Have you ever felt determined to heal something? Maybe it was a scab that continued to reopen and wanted to heal completely. Maybe it was an emotional wound that you were determined to overcome. Maybe it was a relationship you were determined to heal. Whatever it was, we've all wanted to heal something within ourselves for one reason or another. This is our second week of our new sermon series "How We Rise" and we are exploring life lessons from various disciples

Have you ever been with a child before who will not let something go? I know throughout the years one of my nephews will steal something from my other nephew. I will ask for them to give back the toy and then eventually I will try and take it from their hand. This is always a bad idea and starts a minor game of tug of war. Kids have a hard time letting things go. Both physically as well as

Jesus was just born! We celebrated Christmas! Now, this week, we read in scripture that Jesus is riding into Jerusalem, where he will eventually be ridiculed, wrongly accused, put on trial, be crucified and die. In the scripture we read this week Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover in the Holy City. On the way there he asks his disciples to grab a donkey. He then rode into Jerusalem on a donkey with people lining the streets

Have you ever just been moved to tears by something? Maybe it was a tragic sight on the TV or maybe it was a message you received from a loved one. Maybe it was the news of a diagnosis or maybe it was the ending of a relationship. In our human nature, we are prone to experience pain and hurt. It is a part of being human. And yet, often our world seeks to eliminate tears and push past them

If you watched the Oscars on Sunday you may have heard more than one joke about the slap from the 2022 Oscars. If you have no clue what you are reading about, here is a quick recap, Chris Rock hosted the Oscars Ceremony in 2022. While hosting he made a joke about Jada Pickett Smith's short hair. Will smith took offense to his joke as his wife's short hair is due to a medical condition. His response was to go

Growing up, these words were often told to me by mom. I would scab my knee or get a cut and my mom would say, “don’t touch that, let it heal.” Even as adults we have a hard time letting things heal and at times would rather pick at a scab then just leave it alone. This is true physically and emotionally. We often prefer to go “unhealed” and pick at old “wounds” rather than do the world to heal.

When was the last time you embraced a stranger? Maybe it was someone you connected with in the checkout line. Maybe it was a conversation with your neighbor on a plane. Maybe it was someone who had a cool tattoo that you asked about. Maybe you helped someone who had dropped their things on the ground. There are countless ways to embrace others. Embracing people is a holy and sacred thing. We are in our second week of Lenten sermon series

It seems like the New Year has just started but in fact we are just a few days away from March, which brings us into Spring. Which may trigger in all of us the desire to do some "Spring Cleaning." We can put coats away, not that we use many here anyway. We can sort through our spring and summer clothes and see what fits and what does not. We can go through paperwork to get our taxes prepared and

New things often put a little pep in my step. Whether it is a new outfit, a new pair of shoes, a new haircut, a new phone case, or even a new plant for my house, new things have a way of lifting my spirits. They don't have to be big and grand things, but even the smallest changes can make me feel like a new person. This week, we come upon Revelation 21:1-7 which tells about the newness that

One of the biggest joys in life is seeing a baby take their first steps! I have not seen this in person but I have watched numerous videos of babies taking their first steps. I often tear up! I get emotional seeing the baby's face filled with such pride...at least at the beginning. I love how those watching begin to cheer for the baby! This whole song and dance by parents and baby happens for a few days or weeks