Worship is Life
Lenten Sermon Series
Cross Training: Exploring the Spiritual Disciplines
This Lenten series explores a different spiritual discipline each week, starting with self-examination on Ash Wednesday, then prayer, meditating on scriptures, fasting, confession, silence and solitude, submission and service, and ultimately, gratitude on Easter morning. Analogous to popular cross training fitness programs that focus on a healthy balance of intense workouts and restorative recovery, Cross Training will help you get spiritually fit with a good blend of challenge by stepping outside your comfort zone and recovery practices that allow you to heal.
Week 1 (Mar. 9): Prayer | Romans 8:26-27, Galatians 6:11 - 16
Week 2 (Mar. 16): Scripture | Psalm 1:1-3, 1 Peter 1:13 - 16
Reading and meditating on Scripture lay the foundation for Christian life.
Week 3 (Mar. 23): Fasting | Matthew 6:16 - 18, Isaiah 58:3 - 9a
Fasting is meant to change our hearts and deepen our relationship with God, yet sometimes we turn it into a diet or show.
Week 4 (Mar. 30): Confession | 1 John 1:5 - 9
Confessing our sins brings us out of the darkness of the world and into the light of living as a Christ follower.
Week 5 (Apr. 6): Silence & Solitude | 1 Kings 19, Mark 1:35 - 39
When we practice being silent and taking time to be alone with God, we can deepen our connection with God.
Palm/Passion Sunday (Apr. 13): Submission & Service | Mark 9:33 – 37, Acts 9:36 - 43
When we follow the way of Christ, we come to that place where we say with Jesus, “Not my will, but Your will be done.”
Maundy Thursday (Apr. 17| 7 PM @ Vale): Remembering the Last Supper | John 13:1-17, 31b-35
We often think of spiritual disciplines as “between me and God,” but Jesus’ example here shows that a key part of our faith is outward; it is about the willingness to receive and give love by serving one other.
Easter Sunday (Apr. 2): Gratitude | Scripture: Luke 24:1-12
Christ is risen! God’s grace calls us to lives of gratitude. Join us for sunrise service at 7 AM on our front lawn, followed by breakfast and / or for our regular worship service at 10 AM.