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By Sandy Johnson, on June 29th, 2008
 You might not expect a minister to dislike a Bible story — but I really am disturbed by the Old Testament story of Abraham being instructed by God to sacrifice his son Isaac. So this is a sermon of protest, I guess …
My Least Favorite Story
Genesis 22:1-14; Psalm 13:1-5
One of the curious gifts of coming to faith as an adult was seriously encountering many of the stories in the bible for the first time. Some stories turned out to be full of meaning and delight for me – the story of Esther, for example, whose courage saved her people, or of the Syrophoenician woman who challenged Jesus when he tried to brush her off. Other stories, however, turned out to be horrifying; what Biblical Scholar Phyllis Trible [1984] called Texts of Terror.
Continue reading My Least Favorite Bible Story
By Sandy Johnson, on June 26th, 2008
We had an accident with our pulpit Bible– the big one that we read out of every Sunday morning. The shelf it was placed on during a funeral was underneath a leaking water container, and the book got soaked. It was open — so Genesis 1 through Psalm 89 were particularly drenched.
Quick [...]
By Sue Mieska, on June 23rd, 2008
Due to the Memorial Service for Phyllis Clifford-Albers, which takes place on Tuesday, the Strawberry Festival has been postponed. The new date is July 2 at 2:30 pm.
By Sue Mieska, on June 23rd, 2008
The guys are great players, but I enjoyed watching the Future Fighting Apostles at the game last night.
[...]
By Sue Mieska, on June 23rd, 2008
If you haven’t been to a Fighting Apostles softball game this season you are missing a lot of fun. Not only is it exciting to watch the guys play, it’s fun to watch the fans. It’s a great sense of community and a wonderful opportunity for some intergenerational fun.
PS…They won the game last [...]
By Sandy Johnson, on June 22nd, 2008
Sometimes stories in the Bible, especially from the Old Testament, seem harsh to our modern ears. Still, there is something for us to learn from this tale of Hagar and Sarah.
Hagar and Sarah
Genesis 21:8-21; Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17 Hagar and Sarah
This summer we are following the story of the Patriarchs of the faith: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But as we do that, we are also following the Matriarchs of Israel: Sarah and Hagar, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah. They are an interesting bunch, these women of the ancient past. They often appear by wells or springs, particularly when they are about to become wives. They are often barren, but those who are to have children receive divinely sent annunciations of one kind or another. Some engage in trickery or deception to further the careers of their husbands or sons.
It is hard to know, from our modern perspective, just what to make of all of this.
Continue reading Hagar and Sarah
By Sue Mieska, on June 18th, 2008
High-fives all around to the Fighting Apostles for their methodical dismantling of Trinity Blue, 19-5, for another win in church softball action.
It was truly a collective effort. Guys were spraying the ball over the field. There were shots down the left-field line,
By Sandy Johnson, on June 15th, 2008
The United Church of Christ National Disaster Ministries is already offering help to the victims of Midwest Storms and flooding.
You can help by making a contribution — either through First UCC or online — to help with the expenses of rescue, clean-up, and rebuilding.
You can also volunteer to help — some [...]
By Sandy Johnson, on June 15th, 2008
 Sarah (whose story is told in book of Genesis) was an old woman when she learned she was going to have a son. Reasonably enough, she laughed. That got me to thinking about the theological meaning of laughter …
Laughter
Genesis 18:1-15; 21:1-7 and Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19
Do you know what happened when Sarah laughed? Well, yes, God noticed and asked Abraham about it, and Sarah denied it; it is a nice bit of dialogue between God and Sarah. But do you know what happened when Sarah laughed?
Continue reading Theology of Laughter
By Sandy Johnson, on June 14th, 2008
All across the country, members of the United Church of Christ are working together on important issues of justice and peace.
A good way to join in this important work is to join the Justice and Peace Action Network (JPANet). You’ll receive weekly Legislative Action Alerts, periodic JPANet news, and Biblical and liturgical [...]
By Sandy Johnson, on June 12th, 2008
We are offering a series of informal “cottage” gatherings to chat informally with Pastor Sandy as a way of becoming better acquainted with her and other members of the congregation.
Wednesday June 25th 7 pm at home of Molly and Bill Woehrlin 302 Maple St
Tuesday July 1st 3 pm at home of [...]
By Sue Mieska, on June 10th, 2008
Apostles overcome elements, Methodists.
The Fighting Apostles’ “iron nine” ignored the waterlogged field and threatening skies to notch their fourth win of the season with an 8-4 victory over the Methodist Maroon.
We spotted the Methodists a four-run lead, but then held them scoreless over four innings. Meanwhile, we we put [...]
By Sue Mieska, on June 7th, 2008
Pastor Sandy was awarded the 2008 Leysath Award tonight at the UCC MN Annual Conference in St. Joseph.
The Leysath Award is given to a person who lifts up the role of women in ministry, provides new life in the church and community , and who continues to grow through further education. Rev. [...]
By Sue Mieska, on June 7th, 2008
Here we are at the UCC MN Conference Annual Meeting in St. Joseph, MN Pictured are Pastor Sandy, Jerry Hankins, and our own Bob Gregory-Bjorklund getting the party [...]
By Sandy Johnson, on June 5th, 2008
I try to post my sermons here every week, but we missed some during March and April.
You can find all the sermons since February 1 2008 by clicking on Sermons on the right hand side of this page.
Here are the ones I just posted:
February 24, 2008 Water and Witness
March [...]
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You might not expect a minister to dislike a Bible story — but I really am disturbed by the Old Testament story of Abraham being instructed by God to sacrifice his son Isaac. So this is a sermon of protest, I guess …
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