Your Faith Journey - Finding God Through Words, Song and Praise

Year A – Easter Sunday – April 5, 2026

Pastor Megan Floyd

Acts 10:34-43

Colossians 3:1-4

Matthew 28:1-10

Grace and peace to you from God and the Holy Spirit, and from Jesus Christ, our Savior. Christ is Risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia!

***

This past Holy Week has been… really something special.

Last week, on Palm Sunday, many of us here participated in the Palm Sunday March in Lansing. We were surrounded by a crowd of about 800 people from various denominations, who came together to march with palms in hand, bound by our shared commitment to the foundational teachings of Jesus.

We marched to share our commitment to love our neighbors… to feed the hungry, clothe the naked… to care for the sick, and the poor… and those who are outcast… and to welcome the stranger.

And our group here in Michigan was part of a larger movement across at least sixteen other states… thousands and thousands of Christians showed up… disciples of Jesus… marching to proclaim the saving words and promise of Christ.

Jesus Christ is not dead and gone… he is alive!

And then on Thursday, I had the profound honor to care for you by washing and anointing your feet… and by allowing my own feet to be washed and anointed.

We do this because Christ did this for his disciples… and told us to continue the practice, and so trusting in the words of our teacher, we wash…

There's a closeness there, in that simple and ancient practice, that just cannot be replicated any other way… and when sharing this practice, Jesus is profoundly close.

And then we shared our meal of Holy Communion together… and yes, we do that every week in remembrance of Christ… but on Maundy Thursday, we recall why we celebrate this meal… and we recall together the grace, love, and inclusion that Jesus demonstrated for all, even those who would later betray and deny him.

And so, we share our meal with all who are gathered… more than just trusting and hoping that Christ will show up… we expect our Christ to show up.

Jesus Christ is not dead and gone… he is alive!

And then on Friday… on Good Friday… we gathered with our siblings from All Saints Lutheran and St Paul Lutheran, and with our bishop… we gathered together as one community… to remember and honor Christ's death on the cross.

Even as we acknowledge that Christ is with us, always, we know that we cannot get to the Resurrection without going through death and the cross…

and so we gathered …as one body… and honored the presence of Christ that was there with us… and in each of us… it was, so very holy… and special.

And still we proclaim… Jesus Christ is not dead and gone… he is alive!

Jesus Christ is risen today! Alleluia!! Alleluia!!

I came here today… knowing that I would meet Christ… I expect him to show up because Christ promised to show up… and I know Christ lives in you… and in me… and so wherever we gather… Christ is there… alive… and with us.

That expectation of meeting Jesus everywhere we go… that's what it means to follow Jesus… to follow our God who became human… who defeated death and the grave…

That's what it means to follow a crucified and risen Lord… it means that we show up in the world expecting to meet Christ there.

We expect to meet Jesus… because we trust the Word of our God… we trust… and we dare to hope.

Just like Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, who showed up at the tomb on the third day… I believe they showed up expecting to meet Jesus! …or at least, daring to hope they would.

Now, I know that in the gospels of Mark and Luke, they write that the women showed up at the tomb with spices to anoint his body.

But not in Matthew… The Marys have been disciples of Jesus all along, following him and hearing his teaching… hearing him proclaim that he must die, but would rise again on the third day.

And all four gospels record that Jesus was anointed for his burial before he was crucified.

The women did not desert him or betray him… they stayed near… and watched. They felt the earth shake at the moment he died and heard the Roman Centurion proclaim that, truly, this man was the Son of God.

The Marys stayed… and on the third day… they came to the tomb… not carrying spices for anointing… but coming with fear… and outrageous hope… that death did not win.

They came… at the dawning of that new day… expecting to meet their risen Lord!

And the earth shook for the second time in three days as the stone was thunderously rolled aside… and the angel of the Lord descended from heaven to meet them.

The Roman guards fainted with terror, but the women stood strong, and they witnessed with awe and wonder that the tomb was empty. They stood strong because they expected something wonderful…

Jesus Christ is not dead and gone… he is alive!

The angel sent them on to meet Jesus, and they go with great fear and joy… but Jesus doesn't wait… he finds them and greets them with love… and they worship him… and bless his resurrected body.

And then, full of grace and forgiveness, Jesus instructs the women to gather those who deserted him… gather together those who fled… so he can be reunited with them… to remind them of his love… and to mercifully commission them to witness to his resurrection.

For the dawn from on high has broken upon us, and a new day has begun. Alleluia!! Alleluia!!

But Easter morning… is only the beginning.

Just as those first disciples had to decide, we, too, must decide who we are now… and who we must become… in the light of the risen Christ?

But do not be afraid… Easter faith does not mean perfect faith… not for the first disciples, and not for us …our faith is almost always a mixture of trust and doubt… of belief and unbelief.

Jesus knows… this is what we have… an imperfect faith… and yet, he still calls us to be with him… and to celebrate with him… on this new day.

And if we dare to hope in the promise of the resurrection… then we can show up, expecting Christ to meet us… trusting that God's grace precedes us wherever we go.

We can rest in the promise that Christ not only lives in you and me… but Christ also lives in the stranger whom we welcome… in the sick whom we minister to… in the hungry whom we feed… in the naked whom we clothe.

We expect Christ to meet us… and we rejoice in his presence.

If we dare to hope in the promise of the resurrection, then we can draw on the strength of Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, and resist the powers of this world that would pull us toward greed and violence… toward bigotry and corruption.

If we dare to hope in the promise of the resurrection, then we expect Christ to be here, and we can shape our lives around Christ's way of enduring love… and grace… and mercy.

Because Easter is not an event that we remember and celebrate only once a year.

Easter is a way of living… it's a way of loving… a way of shaping our communities in such a way that don't bend to the wills of the powerful… to the wills of greed and Empire…

But instead… Easter is a way of living that glorifies God through loving the least among us, as Christ loved us… and knowing that there is nothing in the world stronger than God's love.

Yes, we are Easter people.

We are children of God who dare to hope in the promise of the resurrection, and we expect to meet our living Christ wherever we go, and in all whom we meet.

For Jesus Christ is not dead and gone… he is alive! Alleluia!! Alleluia!!

Year A – Maundy Thursday – April 2, 2026

Pastor Megan Floyd

John 13:1-17, 31b-35

Grace and peace to you from God and the Holy Spirit, and from Jesus Christ, who loves us to the end. Amen.

***

This is a somber night… somber for us, because we know what's coming. We are bracing ourselves for the wave of grief… over what we have done… and what we have left undone.

We are bracing ourselves for the final moments before the cross… and we gather this evening to willingly dwell in that place of grief with Jesus, our Savior.

And yet, let us also remember… that our story with Jesus is ultimately… a love story.

It's a story so personal… so intimate… a story of our God who created us in love… and refused to allow us to drift away… and so, our God emptied themselves into the form of a slave… being born into human weakness… into the person of Jesus.

And at every turn of his life on earth… Jesus subverted the usual power structures.

On this night… we gather… we gather with the disciples around the table… a table of celebration… they don't know what's coming, but Jesus does.

We gather around the table with Jesus, as Jesus does his very best to say farewell to his disciples… to his friends… whom he loves… completely.

Jesus is imploring them to understand what he has taught them through his preaching… and shown them with his actions.

Jesus is intent… and they can feel the tension… the heaviness in the air… the importance of their meal together… even if they don't fully understand why.

This night… it feels different. And yet… how could they have known it was their last night with Jesus as he was?

And then… "Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end." …to the end… not only a great, heavenly love, but… he loved them to completion…

Jesus loves them… and loves us… with a fullness that began with the creation of the world… and continues to the end of the ages… Jesus loves them to the end.

And knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, Jesus took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself…

He poured water into a basin… and began to wash his disciples' feet.

I can imagine the silent wonder of those whose feet Jesus washed first… not daring to say a word.

But I think… I think I would have reacted like Peter… horrified at the idea of Jesus lowering himself to wash my feet!

Having our feet exposed… and washed by another… it's vulnerable and awkward… and if you feel that way, too, you're not alone!

And yet… this is what Jesus does.

Jesus… our God incarnate… through his life and ministry… through his actions and his love… gives us a vision and an understanding of who God is.

Our God is one who loves us enough to come close to us… who shows us how to love each other through humble service… but also… how to receive love in return.

And as Jesus also washed the feet of Judas… he shows us how to even love those who would betray us… that is how deeply we are called to love.

On this special night… we are called by Jesus… commanded… to not only love and serve others… but to allow ourselves to be loved… to both give and receive… service and care… and love.

This life as a disciple… it's not all toil and suffering… it is a life of reciprocal love… and in that mutuality… in that holy community with others… there is joy!

The kind of joy that bubbles up from the relief of bearing the weight of our shared need… of daring to be vulnerable with another, and being met with love, just as Christ has loved us.

That is what Christ Jesus has shown us… this life of discipleship… is full of wonder… and love… and joy.

And every day we live into this truth… every day we are made clean… and sent again by Jesus to walk in the world… to walk in the light of this commandment to love others as we ourselves are loved.

However, the commandment to love others is not itself new… it is ancient and foundational for our relationship with God.

But what is new… on this night… is how we now understand this command through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus… through how he cared for others, especially those who were most vulnerable… the outcast… the sick… the poor… the widows and children.

And how through Jesus, God revealed the depth and strength of this love that we both receive and share.

For as we practice bearing one another in love, we also practice receiving love from God.

And as we practice humble service for one another, we also practice receiving what we need from the Holy Spirit.

As we practice bearing another's vulnerability with tender loving care, we practice allowing our spirit to be vulnerable and true with our Creator, who loves us to the end… who loves us… to completion.

This is the beauty and joy in Jesus' commandment to love… that as we practice this love for others, we grow in love for both ourselves… and for God.

And as we practice loving others as we love ourselves, we more fully recognize the presence of God in each person, and the light of Christ that dwells in ourselves.

So on this night… this somber and beautiful night… let us remember that practicing the vulnerability of having our feet washed… is to practice the necessary vulnerability to receive love and care.

…not only from others, but from Christ himself.

And then later, as we gather around the table to share Christ's promised presence in the bread and wine… remember that we gather with amazement and joy as those who are loved beyond the violence of cross…

We gather as those who are loved… to the end.

Amen.

Today, we had a special musical performance of Hosana, Hosana! by the Faith Chancel Choir at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

Today, we had a special musical performance of Jesus Walked this Lonesome Valley/Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen by the Faith Chancel Choir at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

Year A – Fifth Sunday in Lent– March 22, 2026

Pastor Megan Floyd

John 11:1-45

Grace and peace to you from God and the Holy Spirit, and from Jesus Christ, who liberates us from our bindings, and redeems us through God's love and grace. Amen.

***

"Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." …both sisters launch this statement at Jesus… this accusation… this plea.

Did you not care… did you not love him enough? Did we not love you enough? Why… why did you let him die?

Their words cut into my heart… I feel their grief… and I imagine you do, too. None of us need reach very far to grasp the pain of a loss that we wished our Lord could have prevented.

This past week, I learned that the father of an old high school friend died after suffering for many years with cancer. They are devastated and broken… and yet, clinging now to the promise that Jesus gave us… that her dad is now rejoicing with God, free of his earthly pain.

But… four years ago… when he was first diagnosed, they were sure that their faith would deliver him from his illness.

…and I was angry at their pastor for having the audacity to proclaim that if they prayed the right way… loved God the right way… that if they could somehow have the most perfect faith… that his cancer would go away.

That kind of theology… is cruel and abusive… and I wish it wasn't so prevalent in our American spiritual culture… It adds a layer of shame and guilt on top of the bodily suffering that one is already enduring and creates impossible standards. …yeah, I was angry, and I grieved for them.

But this text is tricky… Jesus is the resurrection and the life, and whatever he asks for will be given. So, the temptation is there… to hope that we can somehow compel Jesus to take away our illness… or to prevent the death of our loved one… or to reverse the accident… or to repair that which was lost.

We focus on the sign… on the miracle that Jesus performed of bringing Lazarus back to life… something he did so that those who witnessed and testified to it would understand and believe that Jesus was sent from God.

But if we are so focused on the miraculous raising of Lazarus… we may miss the beautiful truth that Jesus was there with them… he was with them in their sorrow… very much so… just as Jesus is with us in our pain… and in our grief…

Jesus, in his compassion and empathy... weeps with us when we weep.

Jesus, who is sent from God… who is God… came to share life with us… all of our life experiences… our joy and our love… as well as our pain and our grief.

And we all know… that love and loss are intertwined, and that grief is a natural part of our lives.

In the face of grief and loss, it is also tempting to rush into the promised joy of eternal life with Christ… to gloss over the pain of death and skip into rejoicing… but does that honor the source of our grief?

At this point in Lent… in our steady march toward Jesus' betrayal and the cross… we, too, might be tempted to skip past the hard parts and move directly into our Easter celebration.

…but does skipping the discomfort of Holy Week honor Jesus and the sacrifice he made for us?

Does that honor the fullness of life that Jesus spent with us? Can we not dwell for a time with Jesus… in his grief?

When Jesus went to Bethany, he knew what he was going to do… he knew that he would raise Lazarus… not so that Lazarus could have more earthly life, but so that we might believe in Jesus.

And yet, even knowing what he went there to do… Jesus was still deeply moved… by their grief… and he wept with them.

We don't know exactly why Jesus wept… I imagine it was complicated, as our tears so often are.

Perhaps he was angry at death itself… and the pain it always brings… or perhaps he was feeling the weight of his own impending death, and how this sign of raising Lazurus would be the act that would set things in motion for his arrest.

Just as the crowd speculated on his tears, we do not have a clear understanding of his grief… only that he grieved.

But you know… grief does not need a clear explanation to be valid.

Jesus, our God with us… grieves with us in the face of death and suffering… Jesus shares our sorrow that we must face this pain as part of the cycle of life.

And yet… Jesus is still Lord over all that binds us, including death… but also… so much more.

And so, just as Jesus calls to Lazarus to come out… he calls to us…

Jesus calls to us not only at the end of our earthly lives, but he calls to us every day… to leave behind the things that bind us and chose life with Christ.

Jesus calls to us who are dead and bound in our sin…

calls to us when we are crippled with guilt and shame… he calls to us when we feel isolated and alone… he calls to us when we turn a blind eye to the pain of our neighbors… and invites us to actively participate in our own renewal.

Hear the words of our Lord calling to you… come out… and…

Unbind him… let him go…

Unbind her… be free from the power of sin…

Unbind them… be liberated to see the Glory of God at work in yourself, for you are deeply loved.

Let your bindings go… so that you might be fully present in God's love and light… and feel it's warmth.

Let your bindings go… so you are able to fully receive the grace and mercy Christ has freely laid before you.

Let your bindings go… and know that you are always and forever, forgiven and redeemed.

Christ is calling to you… to come out and join him.

And yet, he knows… we all know… this life is a work in progress. Some days are better than others, and my friends… that's why there is grace.

Jesus' love is not dependent on you praying the right way, or loving Jesus the right way, or having the perfect faith…

Jesus loves you. Full stop. And because of that love, he calls you to come out and live your life with him…

This world around us will still have brokenness and failing… we will still have pain and grief… and Christ weeps with us in our grief, and we place our pain in God's loving care and know that on the other side of death… there is life.

It can be challenging to let go of that which binds us, for sure… to let the old pass away and trust our God who calls to us into something new.

But hold fast to the promise that our journey is not just to the grave, but through it… and there is new life on the other side. Amen.

Today, we had a special musical performance of A Communion Meditation by the Faith Chancel Choir at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

Year A – Fourth Sunday in Lent– March 15, 2026

Pastor Megan Floyd

John 9:1-41

Grace and peace to you from God and the Holy Spirit, and from Jesus Christ, who finds us where we are, and calls us to be his own. Amen.

***

Just a couple of days ago, on Thursday, nearly 30 people from across lower Michigan came here to Faith for a mini retreat focused on ministry with youth and young adults.

When we first started planning, I expected about eight people to come… so the fact that it became a room full of people was amazing and so incredible.

These folks were pastors, lay ministers, and synod staff who chose to spend their day together because they value the place of youth and young adults in the church… and each of them knew, on some level… that this is work we need to do together.

We are all aware that the programs and platforms from the 90s don't work like they used to… and that life together in a faith community is ever-changing… especially for our young people… and it's not always abundantly clear what shape it will take next.

So, we came together, and trusted that God's Spirit would find us here… and guide us… and inspire us… to discern the way forward. It was really awesome!

And God's Spirit did find us, and reminded us that we need each other in the body of Christ… We need to hear the testimonies and witness of our neighbors beyond our church walls, so that we can better equip ourselves… and our communities to recognize how and where God shows up…

Because Christ is always seeking us… God's Spirit is always swirling around, so close, it's blowing our hair back… but if we are blind to it, we might just think it's windy.

So… in our gospel story today… we are blessed to hear the testimony of a man whom Jesus found…

He's a poor man, desperately poor – a beggar. It's all he can be… because he was born blind.

And no one, in all of history, had ever managed to heal a person born blind. So this man is an outcast in his community.

Jesus and his disciples are walking along. They walk past this blind man who is begging. The disciples are eager to learn from their Rabbi, so they ask Jesus… Whose sin caused this beggar to be blind?

They don't really see the man... They don't address him… but they talk about him. They assume that his situation is a lesson on the consequences of sin.

But Jesus saw him. Jesus saw that beloved man… and… he DID take the opportunity to teach his disciples a lesson. He applied spit and mud to the man's eyes and sent him away to wash.

The man obeyed Jesus's command… and it was at that moment that this man became a disciple… the moment that he chose to trust Jesus… and do as Jesus commanded… and then for the first time in his life, he could see!

So naturally, he's amazed and… not really sure what to do next except tell others what happened to him.

But his neighbors can't believe it – some don't even recognize him. How could he possibly see? How could this possibly be the same person? No way.

And the Pharisees… are blind to the miracle and solely focused on the fact that Jesus healed on the Sabbath, so Jesus must be a sinner.

However, the man doesn't have a deep theological explanation for what happened… he only gives his honest answer… "I don't know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that through I was blind, now I see."

And the man… this guy that Jesus found, continues to tell his story. He continues to testify to what Jesus has done for him… and each time he does… he grows in his understanding of who this man, Jesus, must be.

But the religious leaders are stuck… they can't see past that Jesus violated their religious laws… they are stuck in how things have always been.

They cannot see that God is doing something new through Jesus… and showing them that God's kingdom is bigger than what they ever imagined.

The man continues to testify… continues to give witness to his encounter… growing bolder in the dawning of his understanding.

The religious leaders choose the dark confinement of the law over the light of the world shining around them.

And yet, the man is working it all out, and finally… he confidently proclaims that Jesus could only be from God. …but unfortunately… that was so offensive, they cast him out of the community… again.

And again, Jesus finds him.

The Lord found him, and the man recognized his God! How could he possibly do anything but give thanks and praise… that he was found…he was claimed. …he was loved …and through Christ, he was given abundant life… grace upon grace.

We also suffer from blindness to what the Lord has done. Not always, ok… but we're generally out of practice.

We have these moments where we're sure that the Spirit just washed over us… but then we write it off… or …we marvel at the moment, and give our thanks… but then… we forget.

We don't run through the town telling others what the Lord has done!

But you know what? I wanna hear about it! I DO! …I want to know what God is up to in your life! I wanna know how Jesus is finding you day after day.

Just like how I was excited to tell you about how God found us this past week in our retreat… How Christ found us… and blessed us with the guiding presence of the Spirit.

When you share your testimony about the moments when Christ finds you… even if you don't have a full theological explanation… only that you feel it happened… that's enough… that is sharing the Gospel!

Because the first step to sharing your witness with others is to acknowledge that Christ found you… that the Spirit showed up in your life!

So… the Spirit blows your hair back, and you think it's just windy …but then you pause… maybe it's more. …Maybe. …maybe write it down… and pray over it later… see what God reveals to you. See what God might be doing …through you.

Your testimony not only opens your eyes to see Christ, but your testimony opens the eyes of others as well, so they can see Christ.

Just like our retreat this past week… this work is better when we do it together… when we trust that our God will find us… wherever we are… and we share those experiences and help each other understand them…

This brings us all closer to God and closer to each other as the full Body of Christ.

The good news today is that just as Jesus found that man… an outcast from his community… and brought him into the fold, Jesus will find you… call you and claim you… and bring you under his protection… and his love.

It's not a one-time thing… it's every day… the Lord finds you.

And each of us is here today because the Lord found us… and because we are found… because we have been given grace upon grace …we can go to those whom God sends us… and proclaim this good news!

We go confidently with a word from the Lord. …a word of love. …a word of welcome… a word of invitation… to work together… to collaborate in our ministries and in our lives…

and join together in God's abundance …of grace upon grace …that we ourselves have received from the Lord.

It's too good not to share!

The miracle that Jesus offers in our gospel today is an invitation into abundant life, and it comes to you exactly as you are. You have been found …and you are beloved and worthy.

So remember that God continues to call us into this joy of sharing our testimony… the Holy Spirit continues to invite us to share our experiences of how God is showing up for us in our families, and in our faith communities.

We can boldly trust that the Spirit will guide us… and that others need this word… they need to hear that God does, indeed, find us and love us.

You don't have to have it all figured out… just trust your story… and rejoice in Christ's presence. Amen.

Today, we had a special musical performance of Lord Jesus You Shall Be My Song by the Faith Chancel Choir with Ariella VanderLaan on oboe at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

Today, we had a special musical performance of Lord, Who Throughout These Forty Days by the Faith Chancel Choir with Ariella VanderLaan on oboe at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC