STUDIO is a place where God and people meet – where beautiful things happen and beautiful things are created. Eric and Candace Johnson are the Lead Pastors and founders of STUDIO. Our talks cover a wide range of topics on Faith, Creativity, Culture, and Community. STUDIO is Located in Greenville, South Carolina. Please visit studiogreenville.com for more info or better yet come visit us for one of our gatherings or events.
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We are in the second week of our four week “Generosity” series. Our hope is to grow as followers of Jesus; in His ways, words and values. We also long to grow in the heart and spirit of generosity as this will impact our ability to steward well and walk in faith. Pastor Candace shared from Matthew 10 that Jesus sends out the 12 disciples and He instructs them in verse 7-8: "As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give." What if blessing and freedom didn't stop with us, but flowed through us and from us? As we grow in freedom and in intentionally giving away what God has given us, here are some questions to ask ourselves: What do you have to give? What would it look like to live freely and generously with what God has given you? Thank you Lord for what you have given us, have done in us, and thank you for what you are doing in us now. (take time to thank God, you might not have everything, but you have…). Lord, give us a generous and willing heart and fill us with your spirit. Open our eyes to see what we have to offer, invest and sacrifice. We choose to live open handed with the things you give us. For more info you can go to our website and also check us out on instagram and Facebook. We are also on YouTube. If you want to support STUDIO financially you can do so here. Have a great week!
We kicked off our “Generosity” series this Sunday. Pastor Eric posed the question “What is your relationship with money?” Knowing that each of us have our own upbringings and life experiences which essentially shape and form our relationship with money. Here are some questions we went over on Sunday to help you move towards a clear idea of your relationship with money: Is it one where fear is the motivator? Do you have a perspective of money where it is wrong to have it or is there an amount that is wrong to have? Is money something that is associated with evil? Is money a means or an end to achieve happiness Is greed at play in this relationship? Is it a highly emotional relationship? When you lose a lot of money what happens to your emotions and mind in the process? When you see someone with a lot of resources and/or money what are some of your initial thoughts and opinions about that person? Our goal in week 1 was to identify and to be able to articulate our relationship with money so that we can bring it to light and allow God to come in and disciple us in this area of our lives according to a Kingdom Perspective. For more info you can go to our website and also check us out on instagram and Facebook. We are also on YouTube. If you want to support STUDIO financially you can do so here. Have a great week!
Just as we see in nature through each season, we, as people and followers of Jesus also aim to continue to grow and become all that God created us for. As humans we recognize our design to be in relationship and connection. One thing that we can do to grow and expand ourselves is to become better communicators and better listeners. James 1:19-20 encourages us as we navigate trials: "My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires." Communication greatly impacts our relationships and the better communicators we can become, the better relationships we can have. Let’s continue to grow, be better humans, neighbors/friends/family, and better communicators. We ask that the Lord will continue to grow us, open our ears and give us a heart to listen. For more info you can go to our website and also check us out on instagram and Facebook. We are also on YouTube. If you want to support STUDIO financially you can do so here. Have a great week!
Pastor Eric took us on a journey involving two people in the story of Jesus and his journey to his death and resurrection: Nicodemus and Mary. Two very different people and yet they both had these moments with Jesus that essentially changed their entire lives. One was apart of the religious establishment which made the decision to crucify him and the other sold her body for a living. Here we see how Jesus was able to touch two very different people and because he rose from the dead he created pathways for people to move from being dead to alive. On this Easter Sunday we celebrated that Jesus had the answer to death and he addressed all the internal longings of the human soul. For more info you can go to our website and also check us out on instagram and Facebook. We are also on YouTube. If you want to support STUDIO financially you can do so here. Have a great week!
This past Sunday was Palm Sunday. As we kicked off Holy Week and started our journey towards Good Friday and Easter, we wanted to take a moment to immerse ourselves into the story of Jesus coming into Jerusalem riding on a donkey while palm branches were being waved. One of the dynamics of this moment is the people gathered for the Passover, organized a parade, a party, a celebration for the Messiah. For them they were expecting him to become their King. They had no idea he was about to experience Good Friday, which was an unimaginable and incomprehensible day. Pastor Eric wrestled with the paradox of a Victory parade taking place before the war. It was the calm before the storm, it was the day before the “day”. In this there is a glimpse of how Jesus operates and functions in this world. You see, for most of us we wait for the war to be over before we celebrate a victory. As he rode the donkey, which is symbolic for peace, humility and it was what a new King would ride on to introduce himself as the new ruler. Jesus declares he is victorious before the war. Listen to this week's talk to hear more about the significance of Palm Sunday as it relates to death and resurrection of Jesus. For more info you can go to our website and also check us out on instagram and Facebook. We are also on YouTube. If you want to support STUDIO financially you can do so here. Have a great week!