Category Archives: 2020

Finding Freedom



There is no doubt that this year has been devastating for so many of us. Job loss has been unprecedented and a sense of lost hope is tangible. Times of such great uncertainty can leave us grabbing onto safety, just struggling to survive. The good news is that God’s promises reach us in our present circumstances today.

Pastor Erwin McManus leads us through Isaiah 61 as He encourages us that God is a God who restores. When we let God inhabit our lives, we begin to see differently. God gives us eyes to see wounds that need healing. He gives us the ability to be healing to what is broken. But first, we have to be willing to be broken. Though our culture fears weakness, we are reminded that God can use the material of our brokenness to create a beautiful future. God wants to fill our imaginations with possibilities in place of our despair because with God-nothing is wasted. There is no question if God has a great future for us. The question is, are we willing to pay the cost to see it come to pass?

“When the world is broken that’s exactly when Jesus becomes undeniable.”

-Erwin McManus

“Finding Freedom” message given by Erwin McManus at Mosaic Studios.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20201227

 


Home For The Holidays – Week 2 | Pastors Erwin + Kim McManus



Although no one knew her, God saw her. Overjoyed by the message from God, Mary burst into song. “My soul glorifies in the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.” After Mary was told by an Angel that she would carry a baby boy, the son of God, she was shocked and overjoyed responding “I’m your servant, may your will be fulfilled.” God can take the humble and raise them up.

When we want God to see us we must choose humility, honor and courage as Mary did. When we’re full of ourselves or unkind, we move out of God sight. God’s mercy extends to those who fear him and scatters those who are arrogant. Mary’s song is a declaration that God is doing something to be remembered forever in human history, through those who humble themselves. We must remember the more we are full of ourselves the more invisible we become to God. Kindness and compassion is what God sees. This is the material that God uses.

“Jesus points the way to what God celebrates.” – Erwin McManus

“Home For The Holidays” message given by Erwin and Kim McManus, recorded in the McManus home.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20201216

 


Home For The Holidays | Pastors Erwin + Kim McManus



While we’re home we can choose to make this the best Christmas ever. We can’t let this season pass by uncelebrated! In the first chapter of Luke, the author documents Jesus’ extraordinary life in real-time. Luke knew that the things Jesus was doing were so incredible and it would be hard for people to believe. Because of this, he wanted to make sure to make a historical record of what he saw. Luke took on the role of an eyewitness and servant.

To be a servant of the world, we must do our part in the history we’re living through. We may find ourselves wondering if God knows what to do in this moment. He does! This is the moment where we need to be sharing how God has been good to us.

We need to make sure we’re telling the orderly account of what God is doing in our lives. Even if the middle has been rough, it’s how the story ends that matters. We need to be eyewitnesses of God’s activity and servants of that reality. We’re all supposed to be like Luke, writing the orderly account of God’s work. God is grounded in this moment and He is here with us. But we need to ground ourselves in Him or this moment may overwhelm us.

“A story can never be as powerful as a history.”

-Erwin McManus

“Home For The Holidays” message given by Erwin and Kim McManus, recorded in the McManus home.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20201206

 


Foundation Weekend



How do we navigate this moment in history through rumors, chaos, and uncertainty? Pastor Erwin McManus invites us to look back as we look forward. Acts chapter 4 lays the foundation of the Church. They had little history with Jesus, and therefore they had to trust.

This is a beautiful parallel to life right now. 2020 has been a year of instability-and this reality is new to us. Nevertheless, we are deciding to trust God and each other. This moment of crisis has compelled our community at Mosaic to be creative and to ask, ‘How do we thrive and make an impact during this time?’ In 2020 we’ve had 4,439 people trust Jesus with their lives. This year our community has decentralized through new technology we’ve had 444,580 people attend Mosaic virtually. We’ve had 278 people became reoccurring givers; 887 different people have chosen to give to Mosaic.

We must step into this moment without fear as they did in Acts. In Luke 4:33 we learn that their giving was motivated by wanting the message of Jesus to be taken to the world. When Jesus is the core of the Church, it is unstoppable. We must remember the Church is here to bring hope to every single person. We must continue to serve and invest. The Church is God’s instrument to bring life, hope, and love to the world.

“Every time we give to the Church we’re establishing a foundation for the future of humanity.”

–Erwin McManus

“Foundation Weekend” message given by Erwin McManus at Mosaic Hollywood.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20201108


First Up



Life is a series of choices. So many moments in our lives are reflected by our reactions. The choices we’re aware of are our conscious choices. When we quickly react-that’s a response to an unconscious choice. When we make an unconscious choice, we’re not taking in all of the information. An unconscious choice is a direct reflection of our internal world. It’s a result of information that comes from our character.

The only way to change how we react is by changing the material of our inner world. In Mathew chapter 8:21 when Jesus invites a disciple to follow Him, the response He gets is, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” How many times have we been frustrated with God because he didn’t pick us? Often times we think that God hasn’t chosen us, but in reality God has chosen us first but our response to Him starts with “but first….”

Whenever God is not first on our list he is not on our list. If we want our life to have an alignment with God, we must align our hearts first. Jesus isn’t saying we can’t have our own passions and desires. He is telling us there must be a proper alignment in our pursuit of the good things in our lives. “If God is your first love, your unconscious decisions will move you toward Gods intention.” – Erwin McManus

“First Up” message given by Erwin McManus at Mosaic Hollywood.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20201025


Hearing God’s Voice



There’s a divide between being a visual learner and an auditable learner. To truly follow Jesus, we need to be good both. The Bible is not trying to heighten our visual reading skills-it’s trying to heighten our auditory skills. We must learn to hear God’s voice clearly so we can identify it. Throughout the Scriptures, there’s an overwhelming theme of the power of God’s voice. We simply cannot navigate the life that God has called us to unless we learn to listen to it well.

When God speaks He creates, and when He creates He brings life. If we want to experience the life that God has for us, we must hear God’s voice. In Hebrews 12:25 it says, “See to it that you do not refuse Him who speaks.” Scripture gives us a compass to know what things God would and would not speak. But when we only trust our compass rather than God’s compass, we hit the same obstacles repeatedly.

God is trying to shake us free from things that are holding us down. But the things that God has given us will be unshakable. If we want God’s voice to shape our lives, we need to realize God is always speaking and His voice creates life. We must look forward because God’s voice always calls us forward to a life of freedom initiated by Him.

“Everything in the Scriptures begins with the voice of God and ends with the voice of God.”

-Erwin McManus

“Hearing God’s Voice” message given by Erwin McManus at Mosaic Hollywood.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20201004


The Rumor Of God



In any season of life, it is easy to get lost in what we do not have. More than ever, we get to take hold of what God has given us for the sake of those around us. God is always at work and beauty surrounds us. Do we see it? As a tribe, we believe that we are never limited in our ability to bring hope, love, and faith. Instead of becoming paralyzed by what we have lost, we are choosing to be mobilized by what we’ve gained.

To create momentum as a community, we can use the vehicle of joy. I any situation, there is beauty and wonder to behold. People need to experience the presence of Jesus in us and we can express it through the joy we have in any circumstance. We need to walk so profoundly in the presence of God that wherever we are Jesus is present and undeniable.

Out of Zechariah 8, Pastor Erwin McManus reminds us that nothing can stop us from doing good in the world. We can live lives so profoundly impacted by God that we cannot help but create a rumor of God’s goodness everywhere we go. What if those around us asked to journey with us simply because God’s work in our lives was undeniable? This is the life God has called us to.

“We need to become the rumor of God.” -Erwin McManus

“The Rumor Of God” message given by Erwin McManus at Mosaic Hollywood.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20200809


Crossing the Racial Divide | Erwin McManus with Chris Simmons and Gerald Davis



Pastor Erwin hosted a powerful conversation on how we can be a part of the solution to racial inequality with Chris Simmons and Gerald Davis. Chris and Gerald are pastors at Cornerstone Baptist Church, the Church Pastor Erwin founded previous to Mosaic. Chris Simmons started the conversation by emphasizing the importance of building strong foundations as a Church. When foundations are built well, the building goes up easily.

They discussed the practical ways Cornerstone Baptist Church has met the needs of their community over the years. Pastor Erwin shared that he saw how systemic racism caused those who needed the most help to have to work the hardest and pay the most for high-quality food, education, and housing.

Pastor Erwin explained that he would pray that God would give him the ability to speak at the Cornerstone Church and give high-quality teaching. He felt this was his role in contributing quality to an environment that was at times given the lowest quality of many things. Pastor Erwin explained that moving forward, people in power have to chose to diversify their leadership.

“People don’t really care how much you know until they know how much you care.” -Chris Simmons

“Crossing the Racial Divide” message recorded on July 22, 2020 during Team Night on MOSAIC:ONLINE.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20200722


Playlist for Gratitude | David Arcos



How do we sustain hope when everything seems uncertain? Gratitude. Why aren’t we cashing in on this attribute when gratitude is what frees our hearts. Peace comes as a ruler. Peace will rule our lives once we allow it to. Paul consistently reminds us how important it is to thank God in all we do. To be connected to God in a powerful way requires thanksgiving. In Colossians 3:15-17 Paul breaks it down for new believers, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” It’s important to remember that saying thank you sets our minds on a different ‘us.’ The Scriptures are there to tell us what we need to know, and more importantly: how we should live. Remember, if we don’t carry peace we cannot bring peace.

“Take the storm as an adventure, and have the time of your life. Free hearts, full minds.” – David Arcos

“Playlist for Gratitude” message recorded by David Arcos at Mosaic Hollywood.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20200712


New World | David Arcos



More than ever, we need wisdom to navigate this moment in history. As we look around at the landscape, we realize there is an urgent need for us to create a new world around us. It is time to be a part of building a world that is founded on wisdom. Based on Chapter 1 in the book of James, Pastor David Arcos unwraps how God views wisdom and how it relates to us. Wisdom is a gift God wants to give us freely. But, when we ask God for wisdom, we are able to receive it only when we truly desire it at any cost. We need to be willing to admit that we may be wrong and in need of correction in our perspective.

Wisdom always helps us communally. Wisdom is not just for us individually. God calls us to be smart and tactical for the sake of helping others. Wisdom is leaning into what God is thinking. At times, it may even flip out world upside down. As the Church, we have been called by God to create a new world. This world is meant to be diverse and multifaceted, and if there ever was a time we needed wisdom to create that new world, it is now.

“Wisdom is when the imagination chooses love”

–David Arcos

“New World” message recorded by David Arcos at Mosaic Hollywood.

For more information, visit mosaic.org. © MOSAIC / Erwin McManus. #20200705