Dove Creek Bible Church's Podcast

Are you a risk-taker? How often do you try to sanctify your lack of trust by garbing it in the dress of wisdom (i.e. try to convince yourself, you're not afraid it's just you're wise to be cautious)? In Ecclesiastes 11, we explore what's wrong with playing it safe all the time and how taking a risk is a sign of trust.

The Teacher says "Think Before You Act, Think Before You React, Think Before You Speak, and Think Before You Lead." Why? Because wise people anticipate; fools react.

We all have a common destiny but we do not all have a common eternity. One day death is coming, what do we do in the meantime?

If I do the right things am I guaranteed the right results? Is there a "Law of Linearity" which confirms if you do "A" you will automatically get "B"? Or is this a false hope? Are there actually no guarantees in this life? This is what the Teacher explores in the second half of Ecclesiastes 7.

In Chapter 7, the Teacher gives several comparative couplets about how and why some things are better than other things. Ironically some things that seem like bad things can often end up being the better things in the long run. The Teacher also instructs us that we will never move forward by looking backwards.

The Teacher continues to warn about the meaninglessness of wealth without satisfaction and work without gratification. What are the essential things we need to enjoy life?

The Teacher ponders the mystery of oppression in the world. He notices there is a lot of oppression going on, there are a lot of tears being shed over oppression and that little seems to be done about it. He also notices that many people choose achievement over contentment, competitive rewards over beneficial relationships and popularity over influence. This the teacher finds is another way of chasing after the wind.

The Teacher of Ecclesiastes says there is a time for everything and that God will make everything beautiful in its time. This is sometimes difficult to accept, but we must learn to look at our life as a tapestry that God is weaving over the course of our life. On our side of the loom it often seems a confusing mess, but on God's side of the loom He sees how he has woven these changing seasons of our life into a beautiful tapestry.

Does life under the sun offer any lasting satisfaction? Which path will lead us to contentment? Pleasure? Knowledge? Wealth? Or none of the above? How can I find purpose if life is absurd and nothing I do will be remembered? What is the Paradox of Pleasure?

Our world is on the path to self-destruction…it is getting nowhere fast. It is filled up with people who are fed up and feel their existence is filled with meaninglessness, insignificance, alienation and uncertainty. The Book of Ecclesiastes assures us this is nothing new…that eventually everyone discovers there is no satisfaction under the sun, there is nothing new under the sun, and no one is remembered under the sun. If this is true then my satisfaction must lie elsewhere...somewhere beyond the sun.

In this sermon Pastor Jeff shares his personal testimony with reference to his call into the ministry and his planting of Dove Creek Bible Church.

Jacob, Leah and Rachel modeled unhealthy family traditions in front of their children due to Leah and Rachel's sibling rivalry. Even so God's grace is present in the midst of all this dysfunction. Leah seems to have grasped when she finally decided to accept the grace offered and stop pursuing the grace denied.

Elijah went from the mountain of victory to the valley of despair in the blink of an eye. The reason was he was physically and emotionally spent. In this lesson we explore what leads some of us into depression and how we can deal with depression.

What do you do when you seem to be receiving conflicting signals from the Holy Spirit? Well sometimes what you do is follow well-intentioned bad advice as Paul does here in Acts 21.

David faced many giants as a young man, both literally and figuratively. As a young man he depended on the Lord to defeat such giants saying "The Battle is the LORD'S." As an older man David became less dependent upon the LORD and found himself being slain by figurative giants instead of slayer. How often those who stop going to their knees in dependence are soon brought to their knees by consequence.

Moses struggled with the same sin for his entire life. In the end his failure to deal with his sin lead to his life's greatest failure. Moses reminds us we're never too old to fail, disobedience always springs from some form of distrust, and that man's anger cannot bring about the righteous life God desires.

In this new series we will explore some of the greatest failures of men like Abram, Moses, and David. We will see if we can discover what led to their failure and how we can avoid making the same mistake. "The Lord helps them who helps themselves" is probably the most quoted phrase erroneously believed to be found in the Bible. It's easy to see why some people think that quote is actually from the Bible, because so many of us seem to live by its sentiment. Abram certainly did and he helped himself to Hagar.

Whenever we sin we always wonder if we can come back from failure? Peter denied the Lord Jesus three times and now Jesus recommissions him. However, in doing so He asks Peter if he truly loves Him. How should Peter answer that question seeing how he had just experienced a colossal failure in that department? How will he or how can he prove he loves Jesus?

John 20 reveals the answer to questions like: What is the historical evidence for the resurrection? Why did Jesus appear to women first? Why did Jesus say "Blessed, who believes without seeing"?