We’re inviting the STSA Ministries community to come together tomorrow night at 8:30 PM EST to discuss the strategies we’ve been using to adapt to this unprecedented time in church/world history.
So if you’re wondering how to approach Holy Week and Easter, or what this all means for life after Holy Week, join us tomorrow night as we share how we’re adjusting to this “new normal.”
Go to STSAministries.org and click JOIN NOW to receive details.
Read MoreGod doesn’t love us because of who we are. He loves us because of who He is.
We wrapped up our Unshakeable series on Sunday and for the finale, we talked about the one characteristic that defines God more than any other. God is LOVE.
But while we all have an idea in our minds about what “love” is and what it looks like, we must be careful not to define God’s love as simply a higher version of human love. The two might be similar, but they are not the same.
Check out the video above to see for yourself and you can also enjoy a little entertainment at the start of the video, thanks to James, our guest host for the week.
Read More“We need less THINKING about justice and more DOING of justice.”
We’re in Part 5 of our series Unshakeable and this week we looked at a topic that is on everybody’s mind these days: THE JUSTICE OF GOD.
Where is God when times are bad? Where is He when evil seems to be winning? Why isn’t He doing more?
Special thanks to Fr. Timothy for answering those questions and more in this week’s message.
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I know it’s been a while since I’ve published a guest post on my blog, but this was too good to pass up. Today's post comes from Sherry Fam, the wife of Fr. Timothy Fam, who is my fellow priest at STSA Church. In her post, Sherry calls our attention to a virtue that is sorely lacking in the world today. It’s a lesson that is desperately needed with all that’s going on in the world these days. If you too are interested in guest posting on my blog, please visit my Guest Post guidelines for more info.
Read More“Even when we’re far, God is still near.”
That’s because above all else, God is OUR FATHER. That’s how Jesus described Him in Matthew 6 when He was asked about how we are to relate to God. Not just as servant to Master, or creature to Creator, but son/daughter to Heavenly Father.
And that means that no matter how far we may go, God is always near.
Read More“Trust in the goodness of the Giver, despite what you see in the gift.”
That’s easier said than done, but that’s what God’s goodness is all about. It’s about trusting His definition of good more than my own. And that was our topic in Part 3 of Unshakeable.
Enjoy the message!
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“The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” (Lamentations 3:25-26)
I HATE WAITING! I’m not alone am I? We all hate waiting don’t we? Raise your hand if you’ve done any of these in the past week…
WE HATE WAITING! We hate waiting at the grocery store. We hate waiting in traffic. And we hate waiting on God.
It seems like such a waste of time, doesn’t it? Life would be soooooo much better if we didn’t have to wait. If we had WHAT we wanted WHEN we wanted it. Right here…right now… no waiting. Give it to me NOW NOW NOW!!!
Read More“At all times and in all circumstances, my life is fully in the Hand of God.”
That’s our key takeaway from week 2 of Unshakeable. We looked at the SOVEREIGNTY of God and the implications of His sovereignty on our lives. Nothing is ever outside of His control, no matter what the circumstance may be.
And if you’re looking for a verse to remind of this, look no further than Lamentations 3:37: “Who is he who speaks and it comes to pass, when the Lord has not commanded it? “
Read More"Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever."
Psalm 125:1
UNSHAKEABLE. That’s the name of our latest series and in it, we’re talking about the key to a life of invincibility: trusting in God. When we trust God, we can withstand the inevitable trials of life. When we don’t, the smallest challenges may cause us to stumble and fall. The one who trusts in God cannot be shaken.
But is trust simply a “yes or no” thing? Or are there degrees? Is it possible that all of us – no matter how much or how little faith we have – can grow in our trust of God?
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In case you missed it, Lent is here. That’s right. Bye bye to hamburgers, chicken wings and ice cream; hello to veggie burgers, bean burritos and fruit salads.
As you’ve probably heard before, Lent is the most sacred time of year. It’s a time during which Orthodox Christians prepare to celebrate and relive Christ’s death on the cross, His burial in a tomb, and ultimately His resurrection from the dead.
But what does that have to do with fasting? Why do we fast for Lent? I mean really…why do we really fast? Why is fasting such a big deal in our church and we do place SOOO much emphasis on it?
Read More“I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting, and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.” Pope Francis
We wrapped up our New Year, Less Me series and special thanks to Steve Messeh for talking to us about what it means to apply these principles at the church level. Just like our personal lives, we need to make sure our churches are “others-focused” and continue to be the Body of Christ in our local communities.
Why? Because as we’ve been saying throughout this series, “Even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45).
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Double standard: ‘any code or set of principles containing different provisions for one group of people than for another’
The opponents of Christianity are right. We do have a double standard. There’s no doubt about it. Some might not realize it or know it, but the double standard is actually taught explicitly in the Bible. The Bible teaches us very clearly that we should have a different of standards for dealing with Christians vs non-Christians.
Read MoreWhat if the prize is in the PROCESS?
What if the reward is on the ROUTE?
What if the win is in the WORK?
We’re in Part 4 of New Year, Less Me, and this week our message centers around the idea that no matter season we’re in, God has a purpose that we can live out while we’re there. So instead of looking ahead to what’s next, our job is to find ways to honor God in there here and now of life.
As St. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whatever you do, do ALL to the glory of God.”
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"The Church is a hospital, and not a courtroom, for souls.” St. John Chrysostom
If such is truly the case, then we need to take an honest look at how we (the Church) are doing at welcoming and accepting people from all walks of life and with various “spiritual ailments”.
In this month’s episode of Bringing An Ancient Faith to a Modern World, we discuss how we can influence a culture of inclusion in our churches and help make them the safest places on the planet for people to approach.
Read MoreYou can be generous and not godly;
but you cannot be godly and not generous.
We’re in Part 3 of our latest series - New Year, Less Me - and this week we’re talking about everyone LEAST favorite topic to hear about in church…GIVING!
But even though we’re talking about giving, this message has nothing to do with money; rather it has everything to do with your heart. Because in the end, it’s not about how much you’re giving, but rather how much you’re holding back.
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"The only way to DEFEAT your enemy is to first KNOW your enemy."
We may not always realize it, but every day we wake up to a war – one that’s been going since the day we were born and will continue until the day we die. It’s not a war fought with guns and other physical weapons; this war is much more deadly and there’s much more at stake…your soul!
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary THE DEVIL walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8
Adversary… devil… roaring lion… DEVOUR! YIKES!!!
Read MoreWhat does it take to the G.O.A.T. (greatest of all time)? Today Jesus answers that questions for us and what you’ll see is that His answer is the exact opposite of what we’re trained to believe today. The world teaches us to be great we must be self-serving and self-promoting; but Jesus says the exact opposite: my greatness is connected to my serving others.
Read MoreAt the start of every new year, we make resolutions and set goals about who we want to be and what we want to accomplish. But often these goals are focused on ourselves. We want to lose weight or save money or get a new job.
But to live the life God has for us, we must be willing instead to offer our lives in service to God and service to others, because "even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45).
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We’re at the start of the new year and it’s about that time to look back and ask “what happened to those resolutions?” In this month’s podcast, I’m talking about how to overcome life’s PASSION KILLERS - those things that quench our passion and keep us from fulfilling our goals and resolutions.
Click HERE to check out the podcast and don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the podcast and RATE/REVIEW it as well. Doing so helps us spread the word even more!
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“If a person is wrong about being right with God, then ultimately it really doesn’t matter what he is right about.”
About 15 years ago, a friend of mine and I set out on a road trip to visit another friend who lived about three hours away. The route to get there was fairly simple; it was one highway the entire way. Neither of us owned a GPS at the time, but we didn’t need one. We had something just as good… MAPQUEST!
The directions were clear and straightforward: take Route 50 for 140 miles, then once you hit a city called Westover, MD, the destination will be on your right after ½ mile.
Simple. Straightforward. A piece of cake. What could go wrong?
Well… to make a long story short…SOMETHING WENT WRONG!
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