You're Blessed

Friendship Community Church

You're Blessed

April 16, 2023 • Pastor Logan Ames

In many areas of life, expectations make a huge difference. Your perspective on whether a movie or restaurant is any good is skewed by what you've heard about it from others and what you expected. When your tax return refund is far less than you expected, it's hard to be grateful for what you receive. In professional sports, almost everything is about expectation. As a Pittsburgh Pirates fan, I'm thrilled when they sniff a winning record and ecstatic when they make the playoffs, since they've been awful for so long. As a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, I'm irritated when they aren't competing for the Super Bowl, since they've been so good for so long. Expectations often cause us to take blessings for granted and to complain at the slightest discomfort. Somehow, this has happened on a widespread scale in the western Church. Life has been so comfortable that we aren't even thankful for the blessings, and it's a crisis anytime we face hardship. This week at Friendship, we're beginning our new series called "Jesus Says", which is based on His teachings in the Sermon on the Mount. And this week, we will cover what Jesus has in mind when He tells us, "You're Blessed". It's not about our circumstances; Jesus has in mind a happiness that goes far beyond those. Join us to hear about what it means to be truly blessed as one who bears the name of our Lord!

Build Wisely

June 11, 2023 • Associate Pastor Ben Sorbello

When is the last time that you have used the phrase in the above picture, or that someone used it on you? As we explore the last message in our series on Jesus' first sermon, called the "Sermon on the Mount", we see that the children of Israel were surely broken, and that's why Our Father had to send Jesus Christ to be both our Lord and Savior. This week's message will be about building your house on the Rock. What does that mean to you? Does it refer to yourself? Are you the house? If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and profess that God raised Him from the dead, then you are the new temple. You are where the Holy Spirit lives, and that makes you His house! Or, does the house refer to your physical home where your family lives? Or, does it refer to our relationships where love lives? If you feel that your life, relationships, house, mind, or body are BROKEN, then we invite, no, we pray and encourage you to come out and be blessed by sitting at the feet of Jesus.

Go Against the Flow

June 4, 2023 • Pastor Logan Ames

You have probably heard the quote: "No man is an island". It's actually part of a longer quote by English poet John Donne. In general, it is true, and Scripture backs this up. We are meant to be together and the body of Christ needs each of us, and we need it! But there are times in the world when we will feel like an island, disconnected from the mainland, if we are sold out to following Jesus. A bumper sticker I was given in high school encouraged me and my Christian friends to "Go Against the Flow". In other words, even if the culture around us looks like a sea of fools, we should be the one wise fish. Yes, we will likely receive ridicule, insults, and maybe even personal attacks. But Jesus promised that it would be this way, and He urged us to enter through the small gate and travel the narrow road because it's the only way to life! The masses will travel the road that looks good and popular, but its end is destruction. This week at Friendship, we'll look at those words of Jesus and talk about what it means to stand out as one who goes the opposite way of the pagan culture. We'll also talk briefly about good peer pressure, then how to avoid the worldly peer pressure that creeps into the Church. Join us for a time of worship and this important message!

Live The Golden Rule

May 28, 2023 • Pastor Logan Ames

When I was a child, I learned about something called "The Golden Rule", and this was before I even knew it was in the Bible. I remember my mother sharing that we should "do unto others as we would have them do unto us". That and a quote of John 3:16 were like the only times I ever heard the adults in my life speak in "King James, which only added to the notion that this must be something special. Of course, a child can't fully understand what this means, and I remember easily confusing it with what was in my head: "Do unto others as they have done unto you". It sounds almost identical, yet it couldn't be more of a contrast to the true Golden Rule spoken by Jesus. Our attitude and goal should be to treat others as we would like to be treated, regardless of how we are actually treated! I can think of no better example in our lives than our fallen men and women who have given their last full measure of devotion so that we can be free and stay free. Many of them, especially going back to the Vietnam War and prior to that, were not treated well by their country and people. Yet, they served anyway, and when called to sacrifice, they demonstrated what Jesus says is the greatest love there is. This Memorial Day weekend at Friendship, we will honor and remember their sacrifice, then discuss what it means for us to "Live the Golden Rule" in how we treat those around us. May we learn from their sacrifice, and from the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior, and may we stand ready to lay down our lives in love for those around us.