Sermons & Worship Audio

      View Archived Sermons     NEW! Listen to this Sermon     Jeremiah 29: 4-7 What are the three most important things to consider when looking for and purchasing real estate? Location, location, location. And what is the point of this cliché? It matters where you are.  It matters how you understand where you are.  And these things matter because somehow our lives are less anxious and more meaningful when there is some congruence between our location and…

    View Archived Sermons      NEW! Listen to this Sermon    

      View Archived Sermons     NEW! Listen to this Sermon Ephesians 4:1-16     I’ve heard the story and maybe you have too of a pastor who could not – try as he might come up with anything to say as he worked diligently throughout the week on his sermon.  This is every pastor or preacher’s worst nightmare.  Each time I prepare a sermon I pray that the Holy Spirit might gift me with the words I need, or…

    View Archived Sermons    NEW! Listen to this Sermon  

  View Archived Sermons  NEW! Listen to this sermon   I sit here on Christmas day and I am silent, truly silent.  Today I actually notice the hum of the freezer and the whisper of the furnace blowing through the vents.  I look out the window and see the Linden tree pods gently swaying in the breeze.  I have been doing my best this advent season to take time each day to be silent and do my advent readings, but…

    View Archived Sermons     NEW! Listen to this Sermon Matthew 1:18-25   Our text for this week begins, “Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way… and the story is launched.This story, as told to us by Matthew, ushers us into a world full of power and its use.As we listen to this story we will hear about the power of Hebrew genealogy and patriarchy, the power of a violent and disturbed King Herod…

    View Archived Sermons     Texts: Luke 1:47-55; James 5:7-10 Encounter with the Divine I love traditional Christmas carols!  I confess to feeling a little guilty in saying this. The theology and historicity of the lyrics in the carols can be suspect, and the ‘schmalziness’ of some can be off-putting.  Yet, I like the sentiment behind them; and, the ‘schmalz’ can be very effective.  The ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ from the Messiah and the Bach Christmas oratorio are absolutely wonderful.  But,…

    View Archived Sermons     New! Listen to this sermon Matt. 3:1-12   In those days, John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming,“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”  If I ask the question, when is the time for repentance, the answer in this sentence is both “in those days,” and “when the kingdom of heaven has drawn near.”  In the Gospel of Mark, the parallel to Matthew’s proclamation is,  “The time is fulfilled…

  View Archived Sermons   NEW! Listen to this sermon     “There are land mines buried in our road.” The jeep driver was being extremely cautious as we headed up a dirt road into the Nicaraguan mountains. With no roof on the jeep, we were standing in the back, taking in the beautiful mountains and valleys of northern Nicaragua. The driver went on: “the counter-revolutionaries have mined the roads, so we have to follow the tire tracks of the last vehicle.…

  View Archived Sermons     Isaiah 65:17-25    Our scripture text for today comes from Isaiah 65:17-25.  These are the words of God as recorded for us in the tradition of the prophet Isaiah sometime in the post-exilic period of Israel.  (oral recitation of Isaiah 65:17-25)In these verses, the prophet Isaiah reveals to us God’s promise and desire to create new heavens and a new earth.The poetry, symbols and images of Isaiah give us an important glimpse into God’s desires…