Return to Your First Love

When does anyone have time to take 5 minutes to read a chapter a day, much less think about it and pray about it? Yet the purpose of this isn’t to add one more thing to a to-do list....
Keep ReadingA faithful presence of love in the absences of our city.
February 24, 2022
"We fail to remember that God is as the Psalmist describes: an abundant fountain, a river of delights, a full house, a radiant light. The Psalmist knows God never operates out of scarcity. Where we must begin with Deeper is recognizing the ever flowing depths of the fountain of God. He is living water, because it is always abundant and always flowing. Scarcity mindset keeps us from going deeper, because we are afraid the safety net either isn’t there or doesn’t go deep enough. We won’t risk, because we can’t. We can’t possibly risk such things. There might not be anything left. There might not be any left for me. We are all like Goldilocks lamenting lost porridge, broken chairs, and occupied beds. But God always has room and always makes room. He is an overflowing fountain."...
February 17, 2022 by Emily Spare
Abiding through the fall at City Pres meant holding on for dear life to your life preserver ring hoping the other side of the rope is attached to the rescue boat, continually clinging, continually waiting. But abiding in the new year at City Pres is what I think we’re being called into: “Deeper.” ...
February 28, 2018 by Philip Noell | Category: Sermon Reflection
When does anyone have time to take 5 minutes to read a chapter a day, much less think about it and pray about it? Yet the purpose of this isn’t to add one more thing to a to-do list....
Keep ReadingFebruary 22, 2018 by Rachel Whippo | Tags: Sermon Reflection, Genesis, Revelation, Bookends, Prophetic, Apocalyptic, bible study, blog, Church, Scripture, Albuquerque Church, Church blog, Pastoral Letter, Understanding
The book of Revelation, I have found, as I’m sure have many of you, is one of the books of the Bible where I really have a difficult time getting the message from my head to my heart....
Keep ReadingFebruary 15, 2018 by Josh Spare | Category: Sermon Reflection
Our common sense, our most natural desire, as we face the icy challenges that life throws at us is to “white-knuckle” it; to strive to control and over-power difficulty by making our name great, or by demonstrating our own righteousness, or by building up our own little kingdom. And yet, the paradox is that it is precisely by relinquishing control to God, by forgoing o...
Keep ReadingFebruary 11, 2018 | Tags: grace, Intentionality, Lent, Ash Wednesday, Practice, Liturgical Calendar, Church Calendar, Fasting, Refocus, Reorient, Remembrance
Some of us grew up in churches where Lent was observed, but with little real explanation, making it seem like an empty, meaningless ritual. On the other hand, others of us grew up in church traditions where Lent was not observed at all. Some grew up in churches where we found Lent very meaningful. Some of us didn't grow up in any church at all....
Keep ReadingFebruary 8, 2018 | Tags: submission, children, sacrifice, Tower of Babel, God, Albuquerque Church, Sermon Reflection, Church blog, Genesis, Bookends, A Better Way, Leading, People
You see, it’s not that God is against towers. He’s building a huge one for us to enjoy......
Keep ReadingFebruary 1, 2018 by | Tags: Family, gospel, albuquerque, reconciliation, adoption, blog, love, culture, Jesus, God, Church, redemption, Albuquerque Church, Church blog, Genesis, Nations, Heritage, Genesis 10
Living under the new covenant of Jesus’ blood, we also get to see the beautiful picture of Jesus drawing people from every nation, tribe, and tongue to Himself....
Keep Reading