Pastor Sean Palmer taught from the story of King David, and shared about many of the ways God has provided in abundance as we have sought to eliminate the debt at our Downtown campus. This freedom allows our family all the more opportunity to seek God’s will in serving our city and communities around the world. In times such as these, we are called to jubilant celebration.

Ericka Graham taught through Jesus’ Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, and shared vulnerably from her own experience of coming to the knowledge and acceptance of grace during a time of deep trial and shame. Grace is humbling to accept because God meets us in our sin and unworthiness, calling us beloved, just as we are. In receiving grace, we are ignited from the source of all love, to carry that flame and share it wherever we go.

Pastor Sean Palmer invites us to consider our view of leadership, and what it requires to become someone whose example is worth following. As we learn from Moses (and Black Panther), leaders are driven by burden rather than bluster, leaders are called to choose courage, and that each and every one of us is called to embrace the unique responsibility of leading in our circles of influence.

Pastor Chris Seay (with assists from Schindler’s List and Dr. Maya Angelou) asked us to consider what a life is worth. When we truly see ourselves as God has declared us to be, the way we care for our bodies, the ways we work and give, and the ways we are called to remind others of their importance to this world are all radically changed.

Pastor Sean Palmer reminds us that God's story is, and always has been, a love story. Sean shares the story of Richard and Mildred Loving, and pieces of the film based upon their marriage, to illustrate the kind of patient, tough, and expansive love to which we are called as a people in Christ.

This week a year ago, Hurricane Harvey devastated the city of Houston. In this message, Pastor Chris Seay leads us in reflecting on the many ways Ecclesia responded to love our city, in the midst of their pain and trauma. Through the stories of our community, we are able to witness the local church be the hope of the world.

It was a great blessing to welcome our brother, Dr. Richard Beck, to teach a rich and important message on the true nature of spiritual warfare. The "devil" exists in many forms; in all that opposes loving kindness, in the empty promises of the world, in the idols of our own hearts, and in the voice of accusation that seeks to keep us mired in shame. Our choice is whether to succumb to that story, or to place our trust and allegiance in the transforming grace of Christ, our perfect advocate. 

Pastor Chris shared reflections on one of his favorite films, Steven Spielberg's Amistad, and asked us to reconsider how we engage with scripture. Are we reading the Bible solely to learn "facts", or are we immersing ourselves in a rich and living library that is overflowing with story, poetry, and shared history? Through his word, God tells us who we are, and invites us to embrace our truest identity as beloved children, that we would faithfully live out our part of the story. 

This weekend in our gatherings, teaching pastor Sean Palmer reminded us of the importance of community and how we are not meant to follow Jesus in solitude. Our invitation is to know others and be known by them, allowing the depth of our relationship, service, and hospitality to grow. May we all accept this invitation to greater communion with one another.

Pastor Chris Seay shared his reflections on the film and story of Les Misérables, which depicts God's welcoming arms and loving mercy with truth and beauty. We are recipients of radical and undeserved grace. Will our hearts harden in shame like Javert, or like Jean Valjean will our lives be transformed as we turn our will over to God, humbled by the enormity of this gift? 

Our deep gratitude to Josh Carney, who shared a number of stories from his family life and taught through the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. In Christ, we are recipients of extravagant, cosmic forgiveness. Can we truly receive that love and mercy as a gift, and will it transform our own capacity to forgive others? 

Pastor Sean Palmer asked us to consider what the psalms of lament and the film Bruce Almighty have to say about the nature of prayer and our relationship to a Creator who invites us into intimate friendship. Whether in rejoice or in anger, we are called to relate to God in honesty as a Divine Friend; a friend who knows our needs better than we do; a friend who longs for us to align our prayer and actions in joyful submission toward God's redemptive movement.

It's always a joy to have Scott Erickson back with us. He shared a beautiful and personal message about the dangers of comparison, the vitality of true contribution, and how loving God, loving others, and loving ourselves with genuine abandon can be infectious. 

We were overjoyed to welcome Pastor Ed Seay (Chris' father) this weekend. Ed invited us to return to the familiar and vital parable of the Prodigal Son. Whether we have squandered the goodness of God's provision, or are holding on to rigid resentments, all of us are welcomed back into the Father's loving embrace, and a seat at the feast. 

Pastor Chris Seay shares with us about the importance of embodying our six Rhythms of Ecclesia globally. As a church we believe in being a community in Houston that is real, kind, seeks God, seeks beauty, serves others, and is hospitable. Pastor Chris shares stories with us about the ways Puerto Rican brothers and sisters are living out the Rhythms in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.

Our guest and dear brother, Dave Gibbons, joined us to share a word of profound encouragement about our identities as image bearers of God and those called to sacrificial service. From thoughts on freedom, fatherhood, healing, and the Holy Spirit, Dave invites us to embrace the power granted to those in Christ. 

Pastor Chris Seay invites us to consider what the Sermon on the Mount and The Princess Bride teach us about the great challenge of loving our enemies. Jesus calls us to end the cycles of anger, violence, and retaliation in the world; laying down vengeance in favor of the kind of forgiveness and blessing that can transform our communities, relationships, and our own hearts.

Pastor Sean Palmer taught on the "Hero's Journey", and what Batman has to do with spiritual formation. God has given his people a call to action and to discipleship; modeled to us by a Savior who came to us incarnate in a most unassuming and unremarkable form. 

This weekend, we had the honor of hearing from Jamie Tworkowski, founder of To Write Love on Her Arms. Jamie shines a spotlight on mental health and our call to freedom as children of God. We were created to be free and this freedom includes the freedom to be honest about where we are at in our journey.

Pastor Chris Seay calls upon all in our Ecclesia family to serve in some particular ways as we continue to grieve with all those touched by the shooting at Santa Fe High School. We are called to respond as those covered in the grace and mercy of our Savior, to transform shame, especially in the lives of young people in vulnerable circumstances.