If you were to catch a ride with me (Pastor Alex) in my vehicle, you could be certain music is playing from a playlist of my creation. One of those playlists is called  80s Awesomeness  – so creative. I am indeed a child of the 80s, and I love listening to this decade of music. One of my favorite songs (yes, I have many) is  The Promise  from a band called  When in Rome . Look at the first verse:   If you need a friend  Don't look to a stranger  You know, in the end, I'll always be there  And when you're in doubt  And when you're in danger Take a look all around  And I'll be there   Not to go too deep into these lyrics because this is an 80's song, but it seems like a promise made from a man to a woman. However, we know broken promises can (intentionally or not) happen. Bummer. As Christ-followers, we know God keeps His promises (2 Corinthians 1:20). One of those promises is eternal life through Jesus Christ. This past Sunday, ...

Well, parents, it is the start of another school year. I will pause for a moment of tears (joy and otherwise). I am sure there was a mix of emotion and various questions from your kids in their first week of school. The topic was their teacher, the classroom, and what happens if I don’t have time to eat lunch – my youngest suffers from this dilemma. No fault of the school, but that is a story for another time. However, Aaron did have a critical question for his parents – when is our next Vacation? Yes, he was already looking forward to some time off from the  grind  of school – before he went through the struggle! We feel you, son. As a third grader, our youngest already understands this life takes work and resilience. Maybe not to that extent, but he knows school can wear you out. This mentality is especially true when things don’t go your way or the unexpected occurs. Our faith in God can falter during this tiredness, mental fatigue, and emotional exhaustion – if we depend o...

On any given Sunday, if your child attends our Children's Ministry Worship Service, they will experience the following: Kid friendly worship, interactive games, fellowship with other kids and leaders, and age-appropriate bible teaching while having fun! Our hope is by the time your child moves on from the Preschool ministry, they will know the following: God Made them. God Loves them. Jesus Wants to Be Their Friend Forever Then once they move on to Junior High, they know the following: I need to make the wise choice I can trust God no matter what I should treat others the way I want to be treated Our goal is to impact kids and families with the love and message of Jesus Christ so they may grow to have faith in Him forever. I shared last week the  spiritual milestones  we celebrate at our church to partner with you, the parents (spiritual leaders of the home) – that is how we impact families. What happens on Sunday mornings is how we share the love and message of Jesus Christ w...

Many of us agree that having a plan is an excellent approach to accomplishing a goal. Do you agree? Good, we can move on. In Psalms, God declares His plan for families – “He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments” (Psalms 78:5-7, ESV).   Regarding our Family Ministry, I hope you can see that we have a spiritual plan for your family. Beginning with you, the parent, we have the first, I like to call  spiritual milestone  – our  Parent and Child Dedication . We have an upcoming class on October 9th. It is the first step for parents in partnering with their church community to help their child grow in the Lord and learn to love others. The following two milestones would be  Sa...

My home has a couch where you will hear a creak while sitting on it. You do not want to listen to this sound when you want to lay back and relax. We wonder if this piece of furniture will be able to hold up, especially after I decide to eat that extra portion of dinner! Ok, it’s not that bad; still, you wonder how much more this poor thing can take. Ever felt that way? Worn, tired, wondering how much more you can handle? We all have, and it is unavoidable. There will be moments in our life that will cause a variety of emotions resulting in a not-so-great state of mind, body, and soul.   David writes in his Psalm, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding” (Psalm 3:5, ESV). The Hebrew word for trust means to place your entire weight on something and believe that it will uphold anything. Do you show this type of trust in troubled times? Jesus tells us to love God with all our hearts, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37). To show this love to our Heave...

My family had opportunities to live out our trust and belief in the Lord. I recall when my wife said God told her to quit her job and be home with our boys after attending a bible study. Understand, at the time, we relied on two incomes to help support our family. Then there was a time when searching for a Family Pastor position; I was given an opportunity at a church 2600 miles away (South Carolina) from our current residence (then Las Vegas, NV) at part-time pay, away from friends and family.   The church needed leadership to help grow their young family attendance. So, in both instances, we said yes. Each time there was a moment of asking ourselves, are we willing to  trust  in what God says and  believe  He will fulfill His promises?   The writer of Hebrews declares, “And without faith, it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” Hebrews 11:6 (ESV). This verse bec...

Reflecting on my childhood, the wise words of Yoda, the Jedi master, came to mind – “There is much fear in this one.” I feared bees, thunder, roller coasters, sometimes the dark, open closet doors, and being late for school (none of my boys got that one). But, like most children, I grew out of these fears to only gain a new set of worries as an adult. However, as Christ-followers, we understand this truth – God is with us, not to fear. Let’s be honest, though – in moments of fear, we can falter in the trust we should have in God.   When the Midianites oppressed God’s people (Judges 6), the angel of the Lord spoke to a man named Gideon, who was hiding from the Midianites out of fear. However, the angel of the Lord told Gideon, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor” (Judges 6:12). You read this, and you wonder – uh, what? Gideon would further question if God was even with the Israelites this whole time of suffering and where all His beautiful deeds were (v.13). This statement ...

Over the last 20 years of working with children and students in ministry – you have thought-provoking questions present themselves. For example, one student wondered why God created the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, knowing Adam and Eve would disobey His command. Good question. Another question (on a different occasion) was curious about creation; why did God create planets beyond our reach and can’t live on them? Another solid inquiry from a curious mind. The truth is, I enjoy these types of questions. It challenges me as a Christ-follower to think about what I believe and why my answers are true. The apostle Peter writes in his epistle, “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15, ESV).   Both questions from the kids are essentially asking – why. The quick answer could be that God’s thoughts and ways are bey...

Since I was a child, being creative has been a passion of mine. I remember my dad teaching me how to draw, being mindful of what I saw, and translating that to whatever art medium I used. I recall an art book he had when he took art classes at a community college, and I remember how much the Renaissance period was an inspiration to me creatively. Artists like Da Vinci and Michelangelo were just a few artists that I grew to admire. Their attention to detail in their artwork is remarkable. I would imagine that when artists like Michelangelo were creating their masterpieces – there was a personal vestment they had in their work. This type of creativity reminds me of David’s Psalm, the secret language describing our Creator’s workmanship concerning humans. The psalmist reminds his readers how fearfully and wonderfully we are made by God (Psalm 139:14). The author declares this truth “My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the e...

We all have a favorite color, don't we? I have always been partial to blue. My favorite baseball and football teams both have this color within their logos. However, 13 years ago, I was given a new appreciation for the color orange. First, let us recall how you created this color. Do you remember your art lessons? Combine the two colors, red and yellow. In his book  Think Orange , Reggie Joiner uses this premise to illustrate that two combined influences can significantly impact more (Joiner, 2009). First, the author argues that if you take the heart of the family (red) and the church's (yellow) light, a more significant influence could occur on a child's spiritual growth. Individually these are powerful influencers God provides to help disciple a child. Imagine, though, if both the parents (family) and the church (God's people) had an intentional partnership to help foster a child's spiritual growth.   In Deuteronomy, Moses implores an entire nation to   be diligen...

 There is an illustration that Children’s Ministry teachers use to help teach the importance of controlling their words. It begins with a child emptying a new tube of toothpaste onto a plate. Then the child is instructed to take the toothpaste on the plate and place it back into the tube. Also, the child must ensure the toothpaste container is how it was before. Finally, after a few moments of blank stares from the child, there is usually an attempt to help make it like it was before. Of course, this is a futile effort, and all we have left is a mushy pile of minty freshness and a child leaving in frustration. The point of the visual is this – once the toothpaste exits the container, it can never go back to how it was before. The same is with our words; once something is said, we cannot take it back. This object lesson is typically in conjunction with what James, a leader in the early church, wrote in his letter about controlling the words we use (James 3:1-6). He warns that the wo...

As some of you may know, I grew up in a Catholic home. My parents diligently kept Sunday mornings as a day we went to church. I am grateful for this intentionality for many reasons, but it primarily helps me understand the high value of knowing there is a God in heaven who exists. I didn’t realize until much later that I was missing a vital component of my spiritual upbringing. Knowing the person of Jesus Christ. When I talk about my time growing up in the Catholic tradition, I often refer to “knowing of God, but not knowing God.” I didn’t realize that to know the Father was to know His Son, who is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:7-9). In his gospel, Mark accounts for a time when Jesus gave blessings to the children after rebuking His disciples for preventing these little ones from coming to Him (Mark 10:13-14). Notice, though, this would not have happened unless the people intentionally introduced the Son of God to these children (Mark 10:13). I love that my parents brought ...

 Recently my family had a beach trip, and we, by no surprise, enjoyed God’s gift of an ocean breeze and water fun. Also, by no shocker, my wife and I witness our son Aaron finding a “friend” to play with in the ocean. Within moments, both boys knew each other’s names and spent the next several hours splashing and laughing in the waters. What I always found remarkable about Aaron is his willingness to befriend someone or, at the very least, enjoy some time together. I pray that one day, he will find a friend who “sticks closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24) – although he does have three older brothers. No offense, boys. Right now, Aaron’s seeking companionship is a little selfish. He wants someone to play with; nothing wrong with that at his age. My challenge is to find a friendship like David and Jonathan in the Scriptures – “Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as his own soul” (1 Samuel 18:3, ESV). Selfless friendship. My friends, do you have a friend l...