We want power. Especially when confronted by people in positions of self-appointed authority who wield it as a weapon to deny voices and ignore justice, who wouldn't want to have some of that power. To be used for good, of course. In God's name, naturally. Hence two of the disciples ask for worldly power from the Son of God, who has enough to spare. We all want power. We cry out to Jesus for power, and he points us to the cross. Not in defeat or to deflate our hopes, but to remind us that our power is not of this world. It is poured out not earned, it is spoken not silenced, and it is already ours to claim. The final sermon in our four part series, CALLED to GROW, SENT to SERVE from Sunday, Sept 30, 2018.

The mission field is vast, covering 7 continents and nearly 200 identified nations and tribes. Yet Jesus sends most of us only a few miles away from the church to proclaim his good news. We don't want to speak the strange words of God that strangely transform our lives every day. We fear losing our privilege, status and comfort and our people may be waiting to hear that God loves them. As far as we could go, God's greatest need for us is probably in our zip code. Our sermon series on simple words made missional continues with Mark 6.1-13. The words in this series are CALLED, GROW, SENT, SERVE

Its the ever present crowds in the gospel of Mark that give a window into the desperation and need for peace. God's people in tanned skin, brown skin and ebony skin, speaking the language of their homeland, drawn to his presence the way we in the church are drawn in every week. We are the crowds, full of anger, despair and hope, crying out for a Word that will transform us and our neighbors. Jesus speaks in the language of rocks, thorns and Grace as he responds to the crowds and declares, again, that our world will no longer be as it is. Our sermon series on key words continues framed by Mark 4.1-9.

We enter a new sermon series for September in which we consider a few common words that, because we use them in churchy tones, sound larger life life. Who doesn't want to be called? To hear our name out loud in love affirms our existence and can bring healing. In the church, "Call" often gets applied to jobs and work responsibilities. Does Jesus care what job we do? Does our resume demonstrate our level of blessedness? Our sermon on CALL is rooted in Mark 1.16-20. Other words we'll look at in our series: GROW, SENT, SERVE

What do we put our trust in: the car, our jobs, being right with God? As quickly as we celebrate Jesus for taking down some pesky Pharisees in Mark 7, Jesus turns and takes us down with the same words. That stings a bit, though maybe not as much as the cost of our tribal, racial, economic assumptions we build out of self preservation. Or the barriers we erect out of self-righteous angst. Being polite or being in good standing, apparently, does not hide what is in our hearts. Thank God for forgiveness and Christ's merciful Grace. Our sermon from Sunday Sept 2 2018 on Mark 7.1-8 and appointed verses.

Church is more than plaster and wood and we know that. Do our neighbors know that? Do we keep Christ hidden within our walls? Paul, especially in his letter to the Romans, rattles off a laundry list of saints who formed that first congregation, many of them strong women. His list can remind us of the saints who have come before us and it can remind us that our congregation is still incomplete. God continues to work, the Spirit continues to flow, Christ's name is still needed within and beyond the walls of our neighborhood. Our sermon series continues with this message from August 18, 2018.

We may not know the names of the many who cross our path each day, but can we see Christ in their faces? Certainly we can recognize God's work in amazing, remarkable experiences, yet we're human. We, in our humanness, struggle to see God in the mundane, the ordinary, the every day experiences and people of our lives. And though we may think the disciples had it easier (being right next to Jesus), they miss God's work, too. Go looking for God in the typical and be watching for Christ in our neighbors. Our sermon on strong women continues with Luke 8 from August 12, 2018.

No messing around, these are some of the fiercest, boldest, powerfully dynamic women in scripture. They have insurmountable walls built around them and still, God finds a way. Because God cannot be stopped. We find ourselves often in situations where there are no options, no doors, no outs. We are truly stuck. And still, God cannot be stopped. God works through these amazing women to bring about God's justice and mercy; God breathes into us the proclamation that our bond with God is unbreakable. No laws, no walls, no debt, no diagnosis, not even death can keep God away. Our series continues with this sermon on Exodus 2.1-10 for Aug 5, 2018.

Our relationship with Eve is complicated. And because of our human nature, our difficulty with Eve has complicated every relationship and interaction. For countless generations we faithful has tried to blame Eve and use her story to excuse our want to see women as secondary to men. So let's talk about that. This sermon is not about Eve's sinfulness, it is about our relationship with God. How God draws us out of ourselves to see God's mercy in our lives, that it will lead to justice and compassion for anyone who has been silenced or viewed askew by our sinfulness. Our sermon series on strong women continues with this sermon from Sunday, July 15, 2018.

Our stories are meant to be shared. We don't to carry them on our own. This weekend we laughed and interacted with Esther's story and became part of God's narrative. Esther helps us imagine how God is at work in our lives even when God's name may not always be on our lips. How might your story tell the unending story of God for another? Our series on strong women continued with this sermon from July 8, 2018.