Plum Creek Church: Podcast

Are you mistaking escape for healing? /// Prayer: Part 7

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.     /// If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation: 1. What triggered you this past week, and what might that reaction reveal about the thing beneath the thing? 2. Think about a time when you ran to a hideout instead of bringing pain to God in prayer. What were you trying to soothe? 3. Where do you see a pothole in your life that could become a sinkhole if you keep ignoring it? 4. Look up Romans 7:15 and discuss where you relate to Paul’s struggle of doing what you do not want to do. 5. Consider the idea that triggers can be invitations instead of permission to escape. How would that change the way you respond next time?     ///     Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iHJvWJtT-4]     ///     Links Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/ [https://www.plumcreek.church/] Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next [https://www.plumcreek.church/next] Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries [https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries] Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give [https://www.plumcreek.church/give]

The After Sermon /// Is prayer more about an outcome or a relationship?

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church. This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully. In this episode of The After Sermon, Daniel sits down with Doug to continue the conversation around prayer and petition. Together, they unpack why prayer so often becomes a last resort instead of a first response, and how Jesus’ model of prayer was always meant to shape something deeper than our circumstances. Doug reflects on how practicing adoration, confession, lament, and thanksgiving has been reshaping his own relationship with God throughout this series—and why petition flows differently when it comes from a dependent soul instead of a controlling one. The conversation explores surrender, disappointment, unanswered prayer, and the tension of learning to release outcomes we desperately want to hold onto. More than anything, this episode centers on one powerful idea: prayer isn’t ultimately about outcome management—it’s about relationship development. This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full message that this discussion is based on. YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well. Website: https://plumcreek.church/ [https://plumcreek.church/]

Are you carrying what God invited you to bring? /// Prayer: Part 6

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.     ///   If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation: 1. Where do you tend to carry fear, pressure, or uncertainty by yourself instead of bringing it to God in prayer? 2. Think about a burden that keeps showing up in your thoughts this week, and discuss what it would look like to turn that burden into an alarm to pray. 3. Look up Philippians 4:6 to 7, and talk about why God’s peace is promised before the circumstances are necessarily changed. 4. Consider the teaching that petition comes after alignment, and discuss how your requests might change if you first prayed, “Father, align my heart with yours.” 5. What is one thing you cannot control right now, and what would it practically look like to release it to God rather than obsess over the outcome?     ///     Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iHJvWJtT-4]     ///     Links Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/ [https://www.plumcreek.church/] Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next [https://www.plumcreek.church/next] Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries [https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries] Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give [https://www.plumcreek.church/give]

The After Sermon /// How do we give thanks when life is still hard?

Welcome to The After Sermon by Plum Creek Church. This bite-sized discussion is where we get to sit down with our communicators and ask a few follow up questions connected to the weekend message, unpack it on a deeper level, and explore how it all relates to our journey of following Jesus more fully. In this episode of The After Sermon, Eric sits down with Michele Cushatt to continue the conversation from her message on prayers of thanksgiving. Together, they unpack the important difference between being thankful for every circumstance and being thankful in every circumstance. Michele reflects on why gratitude is not about denying pain or pretending suffering is good, but about anchoring ourselves to a reality bigger than what we can see right now. Through her own experience with cancer, loss, and permanent physical limitations, she shares how the hope of resurrection changes the way we face the brokenness of the present. Eric and Michele also talk about why remembering God’s past faithfulness matters so much, how easily we forget what God has already done, and how practices like storytelling, prayer, and reflection help tether us again to what is true. This conversation is also available on our YouTube channel along with the full message that this discussion is based on. YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@plumcreekchurch You can learn more about Plum Creek Church by visiting our website as well. Website: https://plumcreek.church/

Are you giving thanks in your circumstances, or only for them? /// Prayer: Part 5

We're so glad you've chosen to listen to our online experience! Here at Plum Creek, we’re all about changed lives, changing lives; and what that simply means is that what Christ has done in us is not just for us, but it’s for us to share with others in our community and around the world.     /// If you're using this teaching for a Home Groups setting, we've included discussion prompts to help guide your conversation: 1. Where do you notice your gratitude rising and falling with your circumstances, and what would it look like for Thanksgiving to become more steady in your life? 2. Read 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 and discuss the difference between giving thanks in all circumstances and giving thanks for all circumstances. 3. Think back over a hard season you have already survived. What evidence of God’s faithfulness can you see now that may have been hard to notice at the time?  4. The teaching invited people to remember, celebrate, and anticipate. Which of those three practices feels most needed in your prayer life right now, and why? 5. How might seeing communion as a Thanksgiving table change the way you remember Jesus, celebrate his presence, and anticipate his return?      ///     Wondering what Plum Creek Church is all about? Watch this video. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iHJvWJtT-4]     ///     Links Home: https://www.plumcreek.church/ [https://www.plumcreek.church/] Next Steps: https://www.plumcreek.church/next [https://www.plumcreek.church/next] Ministries: https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries [https://www.plumcreek.church/ministries] Give: https://www.plumcreek.church/give [https://www.plumcreek.church/give]