Willow Creek Community Church Weekend Podcast

We’ve talked a lot about taking next steps with Jesus, growing in maturity as Christ-followers. I John 4 uses the word “abide” six different times in just a few verses, echoing Jesus’ own words in John 15. This week we continue to explore that salvation is restoration of divine attachment, that growth is not a manufactured series of checklists and steps but a constant “abiding,” or making our home with God.

I am The Way, The Truth, And The Life: God is Love Yo soy el Camino, la Verdad y la Vida: Dios es Amor Co-teach with Pastors Dave Dummitt & Fabian Garza We know about God's love for us, but did you know that God is love itself? And to believe in God is to love others too? Sabemos del amor de Dios por nosotros, pero ¿sabías que Dios es el amor mismo? ¿Y creer en Dios es amar también a los demás? All Christians have a responsibility to love others as ourselves. What does that look like in actuality? It means showing God's love in practical ways to others, with no strings attached. Todos los cristianos tenemos la responsabilidad de amar a los demás como a nosotros mismos. ¿Cómo se ve eso en realidad? Significa mostrar el amor de Dios de manera práctica a los demás, sin ataduras.

John Eldredge writes that salvation is not just a one-time decision—a “get out of Hell free” card, but instead it is a restoration of divine attachment. This week will drive towards the heart of Jesus as expressed through the book of I John: God loves us, desires for us to believe Him, and have confidence and assurance that when we have placed our faith in Jesus, we are completely secure in His love. He delights in relationship with us and calls us to abide—remain, stay, and make our home—with Him. We can have confidence, security, and rest in the promise of salvation found in Jesus. Megan will mention Rooted as an experience to begin to practice the spiritual rhythms that help us abide in Jesus. Campus Pastors will hold the next step push at the end of the message with their own personal endorsements as well as sharing stories from their campus of those who have gone through Rooted already.

Vince Lombardi famously said to professional football players, “This is a football,” knowing that time and time again, the foundational principles are critical to the mastery of a lifestyle. We want to teach our people to keep going back to the basic spiritual disciplines of our faith whether this weekend is their first Sunday ever inside of a church building or whether they have been following Jesus for decades. Our faith isn’t just a one-and-done decision; we take next steps, we stumble, we get back up and get back to the basics. Spiritual practice is the antidote to loving the world. We will emphasize Rooted as a communal discipleship experience for all of us to learn and begin to practice key discipleship rhythms that we come back to time and time again as we grow as followers of Jesus: daily devotion, prayer, breaking strongholds, sacrificial generosity, serving our communities, BLESS practices, and worship.

In the very beginning when God created the world and everything in it, He declared every single thing good except for one moment when He created man and He said, “It is not good for man to be alone.” We have been hardwired to belong with and among one another. But most all of us have felt isolated, alone, cast out, or misfit. This week we talk about the distinction between sameness and belonging. Every person has a place in the Kingdom of God to belong and contribute to the community. As the body of Christ we are to care for the parts that are hurting. We are to offer belonging to one another even if all some of our parts can do is be present.

Often life doesn’t turn out the way we planned – dreams are dashed, circumstances change, tragedy strikes, and sometimes that can cause us to doubt our significance or impact. But you know what, I would say one of the enemy’s most damaging tactics is to get us to believe the lie: Maybe, “I don’t really matter.” This week we tackle lies with the truth: You have a purpose. You are a masterpiece and God has an assignment for you. Every part of your life - including the hardest parts - are something God can use to comfort others, to make an impact.

God designed our minds and bodies to function in a rhythm that demands rest. We are not created to be able to function at max-capacity without rest and refueling. The last few years have caused overwhelming stress, uncertainty, and the demand for most people to be nearconstantly “on” in life, resulting in increasing levels of discouragement, fatigue, languishing, and burnout. When life demands more of us than we have to give we start to redline, burnout, crash. This week we take a look at knowing when it’s time to slow down and refresh so that we don’t crash and burn.

What does "Love the Lord your God... with all your mind" mean? Mark 12:30 gives us the greatest of all commandments, but 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ But we tend to neglect the mind part. Pastor Shawn talks with a mental health professional about how God wants us to be of a healthy mind, body, and soul and how caring for our mental health honors God.

How to speak to God or how to pray can be mysterious, even confusing. Pastor Dave uses James Chapter 5 to teach us how our prayer life can offer a great first defense line or help us step out into unknown and daring places knowing God has got us. And, it is easy! How to pray and speak to God are covered here, plus why prayer matters.

God created the world by speaking. And when God created us in His image, He gave us the gift of language marked by incredible power. But that power can either build up or devastate and destroy. This week we take a look at the power of our words and how to steward them well.

Pastor Albert Tate is back with us this week, talking about 'How We Love Matters' and how to get past any judgments we may hold in order to serve God and love all people well.

Sharing faith can be tough; there's no doubt. Did you run out and tell everyone when you first became a Christian? Probably not. It can feel awkward, especially when it comes to sharing our faith with non-Christian friends and family. But, as soon as we decide to follow Jesus, sharing our faith and spreading the gospel is exactly what Jesus wants us to do! How can we do that, practically, without sounding a little bit out there? Our Campus Pastors look at James 1:19 and how we can both talk about and show God's love.

Why does God allow suffering? How could a 'good' God want to see us in our pain and suffering? The truth is, He doesn't. But He does want us to come to Him with our troubles. God wants to help us in our suffering and gives us a framework to redeem our suffering and use it for good.   Pastor Megan Marshman leads us through James chapter 1 and the framework God has given us.

Unsung |Unsung Service | June 26 | Dave Dummitt We’re celebrating acts of service with our amazing volunteers! Jesus asks us to give of ourselves, our time, and energy in service to the ‘body of Christ’. But what does that look like? This week we’re bringing you stories of volunteering and how people have changed lives, even their own lives, being the hands and feet of Jesus in service to others. What are opportunities to volunteer near you? How can you experience the joy of volunteering? Get inspired by these heartwarming stories.

This week we celebrate all the men, fathers, and father figures in our lives! Guest speaker Jodi Hickerson, a Teaching Pastor at Mission Church, joins us to celebrate her father, former Willow Teaching Pastor Mike Breaux.

Some of the greatest heroes are the people who call out the broken parts of us and walk us through the process of restoration and healing. This week we take a look at what it means to “restore a brother or sister gently,” and share stories of how lives have been changed and saved because someone courageously stood in the gap and walked the hard journey of healing with someone else.

Unsung | The Woman With The Alabaster Jar | May 29 | Miguel De La Mora Her name is not shared in the Bible, but she sure makes a significant impact! The woman with the alabaster jar, seen in the book of Luke, who anoints Jesus’ feet with her expensive perfume, shows us that no matter who you are, Jesus loves you. This woman sacrifices worldly possessions for forgiveness and eternal life with God.

This week in our Unsung Heroes series, Pastor Dave teaches about a lesser-known character from the book of 2 Samuel who demonstrates how God equips us to be courageous; Benaiah. Throughout Benaiah’s life, he shows up to all the challenges he faces and gets through them with the kind of courage that only God can give. Because of this, he became a valued leader under King David. What battles are you facing that require Benaiah-level courage?

The story of Esther is one of a woman full of courage and faith, willing to step into a dangerous situation to save an entire nation. But this week, Shawn will take a look at the unsung hero behind Esther: her cousin, Mordecai. Through unseen, unseen, and overlooked spaces Mordecai coached, equipped, prayed for, and encouraged Esther along her journey.

Happy Mother’s Day to all moms, mother figures, and amazing women in our lives! Today we learn about an incredible mother in the Bible: Hannah. Hannah did what any mother would do: feed, protect, guide, and pray for her son Samuel. And when she gave her son to God, God saw to it that Samuel would go on to lead and protect a whole nation. It’s this sacrificial love that moms display that can go on to change the world. Thanks for spending Mother’s Day 2022 with us!