by Michael Usey; 2 Samuel 7:1-9 (NRSV) It was a week to exhale, to sleep better, to thank God literally that our nation hasn’t yet succumbed to fascism–although we came pretty darn close. I for one was terrified that, when you have a cornered malignant narcissist with his finger on nuclear weapons of mass destruction, …
by Michael Usey; John 1.43-51 I had driven two days, 30 hours, 2000+ miles to get from San Diego to Louisville in August, 1980. I slept in my sleeping bag on top of my 74 blue Nova somewhere in Northeast Oklahoma, in Cherokee Nation territory, much to my mom’s chagrin. Arriving on the afternoon of …
by Kari Baumann; Isaiah 61.10-62.3, Luke 2.22-40 Good morning. I have the unenviable task of delivering the last sermon of the year. Oh, sure, make the intern try to find something to say to wrap up 2020! I see how it is! How do we even begin to sum up this year? I scrolled through …
by Michael Usey, Matthew 2.1-12 Like you, I’ve been so disgusted and so sad that I could hardly breathe. This is a time for lament, most of all. We are all justified in being exhausted this week. None of this is normal. And yet, we have grown so accustomed to our national chaos that we’ve …
by Michael Usey VENMO. VENMO. I now know it is VENMO. None of you needs to text, write, call or email me again with the correct pronunciation. Thank you so much for the OK Boomer heads up. Yes, I’ll be 63 next month but I am raging against the dying of the light. I saw …
by Michael Usey; John 1.1-18 This is John’s birth narrative, which explains why there are no Christmas pageants based on it. The stories Matthew and Luke tell are full of things you can put costumes on: shepherds, angels, magi, sheep. They are full of iconic things you can put on the stage: a stable, a …
By Lin Story-Bunce, Isaiah 61.1-4 I consider myself fortunate to have had teachers and mentors who have been significant at almost every stage of my life. Sometimes these mentors were with me on the courts or the soccer field – sometimes they were happenstance; people I met in along the way – but most often …
by James Blay; Isaiah 40.1-11 Tell it again! Tell it Again! This repetitive phrase is what we would utter once someone told a story they thought was funny, but the story fell flat. Lately I have found myself silently reciting that phrase to many different things. I have recited it to stories about history, to …
by Mike Eller; Isaiah 64.1-9 (NRSV) Greetings, College Park, from New York City! Katie, myself, Samuel and Karah have enjoyed worshiping with you every week even if in this odd, virtual way. For all of the headache that remote learning and meetings have caused us, we find ourselves very grateful on this Thanksgiving week to …
by Michael Usey, Acts 10.44-48 (NRSV) A couple of weeks ago I preached about we Christians being vigilant about a possible coup, and so it has come to pass, a slow-motion coup attempt. Our president is escalating his slapdash yet persistent attempts to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory, pushing for judges and for Republican …
by Michael Usey; Matthew 10.5-20;39 In some respects he seems modern and familiar to us, this one called Francis. Pampered middle class son, he brashly sowed his wild oats, radically repudiating his parents’ values. Alienated from his father, he sought youthful fame and fortune, only to find disillusionment with the world’s ways. Yet, in other …
by Michael Usey; 2 Corinthians 1.15-22 Listen again to this passage from 2 Corinthians 1.18-20, this time from the NRSV. I bet it’s a passage that you’ve rarely heard before, if ever: As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been “Yes and No.” For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, …
by Michael Usey; Daniel 3 The Evolve word for this Sunday is No. Maybe it’s not the brightest choice when we’re asking everyone to fill out your talent and interest survey for 2021 (and please do so, by the way). We are considering Daniel 3, the story of Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego, yet another fantastic …
by Michael Usey, Exodus 3.1-10 American author Sam Keen wrote, Wonder is the alpha and omega of the human mind. It stands the beginning and end of our quest to understand ourselves and the world. Aristotle said philosophy begins in wonder. It is the most primal of emotions, at once ordinary and disturbing. As the …
by Michael Usey, Mark 14.32-36 NRSV Abba, all things are possible to you; remove this cup from me; yet not what I want, but what you want.—Mark 14:36 NRSV, adapted Mark’s Gospel, the earliest one written, is the only one to capture Jesus’ use of Abba in his Aramaic tongue. It is here in the …
by Michael Usey; Psalm 69, NRSV [Portions of this sermon were adapted from an article by Daniel Hunter, “10 Things You Need to Know to Stop a Coup.”] I want to talk with you about a key moral issue in our country: the possibility of a presidential coup d’etat this fall. We have a Beloved …
by Michael Usey; Philippians 1.12-30, NRSV We’re in the second week of our fall sermon series entitled Evolve. The evolutionary Christian concepts we’re considering this morning are thankfulness and resilience. Our text for this sermon is from Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It’s a prison letter. Some of the great literature of the world was …
I’d Rather Die Than Come See You (But I May End Up Coming Anyway) Read More »
by Michael Usey, 2 Cor 4.15-18, NRSV This week we begin our fall worship series entitled Evolve. By examining several key words in our faith, we hope to show that by God’s wild spirit we are being redeemed. And we invite you to answer this question, How has your faith changed in the last 10 …
by Christian McIvor; Psalm 139 1.6, 13-18 and John 1. 43-51 Gravity is an interesting phenomenon. Not only is it the force that constantly pulls us toward the earth and keeps us from being flung off the planet into deep space, but it also pulls all bodies toward each other. As much as the earth …
by Matt Cravey I don’t know how memorial services will work in 2020. I don’t know if this will end up as a Facebook post, or if I will have to struggle to remain composed while I read this in front of Adam, Daniel and the rest of Jeff’s family. I know that writing helps …
