Today we conclude our worship series Fully Alive, based on the book of the same title by Elizabeth Oldfield. The book reminds us of the wisdom our Christian faith tradition holds.

There are a million places for us to find meaning and wisdom for our lives, and so often Christianity gets overlooked as irrelevant—out of touch with current reality. But within the Christian faith, there are signposts that show us how to become the kind of human this world needs. In a world of division, pointing fingers, selfishness, and ecological destruction, we can be part of the solution—someone who is living “fully alive” and not wasting this one wild and precious life.

Oldfield shares this wisdom using the framework of the seven deadly sins: how they show up in our lives and what it would look like to move towards more positive, life-giving virtues. Sin, in essence, is anything that causes disconnection between ourselves and others, us and the natural world, or us and God. Sin needs to be met with grace rather than judgment—both in ourselves and others. Because sin does not define us—our worst choices are not who we are. It’s simply part of the human experience—these temptations pull us in one direction when often, we truly want to go another way.

And this series is meant to help us bring awareness to our own sins—to acknowledge how these temptations show up in our lives. Then, using scripture, think about how God is calling us to live—connected, whole, and well.

We are concluding our series talking about what some consider the foundational sin of pride.

Fully Alive: Gluttony - From Numbing to Ecstasy by BrecksvilleUMC

Today we continue with our worship series Fully Alive, based on the book of the same title by Elizabeth Oldfield.

We are each searching for meaning in our lives—searching for wisdom. And there’s millions of places for us to find it. In Fully Alive, Elizabeth Oldfield reminds us of the wisdom that our Christian faith tradition holds.

Within Christianity, there are signposts that show us how to become the kind of human this world needs. In a world that is rife with division, pointing fingers, selfishness, and ecological destruction, we can be part of the solution—someone who is living “fully alive” and not wasting this one wild and wonderful life.

Oldfield does this by using the framework of the seven deadly sins: how they show up in our lives and what it would look like to move towards more positive, life-giving virtues.

Sin is anything that causes disconnection between ourselves and others, us and the natural world, or us and God.

It is something that needs to be met not with judgment, but with grace—both in ourselves and others. Because sin does not define us—our worst choices do not define us.

Sin is simply part of the human experience—to have these temptations pull us in one direction when often, we truly want to do another way. And this series is meant to help us bring awareness to our own sins—not how “those people sin”—but to acknowledge how these temptations show up in our lives, and then think about how we want to move forward in the world—with or without them.

This week, we focus on the sin of envy and it's opposite, belovedness.

Today we continue with our worship series Fully Alive, based on the book of the same title by Elizabeth Oldfield.

We are each searching for meaning in our lives—searching for wisdom. And there’s millions of places for us to find it. In Fully Alive, Elizabeth Oldfield reminds us of the wisdom that our Christian faith tradition holds.

Within Christianity, there are signposts that show us how to become the kind of human this world needs. In a world that is rife with division, pointing fingers, selfishness, and ecological destruction, we can be part of the solution—someone who is living “fully alive” and not wasting this one wild and wonderful life.

Oldfield does this by using the framework of the seven deadly sins: how they show up in our lives and what it would look like to move towards more positive, life-giving virtues.

It’s anything that causes disconnection between ourselves and others, us and the natural world, and us and God.

It is something that needs to be met not with judgment, but with grace—both in ourselves and others. Because sin does not define us—our worst choices are not our identity.

It’s simply part of the human experience—to have these pulls and temptations. It’s easy to see how these things show up in the world—how those people sin. But this series is meant to help us bring awareness to our own sins—to acknowledge how they show up in our own lives, and then think about how we want to move forward in the world with or without them.

This week, we focus on the sin of acedia—what’s commonly known as sloth.

Fully Alive - Avarice: from stuffocation to gratitude and generosity by BrecksvilleUMC

Today we continue with our worship series Fully Alive, based on the book of the same title by Elizabeth Oldfield.

This book focuses on the question, “Who am I becoming?” In a world that is rife with division, pointing fingers, selfishness, and ecological destruction, am I becoming someone who is part of the problem or part of the solution? Am I becoming someone who is fully alive, or am I simply going through the motions of existence on this planet?

More and more, I’ve been struck with the reality that people are searching for meaning in their lives—as Elizabeth Oldfield points out, they’re searching for wisdom. And there’s millions of places for people to find meaning and wisdom—social media influencers, authors and podcasters, on tags of teabags and inside Dove chocolate wrappers.

The one place people decidedly don’t look is to religion, and particularly, the Christian faith.

So much damage has been done in the name of the Christian God. And in Fully Alive, Elizabeth Oldfield acknowledges the harm that’s been done in the name of Christianity—she holds that and honors it, while also reminding us of the wisdom that the Christian faith tradition holds.

She shares the signposts that show us how to become the kind of human this world needs. And she does this by digging into the seven deadly sins: how they show up in our lives and what it would look like to move towards more positive, life-giving virtues.

Last week, we talked about how sin is “the human propensity to screw things up.” And it’s part of the human experience—of who we are as humans.

Sin is anything that causes disconnection between ourselves and others, us and the natural world, and us and God.

It is something that needs to be met with grace, not judgment. And even though it’s part of the human experience, sin does not define us—our worst choices are not our identity.

These are important truths to remember, particularly as we continue this series, focusing on one “deadly sin” each week.

This week, we focus on a sin that is oh so fun to talk about—wrath.

Today we begin a new worship series entitled Fully Alive, based on the book of the same title by Elizabeth Oldfield.

This book focuses on the question, “Who am I becoming?”

In a world that is rife with division, pointing fingers, selfishness, and ecological destruction, am I becoming someone who is part of the problem or part of the solution? Am I becoming someone who is fully alive, or am I simply going through the motions of existence on this planet?

Today, we conclude our worship series, “Words for the Beginning.” It’s a series that’s led us through Advent and Christmas, giving us reminders like, “Hope is worth the risk,” “Love knows your name,” “We can’t go alone,” and “Do the good that is yours to do.” These words have been like steady ground as we walk forward into the unknown of the future.

At first glance, they seem like words we would teach our children. But in reality, they’re lessons that we continue to learn and relearn as adults—they seem deceptively simple, but put into practice, they are lifelong ventures.

Today, as we begin a new year, the timeless story of the Magi reminds us that the road isn’t straight.

This week, we are in the gospel of Luke, with John the Baptist preparing the way for Jesus, challenging the people then as well s us now, asking: what good am I called to do here and now?

One of life’s most essential lessons is that we are never meant to go alone. And yet, modern culture pushes us more and more into lonely silos. If Ruth had followed her culture’s norms, she would have gone home to her family of origin after her husband died, but instead, she commits herself to her mother-in-law, Naomi. Together they form a new family and covenant. Ruth and Naomi travel together to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest, foreshadowing

the journey Mary and Joseph will one day take to be counted in the census. Both Ruth and Naomi, as well as Mary and Joseph, are unconventional pairs, but if God can bring unlikely people together, God can form us into a covenant community too.