Oakhurst Baptist Church

Good and bad, right and wrong, old and young, rich and poor, left and right…the list goes on. At a glance we seem to place ourselves in a binary world and make snap judgments to put ideas, people, and concepts in the “proper” category. A quick look at Jesus’s story about a Pharisee and a tax collector might even support that view. But is there more to see? Listen as Pastor Lauren Colwell considers a view with more variables.

Oakhurst member Tom Denham says, “Everything I ever really needed to know about God, the church, and living a good life is present in the first three words of the Oakhurst Covenant: ‘We are together.’” Listen as Tom invites us to move more deeply into the kin-dom of God and we seek out new ways of being bold and generous together.

We believe that God created human sexuality and gender identity in a rainbow of colors and we affirm a vision of God’s kin-dom where all human beings are embraced as God’s beloved children. Hear these reflections from Jennifer Flock and Chris Joyner about why this work continues to be critical in our co-creating the kin-dom of God.

We do it every day…with a click, a sideways glance, a step to the other side, a numbing of our own selection…we choose to acknowledge some things and not others. What does Jesus’ story about Lazarus and his side-stepping rich acquaintance have to say about our choices? Listen as Pastor Lauren Colwell takes a look at Jesus’ story and how we are called to notice truth and act in love.

Sunday, September 22, Pastor Paco Rodés from Cuba preached on the church’s call to be a community of healing. How does Jesus’ healing of people model how we can heal ourselves and help others heal? We also celebrated 15 years of relationship with our Cuban siblings and recognized how our partnership has healed us and contributed to the healing of our churches and our nations.

On Sunday, September 15, Karen Bryant Shipp offered her own words of confession regarding her ancestral role in racial terrorism. During worship, we encouraged those who identify as white to offer their confessions as well as part of an ongoing journey to eradicate racial terrorism and bring about justice.

In our Oakhurst Baptist covenant, we promise to know and love one another and be willing to be known and loved by others, too. How does knowing one another influence how we grow together in faith? How does it affect how we teach and how we learn from one another? Listen as Pastor Melanie Vaughn-West and long-time teacher and mentor Mark Bumgardner reflect on knowing and being known at Oakhurst on Christian Education Sunday.

“Who’s invited!?” We receive the Evite and scroll through the list to see who else will be there. How many people? Do we get along? Are they fun? Are these the right questions? Listen as Pastor Melanie Vaughn-West takes a look at Jesus’ invitation list.

Is Jesus the founder of the Christian religion? Or is he the model for spiritual-but not-religious people? Or are those even the right questions? Listen as David Rensberger searches for the right question.

Through the Exodus story, our youth helped us examine the various roles we play in our lives and assured us that no matter our choices, God still chooses us. Listen as Annabette Vellines encourages us that God will still seek out and use our stubborn, shady, reluctant selves.