National Community Church Audio Podcast

Too many believers are following Christ, but at a distance. We’re close enough to see God’s power, but too far to experience his fellowship. In Matthew 5, the scripture inspires us to be peacemakers, but also exhorts us that there will be persecution that comes in following Christ. What we learn though is that challenges actually lead to purpose. Today we lean in to both the scripture as well as stories of those who have walked through persecution. We pray you are both challenged and encouraged to go all in, in your pursuit of Christ and to live boldly in your faith.

In a pluralistic culture, we’ve got to get better at agreeing to disagree. This week’s podcast unpacks five practices, five principles. Check Your Ego At The Door Identify Least Common Denominators Let your Conscience be your Guide Don’t be Dogmatic about Disputable Matters Love people when they least expect

Jesus said in what is known as the Beatitudes, "blessed are the peacemakers." In this series, we have been focused on how to be peacemakers. One of the ways we can be effective peacemakers is by addressing our own bias and perspectives. Later on in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus outlines how we are to do this. He says, do not judge. Instead, have a critical eye on you before you try to help others.

Our speaker, Latasha Morrison, is a leading advocate for racial reconciliation in our society. Latasha is the Founder and President of Be the Bridge. Be the Bridge is an organization whose mission is to “empower people and cultures towards racial healing, equity, and reconciliation.”

Something has gone wrong with the world, God has a plan to set it right, and his people are challenged to play a role in the restoration. Jesus said “blessed are the peacemakers.” Peacemakers go out of the way to make peace, love their enemies to make peace, and leverage their power to serve to make peace. In this series, we will endeavor to be on mission with Jesus every day by practicing the ways that make for peace. Ask anything, listen well, disagree freely, love regardless. Correction: The correct name of the peacemaker Pastor Heather mentions is Daoud Nassar of Tent of Nations, Palestine.

The secret to the Double Blessing is this: the way you GET IT is by GIVING IT. God doesn’t bless us to raise our standard of living. God blesses us to raise our standard of giving. Discover five steps to flipping the blessing: Take inventory Find your signature Learn their love language Little things are big things Have fun

The will of God is a lot less circumstantial and a lot more attitudinal than we imagine. The circumstances we are asking God to change may be the circumstances God is using to change us. How do you cultivate the attitude of gratitude? Whatever you don’t turn into PRAISE turns into PRIDE. Your FOCUS determines your reality. Don’t let what’s WRONG WITH YOU keep you from worshipping what’s RIGHT WITH GOD.

Before original sin there was original blessing. If we get that sequence wrong, the entire algorithm is off. Why? Because it changes who we see when we look in the mirror. Because it alters the way we relate to God. Blessing is God’s most ancient instinct. It’s also our deepest longing. The good news? God wants to bless you beyond your ability to ask or imagine.

Bit players- people who played an unsung part in God's redemption story. It only takes one small act to move the Gospel ball down the field. The unsung are often unnamed that play a pivotal role that drastically changes an outcome. This week, we talk about those unsung and unnamed heroes within Scripture through the life of a little boy (John 6:1-15) and a widowed woman (Mark 12:41-44).

Jesus added value to those who were described as having no value in society (Luke 5:12-14). And he made a practice of seeing the unseen. One of the synonyms for "unsung" is unseen. The encouragement is for those of us who are Jesus followers to intentionally see and touch the unseen.

Leaders aren’t intimidated by other people’s gifts and abilities; they build a platform for them. Barnabas was a minor character in the book of Acts, but his influence extends to us today. He invested in a story larger than his own, gave Paul a place to belong and a place to matter, and gave John Mark a second chance.

There is a long line of women in Scripture who overcome the odds, put prejudice in its place, defy cultural conventions, and break through the glass ceiling. In the grand scheme of history, women are the unsung heroes. It’s the risks they take, the sacrifices they, and sometimes, the rules they break that change the trajectory of history.

What miracle is on the other side of your bold action? What story is God waiting to write beyond your act of obedience? What revelation is ready in anticipation of your word of testimony? Our story today will challenge you in your faith and the way you walk it out. What does radical obedience look like for you? It’s one thing to live your life dutifully. But what if it cost you something? Real giving, real sacrifice, real obedience should hurt! Leonard Ravenhill said, "The early church was married to poverty, prisons and persecutions. Today, the church is married to prosperity, personality, and popularity." Faith will cost you something, but it will gain you everything. Walk with us through Acts 9 and the story of a little known man named Ananias and the lengths he is willing to go to live out obedience and the subsequent miracle that follows. We pray your soul is encouraged and your faith is challenged.

Living UNSUNG is doing what we do for an audience of one. It’s living for the applause of nail-scarred hands. It’s making the most of our time, talent, and treasure. It’s recognizing that potential is God’s gift to us, what we do with it is our gift back to God.

Your best thought on your best day is at least 93 billion light-years short of how great and how good God really is!

Walking in the fear of the Lord means reverencing him and referencing him in all we do. Reverencing him means we recognize, acknowledge, and honor who he is because he is king. Referencing him means we seek him, trust him, and obey him because he is our compass.

In a world that is obsessed with looking good, we often put so much effort in trying to stand out. But the Proverbs offer us wisdom on what it means to really have a “good look” life, beyond shallow facades. The pursuit of wisdom will help both our outward expressions and inward governance align, which will allow us to live good and ultimately look good.

We continue our series in Proverbs, a book of poems and wisdom statements. But one thing we find in the book is that wisdom is more than just a collections of wise sayings, but it acts as a divine being that the scripture calls Lady wisdom. Wisdom is not found in a statement, but in a relationship with a person. We invite you to join us as we introduce you to a wonderful literary character. And also as we turn this series upside down to talk about the importance of getting & giving and how wisdom actually turns our focus outwards and how we might live out the application.

There is a reason that the self-help industry continues to grow each year. It is because we have an interest in growing and getting better. But according to King Solomon, the primary thing we should be trying to gain is understanding. In our attempts to get wisdom and understanding we are really accumulating information. But what God desires for us is to get wisdom. It is wisdom that is the posture required for a good life.

We live in a culture that values fifteen minutes of fame more than a lifetime of hard-earned, hard-learned wisdom. The book of Proverbs sets the record straight: get wisdom. How? There are a hundred ways, but we explore three of them in this podcast. One, listen to your life. Two, surround yourself with the right people. Three, ask God for supernatural wisdom. And while you’re at it: never lose a holy curiosity.