Christ Church Evangelical Covenant

Missional Communities (Part 1) (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

The gospel of Jesus Christ transformed the world in the first three centuries after the resurrection, spreading from town to town and nation to nation with great speed. The book of Acts documents the start of that amazing process. Reflecting on the effectiveness of the early church, Pastor Cheryl highlights both the urgency they felt and the grounding of their faith.

Just Evangelizing (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

In Acts chapter 10, after a vivid and unsettling dream about eating food that was forbidden by Jewish Law, Peter goes to meet a Roman centurion, who had already been instructed by God to look for Peter. The result of this encounter was salvation for the first non-Israelite who believed that Jesus was the messiah. Through this story, Pastor Cheryl invites us to explore the themes of consistent prayer and endless wonder as we consider our approach to God.

Just Teaching (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

As we celebrate Pentecost today, we remember the story of Philip, who was led by the Holy Spirit to come alongside the eunuch from Ethiopia. As the eunuch studied the scriptures, Philip helped him see how they were fulfilled in Jesus, and this led to the eunuch being baptized. Philip took the opportunity to share what he new with the eunuch, and it is believed that the eunuch took the good news of Jesus to Africa, and the church was established there as a result. What could be possible in our community if we were to respond to the opportunities that God gives us through the prompting of his Holy Spirit? Pastor Cheryl shares from Acts in this sermon from our Model and Multiply series.

Generosity (Ryan Lospaluto)

Luke highlights two exchanges that involve between Jesus on the subject of generosity. On the surface, they seem to be about money, but Jesus is trying to get to something deeper. Ryan Lospaluto, a member of our Leadership Team, shares about the contrast between these two stories and helps us understand what Jesus was getting at in each of the conversations.

Just Shepherding (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

As we continue to look at the ways that the Holy Spirit works in us today, Pastor Cheryl highlights the example of the early church in the ways that they shared the labor! As we consider this, we must recognize that God sees all of the work that the Spirit does through as vital! While it can be hard to remember sometimes, caring for one another is just as much the work of the Holy Spirit as teaching and prayer.

Just Pioneering (BJ Kadeg)

What was it like in the earliest days of the church? The beginning of Acts documents for us the exciting growth and the challenges that came with it. As we look at the ways that Jesus's disciples became apostles, we notice that the people turned to them in amazement whenever God moved, and the apostles revealed the heart of God to them with boldness.

The Holy Spirit's Plan (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

As we launch our Model & Multiply series, Pastor Cheryl focuses us on the book of Acts when the church started to grow. As the church gathered and the apostles proclaimed Jesus as Lord and messiah, the church expanded, with thousands being added to their number! And this was only the beginning ...

Evangelism and Outreach (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

As part of our monthly series on Spiritual Practices, Pastor Cheryl shares a number of tools about how to share our faith.

The Audacity of Joy (Lyle Mook)

Lyle Mook, former Senior Pastor at Christ Church, invites us to focus on the first part of Hebrews 12, which the writer of the book of Hebrews offers as an application of the stories found in the list of "heroes of the faith" in the previous chapter. As we learn what it means to cultivate 'audacious joy,' despite our circumstances, he invites us to learn from Jesus, lean into gladness, leverage our joy for the work of God, and serve God and his church generously.

Mary (Grace Filled) (Pastor Cheryl Lavornia)

For our Easter sermon this year, Pastor Cheryl narrates the story of Mary, imagining her eyewitness account of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. As Mary reflects on the miracles that Jesus performed and her own doubts, she shares about what it meant to her to follow Jesus, and invites us to consider what it means for Jesus to be our Messiah, King, Christ, and risen Lord.