Sermons on growing in faith (Page 16)
Do not be afraid, only believe.
Linda’s message is rooted in Mark 5.21-43. When Jairus finds his daughter at the point of death, he brings Jesus to her. Jesus responds, “Do not fear, only believe.” Many among us feel an epidemic of fear spreading in our nation & around the world. How might the this story of Jesus inspire and challenge us to let go of our fear and believe that the long arc of the moral universe really does bend toward justice?
Rethink.
Linda’s message weaves reflections from four persons from our community of faith with Mark 3.20-35 and the revival of the 1968 Poor People’s Campaign. How might this encounter from the Gospel of Mark challenge & inspire us to rethink our understandings of family and the social structures in which we move? How might this witness lure us deeper into the messiness of love?
Trinity as Divine Dance…Work it!
Matt’s message for Trinity Sunday is rooted in John 3.1-17. What are our conscious and unconscious images of God? How might Jesus’ encounter with Nicodemus in John 3 guide us toward more evocative and faithful images of God? Matt’s reflection weaves writings from Richard Rohr’s The Divine Dance with the work on intersectionality by Kimberlé Crenshaw. Here is a link to Kimberlé Crenshaw’s TED Talk in 2016. Here is a link to the band Matt encountered while visiting the National…
Easter Sunday
Pastor Linda’s Easter message holds the resurrection story from the Gospel of Mark in conversation with Resurrecting Easter by John Dominic & Sarah Crossan. What might ancient images of resurrection from Eastern churches have to teach us in the West about resurrection?
Holy Friday
Pastor Chris’s Holy Friday message is rooted in the story of Jesus’ crucifixion from John 18-19.
Recovery
Linda’s message is rooted in John 3.14-21.
Program
Chris’s message reflects on ten commandments (Exodus 20. 1-17) as God’s program for the people of God as they came out of enslavement in Egypt.
Falling and Rising
Worship on this first Sunday in the season of Christmas is rooted in Luke 2.22-40. Matt & Linda invite reflection on the blessing of the infant Jesus by Simeon & Anna. How might God be calling us into a life of falling and rising?
Give Us Back Baby Jesus!
Pastor Linda’s 5pm Candlelight Christmas Eve message is rooted in Luke 2. 1-14.
Yes
Pastor Chris’s message is rooted in Luke 1.26-38. What is the “yes” God is inviting you into as we move ever closer to the birth of hope in Bethlehem?
I Am Not
The hopes & fears of all the years will be met in a vulnerable child in a little town that is both far away and right here. John was clear he was not the long awaited Messiah and embraced his calling to be a witness. Matt’s Advent message weaves reflections on the story of our church community with readings from Isaiah 61.1-11 and John 1.6-8,19-28. How might grace inspire and shape our call to be witnesses to a new redemption…
Don’t Freak Out
Pastor Chris’s Advent message is rooted in Isaiah 40.1-11. The people of God have moved through troubling times throughout the generations. How might this Advent season invite us to work the quality of our waiting?