Last Sunday's Sermon--Compassion

Compassion is not manufactured or something that is conjured up.  Compassion is a gift of God that is often developed through suffering.

Sunday’s sermon, on February 1, 2026, entitled “How can I help?”, expounds on God’s compassion to show us how to have compassion.  Based on Exodus 22:21-27, the sermon shows us principals for helping others.

First, God’s compassion is our personal responsibility.  

God wants to help others and He wants us to help others.  

We may help others at a distance, but compassion involves actually helping someone that you know.

Second, God’s compassion isn’t aimless, it is targeted.  

In regards to the sojourner in our midst, we are to be accepting of this foreigner in our community.  

For the orphans and widows, we are to help them in their distress and not take advantage of them or try to take what little money they do have.  

In regards to the poor, our attitude should be to help them with the needs that they have.

Third, God’s compassion isn’t theoretical, it is actionable.  

We need to actually involve ourselves in our community and serve with the heart of God.  

We also should pray more than problem solve, and we should respond personally to the needs around us.

Fourth, God’s compassion isn’t optional, it requires faithful obedience.  

Compassion is not extracurricular, it is vital and should be our first priority.  

The problem is, helping others threatens our resources and our security and identity.  

We have to overcome our fears and faithfully obey where God shows a need, no matter who it helps or where the need is.

Finally, God’s compassion starts with His grace that leads us to empathy.  

So don’t forget your roots and your past.  Look at how you have been helped by others and then help others in return.  You’ve been there before, do as has been done to you.

And remembering when you have suffered can help you be empathetic to someone who is hurting the same way that you have.

Show God’s compassion, and love people with the love of Christ.

Last Sunday's Sermon--The Law

What is your relationship with the law of God?  How do you handle the law?  How do you view the law?

God gave us his law to obey so that it would restrain our sin.

Sunday’s sermon, on January 25, 2026, entitled “A Bunch of Rules,” talks about the law of God and its merit.  Based on Exodus 21:1-12, God’s law was given to us for our benefit.

First, our pastor discussed the function of the law in these three ways:

1. The Law is a mirror.  It reveals who God is and who we are.

2. The Law is a guardian.  It protects people in a broken world.

3. The Law is a shadow.  It restrains sin but does not end sin.

So how do we relate to the Law of God?   Sometimes we come to the Law with the wrong approach.

First, we often reject the law.  We don’t want God telling us what to do.  We want our own law.

Secondly, we try to master the law.  In doing so, we try to justify ourselves by it, thinking that we have done all that the law requires.  This is a deception.  It’s not possible for us to keep the law perfectly.

Third, we are crushed by the law.  Here, we live out punishment on our own and condemn ourselves with the law.

Finally, we sometimes weaponize the law and use it to control others.

Where are you on that spectrum?  Do you reject the law, try to master the law, are you crushed by the law, or do you weaponize the law?

The sermon points out a better way to handle the law.  Instead of rejecting the law, we need to accept it.  Instead of mastering the law, we need to submit to it.  Instead of being crushed by the law, we need to be freed by it.  And finally, instead of weaponizing the law, we need to use it to love others.  

So again comes the question, what is your relationship with the Law?  In reality, when Jesus came to take our sins upon Himself, he became the law.  So we need to trust Jesus as the law, and His blood covers our sin that breaks the law.

Here’s another question.  How do we practice righteousness now?  We do this through a personal relationship with Jesus that leads to:

1. Personal discernment.  We are little judges intent on taking the principals and applying

them to our lives.

2. Personal conviction.  God has something personal for me in each law.

3. Personal obedience.  After God convicts me, I need to obey.

Jesus became the law and met its criteria by his death on the cross.  Then, by His grace, He enables us to use the law to reveal sin in our lives, to help keep us from sin and to give us life with His grace.

Last Sunday's Sermon--Providence

Often, our core beliefs focus on the fact that we can’t really count on God.  Is that what we really think?  Do we ask ourselves, “Can I trust God with what I cannot control?”  If so, we need to realize that providence is about care from our heavenly Father right now.

Focusing on a God who provides for us in the present is the theme of Sunday’s sermon, December 28, 2025, entitled “God help us,” based on Matthew 6:25-34.

The definition of God’s providence is God’s immediate help found in people, places, and things.

Living fatherless makes us feel anxious because we feel like we are the ones who have to provide for all of our needs.

And preoccupation about your future is at odds with God as your provider.

In this teaching in the last section of Matthew 6, Jesus is addressing security.  He challenges us to trust God as Father.

Our pastor emphasized in the sermon that God’s provision is personal, active, and informed.

His provision is personal, as is seen in Matt 6:26, where Jesus says that God feeds the birds and we are much more valuable to God than them.  God is not distant.

His provision is active, as is seen in Matt 6: 27 & 28, where Jesus says how God is active and involved in the universe in providing for his creation, such as clothing the lilies of the field.

And finally, His provision is informed, based on Matt 6:32, where Jesus explains that God knows what you need.  He’s a good father who knows what is best for His children.

Some practical applications in the sermon were:

• Practice the Sabbath and seek God’s kingdom first.

• Practice asking for things and pray for God’s provision.

• Practice being present and don’t be consumed with worry.

• Practice acts of righteousness and find ways to serve the Lord.

Jesus calls us to repent of our doubts in God’s provision and trust Him.  We need a worldview that says that God is in control.  He’s the king who rules the kingdom.  And Jesus encourages in v 33 to “... seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

He alone is our provider.

Last Sunday's Sermon--Prayer Warriors

Do we believe in the power of prayer where God’s power enters into the battle?

Sunday’s sermon, on November 23, 2025, entitled “The Prayer Warrior’s Code,” is taken from Exodus 17:8-16 and lists five aspects of a prayer warrior.

These five aspects are:

1. Prayer warriors recognize a threat when they see one.

2. Prayer warriors include intercession in their battle plans.

3. Prayer warriors use prayer as a trusted weapon.

4. Prayer warriors are disciplined in contending in prayer.

5. Prayer warriors are persistent in contending in prayer.

Let’s show how our pastor developed these aspects so we can understand them better.

First, prayer warriors recognize a threat when they see one.

Moses recognized Amalek and the Amalekites as a threat to Israel and saw that they wanted to battle with the Israelites.

In a similar matter, in spiritual warfare, the prayer warrior has to first recognize that we are at war with the enemy, the devil.

Once a prayer warrior recognizes the threat–that the enemy has taken a stronghold, or he is harassing someone, or he is tormenting someone, or he is instigating trouble in some area–the warrior can then fight with prayer.

A prayer warrior needs to see where the enemy is at work and then contend against that work in prayer.

Next, prayer warriors include intercession in their battle plans.

Moses told Joshua, who was going into battle with Amalek, that he would climb on the hill with his staff as he overlooked the battle and connect with God during the fight.

Warriors who engage in the battle and pray for deliverance are leaders who love God and others through prayer.  They integrate prayer into every trial and battle.

Just like Moses, we need to be urgent, focused, and stubborn in praying about the spiritual battle we are in or about the spiritual battle others are engaged in.

Third, prayer warriors use prayer as a trusted weapon.

As the Israelites are at war in the valley, Moses stands on the hill above them and fights to keep God in the battle as he raises his staff above his head.

Moses is content to exercise the power of God as Israel wages war.

We need to become a church that sees prayer as a trusted weapon and uses it to wield God’s power in the thick of the battle.

Next, prayer warriors are disciplined in contending in prayer.

As Moses engages with God as the Israelites battle it out, he holds on for the duration of the fight, in victory after victory until the battle is over and the sun sets.

How does he do it?  He has people to help him.  As he keeps his staff raised, Aaron and Hur support his arms.  They know that as long as his staff is lifted up, the Israelites will remain victorious.

Moses received help and so do we.  We have Jesus, our High Priest, interceding for us.  And he held his hands up on the cross until victory over death was won and he declared, “It is finished!”

Finally, prayer warriors are persistent in contending in prayer.

Two ways to persist in prayer is through 1) journaling your prayers and recording the answers when they come, and 2) joining others to pray and wage war together.

From here on out, Moses brings God into the battles that the Israelites encounter.

We need to believe in the power of prayer and bring God into the fight.  We can engage in the battle because God is with us.

Moreover, Jesus is our intercessor.  His presence keeps us persistent.  We can have confidence in prayer because Jesus is our Advocate.

To conclude, we can intercede with Jesus, who never drops His hands in the battle with the enemy.

Last Sunday's Sermon--Doubt

God is with you and there is no doubt about it.

This statement sums up Sunday’s sermon, entitled “Big Stanleys” on November 11, 2025.

The sermon takes a look at Exodus 17:1-7 when the Israelties were complaining to Moses that they had no water to drink as they traveled in the desert after their escape from Egypt.

Based on this story, we can tell ourselves that when we are in a crisis, we can fall into a pattern of doubting God’s presence, and the panic we go through can lead to disobedience.

But the assurance is even when I doubt the presence of the Lord, He is always with me.

Our pastor looked at four truths about doubt that can help us understand God when we fall into doubting.

These truths are:

1. Your doubt is the real crisis.

2. Your doubt has to be dealt with.

3. Your doubt doesn’t stop God from still being there.

4. Your doubt can be a distant memory.

In looking at the first statement, which is your doubt is the real crisis, we have to diagnose our own doubting heart.  

Bad beliefs lead to bad behavior.  The Israelites are a bad example about doubting God’s goodness and provision.  They were demanding, they blamed Moses, and they fell into despair.  They respond with absolute hopelessness–no faith.

God’s people put God on trial.  They prosecute Him and charge Him with abandonment.

When we look back at the doubt in our life, we need to ask ourselves, what do we believe about God?  We interpret our situation like the Israelites, as if God has abandoned us.

In contrast, faith says God is here even when we doubt His existence.

The second truth, which is your doubt has to be dealt with, leads us to think about our behavior.

If you’ve settled into disbelief, then you move into disobedience.   Our job is to get to the bottom of our disbelief.  

If we are bowing, and worshiping God in corporate meetings, if we are bonding, and meeting together in community with other Christians, and if we are building, and getting involved in leadership in ministry or missions, then we can abide with God when we doubt.

The key is to bring your doubt to God so He can change your thoughts.  In that way, you deal with your doubt, and you can ask God to give you faith.

The third truth about doubt in the sermon is your doubt doesn’t stop God from still being there.

In the midst of the Israelites doubting about God’s provision, God tells Moses, “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink.” (Ex 17:6)

God took their judgment and showed His people His presence.  Symbolically, the rock that Moses struck with His staff is Jesus.  Jesus is the Rock that reassures us of God’s presence.

Jesus is the Rock who can take away the judgment of the people.  The cross is the work of God.  We can look at the cross to see the outpouring of God’s grace.  Go to the rock and strike it.  Jesus took on our judgment and stands as the judge and the provider of grace.

The fourth truth about doubt is your doubt can be a distant memory.  

Even when the Israelites doubted God, He was still with them.  In their failure, God is faithful.  

Abide in the presence of the Lord.  Stay on the right path, the Rock is with you.  

The promise of salvation is in God’s hands, and He will deliver on His promises.

Last Sunday's Sermon--Grumbling

The disappointment gap is where our expectations and reality don’t match up.

Am I in this disappointment gap?  Can I really be satisfied with my circumstances?

Sunday’s sermon, entitled “Bellyaching,” on November 2, 2025, answers this question based on Exodus 16:1-30.

Our pastor actually answers the question of being content with five more questions:

1. Am I teachable in this moment?

2. Am I grumbling or going to God?

3. Am I recognizing God’s provision?

4. Am I satisfied with God’s provision?

5. Is Jesus enough?

The first question, “Am I teachable in this moment?” leads to the question, “Can we grow and learn?”

Being teachable is crucial to our growth.  

We have to humble ourselves and admit that there are things we don’t know and be willing to learn something new.  

We have to acknowledge and recognize our immaturity and go to God in honesty to receive His wisdom.

The second question, “Am I grumbling or going to God?” encourages us to let go of dissatisfaction and come near to God.

The Israelites were completely dissatisfied with their situation in the desert after they left Egypt.  They longed for the food they once had when they were in slavery.  Dissatisfaction makes us grumble.

Let us look at how God handled their grumbling.

In Exodus 16:9, the scripture reads, “Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.’”

God wanted the Israelites to draw near to Him.  He wanted a relationship with them. 

Going to God is a much better option than grumbling about our circumstances.

The third question, “Am I recognizing God’s provision?” challenges us to take what God gives us.  

In v 15, the Israelites are confused about the manna God gives them.  This fact illustrates how God’s provision is not always what we expect and, therefore, it is hard to recognize it when we see it.

The fourth question is “Am I satisfied with God’s provision?”  

Some of the Israelites did not listen to God and did not collect double the amount of manna on the sixth day so that they wouldn’t have to work to collect manna on the Sabbath.  Some went to gather on the 7th day, and no manna was to be found.  They did not listen to the Lord.

In reality, God had asked the people to do absolutely nothing on the Sabbath and rest.  He not only wanted to give them the provision of manna on the sixth day for the seventh day, he wanted to give them rest from their week.

He wanted them to be satisfied with His provision to have food all week and His provision to rest on the Sabbath.

Finally, the last question in the sermon, “Is Jesus enough?” challenges us on our level of satisfaction. 

If we ever expect to be truly satisfied, we must trust in God.  As we wrestle with unmet expectations, we need to run back to God.  

He satisfies every longing for more with Jesus, the bread of life, who is the ultimate satisfaction we can have in life.

Can I really be satisfied with my circumstances?  

I can if I know that God is in control and that Jesus Himself is the provision that I need to face life with courage.

Jesus is enough.

Last Sunday's Sermon--Escaping the Enemy

How do we escape the enemy when we have been set free but still struggle with sin?

God will deliver me, I just have to do things His way.

This topic was the theme of Sunday’s sermon on October 26, 2025, entitled “Escaping the Enemy,” and based on Exodus 13:16-14:31.

Four criteria exist when coming against the enemy, the devil.

1. Don’t expect to know the way to escape.

2. Don’t expect to avoid the enemy.

3. Don’t expect to fight the enemy.

4. Don’t expect to lose.

Let’s look at this criteria in detail.

First, don’t expect to know the way to escape on your own.  Wait on God’s commands.

During the time of the story in Exodus, the Israelites are clueless and hopeless in knowing what direction to take, literally.  

After they escape Egypt, God has to lead them on the right path because He knows they will be tempted to go back to the country that had enslaved them.  

With God’s help through a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, he leads them so they know exactly where to go.  

In comparison, the pillars for us represent God’s commands to follow to escape the power of the enemy, the devil.

Secondly, don’t expect to avoid the enemy.

Instead of avoiding the enemy, focus on following God.  God gives us guidance by the Spirit, by the life of Jesus and His teaching.

Jesus is the way.  Commit to follow the pillars–the practices of Jesus–to escape the oppression of the enemy.

Pharaoh is in full force against the Israelites.  He comes after them with his mighty chariots.  They can’t avoid him or his army.  

Their only redemption was to stay close to the pillars of cloud and of fire to deliver them.

Third, don’t expect to fight the enemy.

God is best seen when His people are helpless.  When His people are weak, God is faithful so in His glory He can deliver.

We are not defenseless.  Be ready and prepared.  Don’t be like Israel, who panics when they see the Egyptians coming after them.  

In Exodus 14:13-14, Moses reassures them. The scripture reads, “And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

Then God splits the Red Sea through the lifted staff of Moses.

In application, let God do the fighting against the devil for you in your battle with sin.

Finally, in the war with the enemy, we shouldn’t expect to lose.

In present day, we are like the Egyptians, and we panic.  We freak out when we try to manage sin in our lives.  We panic, and we give up.  Fear not.  

Recognize that God sees your sin and forgives you.  He covers you in grace, and that disarms the enemy’s power.  

When God fights the battle of sin for me, no punishment or shame exists.  

Metaphorically and symbolically, when God splits the Red Sea and drowns the Egyptians, He promises victory for us.  

Grace is the weapon that gives us victory.

Ultimately, God gets us to the other side in safety.  In verse 30-31, God shows them that the threat has been eliminated.  

The scripture reads, “Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.”

God is the conqueror for us.  The devil has been disarmed–sin and death have been completely destroyed.

Jesus fought for us on the cross–His resurrection is the power of God to set us free, to completely deliver us.

His grace splits the sea and gives us victory.  The power of sin is dispelled. 

Fear not and have hope!

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Prosperity

The greatest danger for the American church is having what we need and forgetting God.

If we acknowledge that all we have belongs to God, and we are just put here to manage what He has given us, then we will have a better chance of remembering that God is the one who provides for us.

Sunday’s sermon, on October 19, 2025, entitled, “The Beginner’s Guide to Prosperity,” warns us that life may get good, and we may forget God.  We can be surrounded by abundance and forget who our guide is.

Based on Exodus 13:1-16, when Israel is on the edge of leaving Egypt, God warns them about the dangers of comfort in Canaan.

Our pastor emphasizes three practices when facing prosperity:

1) Practice stewardship.

2) Practice abstinence.

3) Practice your testimony.

First, we should practice stewardship with the things that God has entrusted to us.

For the Israelites, everything that would lead them to prosperity, namely their first-born child, would be dedicated to the Lord.  God’s people would then sacrifice a lamb to buy back their blessing of the child, so that they could manage God’s possession.

In other words, God is the owner of their abundance, and the Israelites become the caretakers.

Secondly, we should practice abstinence as a reminder to be grateful for what we do have.

For a week each year, the Israelites had to eat only unleavened bread so that they could remember leaving Egypt, knowing what God had done for them.  They needed to remember what life was like when they were solely dependent on God.

Today, one way for us to practice remembering God’s goodness is to take a Sabbath day off from our regular work week, refuse to do anything productive for one day, and be grateful for the abundance that God has given us.

Finally, we should practice our testimony to remember where God has brought us.

Whenever the Israelites would practice the week of eating unleavened bread, they could explain to their children that this consecration was done to remember how God had delivered them from the hand of the Egyptians.

In a like manner, we can share our testimony to others of when God has brought us out of struggles and given us hope in Christ. 

If we share how God has delivered us, it can bring glory to Him and help us remember His goodness.

In short, our money is meant to be put back into God’s hands and then managed by us.  

We can consecrate our income, our possessions, and our retirement and be good stewards, practice fasting or the Sabbath, and share how God has delivered us.

In this way, we can remember God’s faithfulness and give Him the glory for how He sustains us.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Growing Healthy

To be balanced in our core as a church, we need to focus on our vision, which is to grow healthy.

When the waves of trials come, we need to be rooted and grounded in our faith.

Growing healthy is the theme of Sunday’s sermon on October 12, 2025, based on Ephesians 4:11-16.

We have a need in our church to have momentum backed by maturity.

Verses 11-13 state, “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds, and teachers to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,”

To get to this maturity, everyone in our membership needs to be growing in Christ because a fragile faith keeps us from advancing forward.

To grow in Christ, we can focus on bowing, bonding, and building.

First, we can bow to God in worship.  The early church gathered together when they worshipped.

Coming to church on Sunday morning to meet together to worship is a way that we can participate in bowing to God.  Giving everything we have, bowing in praise, will enrich our lives and the lives of the people around us.  We can also worship as we work, play, and engage in community.

Second, we can bond with others in discipleship.  Practicing the “one anothers” of scripture will help us bond together in friendship.  

Some of these “one anothers” are to bear the burdens of one another (Gal 6:2), be at peace with one another (Mk 9:50), be kind to one another (Eph 4:32), care for one another (I Cor 12:25), comfort one another (2 Cor 13:11), and encourage one another (Heb 10:25).

Finally, we can build up the church by using our gifts and abilities.

Verses 15 - 16 state, “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

In other words, we are co-laborers with Christ to build His kingdom.  Building His kingdom will bring strength to our faith.

In summary, moving forward in bowing, bonding, and building will give us stability when the waves of adversity try to knock us down.

In aiming for maturity, we can ask for grace, and remember that Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matt 11:29-30)

If we receive bowing, bonding, and building as an opportunity to minister in grace and not as just an obligation, we can build a strong foundation to unite us in maturity.

How steady and stable is your maturity?  

Let us work alongside with God and each other to strengthen our core, so we can offer our hearts to Him in faith.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Grow

Jesus has used my church to grow me up in the faith for the past 29 years.

I started off clueless and scared.  And a woman older than me invited me into ministry with her, to work with teens in a drama ministry.  This endeavor helped me to grow.

That was years ago.  Now I’m in a different ministry, and I think I’m still clueless and sometimes anxious, but that’s where I need to be so I can still move forward in faith.

That’s what faith is, trusting when we’re afraid, and moving forward in courage.

Jesus gave us the church to bring us up into maturity in Him.  Jesus gave me the church to grow me.

This theme was the topic of Sunday’s sermon, on October 5, 2025, entitled “Fine Print,” based on the scripture Ephesians 4:11-16.

Often times, we can be a member of a church and have access to it without being there for the right reasons.

Our pastor illustrated this possibility with four things we need to expect when investing ourselves in the life of a church.

We need to:

1. Expect to be trained.

2. Expect to be included.

3. Expect to be pushed.

4. Expect Jesus to lead.

Ephesians 4:11-12 state, “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ…”

Thus, Jesus gave the church these leaders to train and equip me and to build me up.  He has given us these resources to train us to serve.

Verse 13 in Ephesians 4 states, “...until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness in Christ.”

Therefore, we should expect to be included, to be united in faith, to avoid isolation and individualistic Christianity.  In other words, we are all in this together.  We don’t want to leave anyone behind.  Paul, the writer of these verses, is relentless about all of us being united together under one purpose–to become mature and serve Christ deeply and fully.

In verses 14-15, Paul writes “...so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.  Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”

Our pastor emphasized that the waves of adversity and trials will come, but we don’t have to be knocked down by shifting and bad ideas, by deception and lying agendas.  

We need to expect to be pushed into maturity:  to stand our ground and embrace right theology, balanced and genuine teaching of the truth of Christ, and speak the truth in love to each other, having the hard conversations to push each other into true growth in Christ.

Finally, we need to expect in the church for Jesus to be the one to lead us into maturity.

Verse 16 says, “...from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

Maturity happens in the church because Jesus holds it all together as the head of the church.  He is the Great Shepherd.  We will never be fully equipped and trained until we know that Christ is the one who holds us together, equipping us and giving us gifts to edify the body.

When we realize we belong to Christ, we will be secure.  

We will mature when we realize Christ is the one who gives us grace to serve.  

We will grow when we realize that belonging to the body of Christ happens with the gift of the sacrifice of Jesus.

Growing up together in Christ under His lordship should be the goal as we invest our lives in the church.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Celebrate

Celebrating my salvation in Jesus Christ is something I need to do regularly.

This concept was covered in Sunday’s sermon on September 28, 2025 entitled “Celebrate God Times,” looking at scripture in Exodus 12.

When it was time for the last plague to be enforced on Egypt, to force Pharaoh to let the Israelites go free, God gave the Israelites instructions to celebrate their salvation from Egypt.

The Passover was to be remembered in Israel for all generations, to commemorate the first time when God instructed the Israelite families in Egypt to kill an unblemished lamb and mark its blood on their doorposts, so the angel of death would pass by their houses and not kill the firstborn in their homes.

All the other houses in Egypt who did not have the lambs’ blood on their doorposts would find their firstborn child killed.

Generations later, when Jesus celebrated the Passover supper with his disciples the night he was to be betrayed, our God instituted the celebration of the Lord’s Supper to now be celebrated, honoring Jesus as our new Passover lamb.

After that first Lord’s Supper, Jesus instructed his followers to celebrate on a regular basis that Jesus was part of the new covenant.  He also told them that whenever they ate the unleavened bread and drank the wine together, they would proclaim Jesus’ death until He comes again to the earth in all His glory.

Our pastor instructed us to:

1. Celebrate regularly.

2. Celebrate together.

3. Celebrate faith.

4. Celebrate belonging.

The Passover celebration connects us to God’s deliverance, first for the Israelites’ freedom from slavery in Egypt, and then later celebrates freedom from sin as Jesus’ shed blood on the cross covers us and makes us righteous in God’s sight through the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper, or communion.

So each time I take communion, I can celebrate regularly my salvation in Jesus Christ.

It’s also important to note that the Passover in Egypt was celebrated together as a family.  Households ate the passover lamb together.  Conversely, we celebrate communion together as a church body.

The Israelites then and Christians now celebrate by responding to God in faithfulness.  The Israelites were instructed to have on their cloaks and sandals, ready to leave Egypt.  They had to be ready and act in faith.  They had to believe that this was going to be their night of freedom from slavery–that God would deliver them that very night after 430 years of living in Egypt.

Each time we, as Christians, celebrate communion, we act in faith that we believe Jesus’ died for our sins and that one day we will celebrate the same Lord’s Supper with Him in heaven.

Finally, we can celebrate belonging because the Israelites belonged to God, and He rescued them from oppression of slavery in Egypt.  In the same way, with communion, we can celebrate God’s reconciliation to us through Christ’s blood and our freedom from bondage to sin.

Now, today, we can celebrate being rescued by Christ.  We belong to Him.  

Celebrating our salvation is deeply important.  When Jesus celebrates the Passover with his disciples, He is telling them that they will be free in Him when he will soon die for their sins.

And we are to remember that celebration of the Lord’s Supper until Jesus comes back for us.

This celebration is a gift.  A personal gift–the gift of salvation.

It’s time to celebrate!

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Distinct Mercy

Even in the midst of judgment, God is still merciful.

This statement is especially true in Exodus 11, the scripture from Sunday’s sermon on September 21, 2025, where the theme is to rest in God as judge.

God’s final judgment of Pharaoh and the Egyptians comes to fruition when He kills the firstborn of all of Egypt.

At the same time, He spares the Israelites from suffering the same fate.  He shows mercy on His people.

During this time of the 10 plagues against Pharaoh and the Egyptians, the Israelites wait on God and His judgment of Egypt.  They also wait on His deliverance.  They don’t take matters into their own hands.

Our pastor called us to rest in the assurance of God’s justice towards others, God’s mercy towards me, and God’s distinction between both.

At this time in history during the Pharaoh’s reign, as a result of the plagues, the Egyptians recognize God’s power and greatness.  They give away their gold jewelry to the Israelites and beg them to leave, fearing for their own lives at the hand of God Almighty.

Just like the Israelites, we, as Christians, waited on God who was in charge of justice and vindication, and Jesus Christ satisfied God's judgment through His death on the cross.

We cannot make God show us mercy.  We cannot try to take matters in our own hands and prove our worth by our own merit.  We cannot earn mercy.

The Lord has shown that He is in full possession of His people and shows us mercy by His power over death.

We can remain grateful that God covers us in Jesus’ blood and now sees us as righteous in His sight.

He distinctly satisfies His mandate for justice and His desire for mercy through the death and resurrection of Christ.

And we are confident in God as the merciful judge who transforms us into the kingdom of light, the kingdom of God.

Praise be to God for both His justice and His gift of mercy.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Suffering

The assasination of Charlie Kirk, the great Christian and nationalist, on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, really has shaken my world.

I am so sad.

So very sad.

Sunday’s sermon on September 14, 2025 was appropriately entitled “Resistance in Light of Resurrection,” due to the observance of today’s present resistance in our culture to the message of Christ.

We have to remember that believers in Jesus Christ are exiles in the world.  We are living in the kingdom of God while dwelling in the world’s kingdom.

So how can I remain faithful in the face of resistance and suffering?

Through the power of God revealed in the resurrection of Jesus.

It is tempting, when met by opposition, to blend into the culture or to withdraw from society.  We can relax or retreat.  But scripture gives us hope and confidence to keep engaging the Gospel with the lost.

In 2 Corinthians 4:7-18, Paul encourages his readers that there is hope in the face of suffering for the Gospel.

Viewing our suffering through the lens of the resurrection reminds us that:

1. The power of the resurrection sustains us in our suffering.

2. The power of the resurrection repurposes our suffering.

3. The power of the resurrection secures our eternity without suffering.

When we realize that the power of the resurrection sustains us in our suffering, we can remember to yield to Jesus in His resurrected power.  

This action involves looking to Jesus for solace instead of trying to look within for peace.

Verses 8-10 addresses believers, telling us, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”

And when we realize that the power of the resurrection repurposes our suffering, we can believe that our suffering displays Christ in our lives and shows his power to a broken world.  

Our suffering shows how Jesus resurrects us and helps us overcome tribulation by His blood and by the word of our testimony.

Finally, when we realize the power of the resurrection secures our eternity without suffering, we have hope in the afterlife.

As believers, Jesus will raise us up–we can count on it.

Our victory of eternal life is secure because of the resurrection.  When we believe in the resurrected Christ, we have the hope of salvation.

In 2 Corinthians 4:17, the text states, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.”

We can hold onto hope because Jesus holds the victory, and we can move forward with hope and confidence in the resurrected Christ–even when martyrs like Charlie Kirk leave this world and leave our hearts broken. 

We can all be assured that Charlie Kirk, who was bold in his faith, is with Christ.

And we can be assured that we as believers will one day be with the Lord as well.

So we press on–boldly.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--A Stubborn Heart

In an epic showdown between God and the Pharaoh of Egypt, God sends 10 plagues against the stubborn ruler of Egypt to show him, his people, and the Israelites God’s incredible might and power.

The story of the plagues can be a case study of Pharaoh’s heart–a heart that remained hard in the midst of disaster for his country.

In Sunday’s sermon on September 7, 2025, named “Symptoms of Stubbornness,” our pastor looked at how a hard heart will act towards God based on a study of one of the plagues, a hail storm, in Exodus 9:13-35.

Left to ourselves, we can stiffen our egos, and then God can harden us with repeated movement in our lives when we continue to be resisting and unrelenting in our hearts.

First, as is discussed in the sermon, a hard heart towards God will 1) Disregard God’s clear warnings.

In the 7th plague, hail, God warns the people to take shelter and bring in their livestock.

In a like manner, God warns us on how to deal with our relationship with Jesus.

Jesus warns, in Luke 6:46, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?“

And James warns in James 2:26, “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”

Second, a hard heart towards God will 2) Demand God’s relief and deny Him true repentance.

Pharaoh pays lip service to God but his heart is far from the Lord.

In Exodus 9: 28-29 the text reads, “Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong.

Plead with the LORD, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.”

But Pharaoh did not keep his word.  He didn’t let the Israelites go.

Without repentance, we can still ask God for relief.  Pharaoh wanted relief from God’s judgment but didn't want to know God or repent.

Jesus will separate those who know Him from those who don’t.  He wants us to know Him.

Third, a hard heart towards God will 3) Delay obedience exhausting all other options.

Delaying in my response to God is the nature of a hard heart.

Hebrews 3:12-13 says “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.  But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

That is why it is important to build your tribe who will encourage you in your walk with Christ.

So, just as a reminder, a hard heart towards God will:

1) Disregard God’s clear warnings.

2) Demand God’s relief and deny Him true repentance.

3) Delay obedience exhausting all other options.

God wants to go deep and peel back the scales of our stubbornness.  

God promises to replace our heart of stone with a heart of flesh. 

In Ezekiel 36:26, God says, “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.  And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”

Am I disregarding God’s clear warnings?  Am I demanding God’s relief and denying Him true repentance?  Am I delaying obedience?

Examining my heart will help me repent, and staying in community will keep me in line.  These two things will help me see my heart softened toward God.

And that will give me hope in God’s deliverance in my life.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Saved to Serve

God does not liberate us so that we can live for ourselves.  He sets us free for His purposes.  

God liberates us to serve Him.

This truth is the basis for Sunday’s sermon, on August 31, 2025, named “Saved to Serve,” and it is based on the scripture, Exodus 7:4-16.

During the time that Moses was called as an instrument to deliver the Israelites from the hand of Pharaoh, God’s people were slaves to serving Pharaoh’s gods.  

But Yahweh wanted the Israelites’ worship for Himself and Himself alone.

Pharaoh owned the Israelites Abad (pronounced Avod), which is Hebrew for a person’s work, service, and worship.

But God wanted their Abad to be committed to Himself.

The sermon stipulates that devotion to God gives us purpose in our work, service, and worship.

To start off, God gives us work to provide provision for us.  We are freed to work for Him.

Positionally, God is Lord over our labor.  Thus, there are questions we can ask Him about how to approach work, such as:

1. God, show me where I can make an impact?

2. God, where does my labor go with you and where does my work go against Your ways?

3. God, show me where my work is aimed at dependence on You?

Not only does God ask us to devote our work to Him, He also wants our service.  He wants us to serve others by focusing on God first.  

We can say to ourselves, “I’m serving these people because I love You, God.”  Having this mindset will transform us into Christlike servants.

Finally, devotion to God means that we worship Him exclusively.  God wants us to praise His name over all else.

In summary, unlimited access and total freedom is not for ourselves, but for work, service, and worship that is devoted to God.

God gives us a purpose in these three things to give Him what He Himself delights in.

And as we delight in what God delights in, we will be blessed.

Beyond measure.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Swallow Your Pride

I tend to seek security in things other than God.

I often find security in friendships that I think will provide me the love I need.

And I hang on to stuff that I am emotionally attached to.

But, in reality, neither friendships nor material things can save me from the mess and the chaos of life.

Only God can do that.

Recognizing that God is clearly greater is the theme of Sunday’s Sermon on August 24, 2025, entitled “Swallow Your Pride,” which focuses on Pharaoh’s shortcomings in the scripture of Exodus, Chapter 7:8-13.

Moses and Aaron visit Pharaoh’s palace a second time, and they prove God’s power by showing how Aaron’s staff can turn into a river monster.

When Pharaoh’s magicians and sorcerers turn their staffs into river monsters as well, Aaron’s beast swallows up all the other beasts.

Moses is, in effect, saying, “My God can beat up your gods.”

Pharaoh, unimpressed, hardens his heart and refuses to let the Israelites go.

The sermon clearly explains how we can be just like Pharaoh when we do several things to harden our own hearts.

The first way we can be like Pharaoh is to say, “I can experience God’s greatness and still dismiss it.”  A bad recipe is to not fear God but to fear the plans of men.  We should beware of a stubborn heart like Pharaoh’s.  

There is no question of God’s greatness when Moses’ serpent gobbles up all the other serpents, but Pharaoh dismisses God’s great power as commonplace.  I can do the same thing if I don’t soften my heart often and routinely to break down the hardened core it has become. 

The second way we can be like Pharaoh is to say, “I can summon lesser power and be satisfied.”

When we go to self-help, money, relationships, our stuff, or busyness for security, we substitute God’s counsel with things that really can’t sustain us.

We find other ways to seek security instead of going to God, who offers us real peace, not temporary satisfaction.

When we feel secure in our own stuff, we dismiss God’s provision. When we seek our own wisdom, we dismiss God’s sovereignty.

The third way we can be like Pharaoh is to say, “I can double down in stubbornness.”

If we continue to harden our hearts like Pharaoh, we will not hear God.

This kind of behavior shows us how blind we are when we try to do things in our own power.

I can relate to this kind of hard heart.  God was calling me to submit to my parents in my early 20s, and I definitely doubled down in stubbornness.  He disciplined me harshly for it, and I had to learn the hard way of the error of my ways.

Finally, our main goal needs to be recognizing God’s greatness in Christ Jesus.

When we offer ourselves in humility to Christ, admitting our sin, we can experience His grace and mercy.

Jesus got swallowed up by death in our place on our behalf so we can go to God with confidence.

God’s greatness is greater than the guilt of our sin.  

And I need to worship Him for it, recognizing that He is God over all.

When I recognize that God is over all things, I can at least try to trust that He is greater at taking care of me than I am.

He knows best, and He is enough.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Asleep at the Wheel

I can remember a time when I deliberately ran from God’s will.  I was in my 20s, and God wanted me to submit to my parents.  I refused.  God sent a storm of mental anguish, and I asked my parents for help.  Needing them made me get back in relationship with them.

When the Holy Spirit repeatedly nudges you to do something, and you keep putting it off or run away from the calling, the Heavenly Father may send you a storm to wake you up.

Just like he did with me.

And just like he did Jonah in the Bible.

This lesson was taught in Sunday’s sermon, entitled “Asleep at the Wheel,” on August 17, 2025 by a guest pastor.

In Jonah chapter one, Jonah was literally asleep in the bottom of a ship when God sent a storm to wake him up.

God had commanded him to go to the city of Ninevah to warn its people that God was going to bring judgment on them.

Jonah disobeyed when he went in the opposite direction and boarded a ship for Tarshish.

A storm came, and Jonah told the men on the ship to throw him overboard.  When they did, the storm became calm.

The sermon had four questions to address the issue of sleeping at the wheel when we need to wake up and do what God wants us to do.

The first question was, “What part of my life am I sleeping through?”  We often have a desire to run away when we don’t want to do a task given to us by God.  Recognizing that we are running away is often half the battle to turn things around and start doing what we’re supposed to be doing.

The second question was, “How do I know if I’m asleep?”  The answer to this question is you know you are asleep if you are emotionally disconnected like Jonah was.  The storm was raging at the helm of the ship, and Jonah was down below, sleeping, oblivious to his peril.

The third question was, “Why should I even wake up?”  When I choose to avoid doing something, people around me are going to pay for it just like the men on Jonah’s ship were affected by the storm as well.  Avoidance is trying to control what we can’t control.

The fourth and final question was, “How do I wake up?”  When we don’t listen, God sends a storm to wake us up.  He comes after us.  

We need to invite God into our world when we are asleep and ask Jesus to come teach us what we are scared to deal with.  We have to decide that we can’t avoid the task anymore and move towards it.

I read a scripture that says, “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” (James 4:17)

Proverbs 3:27 also says, “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.”

And, Proverbs 14:14 says, “The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways.”

Reading these scriptures encourages me to focus and wake up to what God wants me to do.  

What about you?  Are you running from God’s will?  Is it time for you to wake up?

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Too Big to Obey

Sometimes God puts us in situations where the calling feels too big to obey.

Do you ever find yourself in that situation?

Sunday’s sermon, on August 10, 2025, entitled “Too Big to Obey,” focuses on this predicament for Moses in Exodus 6:28 to 7:7.

God calls Moses to a daunting task.  Even though God is sending him to tell the Pharaoh of the Egyptians to let the Israelites go and release them from slavery, God tells Moses at the same time that Pharaoh will not listen nor will he do what Moses asks of him.

To Moses, it maybe feels like he is being set up to fail.  How can God ask him to go into a situation that looks like it will fail from the beginning?

When we face a daunting obstacle, we entertain the thought of quitting.  Moses objects.  He tells God he is a man of “uncircumcised lips,” (Ex 6:30) or as to say, he feels that he is morally unfit for the task.

Moses says he is disqualified because he is morally flawed.  What he doesn’t realize is that God already knows this.

God restores Moses’ identity by telling him that He has placed him in a position of authority and that Aaron will speak for him.  He also invites him to walk in His grace.

Our pastor emphasized in the sermon that our own validation will never be enough.  If the calling feels too big, it is because we are placing the burden of the outcome on us.

And we can’t shoulder that burden if what you are being called to is actually going to work.  We have to let go of ourselves and let go of the outcomes.  We have to learn to not take it so seriously and let God do the work.

This mindset takes a big vision of who God is.  Moses wants justice.  And God lets him know that God Himself will be in charge of justice and vengeance against Egypt.  In v. 6, He tells Moses that he will bring judgment on Egypt.

In the end, the calling won’t be a failure. Our pastor reiterated that Moses begins to understand God and cultivate a love for Him as Yahweh, a personal God.  And he obeys when he decides to take the message to Pharaoh.

Loving who God is will propel us to trust Him and obey Him.

The calling we receive will feel too big if it feels like it's on us.  

We must come to the end of ourselves and turn to Him and His sovereignty, trusting that he will accomplish a work through us.

As long as I realize that what God is calling me to is in His hands, then I can take the next step forward–and the next step, and the next step.

Only then will I stop feeling so overwhelmed.

The only thing I can do is this:  trust that God will do a work through me despite my shortcomings.

Just like He did with Moses.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--Confidence

Following a personal God is challenging.  Sometimes you run into trouble when you specifically obey Him.

For example, making amends with someone will not always turn out well.

When you stick your neck out for God, sometimes the response is not always favorable.

Moses did exactly that, and he ran into trouble.

Sunday’s sermon, August 3, 2025, entitled “Confidence Pt 1,” details Moses’ struggle with confidence in God’s character after he basically tells Pharaoh to let the Israelites go.

Pharaoh responds by instructing his taskmasters to order the Israelites, who were slaves, to make bricks without straw.

It’s a no-win hugely unfair edict.

How can you make bricks without straw?  It’s impossible.  So when the Israelites fail to make their brick quota, they are beaten unfairly for something out of their control.

When Moses learns of this egregiously unjust situation, he takes his objections to the Lord.

In Exodus Ch. 5 verse 22, “Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Why, Lord, why have you brought trouble on this people?  Is this why you sent me?  Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble on this people, and you have not rescued your people at all.”

Moses experiences backfire after obeying the Lord, and he brings a question of “why” before God.

The sermon notes state clearly “Warning:  Unexpected outcomes as a result of obedience can cause us to lose confidence in continuing to obey.”

We may think prayers or thoughts like:

“I trusted You, and it made things worse.”

“Was this really from God?”

“Why are you letting them suffer?”

“This is not what I signed up for.”

Moses misses God’s character, and God shows it to him.  God shares a new name of His for Moses–Yahweh–the personal God.  God shows him His personal nature and goodness.

God presents Himself to Moses as not just El Shaddai, or The Lord God Almighty, but now as a God who satisfies, who will walk with Moses through this ordeal with Pharaoh as a personal God, one whom Moses can trust.

God restores confidence in Moses by reminding him who He is and the promises He has made.

In like fashion, God restores our confidence to obey His commands when:

1 God reminds us He is not only powerful, He is personal.

2 God reminds us He moved first.

3 God reminds us He is the source of our confidence.

God shows Moses how he loved the Israelites first by saying “I have remembered my covenant,” (Exodus 6:5b) the promise He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give to His people the land of Canaan.

He then proceeds to tell Moses, in Exodus 6:6-8, seven “I will” statements to affirm His trustworthiness:

1 I will bring you out of the yoke of the Egyptians. (v 6)

2 I will free you from being slaves to them. (v 6)

3 I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. (v 6)

4 I will take you as my own people. (v 7)

5 I will be your God. (v 7)

6 I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. (v 8)

7 I will give it (Canaan) to you as a possession. (v 8)

Seven times.  

Seven times God reinforces His promise.  And then he says at the end of v 8, “I am the Lord.” 

He says I am Yahweh.  I am your very own personal God.  And I will keep my promises to my people. 

At a marriage ceremony, a couple says their vows once–“I will.”  God says His vows seven times.

That’s how committed God is to us, His bride.  That’s how trustworthy He is.  That’s how personal He is.

Is your confidence shaken by trouble?  Trust that God has a plan to redeem you and make things better for you in the long run.

Romans 8:28 reads, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

God takes on the responsibility for deliverance.  He does all the heavy lifting.  When we try to go in our own strength, God intervenes and says to build on his leadership and not on our performance.  

Our obedience is not powered by our own confidence, it is powered by God.

He promises that He will act, He will follow through, He will deliver.  

God will do it.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager

Last Sunday's Sermon--God's Story

How I fit into God’s story matters.  My life isn’t just about me and my own personal identity.

My story is a part of God’s bigger story.

This theme was the main point of Sunday’s sermon on July 27, 2025, which focused on the genealogy of Aaron and Moses in Exodus 6:14-27.

Rather than skipping over this wordy genealogy, our pastor wisely used it to explain how God’s word confronts our individualistic mindset.

Genealogies are important in scripture.  They show how God establishes through generations the appointment of people used for a specific purpose in God’s orchestrated will.

God had an ordained purpose for Moses and Aaron.  He also has an ordained purpose for me.

Applying it to our lives, instead of shrinking our belonging to our own existence, God wants us to think of our identity as people outside ourselves.

Our culture today has an individualistic worldview.  We often define ourselves by our own choice of gender or sexuality.  And we think our existence begins and ends with us.

We think everything revolves around us.  We think, “I get to decide who I am.”

But God has a bigger picture in mind.  God wants us to know that He defines our identity.  We are part of the family of God.

This concept may challenge our thinking in today’s society, but this idea is about ownership and to whom we belong as people.

In essence, we belong to God.  

God wants us to live in His story, not one of our own making.

Ignoring this truth makes us believe lies about our identity, which is covered in this sermon.

Lies that say:

1. My story is about me.

2. My story is mine to define.

3. My story begins and ends with me.

4. My story rests on me.

God takes ownership of me.  He says to me, “You are mine.”  Isaiah 43:1b says, "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.”

Thus, my personal belief that I belong to God matters to Him.  God decides who I will be.

Through Christ’s blood, He bought me at a price bigger than I can possibly fathom.

We have a security in Christ’s righteousness because we are grafted into God’s covenant.

Therefore, I need to have a loyalty to God, a concept that is at odds with a culture that defines itself on its own.

Our story doesn’t rest on our shoulders but on God’s grace.  We are to live the lives that God has ordained for us.  

While this truth challenges our view of identity in society today, it can actually be a comfort.

The fact that I belong to God means I matter immensely to Him and that He is going to look out for me, watch over me, and take care of me.

Knowing this truth is priceless–I am grateful that I belong to God.

—Ann Elizabeth Yeager