In God's Good Time: 5/7
In Luke 2:22-40, the old folks join the conversation. Meet Simeon and Anna, who both know how to take the long view.
In God's Good Time: 4/7
A guest preacher! Dr. Lance Pape, Assistant Professor of Homiletics at Brite Divinity School (and spouse of our pastor), says Christianity is not so much about believing the right things, but about what we find beautiful. Amen.
In God's Good Time: 3/7
HIS NAME IS JOHN CE-wait, wrong John. My bad, y'all.
Luke 1:57-80, it's Zechariah's turn for an aria in this parental prequel to the nativity. "His name is John" is the least crazy thing this dad has to say about his son. What do your parents say about you?
In God's Good Time: 2/7
She's a rebel, she's a saint, she's the salt of the earth, and she's dangerous... Whatshername, Green Day, and Mary the mother of Jesus have more in common than you might think.
Luke 1:26-56 -- a teenaged, unmarried, pregnant girl/woman is the one God chooses to save the whole freakin' world. God's always doing stuff like that. Thanks be to God.
In God’s Good Time: 1/7
Hmm. I'm not sure.
We're on to the gospel of Luke now, for the back story to Jesus's birth. First we meet Elizabeth, and remember her ancestor Hannah, women who were shamed for not conforming to the gendered role of "mother." Could we stop with the shaming, please? Luke 1:1-25.
Jesus H. Christ: 11/11
Mark 13 is a whole chapter about the end of the world as we know it. Jesus said more about the Zombie Apocalypse than you might imagine -- and less.
Michon. She will cut. you. up.
Jesus H. Christ: 10/11
What does your church do with your money? Wouldn't you like to know?
In Mark 12:35-44, Jesus sits himself down to watch how much moola people put in the plate. Seriously?!
Jesus H. Christ: 9/11
The Llangernyw Yew: one of the oldest life forms on our planet.
Lifespan: we've all got one. We live as long as we're useful. Jesus, the fig tree, the scribe balancing on one foot, our church -- how long will we last? Mark 12:1-34.
Jesus H. Christ: 8/11
The real reason Jesus cursed that fig tree.
Wherein Jesus curses the military-industrial complex and the consumer-capitalist economy. Or maybe just the fig tree. Mark 11.
Jesus H. Christ: 7/11
Mark 10:32-52: the Son of Man, the Sons of Zebedee, the Son of Timaeus, the Son of David. And a critical question Jesus asks twice: "What do you want me to do for you?" Not easily answered, at least for me.
Jesus H. Christ: 6/11
Everyone's favorite sermon topic!
Whose idea was it to preach All the Things Jesus Said in Mark? Ugh. Mark 10:1-31.
Jesus H. Christ: 5/11
Jess kept us moving forward with this exploration of Mark 9:30-50, wherein Jesus predicts that we will all be "salted with fire." Which sounds painful. To which Jess can attest.
Jesus H. Christ: 4/11
In which Slim Shady makes a cameo appearance.
There's more than one way to tell any story. Which way are we telling ours right now? Mark 9:1-29.
Jesus H. Christ: 3/11
In Mark 8, Jesus just won't stay in his box. His handlers -- er, disciples -- are exasperated. But he's the one sighing.
Jesus H. Christ: 2/11
Your reaction to hearing, "Jesus was a racist." It'll make more sense if you listen to the rest of the sermon. We hope.
Oh, Jesus. Why did you have to be so mean to that ethnically differentiated woman? Mark 7:24-37. Let's do this.
Jesus H. Christ: 1/11
We're committed to finishing Mark's gospel before Advent. It's all about Jesus! Imagine that! So we're starting with Mark 7:1-23, wherein Jesus employs potty humor to make his point.
Also, we got a nifty new podcast intro! Thanks to Nathan Berry who uploads these recordings and puts it all together. And thanks to Preston Eastwood for the chords under the intro. If you like his playing, you can hear his whole album on Noisetrade.
(Note from Nathan: Katie is the author of the podcast descriptions.)
Like Jesus, Girolamo Fracastoro had some interesting (and pretty accurate) ideas about cleanliness. Unlike Jesus, Girolamo decided to publish them under the title "Syphilis."
Honestly, we just thought it would be fun to put "Syphilis" and "Jesus" in the same sentence.
Imagining God: 6/6
In the last of our "Imagining God" series, we deal with the uncomfortable metaphor of God the cuckolded spouse. We've been cheating, and God's feelings are way, way hurt. Hosea 2 and Ephesians 5:21-33.
Imagining God: 5/6
God knows we have suffered under bad shepherds; God promises to be a Good one. Here's what that might mean for us sheep. Ezekiel 34:1-31, and John 10:1-16.
We don't love being compared to sheep. Baaaaaat there's something comforting about all that wool.
Back-to-School Blessing, Jess Schell
This lament showed up on the Prayer Wall. God can hear that.
We asked Youngster Czar Jess Schell to pray for our students and teachers, staff members and everybody else whose life starts anew when school starts up. Here's what she said. Beautiful, and true. Jess never does anything halfway.
Imagining God: 4/6
This week marked the #firsttime we met at our new long-term home, Reds Roadhouse in Kennedale. Thanks be to God!
What kind of monarch has an advisory board of homeless, hungry, rejected convicts? I bet you know. And this monarch will eventually get everything he wants.