When the people of Israel and Judah found themselves in deep darkness, Isaiah's prophecy pointed to a time that would bring peace and righteousness, and a future hope. As we look at this familiar Christmas prophecy this week, we'll see that Isaiah's message of hope stretches far beyond Christ's arrival at Christmas. And in a world longing for peace and justice, God’s answer is not always what we would expect.
This is the time of year when we begin to experience the first few joys of the Christmas season. It won’t be long until our stores and radios will be filled with the decorations and sounds that remind us of Christ’s birth. In these weeks leading up to Christmas, we will study passages written long before Jesus came to earth that detailed exactly who to expect, why He must come, and what He would do when He arrived.
Often, it helps to begin a project with the end in mind—a vision for what it will be like when everything is completed. Along the way, there will be challenges and setbacks that would make it easy to turn around and give up. But by keeping the end of the story in view, we’re motivated to keep going. This week, we’ll study the end of the story of Nehemiah’s building project, and how it can help us with ours—at Bridges and for whatever we are building in our lives.
Following where we believe God has led into our NEXT85 years will require something of us. Throughout Scripture, when God’s people began a project, they each brought what they could in order to help the effort. We will be no different. The dream for our future campus won’t happen without all of us participating. This week, we’ll look at what will be required of us, and the blessing for following.
Every Sunday, we literally sit in the dreams, sacrifices, and plans of people who came before us. We have a place to gather because they built it. But that raises the question: what is our responsibility to those who come after us? If we hope that Bridges remains a fixture in our community, what must we build to ensure that it happens? This week, we will dream about the future of our campus and how we can impact generations to come.
85 years ago, a small group of ordinary men and women gathered with a simple vision: to plant a gospel-centered church here in Los Altos. They couldn’t see the future, but they knew one thing: God had called them to know and study His Word, to love their neighbors, and to plant seeds of the gospel of Jesus that would outlive them. And we at Bridges Community Church today are living proof of their faithfulness.
The question before us now in 2025 is this: what about the next 85 years? What kind of legacy will we leave behind for future generations?
Every person, family, team, or organization is heading somewhere. They might have chosen their direction on purpose, or they might simply flow along with the current around them. We plan to be the former rather than the latter. But where are we headed? As we turn the page from the last 85 years of our church into the next, we remain true to our original mission, and this week, we will take a deeper look into our ongoing vision to display that people matter, truth matters, and the Gospel is our only hope in everything that we do.
We've seen throughout this series that various kinds of prayer align with the types of conversations we have with those closest to us, and thankfulness is no exception. If we don't express thanks in our relationships, we can forget having much connection in them. This week, we'll study a Psalm of thanksgiving showing us why God deserves our deepest gratitude.
When we hold onto or try to cover up our sins and weakness before God or before others—hiding them, excusing them, or pretending they don’t exist—it crushes us. It drains our strength and steals our joy. But Psalm 32 reveals that God has made a way for the guilty to be forgiven, for the burdened to be set free, and for that which is broken to be restored.
Many of us likely have a close friend with whom we feel absolutely free to share the deepest sorrows of our hearts. They listen to our burdens, and by doing so, they help us carry them. But what our relationship with God? Can we share with Him like that? Will He welcome our cries of despair or rebuke us for having them? This week, we will study one of the Psalms of lament where David pours his heart out to God and finds relief.
We've probably all asked God for direction in our lives or for Him to show us the way that He wants us to go. But how does the Bible depict these kinds of prayers? This week, we will study Psalm 25 where David asks God for such guidance and how he finds a God who is more than willing to give it.
The most foundational building block of any relationship is trust. With it, we can weather most anything, but without it, the relationship cannot survive. This week, we will see that our relationship with God is no different. To feel connected with Him or to experience His presence in our daily lives requires trust in Him. But how can we develop it? Whether we've never trusted God before or simply want to deepen our trust in Him, Psalm 62 gives a roadmap to get there.
No relationship will survive without a healthy amount of affirmation and appreciation for one another, and our relationship with God is no different. As we begin our series on when and how to pray, we start with what should mark our communication with anyone–adoration.
Some of us grew up in stable family environments, while others of us experienced homes with ongoing change and upheaval. In either case, God intends the church to be a place of wholeness, peace, and support on which we can depend throughout all of life’s ups and downs. But what might this look like in practical application? And how can a church grow in this area? This week, we will study the familial connections in the early church and hear of a modern example.
This week we continue our summer series with a few of our college and young adults, who will be sharing about their faith journeys. We will also hear from others who are getting baptized at the beach, followed by a brief message from Pastor Steve.
The Bible reminds us that God remains on His throne, even amidst difficult times in the world or trying personal circumstances in our own lives. Despite this, however, the storms of life still have a tendency to challenge our certainty. What should we do in those moments?
Join us this week as we continue our “This is My Story” message series and explore how doubt is not something to hide or fear, how it can actually be the doorway to a deeper, more grounded faith, and how Jesus meets us in our uncertainty with patience and mercy.
Psalm 139 is one of the most intimate and awe-inspiring reflections on the greatness of God in all of Scripture, as we are taken deep into the heart of a God who is infinite in power, perfect in knowledge, and yet profoundly personal in His love. In this week’s message, we’ll explore how God’s omniscience, omnipresence, and creative power don’t merely inspire fear and reverence—they invite trust, humility, and wonder. A God who knows you completely and still loves you unconditionally is not just great—He’s the only one truly worthy of your whole life.
Each of us has a story, shaped by the steps we’ve taken to reach this very moment. But what comes next? What will the rest of our stories look like? When the whole story is written, what it will say? It’s a thought that is both exciting and perhaps a little daunting. Join us this week to reflect on what success means as we all embark on the rest of our stories.
We have probably all had seasons of tremendous difficulty where we suffered a loss, faced a crisis, or everything in front of us felt uncertain. But have we reflected back on the role of friends within those challenging times? The benefit of their presence versus the pain of their absence? This week, we will study our need for supportive friends, where we can begin to look for them, and we can be such friends for others.
Occasionally, an opportunity will appear before us, and we feel almost compelled to take it. While we may not know what all awaits us, we know we must go, and as a result, the entire course of our lives can change. This week, we'll dive into those moments and see how God's calling is always for our benefit and the benefit of everyone around us.