The Power of Rain Over Ruin

In one paragraph

On March 18, 2024, Pastor Brian worked through Zechariah 10:1-2, centering the conversation on what he called "The Power of Rain Over Ruin." Before getting to the rain, he spent a significant portion of the morning on the three things God names in verse two, household gods, fortune tellers, and interpreters of dreams, and what they mean for people sitting in a Jackson Hole church in 2024. The...

Read together

1. Romans 8:38-39 nothing can separate us from the love of God, no height, no doubt, no angel, no demon
2. Proverbs 14:12 there is a way that seems right to man but it ends in death
3. 1 John 4:4 greater is he that is in me than he that is in the world
4. Ephesians 3:20 exceedingly abundantly above all that we could think hope or ask for
5. John 8:32 you will know the truth and the truth will set you free

What was said

• Take one of the Easter invite cards from Sunday and ask a specific person in your life, 'Where are you going for Easter service?' then invite them to come with you.
• If the Holy Spirit brought something to mind during the service, reach out this week to one of the prayer team members who were available at communion and ask them to pray with you to close that door.
• If you have tarot cards, a Ouija board, or anything else that came up during the conversation, throw it away or burn it this week rather than leaving it in your home.
• Sign up on the Google Doc Lissa is sending out to bring a dish to the Easter Sunday lunch so the community has good food after the service.
• If you would like God to speak to you in dreams, take a moment before you fall asleep this week and simply ask him to, just as Brian prayed over those who raised their hands.

Talk about it

1. Brian talked about how easy it is to fall into a religious rut, just going through the motions. What does genuine, non-routine engagement with God look like for you personally, and what tends to pull you away from it?
2. Brian described how a shrine or place of honor can be set up in a person's heart for something other than God, and used his own devotion to the mountains as an example. What are some things, not necessarily obvious or dramatic, that can quietly take that place of honor in someone's life?
3. The sermon drew a contrast between how God presents his terms openly and how the enemy hides the real cost of what he offers. Where have you seen that pattern play out, either in your own life or in watching someone else's?
4. Brian said that when we close a door and turn away from something that had a hold on us, God does not just let us limp along but promises restoration of what was lost. How does that kind of promise sit with you, and is it easy or hard to believe it applies to your own story?
5. A woman in the congregation said her mentee told her, through tears, that nothing she had ever tried came close to being in the presence of God. What has been your own experience of encountering God in a way that made everything else seem lesser by comparison?