Pastor Mark Reynolds' Podcast

Should we make new year’s resolutions? Often, the dreamers say yes, and the realists say no. But what about followers of Jesus? In this message, we talk about making resolutions that count. If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

Sometimes our lives get so crowded with trivial things that it's hard to make room for what's most important. In this message, Pastor Mark reflects on a recent trip to Costa Rica and the Christmas Story in the Gospel of Luke to help explain how we can connect with something bigger than ourselves and feel grounded, centered, and at peace, even when the world is spinning chaotically around us. It ends with special music performed by Emma Reynolds (vocals) and Gloria Chen (piano). The full service with all the awesome music can be accessed on the First UMC Cocoa Beach YouTube channel: Click here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_CMJ_3lX3AIf this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

In this message we reflect on the classic movie, A Christmas Carol, and connect it to redemption in the real Christmas story contained in the Bible. The good news is that no matter how far down the scale we have gone, we can always change course and experience the transformative activity of a loving God!If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

We all go through dark times of hopelessness and despair, and this leads some people to commit suicide. But if we can find a way to hang on, God sends angels with messages of hope to give us strength, move us back to the light, help us rediscover joy. This theme emerges as we reflect on the movie, "It's a Wonderful Life," and various passages of scripture. Check out this message if you need a fresh dose of hope today!Series: Christmas at the Movies (Message 2 of 4)If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

This Sunday, we begin a new message series, "Christmas at the Movies." Focusing on Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer, we wrestle with the question, how do we treat people who do not fit into the way we think things ought to be? It becomes clear that both Rudolf and the real Christmas story are about how God uses misfits to do awesome things!(We apologize for the audio issues in the last 3 minutes of the video.)If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

In this message, we focus on the importance of expressing gratitude to experience joy.If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

In this message, we focus on the connection between gratitude, generosity, and joy. This helps us better understand giving as a spiritual discipline that rescues us from greed and helps us become more like Jesus.If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

Being part of a happy and healthy family is a gift, but it’s also a task and responsibility. We build love and support over time by the way we treat each other. This is true not only in our biological family but also in our church family. The quality of our relationships determines whether our church will be a safe place for people to healing and grow into the image of Jesus. The good news is that we get to decide what kind of presence we will be. In this message, Pastor Mark looks at three practices of a healthy church in Paul’s letter to the Romans, focusing on chapters 12-15. This empowers us to focus on what’s most important and be united in a common vision.    If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.   Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL)  Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

Everyone suffers, but not all suffering is the same. If we trust God, He can transform our pain into something productive. However, healing is hard work and takes time. Are we willing to put in the spiritual and emotional work necessary to build something new? Reflecting on the story of human trafficking victim, Barbara Amaya, Pastor Mark shows how God empowers us to participate in our own healing.Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  

Why do Christians say, "God saves us through the death of Jesus?" And what's up with all the sacrifice and blood imagery in the Bible, which some people find cruel and gross? In this message, we answer these questions by pointing to an essential claim in Paul's letter to the Romans, that we are "justified by grace through faith." What exactly does this mean? Pastor Mark walks us through this idea, giving clear definitions and helping us to see that it all comes down to one thing: God loves you to death and saves you for a purpose! Tune and and share this message with friends.Sermon Notes: https://notes.subsplash.com/fill-in/view?page=r1pG9wuZa  If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.   Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL)  Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

This is the first message in a series on Paul's letter to the Romans. Beginning with chapter one, Pastor Mark helps us answer the question: What is sin and how does it work? After exploring the dynamics that drive human suffering, he explains God's rescue plan and offers an invitation to follow Jesus. Tune in as we begin this journey together!If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

In this message, we continue the series, "Half Truths," by examining the phrase, "God said it, I believe it and that settles it!" Why do people use this phrase? Does it help or hinder our relationship with God? Is there a better way to understand the Bible? What's the role of interpretation? Tune-in to find out!Sermon Notes: https://notes.subsplash.com/fill-in/view?page=HkfbgrQJ6 If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

In this message, we continue the series, Half Truths, by focusing on the saying, "God will not give you more than you can handle." This common phrase has helped many people enduring hard times, so what's the issue? After exploring a few problems, we will see how rephrasing the saying allows us to hold on to its promise while making it more helpful and biblical.If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds Resource: Adam Hamilton, Half Truths.

In this message, we continue the series "Half Truths" by examining the phrase, "God helps those who help themselves." How does this line up with what we see in the Bible? How does this cliché help and how does it hurt? Tune in to find out.If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds Resource: Adam Hamilton, "Half Truths."

They are simple phrases that sound Christian―like something you might find in the Bible. They capture some element of truth but hide or distort others.Everything happens for a reason.God helps those who help themselves.God won’t give you more than you can handle.God said it, I believe it, that settles it.Love the sinner, hate the sin.In this message, we begin a new 5-week series, "Half Truths," where we will examine these common phrases within the context of scripture, starting with "Everything Happens For a Reason."Resource: Adam Hamilton, "Half Truths."If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

Jesus calls to love unconditionally even when we disagree politically, but this is too hard without some kind of strategy. After dispelling a few myths that perpetuate division, Pastor Mark points us to Galatians 6 where the Apostle Paul tells us what we need to do to love our political enemies the way that God has loved us in Christ.This is the second message in a series, "The Mission of the Church in Politically Divisive Times."If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.   Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL)  Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

As we gear-up for another election year, but before we all lose our minds, Pastor Mark is offering a new two-week message series titled, "The Mission of the Church in Politically Divisive Times." In this first message, "It's Not About Winning," we talk about how partisan politics can co-opt the church, pull it off course, and destroy its unique voice. Fortunately, the Bible offers us a solution. Take a listen to receive wisdom that will help you maintain peace.If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds 

Sometimes we hold our religious and moral beliefs so tightly that we cannot imagine the possibility of being wrong. When someone questions these beliefs, we feel compelled to defend them and confuse strength of conviction with dogmatic inflexibility. This stunts our spiritual growth, makes us more judgmental, and damages important relationships. In this message, Pastor Mark gives numerous examples in the New Testament and early church where followers of Jesus could not see the truth because of what they thought they already knew. What is required to get unstuck is humility, which builds a new kind of strength that is gracious, tolerant, responsive, gentle, loving, openminded, and flexible. Empowered in this way, we can consider the possibility that we may be wrong, and when we are admit the mistake and move in a different direction. Like the blind man in Luke 18:35-42, pray, "Lord I want to see!"This is message 4 of 4 in the Grown-Up Prayers series.Recommended Reading: Peter Enns, "The Sin of Certainty: Why G

The third petition in the Lord's Prayer, ". . . lead us not into temptation," gets us to reflect on where we are vulnerable to sin, and what we need from God to remain faithful. It also raises the question, who or what are we following? In this message, Pastor Mark talks about the importance of following Jesus if we want protection from temptation and deliverance from evil. Unfortunately, some churches have changed his invitation "Follow me" to "Believe in me," making it possible to call yourself a Christian for believing "the right things" while following yourself, your political party, your bank account, etc. As long as you change your mind you don't need to change your life. But belief without following is a false gospel that will inevitably lead us into temptation and cause us to fall away.If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreyn

In this message, we continue with the series, "Grown-Up Prayers." In the first message of the series, we learned that prayer is not about looking good in front of others or trying to convince God to give us all the things we want. Rather, prayer is about aligning our will with God's will and assuming a posture of surrender. In this message, we will ask the questions, should I ask God for anything in prayer, and if so, what?If this message is a blessing, you can support our ministries by donating at www.fumccb.com.  Speaker: Pastor Mark Reynolds Venue: First United Methodist Church (Cocoa Beach, FL) Connect with Pastor Mark:www.revmarkreynolds.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PastorMarkReynolds