Sermons on Faith (Page 2)
Grieve with Hope by Knowing the Author of Our Story
There is no wrong way to grieve. We can prepare for times of grief by nurturing our relationship with the author of our story; the story of our life and of our common human existence. The second coming of Christ and the rapture are details in one understanding of the story but not critical to our faith. Nurturing a relationship with God as the author of life, can help us to grieve with hope and ease our suffering.
Embracing Joy and Living a Persistent Faith
Minister Lea Gilmore discusses I Thessalonians 3:6-13 as a call to live a persistent faith, embrace joy in living, and dedicate ourselves to doing good in the world. You (Yes, you!) are a beautiful child of God whose good works impact us all. Let’s receive it and believe it.
Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Us Around
The Apostle Paul is concerned that the Thessalonians will lose faith by being tempted to believe that we can be Christian without experiencing persecution. Pastor Tom makes the connection between our calling to always stand with the marginalized and our being destined to experience persecution with them. We will never by able to fix injustice. But, if we believe that some people will always seek to enrich themselves at the expense of others, we are called to stand with the…
Mountaintop Moments
When’s the last time you experienced a “mountain top” moment? How do you carry those moments of inspiration into the everyday habits of your life? This Sunday, Pastor Billy will preach on the transfiguration story from Matthew chapter 17, verses one to nine. We’ll talk about moments of transfiguration and the longer work of transformation.
Getting Off The Hamster Wheel of Worry
We all know that worrying is unproductive and unhealthy. We know we should worry less. Jesus makes that clear. Common wisdom makes that clear. But, how do we stop? Pastor Tom suggest three practices. The last being the one Jesus says we should do first, but even that one needs some unpacking.
Four Components of a Healthy Faith
The story of Jesus is the wilderness give us a caricature of faith. We are not meant to imitate Jesus’s 40 day fast, but Matthew uses the story to show us in stark relief the key components of a healthy faith. Oh and what about the devil?
Consenting to God
Minister Lea Gilmore preaching on the themes of baptism by water, fire, and the Holy Spirit based on Matthew 3:1-17. How are we called to consent to God?
Claim, Name, and Provide a Frame for Christ
The familiar Christmas story gives two examples of how people may relate to Christ. Mary knows Christ intimately within her body. Joseph must take a leap of faith to choose to be in relationship with Christ. When life or the world in general seems so filled with trouble, we may learn the most from Joseph as he takes the leap and claims Christ as his own, names Christ for himself, and provides a frame so that Christ can be shared…
For Just Such a Time as This
In Chapter 4, Queen Esther chooses to risk her life to save her people. In the process she calls on her people to be united in solidarity. We may not face the level of crisis she did, but we are always being called to take everything that has brought us to this day, and use those experiences to respond faithfully and courageously for just such a time as this.
Are You With Them?
Are we saints? How can we be sure? Is that even the right question to ask? We explore what it might mean to be model Christians as we discuss the story of Peter’s denial of Jesus from the Gospel of Luke. – Pastor Billy’s sermon from November 6, 2022
Doing Hard Things Together Through Faith
The Crossing of the Red Sea is an archetypal story of communal rebirth. It is a story of a people acting on faith together and being transformed as a result. We can draw strength from this story as we face challenges that we haven’t chosen. We can also be inspired to choose to do hard things together so that we are stronger as a community when larger challenges arrive.
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