Multiply Church

It is easy to wonder whether you really need a church family in a world where you can stream sermons, worship playlists, and Bible studies from anywhere. But the question worth asking is not "Do I have to go to church?" The better question is this: why would you try to follow Jesus without the family He gave you? Is It Okay to Follow Jesus on Your Own? Jesus saves individuals. No one can make that decision for you. But when He saves you, He brings you into a body, a family. The New Testament never pictures people who simply believed in Jesus and then went off to follow Him alone. Look at what happened when the early church was born in Acts 2: "Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." - Acts 2:41-42 They learned together. They ate together. They prayed together. They worshiped together. Th...

Life is hard. Not sometimes, not for certain people, but for everyone. And if you've ever felt like you were barely holding things together, this is for you. Why Does Life Feel So Heavy? We live in a broken world. The Bible makes it clear that rain falls on the just and the unjust alike. No life hack, app, money, or discipline will eliminate the hard seasons. They come for everyone. Some of us are fixers. We pour enormous energy into holding our families together, managing our finances, protecting our futures, and keeping our relationships intact. And sometimes, if we're honest, we even work hard just to hold our faith together. Eventually, life puts enough weight on you that you discover something important: you were never strong enough to hold everything together to begin with. What Does Colossians 1 Say About Jesus? The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Colossae, a group of true believers already following Jesus. Life had gotten difficult, and they had started wondering if...

Prayer is one of the most powerful things a Christian can do, yet it is often treated as an afterthought. We tell people we will pray for them, but do we actually do it? And when we do pray for others, do we understand what is really happening? Here is a closer look at what Scripture says about intercession and why praying for other people matters more than we might think. What Does the Bible Say About Praying for Others? In 1 Timothy 2:1-4, the Apostle Paul gives Timothy clear instructions on worship. He writes: "I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people, for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." - 1 Timothy 2:1-4 Notice that Paul says "first of all." When it comes to worship, prayer is where we start. And not just any...

Life has a way of taking turns we never planned for. Whether it's a loss, a diagnosis, an unexpected hardship, or a season that just doesn't look the way we thought it would, most of us have found ourselves on our knees asking God, "What are you doing?" This is a message about what it looks like to trust God even when you can't see where He's leading. What Does the Bible Say About Crying Out to God? The book of Habakkuk opens with a prophet doing something that might surprise you. He's not praising. He's not worshiping. He's questioning. "How long, Lord, must I call for your help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, 'Violence!' but you do not save? Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing?" - Habakkuk 1:2-3 Habakkuk was not a random person venting frustration. He was a man of God, a prophet, and even He had moments when he asked why. If you've ever felt that way, you're in good company. Go...