In part 1 of the new "King and Deliverer" series, Pastor Michael introduces one of the greatest women of the Bible - Hannah. Through her years of heartache, mockery, and unanswered prayer, we discover a truth that changes everything: feeling forgotten by God and being forgotten by God are not the same thing. When you can't see God, you can trust that God sees you.

- Hannah endured years of pain, jealousy, and unanswered prayer - yet God never rebuked her tears or her grief - Faith isn't smiling through pain; faith means taking your pain to God - Hannah's peace came not from receiving her answer, but from making a decision to trust - before the answer came - "The LORD remembered Hannah" means His constant care became visible at the right time - not that He had forgotten - Samuel became one of the most pivotal figures in Israel's history, ushering in the age of the Kings

When you can't see God, trust that God sees you. He is never absent, never forgetful, and never far. Just because you can't see what He's doing doesn't mean He has stopped. Faith isn't knowing how your story ends. Faith is knowing Who you can trust with your story.

- "When you can't see God, trust that God sees you." - "Grief and faith aren't opposites. You don't have to walk in here and say, 'I'm fine.'" - "People can be a gift from God, but they can't be God for us." - "Feeling forgotten by God and being forgotten by God are not the same thing." - "God always remembers you because you are always on His Mind." - "Faith isn't knowing how your story ends. Faith is knowing Who you can trust with your story."

Is there something you've been praying about so long that it feels like God has forgotten you? What would it look like to trust that He sees you - even before you can see the outcome?

Tune in to hear the story of little Cora Beth waking up alone in a hospital room, why husbands have been putting their foot in their mouth since 1100 BC, and how Hannah's long-awaited son changed the entire history of Israel.

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Speaker: Michael Shockley, ReCreate Church Scripture: Acts 2:14-41 Bigger Than The Room Series, Part 2

In part 2 of the "Bigger Than The Room" series, Pastor Michael picks up where Peter stood up in front of thousands in Jerusalem and explained what the miracle of Pentecost was really about. The answer wasn't wind, fire, or supernatural languages - it was Jesus. As ReCreate Church steps into a new season with more space, the message is clear: we make room so more people can meet Jesus.

- Peter's sermon at Pentecost pointed directly to Jesus - His life, death, resurrection, and reign - as the fulfillment of centuries of prophecy - The Holy Spirit's empowerment at Pentecost wasn't for a special few - it was for sons and daughters, young and old, servants and free - ReCreate Church refuses to be a "Country Club Church" focused on insider comfort - the mission is to make room for people who haven't met Jesus yet - Biblical repentance means a changed mind and a changed direction, turning away from self and toward Jesus - The movement grew from 120 to 3000 in one day - not a statistic, but 3000 people with families, wounds, and needs who now have Christ

We make room so more people can meet Jesus. God is giving us a bigger space, but the real work is making room in our hearts. Somebody has to show up early, set up chairs, and greet nervous first-timers. Souls are worth it.

- "We make room so more people can meet Jesus." - "Jesus Lived. Jesus Died. Jesus Rose. Jesus Reigns. And greatest of all - Jesus Saves!" - "God is making room for people in our meeting space; we must make room for people in our hearts." - "Our purpose is never to fill seats. It's to help people connect with Jesus." - "No matter your story, you are WELCOME, you are WANTED, and you are LOVED." - "Souls are worth it."

Is there someone in your life who is far from Jesus - someone with a messy story or a broken past - that you could make room for in your heart this week?

Tune in to hear Pastor Michael make a case that the best preparation for the end of the world is calling on Jesus, why country club membership has nothing to do with Church, and how 120 people changed history because they refused to stay in the room.

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Speaker: Michael Shockley, ReCreate Church Scripture: Joshua 4:1-9 Bigger Than The Room Series, Part 3

In the final message from The Lord's Corner, Pastor Michael leads ReCreate Church through its last Sunday in the building it has called home for seven years. Through the story of Israel's crossing of the Jordan River and the memorial stones they carried to the other side, we discover that remembering God's faithfulness behind us is the key to trusting His faithfulness ahead of us.

- Just as Israel stood at the Jordan River between wilderness and promise, ReCreate stands at its own Jordan moment - God told His people to stop and build a memorial before moving forward, so future generations would ask "what are these stones about?" - The memorial stones pointed to the story of everything God had done - they were not magical, but meaningful - ReCreate's seven years at The Lord's Corner are filled with memorial stones: souls saved, kids discipled, lives healed, a congregation becoming a family - This room didn't make ReCreate a Church. ReCreate made this room feel like a holy place.

Remembering God's faithfulness behind us helps us trust His faithfulness ahead of us. The same God who carried us through this season is going forward with us into the next. Wherever we go, we must ask: "Lord, what are You going to do here?"

- "Remembering God's faithfulness behind us helps us trust His faithfulness ahead of us." - "Crossing the Jordan doesn't mean transitioning to an easy life. It means a new season and a new reason to trust." - "This room didn't make ReCreate a Church. ReCreate made this room feel like a holy place." - "Everywhere we go, we must ask, 'Lord, what are You going to do here?'" - "If You have been so good to us here, give us faith that Your Grace will be with us as we go forward." - "We can't lose that feeling of home and family."

What memorial stones are you carrying from this season of your life? And what do those stones tell you about how much God can be trusted with what comes next?

Tune in to hear the final service at The Lord's Corner - including Pastor Michael's reflections on seven years of sacred moments in a building that started as a restaurant, became a rental shop, and ended as a holy place.

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On ReCreate Church's first Sunday at Carroll County Middle School, Pastor Michael opens with an empty chair and a question: who could be sitting in it? Through Acts 2:42-47, we discover that the first believers didn't just celebrate a big day - they devoted themselves to doctrine, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer. Every empty seat in a bigger room is an opportunity, but only if we make room for people in our hearts first.

- The early Church continued steadfastly in four things: teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer - and God wants the same for us in our new season - As the believers shared life together, the community took notice and the Lord added to their number daily - A bigger room must never create a smaller sense of belonging - God gave us the space, we bring the welcome - Every empty seat is also a question to ask yourself: where in your own life could you make room for Jesus? - The people we most need to love and make room for are sometimes already under our own roof

Every empty seat is an opportunity. Not just to fill a chair, but to give someone a seat around God's table. Jesus made room for us by giving His life - how can we not pull out a chair for someone else? Think of the person whose face comes to mind, pray for them, love them, and invite them.

- "Every empty seat is an opportunity from God." - "Chairs don't matter. People matter. The goal isn't a full room. The goal is that people meet Jesus." - "We don't just want a bigger Church. We want a DEEPER Church." - "God gave us the space; we bring the welcome." - "We have empty seats. God has made room for people in the space. We must make room for people in our hearts." - "Jesus made room for all of us by giving His life. How can we not pull out a chair for someone else?"

If you could put anyone in the empty seat nearest you, who would it be? That chair has their name on it. Pray for them, love them, serve them - and when the time is right, invite them.

Tune in to hear the very first message from ReCreate Church's new home at Carroll County Middle School, why an unsupervised three-year-old with a Pop-Tart turns any chair into a crime scene, and what to do with the empty seat that might be inside your own heart.

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Filling in for Pastor Shockley on he and Katie's 25th anniversary trip, Elder Duncan Crook delivers a practical and convicting message about the discipline of reading God's Word. Using the analogy of airplane mode, multivitamins, and a well-steeped cup of tea, Duncan answers two essential questions: Why should I intake God's Word on a regular basis? And how do I actually do it?

- Scripture is God's personal, profitable, and perfecting instruction - it's how God reveals Himself to us - Reading the Bible regularly is less like a cortisone shot and more like a multivitamin - the benefits build slowly and invisibly until a crisis reveals how strong you've become - Intaking Scripture should be done patiently, substantively, thoughtfully, and in community - Biblical meditation means letting truth steep in your mind like tea - not emptying your mind, but filling it with God - You cannot grow in Jesus effectively alone - the New Testament was written to communities, not just individuals

Discipline builds habits, habits create lifestyles, and lifestyles change your life. The Bible is not God's personal love letter to you - it is God's full revelation of Himself to His people. The sooner we stop making it about us and start encountering who He is, the deeper our relationship with Jesus becomes.

- "Either sin will keep you from the Bible, or the Bible will keep you from sin." (D.L. Moody) - "Discipline is kind of like the friend you always hate to see coming, but after they leave, you're glad they came." - "The status of God's word is not dependent on how you feel. Its power is the same no matter how you feel." - "Scripture's not about the destination. It's about the journey. It's about walking with God." - "Scripture before screens. Don't go to Facebook before you go to God's Word in the morning and then wonder why you're tied up in knots." - "You will encounter the living God through its pages."

What would it look like to build a daily habit of Scripture intake - even imperfectly - starting this week? What is getting in the way, and is that thing worth more to you than knowing God better?

Tune in to hear Duncan's honest confession about being a Type A control enthusiast, why airplane mode is a spiritual metaphor, and the difference between dipping a tea bag for two seconds versus letting it steep.

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Speaker: Michael Shockley, ReCreate Church Scripture: Acts 1:12-15; 2:1-13 Bigger Than The Room Series, Part 1

In part 1 of the new "Bigger Than The Room" series, Pastor Michael shares the story of ReCreate Church stepping into a new season - moving to a larger meeting space at the local middle school. Through the opening chapters of Acts, we discover that 120 people in a room in Jerusalem changed the world. Not because of the room, but because they refused to stay in it. God is doing something bigger than this room - and always has been.

- The 120 disciples gathered in one room with one accord - united in purpose, prayer, and passion for Jesus - The Holy Spirit came to empower them for witness, not just for a personal experience in the room - When the Spirit moved, the room couldn't hold them - the message spilled out into the streets - God was doing something bigger than their expectations - not restoring an earthly kingdom, but building an eternal one - The size of the room matters less than the faith of the people in it

God is doing something bigger than this room. The Church was never meant to be a building - it is a community of life and love that cannot truly be contained. There are thousands of people in our community who need to hear that Jesus loves them and laid down His life for them. God is giving us a bigger room. Let's go reach the people who aren't in it yet.

- "God is doing something bigger than this room." - "The gathering in the room was important - it's where they prayed, connected, and prepared for the mission. But the message inside the room didn't stay inside the room." - "I was trying to use my experience to understand the truth, when what I needed was to use the truth to understand my experience." - "Sometimes God can be doing something extraordinary right in front of us, and because it doesn't look like what we expect, we might not recognize it for what it is." - "Their expectations had boundaries; God's did not." - "The faith of the people in the room matters far more than the size of the room."

Is there a "room" in your life - a painful season, a failed plan, or an unanswered prayer - where God might be doing something bigger than what you can currently see?

Tune in to hear Pastor Michael's vulnerable story of being let go from a job he prayed for, what a prayer journal revealed about the year that followed, and how an email in December changed everything.

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Pastor Michael opens with a skit featuring the voice inside his head - that nagging inner critic that tells him he's too preachy, too boring, not enough. Through Proverbs 29:25, we discover that the fear of man is a trap we set for ourselves when we give human opinion an authority it was never meant to have. The answer isn't self-confidence or not caring about others - it's God-confidence rooted in trust.

Key Points - The fear of man happens when another person's response becomes too important to us - their approval, rejection, anger, or praise carries too much weight - Fear of man turns us into performers, constantly adjusting to what people think or might think - The opposite of the fear of man is not self-confidence or not needing anybody - it's trusting God - The fear of God - recognizing He is Holy, Sovereign, and worthy of obedience - sets us free from the fear of man - In Christ we are already loved and secure, so we can love people without being ruled by them

Main Takeaway Don't put Man in God's Chair. People matter, their opinions have weight, and we should love and honor them. But they don't get the seat that belongs to God alone. The fear of man brings a snare; whoever trusts in the LORD shall be safe.

Memorable Quotes - "Don't put Man in God's Chair." - "The fear of man is what happens when another person's response becomes too important to us." - "Nobody wakes up and says, 'Today I think I'll let everybody else control my life.'" - "If no human being is ever disappointed in you, there's a good chance somebody besides God is running your life." - "The fear of man makes us use people for security. The fear of God sets us free to love them." - "When that voice starts dragging the chair back, remind them that the seat is already taken."

Reflection Question Whose opinion carries too much influence in your life right now - whose disappointment controls you, or whose approval are you constantly chasing? What would it look like to love them without giving them God's chair?

Tune in to hear the hilarious "Man in the Chair" skit, find out what a free air fryer with every baptism has to do with the fear of man, and discover why even a Pastor needs to hear this message.

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