunday

As we begin Holy Week here at Grace, Pastor Michael Hodge takes a look at the events that led it off: the triumphant entry of Jesus, and how the crowd inititally loved him...except, of course, for the priests and leaders of the day...precisely the ones who should have loved him. Learn about this as we hear his sermon today.

Also, we had Mark Fagerstrom give his children's sermon on Palm Sunday, and how are palms can remind us of what happened in this Holy Week. Finally, we had special music, with Roger and Karen and a special guest doing some great music for us today.

You can hear it here:

https://archive.org/details/palmsunday_201303

And we hope you have a great week in Christ Jesus, and remember our Savior as we go through Holy Week.

March 17, 2013: 1 Thessalonians parts 8 and 9: Extremes and

Due to various issues, I wasn't able to get up part 8 last Sunday. Here it is! Pastor Hodge talks about the return of Jesus Christ. How do we, as Christians, wait for your second coming? This be can taken to extremes: it can be ignored, or dwelt upon so much that we ignore discipleship. We are to follow the absolute truth and apply it properly. Listen to how we are to properly await Christ's coming in part 8 of his series.

Then, in part 9, pastor Michael Hodge discusses the Trinity...the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Listen how the three in one works in our lives today.

We also had Mark Fagerstrom give his sermon on "blocks". Listen to his sermon on Who is the most important block, all right here:

https://archive.org/details/011Thessalonianspart8extremes  (includes part 9)

And we pray you have a great week in Christ Jesus!

March 3, 2013: 1 Thessalonians part 7: Sexual purity

No, this isn't an X-rated sermon, but for kids below the age where you can have that "talk", we recommend you listen to this first. As Pastor Hodge continues his series in 1 Thessalonians, we get to that sticky, and sometimes very controversial topic about sexual purity. Christians today are tempted to sin in many ways. But one of the ways that the evil one uses to tempt those who are in Christ is sexually. Need we say about the many scandals that have rocked the Catholic church, and many others? This is a sermon that gets to the heart of the matter, and Pastor Hodge tells those who have fallen into sin that they can be forgiven in Christ by repenting, and seeking help from their pastor or a trusted Christian. We cannot afford to let sexual impurity destroy our love of Jesus, destroy others, and ourselves. Find out what the Bible truly says about marriage, homosexuality, living before marriage, and Scripture to back it all up.

Finally, Pastor Hodge and Amy sang "Come to Jesus", the song made famous by Chris Rice.

You can find these recordings here:

https://archive.org/details/1ThessaloniansPart7SexualPurity

We hope you are blessed and encouraged, even if convicted of sin by Pastor Hodge's sermon today. And we hope you have a blessed week in Christ!

February 24, 2013: 1 Thessalonians part 6: what to do with a great desire?

All of us have desires. Some want a new car. Some want a new car. Maybe a better house. But some...just want food. Or water. But what should we really desire? In Pastor Michael Hodge's sermon today, we see that the number one thing should be love. Love of Christ, first...and love for others.
Now, lest you think this is a sappy, feel-good sermon, think again. This will challenge you, as Pastor Hodge also reveals that holiness and purity and hatred of sin go hand-in-hand. Listen to his sermon today, and be challenged, and blessed.

Also, we had Mark Fagerstrom give our children's sermon today on candles. What do candles give that we should also? Listen to his sermon to find out.

You can listen to both of these sermons here:

http://archive.org/details/1ThessaloniansPart6WhatToDoWithAGreatDesire

And we hope you have a blessed week in Christ Jesus!

February 17th, 2013: 1 Thessalonians, part 5: Traumas of life

On this sunny but cold morning, Pastor Michael Hodge continues his series on 1 Thessalonians with the trauma of life. Today, a lot of people expect things to go well, all the time. And when they don't, they have a meltdown. They cannot handle the stresses of life. In our series this week, Jesus taught that bad things do happen, and very bad things...because this world is fallen in sin and evil. But for those who believe and trust and hope in Christ Jesus, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, we have a hope that no matter how bad things get, God loves us, cares for us, and eternally will give us absolutely no reason to worry. With that, and our hope of Christ in this world...we may be tried and tested hard, but God will never leave us, forsake us, not give us more than we can handle. Find out how in this sermon today.

Also, we had Mark Fagerstrom give his children's sermon on: television remote controls. Huh? Well, just listen to the sermon and find out what that has to do with Jesus. :-)

And finally, Pastor Hodge and several men in the church did our special music today. We hope you enjoy it!


You can listen to all of it here:

https://archive.org/details/traumaoflife




And may you have a blessed week in Christ Jesus!

February 10th, 2013: 1 Thessalonians, part 4: Truth

On this rainy and cold Sunday morning, Pastor Michael Hodge continued in his series that we'll be going through until Easter in the book of 1st Thessalonians. Today, his sermon was on the Truth.
Interestingly, our Sunday School study paralleled his sermon in many ways. Much more often than not, people describe science as truth. Or something else as truth...depending on the feelings of the person. But the only way we can have the real truth is by God's Holy Spirit living in us, and interpreting and revealing the truth to us. If you do not believe in Jesus, you may know facts, but you do not know the real source of Truth. Yes, that's true! To find out why and how, listen to this sermon from Pastor Hodge, and think about what the Bible says about it.

But first, Mark Fagerstrom talked about glue, and how God is a "glue" that bonds all
things together.

Also, we had the Sunday School students come up and do our special music today; we hope you enjoy their singing as well.

You can hear all of it by clicking here:

http://archive.org/details/1ThessaloniansPart4TheTruth

And we pray you have a great week in Christ Jesus!

February 3, 2013: 1 Thessalonians part 3: Suffering

On this cold but partly cloudy Sunday, Pastor Michael Hodge continued his series in 1 Thessalonians. Over the past few weeks, we've gone through the verses and talked about the various aspects of being a Christian. Today, we go into a topic that definitely isn't popular, but absolutely a part of a true Christian's life: suffering. For Pastors, this can and does mean dealing with difficult situations and people. Of course, for other believers, this is true as well. But we must also be tested in our faith, and for some, that means to the point of death. We must be found to be in Christ Jesus, and suffering refines our character and brings us to the Lord on our knees, exactly where we need to be. Listen to the Pastor's challenging sermon this morning.

Finally, for special music, Amy Taylor played "Amazing Grace" on her flute.

Both of these recordings can be found here:

http://archive.org/details/1ThessaloniansPart3Suffering

And we hope you have a great week in Christ Jesus!