A couple years back, a pastor friend of mine had a season of storms. These storms brought difficulty into both his personal life and ministry life. The constant onslaught of discouraging situations would have been enough for many of us to crumble, and it would have made sense for him to quit the ministry all together. However, because of the foundation he had built in the years prior and the ability he had to surround himself with friends who were also deep, he was able to survive the storms. It was because of his depth, that he wasn’t shaken. It was because of his depth that his ministry continues and is as strong as it is today.

When I think of someone with depth, I think of that friend. It’s stories like this that make me want to do more, to be intentional on building my foundation, and to have roots that are deep enough to withstand any storm that may come my way. And that is my hope for all of us during the DEEP series — that, at the end of the series, we will be people with more spiritual depth and more capacity to be a positive influence to others.

We just started our DEEP message series, the first series of 2018, and together as a church, I want us all to go deep. However, let’s not just limit it to a deeper weekend experience, instead let’s focus in on going deep in our everyday lives. With that said, here are two tips that will help you get ready to go DEEP!

Get Excited!

One of the things that excite me about this series is that DEEP affects every area of life — from our relationships at home and the workplace to our finances. It’s the kind of topic that will not only have an effect on virtually every area of our lives but will ultimately take people to a greater place of peace and joy. This series will be practical, practical, practical. Life without depth is really, really messy, so it would be great if our lives became more manageable through this series. We will talk about spiritual things, but the spiritual things that we will talk about will absolutely affect our practical lives.

Be There!

DEEP is something that you don’t want to miss out on because each week is full of helpful information that we, as a staff, have prayed about in order to help you dig deeper and have more depth in your relationship with God. This is a journey that the church is going on together and it’s more enjoyable to be a part of the journey than to hear about the journey! Not to mention, this series is applicable to everyone! There is not a person alive that cannot benefit from more depth. Whether we are 16 or 60, God is the kind of God who wants to take us to more maturity in our lives.

God is calling the church to be deeper than the world. It would be great if we were the salt and the light and that our depth might mark us as people that can be helpful in a world that is full of shallowness.

Check out the series schedule - you're not going to want to miss this series!

January 20/21 - Series Kickoff
January 27/28 - Smart Start: The Unshakable Word of God
February 3/4 - Unusual Reverence: How the Fear of the Lord Affects Our Everyday Life
February 10/11 - Uncommon Resilience: Bouncing Back After a Big Mistake
February 17/18 - Exceptional Interactions: Exploring the Spirit-Lead Life
February 24/25 - Necessary Support: The Connection Between Community and Quality of Life
March 3/4 - Extraordinary Money Management: The Hunt for Everlasting Treasure
March 10/11 - Selfless Perspective: Navigating Our Cross to Bare
March 17/18 - Spiritual Responsibility: Developing Our Self-feeding Skills
March 24/25 - Unique Confidence: Trusting God in the Difficult Times

 Pastor Mark Pope is our Lead Pastor and founding pastor of The Vineyard. He is also the primary teacher on the weekends and along with the Executive Team oversees the staff.

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