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- Pastor Ben
- 2 days ago
Learning from the Way of Jesus
A new series at Riverfront Family Church — starting in October
What does it look like to follow Jesus in a season of rising fear, polarization, and Christian nationalism? This October, Riverfront Family Church is launching Resist. Learning from the Way of Jesus—a journey through Luke–Acts that invites us to practice courageous, nonviolent love in public.
Why “Resist”?
In Scripture, resistance isn’t rage; it’s faithful love that refuses to dehumanize. Jesus announces good news to the poor, release for captives, sight for the blind, and a year of Jubilee (Luke 4). The first Christians turn the world “upside down” with mercy, truth, and table fellowship (Acts). We’ll ask: What does that look like here and now?
What to expect (Sundays in October)
Clear, hope-filled teaching from Luke–Acts (9th-grade reading level; accessible to friends of all faiths or none).
Real stories of resistance—Sojourner Truth and Ida B. Wells, Fannie Lou Hamer and Bayard Rustin, Dolores Huerta and César Chávez, Bryan Stevenson and more.
Practice the Way each week—simple actions you can try at home, at work, and in the neighborhood.
Home Gatherings, Small Groups & Book Clubs
Alongside Sundays, there will be material for use within our Home Gatherings, for small groups, and for book clubs.
The heartbeat: Hospitality · Peace · Healing
Hospitality: Belonging at the table—stories, meals, and welcome across difference.
Peace: Nonviolent action, truth-telling, and public good news.
Healing: Prayer, healthy boundaries, and care that restores.
A taste of the series
Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1): Singing hope before the evidence.
Nazareth Manifesto (Luke 4): Good news that touches budgets, laws, and lives.
Good Samaritan (Luke 10): Neighbor love that crosses lines.
Mars Hill (Acts 17): Reasoning with calm courage in a noisy world.
Ephesus (Acts 19): When good news “upsets” unjust economics—without dehumanizing anyone.
Who is this for?
Skeptics, seekers, long-time believers, the curious and the cautious. If you’ve been hurt by church, if you’re longing for a faith that heals and does good, or if you want practical ways to love your neighbors in hard times—this is for you.
How to jump in
Join us Sunday, October 5th (series launches).
Start a Group or Book Club email ben@riverfront.church
Invite a friend who’s looking for hope with a backbone.
Series tagline: Resist is not against people; it’s against the powers that harm people—and it looks like Jesus.
Questions or want to RSVP? Reply to this post and we’ll get you the details for dates, group options, and the weekly “Practice the Way” guide.
- Pastor Ben
- 2 days ago
Four Arenas of Healing (and How We Practice)
1) Physical Healing
We pray boldly for bodies. Sometimes God heals instantly (we’ve seen it). Sometimes through surgery, meds, rehab, and time. Sometimes not yet. Jesus heals Jairus’s daughter. He also gets tired and sleeps in boats. Both truths belong in church.
Practices:
Ask for prayer after service; we’ll anoint with oil and pray the prayer of faith (Jas. 5).
See your doctor. Take your meds. Ask God to bless your care team.
Offer your body as a living sacrifice—rest, move, hydrate, eat real food (Rom. 12:1).
2) Emotional Healing
“God heals the brokenhearted” (Ps. 147:3). Emotional healing takes time, safety, and truth.
Practices:
Name it. Journal what hurts. Invite a trusted friend to hear it without fixing.
Reframe it. Use a simple CBT move: “What’s the thought? What’s the evidence? What’s a truer thought I can practice?” Pair it with prayer: “Jesus, what do you say?”
Normalize help. Therapy is not a faith failure. It’s wisdom.
3) Relational Healing
Sometimes reconciliation looks like hugs and a shared meal. Sometimes it looks like a wise boundary and a calm heart. Healing here may mean we stop bleeding from old cuts and carry scars that don’t rule us.
Practices:
Truth + Grace. Speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15).
Boundaries. Jesus walked away from crowds and said “no” at times. You can too.
Repair when possible; release when necessary. “As far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all” (Rom. 12:18).
4) Spiritual Healing
We’re integrated creatures. Shame, fear, and lies about God warp us. Spiritual healing is coming home to a God who calls you “Beloved.”
Practices:
Daily Examen (5 minutes). Where did I sense God? Where did I feel broken? What do I want to hand to God?
Breath Prayer. Inhale: “Jesus, Son of David…” Exhale: “…have mercy on me.”
Scripture as medicine. Try Mark 5 this week. Sit in the story. Imagine Jesus turning to you.
- Pastor Ben
- 2 days ago
Scripture gives us patterns, and good psychology often confirms them.
Name → Reframe → Practice. Paul says, “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:2). Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) gives simple tools: notice automatic thoughts, test them, replace them with truer ones, then practice new behaviors. Meta-analyses show CBT is effective for many anxiety and depressive disorders. This isn’t “mind over matter;” it’s training your mind to tell the truth and act on it. Pair prayer with practice.
Confession and forgiveness. James says, “Confess your sins to one another and pray… that you may be healed” (Jas. 5:16). Confession integrates us—no more hiding. Forgiveness unclenches our hands so we can heal. Desmond Tutu taught that reconciliation is costly because it tells the truth and then forgives; South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission modeled national healing through hard truth and grace.
Community restores dignity. In Mark 5, Jesus doesn’t whisper a miracle and walk away. He sees her. He speaks “Daughter.” In Ubuntu language, “I am because we are.” We heal as persons-in-community; isolation keeps us sick.
God suffers with us. Japanese theologian Kazoh Kitamori wrote about “the pain of God”—a God whose love bears pain with and for us in Christ. A suffering-with-us God is not indifferent; God’s solidarity becomes our healing hope.
Liberation and healing belong together. Latin American theologian Gustavo Gutiérrez speaks of salvation as integral liberation—God’s work in history to set people free into fuller life with God and neighbor. Healing includes freedom from systems and stories that crush us.
Whole-person practices matter. Scripture affirms oil, prayer, and elders (Jas. 5:14–15). We can add meds, therapy, sleep, nutrition, movement, boundaries, gratitude, and breath prayers. These are not “less spiritual”—they are part of loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.
