Pastor Matt begins this foundational message by sharing "A Tale of Three Bibles"—a personal story illustrating his spiritual journey from keeping his Bible on the shelf to becoming fully engaged with God's Word. He introduces Hope Church's 2026 theme based on Joshua 1:8, emphasizing the importance of daily meditation on Scripture for life transformation. The "Bible in a JAR" series will spend 70% of the year's Sundays studying John, Acts, and Romans—books that collectively answer the essential questions of who Jesus is, what His followers should do, and what disciples should believe.

Pastor Matt provides a 60,000-foot overview of the entire Bible, explaining how it tells one continuous story through four major themes: Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration. This story ultimately demonstrates God's great love for us, summarized perfectly in John 3:16. He establishes that Jesus Christ is the central figure of all Scripture, with the Old Testament anticipating Him and the New Testament explaining Him. Using the "New Triangle" framework of knowing, becoming, and doing with the Bible at the center, Pastor Matt shows how these three books work together: John reveals who Jesus is (God and Savior), Acts demonstrates the church's mission to take Jesus to the world, and Romans explains the theological foundation and practical application of our faith. The message concludes with 2 Timothy 3:16-17 as the memory verse, emphasizing that all Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness.

In this podcast episode, Hope's Associate Pastors reflect on their congregation's Bible reading plan, having completed Genesis and started Exodus. They discuss how reading through Genesis reveals God's incredible mercy and patience with broken people, noting that the heroes of faith were "mildly screw ups" whom God used for great things. The conversation shifts to personal testimonies as Pastor Meyers shares his journey from physical therapy to ministry, describing how God's call became undeniable during a quiet moment in his clinic.

The discussion centers around the "3C's" of discipleship that their church has been teaching: commitment to Christ, connection to His followers, and contribution to His mission. The pastors share how their upbringing in families that prioritized ministry and opened their homes to missionaries and church leaders shaped their understanding of faithful living. They emphasize that while not everyone is called to vocational ministry, the same three principles apply to all believers. The episode concludes with reflections on how genuine connection with other believers is essential for spiritual growth and victory over temptation, noting that simply attending church is different from being truly plugged in and connected to the community.

Pastor Brian wrapped up the Becoming a 3C Disciple series by presenting a framework for spiritual growth built around three key areas. The three C's include commitment to Jesus (knowing Him personally and being transformed by His lordship), connection to Jesus' followers (building intentional relationships within the church community), and contribution to Jesus' mission (serving as both servant and ambassador).

The sermon featured powerful testimonies from Rich and Lynndale Hardeman, who shared their journey from salvation through pastoral ministry; Aaron and Elizabeth McWilliams, who demonstrated how connecting with others changes across different life stages; and Jared and Anna Jeffries, who showed how contribution often begins with small steps of obedience. Pastor Brian explained that these three areas integrate to produce a fourth outcome: becoming a humble leader who follows Jesus' example of servant leadership. He concluded by challenging the congregation to consider their next steps in each area, emphasizing that this framework provides clarity, alignment, and scalability across all life stages.

Pastor Matt's Ministry Mentor Podcast: https://mattsturdevant.com/podcasts/

In this podcast discussion about Hope Church's "Becoming a 3C Disciple" series, Pastors Matt, Brian, Jeremy, and Luke explore what it means to live as committed, connected, and contributing followers of Jesus. They address the challenge of building adult friendships, noting that proximity, timing, and energy are essential for deep relationships - with research showing it takes 74 hours to become casual friends and over 200 hours for close friendships. The discussion emphasizes that Christians don't just attend church but belong to the body of Christ, shaped through relationships where "iron sharpens iron" (Proverbs 27:17). They explore spiritual gifts extensively, explaining that every believer receives at least one spiritual gift at salvation to serve others and glorify God. The conversation includes practical advice about discovering gifts through service, the importance of "doing life together," and the reality that all Christians are called to be servant ambassadors wherever they "live, work, parent, and play."

Pastor Matt delivered the second message in the "Becoming the 3C Disciple" series. The sermon focused on the second and third "C's" - being connected to Jesus followers and contributing to His mission.

Pastor Matt emphasized that community is essential, not optional, for Christ followers, explaining that from the beginning Jesus formed a people, not just individual believers. Using the body metaphor from Romans 12, he showed how the church functions with unity without uniformity, interdependence, and mutual responsibility. He referenced Acts 2:42, where early believers devoted themselves to teaching, fellowship, breaking bread, and prayers, creating a shared rhythm of life that resulted in spiritual formation and witness to the watching world.

The third "C" involves contributing to Jesus' mission as sent, gifted disciples who cheerfully give back to God. Pastor Matt explained that disciples are called to be "servant ambassadors" who both serve others with Christ-like humility and represent Jesus to the world. Drawing from Romans 10:13-15, he emphasized that everyone who calls on the Lord will be saved, but people need to hear the good news, which requires messengers with "beautiful feet" who bring the gospel wherever they live, work, and play.

In the first message of the "3C Disciple" series, Matt began with the foundational truth that "you don't have to stay the way you are," emphasizing that real transformation is possible through Jesus Christ. He defined discipleship as more than just belief - it's about following Jesus, being changed by Jesus, and being committed to His mission. The first "C" focuses on being committed to Jesus, recognizing Him as both Savior and Lord, not treating these as separate categories.

Matt spent considerable time addressing cultural barriers to commitment, explaining how our society trains us against making lasting commitments through endless options, comfort-maximizing technology, and viewing discomfort as a problem rather than a teacher. He noted how previous generations saw commitment as virtuous and character-building, while today's culture often views it as limiting freedom. The sermon emphasized that obedience doesn't earn salvation but reveals genuine faith, and that loving God requires total life devotion - heart, soul, mind, and strength. Using the "know, be, do" triangle, Matt explained that disciples must know Jesus personally, be transformed by His lordship, and do what He commands. The church is emphasizing Bible reading this year with Joshua 1:8 as their theme verse, encouraging members to read Scripture at least four days a week for spiritual transformation.

Pastor Matt kicked off 2026 with the first message in a new series called "Becoming a 3C Disciple," focusing on what it means to be committed to Jesus. Using our theme verse for the year, Joshua 1:8, Pastor Matt emphasized the importance of regular Bible reading as God transforms our thinking and lives. He explained that being committed to Jesus involves four key aspects: it begins with personal, daily, wholehearted commitment (referencing Luke 9:23); understanding Jesus as both Savior and Lord as two inseparable sides of the same coin; loving the Lord with total life devotion involving our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:28-31); and recognizing that everything flows from our allegiance to Jesus.

Pastor Matt connected this commitment to the familiar "Know, Be, Do" triangle, explaining that committed disciples must know Jesus personally through relationship rather than mere religion, be transformed by His lordship in every area of life, and do what He commands through daily obedience that flows from love rather than fear. He shared a personal illustration from his 24th wedding anniversary, demonstrating how commitment shapes us over time, and concluded by offering practical next steps for new and growing disciples while inviting anyone who hadn't yet surrendered to Christ to make that personal commitment.

In this reflective sermon, Josh Hofford looks back at 2025 and shares key lessons God taught him through devotional time, trusted friends, and times of difficulty. He begins by asking the congregation to consider major news stories and family events from the past year, emphasizing that we should "look back to learn, but not to stare." Josh shares that God has been training him to walk through normal daily assignments while trusting Him completely.

The first major lesson is that God is working even when we don't see it at the time, referencing Hebrews 12:9-13 about discipline yielding peaceful fruit later. Josh emphasizes the importance of daily devotional time, noting that Sunday church attendance alone cannot sustain us through life's challenges. He shares personal examples about his three children and how God has been faithful to them as they've grown and faced their own difficulties. The second lesson involves choosing counselors carefully, drawing from Jeremiah 23:16-18 and the story of King Rehoboam in First Kings 12. Josh warns against taking counsel from those who don't stand in God's council, emphasizing the importance of seeking wisdom from those who know and obey God's Word rather than simply following popular trends or peer advice.