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Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin have made lots of headlines lately, but the Bible also has some intriguing and courageous women characters — and they are the subjects of this sermon from August 24. Courageous Women Exodus 1:8 – 2:10 Romans 12:1-8 If I remember correctly, when I was in high school we talked a lot about conformity. We all agreed that it was not a good thing. Conformity was what made you follow the lead of other people
Bridges Genesis 45:1-15 Matthew 15:21-28 Joseph was generous. Joseph was forgiving. Still, Joseph wasn’t a particularly nice guy. Rev. Karen Smith Sellers (UCC Minnesota Conference Minister) attended UCC today to present Sandy with the Leyseth Award. Sandy was given the award at the conference in June, but Karen came to UCC today to share this announcement with our congregation. The Layseth Award is given to a person who lifts up the role [...]
Don’t Look Down Psalm 105: 1-6, 16-22, 45b; Matthew 14:22-33 Three things have shaped my sermon for today. First are the three cottage meetings we have had so far this summer, where church members and I have shared stories of how we came to be part of this congregation in Northfield. The part of my own story that often provokes questions is the part where I leave my job and my home in Seattle and head for seminary. Continue reading Folks Who Called Me (or Pushed Me) Out of the Boat For most of us, church is a physical place, a building we go to when we worship, attend meetings, or participate in programs. But for a growing number of people, church can also be a website called i.ucc.org There are Bible studies, an online prayer service every evening, educational resources of several [...] Please click on the August 2008 Chronicle for church news and interesting events happening at First UCC this month!
Scoundrels and Saints Genesis 32:22-31 Matthew 14:13-21 The cover of this morning’s bulletin may have been a clue to you about my reflections on the Biblical texts for this week: two illustrations of different styles sitting next to each other, but not really connected. The two stories we just heard – one about Jacob wrestling with God, and one about Jesus feeding a crowd of 5000 people with five loaves and two fish – these stories are remarkably resistant to being woven together into a single sermon. What they do share, curiously enough, is a focus on fear. |
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My sermon today was not about a highway bridge, but about Biblical bridges — one between two great narratives of the Hebrew Scriptures, and one between two ancient cultures.
In today’s text, Jesus calls Peter to walk on the water of the Sea of Galilee — and he does! I’m taking the opportunity to talk about people who called me to leave the safety of my routine and dare something new — and a few people who just shoved me out of the boat! (By the way, I should probably have changed the title of this sermon…)
Today I tried to tie together two very different stories: Jacob wrestling with God and Jesus feeding the 5000 with only five loaves and two fish. The connection: both stories start with someone who is afraid …
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