The times are chaotic and uncertain. Stephen has recently been martyred, Peter and John had been imprisoned and released (Acts 4:1-22), and the new Christian Church is under severe attack and persecution from the Pharisees and Sadducees as they stir-up the Jewish citizens of Jerusalem against the Christians. The new Christians flee Jerusalem in droves and scatter throughout Judea, Samaria, and beyond (Acts 8:1-4). Peter has begun his traveling ministry and the Jerusalem Church is now under a leader who was not one of the twelve apostles and came to belief in Christ about the time Jesus was crucified and rose from the grave. This church leader is James, half-brother of Jesus. James is well versed in the Law, but more importantly he knew Jesus’ teachings well and could communicate those teachings with knowledge, wisdom, and authority.

The scattered believers needed guidance as they attempted to live out their faith. Many fell into attitudes and practices that did not represent their faith. Personal desires and wants often got in the way of righteous living and treating fellow believers as they ought. Unity in Christ was at risk in a number of fellowships. James felt deeply that these wayward believers needed stern guidance to get them to live the daily righteous life in obedience to God. He took pen in hand and wrote this brief but very powerful letter that quite frankly applies to believers today. Here are the main topics that James dealt with:

Trials and Temptations
The Practice of the Word
The Condemnation of Partiality
The Relation of Faith and Action
The Control of the Tongue
Two Kinds of Wisdom
The Worldly Attitude
Faultfinding
Arrogant Self-Sufficiency
Denunciation of the Wicked Rich
Patience, Oaths, Prayer

Every believer at one time or another faces one or more of the above issues in trying to live the Christian life. James hits these issues head-on and provides guidance that was needed then and very much needed in our world of uncertainty, deception, and lack of truth. Come join us to learn about being doers of the word and living out the Christian life. I believe God through the book of James has much to say to us that will help us live the Christian life He wants us to have.

Ever start off on a trip and suddenly find you are forced to detour off of your intended road onto an unfamiliar road? How did you feel? Anxious? Upset? Frustrated? We all hate having our plans interrupted by out of control circumstances. There are detours in life that can affect us the same way. Detours are delays. They keep us from going or doing what we wanted originally to do. Detours are typically unexpected inconveniences that pop up out of nowhere and cause us to change directions. Few of us like detours in our lives. We avoid them if at all possible. But detours are good things that often feel bad. Divinely designed detours are positive interruptions designed to divert us down a better path of God’s choosing. You might be in one of those detours right now. Why did things happen the way they did? Now what do you do?  Plans change. Expectations go unmet. Maybe you are just now coming up to a detour. God wants your attention.  

God has plans for our lives and detours are an important part of putting us where we can experience His direction and blessing for our lives. Join us as we discuss how God uses detours in our lives and why they are intended as blessings rather than curses. It takes faith to believe that this unwanted event is going to be exactly what God will use to strengthen us and get us to where we need to be. Let’s learn about this together!

Romans 8:28, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.”  NLT