Some of the best news in the Bible is that our failures are not final.  God doesn’t just cancel us and move on to someone or something else.  Our God specializes in restoring people who have blown it.  This morning, we’ll see how...

The disciples of Jesus had not done very well with the crucifixion of Jesus.  They had run away and denied even knowing Him.  And when He rose again, they weren’t exactly quick to grasp what had happened.  Jesus comes to them and...

John 11:17-27In each of His “I AM” statements, Jesus addresses a human problem.  He said He was the Bread of Life that would satisfy our hunger. He said He was the Light of the World, to guide and protect us in the darkness. This mo...

Pastor Arek O'Connell delivers this Good Friday message.

From a human standpoint, those coming to arrest Jesus had all the power and were in control.  They had larger numbers, weapons, and the power of Rome behind them.  They will “succeed” in arresting Jesus, but only after Jesus has shown...

An important question we need to ask frequently in life is, “What’s the real root of the matter here?” Whether it be in navigating relationships, making business decisions, or making plans for the future. As we consider what it means for Jesus ...

We live in a world where we have, it seems, way too many choices. Do we choose this career or that career?  Do we live here or do we live there? At times it can feel overwhelming and we may feel lost in a sea of choices. In the midst of al...

We don’t like it when people ask for too much.  It just doesn’t seem right. They should be happy with what they have. But this morning we’re going to look at a story in which Jesus says that the problem with us sometimes is not that we ask...

Kirk Kingsley leads this week's class on the Spiritual Discipline of Silence and Solitude.

Of all the animals we might want to be compared to, a sheep is probably the worst.  If you call me a tiger or a lion or a bear, I’m happy.  They’re strong, fast, tough.  Sheep, on the other hand, are weak and defenseless and not ...

A belief that is very popular in our world is that there are multiple ways to find and connect with God. However, John is going to make it clear that there is really only one way in and one way out, through the door… and that door is Jesus. - P...

Kristin Hileman leads the second part of "Evangelism and Sharing Your Story." In this Intro to Spiritual Disciplines class, you'll hear testimonies from 3 different women and how an act of sharing the gospel has had a generational impact.

In a recent survey, over 50% of the adults responding admitted that they were afraid of the dark.  And they had good reasons—some said they were afraid of what can be hiding in the dark. Others pointed out that statistically more crimes ha...

When we think of Jesus, we tend to think of Him in one of two ways.  On the one hand, we see Him as the gentle shepherd, kind and compassionate.  On the other hand, we also see Him as God Almighty, controller of all creation. This mor...

Pastor Arek O'Connell discusses Evangelism and the importance of Sharing Your Story at Hillside's Intro to Spiritual Disciplines class.

James has one more challenge for those to whom he is writing—when someone who had been walking with Jesus wanders from the truth.  James knows that there are times when people are going to drift or walk away.  His call to us is, at on...

James has been full of practical advice for living in troubled times. He’s called us to be faithful and make sure our faith shows itself in works.  He’s called us to watch our tongues and how we spend our money.  As he gets ready to c...

Pastor Arek O'Connell discusses the Spiritual Discipline of Fasting.

In times and seasons where we fall victim to pain and suffering, we are prone to certain behaviors. We try and take the situation under our control and alleviate our pain and suffering as quickly as possible. However, James' best advice for us ...

James has used strong language throughout his letter, but now he turns the heat up even higher. He has saved his strongest warnings and announcements for this place in his letter—where he has extremely strong words for rich people who are not u...

One of the things that is way too easy for us to do is to live our lives without really thinking about God too much.  We know He’s there, but we don’t include Him in our planning and thinking—He’s sort of a “God on the Shelf.”  We may...

Morné Marais discusses the Spiritual Discipline of Worship.

From the very beginning, Christians have gotten into fights and disagreements with each other.  Why is that?  Shouldn’t we be able to get along with each other and love each other? This morning James will help us understand why there ...

We live in a world where we are surrounded by thousands of voices, many of them ready to give us advice on how to live. There are podcasts and news stations, Facebook posts, blogs and web pages. There are books we can read or listen to. But wha...

As we come to the end of another year, it’s natural to reflect on the year overall in order to make preparations for the year we’re about to enter. No matter what accomplishments, successes, failures, or disappointments we faced in the last yea...