Pod Be With You

This week sees the start of our Summer Series, and so for the next 12 weeks, you will get two for the price of one. Paige will explore how it is that God meets us on the journey in her Roadtrip series, while Aaron reads a book a week to gain new perspectives and ideas. Join us this week for Adam and Eve leaving Eden, and Searching for Sunday by Rachel Held Evans.

It's a familiar on this week...the story of the Pharisee Nicodemus coming to Jesus under the cloak of darkness to ask his questions about God, faith, and what it means to be born of the Spirit. We think we know what this one is all about...but do we really? John 3:1-17 is a rich story about curiosity, courage, and the uncontrollable movement of the Spirit.

Pentecost is upon us once again...the rush as of a violent wind, the tongues of flame, the speaking in all the languages of the known world, a wonderful and powerful story about the arrival of the Holy Spirit. But was does this old, familiar story mean to us today, now? How does the Holy Spirit move and work in our lives in the 21st Century? Together, we explore that question as we dive into Acts 2:1-21.

If we had to choose one passage to describe, to explain what the project of Christianity is all about, it might be John 15:9-17, abide in God's love, and love one another. It sounds so simple, but there is much going on here...it's about love, and joy, and friendship, community, and care, and growth.  It is about being formed in the very character of God for the good of the world. Join us for a wide-ranging conversation about what it means to love as God loves.

For such a wonderful, uplifting, lifegiving passage as John 15;1-8 is, there have been a lot of interpretations that come out of it that are anything but. So this week, we tackle some of those ideas, as well as get to the heart of what Jesus is talking about here...bearing fruit in love.

This week we investigate one of Jesus' famous "I am" statements, "I am the Good Shepherd." What exactly does it mean to be the Good Shepherd? Is it about abundant life, leading and protecting the sheep, laying down one's life? Pastors Aaron and Paige explore all this, and more, in this week's episode of Pod Be With You.

Today we are grateful to be joined by Rev. Dr. Sarah Lund, Senior Minister at First Congregational United Church of Christ in Indianapolis, and author of "Blessed Union: Breaking the Silence about Mental Illness and Marriage". Together, we  unpack some of the challenges we face regarding mental illness, holy relationships, and the church - including stigma, ignorance, and lack of access to care. At the same time, we share signs of great hope, and encourage one another to tell our true stories with faith and love. We are not alone, and there is much that faithful individuals and churches can do to create a safer, more compassionate, and more just world for those with mental illness. 

Find "Blessed Union" wherever you buy books, and many more resources at  sarahgriffithlund.com. 

It's the second Sunday of Easter, and we have a lot to talk about...the role doubt plays in a healthy and vibrant faith; heaven, hell, and the ever-present Kingdom of God; the freedom of forgiveness; the empowerment of the Holy Spirit; the affirmation of Thomas; and through it all, the question "What's next?" 

This week, perhaps more than any other, celebrates the fullness of faith: togetherness and separateness, fulfillment and betrayal. And, of course, death and new life. These perennial themes resonate even more fully this year, as we grieve what we have been through and celebrate our slow but inexorable recovery. Wherever this takes us, God is with us - so let's have a blessed Holy Week!

We're back on the same track, as we meet the perennial challenge of the familiar, but strange, story of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It is a moment loaded with celebration, hope, impending tragedy, political provocation, and so much more. It is a glimpse, if only fleeting, of the radically alternative Kingdom of God. And what does any of that have to do with this moment?