Peoples Church | Fresno, Ca

This week we began a new series of teaching from the Major Prophets entitled, “Agenda.” The Prophets, just like Press Secretaries to the President, spoke forth the agenda (the heart and the mind) of God for that moment, for that time, for that people. Through the Prophets, God makes judgments, but the purpose of his judgments is always restoration. On Sunday, Dave used Isaiah 1 to show that God desires a connection with us that goes beyond just our outward (religious) observances. Following Jesus is a being aware, moment-by-moment, of His presence in our lives and allowing Him to infuse everything we think, say, and do.

We all face storms. It’s not if or when storms will come, but how will we respond to them when they do come? On Sunday, Brent used two different storm stories from the book of Mark to encourage us that Jesus is with us in the midst of our storm.

June 28, 2015 Gathering How do we face the perplexing questions and still keep our faith? How do we wrestle with the unfairness of life without losing hope in God? Life maturity and spiritual growth begins when we deal with this unfairness. That is the very issue the writer of Psalm 73 wrestles with. Dale continues our series with The Struggle for Answers. He used this Psalm to help us find God in the midst of life’s inequities.

This week we continued our study in the Psalms (The Struggle, The Search, The Psalms) in Psalm 23. Joni used this Psalm to help us know that we can trust God even in the middle of the “valley-times” of life.

We are continuing our study in the Psalms (The Struggle, The Search, The Psalms) in Psalm 71. We tend to sing or hum or whistle only when we are content or happy. But, the Psalms, this hymn book and prayer book of the Hebrew people, shows that songs are most powerful and uplifting when sung in the “dark night of the soul.” Think of the songs that came out of slavery and how music was a comfort for them in depressing times. On Sunday, Dale used the Psalms to show us why it is important to sing, especially when we don’t feel like it. That singing and expressing music in those moments can be an avenue to experience God’s presence that we would otherwise miss.

We began a new series of teachings today from the book of Psalms “The Struggle. The Search. The Psalms.” Many times the images and ideas we have of prayer don’t come close to the prayer life we currently have. The Psalmist understands our struggle with life and connecting to God, so we have the Psalms. The main idea of Psalms 1 has to with what or who influences your life. More central to the message of the first Psalm is that we have a choice as to what influences our life on a daily basis – the culture around us or the Word of God. Choose wisely!

Pastor Dale shares a message on baptism, "Going Public", as we have 1 Big Day at Peoples Church. One gathering in 4 different venues. Over 225 people were baptized following the gathering.

Pastor Dale shares the importance of giving God priority in our lives and placing him first in our finances.

The characters of the Book of Ruth know all about severe disappointment. Sunday’s teaching hit on those moments of life that seem unfair if not altogether cruel, and how God turns it all around. The story found in Ruth is one of the most beautiful short stories in all of literature. It has the tension of tragedy and the glory of restoration and redemption. This story is a small version of the biggest narrative of redemption through Jesus. Yet there are many, many lessons to glean from this short story.

Pastor Dale continued our “I love a good story” series today with the great and epic story of David and Goliath. This story is not so much about human courage and effort. It is more about the awesome power of a life built on bold faith in God. Based upon that, Goliath really had no chance, right? So, is this really an underdog story? Or, who is ultimately the underdog? David had a deep faith and deep confidence in God. He had sheep to take care of and God helped him do that, so God would help him take care of Israel! The giant we face is that which intimidates us to the point of keeping us from taking God at His word!

Pastor Dale continued our “I love a Good Story” series on Sunday with the story of Gideon. It is a story of grace and growing up. It is about trust in God. It is about learning what is means that “when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). It is about knowing that even in the toughest times of our lives, God has not abandoned us, but is with us as much as when everything is going great.

Pastor Dan spoke on the topic of why do bad things happen to good people? His first answer was that he did not have all of the answers. Pastor Dan explored many examples of suffering in the bible and God’s role in the suffering. The theme he pointed out that is existent all through the bible is God is Good, God is Great, and innocent people sometimes suffer.

Bible teachers remind us that the Old Testament is the New Testament illustrated. For every truth of the New Testament, there is an Old Testament story that illustrates it. Last week on Easter we talked about the resurrection of Jesus. What Old Testament story illustrates the resurrection? It is the story we studied Sunday. By the end of the story, we will learn again that resurrection is a revival of hope and changes the story of our lives. We will be encouraged that Jesus is on the other side of all our stories.