Today’s gospel reading is Luke 4:1-13 in which we hear of how the devil tempts Jesus after Jesus returns from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit for forty days in the wilderness. Pastor Beth asked us ‘Aren’t we all traveling through this wilderness?’ and what does the word wilderness mean. Some answers given…
A Place of Grace
Sermons (Page 39)
Pastor Eric asked us what did you do today to be a good listener? To listen means attending to something. In today’s gospel, Luke 9:28-43, God speaks directly to Peter, John and James telling them: “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” The congregation was asked to look at the alter wall art,…
Describe a bold woman. She is self assured, a leader, courageous, goes beyond established standards, daring, shameless and much more. Jesus is calling us to go where none have gone before. We are to love our enemies. Bless and praise and be generous and forgiving to those that have hurt us. Be merciful and compassionate…
On this Sixth Sunday after Epiphany, we are presented with a Gospel full of many “blessings” and “woes” described by Jesus as the nature of discipleship. “Blessed are you who are poor”. In other words, “Welcome to the Kingdom. That is the program I am establishing for you in heaven”. “Woe to you who are rich” but…
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with my whole heart. + Psalm 138:1 Dear friends, We hope you enjoyed a peaceful, warm, snowy morning. We missed worshiping with you today! While the sun was shining, we took a leisurely walk through the glorious winter wonderland. During our walk, we offered prayers of thanks,…
Mercy and healing extended to the oppressed and outsiders was never a popular concept in Jesus’ day. In today’s Gospel (Luke 4:21-30), we see the people of the synagogue becoming so threatened by the power of Jesus to free, cleanse and heal the outsiders that they were ready to “hurl him off the cliff”. Pastor…
Today, on this Third Sunday after Epiphany, we had the pleasure of meeting Pastor Chris Ode of the Living Stones Prison Congregation from the Washington Corrections Center in Shelton. Pastor Chris shared with us the fascinating story of his calling to this ministry just last summer. Pastor Eric and members of our congregation here at St.…
In today’s Gospel, a huge problem occurred…the host of a wedding ran out of wine. Pastor Beth described running out of wine as being way beyond embarrassing. It could bring a curse on the wedding couple, or be a sign of the host’s lack of hospitality, resources, and friends. So, as the first of his…
Today we started our worship service with being reminded that the baptismal font is central to our lives as God’s people. In the waters of Holy Baptism, we celebrate the gift of God’s Grace and this morning we received the sign of the cross with baptismal water from our pastors. Pastor Eric read Luke 3:15-17,21-22,…
What does Jesus bring to the world? What do we bring to Jesus and the world? Pastor Eric gave us examples of what we can do in 2019 as gifts to Jesus. 1. Pray the Lord’s prayer. 2. Love your neighbor as yourself. 3. Don’t be afraid. 4. Forgive. 5. Go make disciples. 6. Feed the hungry,…