The Call & Covenant of Abraham :: BIBLE STORIES

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 5/16/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

Appreciating surprises requires at least two elements. A high level of trust and a high level of insight.

God involves Himself in our lives. He told Abram to go and leave behind his country, people and family. When Abram obeyed, he was accepting the uncertainty of the journey.

God told Abram to look at what He was doing. God told Abram to look at the stars in the sky and that his offspring would be that numerous.

The covenant that God made with Abraham overflows to us. You can trust God to go where he invites you to go. God always does the heavy lifting, just look. God gives us a purpose to show His nature to others.

Mothers, Covenants, Cities – Abundant Living

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 5/09/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

Salvation doesn’t come through what you can do in your own strength. Salvation comes through the promise of God. It is a gift to people who are barren of righteousness.

In this podcast, Pastor Steve will lead us through the passage in Galatians 4: 21-30 that speaks of Hagar and Sarah and the two covenants with them.

Those in Sarah’s family can live in freedom instead of fear. We needn’t fear judgment. We can be confident in our place with God.

Sarah’s family can live a life of adventure and a life that is extraordinary.

Sarah’s family lives a life of abundance. Not earthly abundance, but abundance of joy brought into our life by the grace of Christ.

The Tower of Babel :: THE TRANSFORMING NATURE OF BIBLE STORIES

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 5/02/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

When you hear The Tower of Babel different perspectives may come to mind.

In this podcast, Pastor Steve will lead us through the different perspectives and show us the real reason for The Tower of Babel.

There were two real problems in Babel and also in our lives. Pride and Fear. The people wanted to make a name for themselves in their pride. The people were also fearful that they would be scattered over the earth.

God protects us so we do not need to fear. God’s eye is on us. He sees where we are headed, and He ensures our redemption.

Communion reminds us that Christ sees to our redemption, knows about our struggles today and sees what is ahead of us!

Noah and the Ark :: THE TRANSFORMING NATURE OF BIBLE STORIES

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 4/25/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

Have you ever thought how Noah and the Ark can be applied to your life today?

In this podcast Pastor Steve will lead us through the story of Noah and the Ark to help us understand the focal point of the story which is the covenant between God and man.

Noah must have felt a little broken, a little overwhelmed and a little fearful. Sounds like how we sometimes feel.

What did Noah learn from the Noahic Covenant? Evil does NOT have the last word. God VALUES humankind. It’s going to be ALRIGHT!

We also need covenant with God today to see that evil will not prevail, God values us and it’s going to be alright!

The Transforming Nature of Bible Stories

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 4/18/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

There is power in a story. Jesus tells us in Mark 4:9-13 the power of parables.

In this podcast, Pastor Steve begins the series on The Transforming Nature of Bible Stories. He will show us the importance of seeing a story’s meaning.

A story is a bridge between ideas and words. If you want to understand the God of the Bible, you would do well to understand the stories.

Bible stories require a heart that listens. Bible stories require a heart that is hungry. Bible stories require time to digest.

To get the most from Bible stories you need to study them, live them and share them!

The Readiness, Willingness, and Ableness of Christ

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 4/11/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

Everyone worries. Some even worry about worrying.

You can trust Jesus with EVERYTHING!

Why can you trust Jesus? Because of His readiness, willingness and ableness.

His readiness was established before the foundation of the world.

His willingness has never been in question.

He alone is able!

Christ has won the victory so that we can worship without reservation, proclaim Christ without apology and walk in freedom without fear.

What Do We Take Away From An Empty Tomb?

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 4/04/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

What do you take away from the empty Tomb?

The empty tomb is about more than heaven.

Because the tomb is empty, I can live with confidence.

Because the tomb is empty, I can trust God, even when I do not see Him,

Because the tomb is empty, I can live my faith from a foundation of love.

Because the tomb is empty, I have the ability to trust God.

Christ Our Savior :: THE FOURFOLD GOSPEL

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 3/28/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

Christ is our Savior!

Only Christ can save us. He is the only one qualified to be our Savior!

Christ came down to earth to absorb our punishment, to pay for our debt and to care for our adoption!

When you accept Christ as your Savior, you discover His love, His forgiveness and His deliverance from shame and death! You can discover Him as your Savior when you turn away from your sin and trust His love.

Jesus Our Sanctifier :: THE FOURFOLD GOSPEL

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 3/21/21 by Pastor Steve Shields.

Jesus is our Sanctifier!

Why do we need sanctification?

Pastor Steve will lead us through Scripture to show us the reasons why we need sanctification as well as the various aspects of sanctification.

Sanctification is a process, a step, a gift, and a walk.

To enter the walk of sanctification we need to be hungry for it! We need to see sanctification as a gift. We need to let Christ’s beauty shine as light through us.