Journey Church Amarillo

Church hurt is one of the most painful experiences believers face, occurring when religious communities become sources of wounds rather than healing. While church leaders and members are flawed humans who will inevitably disappoint us, it's crucial to separate their failures from God's unchanging character. Healing requires honestly acknowledging our pain, practicing discernment with grace, and focusing on restoration rather than condemnation. Our ultimate trust must be placed in Christ, not in human representatives who are merely instruments God uses. Despite the failures of church communities, God continues to work through broken people, and healing often happens within community rather than in isolation.

Have you ever found yourself saying, "I'm good like I am" when someone invites you to church or suggests getting more involved in a faith community? This seemingly innocent phrase might actually be preventing you from experiencing the fullness of what God has planned for your life.

In times when God seems silent to our prayers, we often feel disappointed and confused. The story of Elijah teaches us that God often speaks not in dramatic displays of power, but in a gentle whisper that requires closeness and intimacy. Faith isn't about having all the answers or certainty; it's about wrestling with doubt while continuing to trust. When facing disappointment with God, we should ask honest questions, acknowledge our feelings without letting them control us, and develop an 'even if' faith that trusts God regardless of outcomes. True humility means accepting that some things are for God alone to know, while drawing closer to Him even in our confusion.

Baptism is a profound act of faith that represents a transformation in a believer's life. It serves as a public confession of faith in Jesus Christ, an act of obedience to His commands, and connects us spiritually to Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. Additionally, baptism functions as a spiritual marker that believers can look back on during times of doubt or temptation. Just as Jesus Himself was baptized to fulfill righteousness, Christians are called to follow His example, making baptism not merely a symbolic ritual but a powerful declaration of commitment to Christ and a new way of life. At the end, we have 6 Baptisms as well. 

The Great Commission calls us to reach the 3.1 billion people worldwide who have never heard of Jesus. This mission begins in our daily lives, not just in foreign lands. Most unreached people live in the 10/40 Window spanning North Africa through Asia, where entire villages have no gospel witness. Through simple acts like offering prayer, we can open doors to share Christ's love. As we deepen our relationship with Jesus through Scripture, prayer, and fellowship, we naturally develop His heart for humanity and find practical ways to participate in reaching the unreached.

Jonah was a prophet commissioned to preach against the wickedness of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. Instead of obeying, he fled in the opposite direction, prompting God to send a storm and eventually have him swallowed by a great fish. After this divine intervention, Jonah reluctantly delivered God's message to Nineveh, and surprisingly, the entire city repented. However, Jonah became angry when God showed mercy to the Ninevites, revealing that while Jonah knew God's compassionate character, he didn't share it. The story challenges us to not only know God's heart of mercy and compassion but to actually possess it ourselves, especially toward those we might consider enemies.

The phrase 'Lead us not into temptation' in the Lord's Prayer isn't asking God not to tempt us (since James 1:13 confirms He doesn't), but rather requesting protection from tests that would lead to our destruction. We need this protection because we're naturally prone to wandering from God. Temptation works through both active defiance and programmed responses based on our past experiences and trauma. God offers protection through His goodness (tov) and mercy (hesed) that pursue us, redirecting us when we want to turn back to old ways. The ultimate goal is dwelling in God's presence, experiencing His rest even now through the Holy Spirit.

Forgiveness is an act of judgment that acknowledges a wrong has occurred, not pretending the offense didn't happen. It differs from reconciliation, which may not always be possible or appropriate depending on the severity of the offense. Interestingly, small everyday slights can sometimes be harder to let go of than major offenses, as we tend to collect and nurture these minor hurts. The hardest person to forgive is often yourself, due to hindsight bias and judging past actions by current standards. When we carry unforgiveness, we cannot fully enjoy the banquet of blessings God has prepared for us.

Jesus taught that prayer isn't about informing God of our needs, but about surrendering our will to His. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He emphasized that God already knows what we need before we ask. The true purpose of prayer is to align ourselves with God's will through the powerful phrase 'Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.' After surrender, Jesus instructs us to ask for provision, pardon, and protection. By declaring our dependence on God daily and genuinely surrendering control, we open ourselves to experience God's world in transformative ways.

God's kingdom is His sovereign rule over all creation, manifested through righteousness, peace, and joy in Jesus Christ. We live in a 'now, not yet' tension where the kingdom has arrived with Jesus but isn't fully realized. Psalm 23 reveals three essential aspects of God's kingdom: provision (learning contentment with what we have), peace (experiencing shalom even amid chaos), and proper paths (following God's guidance even when it differs from our desires). Through the Holy Spirit's power, we're called to be Christ's representatives, embodying His kingdom in our daily lives while pointing others toward the perfect kingdom to come.

Understanding God's character transforms our prayer life. The Lord's Prayer and Psalm 23 reveal God as both holy and intimate - a perfect Father who runs toward us in our shame and a Good Shepherd who personally cares for the rejected. God is simultaneously transcendent in His holiness and immanent in His love. Like the father in the prodigal son story, He takes our shame upon Himself. Like a shepherd with a rejected lamb, He holds us close to His heart. When we grasp this dual nature of God, we pray with confidence, bringing everything to Him and pressing into His presence even in our worst moments.

Listen as we explore our vision, To Be a People who Abide, Follow, and Make Room for Jesus and the Gospel

The Trinity is the foundational Christian doctrine that God exists as one being in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This isn't merely a theological theory but essential to understanding creation, salvation, and relationships. The concept is rooted in Scripture through the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4), declaring God's oneness and references to 'the Name' applied to Jesus, indicating his divine identity. While no perfect analogy exists for the Trinity, understanding it helps us experience God's three-in-one love and models perfect unity for our relationships with others.

Jesus invites us to abide in Him, a vital connection that enables us to produce spiritual fruit like love, joy, and peace. Abiding begins with setting our default mental focus on Christ rather than worldly concerns. It involves embracing our primary identity as God's children above all other roles, and cultivating a genuine desire for a relationship with God. Without this connection to Christ, we cannot produce spiritual fruit or experience the transformative power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

In Luke 7:11-17, Jesus encounters a widow's funeral procession for her only son outside Nain. Jesus demonstrates true compassion by seeing her grief, feeling her pain deeply, and taking action by raising her son from the dead. This miracle was unique because it came without any request or demonstration of faith—it flowed purely from Jesus' compassion. As followers of Christ, we're called to mirror this compassion by truly seeing hurting people, allowing ourselves to feel their pain, and taking concrete action to help, remembering that genuine compassion always combines emotion with action.

Who are 'those people' you find hardest to love? On the dangerous Road to Jericho, Jesus shattered expectations by making a despised Samaritan the hero of his most famous parable. The shocking truth? We're called to show compassion to everyone—especially those we'd rather avoid. Remember: we were once the wounded traveler, and Jesus stopped for us. How might your 'Jericho road' look different this week?

Our actions profoundly impact those watching us, especially children who learn faith by our example rather than our words. To guide children toward faith, we should let them witness our struggles appropriately, carefully choose who influences them, recognize the vital role fathers play in faith development, and pray constantly for them. Children often follow the path their parents model, making it crucial that we demonstrate authentic faith in our daily lives. Though we cannot force children to follow God, we can show them what following Him looks like through our responses to life's challenges.

Generosity extends far beyond financial giving, encompassing our time, affirmation, resources, and money. When we reduce generosity to just finances, we risk falling into transactional Christianity or overvaluing wealth. True generosity reflects God's heart—giving what is most valuable to us, just as God gave His Son. We demonstrate generosity when we share our time (our most irreplaceable resource), offer blessings and affirmation to others, share our resources to meet needs, and give financially to support our church and community. This generous spirit acknowledges Jesus as Lord over everything valuable in our lives.

Working for the Lord transforms our approach to our careers, shifting our focus from pleasing people to honoring God. Scripture instructs us to work 'heartily as to the Lord,' meaning with our entire being. This perspective helps us maintain excellence even under difficult bosses or in jobs we dislike. When Christ becomes our true boss, we find the strength to either endure challenging situations or make necessary changes. Ultimately, whether digging ditches or running corporations, our work finds meaning when done for God's glory rather than human validation.

Managing money as Christians means recognizing that all resources belong to God and are entrusted to us as tools for His glory. Three key principles can guide our financial stewardship: learning to manage money well, learning to be content, and learning to ask God for more. How we handle finances reveals our character and spiritual maturity, serving as a testing ground for greater responsibilities in God's kingdom.