Sermons of Pastor Rob Myallis

 Ascension (June 1)We are swimming in information today, but this hasn't made the truth easier to find.Today's sermon is intended for all people, but especially the 8th graders being confirmed.  (They were making a public confession of faith, saying yes to the promises made to them in their baptisms).  Where can we -- above all young people -- find a truth to build our lives on?This issue of truth is brought to the fore this particular Sunday, when we celebrate the Ascension (Acts 1:1-11), because Jesus sends out the disciples "to by my witnesses."  To be a witness means there is a truth we are called to point to in our lives.Pastor Rob offers that in the ancient proclamation of faith -- Christ has died, Christ is Risen and Christ will come again -- we find a truth we can stand on and one we can witness to all the days of our lives.

Easter VI (May 25, 2025)"Do you want to be made well?" Jesus asks the man who has been sick for 38 years!The obvious answer should be "yes", but it isn't.  In our lives too, we often fall into cycles and situations in which we are not well, but we aren't quite capable of rising above the situation.Into this situation comes Jesus, willing to offer compassion and challenge beyond anything we've experienced before.The art is by Nathan Greene.  You can purchase it here.  I am sensitive to images of Jesus in which Jesus looks European instead of middle Eastern, but I loved the combination of compassion and power in this artist's rendition.

 "A New Commandment I give you:  Love one another.   As I have loved you, love one another."How can Jesus command love, something seemingly impossible to command?  And what might it mean to love others as Jesus has loved us?To get at these questions, we look at the setting of Jesus giving this new commandment, namely, when he washes the disciple's feet.  As we ponder this act of service, we discover not only the depth of challenge in Jesus words to love as he loved, but also the word of grace and promise contained in them.This is a screenshot of an artwork by Alida Bothma.  You can view the Etsy site to purchase the print.

 Easter IV (May 11 2025)What is your “full name” — the thing that people say after your name that completes their description of you? For example, “That is Jane, she is a great teacher” or “That is Sam, he is an amazing basketball player”Today we learn the full name of an early believer in the book of Acts (9:36-43):  Tabitha, aka Dorcas, “was always doing good and helping the poor…”  What a beautiful full name!Pastor Rob offers a word of challenge today:  In your quest to make a good full name for yourself, have you focused on the right things?  It is very tempting to focus on the “resume” virtues instead of the “obituary” virtues!There is also a profound word of grace today in today's reading, a reminder that ultimately, God has the last word on our name and not our mistakes, failures or bad things that have happened to us.Note:  I do not have permission (yet) to post this artwork by a Christian artist named Sarah Beth, but I found it so beautiful!  You can purchase the art here.

Easter III (May 4, 2025)The story seems like comfortable at first:  The disciples go fishing, they eat breakfast with Jesus and then Peter tells Jesus he loves him. (John 21:1-17)But once you start digging, you realize this is a story about the power of shame.  Peter is ashamed of his denial of Jesus and this manifests itself in all sorts of typical shame behaviorAvoidingCovering UpFocusing on self and past mistakesHow then can Peter move forward?  How can we move forward in our shame?It turns out that nice guy Jesus isn't going to cut it.  Instead, we need the son of the living God to redeem us from sin and shame.The painting is by Tissot.  It is on display at the Brooklyn Museum of Art

Easter 2025Easter is a time of memories, including memories of our loved ones who have died.The first Easter, in fact, began with a trip the place of memories — the word for tomb in Greek is memory!A reflection on memories and how the resurrection changes everything, including how we understand our memories.The image comes from the Kid's Corner Bible site.

 Good Friday 2025Where you there?  It is a more haunting question than it sounds.  (Based on the passion of John, found in chapters 18-19).In the end, yes, yes, you and I were there. 

Palm Sunday (April 13, 2025)What does it mean to have power?The Roman Empire displayed a type of power we know:  The ability to get what you want, when you want it.  Their imperial parades were the example of power, as the leaders rode in on majestic horses.  You could call this horse power.Jesus offered a different vision of power: The ability to help others.  His parade, as he rode on donkey, showed what this power looks like.  You could call this donkey power.  Helping others through acts of love, humility and service.  Definitely not as glorious in the eyes of the world.  (I mean, really, look at the picture of the donkey.  Not the most inviting!)A reflection on Horse power and Donkey power. Hint: Horse power isn't all bad, but it finally takes the back seat.The donkey comes from a blogpost called “Donkeys, Kings and Outcasts“

 Lent V (April 6, 2025)Who are people with whom you can share your joy and happiness? In our world of work, school, activities and even family, this kind of friendship and community is surprisingly rare.  Too many relationships have competition, jealousy and shame for this to happen readily.As we wrap up the book of Ruth, we encounter a rejoicing Naomi.  She is holding a grandson.  Admittedly, it is not directly her grandson, but after the chaos, grief and loss of her life, she is rejoicing at this baby in her arms.  She is also surrounded by the women of the village, who rejoice with her.A reflection on how the community of Jesus, the community of the cross and empty tomb, can provide this community of rejoicing for a hurting and lonely world.The artwork comes from Gospel Images, https://www.gospelimages.com/paintings/115/naomi-receives-a-grandson  It was chosen because it emphasizes the whole community around Naomi and Ruth.

 Lent IV (March 30, 2025)We know well the look of the older brother in the painting.  His whole body shouts:  “It's not fair!”He is not wrong.  As the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-35) plays itself out, the story is unfair.  Which justifiably angers the older brother.As humans, we all protest when we don't think things are fair.  In order to make life together work, we need their to be fairness. Yet…  It turns out in life that we encounter situations in which we need more than fairness.  Sometimes the wounds and situations call for compassion, an unfair extension of mercy, an intentional bending of the rules to help someone.A reflection on when life together needs compassion and where to go for the at compassion.The painting is by Rembrandt, The Return of the Prodigal.

Lent 3 (March 23, 2025)Life Together — our Lenten theme — sounds great, but what about the times we found ourselves as an outsider?Pastor Rob reflects outsider-insider dynamics by looking at the book of Ruth, as Ruth begins her new life in Bethlehem (Ruth 2:1-7).  As we work with the story, we see that at certain points in our lives, we are like Ruth, an outsider; at other points, we are like Naomi, a bridge builder; at other points, we are like Boaz, the insider.  As it turns out, each role can be a sacred role.Perhaps though this story isn't just about our lives though, but also foreshadows the work of Christ, who becomes an outsider for us that we might become an insider with him.The image comes from a leadership website about insider/outsider dynamics.

Lent 2 (March 16, 2025)Naomi, Ruth and Orpah are three women who are grieving (Ruth 1).  The deaths they have encountered force them to make tough decisions that include both separation but also deeper connection.When we experience loss, through death, break-ups or illness, it often impacts our relationships.  Some come to an end; others are new or renewed in a profound way.We find that even in the face of death and loss, God is still the God of easter and resurrection, who gives us life together.This painting is likely actually a poster by Veronica McDonald.  You can find it here.

 Lent 1 (March 9, 2025)Two truths and a lie – a game we've probably all played.Today, the devil plays a far higher stakes version of the game, sowing a lie amidst the truth as he tempts Jesus.This Lent we are focusing on Life Together; there is nothing more toxic to life together than lies.  And while lying has always been part of the human story (the prince of lies is always at work!), our modern world's technology makes it so hard for us to figure out how to distinguish between truth and lies.A reflection on what it means to build a community of truth.

Eat Less Fear; Behold More GloryWe eat a LOT of fear in daily lives.  This works disease in our souls, blinding us to God's glory and blocking us from living as disciples.In the Transfiguration of Jesus (Luke 9:28-38), we learn another path of dealing with fear and beholding the glory of God:Going to the mountain, praying and listening to Jesus.What might it mean to go to the mountain?  One example:  Watching children at the church's early learning center fascinated by a visiting dog.A reflection on how to eat less fear and behold more glory; wrapping up with the promises of Jesus, who listens to us, prays for us and gives us his glory. 

 February 23, 2025“Love your enemies… Turn the other cheek.”  (Luke 6)   Does Jesus know how the world works?Turns out that Jesus knows very well how the world works:  He knows our world needs mercy.In fact, he invites us into the heavenly family business of mercy.A reflection on the possibility and even necessity of loving our enemy.

 February 9, 2025Jesus calls Peter and his fellow fishermen to push out their boat a little and then cast their nets into the deep.In the same way, Jesus calls us.  Sometimes this call is for something small; other times for something that seems riskier and harder.Peter laments this call of Jesus, saying that he is worn and the fish aren't moving.  Peter doesn't believe this his actions will make a difference.In our lives and in our world today, we can also often feel like our actions will not make an impact.But we are not called to figure it all out.  Instead, we are called to obey our call and let go of the results. This as it turns out…is also a challenge, not just for us, but for Jesus to take on.

February 2, 2025Love is patient and love is kind.Yet the people want to throw Jesus off a cliff (Luke 4:18-30)!  Where is the love?  Pastor Rob offers that the people in Jesus' hometown do have love, it is just misguided and blinding. We struggle with this today as well as our love can be misguided and blinding.  Our love of one person or one group can block our loving another person or another group.   As humans, we have a strong inclination to love “us” and not “them.”A reflection on Jesus' patience and kindness toward our misguided love that finally breaks down the “us” and “them.”

 3 Epiphany (Sunday, January 26, 2025)Today we hear Jesus' inauguration speech as he gives his first sermon (Luke 4:11-21).  In this sermon, Jesus lays out the fundamental direction of his ministry:Uplifting the poorBy…opening the eyes and hearts of the rich to share what they haveso that… all may live in a “body” that loves God and loves neighborIt turns out this message was fundamentally different than the way the world worked 2,000 years ago.  The message continues to be different from how our world works today.  Then, and today, the culture's moral foundation was a trinity of the self:  self-expression, self-achievement and self-pleasure. Which brings us the image for the sermon – bubbles of potential college majors.  Pastor Rob invites us to a different way to talk to young people about their futures, one that would be less pagan and more focused on Christ's teachings.

 January 19, 2025Today St. Paul celebrates the confirmation of five adults.  (Confirmation is a public affirmation by a teen or adult of their baptism, which typically happened at a younger age).The story of Jesus turning water into wine at Cana (John 2:1-11) provides a framework for thinking through:  What then are we confirming?We are confirming that God is a God who turns water into wine.We are confirming that we are not gods who can turn water into wine, but we can fill the cup to the brim, trusting that God in Jesus Christ will make water into wine, for God's glory.

January 12, 2025 (Baptism of Jesus)Today we have a special event at St. Paul — the Baptism of five youth/older children.It gives us an opportunity to reflect on the question — what do we want to pass along to the next generation about faith?  What is most important to know about our Baptisms and our life as a disciple of Jesus?Pastor Rob offers three things You are lovedOthers are loved too…well, you will have to listen to find out 🙂

 Christmas II/Epiphany (January 5, 2025)What are your resolutions, dreams and goals for 2025?Are they about your star rising or orienting your life to the one who causes the stars to rise?Pastor Rob recommends “S.T.A.R.” goals, reflecting on the journey of the magi (aka wisemen)

 Christmas Eve 2024How do you measure time?  Luke's Gospel offers us a number of waysBy who is in powerBy months of pregnancyBy grass growth in the fieldsBy beginning relationships and births within familiesThese are all familiar in our lives.  So far, so good.But the angels point toward another reality though, that somehow Jesus life is beyond time; that all of time hinges around him. What does this mean that the eternal entered into a human timeline?  How does this change how we measure time in our lives?This image comes from a blog page -- where it is not cited, but seems like it originally is a creation of Olga Ptashko.

 Advent 4 (Dec 22, 2024)In countless Christmas movies, the plot remains the same:  Something has jeopardized Christmas.  If the characters don't get their acts together and love, cheer, sing and believe enough, Christmas might just not happen — the sleigh might not have enough Christmas Spirit to run!!  All too often, we function like the people in the movies, believing that Christmas depends on us.  This just rachets up the stress.As an antidote for our Christmas stress, Pastor Rob offers us the promises given to John the Baptist.  Christmas isn't about you Christmas is for you

Advent 3, 2024There are no “small” roles!When Elizabeth discovers that Mary is pregnant with Jesus, Elizabeth does something amazing (Luke 1:39-55).  Instead of feeling threatened that her own pregnancy would be overshadowed, she rejoices and magnifies Mary's joy.What allows Elizabeth to do the almost divine thing here, to celebrate, free of jealousy, for another's humans success?  Perhaps it is her conviction that she had a part to play in God's unfolding drama in Jesus Christ.  Elizabeth knows in this story, every role, every person matters.  This allows her to rejoice in her own role and rejoice to discover how God works in the lives of others.That said, in Elizabeth's life, there were many times when she wasn't sure what her role actually entailed.  In our lives too, we don't always know.  Instead, we must live by the promise, that we matter to God and that God's mercy is from generation to generation.  For the stuff that Mary sings about — the world turning upside down — doesn't happen overnight and requires our faithful actions over the generations.

 Advent 2 (Dec 8, 2024)Pastor Rob begins his sermon by admitting that he has an obsession with correctly loading the dishes.  It turns out for that task — and for many others — we need information.Mary is given the world's biggest task, namely, bear the son of God in her womb.  Yet, God gives her an incredibly little amount of information.  Why is this?Pastor Rob reflects on the call of Mary as well as our own callings in life and reminds us that ultimately, if we follow the call of God, we will discover the cross.  If we knew all about the crosses we would face in life, we might never get out of bed, much less say yes to God's call to love and serve our neighbor!Instead of information, Mary is given two things.  First, a friend who is wise.  Second, the promise that “Nothing will be impossible with God.”These two things God also gives to us.  And with them, we can say, like Mary:  “Lord, Here I am.  Let it be with me according to your Word!”

 Advent 1 (December 1, 2024)Did you know that Barbie was launched on March 9, 1959?  It turns out that the makers of the Barbie movie made the odometer of the car read “030959” in homage to this date.  This is one of many “Easter Eggs” in the film; many films have “Easter Eggs”, references to other films or historical events.  You likely miss them the first time, but when you replay the movie, they bring a smile and recognition that the director is good and creative.In life, God drops lots of Easter Eggs for us — small things that point us to the fact that life's “director” is faithful, creative, if not even humorous.  Yet, we miss them!  And even when we see them, we often struggle to believe that they are revelations of God's goodness in our lives.  In the story of Zechariah meeting the angel Gabriel in the temple (Luke 1:8-20), Zechariah struggles to believe.  Zechariah's struggles of faith are like ours, as life grinds us down, closing off our heart to God's work in our lives.Pastor Rob reminds us that the solution of the angel for Zechariah's unbelief is silence. Likewise, the medicine for our inability to see the “Easter Eggs” is silence.  This Advent, these weeks leading up to Christmas, we too are invited into silence, to contemplate the Easter Eggs both in Scripture but also our lives.  For God, in Jesus Christ, has promised to be faithful to us, even when we struggle to believe.

 Christ the King Sunday (Nov 24, 2024)The trial scene of Jesus before Pilate has two witnesses, one testifying to the power of love (Jesus); one testifying to the love of power (Pilate).After reflecting on how we see these two worldviews colliding throughout history, both in secular society but also in the church, Pastor Rob brings it back to our lives. What does your life bear witness to:  The power of love or the love of power?This testimony is first borne out in our lives.This testimony is also borne out at the communion rail, where we acknowledge both our tendency to give into the love of power, but also confess our ultimate hope in the power of love, who is Jesus.The image of from James Tissot's work:  Jesus Before Pilate, Second Interview (Jésus devant Pilate. Deuxième entretien), 1886-1894

 November 10, 2024Jesus praises a poor widow for giving two small coins to the temple treasury.  In itself, this is a powerful story of sacrificial giving.   What really makes it striking though, is that this very temple is declared to be corrupt by Jesus.   Yet Jesus still praises her.When we give as Christians, we do so in a world in which there is corruption, greed and hardness of the human heart.  Yet Jesus still commands and praises generosity.  Why? — Giving is an act of obedience to a faithful God; it declares human sin will not limit God's action— Giving is an act of defiance to a faithless world; it declares human sin will not limit our actionThe sermon ultimately focuses on the faithfulness of God, for Jesus' teaching and life — as well as the ministry of St. Paul congregation — bear witness to how God works in, with and under generosity.

All Saints Sunday 2024 (Nov 3)The sunflower on the maintenance road didn't get the memo — it didn't belong there and it was too late in the season.  Yet it was there, and for the folks walking by, it became a beautiful symbol of God's faithfulness.  In spite of how broken our world is, there remains enough signposts and sacraments, signs of God's goodness, that we are forced to reckon with the reality of God's presence and faithfulness in our lives.This All Saints Sunday we reflect on the sunflowers on the road of our lives — the people whose presence bore witness to God's faithfulness in our lives.  We link back to Jesus meeting people on the road of life's sorrows (John 11:32-44) as he becomes the chief sunflower on the road for us.

 October 20, 2024Jesus offers us a freedom that at first seems like a strange freedom:  The freedom to serve others.We are inclined to think of freedom differently, as the ability to do what we want, when we want to, because we want to.  Yet, precisely if we've swum in those moral waters, the “do what you want” waters, we realize that freedom is not freedom and is not life.  We are hungry for a different kind of freedom.This freedom is the freedom Christ gives – the freedom to love and serve others.To reflect on this freedom, we look at the life of the Apostle John.  He had many chapters in his life – chapters of arrogance, chapters of grief, chapters of rivalry.  Yet he writes a book whose chapters are about humility, resurrection and fellowship.  What happened to him?  He followed Jesus, who was not simply his teacher, but his ransom, who set him free to serve others.(Note, in the middle ages, people would often symbolize John with an eagle, for his Gospel “soared” above the others.  John certainly had insight and talent, but it would need to be set free, free from his own agenda, his grief and his rivalry.  This striking image was found on Flickr; the artist, Lawrence OP, as beautiful photos of church art.)

 October 13, 2024“I am the rich Jesus is talking about???”When Jesus says, “It is easier for a camel to enter through the eye of a needle than a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God” many of us as Americans get uncomfortable…Are they for us?  Are we the rich Jesus is addressing?  Or do the rich refer to the “Scrooge McDuck”s of the world, the people obscenely wealthy?Pastor Rob offers two questions to wrestle with in determining whether our money is a problemDo our possessions possess us or do we possess our possessions?Is our identity wrapped up in our wealth and possessions?Toward the end of the sermon, Pastor Rob offers two powerful words of graceWe are works in progress, trying to figure out faith and financesWe are worship in progress.  Life is about more thing than consumption of things, it is about worshipping the Lord!

 October 6, 2024“I believe, help my unbelief!” cries the father who has brought his sick son to Jesus (Mark 9:24).Like all who have long prayed for a suffering family member, the man is brought to the brink.  While he sees the strength, conviction and love of Jesus — before his very eyes — he acknowledges the forces against him are ancient, mighty and hideous.A reflection on what we do when we find our own prayer the prayer of this father — “I believe, help me in my unbelief.”This artwork is from an artist named Judy Cooley.  

September 29, 2024“What we do in life echoes in eternity” – a stoic philosopher said it first (Marcus Aurelius) but most of us know it through the movie Gladiator.When one hears the Gospel today (Mark 9:38-50), one could argue that Jesus seems to say something similar, as he both promises blessing and warns of condemnation based on our actions.  It is true that our actions can have a huge impact on the world around us and long into the future.However, it is a bit more marvelous and subtle that this, because Jesus has made a choice that echoes throughout eternity as well, namely, he chose to go to the cross, condemn evil and then bring forth new life.

 September 22, 2024Jesus today offers words we like want to soften:  He calls his disciples to be last of all and servants of all (Mark 8:30-37). At first, this sounds impossible. The only person who ever was servant of all was Jesus.Yet, Jesus does show us a way forward.  Right after calling the disciples to be servant of all, he embraces one child.  Jesus is servant to all…one person at a time.Likewise, Jesus invites us to serve others, one person at a time. 

September 15, 2024Peter has committed his life to follow Jesus.Peter is the shining student, confessing Jesus as the Messiah (Mark 8:27-38).Then, all of the sudden, Peter is being rebuked by Jesus.What gives?Most Christians do not succumb to blatant worship of idols; but we often lose ourselves, even when pursuing the faith, hope and love.A reflection on our capacity to make the good into a false god…and God's capacity to cause repentance and resurrection.The image is taken from a church website about our tendency to make idols.

September 8, 2024As Jesus is healing a man's blindness, the man says “I can see people, but they are like trees walking.”  (Mark 8:14-26)  This prompts Jesus to work more on the man's eyes.It turns out that Jesus really has to work to heal the man!  The story serves as a key to understanding Mark's Gospel in that Jesus repeatedly has to work on the disciples to open their eyes and hearts.Like the original disciples, we too are works in progress.  We are beloved, capable — saints; but we are also broken, selfish — sinners.   Our whole life Jesus is working on us.If we take it that we are, indeed, “Works in Progress”, what doors to relationship does allow for?  And what does it mean for us that our society remains a “Works in Progress”?Perhaps the short answer is — our hands are going to get dirty!

 September 1, 2024Once again, Jesus is criticized by religious leaders for his mealtime practices (portions of Mark 7).  Turns out, he is always being criticized for WHO eats with him, WHAT he eats and HOW he eats.It would be easy for us to judge the religious leaders of his day, but turns out, in our world today we have lots of rules, judgement and shame around the WHO, WHAT and HOW of food.So what do we do?  We can't quite give up on food!Pastor Rob picks up the idea of “spiritual calories” and our need for spiritual nourishment.  While there are many ways to find “spiritual calories”, this particular Sunday we are invited to consider ways in which we might reclaim our eating as a spiritual practice.  In so doing, our physical nourishment also becomes our spiritual nourishment.  Ultimately, we cannot give up on food and eating as spiritual, for Jesus himself does not, choosing to become our physical and spiritual bread.  In so doing, he turns our shame into joy!

 August 25, 2024A google search on “Sunday Morning” comes up with a lot of images — but almost none of them church (or the Bible)!As we live into this time – a great unchurching of the United States – we hear the question of Jesus to the disciples:  “Do you also want to leave?”For many of us, though, we say no, we want to stay in the community of faith, we want to follow Jesus.  Why?  Why do you attend and participate in a community of faith?

 August 18, 2024“Take heed therefore — making the most of your time”  St Paul, letter to the Ephesians (Chapter 5:15-16)YOLO — You only live once.  This is what is often said now when someone wants to encourage us to pursue adventure and indulge ourselves!!  In short, play hard!  This is especially true in our post COVID world, one that has realized how preciously short and fragile this one, holy and previous life that we have is. But is YOLO the Christian response to the shortness of our life span?  Pastor Rob reflects on how for Christians we are called not simply play hard; or do avoid play altogether, but discover where our play and work meet each other.  When our work and play become each other, then we discover we are praising our creator.Yet…there are times when work and play do not overlap.  What then?  We discover we need something more than YOLO — We need YOLG — You only live by grace!!

 August 11, 2024“Be gracious, as God graced you in Jesus Christ”  Paul, to the Ephesians.What does grace look like in our lives?  (Standing out in the rain listening to Taylor Swift concerts from the city park?)  How do we extend grace to others?  (Including neighborhood bullies?)A reflection on how God gives us our daily bread, the grace that forgives and opens our hearts to forgive others.

 July 7, 2024The Presidential debates of this past June were met by many with frustration and anxiety; they felt like one more sign of the dysfunction and malaise hanging over our political world.Pastor Rob reflects on Mark 6 when Jesus sends out his disciples. The world they lived in was a world of brutal political and social realities.  Yet Jesus still sent them out.  It turns out, that Jesus has sending his disciples out over the past 2,000 years, even though the world has been — at all times — complex, fragmented, broken and sinful.  This includes countless Christian women — who couldn't vote in the 19th century — making quilts to guide slaves along the underground railroad.  The political dysfunction of society does not limit the capacity of disciples to be faithful to God. Pastor Rob exhorts us to focus less on the political reality we live in and give more heed to what we can do for our neighbor.The sermon concludes with a reflection on what this might look like for us to live as a people of hope in this time and place.  The artwork is from the Smithsonian Museum website.

 June 30, 2024Sickness is like an iceberg in that we often only see the tip of the situation.  The Gospel writer Mark takes us on a deep dive into the emotional undercurrents of illness, exploring what is going on in the hearts of the families of two women who are healed by Jesus (Mark 5:21-43).  These stories speak to the reality of our emotions, but they also speak to the compassion and faithfulness of Jesus as he moves towards suffering to bring salvation.The way that Mark tells this story, he not only draws us closer to these two women and their families, but he draws us into the story, inviting us to recall the times in our lives when we've encountered chronic and acute illness.  This reveals to us how Jesus is also at work during those times in our life — offering compassion, summoning faith and finally carrying us.The emotional iceberg comes from a website selling products that can be used for working with people in tough times

 Sunday, June 23"Do you not care that we are perishing?"  The disciples cry out to Jesus, who is asleep during the storm.Inevitably, we will go through storms.  We will encounter hard times and observe terrible situations in the world.   We will wonder where God is in the midst of all of this.  Is Jesus sleeping?  During these times, we or those whom we love will cry out to God:  "Do you not care that we are perishing?"A reflection on possible answers to one of life's most haunting questions.The image comes from a blog by Eugene Luning (couldn't find art credit)

 June 16, 2024Did you know that a butterfly flapping its wings can change the path, intensity and even existence of a massive storm, like a tornado or hurricane!?“The Butterfly Effect” is the term to describe how in a complex and interconnected system, the smallest change of one variable can lead to a big change in the outcome.As Christians, we've confessed a belief in the “Butterfly Effect” before mathematical models were developed around it.  We have long worshipped a God who causes — in this interconnected world — butterfly wings to flap and change the world.  Pastor Rob develops this theme by looking at the parable of the mustard seed (Mark 4).This is a message we need to hear, especially in our world of “big and terrible” news in which we lose all sense of our and even God's capacity to make a difference. 

 June 9, 2024Things go wrong for Jesus after his “graduation” – he leaves town, makes friends with the wrong people, gets in trouble with the law and finds religion.  When he gets home, its a bit too much for his family who confront him about this.  At this point, things get even worse, with him renouncing them (Mark 3:20-35)  The end?Because our God is a God of forgiveness and reconciliation, the story goes on and does work its way toward new life.  Ultimately Mary, his mother, will come back — as Jesus is dying on the cross.  And his brother and he will be united — after the resurrection.This is certainly good news for us, because time and time again in our families, we run into situations in which frustration and unaligned expectations cause deep hurt in our families.  We often pray for years for healing. A reflection on how the Holy Spirit brings forgiveness into our families.

Holy Trinity 2024 (Also Confirmation!)Decisions, decisions, decisions!!Life is full of decisions; for young people, each decision comes with so many options.  Their life feels very much like a “Choose you own adventure” story:  What to study, whom to befriend, whom to love, where to live, what teams to try out for…This all sounds exciting, except that with many choices comes the potential to make wrong decisions.  This can lead to lots of anxiety — did I make the right decisions?A reflection on a man with a decision to make – Nicodemus (John 3).  Turns out he doesn't make the right decision, but God has decided that he isn't done with Nicodemus!(Note: The sermon today is especially targeted toward the 14 year-olds being confirmed, but it likely resonates with all of us who face decisions in life and worry about the past decisions we've made.)

 Pentecost 2024 (May 19)Life speed is fast and only gets faster.As life gets faster, making sense of life becomes harder and harder to do.  A reflection on where we go to find still waters.(Hint:  Today is Pentecost, the birthday of the church!)Also, an admission of what to do when, no matter what, it doesn't fully make sense!

Ascension 2024 (May 12)Pastor Rob reminds us of the crafty gifts we gave to our mothers on Mother's Day (and other such days) using a poem called “Lanyard.”  While such gifts are sentimental and cute, they really don't adequately repay the mother for all that she has done.The disproportional love of parent to a young child is a great illustration of God's love for us, which is far greater than we can comprehend.  On the Ascension Jesus gives his last instructions to his disciples.  Not surprisingly, he asks not for lanyards from them.  Rather, he asks for them to be his witnesses, those who speak the truth.The truth we speak about — including on Mother's day — includes the reality that sin and death are powerful forces in this life that grind away at relationships and bring us grief.  But chiefly we bear witness to God's extravagant grace in Jesus Christ.

Easter V (April 28, 2024)“He removes every branch in me that does not bear fruit.”   These words often sound threatening and cause us to ask:  “Am I one of the branches that will be pruned or not?”Pastor Rob invites us to see this a bit differently.  Rather than be concerned with “Who is in and who is out?” instead we are to ask ourselves “Which me is in and which is out?   Each of us a side of ourselves — truly a version of ourselves — that needs to be pruned.  Yet, each of us has another side — another version — that is bearing fruit.  Our life in Christ, abiding in him, means that we are constantly being pruned, yet also raised up to new life to bear fruit.Once we embrace ourselves as people who are pruned to bear fruit, we can embrace the humility and charity Christ intends for us.  This humility and charity, as it turns out, is what enables us to live in community; these virtues are also, as it turns out, in short supply right now.  This presents an opportunity and challenge for us at St. Paul.

 Easter IV 2024 (April 14)Good Shepherd SundayThe image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd powerfully communicates the fundamental truth  “God loves you.”  When push comes to shove, this is the fundamental truth we live by and we want to pass on to the next generation of faith.However, there is another vital truth – even embedded in Psalm 23 – that we want to pass along too:  It is not about you!  Our lives have an importance to God for the sake of our neighbor and God's purposes in this world.A reflection on Baptism, Psalm 23 and how God teaches us these two truths again and again in our lives.

Easter III (April 14, 2023)This past week our nation was fascinated and delighted by the eclipse.  It was a reminder of the glory of the heavens, the place where the beauty and complexity of the creation bears witness to the creator.This past week our nation was heartbroken and afraid of violence and further escalation around the world, particularly in the Middle East.  It was a reminder of the muddiness of life of earth, the place where the tragedy and complexity of human interactions bears witness to the power of sin.Given this tension, it is easy to see why many develop a theology in which Jesus comes to lead an escape mission, to get us out of earth.  But as the story of the risen Jesus shows (Luke 24:36-48), Jesus isn't interested in giving up on earth; he offers his disciples no packing list for their trip to heaven.  Jesus is not intending to an escape mission, but a reclamation one, as he wins back earth for God's purposes.  For you see, the fundamental constant of the universe isn't the speed of light or the gravitation constant, but the faithfulness of God's love.This is true in our lives: God is faithful not just to creation, but to you as well. Therefore, we are to expect to see repentance and forgiveness into our lives.  And…therefore…our job then is to share — much like we shared photos of the pictures of the eclipse — the stories of God's faithfulness in our lives and in this world.For more photos of the eclipse from space, you can check out NASA's website.