Hope is one of the things Jesus calls us to wear. but hope isn't simply blind optimism, it is a courageous act of faith that calls us to step out and trust in the Spirit of Possibility.
the things we wear: part 1 - rev. nick coates
We kick off our fall sermon series by talking about how what we wear matter, how clothes aren't the only thing we wear, and what Jesus has to do with all of that.
Why I Marched at Pride: Choosing Love Over Hate - Kessa Den Hoed
Kessa, one of our young adults, gave the sermon today and shared about her experiences of marching in this year's Pride parade and how we all need to celebrate life by choosing love over hate.
not in purity but in love - rev. chang-han kim
Challenging the Jewish purity system of first century Palestine, Jesus taught the inward transformation of faith; Jesus saw that any outer form of rituals and customs was the expression of the innermost mind. Jesus’ redrawn boundaries were not based on the system of purity but on the transformative power of love. In following Jesus, all people are included and welcomed regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation.
wake-boarding and dealing with spectacular failure - rev. nick coates
We all know what it's like to fail and we all know the devastating fear and shame it can bring. But what if failure doesn't need to be like that? Rev Nick offers us a way to understand failure in the Jesus Tradition and asks: what if failure isn’t something to be avoided, but something to be embraced?
The Pestering God - rev. grant dawson
Guest minister Rev. Grant Dawson shares on The Pestering God, who summons us on a journey.
what is needed? - rev. grant dawson
Guest minister Rev. Grant Dawson shares on what is needed.
what's buying a house got to do with spirituality? - rev. nick coates
What's buying a house got to do with our faith and spirituality? Turns out, quite a bit.
Rev. Nick walks us through 4 things he learned about the spiritual life by buying a house
and offers us some questions to rumble with throughout the week.
the source of our unity - rev. grant dawson
Guest minister Rev. Grant Dawson shares a message on The Source of Our Unity.
facing change - rev. grant dawson
Guest minister Rev. Grant Dawson shares on coming to terms with a transforming world, when all we really want is stability.
embracing the crazy - rev. nick coates
What do we do with crazy? Generally we're taught to do one of two things: either gaslight it or tame it. But our tradition offers a third option: embrace it. When it comes to the crazy ideas Jesus offers us like safe spaces for everyone, looking after the poor, and trusting we are all loved our job isn't to laugh it off or rationalize it away but to say 'yes' and embrace the crazy.
seeing is the first step to generosity - rev. nick coates
Rev. Nick talks with us about the most important word in that story of Jesus feeding the 5000 and how that one word unlocks how we can be the compassionate and generous people God calls us to be.
take notice - rev. sheena trotter-dennis
the fine print - jesse peters
Our Worship Arts Director, Jesse, talks to us about the fine print, Pentecost, and systemic racism.
the repeating witness - rev. nick coates
Part of what it means to be the church is to be the "repeating witness" - people who share about how God has moved in their lives and world and who try to help others experience the same. Rev Nick talks about that and what that means for us as a church community.
cornerstone or stumbling stone - rev. michael ward
truths, questions, & strangers - rev. nick coates
Why does Jesus show up as a stranger? Its a good question and one that asks us some questions of its own: 'how can we be strangers to others' and 'what do we do with the strangers in our own lives and worlds?'
peace and breath: what do we do with our fear? - rev. nick coates
Rev Nick shares with us that story of Jesus appearing to the disciples in a locked room and how that story can help us understand what we do with our fear.
rivers of justice: the path to justice is simple - rev. tracy robertson
Our friend Rev Tracy, a former chaplain of a youth correctional center, shared with us about justice being a responsibility and what a criminal system based on God's restorative and healing justice could look like.
rivers of justice: immigration & refugees - rev. nick coates
In 2017 there were 65 million people displaced in our world. That's 1 in 113 people. As we have conversations about what to do with immigration and refugees, we need to know how to have that conversation as people of faith and spirituality. We need to ask: 'What is God saying to us about this?". Turns out, God is saying something we need to hear.