No More Strangers
Through the cross, Jesus tore down the walls between us and made us one family.

Tim Dye • Lead Pastor
September 21, 2026

2 Minute Read

What an awesome Sunday we had continuing our series in Ephesians. If you were with us in person, we hope this recap stirs your heart again. If you missed it, I hope this summary will encourage and challenge you as you go about your week.

Key Takeaways:

Unchecked walls become culture.

  • Whether rooted in preference, personal history, or pride — can quietly become the culture of a church if left unchallenged. We must regularly examine our hearts and ask what walls we have constructed that God never authorized, and be willing to let the Holy Spirit tear them down.

The cross made us one family.

  • The cross did not simply make enemies into better neighbors. It made them one family. Jesus Himself is our peace, not merely the one who delivers peace to us. That means true unity in the church is not manufactured through programs or personality, but through a shared and deepening surrender to Christ as Lord.

Our identity in Christ outranks every label.

  • Our deepest identity is no longer defined by background, wound, denomination, or preference. We are in Christ. That identity outranks every other label we carry, and when we truly live from that place, the walls lose their authority over us and over our community.

As you go into this week, take a moment to reflect honestly on who you have mentally placed outside the house. Is there someone you have dismissed, avoided, or written off? The same cross that brought you near has brought them near as well. Let that truth move you toward someone this week.

We are so grateful to do this together. You are not a visitor here. You are family.

Pastor Tim Dye

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September 21, 2026 • 2 Minute Read
No More Strangers
What an awesome Sunday we had continuing our series in Ephesians. If you were with us in person, we hope this recap stirs your heart again. If you missed it, I hope this summary will encourage and challenge you as you go about your week. Key Takeaways: Unchecked walls become culture. Whether rooted in preference, personal history, or pride — can quietly become the culture of a church if left unchallenged. We must regularly examine our hearts and ask what walls we have constructed that God never authorized, and be willing to let the Holy Spirit tear them down. The cross made us one family. The cross did not simply make enemies into better neighbors. It made them one family. Jesus Himself is our peace, not merely the one who delivers peace to us. That means true unity in the church is not manufactured through programs or personality, but through a shared and deepening surrender to Christ as Lord. Our identity in Christ outranks every label. Our deepest identity is no longer defined by background, wound, denomination, or preference. We are in Christ. That identity outranks every other label we carry, and when we truly live from that place, the walls lose their authority over us and over our community. As you go into this week, take a moment to reflect honestly on who you have mentally placed outside the house. Is there someone you have dismissed, avoided, or written off? The same cross that brought you near has brought them near as well. Let that truth move you toward someone this week. We are so grateful to do this together. You are not a visitor here. You are family. Pastor Tim Dye

Tim Dye

Lead Pastor

September 14, 2026 • 2 Minute Read
You Were Dead, But God Made You Alive
What a powerful morning we shared together as we continued our series, The House That God Built. The Word of God met us right where we are, and I pray it continues to work in you throughout this week. Takeaways: Stop trusting in your own construction. You cannot moralize, serve, attend, or perform your way into what only God can do. The invitation is not to renovate yourself but to receive what he has freely given. Salvation is a gift, and gifts are not earned. Let your past be gone. Your past may explain where you have been, but it does not get to define where you are going. Paul writes of death in the past tense and life as a present reality. You have been made alive, raised up, and seated with Christ. That is your identity today. Ask what God created you to do. You are not here simply to exist. You are saved to participate in what God is building. The good works he has prepared for you are not the means of your salvation — they are the outflow of it. Step into them this week. As you move through your week, I want to encourage you to keep this truth close: the measure of your life is not your circumstances, your failures, or your struggles. It is the life that has been breathed into you by a God who is rich in mercy. You were dead, and he made you alive. Let that reality shape everything. I am grateful to walk this journey with each of you. See you next week. Pastor Tim Dye

Tim Dye

Lead Pastor

September 7, 2026 • 2 Minute Read
We Are the House That God Builds
What a powerful morning we shared together as we launched our new six-week series in the book of Ephesians. It was a reminder that what God is building among us is far greater than anything we could construct on our own. During the message we explored Paul's prayer in Ephesians 1 and what it means for the church to be the body of Christ -- the house that God builds. Drawing on the backdrop of Paul writing from prison to a small church overshadowed by the massive temple of Artemis in Ephesus, I challenged us to stop measuring God's work by what is visible and to instead ask God to open the eyes of our hearts. The same resurrection power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him above every rule, authority, power, and dominion is the very power at work in us as believers. The church is not an institution, a weekly event, or a fan club -- it is the body of Christ, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. Here’s a Few Key Takeaways for Us To Remember: We must confront the trap of measuring God's house by what we can see. Visible things -- attendance, budgets, buildings, influence -- can give the appearance of strength without the substance of it. Paul's prayer was not for the church to compete with the powers around them, but for the eyes of their hearts to be opened to a different reality altogether. The power available to believers is resurrection power. It is the same power described in Ephesians 1:19-20 -- not theoretical, not dormant, not borrowed, and not threatened. God's greatest demonstration was not making something out of nothing; it was bringing dead things to life. That power is personally and specifically available to each of us who believe. The church exists because Christ is building it, not because we have built it. We are his body, and our foundation is not our programs, our reputation, or our pastor -- it is Christ himself. When we labor to fix what only God can build, we exhaust ourselves. The call is to repent from false foundations and reorient our lives around what Christ is doing through his Spirit in his body. I am grateful to walk this journey with each of you. See you next week. Pastor Tim Dye

Tim Dye

Lead Pastor

August 7, 2026 • 3 Minute Read
When Life Gets Hard, Stand Firm
I have to admit that some seasons in life are harder than others. At first when I first came to faith in Jesus, I developed a super hero mindset that viewed hardship as something I was going to be immune from. Funny this is, I thought that being a Christian meant that I was not ever going to actually have to stand firm in times of my life. Somehow in my little christian bubble, i hadn’t fully realized that the muscle of faith grows in hardship. For so many of us here at Freedom, this has been a season of difficulties. From accepting the fact that change is happening and going through health battles to trusting God for what you can’t see in the here and now. I see you, friends. Navigating through trials is never easy and now in my life I see just how important it is to find inspiration.  Listen, in the midst of struggle, we must find inspiration that develops our faith. So what do we do when life is hard and things don’t seem to be going like we think they should? I offer a simple yet practical guide for giving us motivation to stand firm. The Apostle Peter writes to the first century followers of Christ in an attempt to strengthen them from turning back, surrendering and giving in. Here is my reminder to you from 1 Peter: Live with great expectation. (1 Peter 1:3-4) He’s reminding the believers that God’s great mercy through Christ is proof that they are born again and have a priceless inheritance. This is kept in heaven for us and it’s beyond change and decay! Joy is ahead. (1 Peter 1:6-8) Trials reveal a faith that is genuine. He says’ “So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor…  Friends, we must have faith in the God who saves!  “Though you do not see Him now, you trust Him with a glorious, inexpressible joy” Don’t slip back into your old ways of living. (1 Peter 1:14-16) After we commit our lives to Christ, we sometimes feel a pull back to our old ways. Simply put, our focus and priorities must be His. Rely on God’s power to free you from giving up and giving in so you can truly live to show others that God can be trusted. Suffer for good and endure it patiently. (1 Peter 2:20-21) Recently God gave me a reminder to allow Christ to receive the glory of my sufferings. This is exactly what Peter is saying…”God is pleased with you”,  when we do this. Christ Jesus is our example who “left his case in the hands of God”. That is powerful. Can we just leave our case in the hands of God like Jesus did? Yes, we can! Let’s break up with a theology that thinks the Christian life is rainbows and butterflies. Don’t get me wrong, this life in Christ is the best decision that you will ever make but hear the last words of Peter from 1 Peter 4:19. “So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for He will never fail you”. Peace to all of you, God’s word stands forever. Pastor Tim Dye

Tim Dye

Lead Pastor