We live in a world full of “imaginary Jesuses” — polite Jesus, Sunday-only Jesus, nationalist Jesus, feel-good meme Jesus. Many are “pretty good,” but none are the real thing. In this sermon, we explore how easy it is to shrink Jesus down to our preferences, and why the real Jesus is far more challenging, demanding, and life-giving than any projection we create. Standing in the tension between good guesses and the true gospel, we hear again his question: “Who do you say that I am?”—and are invited to become living answers in a world aching for mercy, justice, and hope.

What do viral “Pope hats” at a Chicago White Sox game have to do with Isaiah’s vision of a house of prayer for all people—and with the way you pass the peace on Sunday? In this sermon, The Rev. Dixon Kinser invites us to rethink a familiar ritual and asks: who would be hardest for you to offer peace to, and what might God be doing in that tension?

Preached on August 9, 2026 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, the Rev. Nick VanHorn reflects on Peter stepping out of the boat and what it means for us to follow Jesus beyond our comfort zones. Drawing on everyday moments—from dropping a child off at college to stalled church vans and “chaotic evangelism”—this sermon invites us to ask: What happens when our desire to follow Christ takes us beyond what feels safe?

Discover how the church is more than a safe harbor, why discipleship is not about being fearless, and how Jesus continues to meet us in the storm, reach out his hand, and say, “Take heart, it is I. Do not be afraid.”

In this sermon preached by Rev. Lucy Strandlund on August 2 at the 10:00 AM service, we explore what “blessing” truly means beyond social media hashtags and polite phrases like “bless you.” Drawing from Genesis, the feeding of the five thousand, and insights from theologian Andrew Davison, Lucy unpacks the biblical roots of blessing as “speaking well of” and recognizing the inherent goodness of God’s creation.

In this sermon preached on July 19, 2026, the Rev. Erika Takacs weaves together a vivid image of Southern kudzu with Jesus’ parable of the wheat and the tares. Walking through a greenway overrun by “the vine that ate the South,” she names the fears we carry when weeds—whether bigotry, prejudice, neglect, abuse, corruption, violence, or our own complicity—seem to be taking over everything.

In this sermon from July 12, 2026, The Rev. Dixon Kinser at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Winston-Salem, NC, explores Jesus’ Parable of the Sower and what it reveals about how God’s kingdom actually works.

In this sermon, the Rev. Lucy Strandlund reflects on our culture of constant critique—from social media to celebrity culture—through examples like Amy Poehler, Billie Eilish, and poet Andrea Gibson. Drawing on Jesus’ words in the Gospels, she invites us to move from jaded detachment to wholehearted openness, learning to see one another—and ourselves—as miracles bearing the goodness of God.

Preacher: The Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas

Occasion: 150th Anniversary of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

Date: June 28, 2026

Location: St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

In this powerful anniversary sermon, The Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas invites St. Paul’s—and all who listen—to consider what it means to carry forward the gospel legacy of Jesus in an anxious and disorienting age.

Sermon by The Rev. Nancy Vaders · June 21, 2026

In this sermon on Matthew 10, Rev. Nancy Vaders begins with her own “bird nerd” fascination and focuses on the humble house sparrow mentioned by Jesus

In a world that often calls us “weeds,” the Rev. Erika Takacs looks to the humble dandelion and to Scripture to proclaim an “invasive hope” that refuses to die. Drawing on Paul’s words that “suffering produces endurance… and hope does not disappoint,” she invites us to see that our hardest seasons are not the end of the story, but the soil where God’s relentless, expansive love takes root and spreads.