Sunday, July 16, 2023 – Pentecost 7
Isaiah 55:10-13; Psalm 65:9-14; Romans 8:1-11; Matthew 13:1-9,18-23 Mr. Chris Paul, Seminarian When I read the readings for today, I was immediately taken back to growing up as a child on the great plains of Western Nebraska in a very small country town of around 1200 people. The livelihood of this town was of course, farming. Everyone […]
Sunday, July 9, 2023 – Pentecost 6
Zechariah 9:9-12; Psalm 145:8-15; Romans 7:15-25a; Matthew 11:16-19,25-30 The Rev. Drew Brislin This past week I was with Allison in her hometown of Maryville, TN. While out running errands one day we visited the local mall. It dawned on me that it has been years since I have visited an actual mall. In my youth like […]
Sunday, July 2, 2023 – Pentecost 5
Jeremiah 28:5-9; Psalm 89:1-4, 15-18; Romans 6:12-23; Matthew 10:40-42 The Rev. Candice B. Frazer My favorite childhood story book was The Tales of Winnie the Pooh. I love Pooh Bear and Tigger and Rabbit and all of those wonderful inhabitants of The Hundred Acre Wood. Hearing about their adventures, Pooh’s obsession with honey, Rabbit’s paranoia, Eeyore’s pessimism, and […]
Sunday, June 25, 2023 – Pentecost 4
Jeremiah 20:7-13; Psalm 69:7-10 (11-15), 16-18; Romans 6:1b-11; Matthew 10:24-39 The Rev. Drew Brislin Preachers sometimes refer to this reading in jest as Jesus’ sermon on family dynamics. I’m glad today is not Father’s Day because trying to explain ‘whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me’ might have been a […]
Sunday, June 18, 2023 – Pentecost 3
Exodus 19:2-8a; Psalm 100; Romans 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8 The Rev. Candice B. Frazer Between the years of 1830 and 1850, an estimated 60,000 Native Americans along with a few white sympathizers were removed from the Southeast and forced to relocate in the mid-West. We know that as the Trail of Tears—a five-thousand-mile trek. Most of the Indians forcibly […]
Sunday, June 11, 2023 – Pentecost 2
Hosea 5:15-6:6; Psalm 50 7-15; Romans 4:13-25; Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26 Mr. Chris Paul, Seminarian You may not think of sunsets when we talk about faith, but for me, they go hand in hand. Several years ago, I became aware of how God would use sunsets to strengthen my faith. I remember being at work one day when […]
Sunday, June 4, 2023 – Trinity Sunday
Genesis 1:1-2:4a; Psalm 8; II Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20 The Rev. Candice B. Frazer Our world has devolved into one of division and despair. At least that is our common perception. We live in a time of angst and anxiety that has difficulty pointing toward a hopeful future, one filled with possibility and promise. Instead, we look back and […]
Sunday, May 28, 2023 – Day of Pentecost
Acts 2:1-21; Psalm 104:25-35,37; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13; John 7:37-39 Mr. Chris Paul, Seminarian Happy Pentecost Day and Happy Birthday to the church! I feel like we should be having this big birthday celebration with a barbeque on the front lawn with kids running around with headbands that have flames on their heads, but I suppose […]
Sunday, May 21, 2023 – Easter 7
Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:1-10,33-36; 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11, John 17:1-11 The Rev. Drew Brislin After retiring from teaching for more than thirty years in the Dallas County School System, my dad and my stepmother decided like so many folks to retire to the beach. My dad spent many of those years teaching junior high band […]
Sunday, May 14, 2023 – Easter 6
Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:7-18; 1 Peter 3:13-22; John 14:15-21 The Rev. Candice B. Frazer In the early 1940s a young GI wrote to his sister from overseas. He was homesick and weary of the war, though he knew its necessity and importance. Trying hard to overcome a despair that might easily catch him unawares, he spoke of […]