On Sunday morning, Mark worshipped in a cathedral with a million-dollar bell tower, and on Sunday evenings he pulled food out of a trader joe's dumpster to eat. The paradox of the Christian church in America is that it exists alongside Empire mentality. What does it mean for Jesus followers to bring about the Kin-dom of God in the midst of Empre?

Margie Simmons shared a First Word about the metaphor of juggling glass balls, and about being okay with not being okay.

Mica shared a First Word about the tendency to avoid discomfort. Uncomfortable situations seem to be where the God of the Bible seeks to meet us.

Greg Morgan spoke about authority and the consensual power we give over to others. It has been his experience that the authority of Jesus grows experimentally within him. When you listen for God speaking through others, how do you look beyond the surface to listen for the Spirit of God? Are you mindful to give God inward authority over your own desires and preferences?

Anne Marie Jacob shared a message about her calling to a ministry that supports mothers in exploring their spirituality. Her queries: Where in your life do you most encounter resistance to being beloved by God? When is it hard to accept that you are loved just as you are, with what you bring? Who or what might offer you companionship as you journey through these times and places of disconnection?

Octavia Butler's words, as recorded in her Parable series, are a profound revelation, "All that you touch you change...all that you change changes you...God is Change." Franklin Graham disagrees, as do many other Evangelical leaders. They say that God is unchanging. For this message, Mark wrestles with the contradicting messages.

What happens when we gather together? For this message Graham Reside delves into the history of gatherings, and the way in which we create meaning for our lives by the ways in which we gather.

Perhaps it is time for us to unrest ourselves from the rational, static approach to the Bible. The Black Church has engaged with Dr. Christena Cleveland has called "sanctified imagination" when it comes to the Christian story. What can the white church learn from our brothers and sisters?

In the wake of what took place in our countries capital last week, we invited dr. doreen dodgen-magee to come and speak to us about ways we can be responding while also taking care of ourselves.

Was it "Vulnerability Sunday" at our Quaker meeting or what? For this Message, Mark shares how a recent revelation about his relationship to food has allowed him to access the wisdom found in many spiritual traditions that "power is at its best in weakness."