Dane Lewis – River's Edge Community Church

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So far Dane Lewis has created 145 blog entries.

“The Story of Jesus (It May Be Longer than You Think)”

“The Story of Jesus (It May Be Longer than You Think)”

This sermon is based on Mark 8:27-31. SERIES OVERVIEW: She wasn’t the brightest bulb on the tree, but she was trying to understand. She was trying to figure out who Jesus was. She knew he was born on Christmas and that he died on Good Friday and was raised on Easter Sunday. Her problem was that she forgot that there were 30 years between those first two events! But she is not alone. While none of us would ever make that chronological mistake and have a five-month old savior going to the cross, we often overlook what Jesus was doing in his life. We know why he was born (incarnation). We know why he died (atonement). We know why he rose again (exaltation). We even know why he will return (restoration). But ask someone why Jesus lived, and they may stumble to find a concise answer. For many of us,

By Dane Lewis|2019-03-13T19:06:18-04:00March 10th, 2019|Categories: Sermon, The Story of Jesus|Tags: Jesus as King, Life of Christ, Mark 8:27-31, Story of Jesus|

The Cry of Despair

The Cry of Despair

This sermon is based on Psalm 88:1-8, 14-18. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us following

By Dane Lewis|2019-03-09T11:05:44-04:00March 3rd, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Despair and Hope, Emotions and worship, Heart for God, Psalm 88:1-4 and 14-18, Worshipping God|

The Cry of Anger

The Cry of Anger

This sermon is based on Psalm 37:7-13. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us following our

By Dane Lewis|2019-02-27T14:37:11-04:00February 24th, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, Handling Anger Biblically, Heart for God, Psalm 37:7-13, Worshipping God|

The Cry of Love

The Cry of Love

This sermon is based on Psalm 85:1-4, 6-13. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us following

By Dane Lewis|2019-02-20T20:07:14-04:00February 17th, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, Heart for God, Loving God and others, Psalm 85:1-4 and 6-13, Worshipping God|

The Cry of Joy

The Cry of Joy

This sermon is based on Psalm 126. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us following our

By Dane Lewis|2019-02-12T14:13:39-04:00February 10th, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, Heart for God, Joy in the real world, Psalm 126, Worshipping God|

The Cry of Guilt

The Cry of Guilt

This sermon is based on Psalm 38:1-6, 18, 21-22. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us

By Dane Lewis|2019-02-04T10:41:59-04:00February 3rd, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, handling guilt, Heart for God, Psalm 38, Worshipping God|

The Cry of Fear

The Cry of Fear

This sermon is based on Psalm 55:1-5, 12-15, 16-17, 22-23. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with

By Dane Lewis|2019-02-04T10:38:52-04:00January 27th, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, Heart for God, overcoming fear, Psalm 55, Worshipping God|

The Cry of Longing

The Cry of Longing

This sermon is based on Psalm 84:1-4, 10-12. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us following

By Dane Lewis|2019-01-23T19:17:22-04:00January 20th, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, Heart for God, longing for God, Psalm 84, Worshipping God|

Cry of the Heart

Cry of the Heart

This sermon is based on Psalm 42:1-5. SERIES OVERVIEW: Wisdom teaches us that we are composed of three parts: intellect, emotion and will. But we are not so happy about that. We like to think that thinking is king and that acting is behaving in accordance with something we think. Worse, we feel that emotions are so. . . emotional. And while we like the good emotions (love, joy, hope, etc.), we don’t know what to do with the bad ones (anger, guilt, fear, etc.), except to say they are bad and we should not have them. But what if our emotions (both the good and the bad) are a window into our own souls? And what if our emotions are often the vehicle God chooses to use so that we can truly find him? And what if following Jesus well has a lot to do with us following our

By Dane Lewis|2019-01-14T17:22:54-04:00January 6th, 2019|Categories: Follow Your Heart, Sermon|Tags: Emotions and worship, Heart for God, lament psalms, Psalm 42:1-5, Worshipping God|

Waiting for the Kingdom

Waiting for the Kingdom

This sermon is based on Isaiah 65:17-19 and James 5:7-8. SERIES OVERVIEW: Christmas is a time of waiting. It’s a time of anticipation and hopes and dreams. Everyone loves waiting for Christmas. Life is also a time of waiting. But this waiting is a time of delay and fear and doubt and uncertainty. Everyone hates that kind of waiting. Ask anyone: waiting is the worst. But strangely enough, most of the Bible focuses on people who were up to their necks in waiting. People waited for children, for deliverance, for a land, for peace, for justice, for God’s kingdom, for a ray of hope, for restoration, for the Messiah, for forgiveness, for promises to be fulfilled and even for God. And most of those people hated waiting just like we do. Here’s the thing: most of the time, we see absolutely no value in waiting; but most of the time, God sees huge value in waiting. Not because he delights

By Dane Lewis|2019-01-05T20:49:52-04:00December 30th, 2018|Categories: Sermon, Waiting for Christmas|Tags: advent, Hope in God, Isaiah 65:17-19, James 5:7-8, Jesus' birth, kingdom of God, waiting|

Waiting for the Messiah

Waiting for the Messiah

This sermon is based on Luke 2:25-32. SERIES OVERVIEW: Christmas is a time of waiting. It’s a time of anticipation and hopes and dreams. Everyone loves waiting for Christmas. Life is also a time of waiting. But this waiting is a time of delay and fear and doubt and uncertainty. Everyone hates that kind of waiting. Ask anyone: waiting is the worst. But strangely enough, most of the Bible focuses on people who were up to their necks in waiting. People waited for children, for deliverance, for a land, for peace, for justice, for God’s kingdom, for a ray of hope, for restoration, for the Messiah, for forgiveness, for promises to be fulfilled and even for God. And most of those people hated waiting just like we do. Here’s the thing: most of the time, we see absolutely no value in waiting; but most of the time, God sees huge value in waiting. Not because he delights in making us

By Dane Lewis|2018-12-27T10:35:19-04:00December 23rd, 2018|Categories: Sermon, Waiting for Christmas|Tags: advent, Hope in God, Jesus' birth, Luke 2:25-32, waiting|

Waiting for Hope

Waiting for Hope

This sermon is based on Matthew 2:13-18. SERIES OVERVIEW: Christmas is a time of waiting. It’s a time of anticipation and hopes and dreams. Everyone loves waiting for Christmas. Life is also a time of waiting. But this waiting is a time of delay and fear and doubt and uncertainty. Everyone hates that kind of waiting. Ask anyone: waiting is the worst. But strangely enough, most of the Bible focuses on people who were up to their necks in waiting. People waited for children, for deliverance, for a land, for peace, for justice, for God’s kingdom, for a ray of hope, for restoration, for the Messiah, for forgiveness, for promises to be fulfilled and even for God. And most of those people hated waiting just like we do. Here’s the thing: most of the time, we see absolutely no value in waiting; but most of the time, God sees huge value in waiting. Not because he delights in making us

By Dane Lewis|2018-12-22T21:01:10-04:00December 16th, 2018|Categories: Sermon, Waiting for Christmas|Tags: advent, Hope in God, Jesus' birth, Matthew 2:13-18, waiting|

Waiting for Justice

Waiting for Justice

This sermon is based on Luke 1:46-55. SERIES OVERVIEW: Christmas is a time of waiting. It’s a time of anticipation and hopes and dreams. Everyone loves waiting for Christmas. Life is also a time of waiting. But this waiting is a time of delay and fear and doubt and uncertainty. Everyone hates that kind of waiting. Ask anyone: waiting is the worst. But strangely enough, most of the Bible focuses on people who were up to their necks in waiting. People waited for children, for deliverance, for a land, for peace, for justice, for God’s kingdom, for a ray of hope, for restoration, for the Messiah, for forgiveness, for promises to be fulfilled and even for God. And most of those people hated waiting just like we do. Here’s the thing: most of the time, we see absolutely no value in waiting; but most of the time, God sees huge value in waiting. Not because he delights in making us

By Dane Lewis|2018-12-15T23:26:46-04:00December 9th, 2018|Categories: Sermon, Waiting for Christmas|Tags: advent, God and justice, Jesus' birth, Luke 1:46-55, waiting|

The Anguish and Joy of Waiting

The Anguish and Joy of Waiting

This sermon is based on Luke 1:5-18. SERIES OVERVIEW: Christmas is a time of waiting. It’s a time of anticipation and hopes and dreams. Everyone loves waiting for Christmas. Life is also a time of waiting. But this waiting is a time of delay and fear and doubt and uncertainty. Everyone hates that kind of waiting. Ask anyone: waiting is the worst. But strangely enough, most of the Bible focuses on people who were up to their necks in waiting. People waited for children, for deliverance, for a land, for peace, for justice, for God’s kingdom, for a ray of hope, for restoration, for the Messiah, for forgiveness, for promises to be fulfilled and even for God. And most of those people hated waiting just like we do. Here’s the thing: most of the time, we see absolutely no value in waiting; but most of the time, God sees huge value in waiting. Not because he delights in making us

By Dane Lewis|2018-12-08T22:49:14-04:00December 2nd, 2018|Categories: Sermon, Waiting for Christmas|Tags: advent, Jesus' birth, Luke 1:5-18, waiting|

The Thanksgiving Perspective

The Thanksgiving Perspective

This sermon is based on Matthew 10:5-8. SERIES OVERVIEW: I think we would all agree that Thanksgiving is a great once-a-year holiday. I think we would also all agree that it would be a terrible thing if it became an every-week occurrence. Think of all those turkeys, the relatives you would have to see every single week and all the weight you would gain week after week after week (but it may be worth it for an apple pie a week). Now, think if thanksgiving were a daily occurrence. What a headache that would be! But that’s Paul’s dream. In Thessalonians (1 Thess. 5:18) he says, “Give thanks in all circumstances.” And when Paul says “All circumstances,” he really means even more than every day; he means multiples times each day! But nothing would make Paul happier, because he knows what Robert Thomas says: “The true victories in life are won by Christ followers who

By Dane Lewis|2018-11-28T17:19:48-04:00November 25th, 2018|Categories: Sermon, The Thanksgiving Perspective|Tags: freely give, Giving thanks, Matthew 10:5-8, thanksgiving|

The Thanksgiving Circumstance

The Thanksgiving Circumstance

This sermon is based on 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. SERIES OVERVIEW: I think we would all agree that Thanksgiving is a great once-a-year holiday. I think we would also all agree that it would be a terrible thing if it became an every-week occurrence. Think of all those turkeys, the relatives you would have to see every single week and all the weight you would gain week after week after week (but it may be worth it for an apple pie a week). Now, think if thanksgiving were a daily occurrence. What a headache that would be! But that’s Paul’s dream. In Thessalonians (1 Thess. 5:18) he says, “Give thanks in all circumstances.” And when Paul says “All circumstances,” he really means even more than every day; he means multiples times each day! But nothing would make Paul happier, because he knows what Robert Thomas says: “The true victories in life are won by Christ followers who

By Dane Lewis|2018-11-24T15:02:49-04:00November 18th, 2018|Categories: Sermon, The Thanksgiving Perspective|Tags: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Giving thanks, thanksgiving|

REthinking Church

REthinking Church

This sermon concludes our series, REthinking Church, and is based on Colossians 3:12-14. SERIES OVERVIEW: Once upon a time there was a church that changed the world, but that was a long time ago. It was a church characterized by love, by unity, by compassion, by prayer and by social engagement. It was the place where God’s grace was always on display and quite tangible. Today, church is different. Shane Claiborne once said, “The church is like Noah’s ark. It stinks; but if you get out of it, you’ll drown.” I think many people would agree. We need the church, but it’s hard to love the church. How did we get so far off track? More importantly, how can we rediscover those principles that made the New Testament church so vibrant and alive? REthinking Church asks us as a church to evaluate our spiritual health and hopefully will give us a vision to hear God’s call anew to

By Dane Lewis|2018-11-14T19:00:05-04:00November 11th, 2018|Categories: REthinking Church, Sermon|Tags: Being clothed with Christ, Colossians 3:12-14, vision and rallying cry|

2018 Annual State of the Ministry Message

2018 Annual State of the Ministry Message

On the occasion of the 16th anniversary of River's Edge, it's our privilege to have our annual "State of the Ministry" message where we reflect on the previous year and consider God's challenge for the year ahead. This sermon is based on Micah 6:8. SERIES OVERVIEW: Once upon a time there was a church that changed the world, but that was a long time ago. It was a church characterized by love, by unity, by compassion, by prayer and by social engagement. It was the place where God’s grace was always on display and quite tangible. Today, church is different. Shane Claiborne once said, “The church is like Noah’s ark. It stinks; but if you get out of it, you’ll drown.” I think many people would agree. We need the church, but it’s hard to love the church. How did we get so far off track? More importantly, how can we rediscover those principles that made the

By Dane Lewis|2018-11-06T14:36:38-04:00November 4th, 2018|Categories: REthinking Church, Sermon|Tags: Micah 6:8, spiritual formation, vision and rallying cry|

Called to Grow

Called to Grow

This sermon is based on 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. SERIES OVERVIEW: Once upon a time there was a church that changed the world, but that was a long time ago. It was a church characterized by love, by unity, by compassion, by prayer and by social engagement. It was the place where God’s grace was always on display and quite tangible. Today, church is different. Shane Claiborne once said, “The church is like Noah’s ark. It stinks; but if you get out of it, you’ll drown.” I think many people would agree. We need the church, but it’s hard to love the church. How did we get so far off track? More importantly, how can we rediscover those principles that made the New Testament church so vibrant and alive? REthinking Church asks us as a church to evaluate our spiritual health and hopefully will give us a vision to hear God’s call anew to be his people, his church in our

By Dane Lewis|2018-10-31T18:51:43-04:00October 28th, 2018|Categories: REthinking Church, Sermon|Tags: Christian Community, I Corinthians 9:24-27, spiritual formation, spiritual growth|

The Ministry of Serving

The Ministry of Serving

This sermon is based on 1 Peter 2:9-12. SERIES OVERVIEW: Once upon a time there was a church that changed the world, but that was a long time ago. It was a church characterized by love, by unity, by compassion, by prayer and by social engagement. It was the place where God’s grace was always on display and quite tangible. Today, church is different. Shane Claiborne once said, “The church is like Noah’s ark. It stinks; but if you get out of it, you’ll drown.” I think many people would agree. We need the church, but it’s hard to love the church. How did we get so far off track? More importantly, how can we rediscover those principles that made the New Testament church so vibrant and alive? REthinking Church asks us as a church to evaluate our spiritual health and hopefully will give us a vision to hear God’s call anew to be his people, his church in our

By Dane Lewis|2018-10-25T07:08:22-04:00October 21st, 2018|Categories: REthinking Church, Sermon|Tags: Christian Community, encouragement, I Peter 2:9-12, serve one another, serving others|

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