Sermons & Worship Audio

What does the crucifixion have to do with Thanksgiving? October 9th, 2005 Gary Harder Text:Luke 23: 32-38 Introduction(Our thanksgiving service was a celebration held in three languages, Spanish, Korean and English. Because of translation, the sermon needed to be quite short) It comes as a bit of a shock to read the crucifixion story from Luke on this Thanksgiving Sunday. We read the crucifixion story only on Good Friday, don’t we? And shouldn’t we be reading upbeat praise and joy…

October 11, 2009 Marilyn Zehr     Joel 2:21-27 and Luke 12:13-21   Thanksgiving.   There is much to be thankful for.  We live in a land of abundance. It is the time of the year when much of the food in this province, in this country has been harvested and we know without even giving it much thought that we will likely have plenty to eat all winter.  And yet, with all of this abundance, sometimes we have to remind…

Filing a Complaint September 27, 2009 Michele Rizoli Psalm 89   (Background: Psalm has been read by two readers contrasting verses: 9-21 with 38-39, 22-28 with 40-44, 29-32 with 45, 33-37 with 46-51, verse 52 together) What is going on in this Psalm? It starts with a anthem to God’s awesomeness in creation, to God’s superiority over other gods. It then recounts the psalmist’s version of God’s covenant with the Davidic dynasty, then enumerates all the ways he perceives that…

ANOTHER LOOK September 20, 2009 David Brubacher Jeremiah 52:31-34 Luke 5:1-11 Recently I was reading a classic piece of literature that highlights the significance of taking another look. I quote, “I would not like them here or there. I would not like them anywhere. I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam-I-am.” After much coaxing, the Cat-in-the Hat finally says to Sam-I-am, “Sam! If you will let me be, I will try them. You…

For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us May 24, 2009 Doug Johnson Hatlem Introduction Last month, the New York Yankees played their home opener in the brand new, 1.6 billion dollar Yankee Stadium. On hand to throw out the first pitch was Yogi Berra. Berra is, of course, famous not only for his skills as a great Yankee backstop and slugger, but for the foolish wisdom of his one liners. Most famously: It ain’t over…

 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…

Planter and Waters Needed February 8, 2009 Jeff Taylor “One planted, another watered, but God gave the increase. So then, what is Paul, what is Appolos?” “Are you kidding me?!” protests the Corinthian believer, “They planted our church; they gave us life and fed us milk like newborn babies. They watered us when we were about to shrivel and die. What are they!?” What are the several mission ministers who came, one after another, almost annually, to plant and water…

The Big Playwright in the Sky August 10, 2008 Brad Lepp Text: Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28 Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45b Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33 “Just Jazz it Up!” Two Sundays ago we heard Al tell us that Jazz isn’t an effect to be placed on something, but rather a starting place and lens through which to approach life. That we need to be masters of the skills of life, so that we can put it aside and effortlessly be in the…

Reflection August 3, 2008 Tim Schmucker Text: Acts 10 The sermon I was to give today had grown out of a challenge from the preaching team to preach on business and money. That was going to be hard enough – I thought I had gotten out of it with this malaria or dengue tropical disease – but not quite, I guess. So, now I have a 7 minute reflection, and it’s about sexuality. Umm, not sure which is more difficult.…

From Babel to Pentecost May 27th, 2007 (Pentecost) Gary Harder Text: Genesis 11:1-9 Luke 24:45-53 Acts 2 Introduction This week I finished reading Immaculee Llbagiza’s book “Left to tell – Discovering God amidst the Rwandan Holocaust”. It is a powerful and disturbing book. The Hutus and Tutsis were the two biggest tribes in Rwanda. Mostly they got along very well with each other, living in the same villages, inter-marrying, going to school together, forming fast friendships with each other. Deep…