Announcements

IBC & COVID-19

An update on precautionary measure being taken by IBC in light of Coronavirus (Covid-19).

Hope & Healing

3 Reasons Why True Love is Not Just a Feeling

First Corinthians 13:4-7 is often used to characterize the love that one person has for another or what a couple should strive for in a marriage. However, Paul’s assertion here to the Corinthian Church calls to mind the true character of Jesus Christ - Jesus’ PERFECT love for us. It is a love that has the ability to withstand the fiercest of storms and the most barren droughts. It is a love that has the ability to empower us to love even when we feel unlovable, with nothing left to give.

Formed

Is your media consuming you?

We live in a world that is absolutely saturated with media – like soggy bread. It’s a rare moment when we don’t have a screen either in our sight or within our reach, each one of us connected to all the content in the world. A nearly endless list of articles, videos, songs, social media posts, podcasts, pundits, and influencers are begging for your attention – did you know social media algorithms are literally set up to keep you in their platform for as long as possible? They will send you notifications when they have noticed a trend of your usage. Their technology is able to target you; it thinks like this: Madi is normally scrolling at 3:12 p.m. when she’s experiencing an afternoon energy lull, let’s target her with notifications since she is currently not scrolling.

Formed

Broken Body Theology

I never thought much about my body until recently. It mostly did what it was supposed to do and looked how it was supposed to look, and so I haven’t had to pay it too much mind. Athletics weren’t my thing, which means my body’s physical abilities were never in the spotlight. I’ve of course fussed and fretted over my appearance like we all have, but mostly my body cooperated and came along for the ride.

More recently, though, my body insists on being noticed. I’ve had two babies (both of whom made themselves comfortable in my belly for much longer than they were welcome), I’m creeping closer to middle age, and my body doesn’t look or feel the way it always has. Things hurt. Some days, things hurt an annoying amount.

Hope & Healing

An Unexpected Journey

How does a girl with many things working in her favor end up at rock bottom, which in this case, was a strip club?

It did not happen in one instance, or even two or three. It didn't happen on a rebellious whim. It stemmed from a lifetime of unspoken messages from a patriarchal society, from systemic misogyny, and from the childhood indoctrination into what it means to be a woman. All of which were communicated by otherwise well-meaning individuals - some of whom are Christians themselves. Let that sink in for a minute—Christians themselves. Even if it wasn’t said outright, there was certainly the undertone.

eLetter

People of Light

Yesterday, January 6^th, was what the church has historically referred to as the Feast Day of the Epiphany. Throughout the church’s history that day has been associated with the visit of the wise men who had come from a far-off place to visit the baby Jesus. It’s a day that celebrates the reality that, in his incarnation, Jesus came not only to be the messiah of Israel but the light to the nations, the savior of the world. For the church, Epiphany is a day of light.