Archive for 'worship'

Jesus can get downright demanding at times, and as a result it can be hard to follow him.  In this week’s passage he asks the disciples to do the impossible – feed an army of people with a small meal that wouldn’t even feed all the disciples!

We have all probably felt like the disciples at some point in our faith where Jesus is unbelievably captivating in one moment and ...

There is a comfort in being anonymous…especially when it comes to a relationship with God.  Don’t get me wrong, it is great to have God in the neighborhood when I need his power to get me out of the jam I have created, but it is also good to be just a face in the crowd so that he doesn’t highlight changes I need to make in my life.

It is ...

I (entrails) you…doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as I (heart) you (or whatever other object we seem to “heart”).   However, in koine Greek, the language the New Testament was originally written, the entrails or inward parts of a person was considered the seat of emotion in the same way that our heart is used figuratively as the seat of our emotion.   The Greek word, splanchna, is this word that means inward parts, entrails, and when it becomes ...

Uncommon Grace: Forgiveness

Forgiveness isn’t easy, and it’s usually not our natural response when there is a problem. If someone hurts us, our first reaction is to hurt them back. Our first instinct usually isn’t forgiveness– it’s revenge.

Say something mean to me and I’ll say something mean back to you. Do something mean to me, and I’ll do something mean back to you. Hurt me, and I’ll hurt you. Even if we don’t actually go through with it and actually do ...

It seems that everywhere we go, there are signs that tell us we are not welcome.  Even here at church, there is a sign up a the end of our porch that reads:

“No skateboarding, bicycle riding, rollerblading, rollerskating, scooter riding.”

We didn’t put the sign up, but it puts us in an awkward position given the fact that the first line of our vision is to have people come as they ...

This year, our goal as a church is to experience and express uncommon grace.  The common graces we all experience are typically in the form of good manners, an open door, and a kind word.  However, uncommon grace is by nature rare, but not around Jesus.  Jesus came to lavish his grace on all of us, so we are going to take a look at how we can experience ...

Mourning.  Loss.  Death.  These are words we know, but when we experience them they take on a greater significance.

I remember when my grandfather passed away.  He was 90, and lived a great life.  He served his country well in WWII.  He was successful in business, and created several patents as an engineer.  He loved his grand kids well.  And he loved his Ohio State Buckeyes.  Yet the ...

This Friday, we will enter the story of Christ’s crucifixion and spend some time in reflection and prayer on the significance of his sacrifice for us.

Easter can hardly be good news without understanding the significance of Jesus’ death.  Each year the church takes it’s time to read through the story of the betrayal, arrest, crucifixion and death of Jesus, so that we will remember that we worship ...

As a part of our Easter celebration this year, we are hosting the Stations of the Cross.  Stations is an experiential worship designed to help you worship Jesus this Easter.  It was developed out of a pilgrimage Christians used to take to Jerusalem to retrace the steps of Jesus during his final week on earth.  As Christianity spread, the Stations became localized in the church rather than Jerusalem.  It became ...

As we enter the week of Easter in the Scriptures, we find that it was full of celebration, but for various reasons.  Jesus wore three crowns as a result of our celebration.  On Palm Sunday, Jesus wore a paper crown as the fickle crowds rushed to anoint him as the new king of the Jews whom they hoped would set them free from Roman occupation.  Six Days later on ...