Weekly sermon recordings and other special services from St. Barnabas Episcopal Church located in DeLand, Florida.
May God bless you and fill you with His immeasurable love and presence. We are so blessed to have served with you at St. Barnabas.Support the show
So that I don't assume that everyone has heard the news. On Monday night I announced my resignation to the Vestry. My last Sunday in the serving all of you will Next Sunday, May 28th. The last service I will participate in is the Worship night on May 31st. In June, I will take my vacation and use that as a time of transition. I apologize if this is the first time you are hearing about this. But let me take the moment to say that if this is the case, you really do need to sign up for our mailchimp email correspondence through our website. With that being said, I know that the question on everyone's mind, is why?I have taken a position Middleburg, Florida a suburb of the Jacksonville area. The church is called Good Samaritan Anglican Church. It is a part of the Gulf Atlantic Diocese of the Anglican Church in North America. When you look up the church you will see that it is smaller than St. Barnabas and I know you will ask again, why?This is a fair question and one that can only be answered by saying Susan and I both feel that this is God's call for us and for our family. Not to go would be disobedience to the direction of God's purpose and plan for us. ...They followed Him. Surrendered in worship and God began to lead them to accomplish all that He had prepared in advance for them to do. They followed where God led, how God led, and when God led and God work in unimaginable ways that the nations of the world would come to see and hear they invitation of God's great love in Jesus through them. They Listened and heard Jesus Speak. They Surrendered in worshiped and prayer and God prepared them. They followed God's leading and were filled with the Holy Spirit; The presence, the Power, and the Purposes of God. And you and I are here today because they choose to be obedient to they path God placed before them.I know for many there are all kinds of emotions yet to be processed. But I hope you will be encouraged to listen to God speak, Surrender to him in worship and prayer, follow where God leads and you will experience God unimaginable power, presence, and purposes remaining alive and well here at St. Barnabas and in your own lives you will see experience God doing a new work in you that is greater than anything you could think or imagine for His sake and for His glory.Listen, Surrender, and Follow I promise as you turn around and see where and what God has done, the Alleluias will resound. Amen. Support the show
“Like newborn babies, crave for (or long for) pure spiritual milk. If you have tasted that the Lord is good.” Crave pure spiritual milk. This is momma's milk with all the nutrients, antibiotics, and health that a baby needs. Pure Spiritual Milk was understood to be that which was life giving and pure. Let's stop for a second and ask ourselves, What are we craving for? Right now at this point, at this stage in our lives, what are we craving? What are the cravings that consume our minds, bodies, and souls? Where and to what do we turn to fill these cravings? Do the answers to these questions lead us to the heart of God, that which is holy and pure/of the nature of God, right/in line with God's desires, good/honoring to the Lord, and life giving/advancing God's purposes in life and relationships? Or do our answers lead us to things that gratify the flesh, that which is what we want , when we want it, how we want it. Do our answers lead us to things that gratify our self-seeking pleasures, that glorify ourselves as we live life looking out for our best interest? Support the show
Do you remember when you were a kid and you got those walkie talkies for Christmas. What was the first things you would do? Press the button and say can you hear me? Then you would start moving farther and farther apart, checking to see how good they really worked and how far apart you could be from one another and still hear each other. Can you hear me now?It was exciting to hear your brother or sister, mom or dad, or even a friend from around the corner or down the street when you could no longer see each other. And once you found the breaking distance, the point in which the voice no longer came in clear, you would start to walk back towards each other, closer to one another until the voices once again were clear.Bigger toys for bigger boys right: (pull out cell phone)Things really haven't changed that much. Perhaps you remember those early Verizon commercials: Can you hear me now?When you are talking on your phone and the call starts to drop, what do you do? First, you look at the phone to see if there is still a connection. If there is, you begin to move around a little bit. If you happen to be driving, you might wait a second or two and then start saying, can you hear me.When we are connected to someone through a walkie talkie or even one of these, it is frustrating when the signal is not clear and what the other person is saying is jumbled up or just plain drops such that the message, they are intending to share is unable to be discerned or even heard at all. When this happens, we move, hoping that the signals which we don't really understand will somehow reconnect and will once again become clear so that we can reconnect and engage in the relationship that these devices enable us to enjoy.What if there were devices that would allow you to hear the voice of God, would you use them? And if you did and the voice of God started growing faint, becoming broken up, or dropping out altogether, would you be willing to move, to make some adjustments so that God's voice would again be clear, that you could engage in the relationship that these devices enable you to enjoy? In our Gospel text this morning, Jesus clearly states that “His sheep will hear His voice”. Support the show
What if Easter could last all year long? I'm not talking about the exhaustion that comes from cooking, traveling, or decorating the church or your home. No, I'm talking about the excitement of going to worship, the joy in seeing others, the hope a new life springing forth, the peace of knowing all is well for a moment, the love of knowing God gave all this for you and for me. The passion that we express in singing Alleluia and the anticipation of more is yet to come. I don't know if you have noticed, but we are living in a pretty chaotic period of history.After years of being told “you do you” (which if you don't know means that someone should do what they think is best, what they enjoy most, or what suits their personality, you know “you do you”)After years of insisting that truth is relative to whatever a person determines for themselves. Is it any wonder that chaos has emerged. Sort of reminds me of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Whenever, one of the kids did what they wanted regardless of the instructions they had been given, that person's experience would end up causing their demise. Even with a promise of something much greater than they could imagine, the kids in the movie could not help but to give into what they wanted, when they wanted it, and how they wanted it. And the chaos it created prevented them from receiving the promise that was to come.How quick does the chaos spread when we do things according to our own understanding instead of with the heart of the one who created it all.Support the show
Let me ask you what I think is a million dollar question? Why did Jesus endure the cross?You could answer as Paul describes in the letter to the Hebrews “for the sake of the joy set before him, Jesus endured the cross, disregarding its shame.”But how does or why does Jesus see the cross with joy?I believe it is because he is ONE with the Father. Jesus' heart and mind are fixed solely on the heart and the desires of the Father. What does it mean to be ONE with another? It means to be united together with a deep love for one another. To be ONE with your spouse is to know their heart and to know their desires and to seek the well being of your relationship beyond all else. When you are ONE with your spouse there are things that will fall away from your life simply because your spouse does not get as excited about them as you do. To be ONE with someone is to be united in such a way that your desires are shaped, formed, and become the desire of the one to whom you are united too.Jesus was ONE with the Father and the way the Jesus identified this ONENESS was by knowing the fullness of God's Love and Living with a full reflection of this Love returning to the Father. It was from this ONENESS that Jesus was then able to love others, to do the ministry that he did and share his life in the way that he did even to the point of shedding his own blood.Jesus says many times through the Scripture that he didn't do anything apart from what he saw or heard first from the Father.Support the show
How many of you know, you can be totally right, but be totally wrong? Susan and I have a rule for our marriage. We have agreed to this rule because we know it is a good rule and helps us to treat one another how we honestly desire to do so according to our marriage vows and the love we share and are committed to. And it is how we want to be treated by each other.The rule is this. If we disagree about something, we do not have the right to raise our voice at one another to try to get our way. In other words, if we are in a disagreement and the tension starts to rise (which never really happens, right), if one or the other of us starts to raise our voice or increase the tone of our voice as if to force our view on the other. All the other person has to say to end the argument is, you don't have the right to raise your voice at me. This most commonly comes out as “why are you raising your voice, or you don't have to raise your voice at me”Once one of us says anything like this the argument is over and the other person automatically wins, unless you are able to compose yourself, calm down, and begin to talk in a tone and volume that shows love and respect for the person you are talking too. You can be totally right but be totally wrong. This is actually an oxymoron because if you were totally right you would not be expressing yourself in a way that is totally wrong. When it comes to our faith, we often think or speak like we are totally right but yet we live our lives in a way that is totally wrong.Right Belief is meant to guide our lives in the way of Right Practice. And Right Practice cannot exist for long without Right Belief. Right Belief and Right Practice are not two separate things. They are one in the same and when we start to think that they can be separated from each other, we may be totally right, but we are totally wrong. And we are only fooling ourselves and need to repent of the false gospel that we have embraced. ....Where have you seen the lack of continuity between your Right Beliefs and Right Practice?Where have you been totally right, but totally wrong? There are far too many Christians who say they believe but their lives do not align with the Word of God. There are far too many Christians who claim to be sharing God's love but are doing so without a truth that would bring God's grace which is what the sinner actually needs. What if the argument was to stop until you and I repented, until we calmed down, until we could begin to speak in a different tone and a different volume. Until you and I come to a place of agreeing, a place of seeing that God's Truth and God's Grace need to meet together in their fullness for the Gospel of Jesus to be communicated. For the Gospel of Jesus to be shared in a way that the Holy Spirit changes the hearts of ruthless sinners into glorious saints as people experience their minds being transformed to a place where they no longer conform to the patterns of this world but begin to see the wisdom and will of God and align their lives Right Practice to Right Belief? Perhaps we need to hear the call of Isaiah to repent because we have believed a false gospel that says I can have Right Belief without Right Practice. Maybe we need read, hear, mark, and inwardly digest God's word, His Truth so we can understand and receive the fullness of God's grace and that He has given to us in Jesus.Maybe we need to ask God to show us what Right Belief and Right Practice would mean for the relationships we have, the life that we live, and the people we will bump shoulders with daily in our lives? Maybe, if we ask we will hear the Holy Spirit working to align our Right Belief to Right Practice so that the World would see Jesus, through us His&nbSupport the show
Come and see, three little words that offer hope, joy, love, excitement, and opportunity.Maybe you can remember a time when a young child; perhaps your own, or maybe agrandchild, or a niece or nephew, or a good friend's son or daughter came running up to you, while tapping your knee began to turn away to lead you to some unknown place only with the words come and see.As you walked in their direction you could see the excitement in their eyes every timethey looked back making sure you were still following their lead. When you finally gotto where they were so eagerly taking you, you saw something that you did not expect; a frog on the wall, their dolls having tea. Something that surprised you or something that at least you could understand why they were so elated for you to come and see.What is in your life that you long to share, that you long to show someone else, that ifyou could so easily get their attention as a child you would say; come and see?I would imagine it would be something of great importance, something that has made an impact on who you are and how you have experienced life. Something that filled your heart with hope, joy, love, excitement, and opportunity.Perhaps you can remember a time when you have heard these words from God, orsomeone else brought you to a place to hear and receive the mercy and grace of God, the love of God poured out for you in Jesus. Or maybe you are here today, because someone or some how you have had a sense in your heart that you were to come and see. Come and see what this place is about, who is this God that Christians worship and adore.Support the show
Gift Giving Christmas or a Jesus ChristmasWe can do without the gifts, but we can't do without JesusSupport the show
Christmas is fast approaching and maybe you have found yourself listening to and telling stories you have heard a thousand times before. These familiar tales bring joy and laughter as you remember the moment like it was yesterday.So here is one of mine. Some of you may have heard it before, make no mind, listen and laugh with me or at me as my momma used to say.As Christmas comes many of us have probably generated a wish list of sorts. Things we would like to receive for gifts. In fact, some of you might even say that I am getting x, y, and z for Christmas even though Christmas hasn't even arrived.. Others, like me, may even have a wish list of things that you know you won't be getting, but you ask for them every year just in case. But have you ever received something that you did not expect or did not anticipate, and possibly did not even want? 30+ years ago, when I was still in college, I made my wish list very clear. The only thing I would tell people that I wanted for Christmas was a very specific new fishing reel.I knew I was going to get it because it was the only thing I asked for and it was within the usual price range of gifts. I even found the present under the tree that I knew it had to be.As Christmas morning came, I was excited and ready to open this present. Even more exciting than this was that my mom kept telling me that this particular present was not even my main gift. I didn't know what else to expect but I was ready to receive, and more than that I was ready to go fishing.As we began to open the gifts, my mom had devised a strategy of opening up one present at a time, so we could all share in the joy of giving and receiving. I actually, do the same thing with my kids today. My mom and had a numbering system that only she knew and of course she made us wait till the end for our main gift.Finally, I got to the box that I was eagerly waiting for and ripped off the wrapping paper and there before my eyes was a brand new VCR rewinder. (pause) I was completely confused and I thought for sure my mom had given me somebody else's gift. My entire family could see my confusion, so they all told my mom to let me open the next gift. She agreed and pulled out this other slightly bigger box and I opened it only to find a rebuilt VCR. My main present, my last present a VCR. This is embarrassing to even mention, but I was so disappointed that I closed the box and slide it back under the tree with a few very unthankful remarks about the gift. Had my reaction not been so over the top it would have ruined Christmas for everyone, but because it was so extreme my family told me how ridiculous I was being and went on to enjoy the rest of their morning while I sat on the other side of the room sulking. Now I might be the only one who has been selfish enough to actually act this way, but I bet all of us have experienced some kind of disappointment, some kind of unexpected outcome to something that we were highly anticipating.I wonder in these moments do our unexpected, do our unanticipated happenings mean that there is a lack of love from the person in control? What about in regard to our faith and the love that God has for us. When things don't unfold the way we hoped or the way we expected does that mean that God doesn't care? Does it mean that God is not in control? Does it mean that God doesn't know what we need or what is best for us? If the answer to these questions is no, then what does that say about our response to God? The way that you I respond to the things he allows to happen.How many times do we with unthankful hearts slide the gift of life that we have been given by God back under the tree and sit in our selfish little worlds sulking instead of growing in our knowledge and love of God allowing hiSupport the show
Have you ever found yourself quickly cleaning up your house because an unexpected quest was about to stop by? Or perhaps an expected guest was scheduled to arrive?If you have then you know what it feels like to think what and where can I hide x,y,z so my guest won't see it and the house will look cleaned and ready to go.Whether unexpected or expected the frantic straightening and cleaning occurs because there were things done and/or left undone that you would like to have taken care of before a guest arrives. For those of you who keep a perfectly clean house you might not be able to imagine this. Maybe for you, it is having everything you need to bake the cookies, make a cup of coffee, or pour a glass of tea. The panic or anxiety that arises from such a situation comes from not doing or being prepared for what you know is about to take place. If you had just a little more time, a little better warning, one more day to get ready. When we know someone coming over it moves us to a different course of action than when we don't anticipate any visitors. In reference to your faith, how do you see yourself prepared or not prepared for the 2nd coming of Jesus? Today is Christ the King Sunday. The day in which the Church celebrates that which we believe will one day take place. The day when Jesus returns to judge the world with perfect judgement. The day when all evil and the spiritual forces that rebel against God are locked up and put away forever. The day when everything is made right and the Kingdom of God is fully known because the kingdom of God is fully present.The day in which the sheep are separated from the goats, the wheat is separated from the chaff, the day where the righteous are separated from the unrighteous.A day that Jesus says will come, but when it comes no one will know the day or the hour, but it will come and the only thing that will matter is are you prepared or not.Support the show
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The only problem with driving an old car is that there will be times that you need a good mechanic. With that taken care of, you can save a lot of money, but you do occasionally have an interesting story to tell.Here is one of mine. Susan's car had a small oil leak. At first, I would check the oil every month and make sure it always had the right amount. However, over time I started to notice that every time her AC would stop blowing cold, I would need to add oil as well. So instead of checking the oil on a regular basis, I got to the point where I just waited till the AC would stop working, then I would check the oil. Sure enough, it always needed oil. A little oil and a little freon and all was well till the next oil change. We drove the car like this for several years. It happened so many times, I had become convinced that somehow the oil level affected the AC, such that I could trust the AC to tell me when the car needed more oil. It was only this past summer when the car told us a different story. This past summer something different happened. The AC went out and the oil was fine. This is when my mechanic got the call. The system no longer worked, there had to be something else taking place. Sure enough there was. The AC needed some work to get it fixed and while it was at the shop the mechanic found the oil leak and now both are fixed and running fine.I hope you know that a car without oil will not run for long and most of you are probably thinking how lucky or blessed we were that we did not blow the engine up by following this backwards logic to automobiles. In fact, an AC that runs perfectly is no good in a car without oil, why? Because if you run a car without oil you will blow the engine up and then you will not even be able to turn the engine on to run the compressors that make the air condition work. So if I was to ask you, which one is more important to pay attention too, I would hope you would say the oil. And even though I know this and knew this back then, my experience convinced me to think I could allow the AC to tell me about the oil. Instead of taking care of the oil and then realizing there was an even more effective way to keep my AC running smoothly.Support the show
We live in Florida, which means that we know a thing or two about hurricanes. Though we are in the middle of hurricane season, Praise the Lord, we have yet to have a named storm come our way this year. That being said, perhaps God has granted us a little reprieve as we have been bombarded by a plethora of cultural hurricanes almost every day. One of these named storms that has been brewing off the coast for some time is what people call a Post-Christian Era. Ever since I was in seminary at the turn of the century, I became aware of people from all walks of life claiming that we are moving towards a Post-Christian Society, which I believe has arrived in full force. Hardly a reputable source, but this times gets it right, Wikipedia says: A post-Christian society is one in which Christianity is no longer the dominant civil religion but has gradually assumed values, culture, and worldviews that are not necessarily Christian (it may not necessarily reflect any world religion's standpoint or may represent a combination of several religions or none at all).[3] For years, people in and outside of the church have been claiming that we have moved to a post-Christian era. Those outside the church typically rejoice that this time has come as new “freedoms” are found and those inside the church are saddened, stunned, or see this as an opportunity for the clarification of the Good News of Jesus Christ.Here is my question for us today. Does it matter what we think? How much has our culture's shift to a post-Christian worldview served to moved you and me away from the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Word of God? Can we even see that this may be taking place? And if it has and if it is, Do we rejoice at this? Are we saddened by this? Are we stunned by this? Do we see it as an opportunity to clarify the Good News of Jesus Christ? What an unbelieving world cannot understand is a people who are so radically in love with God and stand for a truth that sets them against the tenets of the world and yet are willing to give of themselves and sacrifice, so others that will see how strong the branches of faith really can be and how deep their roots go. You want to rattle the world, let someone know you disagree with them and love them anyway. A post-Christian worldview has no place to put that (we see this everyday), but perhaps even if it is only one person at a time, people will come to see this as the Glory of God and His invitation to be planted the stream of living water that never runs dry, Jesus. The Church has the answer, because it is a mighty oak, the planting to the Lord, for His Glory if we will individually and collectively deny ourselves (the things of this world) and pick up our cross to follow Jesus. Amen.Support the show
I think I have found something that we can all agree on. You ready to hear what it is? How many you hate, now we can all agree on something we hate that is a miracle, How many of you hate unexpectedly walking into a spiderweb? That feeling you get when you are dressed and ready for the day and you go out to get into your car and just as to reach out to open the door a spiderweb brushes across your face. Oh man, that can make you squirm.No doubt you have seen spiderman as some point in your life. What a weapon he has to wrap up his enemies with a spider web so strong that most cannot set themselves free.Could you image walking into a spiderweb that actual froze you in your tracks. That would be terriblehave to stop and take notice of the webs that are entangling us. We have listen to God's word and allow God to speak truth louder than the culture around us. We have respond to the sin that is in our hearts, souls, and minds. We have to believe that Jesus is the way, truth, and the life. That no one comes to the Father except by Jesus.We have to stop, listen, respond, and repent we would experience the power, presence, and purposes of God through Jesus Christ setting us free from the weight from entanglements of sin. And trust that God's way does bring life and life abundantly.Where are you this morning?What would it look like for you stop? To stop peddling hoping to make it to the end. What would look like for you to stop?What would it take for you listen? To listen to God's word, to His wisdom and His desires instead of trusting in your own understanding? What would it take, what would it look like for you to actually ask God to reveal the fullness of His wisdom and desires for you instead of assuming you already know and especially instead of listening to the culture who denies God to define your path to take?What would it look like to stop and listen?What would look like for you to respond to wisdom and will of God? What is your response as you begin to see the webs that entangle you? Will you see with God eyes and do a hippie jibbie dance getting rid of all that is not of Him in your life? Will you repent? For it is in repentance that power of God begins set you free to become all that god has designed and desired for your to be. It is here that faith comes alive and begins to work in a way that you could never think or imagine. We are on a path. One is wide the whole world seems to be following it and this wide path will lead to destruction, the other path is narrow and few will find. But this narrow road, it leads to eternal life, and all the saints who have gone before point us in that direction.Because of the glory of God that we have seen in those who have gone before, may stop, listen, respond, and repent that we may see Jesus as our redeemer, the sacrifice for our sins and may we experience His power setting us free that we actually become more like him and less like the world around us. Amen.Support the show
Abraham by Josh Baldwin (This is the song we sung before and after the sermon) There is a mountain in betweenWhat You have said and what I I seeStanding before this offeringMy failing heart will fight to believe[Chorus]On this altar, on this roadYou have called me from my homeThe weight I carry is not my ownSpirit move this heart of stoneHow can I walk in my new name?"Father of many," a promise You gaveAnd on this altar, and on this roadI lay down my flesh and bones[Verse 2]And here on this mountain I have climbedWrestling doubts that flood my mindWhen ashes and dust are all that remainThe hope for the world still comes from my vein[Chorus]On this altar, on this roadYou have called me from my homeThe weight I carry is not my ownSpirit move this heart of stoneHow can I walk in my new name?"Father of many," a promise You gaveAnd on this altar, and on this roadI lay down my flesh and bones[Bridge]And I will sing outUntil I believe nowYou're faithful to carry meOh I will sing outUntil I believe nowYou're faithful to carry me[Chorus]On this altar, on this roadYou have called me from my homeThe weight I carry is not my ownSpirit move this heart of stoneHow can I walk in my new name?"Father of many," a promise You gaveAnd on this altar, and on this roadI lay down my flesh and bones Support the show
Years ago, when I was a wee little child, I went fishing with my grandad and my brother in Arkansas in the middle of winter with snow on the ground. We were fishing in a spot that was 30 to 50 feet deep. At one point, I cranked in the anchor, grab my rod to sit down, expressing the exhaustion of hand cranking the anchor some 50 ft. When I sat down, my chair had spun without me knowing, so my flop into the seat ended up with me doing a backflip into the ice-cold water.Fortunately, I had a life-jacket on so I bobbed up to the surface. But, my fishing pole was not so lucky, it sunk to the bottom of the lake. After my grandad and brother stopped laughing, they managed to pull me back into the boat. My point in sharing this with you is thisIf someone was drowning, would you throw them a fishing pole or a life vest?I hope the answer of a life vest is obvious to you.The scriptures this morning help to unravel something that I think our church and our society have gotten confused. We know and are quick to point out that the two greatest commandments are to love God and love our neighbor. This is absolutely true. However, the only way we can truly love our neighbor is to do so in a way that points them to Jesus. In other words, to throw them a life-jacket instead of a fishing pole. A fishing pole is helpful if you are in the boat ready to catch fish or even becoming a fisher of men, but if you are drowning is a sea of sin there is only one thing you need, a life-jacket, and that is Jesus.Jesus who rescues us from our sin, Jesus who gives us new life, Jesus who heals our sicknesses, and who frees us from the deceit of the enemy of our soul. It is Jesus who saves, who redeems, who heals, and who forgives. Now that is a rescue that all of humanity desperately needs.Support the show
This one on my most hated signs. No U-turns. The reason why I hate this sign is because it does two things to me. First it proves to me that I am lost, that I have missed my turn, or that I don't know where I am going. Think about it. You never even notice no u-turn signs if you know where you are going. If you have a very clear picture of how to get where you need to go a NO UTURN sign is seldom seen. You plan ahead which allows you to anticipate the turns you will need make. But if you are lost, if you are not paying attention and fly past your turn, or if you are in uncharted territory, a no u-turn sign is threatening and seems to prevent you from accomplishing what you think you need to do. The Second reason I hate these stupid signs is that I seem to always discover them when I am in a hurry and driving too fast to begin with, so when I see them, I either get mad and break the law, or I get mad and drive even faster so I can turn around at the next opportunity. Have you ever noticed that they always place these signs at the intersections where you are most likely to need to make a u-turn. If you are in a hurry and not thinking about the safety of yourself or others this has potential to be super frustrating and I bet most of us are guilty and doing what we want to do regardless of the warning signs that have be given to us.Have you ever stopped in the middle of such aggravation and realized that the purpose of the no u-turn sign is to protect and provide for you a safe way to travel? They are usually put up in places where making a u-turn jeopardizes your safety and the safety those around you. Even though I have gotten a lot better: Those moments when I am lost, missed my turn, don't know where I am going, or simply in a hurry and a no u-turn sign reminds me of my faults. I realize, I have a choice to make, will I obey the warning sign or will I push the limits because what I need is the only thing that really matters?Support the show
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