Faith Forward Podcast

Faith Forward #116 - Off-brand Jesus Wk 3

September 22, 2024 • Lee Towns, Jon Ackerman • 2 Timothy 3:1–5, Genesis 3:1–13

There are many ways to end up with an "off-brand" life with Jesus -- accepting less than life to the full in order to be more comfortable and less challenged. In this week's episode, Lee and Jon tackle one of the sneakiest and most common causes of the off-brand life: selfishness. How do we overcome our deep-seated desire to make our life -- and God -- work on our terms? Pull up a chair and listen as Lee and Jon share some honest confessions and helpful suggestions on overcoming selfishness and embracing the delight of surrender.

Faith Forward #114 - Off-brand Jesus Wk 1

September 8, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • 2 Timothy 3:1–5

Off-brand products have the appearance of the real thing but lack the true quality or benefit of the original. Similarly, we have often settled for less than the true quality and benefit of Jesus because the alternative promised to cost us less or be close enough. How do we discover the places in our life where we've accepted an off-brand substitute for the real thing? Join Brian and Jon for a practical look at our off-brand choices and how we recover the authentic Jesus.

Faith Forward #115 - Off-brand Jesus Wk 2

September 15, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Jude 18–21

We've accepted an "off-brand Jesus" when we accept less than life to the full in order to be more comfortable and less challenged. What does that look like when it comes to judging and judgementalism? Join Brian and Jon for a deeper look at why we often leap to critique or else avoid speaking truth at all. More importantly, listen in as we talk about embracing the ultimate purpose of judging rightly -- transformation!

Faith Forward #113 - Jesus Stories Wk 3

May 19, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Matthew 18:21–35, Luke 7:36–48, Luke 17:3–4

Jesus taught about "forgiveness" on several occasions, and almost every time the teaching was accompanied by a story. As we've mentioned over several weeks, Jesus uses parables to help us understand that we don't understand as well as we think we do -- and this is especially true when it comes to forgiveness! Join Brian and Jon for the last episode of this season as they share their own stories and experiences of re-learning what it means to forgive from the heart.

Faith Forward #112 - Jesus Stories Wk 2

May 12, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Matthew 13:3–23

If the parable of the four soils can be applied to sanctification as well as salvation, how do we become good soil? How do we cultivate a heart that listens and understands and receives truth in a way that produces a harvest of 30x, 60x, or even 100x? Join Brian and Jon for a practical and honest conversation about both cultivating our own hearts and being better equipped to seed truth into the lives of others.

Faith Forward #111 - Jesus Stories Wk 1

May 5, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Matthew 13:10–17

Why did Jesus tell so many stories? What was the point of using parables that often left His audience more confused than before? What does Jesus want us to learn from these stories about Himself, about us, and about the Kingdom of God? Join Brian and Jon for an encouraging, humbling, and helpful conversation on the parables of Jesus.

Faith Forward #110 - Power of a Name Wk 8

April 28, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Exodus 15:22–26

We finish this series on the names of God with one of the more hopeful and more confusing of His identities -- Healer. Jehovah Rapha can and will restore us from sickness, injury, mental and emotional calamity, and even death...and yet not always when or how we want Him to. How can we know God as Healer in a way that cultivates connection and hope rather than transaction and disappointment? Join Brian and Jon for an honest and encouraging conversation on experiencing the reality of God as Healer.

Faith Forward #109 - Power of a Name Wk 7

April 21, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Psalm 23

"The good shepherd" may be one of the most well-known names for God, but despite its familiarity we don't always know how to engage with Him in that capacity. What does it really mean for me to be a sheep and Him to be my shepherd? Join Brian and Jon for a rich, surprising, and deeply practical conversation on learning how to truly BE sheep.

Faith Forward #108 - Power of a Name Wk 6

April 14, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Psalm 33:13–20, Hebrews 13:5–6

Saying that God is our "helper" just doesn't quite capture the significance of knowing Him as "Ezer." Jehovah Ezer is the one who rescues, who saves, who is strong and comes through when no one and nothing else can. Do you know Him that way? And how does knowing God as "ezer" change the way we interact with Him? Join Brian and Jon for a helpful and reflective conversation on how to draw closer to the God who helps our heart as well as our circumstances.

Faith Forward #107 - Power of a Name Wk 5

April 7, 2024 • Jon Ackerman, Brooke Ackerman • Judges 6:1–21

Peace may be one of the things we ask for most often from God...both for ourselves and for those around us in pain or distress. And in most cases, when we ask God for peace, we ask Him to remove or resolve difficult circumstances. But what if God means something more when He offers us peace? Come join Brooke & Jon Ackerman as they offer some practical steps we can all take to better understand and experience the God who is Peace.

Faith Forward #106 - Power of a Name Wk 4

March 24, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Genesis 22

God wants us to know Him as provider. He IS the provider! And at the same time, there are moments in life when we question the way that God provides. We'd like Him to just give us what we want when we want, but thankfully, our God is always after more than we could ask for or imagine. So how can we learn to walk with God when He's not providing as we'd like? Join Brian and Jon for a helpful conversation on learning to see Jehovah Jireh as He is instead of how we'd like Him to be.

Faith Forward #105 - Power of a Name Wk 3

March 17, 2024 • Lee Towns, Jon Ackerman • Judges 11:27, Hebrews 4:12, 1 Corinthians 6:2

This might be the most difficult and the most culturally loaded of the names of God that we'll discuss in these 9 weeks. Jehovah http://shaphet.god is Judge. The judgement (or the judgementalism) of God is one of the most polarizing aspects of faith in our world both in and outside of the church. Each one of us has a different internal reaction to the concept of God as judge, and the invitation this week is to move towards those preconceptions rather than away. To discover more of what God meant about Himself and more of how He meant that name to inform our relationship with Him. So join Jon and Pastor Lee for a heartfelt and helpful conversation on how we can come closer to our loving Father by knowing Him as judge.

Faith Forward #104 - Power of a Name Wk 2

March 10, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Genesis 18:7–9, Exodus 34:10–14

When God introduces Himself with a name, it's an invitation to know Him more personally. But what do we do with the name "Kanna," the name that means God is jealous? What is God jealous of? Better stated, what is God jealous FOR? Once again, we find ourselves in a place of needing to unlearn things about God so that we can connect with Him as He truly is. So come join Brian and Jon for an incredibly helpful and somewhat uncomfortable conversation around God's jealousy, our idols, and the life with God we were always meant to have.

Faith Forward #103 - Power of a Name Wk 1

March 3, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Exodus 3:1–15

The names of God are powerful, not only because they show us what He's capable of but also because they show us who He is. When God introduces Himself with a name, it's an invitation to know Him more personally. But sometimes that means we need to do some unlearning first. So join Brian and Jon as we look at the Scottish poet, George MacDonald's, timeless question -- is it possible that we have learned God wrong?

Faith Forward #102 - When God Answers Prayers

February 25, 2024 • Brian Bales, Jon Ackerman • Exodus 16:1–12

When God answers prayers, it sometimes creates more worry than excitement. It only took the Israelites 6 weeks to start thinking that slavery in Egypt was preferable to freedom in the wilderness. They suddenly found themselves face to face with a much bigger and more real God than they had ever personally experienced. What happens when God starts answering our prayers in ways that are immeasurably more than we had asked for or imagined? We get worried. Come join Brian and Jon for an honest and practical conversation on how to navigate worry when God starts answering our prayers.

Christian Fellowship Ashburn

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