Holy Trinity Ankeny

Holy Trinity Ankeny

By Pastor Timothy OlsonReligion & SpiritualityChristianity
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Holy Trinity Ankeny episodes

  • Mustard Seed Faith
    “if you just had enough faith…” people say when we think things don’t go right. The fallacy in this is thinking we can manufacture faith on our own. Faith is a gift, and even the smallest bit of trust can reveal miraculous things. Mustard seed faith (small faith) is powerful because of the object of faith, Jesus...
    13 min
  • Being in the Boat
    We hear the familiar story of Jesus and the disciples in the boat and a storm comes up. This is an important story. So important it is found in the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. What makes this an important story for us today, and what does it tell us about Jesus? Listen to find out more.
    13 min
  • The Intruder
    Jesus returns home to his family, but also brings chaos with him because people don’t recognize Jesus. The Scribes think he is doing the work of Satan since he breaks the laws of Moses and heals people. Jesus is bringing change.
    Today Jesus, through the work of the Holy Spirit, continues to change the world. As our world changes, do we recognize change as coming from God, or do we view it as evil? How do we know what is from God? Listen to find out.
    19 min
  • Sabbath Resistance
    When the religious leaders and chief rule keepers condemned Jesus for healing on the sabbath, they perceived a threat to their rules. Jesus saw the sabbath as an act of liberation of the things in this world that always seem to run our lives. Like a tail wagging the dog, our calendar, job, desires and drives can enslave us. This sermon is a word for people who at times feel overwhelmed by life and seek some way to resist the powers that controls us.
    20 min
  • Cardboard Cutout God
    When worship is approached and evaluated in the same way that a play, concert, movie, sporting event is evaluated, then it is no longer about God. God is reduced to a cardboard cutout, a one-dimensional object.
    22 min
  • The Language of the Spirit
    On the Day of Pentecost, God’s voice came to them in the wonderful diversity in which God had made them. More important was what the Spirit’s language was about: it was about the love, mercy and grace of God. That is the language of the Spirit. In our age, language divides and spreads hate; language puts a price on everything and judges. The Spirit sends us into the street to speak a language that testifies to Jesus.
    15 min
  • And Jesus Prays for Us
    Today’s gospel is a prayer Jesus prays for his disciples, including those of us who follow Jesus today. We face struggles living in the world and wonder how to endure. We face challenges and admit we don’t have all the answers. And so Jesus prays for us to live in the world but to not to be of the world, yet to love the world God created. Prayer is an intimate act, and Jesus prays for us.
    19 min
  • Deus Interruptus

    In today’s lesson from Acts, the Holy Spirit interrupts Peter’s sermon by filling the uncircumcised gentiles with gifts of the Spirit. Last week, as Philip brought good news to Samaria, the Spirit interrupted, sending him to proclaim the gospel to an Ethiopian eunuch. While we often think we are in control of the mission of the Church and over who is included in our efforts, the Spirit – Deus Interruptus (the Interrupting God) – is out ahead of us building the reign of God before we ever show up. Welcoming people we exclude, forgiving the unforgivable, are all the work of the Spirit without us. The question is, “Will we be left behind or catch up to what the Spirit is already doing?” Praise Deus Interruptus!

    21 min
  • Just as I Am?
    Faith is really about the spiritual transformation we allow God to work in us as we cross the barrier from what we are to what God wants us to become: disciples created in the image of love.
    20 min
  • Welcome for All. Love for Each.
    A sign on the church that says, “all are welcome” is meaningless to those seeking welcome because it does not address the “each.” A theological statement that says the poor should be fed bears no weight until assistance is given to fill a hungry belly. Welcome is for all. Love is for each.
    17 min

About Holy Trinity Ankeny

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Holy Trinity Lutheran Church