Living Rock Podcast

Who we have faith in is a hugely important question. A.W. Tozer says that ‘What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.’ With this in mind we’ll ask these 3 questions: Should we know God? Can we know God? And does knowing who God is make any practical difference to our lives? With the response to all of this being, God help me to know you better!

On this Mothers Day, Jonathan Conrathe reminds us of the role mothers and women play in the Bible story and in the life and growth of the church.  And, assuring us of the faithfulness of God towards them and all of us, he shares the good news of hope and healing for everyone through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.  This message has great power for all of us…

In this time when historic global events are taking place around us, we're reminded that God’s great love for the world has implications for all the nations and for all our neighbours; those near and far. And the story of God breaking-in amongst the Gentiles in Acts chapter 10 speaks profoundly into this moment, showing His love and power impacting the lives of family and friends, neighbours and nations - and reminding us that He has prepared "good works" for us to do (Eph 2:10). This message unpacks the story and shows us how we can open our homes, reach out to help and play our part in all that God is doing in these historic days...  

Hope, often gets side-lined, it’s a little ambiguous to some it is often misinterpreted as the opposite to faith, “I wasn’t in faith, or I don’t have faith for that, but I can just hope?”. Just to be clear the opposite of faith is fear. The opposite of hope is doubt and confusion – a lack of direction or focus. Hope is important! Hope is not wishing for something to happen. The Bible describes hope much differently. The world is full of people hoping: Their children’s future Their own futures Will their money last? Will they stay in health? Will they win the lottery? So, this morning I want to get straight into the definition and unpack hope, to see how it strengthen our lives.

In Luke’s account of Jesus calming a storm, Jesus asks his disciples ‘Where is your faith?, implying that the disciples had faith but it couldn’t be seen. In today’s all-age gathering we consider ways in which we can stir our own faith so that it is visible to ourselves and those around us.

As part of an all age Sunday service, Will talks about giants, lions, whales, storm clouds, technical support, expectant parents and Valentine’s cards as he shares some real life stories of faith, hope and love.

If someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. (1 Peter 3:15, NLT)We’re living in days where hope is in short supply, or just in the wrong things. In such days, God’s people are called to hold out rock solid hope, which is based on the person and work of Christ, rooted in eternity, guaranteed with the seal of the Holy Spirit, evidenced by lives full of Jesus’ resurrection power; and from which none are excluded. In this message, we consider why these five essential reasons explain the glorious hope we have.

As we come around the table this morning – it is important to remember that Jesus said this “Anyone who feeds on me will live because of me.” There is something in “taking in Christ” in “feeding on Him” Normal bread doesn’t fill us in the same way. The children of Israel eat the bread in the wilderness – but eventually they all died! But this bread – the body of Jesus – brings eternal life!It is a strange expression – “feed on me!” But we have all heard the expressions “He was feeding him the lines”, “He feed him a load of lies", “People just seem to feed on this situation or rubbish”. But God doesn’t want us to feed on rubbish, lies, bad situations or be drawn along by the political or devious will of others. He wants us to follow Christ – to believe in Him. He wants the things “we feed” on to be of Him.

If I asked you what you think “strength” is - what would your answer be? What do you think it means to be “strong in the Lord?”Your strength is the energy that you have, which gives you more than the ability to just perform various actions, such as lifting or moving things. But is it easy to say my strength is in God, when we are feeling weak in the mist of problems and issues?! Real strength comes from the Lord and is in the Lord. In life we don’t rely on our own strength and ability – we look to the Lord to supply His strength and attributes in our lives.We may be in a place of fear or feel weak, but today God wants to teach us something - God wants our faith to be strong all the time! What is this secret? We all need to get into training! He wants us to be strong, full of life, living victoriously despite the challenges that we may face, that we will indeed rule and reign in life!

“Go, Give, Gather, Grow!…” is the simple and powerful way that Jesus has commissioned and instructed His followers. We're to GO into all the world (Mt 28:19-20); and as we go we are to GIVE freely (Mt 10:7-8) so that His Kingdom is proclaimed and demonstrated; then as disciples are made we should GATHER together in His name (Mt 18:20); for as do we stay closely connected with Him and GROW in our fruitfulness and influence (Mt 13:31-32, Jn 15:8). In this message we unpack this healthy life-cycle of the church, see it at work in the New Testament, and consider some of the opportunities we face at the start of this year...

Moses set an example for all believers in his attitude to the presence of God. He cared whether God was with him. He understood what God’s presence meant for himself and the Israelites and he responded to the presence of God with passion!If desire is to seek first God’s presence and his Kingdom then Moses has some great attitudes to take on board!

Is 1 Corinthians 13 is a beautiful piece of prose designed to be read at weddings, or was it written with a different context in mind? Find out in this podcast as Phil Chapman asks the question ‘What’s love got to do (got to do) with it?’.

In the last part of this mini-series HIS HOUSE, OUR HOME we look at the significance of prayer and prophecy in our gatherings - powerful weapons as we advance God's kingdom and build-up the church.  Reminding us that the church is "the house of God” and “the gateway to heaven” (Genesis 28:17), David unpacks the apostle Paul’s teachings set out in 1 Corinthians 11, and encourages us to have a heavenly perspective on what happens when we gather together. 

To conclude our mini-series HIS HOUSE, OUR HOME we consider some important aspects of the church’s gatherings.  In this first part, Sarah shares some vital truths about the power and priority of meeting together and helps us appreciate the importance of each of us playing our part in what God wants to do amongst us whenever we gather in our homes or in our congregations.

In this third instalment of our ‘His House, Our Home’ series, we look at the foundational matter of STEWARDSHIP – why and how we invest our lives, and all that God has placed in our hands.  We consider Kingdom Principles, which are inherent in our nature as new creations; and how God uses stewardship to show us what’s in our hearts, grow our faith in Him, and ultimately, to prepare us to be entrusted with the true riches of heaven (Lk 16:11). We also discuss Kingdom Practices, considering the purpose of tithes and offerings in the outworking of these Kingdom Principles in our lives. And to finish … 10 Myth-busters!  

This week in Market Harborough Phil shares some personal reflections on maintaining a healthy rhythm of life as we consider together what it means for us to ‘in all your ways acknowledge Him’ (Proverbs 3 v 6)

We begin our series covering our corporate foundations. This introduction takes a look at the nature and mission of the Church and the importance of the Bible.

We're excited to let you know that as we reach the end of this year we will be taking a few weeks to be refreshed and re-focussed together, looking at some vital roots and foundations.  Whether you’re a member or a newcomer to LRC, these sessions will help us all dig deeper into what we believe and why we believe it!    Jesus is building His Church amongst us, and wants us to know the strength and blessing of belonging to a secure family.   Each session will be in ‘workshop’ style, with opportunity for discussion and Q&A - and we trust you’ll really enjoy this investment of our time over the next few weeks.

David shares with us about how we can stay rooted, focussed and encouraged in our life and mission together.

‘Mission Possible’ is an inspirational and practical message to encourage us all to share our faith in our own way. Explaining the unlimited resources of heaven who partner with us in our mission and reminding us of the constant presence of The Spirit of Jesus to empower and enable us to accomplish our mission -‘Should We Choose To Accept It!