Out of our depths, we cry to God We ask over and over, "Why did you do this us us, god?" This reminds us of the Jesus' cry of dereliction. It's painful, but real. Psalm 130 gives us permission to rpay prayers of supplication. And when we do... we find hope. As 103:5 says, "I wait on the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope." This hasn't changed today.

To quote Hamilton, "Deathj doesn't discriminate between sinner or saint. It takes and it takes and it takes." Death happens to us all. When we come face to face with it, we're left wounded. During this week of Lent, it's important to reflect on our mortality but then know there's hope. When death surrounds us, it feels like the darkest valley, but we can fear not evil.... God is with us. This is hope.

During worship, we baptize new believes. We dedicate ourselves to take care of children and parents. We unite couples in matrimony and also offer comfort to the grieving through funerals and celebrations of life. Sometimes, worship is the furthest thing from our mind and the last thing we think we need, and that's likely when we need worship the most. The hope found in worship is not through great song choice or the perfect eloquence of a sermon, but instead the reason worship gives us hope s that it unifies our hearts together in community.

On this day, we installed Pastor Lacey B. Davis as our Minister to Families with Children. Her calling, talents, dedication, and spirituality enhance our church's ability to be more like Christ. today we honor those gifts, celebrate what god is doing through her as we worship god together. The Old and New Testament readings for the sermon scripture illustrate what God intended for the priestly class all along. People like Lacey are called to stand in the gaps of those who have no one, and they're called to mend the saints.

Hope is found when we repent of our sins and realize we love a God who forgives. Repentance means acknowledging our own sin and our need for God to intervene. It happens when we stare in the face of sin and do any about-face. King David sings in Psalm 32, "happy are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sin is covered." The way we get forgiven is to repent. The way we find hope is to repent.

Do not worry about your life of clothes or food or wealth. When you do, you make these things into false gods that control you. Jesus calls us to be mindful of who we are and where our allegiances align. When we can name them, we can start controlling them instead of the other way around. This lesson is difficult, but it's necessary to live like Christ.

"An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind." Ghandi said this, and it mirrors the words of Jesus. Despite our dislike or hatred toward another, Jesus calls us to love them. For when we do, the anger no longer has power over us. Jesus' teaching on love and enemy is difficult to embrace, but it's central to his discipleship and life.

Jesus' Sermon on the Mount

Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount that we are salt and light. When we lean into our faith, we experience the mystery of what it means to preserve goodness and shine God's light.

The Beatitudes zero in on Jesus' core message. He came to offer a paradigm shift. Blessed are not the rich, but the poor. Blessed are not the mighty, but the meek. Blessed are not the warlords, bu the peacemakers. In God's kingdom, there's a role reversal taking shape. this sermon shows how these Beatitudes are the core, ethical guidelines for Christians.