No Surprises

Preached on Good Friday, April 6, 2007 at Our Lady of the Lake Roman Catholic Church in Pocono Pines, PA (Pocono Ecumenical Good Friday service).

Reading: Hebrews 10:16-25

I was privileged to be able to preach at Our Lady of the Lake RCC for Good Friday before a congregation of people assembled from four or five churches, an honor for which I was selected because I was the newest member of the ecumenical council. The service was centered on the Stations of the Cross, something of which us Protestants are mostly ignorant (to our loss). It was a great opportunity, not only because I enjoy preaching, but also because it was a chance to worship with fellow Christians of other congregations. We don't do enough of that, but that's a whole other diatribe...

Click here to view a manuscript of this sermon.

Not an Everyday Party

Preached on April 1, 2007 at PLWC.

Reading: Deuteronomy 16:1, 5-8; Matthew 21:1-11

Sorry there wasn't a sermon posted last week, but Carey and I were out of town over the weekend. This Sunday, though, was Palm Sunday, so we're marking the beginning of our Holy Week celebrations with a sermon on the spiritual disciplines of worship and celebration.

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Cats on Leashes

Preached on March 18, 2007 at PLWC.

Reading: Psalm 133, Romans 16:11-16, John 17:20-26

Fellowship might not seem like one of the obvious Christian disciplines, but the reality is that sometimes it takes some discipline for us to put up with each other. The community of the church is indispensable to the Christian life, though, and the work that God does in and through our church will be done in the context of that community.

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The Hands of God

Preached on March 11, 2007 at PLWC

Reading: Matthew 25:31-46; John 13:1-5

The discipline of service is the focus of our most recent sermon at PLWC. We're continuing to look at those classic Christian disciplines that will help us to discern how God is leading us, and wherever he takes us, service will probably be a part of what we're expected to do.

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Noonday at Nighttime

Preached on March 4, 2007 at PLWC.

Reading: Matthew 6:16-18; Isaiah 58:1-11

Continuing our Lenten series at Pocono Lake, this week we looked at fasting. Fasting is not just for crazy old hermits; it's a powerful tool in the hands of God to combat a very old problem.

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Don't Play With Fire

Preached on February 25, 2007 at PLWC.

Reading: Luke 18:10-17; Revelation 8:1-5

This Sunday was the first Sunday in Lent, and at Pocono Lake, we're taking this season to focus specifically on how we as a church can serve God better. We want to know how he wants us to enter into his work in the world. And since Carey and I are new to the church, that means we (as a church and as pastors) need to spend time intentionally seeking God. One way to do that is through prayer, which is the focus of this week's sermon. This sermon talks about how we pray and what happens when we pray. I'll give you a hint: prayer is not a chance for us to tell God what we want him to do.

Click here to view a manuscript of this sermon.