faith — FOREFRONT CHURCH - Sundays

Posts tagged faith

Sacraments of the Church: Confirmation | Rev. Josh RaderLee

Sacraments of the Church: Confirmation | Rev. Josh RaderLee

Did you grow up in a tradition where you went through confirmation? If not, what sort of initiation or religious educational process did your tradition embody? Rev. Josh shares about the sacrament of confirmation, where an adolescent or adult, confirms their baptismal vows and publicly affirms their faith after having gone through confirmation classes where they learn about Christian history, beliefs, and traditions. How might we too benefit from the Spirit of this sacrament and how might it aid us in reconciling with and reforming our faith?

Josh RaderLeeForefront ChurchAugust 27, 2023faith, confirmation, baptism, commitment, deconstruction, reconstruction, sacraments

Parables: A Different Perspective – Seeing with New Eyes | Mary Obasi

Parables: A Different Perspective – Seeing with New Eyes | Mary Obasi

Mary Obasi explores why it is hard to change even when our circumstances have in the parable of "The Rich Man and Lazarus".

Mary ObasiForefront ChurchJuly 16, 2023parables, justice, evidence, faith, wealth, bridge

The Path: Reconciling & Redefining | Rev. Josh Lee

The Path: Reconciling & Redefining | Rev. Josh Lee

In our third and final sermon of "The Path" series, Rev. Josh Lee borrows from Father Richard Rohr on how he describes our spiritual path as one of order, disorder, and reorder. This cycle is the historical Christian journey. Rev. Josh then shares 5 Things he does to reorder (reconstruct) his life and faith when it becomes disordered (deconstructed). This very practical sermon is full of helpful tools and wisdom in your journey through your spiritual path!

Josh RaderLeeForefront ChurchAugust 21, 2022faith, doubts, deconstruction, trauma, reconstruction, reconstruct

The Path: Navigating Questions and Disbelief | Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins

The Path: Navigating Questions and Disbelief | Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins

In our second sermon of "The Path" series, Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins reminds us how we are confronted with a host of experiences on the path causing us to question and have doubts about how we will overcome. This sermon will be a reminder that we can come to God with our fears and concerns, and the presence and power of God can be comfort and healing, and work in miraculous ways as we journey on.

Venida Rodman JenkinsForefront ChurchAugust 14, 2022faith, fear, doubts, questions

The Path: Losing My Religion | Rev. Josh Lee

The Path: Losing My Religion | Rev. Josh Lee

Have you at one time believed something so strongly you could hear no other perspective? But then over time you could hear what you wouldn’t before and see what you couldn’t see before? In this message Rev. Josh Lee starts our new series “The Path” by challenging us to consider where on the path do we find ourselves? Perhaps like Saul, just having recently lost our formerly held religious convictions or perhaps like Ananias being called to give sight and compassion to folks who have previously persecuted us because we remember what it was like to once be in their shoes.

Josh RaderLeeForefront ChurchAugust 7, 2022deconstruction, faith, tradition, trauma, fear, construction, evangelism

What Forms Us: Tradition | Rev. Josh Lee

What Forms Us: Tradition | Rev. Josh Lee

Rev. Josh Lee continues our "What Forms Us" series with this sermon on tradition. In this series we are gleaning from the founder of the United Methodist Church, John Wesley. John believed that as Christians we should allow our thinking, beliefs, ethics, and practices to be formed by four things (experience, reason, scripture, and tradition) In this message we focus on how Miriam brought her tambourine with her as she fled enslavement in Egypt during the exodus. Miriam choosing to bring her tambourine is a reminder to us that even as we leave faith traditions that have caused us trauma and pain there are still things worth bringing with you!

Josh RaderLeeForefront ChurchJuly 24, 2022wesleyquadrilateral, faith, tradition, trauma

What Forms Us: Reason | Keli Young

What Forms Us: Reason | Keli Young

Keli Young continues our "What Forms Us" series with this sermon on reason. Jesus strains our ability to reason. He was disruptive, not just to systems of oppression but to how people understood the world. but the good news is that we’re not expected to make sense of the world or our faith on our own. The disciples were always curious, constantly trying to figure out Jesus, and by extension their faith. Jesus welcomed their questions, doubts, and fears and he welcomes ours just the same!

Keli YoungForefront ChurchJuly 17, 2022wesleyquadrilateral, reason, faith, questions

Unapologetically Affirming | Makenzie Gomez

Unapologetically Affirming | Makenzie Gomez

Makenzie Gomez continues our “Unapologetically Us” series with the topic “Unapologetically Affirming”. Makenzie draws from Acts 8, when Philip meets the Ethiopian Eunuch. What can we learn from their interaction? How is Philip showing us what it means to listen and be open to questioning? In this message on NYC Pride Sunday, Makenzie encourages us to consider how to shift our allyship from passive to active, and celebrates the affirming faith our community has come to know.

Makenzie GomezForefront ChurchJune 26, 2022lgbtq, affirming, allies, faith

Unapologetically Wondering | Rev. Josh Lee

Unapologetically Wondering | Rev. Josh Lee

Here's the start of our new sermon series, "Unapologetically Us". Rev. Josh Lee explores Jesus's habit of asking questions instead of providing straightforward answers. Jesus both engages people with questions who would have never engaged him and engages with people's questions who approach him.

Josh RaderLeeForefront ChurchJune 19, 2022faith, doubt, deconstruction, questions, wondering

Born Again 2.0 | Sermon | Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins

Born Again 2.0 | Sermon | Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins

It's time to reframe Scripture that has been used to serve as the foundation for a belief system that would cause us to be accepted or rejected by God. We're advocating for a more inclusive Gospel and this is truly Good News. Watch Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins speak about Scriptural Interpretation, in "Born Again 2.0".

Venida Rodman JenkinsForefront ChurchMarch 13, 2022faith, lent, wilderness, bornagain

Restructuring Our Faith | Sermon | Rev. Josh Lee

Restructuring Our Faith | Sermon | Rev. Josh Lee

We aren’t the first generation to deconstruct or recover from church trauma… this has been apart of our human life cycle forever! In this sermon, Rev. Josh Lee focuses specifically on the wilderness season that Peter and the disciples found themselves in after Jesus death… full of questions, doubt, regret, uncertainty, perhaps certain of what they didn’t believe but unsure of what they do believe. Sunday we will glean from our ancestors on how they navigated reconstructing their faith after it all came crashing down.

Josh RaderLeeForefront ChurchMarch 6, 2022faith, deconstruction, reconstruction, questions, doubts, love, the bible, testing

Planting A Tree | Sermon | Guest Preacher Joel Field

Planting A Tree | Sermon | Guest Preacher Joel Field

We welcome Joel Field this week as Guest Preacher. Joel is a long time Forefronter, preacher and financial advisor and strategist. Joel reminds us that Jesus showed us that it’s not about what we do as much as it is about where our heart is when we’re doing it.

Joel FieldForefront ChurchJanuary 30, 2022faith, selflessness, heart, giving, generosity

Forefront as a stable, grounding force

Forefront as a stable, grounding force

Mak Gomez takes to the stage and speak about the disciples and community. In the midst of loss, change or fear, where do we turn for stability, for reassurance? In this sermon, Mak reminds us of the love that surrounds us all as being part of a community. We aren't meant to go it alone.

Makenzie GomezForefront ChurchOctober 17, 2021faith, loss, fear, love

Love and dignify your neighbor

Love and dignify your neighbor

Love and dignify your neighbor. Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins inspires us to consider how we can embrace others, regardless of differences, and how scripture speaks to this through the passage of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37). Happy National Coming Out Day!

Venida Rodman JenkinsForefront ChurchOctober 10, 2021faith, freedom

Finding Contentment and Freedom

Finding Contentment and Freedom

Our discontent with the challenges of life can be channeled into productive actions which can help us find contentment and freedom. Watch Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins in this third sermon in our "This Far, By Faith" series.

Venida Rodman JenkinsForefront ChurchSeptember 26, 2021faith, freedom, contentment

Is church still relevant?

Is church still relevant?

Why do you attend church? In our new series, "This Far, By Faith", we explore the underpinnings of faith. Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins starts us off with the basic question, "why church?" The church can be a beacon of hope promoting equity and working to end all forms of oppression. We've been through quite some change at Forefront these past months, but some things never change, especially when it comes to the Spirit.

Venida Rodman JenkinsForefront ChurchSeptember 12, 2021OPPRESSION, faith

THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Fear"

THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Fear"

The opposite of fear is saying yes to living fully.

The future is unknown. That scares the crap out of us. What do we do in the face of the unknown?

Jonathan Williams shares that the way forward is not fear, it’s faith. Faith is a choice to take action and move forward even when there is nothing guaranteed. To make the conscious choice to believe just for today that the great I AM is at work in our fears and in our unknowns. The opposite of fear is saying yes to being made in the image of God, of living fully alive, warts and all.

This is the fifth and final sermon in our “This Feeling's Got Me Like...” series.

Jonathan WilliamsForefront ChurchMarch 21, 2021covid, fear, faith, miracles, MAGA, walk on water