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Encountering God in the Psalms: A New Sermon Series for July and August

July 5, 2024 | Uncategorized, KSC News, Sermons

 

It’s July, and we are halfway through our 2024 journey into Abundant Life in Christ.  Each part of this focus has reminded us that following Jesus is not without hardship.  Abundant life exists at the same time as challenges and disappointments.  We are not learning how to dodge difficulties or earn a pass from pain.  There is a greater hope.  We are learning how to trust God as we exist in a broken world, and to thrive even as we endure the trials of life.

The pastoral team has met and agreed on our next direction. For eight weeks in July and August, our sermon series is Encountering God in the Psalms.

“We expect both joy and pain in our lives,” Pastor Nathan explains, “Abundant life is about finding and knowing the One who gives the life.”

We know the Psalms are lyrical, poetic, and comforting, but this series will help us to identify the deeper truths they hold about who God is, truths that have the power to transform how we interact with our Heavenly Father.

Pastor Adam says, “The Psalms are so helpful in encountering God in our most raw moments of life. We find celebration, but we also find sorrow, anger, and anxiety.  This series should help us not just learn things about God, but see how we can enter with Him into all of life and allow His Presence to be our comfort.”

Bishop Todd Fetters is again joining us for the first Sunday of the month, so he will be kicking off the series this week.  He says, “God can be trusted amidst life’s uncertainties because He is present. While we would love a smooth path for our travels, the terrain is uneven, challenging, and at times, even rough. The Psalmist would have us know who the Lord is, near and fully reliable. He is our Shepherd. He is our Rock. He is our Strong Tower. He is our Father. Let’s journey in the Psalms this summer and encounter the Lord along the way. He can be trusted.“ 

Throughout July and August, the members of the pastoral team will be teaching from a favorite psalm, most likely one of your favorites.

Bishop Todd continues, “The Psalms are the ancient songbook for the Israelites, which contains a 150 song playlist designed to inspire God’s people — ancient and modern — to trust, to praise, to lament, to thank. With each step we take in our life’s journey, God is there and our encounters with Him will deepen our delight in Him. So, let’s start the playlist and get to walking, running, or just resting.”

Pastor Nathan shares his vision when he says, “As we encounter an awesome and holy God, we will learn how we can approach Him — whether that be with tears in our eyes, or our fists raised in joy and celebration — and we will see that God meets us and works through each of those moments.”

Please join us this Sunday for the first message in the series, “Oh! the Joy” from Psalm 1, with Bishop Todd.

 

 

We think this video by The Bible Project provides an
effective introduction to the book of Psalms.  We encourage you
to watch it in preparation for this series! 

“My Favorite Psalm”

As we enter our series into the Psalms, we would also like to hear from you.  Which Psalm is special to you, and why?  Which verses have reflected your heart during dark days, gave you words to cry out to God when you had none?  Or which elegant expressions of praise have matched your own passion for God’s goodness?  We encourage you to share your thoughts with our church family, either in written form or with a video clip.

Every person in our church family has an important voice, and a testimony of God’s work in their lives, and we would love to know more about your story.

We look forward to seeing you in July and August to gather together and learn how to take the emotions of our lives into the good presence of a God who can hold us no matter what.