University UMC Sermons

We begin a new sermon series for the Stewardship Season. Our theme this year is “People of Possibility” and Pastor Teresa’s sermon centers on Isaiah 43:19, “I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth; do you not perceive it?”

“There is no greater power than a community discovering what it cares about. Ask “What is possible?” not “What’s wrong?” Keep asking.” - Margaret Wheatley

“I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.” - Maya Angelou

Pastor Earl preaches on a short yet interesting story in the Acts of Apostles. It’s about Peter’s vision of the bizarre foods delivered to him from heaven.

“I didn’t care about bizarre foods. The show I sold was about preaching patience, tolerance, and understanding about things that separated us: different cultures, different sexualities, different skin colors. I wanted to talk about things we had in common.” - Chef Andrew Zimmern on his show, Bizarre Foods

Pastor Teresa’s sermon “A Life of Service concludes our sermon series on “Numbering Our Days” based on Psalm 90 which reads, “Teach us, O Beloved, to number our days that we might have a heart of wisdom.”

“Everybody can be great because everybody can serve.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” – Desmond Tutu

Pastor Earl’s sermon is about planning and improvising as we continue the sermon series focusing on Psalm 90 “Teach us O Beloved to number our days that we might have a heart of wisdom.” 

Are you more like a planner who schedules everything in detail and feels comfortable seeing everything go as planned? Or are you more like an improviser who goes with the flow and feels excited to make decisions on the spot? We all have plans for the upcoming days and weeks. But sometimes, our time doesn’t go as we planned, and many times, we have to improvise depending on the situation. What about God’s plan for us? Has everything in the world been going as God planned? Or has God also improvised sometimes? Let’s reflect on these questions together.

Pastor Teresa’s sermon continues our focus on Psalm 90 “Teach us O Beloved to number our days that we might have a heart of wisdom.” The scripture text is Matthew’s telling of the Laborers in the Vineyard and the sermon references the history of Labor Day and the important work of labor unions.

We welcome guest preacher Rev. Dr. David F. White. Dr. White served on the faculty of Austin Seminary from 2005 until his retirement in July 2023. Throughout his career, Dr. White’s areas of interest and research  focused primarily on youth ministry. His most recent book, Tending the Fire that Burns at the Center of the World: Beauty and the Art of Christian Formation, further explores the subject of his sermon this Sunday.

Maybe the desire to make something beautiful is the piece of God that is inside each of us.  - Mary Oliver

Pastor Teresa is preaching and continues the sermon series “Number our Days” with a look at belonging and community. We will hear the familiar scripture lesson from I Corinthians 12 about the church being The Body of Christ - one body with many members.

“Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.” - Marian Wright Edelman

We begin a new sermon series inspired by Psalm 90 entitled “Teach us to Number Our Days.” Many activities fill our schedules and days to overflowing and a life of faith can assist us in being attentive and intentional about making choices that foster joy. On this first Sunday in the series Pastor Teresa will preach about the gift of pastimes and hobbies

How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. - Annie Dillard 

Teach us, O God, to number our days, that we may have a heart of wisdom. - Psalm 90:12

Megan Otto preaches a little about her renewal leave time and the journeys we are on in our lives of faith.

Pastor Earl preaches on the miracle story of feeding the multitude in the Gospel of John and its enduring message of the world that Jesus wants to make with us here and now.

“ At its essence, a miracle is a message… A miracle is God’s extraordinary message in the midst of the ordinary; it is an exercise not in the supernatural or in the irregular but in communication.” – Peter J. Gomes