Genesis Costa Mesa

A Sacred Assignment // A Chaotic Ending - Nehemiah 13 // Chris Wienand

In the final chapter of Nehemiah, Chris closed our series by showing us that the story of renewal doesn’t end with perfectly rebuilt walls—but with the honest reality of human hearts. Nehemiah 13 opens with hope, yet ends in heartbreak as the people drift again and Nehemiah returns to find compromise, neglect, and spiritual forgetfulness.
But instead of despair, this chapter gives us a sobering and timely reminder: the work God is doing in us is ongoing, sacred, and deeply dependent on His presence. The story calls us to become a people formed by practices that keep our hearts anchored to Him.
Chris walked us through six defining cultures of a faithful people:
A Culture of Biblical Priority — the people rediscover the Book of Moses (vv. 1–3)
A Culture of Radicalism — Nehemiah clears the temple with fierce conviction (vv. 4–9)
A Culture of Generosity — refusing to neglect the house of God (vv. 10–14)
A Culture of Worship — reclaiming Sabbath as trust, rest, and remembrance (vv. 15–22)
A Culture of Community — choosing covenant faithfulness over compromise (vv. 23–29)
A Culture of Assignment — every person stepping into the work God gives (v. 30)
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 13✨ Themes: Renewal, holiness, cultural formation, spiritual drift, sacred assignment
About Genesis Costa Mesa
We are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: genesiscostamesa.com

A Sacred Assignment // The Return to Holy Rhythms - Nehemiah 12 // Daena Dooley

This Week at Genesis | Nehemiah 12Daena led us through Nehemiah 12 by reminding us that the true work of renewal is not the rebuilding of stones but the rebuilding of souls. Nehemiah shows us a community returning to the rhythms that reshape the heart—holy purification, right worship, and faithful offering.
Through Scripture, church tradition, and prophetic warnings, we’re invited to see how easily the human heart drifts toward forgetfulness and self-reliance. From Hosea to Deuteronomy to Psalms, the story is the same: when God blesses us, we’re tempted to forget Him. Yet the call of Nehemiah 12 is a return—a recommitment to worship, holiness, and generosity as practices that realign our souls to God.
This week was a sober but hope-filled reminder: renewal begins when worship is restored, when idolatry is confronted, and when our offerings flow from a heart wholly belonging to God.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 12; Hosea 13; Deuteronomy 8 & 31; Psalm 81✨ Themes: Renewal, worship, holiness, generosity, returning to God
About Genesis Costa Mesa:We are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: genesiscostamesa.com

A Sacred Assignment // A Story Worth Telling - Nehemiah 9 // Chris Wienand

This Week at Genesis | Nehemiah 9
This week, we walked through Nehemiah 9 — a moment where Israel remembers their whole story with God. The chapter reveals the pattern many of us know in our own lives: confession, freedom, wilderness, blessing, and rebellion. And yet, through every season, God’s mercy and faithfulness never waver.
Nehemiah reminds us:
We find God in confession — where our hearts are revealed and met with grace.
We find God in freedom — remembering the One who delivers and sustains.
We find God in the wilderness — even when we forget, resist, or wander.
We find God in blessing — receiving provision we did not earn.
We find God in rebellion — because He is the God who does not abandon His people.
“But in Your great mercy You did not put an end to them or abandon them…” (Nehemiah 9:31)
This is our foundation: a God who is mighty, merciful, and committed to dwelling with His people.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 9✨ Themes: God’s faithfulness, remembering our story, transformation of the heart
About Genesis Costa Mesa
We are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. We seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more → https://www.genesiscostamesa.com

A Sacred Assignment // A People with New Hearts - Nehemiah 8 // Tyler Cockrum

Tyler led us through Nehemiah 8, where Israel gathers to hear the Scriptures read aloud after returning from exile. What looks at first like a simple moment of renewed devotion is actually part of a much larger story — a story of longing for God’s presence to return.
Nehemiah isn’t ultimately about leadership strategies or personal self-rebuild. It is the story of a God who refuses to give up on dwelling with His people. Israel rebuilt the temple, rebuilt the walls, and returned home — but the presence of God did not yet return. Their hearts still needed to be made new.
This chapter points forward to the moment when “the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us” (John 1:14) — Jesus Himself, the true presence of God dwelling with His people. And now, through the Holy Spirit, we are the temple — the dwelling place of God.
The invitation for us today:“Holy Spirit, renew my heart. Make me a home for Your presence.”
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 8; John 1:14; Jeremiah 31; Zechariah 2✨ Themes: The presence of God, new hearts, longing & fulfillment, the Spirit dwelling in us
About Genesis Costa Mesa
We are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: https://www.genesiscostamesa.com

A Sacred Assignment // Nehemiah 6 // Daena Dooley

This Week at Genesis | Nehemiah 6
This week, Deana continued our series through Nehemiah, reminding us that distraction, discredit, and fear are often the enemy’s tactics to pull us away from God’s work in our lives. Yet, like Nehemiah, we’re invited to remain steadfast — to stay at the wall, to pray for strengthened hands, and to courageously stand firm in what God has called us to build.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 6✨ Themes: Resisting distraction, standing firm in calling, perseverance in faith
About Genesis Costa Mesa
We are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: genesiscostamesa.com

A Sacred Assignment // Nehemiah 5 // Kai Kiaha

This week, Kai spoke from Nehemiah 5, showing us hope in Nehemiah and how to beautifully lends itself to today. In Him, He is our center, our peace, and our provider. Even when we feel we don’t have enough, God calls us to trust that He will give us more.
Nehemiah 5 is a chapter of great hope—an invitation to become a people at peace, rooted not in circumstance but in Christ Himself.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 5🗓 Series: Nehemiah – Rebuilding Together🔔 Follow our Conversations series on YouTube and your favorite podcast apps.
About Genesis Costa MesaWe are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: genesiscostamesa.com

Coping with Opposition // A Sacred Assignment // Chris Wienand

This week, Chris taught from Nehemiah 4. In the midst of rebuilding, Nehemiah and his people faced relentless pressure—yet their persistence became a model for how we’re called to live: steadfast, courageous, and full of the Spirit.
Chris challenged us to imagine what our church might look like if each of us carried the same resilient heart for God’s Spirit—pushing through fear, doubt, and imposter syndrome to pursue the sacred assignments before us. True human flourishing isn’t found in chasing happiness, success, or security, but in remembering the Lord and trusting that He is leading us toward victory.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 4🗓 Series: Nehemiah – Building Through Opposition🔔 Follow our Conversations series on YouTube and your favorite podcast apps.
About Genesis Costa Mesa:We are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: genesiscostamesa.com

Becoming Attentive to God // A Sacred Assignment - Nehemiah // Daena Dooley

This week, Deana taught from Nehemiah 3. Nehemiah is not about a building project; it is about a people becoming attentive and responsive to God in the midst of rubble. As the people rebuilt the wall together, we are reminded that God’s work is not about structures but about hearts transformed and communities strengthened through obedience and unity.
At Genesis, we are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Our heart is to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 3▶️ Follow our "A Sacred Assignment - Nehemiah series on YouTube and your favorite podcast apps.

What we are called to build // A Sacred Assignment - Nehemiah // Chris Wienand

This week in Nehemiah 2:11–20, Chris shared how God calls us to rebuild—not just walls, but lives shaped by love for Jesus, one another, worship, prayer, mission, and the Spirit’s leading. Nehemiah reminds us that every sacred assignment carries both weight and opposition, yet with God’s gracious hand on us, we’re invited to build something lasting and beautiful together.
🗓 Week 9: Nehemiah – Rebuilding Together📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 2:11–20🔔 Follow along with the Nehemiah series under the Conversations tab
About Genesis Costa MesaWe are a Jesus-centered community shaped by the table, worship, prayer, story, and mission. Together we seek to bring the gospel to the nations, raise up leaders, and plant new Jesus-communities—living as the church both locally and globally. We hold fast to Scripture, the presence of the Spirit, and the call to join God’s work of renewal in the world.
Learn more at: genesiscostamesa.com

A Period of Readiness // A Sacred Assignment - Nehemiah // Chris Wienand

This week we continued our series in Nehemiah as Chris unpacked what it means to step into a sacred assignment.
In Nehemiah 2, we see a man facing his greatest fears, carrying the weight of God’s calling, and stepping into opposition while holding on to God’s strength. From Nehemiah’s courage before the king, to the reminder that “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh. 8:10), we are invited to see how God’s assignments for our lives carry both challenge and purpose.
📖 Scripture: Nehemiah 2, Nehemiah 6, Galatians 1, Nehemiah 8 🔔 Follow along with the Nehemiah series under the Conversations tab