Genesis 25:19-34 Esau and Jacob Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 Parable of the sower Tom Long writes: “The Church is called to ‘waste itself’ to throw grace around like there is no tomorrow.” The parable of the sower calls us to stop over thinking, and over planning, and procrastinating and simply start scatters
Continue readingGenesis 37:1-4, 12-28 Joseph is sold by his brothers Matthew 14:22-33 Jesus walks on water There are times in our life when we take risks for all the right reasons and as we follow that choice we become overwhelmed and then we panic, leaving us with that sinking feeling. Well
Continue readingScripture: Acts 5:34-42 . Gamaliel’s Intervention Sermon: The Church in the Power of the Holy SpiritWherein does the Church persist? Throughout history, there has been so much that was so unlikely: the call of Abraham, the Exodus, David’s reign, Israel’s return from exile. The Church looked unlikely to survive as
Continue readingScripture: Acts 17:22-31 . Paul Addresses the Areopagus Sermon: A Known GodBeyond all of the philosophical debates and smorgasbord of religions that engaged the Athenian inteligensia, Paul speaks of a God who can be known in the sense of familiarity, not just beliefs. This is a relational God who can
Continue readingGenesis 1:1-5 The wind of God moving over creation Song of Solomon 2:8-15 Springtime rhapsody. In the Robertson-Wesley anthem which was written several years ago, we sing of The Spirit of Joy where we play together as a family. Joy is intrinsically tied to play, and to love. We find
Continue reading
In my role as the Music Editor of Gathering Magazine, a national United Church worship resource, I write an article for every quarterly edition on a topic pertinent to that edition. The most recent edition I was working on was about words and silence, and that led me to some
Continue reading1 Kings 3:1-15 Solomon’s Prayer for WisdomIsaiah 11: 1-3 The Peaceful Kingdom We come together in a spirit of wisdom today where we encourage one another to learn together and seek our own spiritual answers. In the scriptures from 1 Kings, we hear Solomon’s prayer to God for wisdom and
Continue readingJohn 8:1-11 Woman caught in adultery1 John 3:11-23 Love one another In order to live out our statement of welcome and inclusion, we need to continually adapt as a church. We live in a Spirit of belonging where everyone is welcomed regardless of ethnicity, gender, orientation, age or ability. In
Continue readingEzekiel 27:1-14 The Valley of Dry Bones What is our place? Where do we put down roots? Where is home? The church has been misplaced in our society over the past decade. In many ways we have become exiles in a secular world. It is time to reclaim our place
Continue readingActs 19:1-10 Baptism through the Holy Spirit1 Thessalonians 2: 1-13 We encourage you to lead a life worthy of God Paul asks the disciples if they have received the Holy Spirit, only to find out that they have missed this message. Have we received the Holy Spirit? How is it
Continue reading