Listening

October 6, 2025Posted inVillage Posts
Listening: The Posture of a Disciple Jesus once said, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). He wasn’t talking about an abstract idea but about a living relationship, one where being known and being led go together. Listening is not an extra skill for the especially spiritual; it is the posture of every disciple. Steven Bartlett observed that people often have…

Alone Yet Not Abandoned

December 4, 2024Posted inVillage Posts
Advent opens a door to reflection and anticipation, inviting us to pause and step away from the busyness that threatens to consume December. While the culture urges us to do more, buy more, and hustle harder, we are called to something quieter—a season shaped by discernment, dependence, and devotion to Jesus. This Advent season, the church extends an invitation to break from the patterns of endless consumption and instead…

Some Holiday Thoughts

December 27, 2023Posted inVillage Posts
Some Holiday Thoughts December brings a time for reflection. Recently, I've turned my attention to the Big 5 personality traits, also known as the Five-Factor Model. You might be curious about why this interests me. In my church community, on occasion, someone will ask me about personality assessments like the Myers Briggs and the Enneagram. I've held a certain skepticism towards these tools, questioning the research backing them. However,…

Reinventing the Wheel

November 29, 2023Posted inVillage Posts
Twenty-two years ago, alongside Rod Hugen and a few other dedicated individuals, I helped establish the Village Church within the humble setting of a Messianic Jewish congregation's building. Right from the start, I was passionate about the idea of reinvention. My firm belief was that community and creativity flourish when we approach things with a fresh perspective, akin to reinventing the wheel. For the Village, this translated into creating…

The Sorrowful Path: Embracing Grief in the Shadow of Dragons

November 6, 2023Posted inVillage Posts
The Sorrowful Path: Embracing Grief in the Shadow of Dragons It is evident that our world is beset with perils and evil, akin to the dragons and serpents that serve as potent symbols of death and devastation in the Old Testament. In contemplating the conflicts and chaos that plague our globe, it becomes a sorrowful exercise to acknowledge that such strife seldom spares the innocent and often consumes the…
Faith and Community

Faith and Community

October 10, 2023Posted inVillage Posts
Faith & Community: Mars Hill and Solomon In the year 1998, when the internet was still in its beginning stages compared to its current speed, I set out on a mission. I was looking for faith-based communities that were not just following the status quo but were also embracing change and innovation. At that time, I was leading a unique college and singles group within a moderately sized church…

A Meditation on Philippians 4:1-9

May 18, 2023Posted inVillage Posts
Philippians 4:1-9Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends! 2 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of…

Community: A Short Essay

March 14, 2023Posted inVillage Posts
Community is woven into the very fabric of our existence. It is the air that we breathe, the water that we drink, the soil that we walk on. From the moment we enter this world, we are thrust into a community, whether we realize it or not. For many of us, our first experience of community came in the form of high school. In high school, we find ourselves…

Fruit of the Spirit: Peace (Gilchrist)

May 10, 2022Posted inVillage Posts
Fruit of the Spirit Peace Colleen and Corey Gilchrist May 8, 2022 Colleen: Prayed a blessing over all the mothers: Thank you, God for all mothers. I have nothing to offer of peace of my own; Jesus, we want your living peace that roots us that we are enough and loved. I am honored and frightened to be speaking to you about peace: we are having the imposter syndrome…

Fruit of The Spirit: Peace (Eric)

May 10, 2022Posted inVillage Posts
Fruit of the Spirit: Peace Eric Cepin May 8, 2022 Indulge me for a second and think about how you might have the Fruit of the Spirit in your life. Rom 10:9-10 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. A Roman would say with his mouth that Caesar is Lord…Paul knew,…