McGregor Podcast

I AM Seven Signs of the Savior
"I Am The True Vine"(John 15:1-8)
The night before the cross, Jesus told His disciples something they needed to hear, and something we need to hear again ourselves: "I am the true vine." Mike Hess walks through what it means to abide in Christ, to stay so connected to Him that His life, not our own effort, produces fruit that lasts. If your walk with the Lord feels dry right now, or you're discipling someone who feels stuck, this teaching gives you a place to start and a reason to keep returning to His Word.
September 23, 2026Mike Hess • Minister to Family Ministries
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comNew to McGregor? Plan a visit at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit

Why are so many young Christians drawn to socialism, and does the Bible actually support it?
In this Beyond the Notes, Pastor Russell Howard responds to research showing that a growing share of young evangelicals believe Scripture aligns with socialism. He offers a plain working definition, then walks through five truths: that capitalism creates wealth rather than merely dividing it, that the Bible assumes and affirms private ownership, that the account in Acts 4 and 5 does not teach socialism, that Scripture calls for free generosity rather than coercion, and that no government is trustworthy enough to redistribute justly in a fallen world.
Howard traces the pull toward socialism back to envy and covetousness, the very things forbidden by the tenth commandment, and points instead to contentment in what God has provided. Whether you have wrestled with these questions yourself or simply want to think biblically about money, ownership, and caring for the poor, this episode gives you a framework grounded in God's Word.
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comThere's a place for you here. Plan your first Sunday at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit

Psalms - Songs of the King
"I Have Made The Lord My Refuge"(Psalm 73)
Psalm 73 begins with a confession most of us feel but rarely say out loud: it is easy to look at people who want nothing to do with God and envy how well their lives seem to go. The psalmist almost stumbles over it, until he comes into the presence of God and sees where that road finally ends. From there everything shifts. He trades envy for contentment, resting in the God who holds his right hand and remains the strength of his heart. This message follows that turn and leaves you with a place to stand: there is nothing on earth worth wanting more than God Himself, and in Him we make the Lord our refuge.
Sermon NotesSeptember 20, 2026Russell Howard • Lead Pastor
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comThere's a place for you here. Plan your first Sunday at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit

How do you lead a church family through change without losing what holds it together?
This week on Around McGregor, Mark, Tamar, and Christian recap a full Sunday of baptisms across all three services, parent-child dedications, and a member meeting where a new two-service Sunday schedule was introduced for the move back into the renovated Worship Center. They talk through why the change was carefully prayed over, what it will mean for families and ministries who serve, and the plan to keep the church more united, not less.
They also look ahead to the Lord's Supper and benevolent offering this Sunday, the September 30 prayer and praise night, the October 4 ministry fair and Change the World collection, and the student Elevate weekend. It's an honest, encouraging update for anyone who wants to stay connected to the life of this church family.
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comNew to McGregor? Plan a visit at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit

"I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life"(John 14:6)
On the night before the cross, in the upper room, Jesus sat with disciples who were troubled, afraid, and struggling to accept that he was about to leave them. His answer was not to explain everything, but to point them to himself: "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me." Teaching from John 14, Omar Edwards shows how Jesus comforts his own by revealing who he is. He is the way to the Father, the truth that does not shift with culture or feeling, and the life he both gives and sustains. It is a passage for anyone carrying fear or doubt into a hard season, and it lands on one steadying claim: no one comes to the Father except through him.
September 17, 2026Omar Edwards • Elder
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What happens when a godly man or woman sins in a devastating way?
That is the honest question at the heart of Psalm 51, David's prayer of confession after the prophet Nathan exposed his sin with Bathsheba and the cover-up that followed. In this episode of Beyond the Notes, Pastor David Miller digs into the first two verses, where David makes three specific appeals to God, blot out my transgressions, wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, cleanse me from my sin, each paired with a different word for sin. The Hebrew behind those pairings shows how seriously God takes what we so often minimize.
This one is for anyone who has wondered whether their failure is too far gone. Seeing the weight of our sin the way Scripture describes it is exactly what makes the work of Jesus on the cross so precious, and Psalm 51 points straight to Him.
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comThere's a place for you here. Plan your first Sunday at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit

Psalms - Songs of the King
"In The Wake Of Sin"(Psalm 51)
2 Samuel 11 and 12 record King David's epic failure: lust, coveting, adultery, premeditated murder, and a deceptive cover-up. It wasn't until the prophet Nathan confronted him that conviction and repentance came. Out of that wreckage David wrote Psalm 51, a song for Israel's hymnbook about the mercy of God. In this message, Pastor David Miller traces David's cry, his confession, the cleansing only God can give, and the repentance God makes possible. Along the way he draws the line most of us would rather avoid: forgiveness is full and free in Christ, and it still does not erase the earthly consequences of our sin. What David reaches for is not his record or his crown, but the mercy of a God who creates a clean heart in the people who cannot clean their own.
Sermon NotesSeptember 13, 2026David Miller • Membership and Missions Pastor
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How much of what God is doing in your church family do you actually catch on a given Sunday?
On this week's Around McGregor, hosts Pastor Mark Bricker, Tamar, and Christian Miller walk through a full week at the church: baptisms in all three services, parent-child dedication, the newcomer coffee out on Main Street, and the next member meeting after the last service. They also look ahead to the prayer and praise night on September 30, the student ministry Elevate weekend for grades 6 through 12, the Ministry Fair and Change the World collection on October 4, and three mission teams heading to Hungary, South Asia, and Zambia next month. Have a question or comment for Mark and Tamar? Text the show at (239) 232-3750.
You walk away knowing exactly where to show up, how to get involved, and what to be praying for as a church family. If you want one simple way to stay connected to the life of this body of Christ, start here.
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comThere's a place for you here. Plan your first Sunday at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit

I AM Seven Signs of the Savior
"I Am the Resurrection and the Life"(John 11:1-44)
In the last of the seven signs John records before the cross, Jesus arrives four days too late. Lazarus is dead, his sisters are grieving, and everyone is certain the window for help has closed. Standing at the grave, Jesus makes a claim that reaches far past this one funeral: "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live." This study walks through John 11 and the honest questions Mary and Martha bring to Jesus, the God who is sovereign even over what we do not understand, and the promise that for everyone who trusts Christ, death is not the end but the doorway.
September 9, 2026Russell Howard • Lead Pastor
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How can we be content when we feel like we do not have what we need?
In this Beyond the Notes teaching, Pastor Peter Finch picks up where Sunday's study of Psalm 23 left off and turns to Paul's words in Philippians 4. He walks through three things contentment actually is: something we learn rather than achieve, something that does not erase the pain of hard seasons, and something that grows from the heart by the work of Christ's Spirit rather than from a change in circumstances.
The takeaway is quietly freeing. Your contentment does not rest on what you have, but on who you have. If you have felt the pull of wanting more, or wondered whether Jesus is really enough in a lean season, Finch offers a biblical, unhurried way to rest in the Good Shepherd.
Presented by McGregor Podcast 2026Visit Our Website at McGregorPodcast.comThere's a place for you here. Plan your first Sunday at mcgregor.net/plan-a-visit