Arbor Church

The short story of Mary and Joseph, though just a prelude to the bigger story of Jesus, reminds us that in the midst of uncertainty and waiting, God is still moving – and when God moves, we need to get moving with him.

This Christmas, in all the chaos in our world and in our lives, we’re exploring the idea of Still. Bryan opens with a look at a time in the history of God’s people that’s rarely part of the Christmas story: the 400 years between the Old and New Testaments. Reduced to a comma in sentences, a single blank page in your Bible – where was God during these centuries of silence?

Today, Mike Howerton introduces us to a radical, over-the-top, expansive love … a beautiful, outrageous, outlandish kind of love that could only come from God.

How we think about eternity determines how we live today. If that’s true and I’m living with my eternal end in mind, what does life practically look like? How does living with heaven in mind affect my calendar, my contentment, and my conversations? Heaven is our home, and scripture tells us that it’s worth looking forward to!

Today we tackle all the big questions about the eternal heaven: What will it be like? Will I know and recognize loved ones? Will I receive a new body? Do I get wings? Will there be dogs in heaven? If I’m really there for eternity won’t I eventually get bored? The Bible has answers that may surprise you.

Just when you thought heaven couldn’t get better, it does. All things will be made new, including heaven and earth. The work of Christ’s restoration plan is much bigger than we could’ve ever imagined. He’s not only redeeming our souls, he’s renewing all of his original creation.

Have you ever wondered what your loved one is doing in heaven right now? Can they see and hear you on earth? When we die, we are immediately with Jesus for all eternity, but at some point in eternity… heaven is going to move. And until that happens, our loved ones are in what theologians have termed the “intermediate heaven”.

How often do we think about heaven? Typically we don’t, unless we receive a difficult diagnosis or lose someone we love, the afterlife is usually an afterthought. The writer of Hebrews says that this world is not our home… heaven is our home. How would our lives be different today if we really believed we were going home tomorrow?

Mike Howerton concludes our two-part series on The Life You Were Made For with message on overcoming the one obstacle that often looms largest: our own fear.

A young Mike Howerton walks a into a classroom to see a big question (maybe the biggest question) written on the chalkboard: what is the good life? Jesus spoke of it: I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10); what did He mean? Mike shares the 8 areas of life in which we need to live with purpose and intention in order to experience this good, full, and abundant life.