Deny Yourself and follow the Christ. That was the theme of our readings. We heard it first in the 10 commandments God gave to his people from the Book of Exodus. Far from being arbitrary rules we must follow, a set of hoops to hop through to prove our faith , the commandments are a … Read more
Psalm 15 asks “who can dwell with God?”, that is, “who will be saved and be in God’s presence forever?”. The Psalm then lists various attributes about the righteous ones who will be saved. As Christians, we look to Jesus as the one who perfectly lived according to this. He in turn shares his righteousness … Read more
Second Sunday in Lent – B 2021 Mark 8: 27-38 Jesus is not the Christ that we sinners wanted, but he is the Christ we sinners needed. Here in the middle of Mark’s Gospel, we heard Jesus ask his disciples who everyone thought that he was. Some people thought he was Elijah, the prophet … Read more
This video has samples of the music from Evening Prayer, the worship order we’ll be following for our Lenten Midweek services.
Water, Wilderness, Kingdom Mark 1: 9-15 In Lent, we tend to focus on Jesus’ work and suffering during Holy Week. But our lessons this morning remind us to consider more broadly what it meant for Jesus to enter human flesh and walk through this world of ours. Jesus would walk a familiar path through the … Read more
Consider how God has blessed you, not just for your own sake, but for how he may bless others through your service. This is a part of fearing, loving, and trusting in God above all things.
Perhaps the most unique and useful lesson the Psalms teach us is how to lament. Life does not always go well for us. Often it is quite the opposite. Jesus did not promise us great earthly blessings and treasures. Rather, he taught us that to follow him is to take up our own cross and … Read more
Our Lenten Midweek theme, Return From Exile, will have a series of images for us to consider each evening service. Each set of images will have an Old Testament image compared to a New Testament or eternal image. This series was written by one of my Old Testament teachers at the seminary, and he wrote … Read more
Text: Lisa M. Clark TTune: Public Domain 1 We are exiles from the garden, banished by our sinful choice Terrified to seek His pardon, hiding from our Father’s voice Underneath the branches swaying, sweat and blood fall to the ground In the darkness Christ is praying; He comes forward to be bound.