Messages by Brent Clark (Page 27)
Living with the Spirit
What it means to be filled with and living in the Spirit.
Who Is the Holy Spirit?
Understanding and experiencing the Spirit leads to empowering by the Spirit for greater impact in the world.
From Orphan to Child
Introduction Good morning. I am so glad you are here today. Over the last couple of weeks, we have been in a series we called Transformed. This series is built on the idea that when people encounter God, when we say yes to Jesus and begin the faith journey of following him, radical changes occur in our lives. The first week, we looked at how one of the first things that happen when we put our faith in Jesus is…
Transformed: Death to Life
John 5:24-26 Introduction Good morning and Happy Easter. As you all probably know, Easter is a big deal for Christians and the church. This isn’t just the usual Sunday. Everything for Christians hinges on the resurrection. Your belief or non-belief even hinges on what you believe about the resurrection. I want to read the events of the first Easter morning to you. Listen to how Luke describes that morning from Luke 24:1-12. 1 But very early on Sunday morning the…
Threads: Movement
As far as parenting goes, Kerri and I have been very fortunate with our kids. We have certainly had ups and downs. Hannah being born 6 weeks early and only weighing 3 lbs 14 ozs. Luke needing a minor surgery at 6 months. And the routine infections, illnesses, and tubes in ears stuff. But for the most part, our kids, once born have been relatively healthy, growing kids. In November of 2012, the Department of Human Services called and asked…
Threads: Jesus Changes Everything
Every so often, something or someone comes along that radically transforms the way we think or the way we do things. An event happens, a product is invented, an event transpires, a person is born, and life as we know it is changed forever. For years and years, if you wanted to talk to someone on the phone, you did it standing next to a device that was on a shelf or hanging on the wall. And if you wanted…
Renew Purpose
Over the last few weeks, we have been discussing this idea of renewal. As we enter a new year, what are those areas that we feel like needs some attention, something we may have lost or forgotten. Something that might need a little jolt to get us back on track. It seems that every new year is essentially the same though. January 1st comes along, people reevaluate their lives, make resolutions, and really try to live differently. And so we…
Renew Passion
This will come as a big shock to most of you, but there was a time when I was a hopeless romantic. When Kerri and I first started dating, I did anything and everything I could to woo her. And I was pretty good at it, if I do say so myself. After all, this skinny, dorky guy who wore glasses and loved Star Trek got that beautiful woman to marry me! I can remember the May I proposed to…
Tis the Season for Peace
Do you ever feel guilty at Christmastime? You look around. You see all the smiling faces. You smell the delicious aromas of peppermint, gingerbread, and cinnamon. You hear the carols and other music telling you, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” And you are reminded of all the emotions that you are “supposed” to have, the “right” way to experience Christmas, but for you, your experience is different. You can fake those emotions publicly, but on the inside,…
What Is Your Something to Talk About?
Have you ever felt totally overwhelmed by something you were supposed to do? To the point that the thought of it made you sick or you would just tremble and shake. You really would rather just run away than do it? I know I have, and my kids have too. Several years ago, before we moved to Iowa, our previous church decided to do a children’s musical for Christmas. They had not done one before and one of the ladies…
How Will They Know?
For those who follow Christ. there are probably very few things that strike fear and guilt into our hearts quicker than hearing the word evangelism. In fact, take a second and think about that word, “Evangelism”, what images come to your mind? We probably begin to think about telling others about Jesus. Evangelism is a nice church word. It means to bring good news. We have others churchy words that we also use to describe it as well. Witnessing. Sharing…