Seneca Community Church Messages

"I completely disagree!" It’s a phrase we think often, even if we don’t say it out loud. Friendships break, families splinter, and churches split over disagreement. While there is a time and place for going separate ways, what if most disagreements are meant to draw us closer together? In Acts 15, we find the early church handling one of their first theological disagreements. Is compromise possible when truth and doctrine are on the line? How did the early apostles, elders, and church leaders handle this disagreement and what can we learn from them? Join us as we explore biblical conflict resolution and learn together the crucial differences between disagreements of doctrine, conscience, and opinion.

10 - 01 - 2023 - Remember The Titans - Pt 3 by Dave Spencer

“All God’s giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on Him being with them.” (Hudson Taylor) Is there a recurring thought, dream, or vision of something that you need to do for God that keeps popping up in your thoughts over the years? Are your lack of qualifications and insecure feelings holding you back from stepping out in faith for God? You won't want to miss it as guest speaker Mike Tison (also presenting at the Game Dinner at SCC this Saturday) shares a message inspiring hope for the men (and women) God chooses. Join us for Reluctant Misfits. If you have a chance, prepare by reading 1 Corinthians 1:26-31.

Welcome to Williams High School in Alexandria, VA! Your homework for Sunday: Assignment #1 - Watch this video clip. Assignment #2 - Answer these discussion questions: The question “Who's your Daddy” at first could be offensive but when Coach Boone asked it in Remember the Titans, what is he getting at? Who are the so-called “Daddies” in our world, our culture, our community? Have you ever seen or had a person, a way of life, a pursuit, or a desire in a sense become someone else’s or your “Daddy”? What happened? Assignment #3 - Read 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (p 779 in an SCC chair rack Bible). Fortunately, our homework policy is very lenient. Even if you don't complete all of it, you are invited to join us for Remember the Titans - Part 2: Who's Your Daddy?

Most of us run from disagreements. It's just too easy for them to get out of hand. What are some of the simple disagreements that you have seen just go too far? In the first part of Remember the Titans, we will try to unpack how we can, in a healthy way, avoid disagreements going too far and how to come back from them when they create a disagreeable spirit. If you have a chance, prepare by reading 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 (page 778 in an SCC chair rack Bible).

This is a video message from Life Church.

This weekend, we are going to look at God's goodness. None of us want to miss out on it and from a theological perspective we never do, but we sure can miss out on enjoying it. Hopefully, after looking at Jonathan, David, and Saul, we will be able to increase our enjoyment of God's goodness. For some of us, the first step will be seeing it. Join us Sunday as we continue to look at the story of David and see how being who we are and who God created us to be is a part of religion VS relationship. If you get a chance, prepare by reading 1 Samuel 18:1-16 (page 196 in an SCC chair rack Bible).

What did you like to pretend to be when you were a kid? A super hero? A policeman (or policewoman)? An animal? Why do kids like to pretend to be someone else? When is it time for kids to realize who they are and stop pretending? Join us Sunday as we continue to look at the story of David and see how being who we are and who God created us to be is a part of religion VS relationship. If you get a chance, prepare by reading 1 Samuel 17:32-58 (page 196 in an SCC chair rack Bible).

What do you think of when you hear the word "underdog?" Have you ever been an underdog and on the losing end of things when all of sudden you discovered you had a fighting chance because someone become your champion? It's encouraging to remember that as a Christ follower, you always have a champion, someone who will go to bat for you! Join us as we look at a story that may be familiar to most of us and see how fear and anxiety can turn into victory when we follow God. If you get a chance, prepare by reading 1 Samuel 17:1-31 (page 195 in an SCC chair rack Bible).

8/06/2023 - The Seeking King - Part 1: Restlessness by Dave Spencer

There is nothing so poisonous as gossip. And it doesn't have to be untrue to be considered gossip. When was the last time you discovered you were the subject of gossip? How did it make you feel? What where you able to do about it? How long did it take for you to get past it? After thinking about these questions, how does it impact your thoughts and feelings regarding participating in gossip? Hope you can join us for our last installment of "Can't Touch This" - Part 16: Say What? Together, we are going to try to figure out what to say about gossip!

When you go to a Chinese buffet, no matter how stuffed you are, do you eat the fortune cookie, or at least open it? Most of the little proverbs are outrageous and obvious, yet sometimes they are spot on with what someone is facing. Some Christians wonder, since a fortune implies special prophetic knowledge, whether it is wrong to read fortune cookies. I think we can agree that would be overthinking a fun and silly moment especially when the proverb seems like a prophetic pronouncement. Even then, none of us take it seriously. Yet, when it comes to horoscopes, most of us are not so carefree. It is a matter of conscience. How do you determine for yourself the difference between something like a fortune cookie and a horoscope? That is what we will be unpacking this week in our second to last installment of "Can't Touch This!" - Part 15: Fortune Cookies, Yoga, and Other Things.

To say, "My Body, My Choice" is a "Can't Touch This!" subject is most likely an understatement. So why in the world would we talk about this hot potato? The simple reason is that we need to know what a Christ follower's response should be and how to respond. Also, we might also find out that many Christ followers (none of us of course) apply their response to others while skipping the application to themselves.

Message presented by Mike Others from Wycliff Translators.

Have you ever had a question so hard you wouldn’t even say it out loud? Or a doubt so big you didn’t feel like you could share it—especially at church? We'll tackle one of those tough questions (Why did God let it happen?) together in our message, "Ever Wonder Why?"

We are right in the middle of high school graduation season, and with graduations come graduation parties! Some are excited about that and some not so much. There can be an awkwardness to parties where you don't know anyone. Sometimes in those situations it is almost like people look through you, like you aren't even there. You can be alone, even though you are with a bunch of people. You may feel like you aren't even seen. In a month or so, the grad party scene will start to die down, but that feeling of not being seen might not. Not being seen can carry over into a lot of life, even church life. The great news is, when it comes to God, we are never not seen. He says to each one of us "I see you!" In this message, we will unpack what it means for us that God sees us. If you have the chance, prepare by reading 1 Samuel 16:1-13 (page 194 in an SCC chair rack Bible).

"I'll do it by my own!" Have you ever heard a young child say that? Have you ever said or thought that yourself? Where does that come from? That self-sufficiency can be sign of strength and responsibility but can also become a blind spot. For King Saul. his independent spirit reflected an inner problem of fear that has its roots in his spiritual life. Join us as we wrestle with Saul's challenge and what it means for us today. If you have the chance, prepare by reading 1 Samuel 15:1-35 (page 193 in an SCC chair rack Bible).

How do your choices impact the check-out process at your favorite grocery store? Have you changed lines, thinking you were getting to a faster one, only to find it was slower? How many times have you changed lines before giving up? How about in traffic (same questions, different scenario)? In this message, we are going look at how the choices we make, even ones we don't think are that big a deal, end up making us as we look at 1 Samuel 14:24-52 (if you have the chance, prepare by reading the passage ahead of time (page 193 in the chair rack Bible from SCC).

6/04/2023 - Seeking - Part 13: Everyone's a Winner by Dave Spencer

What did it mean when your Mom or Dad said maybe? What did you hear when they said maybe? What does a maybe mean when you say it? What is at stake when a maybe conveys uncertainty? Join us for the next installment of Seeking: Hope for the Future King. as we see that even when there are things we don't know about the future, our faith can help us move forward with confidence. If you have the chance, prepare by reading 1 Samuel 13:6-14:15 (page 191 in the chair rack Bible from SCC).