Dennis Wilkinson

The Last Dance, Inspiration, Michael Jordan, A Sprained Ankle, & Jesus. Five minutes worth listening!

How do we make strangers friends? A lesson from goose poo.

Is it ok form my 10-year-old daughter to pray for the resurrection of a tree?

Victor Hugo's classic Les Miserables brought to life on Broadway is Dennis's favourite story/musical of all time. What makes it so special? Why such high praise? Listen in and you will find out.     

The book of Ezra gives us a fascinating glimpse of Jewish history. But in many respects, the story is disturbing. Excluding people, because they can't prove their bloodlines, rejecting others because they are different, and forcing divorces on families all in an effort to remain ethnically pure. This kind of talk makes me nervous! It's not right. Is it? That's what this talk is all about.  

Jesus' initial interactions with this woman leave a lot to be desired when they hit our modern ears. Why does Matthew feel so compelled to tell us this story? It's a massive lesson in faith, that can be easily missed if we are not careful

Matthew links the Jesus story with the Old Testament 68 times! But when you actually read the Old Testament passages that Matthew is claiming to be fulfilled in Jesus and you come to understand them in their original contexts you begin to wonder if maybe Matthew was smoking something. Loads of these verses are not prophetic, they have nothing to do with a future Messiah at all, but yet Matthew gladly rips them out of their context and inserts them as fulfillments to the Jesus story. What is going on here? What is Matthew up to? That's what this talk is all about. 

Biblical love is defined as seeking the well-being of another person above yourself without the expectation of getting anything in return. Is that even possible? It feels more like a fantasy than a reality, humankind is too selfish for such lofty notions as above. Even still will love find a way? Only with divine intervention. 

The 3rd candle of advent represents Joy. "Joy to the world the Lord has come!" says the song. But joy often has a hard time sticking around, especially when persecution and affliction come. Is there a root to joy that goes deep enough that it can't be uprooted when life gets hard? 

Matthew introduces us to Jesus in the first chapter of his book, by looking at the human ancestry of the Messiah. It is first of all surprising that 4 women are inserted into the record and secondly scandalous to discover that these women are not exactly the good girls of the Bible. So what are they doing here? That's what this talk is all about!     

Habakkuk's life wasn't great and it was only going to get worse. Where was God in the midst of all this? He wasn't so sure, but his faith somehow remained. This sermon takes a look at the kind of faith that remains when your life resembles a dumpster fire. 

The Book of Proverbs is often referred to as "Lady Wisdom." She has a lot to say, and if we are smart we will listen. In today's talk, she introduces us to two of her best friends: Hard Work and Honesty

We are all wired for worship and justice, but we don't all do the same with this natural wiring. We can try to ignore it, we can wrap it around our own necks, we can give worship and justice to other humans or we can give it to the one who is worthy. What you will do with worship and justice is the most important decision you can make. 

God is no fan of arrogant bullies.  It might be time to do some serious self-evaluation! The stories we truly believe shape the lives we live. How does the Jesus story make arrogance and bullying an impossibility? 

Money seems to drive so much of our lives; our thoughts, our actions, our relationships, but should it? The reckless pursuit of money and power brought judgement to the ancient Israelites. If the prophet Micah's message is timeless should we be worried? There has to be a better way. 

Jonah is not a history book or a science textbook, it is straight-up satire. The point that the author is attempting to get across when the book is viewed this way puts a smile on your face and opens the door up for you to do some serious evaluation of your own life. 

Is the plan for the church all about getting people into heaven? I'm not so sure. What then is the purpose of the church?

The story we love shapes our lives to such a degree that we become clearly identifiable persons. Just like clearly identifiable trees in a forest. But there is a struggle here. In our world lurks some nasty axes that are really effective at cutting down the key identities of Christ-followers. They must be avoided at all costs if we hope to grow to maturity in Christ. 

If you have bad roots the tree of your life is sure to fall when the storms come. God's story, our hope, destroys four bad roots and replaces them with exactly what is needed for human flourishing.   

We've said for years that "God's Word is our authority" and that "God's word is the soil from which we spring." But is that the best way to communicate exactly who or what informs our lives? I'm not so sure anymore.  

Should oxen plow the sea? No, it would be a tragic misuse of their power. What are human's given power for? 

Five truths that swarm up from the book of Joel! God is a good dad Sin is my pleasure in exchange for your pain God is for the underdog You don’t really get away with anything  Home is where God is. 

God tells us to return to him, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for him. God plan for your life is all here in this small little verse tucked away in Hosea. Listen and be changed. 

An overview of the book of Ezekiel that finishes with a message of hope in Jesus.

Big Idea: Home is found in the worship of God and the winning of others. Reason for Exile  Hope in Exile  The way of Exile Snapshot: I will be looking at the idea of home as a longing that is in all of us. An ideal home is where we find security, safety, love acceptance and deep relationships. Israel shares this longing as they were ripped from their home and brought into exile. In Jeremiah's letter, he gives them hope and instruction on how to live while away from home. In a similar fashion, we can find a relational home when we have proper worship of God and when we seek the flourishing and winning of our city and the people that live in it.   

How does an indigenous Canadian person who also happens to be a follower of Jesus reconcile the spread of the good news with the cultural genocide that seemed to go along right beside it?  This is Lee's story.