In I Timothy 6:6 it says, "There is great gain in godliness with contentment." When a person views the world as owing him or her everything, then contentment is never achieved. In our contentment with the great gifts God has granted to us, can we see beyond the gifts to the giver? If we always focus on the gifts, we never see the giver, if we never look beyond our selfishness for more, if we cannot see beyond the need for the best, then contentment with life will never be achieved. A powerful lesson on worship comes forth from the message entitled "Gratitude to the Giver".

When life does not go according to our plans, it is easy to become discouraged. When we feel out of control, we have the tendency to lose hope. However, whenever we find ourselves feeling this way, we must remember that God has a plan for each and every one of our lives. His plan is to prosper us and not to harm us. His plan is to give us the strength to overcome. His plan is to hold us with His never-ending love. The Church is the place where we discover this plan for our lives. Hope happens here. We can’t do life alone. This Sunday, we all, along with those you have faithfully invited will be encouraged in the Word as "Hope Happens Here".

When we think of the account of Cain and Abel, we sometimes picture the scene like this: Two men – brothers – Cain and Abel. Cain is a farmer. Abel is a rancher. Cain goes out to harvest his crops. As he does, he puts together an offering to God. Abel also puts together an offering to God. He picks out an animal and offers it to God. God looks at both offerings – Cain’s on the left -- Abel’s on the right. After considering them both, He chooses Abel’s over Cain’s. Why did God make this choice? What made Abel's "The Acceptable Sacrifice"? What makes ours acceptable. We dive into this Old Testament text where you might be surprised at somethings you will learn.