Healthy perspective shifts always end with grace. In order to provoke change in us, they have to. If not for grace, we might become lost in the overwhelming weight of how wrong our world can feel. When we face our pride and arrogance and see the bunny for the first time and realize there was more to the picture than we originally thought, grace comes rushing in. Grace joins hands with humility and asks how you will change because of this new image you have seen.
Read MoreWe’re continuing in our series of updates from our global partners and what’s been in store for them throughout 2020. This week we learn more about our partnership with Children’s HopeChest, which works to support orphaned and vulnerable children and communities in multiple countries.
Read More“Before God, the main focus was doing what I thought we needed to do, and now I do what I think he wants us to do,” says Scott Read, from the Waterford Campus, about what worship means to him. … In the spring, Scott and Briana opened up an opportunity for friends and family to worship together over Zoom and watch Summit’s online services together, reaching people from different parts of the country.
Read MoreWe’re continuing in our series of updates from our global partners and what’s been in store for them throughout 2020. This week we have the opportunity to hear from our friends at World Relief. World Relief is a global organization that empowers local churches to serve the most vulnerable in their communities. Since 2013, we have partnered with them in Malawi.
Read MoreDuring his time on earth, Jesus’ ministry with people was never transactional. We know that he healed, he resurrected, he fed. But when you dig deeper into those same actions, you’ll also see that he touched hearts, he cried, he conversed. Jesus connected. With love deeper than oceans, he has always met us where we are with grace and an outstretched hand. And what a gift it is that we get to take the love and connection God has given us and share it with others through our acts of service!
Read MoreIn this interview, we hear from Bishop Oscar Muriu, leader of Nairobi Chapel in Nairobi, Kenya. He shares all about their ministry as a church community, how they have been navigating COVID-19, and how we can pray for them at this time.
Read MoreWhen it comes to God's truth, many of us assume we know what's in the Bible. But maybe we need to take a closer look. Engaging with the Bible isn't easy, even for people committed to following Jesus. When we love God, we genuinely desire to have a deeper relationship with him. But cracking open the Bible can feel like a chore. I think this happens for one of two reasons (or, more likely, a combination of the two).
Read More“I was just excited to get to ‘spend time’ with this amazing group of people that I definitely wouldn’t have been able to get to know otherwise...” I was so excited to hear about this virtual Connect group that formed after staying at home became the norm earlier this year. What could seem on the surface as an obstacle became for them what made it easy to “meet” together. And this being together, in prayer and in community, became so sweet in the hard months of this year.
Read MoreIf you are a follower of Jesus, you once were lost and have been found. And like many of us, you will remember how far away you were from hope. And most of us, even after being found by Jesus and experiencing the new life he offers, still go through seasons where we get turned around and feel lost. It’s a reality of life—an effect of the great lie of sin found at the beginning of the story of creation. It’s a separation and a break from the giver of life. But the greatest hope we have is knowing that God came to us on a rescue mission, sending his own Son to prepare the way for us to come back home, to have new life, real hope, and to be found and pointed in a new direction.
Read MoreLast week, our staff leadership team spent two days meeting to pray about, discuss, and make decisions surrounding three things that are important in how we live out the vision both now and in the years ahead. The online service is here to stay, we are targeting the beginning of Advent (November 29th) for our reopening of on-campus worship services (including Children’s Ministry), and we can all continue to be the church now—where we are.
Read MoreThe Psalms reflect the whole range of human emotion. These words from God through the different psalmists breathe life into our day-to-day—our joys, struggles, longings, and questions. This summer, we spent time diving into the Book of Psalms as a church. I was excited to learn about different kinds of psalms and dive in deeper so some both familiar and unfamiliar passages. I was able to see how these psalms from the past can ring true even to our present lives and that the psalms are God giving us words to use to cry out to him.
Read MoreLies My Teacher Told Me is a book for this moment. American history comes at a cost. Right now, we’re paying the price of our false narrative because we’ve refused to look hard in the mirror, see the truth and our flaws, and find the courage to address them. The cost of rebuilding American history on the true narrative will be an honest critical examination of our past and making the necessary changes to address the current injustices.
Read MoreSo, here’s the thing—I’ve never had a drinking problem. That’s not to say I’m above it, but I’ve watched some folks (that I love deeply) self-destruct as a result of alcohol. So I treat it with a healthy fear. It would be easy for me, I think, to recuse myself from examination under the microscope of recovery because I don’t have a “traditional” addiction. After all, I’ve seen what real addiction looks like, and I’m nothing like that. Sure. But… As an adult child of an alcoholic, let’s be honest—I’m pretty flush with baggage of my own.
Read MoreLast fall, I participated in a cohort with some of my co-workers where we read and discussed Just Mercy together. It was our first round of these learning cohorts and really, for me, a first step into intentional community that involved education about racial injustice. It was shocking, eye-opening, and hard. We often sat in the room with no words to say. But it was important to take the space and time and truly it was transformative for me.
Read MoreThis morning, based upon our communities’ current metrics surrounding COVID-19, we made the decision to suspend in-person limited gathering worship services through the end of July.
Read MoreAs Summit learns more about truths obscured from their sight, there is an opportunity to expand the depth of how we live out and are steeped in the gospel. How we love our neighbors changes as we see them more fully. We’ll love more completely. When they are in pain, we won’t be able to choose to look away and abandon them. As we learn about others, we’ll learn about ourselves. We have to honestly reflect on how we got here and if we are part of making things better.
Read MoreThousands dressed in black to walk down Church Street together in a time of mourning for Black lives lost due to police brutality and social injustice. The walk culminated near the Amway Center where the group took time to pray, repent, and have conversations about each person’s role in implementing change in our country.
Read MoreAlong with preaching on various psalms this summer, we’ve come up with a 10-week reading plan in Psalms. Psalms is broken up into five books, and we will spend two weeks reading selected psalms from each book. Many biblical scholars find each book has a guiding theme. We’ll be reading one psalm a day for five days per week, and you can find the list here!
Read MoreIn a time when images of racial injustice are opening more eyes to the magnitude of the problem, we know it can leave many evaluating (maybe for the first time) what their role can or should be in moving toward change. Fortunately, we also find ourselves in a time when reputable resources are more accessible than ever as well.
Read MoreThis week, let's make sure to love. That is our requirement. To be certain, the kind of love Jesus modeled is rarely the easy kind of love. Right now, there are all kinds of social/political toxicity in our world. Loving with a sacrificial, action-oriented love may not be easy, but it is the only right decision.
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