Elevation Church Podcast

God put sexual and emotional desire in all of us. Yet many of us still struggle to control these passions and we make impulsive choices and regretful compromises. How do we channel our desires for love and intimacy, without falling for the quick fixes all around us? In part two of our series Meant to Be, Pastor Steven explains that our unchecked passions can lead to brokenness, but through Jesus Christ, we can overpower our misguided infatuation with a life-changing passion for God.

Single people dream of being married. Married people fantasize about being single. The truth is, most of us like the idea of being in a relationship more than the reality of what it takes to make it work. And, when we look to other people to satisfy our deepest desires, we end up disappointed. In part 1 of our series Meant To Be, Pastor Steven explains that, while singleness and marriage are both gifts, we often misunderstand what God ultimately wants to give us through our relationships - His grace.

Just because the Bible says God works all things together for our good, does not mean everything feels good all the time. But it's often our times of greatest struggle that we can gain the most strength and increase our faith. In the final part of our series #DeathToSelfie, Pastor Steven uses the story of Jacob renaming his son Benjamin to show us that, though there are circumstances in our lives we didn't choose to go through, God has given us the rights to call any circumstance a blessing in His name.

In life, what we see on the outside doesn't always match up with what's happening on the inside. We long for acceptance and achievement, but we look in all the wrong places to find them, leaving us disappointed and rejected. How do we find purpose in these frustrations? And how can God use us in spite of our misguided priorities? In part four of our sermon series #DeathToSelfie, Pastor Steven focuses on the story of Jacob's wives - two very different sisters struggling with the very same things, to show us how God can take our pain of rejection and disappointment and turn them into unexpected blessings for His glory.

Sometimes we get so caught up thinking about where we'd rather be and what we'd rather be doing, that we forget all the places God has already been with us. But there is a way we we can experience God's presence wherever we are, wherever we go.

As believers in Christ, we have a birthright -- a spiritual inheritance received through the Holy Spirit. But sometimes, we turn our focus on the immediate gratification of momentary pleasure. In part two of #DeathToSelfie, Pastor Steven uses the story of Esau to show us how often we choose to trade our future for something fleeting and worthless. Yet through the grace of Jesus, we can be restored as firstborn children in our Father's eyes, no matter what we've chosen in the past.

Our 'Me-First' culture may seem like a modern problem, but since the beginning of time, we have been consumed by the internal struggle between who we really are and who we pretend to be. While we can't fool God with our disguises, we can easily lose sight of our true selves while chasing after who the world says we should be. In Week 1 of our series #DeathToSelfie, Pastor Steven shows us, through the life of Jacob, that the identity we all long for can only be given when we come to God as we really are.

God's power is unlimited, and as Christians we know there is nothing too big or difficult for Him. Yet, when we call on God, pleading with Him to fix that thing that's broken or hurting in our lives, we have a hard time believing our own prayers. But God knows our deepest needs, and when He answers our prayers in His way, He does more than change our lives - He heals our hearts. In this sermon, Pastor Steven uses a profound event in Jesus's life to teach us that, even when our faith is shaken, God is not. And when we bring our most desperate prayers to Christ, His answers are greater than we could imagine.

We are constantly pulled in all directions every day. There are so many things that demand our attention – our family, our friends, our jobs. And then we have to deal with all the other distractions of life on top of that. How do we stay focused on our faith in a world that inundates us with these constant requests for our attention? How do we cultivate the seed God has planted in our lives when we suffer from sensory overload? In this sermon, Pastor Steven teaches us why and how we are so easily distracted, and what Jesus offers to help us regain our focus.

Freddie Mercury was right - we're all under pressure. When we look at our lives and all we see are minefields of potential explosions, worried about our next move, or worn out by the stress of our situation, it's hard to hear God's voice above it all. If we give ourselves over to it, pressure can blind us, making us feel alone and helpless. But if we change our focus to what God can do in and through our situation, that same pressure can have the opposite result. In this sermon, Pastor Steven gives us four practical statements we can preach to ourselves when we're feeling the heat of pressure.

Compared to everyone else, it's easy to see what we don't have, where we're lacking, and how we don't measure up. We protect ourselves from vulnerability by projecting a flimsy, false perfection to the world around us. But what do we miss when we choose to hide our true selves? In the final part of our series The Hope of Glory, Pastor Steven shows us the pain comparison can cause, and teaches us to redirect that attention towards a far more beneficial pursuit.

It's easy for us to define ourselves by our worst moments. And it's hard to be hopeful if we are only known by our worst days. But, in part three of our series The Hope of Glory, Pastor Steven examines the life of Abraham to show us that, when God defines our lives through Christ, he doesn't focus on past mistakes or even our current feelings and circumstances. And even at the end of hope, God can use our faith to fulfill His great purpose in our lives.

Inside all of us there is a longing for something. A deep passion to fill our lives with purpose and meaning. We chase the world and all it offers, but our own pursuits always fall short, reminding us of a thirst for something more. And in the meantime, our mistakes and missteps have left is broken and ashamed. But no matter where we are or what we've done, Jesus has a way of working in our lives to point us to Himself - and what He can offer us instead. This Easter, Pastor Steven uses the story of the woman at the well to show us the power and eternal impact one encounter with Jesus can have on each and every one of our lives.

We work hard to make a living, and many of us are not sure how or why we should give any of it away. Besides, after the mortgage and the bills and the tuition payments, there really isn't much left over. But Scripture tells a very different story when describing what belongs to us and what belongs to God. In part 2 of our series Consider the Source, Pastor Steven challenges the way we approach our giving, and why our generosity says a lot about how we view God.

In the middle of our daily struggles, it can be easy to focus on ourselves and get caught up in a wave of worry. Why is this happening? What did we do wrong? When are things going to get better? But God tells us to look in a different place. In the first part of our series Consider the Source, Pastor Steven teaches us what God says about our situations and our worry, and why knowing where we come from is paramount in understanding where we're going.