In a Sunday focused on the "then" from "Then/Now," Ann goes all over the place in history, including two different arctic adventures, Derek Redmond's heroic Olympic race, and the story of one of our own members, 88-year-old Mary Lewis, who was the oldest runner in the Houston Marathon last week.

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Post-sermon, Andy looks deeper into "The Second Mile." That means an look into Hammurabi's Code and the limits of "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth." Then, he asks the question, "do I want a God who gives me what I deserve?"

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Even after admitting that there's nothing in this verse he much likes, Andy puts a positive spin on the possibility of two of everything. Then he takes us into some difficult places to see what it looks in regular life when people are asked to give their coat, and give their cloak as well.

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To try to explain Jesus' lesson about the second mile, Ann talks about the firm taskmaster who is taking her through recovery from her knee surgery. Plus, historical context!

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Ann talks about her journey to a crumbling 4th-century church in Spain, and how she saw a church operating in both the Then and the Now. Then, she looks at the story of Jesus calming the sea, and also her memories of Hurricane Harvey - and how God calls us to be stormchasers.

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Andy breaks down the early, uncertain history of Jesus' early life, and makes a daring guess that perhaps Jesus wasn't a carpenter after all. Then, it's the story of Jesus calming the storm - or, as Andy refers to it, "the Story of Two Rebukes."

Ultimately, it's a sermon about how the Gospel calls us as Christians to be stormchasers - to come into the storms ourselves, and to calm them.

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In a sermon simulcast to every other service at our church, Andy talks about the history of the church, having a lack of vision, and looks ahead to the big things God is calling us to in the coming year.

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Andy comes back from Bamff with a warning about the decision-making process relating to the purchase of ski jackets, which leads into a quick parable about extension ladders, and then quite naturally into the story of Simeon, and the way to live a well-cultivated life.

Plus, a quick encouragement going into the new year, and a story in which Andy lets us know which dumpster in Houston is "his" dumpster.

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On Christmas Eve, Andy talks about the ways that we hear God's voice calling to us, and promises that this next year, he's going to learn a lot more Nigerian.

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Why just preach Christmas Eve morning when you can preach Christmas Eve morning in candy-caned striped pants? It's the second year in a row, so it's tradition now. We better get used to it.

Despite the ridiculous trousers, Andy looks forward and looks deep, at the divine gift that is the Christ, and what it means to deliver, and to be delivered.

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