Elevation Church Podcast

We all want to be used by God for His glory, but it's easy to feel that our potential is limited. University Campus Pastor, Larry Brey, closed out 2012 with a message about the labels and lids on our lives and how to release the potential God has placed in us in the coming year.

The birth of Christ was unlike anything else in the history of human existence. It's not over-dramatic or exaggerated to say that it literally split time. Our world is forever separated by the time before Christ's birth (BC), and the years following (anno domini - AD). And when the the Magi saw the star stop over Bethlehem, it announced to the world that the Savior had arrived. A dividing line in history. For our Timeless Christmas worship experience, Pastor Steven preached about the dividing lines in our lives - when everything changed forever.

The tragic events that took place in December 2012 in Newtown, CT, shook our collective consciousness and broke the hearts of our nation. We live in a dark, sinful world. But in the face of evil, we know God's promises and Jesus' commands. We may never fully understand why things like this happen, but we do know what our response should be. In the final installment of our Banner Years series, before our church celebrated the power of Christ in our lives through worship, baptisms, and giving to the expansion of God's work through our church, Pastor Steven gave us a strong reminder of the Church's role in the face of great tragedy.

Every week in churches around the world, the message of God's love is preached as people hear of a hope for this life found only in Christ. That is the mission. That is why we are here. But what happens when God's truths intersects real life? How well does our faith in Christ hold up in the face of real tragedy?For part six of our Banner Years series, we heard the powerful testimony of the Laymon family. Their story of unshakeable faith in the midst of pain and loss inspired our church and reminded us all of the real reason the Church exists.

No matter who you are or where you're from, we have at least one thing in common: we were born naked and we will die empty handed. That's a harsh truth for many of us to swallow. Especially when we begin to accumulate successes or wealth or accolades. It becomes much harder for us to recognize God in the equation of our accomplishments during a banner year. And we start keeping score of the wrong game. We lose perspective on what really belongs to us. In part five of our Banner Years series, Pastor Steven teaches us that no matter how well we succeed or how great we become, it's all meaningless without the right perspective on our priorities and purpose.

Over the past seven years, we have seen God move in the life of this church and its people. Marriages restored, families healed, and lives forever changed. Every year has been our Banner Year. One after the next. So we mark this ground and remember where we have been. We celebrate all God has done. We thank Him for His faithfulness. And we prepare for the next chapter, advancing forward with eager expectation that God has even more in store.

Over the past seven years, we have seen God move in the life of this church and its people. Marriages restored, families healed, and lives forever changed. Every year has been our Banner Year. One after the next. So we mark this ground and remember where we have been. We celebrate all God has done. We thank Him for His faithfulness. And we prepare for the next chapter, advancing forward with eager expectation that God has even more in store.

As Christians, we can easily misinterpret our obedience to God. Often times we see our obedience as a favor we're doing for God or as collateral when we go to Him bargaining for blessings. But God's favor doesn't work that way. We can't predict the time and place of His provision in our lives. Or that it will even look the way we thought it would. But in part two of our Banner Years series, Pastor Steven teaches us a new perspective on obedience, and what God wants do in our lives, if only we can make room for Him.

Everyone likes winning. It's how we're wired. No one really enjoys the Ômoral victory' that comes with a loss. But many of us have a misunderstanding of what it means to really win. What does victory look like in our daily lives? And is winning even the point? In the first part of our series Banner Years, Pastor Steven gives a new perspective on victory by teaching us where it must begin.

As Christians, we tend to have selective memories. But our spiritual growth often times has less to do with learning something new or deep, and more about remembering what we already know. Remembering the goodness of God and what He's done in our lives. Remembering our righteousness given to us through the saving grace of Jesus. Truths we already know - but we often forget. In the final sermon from our Ghost Stories series, Pastor Steven shows us how the Holy Spirit serves as our divine reminder of who we've become in Christ.

We've heard about the Holy Spirit. He flickers in and out of the Old Testament like a ghost. In the New Testament, He's a supernatural force that gives ordinary men the power of God. He appears throughout the Bible as wind, smoke, fire, and even a dove. But what does the Holy Spirit look like today? In this series, we learn about the Holy Spirit, and His purpose in our lives.

Many Christians struggle with not only defining who the Holy Spirit is, but what His purpose is in our lives. Is He supposed to be our life's good luck charm? Is He the road map we should follow for life's directions and decisions? Is He our long-distance connection to God in Heaven? Or does He do something else altogether? In the second part of our series Ghost Stories, Pastor Steven redefines for us the true purpose of the Holy Spirit and the cycle the Spirit follows in our lives.

Most Christians can probably give you a quick and accurate description of who God and Jesus are. But what about the Holy Spirit? This part of the Trinity is a little more difficult to explain. Is it your conscience? Is it karma? Is it those goosebumps you get during a good worship song? Or is it something much more? In the first part of our series Ghost Stories, Pastor Steven pushes us to stretch our thinking about how we see God and His activity in our lives through the Holy Spirit.

Most Christians are not in danger of ruining their lives-they're in danger of wasting them. Are you unsatisfied with the kind of Christian life you've settled for? In this series, we come to the life-altering understanding that God is ready to accomplish a greatness in your life that is entirely out of human reach-but exactly what God has seen in you all along.

You prayed. You hoped. You gave. You tried. And it failed. Scripture never tells us the Christian life will be the easiest road or the most clean-cut story. But what kind of God plants something in your heart, only to let it die? What's the point in that? And what does that say about God? In part three of our series GREATER, Pastor Steven teaches us about the true character of God when it seems like we've wasted our faith.