"So, is it really good?" (Genesis 1-3)

When people encountered Jesus, they noticed His kindness, the gracious words that came out of his mouth, His compassion for people. Jesus was someone you wanted to learn from and to hang out with. There was something about Him that drew you in.  He wasn’t like other people.  Jesus somehow consistently lived a beautiful life?  

Are you living a beautiful life?  How do we even define a beautiful life in 2024, given the numerous options and definitions swirling around us?  Regardless of the definition you choose, why does it end up producing selfish people, who don’t act like Jesus, even those who believe in him?  How did it all go so wrong?  To answer these questions we need to go back to beginning, to the garden of Eden and allow God to unpack this dilemma for us.

"I Shall Not Be Shaken" (Psalm 62)

What does a faithful response to difficult times look like? What or who do we turn to when we feel personally attacked or threatened? Psalm 62 shows us that only God is a trustworthy refuge in troubled times. How is this Psalm fulfilled by Christ and how does David's contemplation instruct us today as we read it?

"My God is YHWH" (1 Kings 17:1-24)

You and I have probably gone through seasons of lack or situations that didn’t make any physical or spiritual sense, yet Scripture still edifies us to trust God, his will, and his providential power. I love to call such seasons “deserts”. What does trust in God’s providence look like in these seasons? Journey with Elijah in 1 Kings 17 and see why we can dare to trust God again! 

Big God (Judges 6:1-16)

This Sunday we welcome back Pastor Ron Bouthillette. Pastor Ron served for many years as Senior Pastor of The Bridge Community Church in Milford, New Hampshire. He is currently Associate Executive Minister of The American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts (TABCOM) and is a former member of Ruggles from back in the 1970s!

The Power of Weakness (Genesis 33:1-20)

We are all prone to self-reliance, especially when times get tough. In this Sunday's passage, Jacob comes to the climactic conflict of his life--facing his brother Esau. Yet it is Jacob's newfound weakness, not his strength, that enables him to find deliverance and reconciliation.

Blessing Undeserved, Undeterred (Genesis 26:34-27:40)

Favoritism. Greed. Deception. Despair. Our passage is full of ugliness—all within one family, and the family of promise no less! God's blessing perseveres even in the midst of this mess, and our messes, too. This Sunday, Genesis 27 offers us a strong warning against sin and a consolation of God's undeterred plan of blessing for his people.