Westside Church

Big Questions Week 2 | When the Bible tells us to “cast all [our] anxieties on Him” (1 Peter 5:7), it does not say if we have anxieties—God knows that anxiety is a natural response in a broken world, so He gives us a solution to this worry: to always pray, always rejoice, always be thankful (1 Thes. 5:16-18), and always lift each other up (Gal. 6:2). You are loved by God!

Big Questions Week 1 | God’s grace is not something we can earn through effort, but a gift freely given because we are His. His standard is perfection—not relative goodness—and only through this gift of grace can anyone be “good enough” or justified before God.

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 7 | Christians are called to live as light within the world—rather than seeking safety through separation or risking compromise through assimilation, we are urged to rely on the incarnation of Jesus in our lives as we interact with the culture around us.

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 5 | Submission, slavery, and gender roles—while not dismantling societal hierarchies of the scriptures’ time, Ephesians 5 does subvert them by calling those traditionally with power—husbands, parents, and masters—to lay it down in mutual submission, mirroring the sacrificial love of Christ.

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 5 | If God’s perfect grace covers our imperfect lives, is it worth trying to live like Jesus if we’re just going to mess up anyways? We learn in Ephesians that true transformation begins not with trying harder to be better, but by deeply experiencing the love of Christ.

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 4 | Through the grace of God alone, believers are heirs to the “boundless riches of Christ” (v. 8). We are not to hesitate and hoard these gifts, but to spend them boldly and generously with the world.

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 3 | True community means embracing even those we find difficult – because Christ brings us near and makes us one through grace and kindness, not uniformity and sameness.

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 2 | Salvation is not earned by our performance or general goodness, but is a gift of God’s grace alone. Are you living a life fueled through-and-through by God’s free and perfect grace, or one of self-righteousness?

Westside One: Ephesians Pt 1 | Through Christ, we are sons and daughters of the King – no matter what your personal story, background, and past decisions are, there is nothing that can change the fact that you have been adopted into God’s family once you step into it.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 16 | Happy Easter! As followers of Jesus, we are encouraged to recognize that Jesus is already walking with us, even in our pain, and that the resurrection reframes our story with a living hope that truly reaches into our everyday lives.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 15 | Both Judas and Peter felt shame for betraying or denying Jesus – but while Judas succumbed to isolation and despair, Peter’s story shows that grace and restoration are possible when we bring our failures into the light rather than hiding in shame.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 14 | Meals are central to connection and community – they reminds us that even in times of stress or uncertainty, Jesus invites us to His table as free people, offering rest and relationship.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 13 | True worship often means choosing to be vulnerable for generosity’s sake and creating spaces of beauty in the world – it is an action that reflects God’s love into the world.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 12 | True love – both for God and others – stems from first receiving the unconditional love and forgiveness that God has already given us, and then intentionally sharing that love with those around us.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 11 | Finding attachment, identity, and success in worldly possessions like wealth and status can distort our faith, but God promises a fulfilled life when we search for fulfillment in him alone.

Jesus is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 10 | It is important for believers to recognize Jesus for who he is – not as a figure molded to fit worldly power and control, but as the Messiah, whose way requires sacrifice but is marked by humility, mercy, and love.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 9 | Jesus challenges us to be generous, curious, and actively seeking forgiveness when interacting with people around us, thereby transforming the world through the gospel.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 8 | God’s calling is not about waiting for specific, extraordinary signs – but about living out love, grace, and mercy in ordinary, daily actions, whether in our close circles or larger communities.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 7 | Jesus values our faith in Him over societal rules and religious condemnation. He invites all of us to come as we are and bring whatever we have so that we might begin a personal connection with our Creator.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 6 | Jesus models confidence in God’s sovereignty by leaning on two of God’s promises: He is present during the storm, even before the outcome changes, and that the worst storm is never the final word because of the resurrection.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 5 | Jesus uses the Parable of the Sower to highlight how the Word of God functions like a humble seed that needs to take root deeply within us to truly shape us from the inside out.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 4 | Jesus demonstrates that the Sabbath is intended to be a gift that meets the needs of people and provides a space for true rest, not a burdensome set of religious regulations.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 3 | Jesus intentionally sought out solitude with God, even when the world was pulling him in every other direction. To maintain peace in our lives today, we can also seek a rhythm of listening to God in solitude.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 2 | Faith can exist alongside doubt. Even in our spiritual questioning and confusion, Jesus does not waver in his love for us and encourages us to turn to him, believe in his words, and take a step of faith towards him.

Jesus Is King: The Gospel of Mark Pt 1 | Jesus’ choice to be baptized fulfilled God’s plan, demonstrated His identification with humanity, and revealed His authority through humility and sacrifice, rather than through strength and might.

While waiting on God can be difficult and vulnerable, we must realize that waiting on and trusting in God go hand in hand, and that those practices can cultivate hope and peace in our lives.

Christ reigns forever, including now. Even when our lives feel ordinary and mundane, we can recognize the divine in everyday moments, challenge assumptions about our faith, and embrace the surprising love and grace of God.

On this third Sunday of Advent, we find joy in the fact that God’s love is personal, unconditional, and actively pursuing each one of us.

When Jesus was sent to earth as a baby, he bridged the gap between us and God the Father, allowing us to enter into personal relationship, despite our human suffering and mess, with God through Jesus as Emmanuel (“God with us”).

From Genesis to the cross, God – the Creator of the universe – demonstrates that Jesus – the Word made flesh – provides victory over sin and death, offering us the opportunity to be adopted into God’s family and live in His victory, no matter what our past, present, or future looks like.

We are called to cultivate gratitude, not as a mere thank you to God, but as a posture of the heart that transforms our lives, deepens our faith, and leads to peace and joy even in the midst of suffering.

Jesus is the central focus of Christian faith, and believers are called to live missionally, following Jesus’ example of prioritizing people and sharing the gospel in both word and deed.

The church today is called to embrace peace and reconciliation in relationships despite differences – prioritizing peace over division, and trust that God is sovereign and holds our lives, our neighbors’ lives, and the whole world together.

As we bring our anxieties before God through prayer, our perspectives are transformed, allowing us to see our challenges through the lens of His sovereignty and faithfulness rather than our own limitations.

God encourages us to embrace the mysteries of faith and approach prayer with the understanding that we are citizens of heaven, and that we can trust in His authority and ability to respond to our prayers.

We can confidently cast our anxieties on God through prayer, knowing that He is our Heavenly Father: loving, consistent, powerful, and always present and ready to help us navigate even the toughest areas of our lives.

Doubt and uncertainty are natural parts of faith, and we are called to embrace these feelings without fear of judgment, as God’s unbreakable love provides security, comfort, and guidance through the challenges we face.

By developing a practice of prayer, we can align ourselves with Jesus, transforming our angry, arrogant, and anxious reactions to difficult circumstances into responses filled with the Fruits of the Spirit.

Jesus presented a revolutionary approach to navigating politics that calls for deeper engagement and understanding, encouraging the church to embody a love for their families and neighbors that transcends political divisions.

God’s justice does not adhere to human notions of fairness, but focuses on restoring His creation by righting wrongs and standing up for the oppressed.

Jesus calls us to go beyond the minimum requirements of faith and embrace a love that reflects His example of radical equality and grace.

As Christians, we are called to move beyond superficial judgments and divisions, recognizing that true reconciliation and love require acknowledging our own brokenness and approaching others with grace and humility.

True contentment, joy, and peace come not from material wealth but from a life of generosity that aligns with God’s mission to bring good news to the poor.

Jesus invites us to experience true rest and renewal through a rhythm of Sabbath, where we step away from the relentless demands of life and delight in God’s presence, aligning ourselves with His grace and finding peace for our souls.

In a world where our attention is increasingly fragmented, focusing on Jesus becomes essential for spiritual growth and discipleship.

Living with humility and embodying forgiveness is essential for the followers of Jesus to heal the world He has placed us in.

Sin is more than personal vices; it’s a cosmic evil distorting our relationships with God and others, leading to shame trying to convince us of our unworthiness before God.

Our ultimate goal in engaging with the Bible is to foster a relationship with Jesus, living out His redemptive work in our daily lives.

Although worldly success and self-reliance allure us, we find true fulfillment and rest by seeking and dwelling in God’s presence.

We must maintain unwavering allegiance to Jesus amidst contemporary distractions and the false idols of our culture.