Online Archives 2021

THE GRANDMOTHERS OF JESUS.  God redeems and uses people regardless of their past lives.  He will redeem you and give your life purpose.

WHY CAN'T I BE GOOD?  This time of year, lots of folks think about whether they have been good or bad in the context of Santa’s list.  The fact is, that try as we may, we can’t be good.  So we must rely on Jesus to save us.  We don’t deserve this or anything else, it is his gift.

WHO TELLS YOU WHAT TO DO?  Jesus offers real freedom from the patterns and actions of sin.  Give him control of your life today to experience this real freedom.

HOW DO YOU NAVIGATE TOUGH TIMES?  We can navigate tough times when we learn to grow through them while realizing God’s great love for us. Or we can respond by pouting.

DO YOU HAVE ENOUGH MERITS FOR HEAVEN?  None of us have enough merits to deserve heaven or be made right with God.  We are made right with God by trusting Jesus.  Our acquittal is not based on obeying the law.  It is based on faith.  So trust him to save you today.

IS IT CRAZY TO BELIEVE?  With the rise in the popularity of atheism and agnosticism, it might seem crazy for us to believe.  But when we look at the evidence for and benefits of trusting Jesus, it seems crazier not to believe.

SURVIVING ROUGH PATCHES.  Sometimes it seems like we hit a lot of rough patches in this life with our work, our families, our health, etc.  Does faith help us survive these rough patches?  How can we engage our faith and make it work for us during these times?

ARE YOU BEING PUNISHED?  With the Covid pandemic and resultant pandemonium affecting your life, sometimes it feels like it.  Maybe being pruned is a better way of looking at it.  Pruned so that you can bear more fruit and that fruit is love.  It is good to be pruned.

WHERE'S THAT BETTER LIFE?  Sometimes we get frustrated with our lives because, try as we may and believe and serve, our lives still seem to come up not so happy.  What does Jesus have to say about this?  We'll look at what he says from John 10.

HOW TO SEE BETTER.  Jesus is in the business of helping you see better.  He is, after all, the light of the world.  Let him help you see through the darkness that is all around you

CAN YOU BE FORGIVEN?  This video looks at the classic story of Jesus from the gospel of John where Jesus is presented with a woman caught in adultery.  We learn from the story how forgiveness from God may be available for us all.

THE DRUG DEALER AND THE EVANGELICAL:  The ones who dump their self-righteous cover are the ones who get along with God.  So drop your cover.

CRIPPLED BY AN EVIL SPIRIT: Crippling spirits are alive and well, they have just changed their methods from Jesus' day.  They cripple us differently now.  They come at us with bad attitudes and deceptive, destructive, distorted thoughts.  We must remember that they are just vapors that flee from the presence and power of Jesus.

ONLY ONE THING.  Jesus has handled your relationship with God.  You need only to focus on loving and serving those He puts in your path.  Your job, as his representative, is love and serve people for him, as an extension of him.  Focus on one thing.  From Luke 10.38-40.

HOW TO GET MORE OUT OF CHURCH:  We will get more out of church if we look at it as a place to serve, a place to learn, and a place to give.  We'll get more out of church if we seek to serve, rather than be served.  [From Mark 10]

THE GREAT REVERSAL: Kids are more important than big shots.  God is not impressed with success.  He is impressed with compassion.  He is especially impressed with compassion for children.  (from Mark 9.33-37)

WHAT ABOUT MY DOUBT? A crosstalk from Mark 9.  Faith comes out of doubt.  Doubt is part of the process of gaining resolute faith.  So embrace your doubts.  Plant little seeds of faith.  Your faith will grow.

TRAITORS AT THE TABLE, a communion message from Luke 22.19-27.  Here we find Jesus trying to communicate with his disciples the true meaning of his mission.  The church they are to build is not to be a "condemnation station" but rather a "dispensary of grace."  We are all traitors at the table.  We are all appointed ambassadors of the Good News, not bouncers at the door of Club Heaven.

WHAT DEFILES YOU:  We’re defiled by what comes out of our “inner pig”, not by what we take in.  Things on the outside can’t hurt us if we don’t let them.  So don’t let them.  Instead, be kind because that is who you are and kindness doesn’t defile.

BAGS OF BLESSINGS from Matthew 25, the parable of the talents.  Use your gifts or you may lose them.  While salvation is always free, some blessings are dependent on the choices we make and the actions we take.

THRIVE (LESSONS FROM DANIEL), PART 6: THE SPIRIT PRINCE OF MUSKEGON.  Well-organized, ancient evil tries constantly to block the arrival of the Kingdom of Heaven in your life and in the world.  Prayer gives energy to Heaven’s armies to defeat this evil.

THRIVE (LESSONS FROM DANIEL), PART 5: A LION IN A DEN OF DANIELS.  You don’t have to be a wimp.  God gives us a spirit of power, love and self-discipline.  Use it to get through your dark times and to make the dark times of those next to you better.

THRIVE, (LESSONS FROM DANIEL) PART 3: THE MAD KING.  Pride and greed lead to madness.  Humility and generosity lead to joy and deep connections to God.

THRIVE, LESSONS FROM DANIEL, PART 2: THE FIERY FURNACE.  Build up your faith now so that when the tough times come, you can face them regardless of the outcome

THRIVE, A SERIES FROM THE BOOK OF DANIEL, PART ONE:  EATING VEGGIES?  We can love and serve others and God better by maintaining our health.  Plus, we will feel and look better.  Plant seeds for better health today.

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, PART 6: GOING AGAINST THE GRAIN.  If you want to be happy tomorrow, you need to plant seeds today that will get you the desired results.

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, PART 5: Follow Jesus by planting good seeds and your life will be rich and satisfying.  Your life will be better than it is now.  You can greatly improve your life by planting blessing seeds.

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, PART 4: HAPPY MONEY.  Money won’t make you happy or unhappy. It’s about how well you manage what you have. Money contributes to your happiness if you manage it well

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, PART THREE: PEACE WITH GOD.  Peace with God is possible because God has made peace with you. We can experience peace with God when we stop resisting and striving and simply surrender.

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, PART TWO: PLAN FOR IT.  Happiness is not immediately accessible, but it’s not out of reach. It’s a result. It’s sowing and reaping. Happiness is determined by outcome.

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, PART 1: NO THING.  No thing can make you happy.  Happy is about who, not what.  The path to happiness begins with who.

HOW TO WIN AN ARGUMENT: you can have peaceful disagreements without making enemies if you approach arguments with the principles of Jesus.

HOW TO WATCH THE NEWS: Many of us watch the news and become discouraged and afraid.  This teaching looks at ways to respond to the news as a representative of Jesus, bringing healing and hope to those inundated with bad news.  You can make a difference for yourself and your friends and family by how you respond to the news

REDEFINED BY JESUS: an Easter story from John 21. Jesus wants to redefine you no matter who you have been.  Let him do it.

THE BARKING ROOSTER from Luke 22.  We get sifted (tested).  Let’s not waste a good sifting (tested).

BEWITCHED:  from John 14 and Galatians 3.  You’ve been set free from human rules by the sacrifice of Jesus.  Don’t go back to those human rules.  Enjoy your freedom.

OPEN THE DOORS: The church exists to open the doors of the Kingdom of God for children.  Laketon Bethel is called to open the doors for kids

STINGY OR FRUGAL - Cheap people are driven by saving money regardless of the cost; frugal people are driven by maximizing total value, including the value of their time. ... Being cheap is about spending less; being frugal is about prioritizing your spending so that you can be a greater blessing with the gifts God has given you.  So manage your resources accordingly.

INCREASE OUR FAITH: You don’t need much faith; you need obedience.

THE DEVIL'S ATTITUDE: The devil wants to mess with your attitude.  He wants you miserable, pessimistic and ungrateful.  But you can win using the weapons God has made available to you.

PERFORMANCE RELIGION: Jesus does not like performance religion.  Let your faith and practice always be real.  Observe Lent if you want, but don’t feel guilty if you don’t and don’t show off if you do.

GREEN HOPE:  Hope is a rare and valuable commodity these days.  One word can make a difference.  Who can you encourage today? 

THE BIG MEANIE IN THE SKY.  God is love, not some big meanie in the sky.  Spread this idea around with your actions and words.

GENEROUS LIGHT: we’re called to let God’s generous light shine through us.  Our church is called to be a bird feeder, not a bird cage.

RUNNING LONG AND STRONG: be a waiter on God and you will be energized for the race of life

I’M ON IT.  When the Lord has a simple task for you are you willing to say, “I’m on it?”  From Luke 5.1-11 and Isaiah 6.8

PASSIONATE PATIENCE from Romans 1.1-5 (The Message). The pandemic will develop passionate patience in us if we open our doors to God.