JUST BECAUSE…? August 30, 2009 David Brubacher Genesis 2:4b-17 Matthew 4:1-1 Just because…? Just because we are able to do something, does that mean we should do it? That whatever we do is okay? That it does not matter? These are questions that came to me one afternoon a few weeks ago as I walked through some of the downtown and waterfront areas of Toronto. I had some time between downtown appointments…
“This Land was Made for You and Me.” August 16, 2009 Tim Schmucker Jeremiah 29: 1,4-7; Romans 8:18-25. TUMC summer series “All God’s Creation” Please stand and join in the sermon introduction: This land is your land, This land is my land, From Bonavista, to Vancouver Island From the Arctic Circle to the Great Lakes waters, This land was made for you and me. “This Land Is Your Land”, Woody Guthrie’s 1940 ode to the land we call home,…
Grandeur of Dappled Things August 9, 2009Jodie Boyer Hatlem and Doug Johnson Hatlem PIED BEAUTY(Gerard Manley Hopkins) GLORY be to God for dappled things— For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;Landscape plotted and pieced—fold, fallow, and plough;And all trades, their gear and tackle and trim. All things counter, original, spare, strange;Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change: Praise…
Salt and Light Vern Riediger Scripture Reading: Matthew 5: 13-16; “Salt and Light” 13 You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. 14 You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the…
Creation & Physics July 5, 2009Ryan Janzen My message this morning is on Creation and physics, and how the way we think of the two separately, and together, can have a profound impact on our faith. I ask that the Lord bless our thoughts as we think about these things. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Ryan Janzen; I work with physics and engineering as part of my Ph.D. work, and I’m also…
All God’s Creation Summer Series I June 28, 2009David Brubacher TEXT: Genesis I Psalm 8 Revelations 22:1-5 As a finish carpenter I put a lot of myself into my work. In the end my work says something about me. The name of my business is Made to Fit Carpentry. I chose that name in conversation with Brent, our son-in-law. We were discussing the values I bring to my work. Making sure things actually fit is important to me.…
“Sold!” to the one who says “yes” June 14, 2009Marilyn Zehr In the beginning, in Genesis, we are invited to hear God speak a Word. When God speaks a Word – the whole universe and everything in it is called into existence. In John chapter 1 – we hear the same Word, present at the beginning with God, become flesh in Jesus. Something very powerful and effective is happening with this Divine Word. But let’s begin by considering both words…
Living God’s Embrace Pentecost/Communion May 31, 2009David Brubacher TEXT: Acts 2:1-21 John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 Two women were sitting at a table in an eating establishment when a couple of mixed race sat at a table some distance away. The two women began to discuss their disapproval of mixed race relationships in rather loud, embarrassing and disgusting terms. Their waiter challenged them suggesting that their comments were not only impolite but racist. To this the women replied, “We…
The Soloist, the Recluse, and the Church May 17, 2009Aldred Neufeldt Text: Psalm 98 John 15:9-17 The Soloist ‘The Soloist’ is the title of a new ‘movie that is getting some media ‘buzz’ these days. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. It’s based on the real life story of Nathaniel Ayers, a gifted musician who developed schizophrenia during his second year at the Juilliard School. Ayers returns to Los Angeles, becomes homeless and ends up playing the violin and the cello on the…
Living God’s embrace of the weak in faith May 10, 2009Jonathan Slater Text: Romans 14:1-15:7 We are in the midst of a preaching series, “Living God’s Embrace: Who can measure”. Dave introduced the series three weeks ago, and then in subsequent weeks focused on living God’s embrace in the midst of racial and cultural diversity, and also in the midst of economic disparity and homelessness. While there are elements of both racial-cultural diversity and economic diversity at play in today’s…