Psalm 22:1-15 October 11, 2015 Rebecca DePoe Father, may these spoken words inspired by the Holy Spirit, lead us to the living word, Jesus Christ our Lord. “We don’t go around hitting people!” If I didn’t hear that from my father every day growing up, I heard it multiple times a day. For Dad, the one unpardonable sin in our family was violence in our home. During my parent’s 20 year marriage, I never…
October 4, 2015 Hebrews 1: 1-4; 2: 5-12 Rev. Catherine Purves What do you think of when I say the word, pioneer? What image comes to mind? Do you imagine a rugged outdoorsman, an explorer, dressed to withstand the elements, perhaps carrying a long rifle and striding off into the deep forests of western Pennsylvania, in order to discover what this strange new land has to offer? Or do you think of…
September 27, 2015 1 Kings 17: 1; 18: 1-2, 41-46 James 5: 13-18 Rev. Catherine Purves I think sermon titles are important. Not everyone would agree with me. Some people think that they are a waste of time. But as a sermon-writer, I find that a well-considered title gives me an anchor and a trajectory. It helps me to root myself in one aspect of our Scripture readings, and it points me in…
September 20, 2015 James 3: 13 – 4: 3, 7-8a Mark 9: 30-37 Rev. Catherine Purves If you don’t want to hear the answer, don’t ask the question. It’s hard to argue with the logic of that statement. Of course, you won’t learn if you don’t ask, but maybe there are some things that you just don’t want to know: awkward things or uncomfortable things, demanding things or frightening things. If you…
September 13, 2015 James 3: 1-10 Mark 8: 27-33 Rev. Catherine Purves I think everyone here knows what Facebook is. Is there anyone who doesn’t? Most of us probably have some idea of what a Blog is and what Twitter is. I realize that I’m something of a dinosaur, but I don’t have a Facebook account, or a Blog, and I’ve never in my life Tweeted. I do send and receive emails and…