Liturgy: Final Instructions to Timothy, 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18 (September 6, 2026)

       *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #611, “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee”

Hymn GTG #306, “Blest Be the Tie That Binds”

Liturgy: Commit to Sound Teachings, 2 Timothy 3:14--4:5 (August 30, 2026)

      *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #457, “How Happy Are the Saints of God”

Hymn GTG #475, “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”

Hymn GTG #432, “How Clear Is Our Vocation, Lord”

Liturgy: Words, 2 Timothy 2:8-15 (August 23, 2026)

     *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #459, “O Word of God Incarnate”

Hymn GTG #463, “How Firm a Foundation”

Hymn GTG #462, “I Love to Tell the Story”

Liturgy: Love of Money, 1 Timothy 6:5-19 (August 9, 2026)

     *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #846, “Fight the Good Fight”

Hymn GTG #716, “God, Whose Giving Knows No Ending”

Hymn GTG #643, “Now Thank We All Our God”

Sermon: "Know Better - Do Better", 1 Timothy 1:12-17 (August 2, 2026)

When I was younger, I used to be a VORACIOUS reader. I was one of two kids in my kindergarten class who could read before they started school, and I was devouring classic novels like *Jane Eyre* and *Les Misérables* for fun by junior high. I was the kid reading under the covers at midnight to keep from getting into trouble for being up so late. I always finished the books assigned for English class weeks before everyone else did - the ONLY homework that I ever finished early, by the way. My appetite for books significantly decreased later in my education when reading started to feel less like a banquet and more like force-feeding, but during my formative years, I spent the vast majority of my free time with my nose buried in a book.

Liturgy: Paul's Conversion, 1 Timothy 1:12-17 (August 2, 2026)

    *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #12, “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”

Hymn GTG #287, “Gracious Spirit, Heed Our Pleading”

Sermon: I Wanna Be Like Christ, Philippians 2:1-13 (May 17, 2026)

Do any of you remember the “Be Like Mike” commercial for Gatorade from back in the ‘90s? Even though I was only about five when it came out, I can still remember it. The ad took video clips from some of Michael Jordan’s most impressive moments on the court and cut them together with clips of regular kids and teens playing basketball outside (presumably they were trying to emulate the pro ball player). The footage was accompanied by children’s voices singing about their dreams of being “like Mike.” And just in case the song and video didn’t communicate the commercial’s message clearly enough, the spot ends with the words, “Be like Mike. Drink Gatorade” in big, bold letters over a black background. 

Liturgy: Imitating Christ, Philippians 2:1-11 (May 17, 2026)

 *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #652, “A Grateful Heart”

Hymn GTG #720, “Jesus Calls Us”

Hymn GTG #767, “Together We Serve”

Sermon: Listen, Learn, & Love, Philippians 1-11(12-18) (May 10, 2026)

Anyone who’s ever read the epistles in any depth can tell you that Paul’s theology is firmly rooted in agape. As you may or may not recall, “agape” is the Greek word for active, unconditional, and sacrificial love, the type of love that seeks the well-being of others without expecting anything in return. It’s the kind of love that God has for humanity and that Jesus exhorts us to practice towards one another. It most famously shows up in chapter 13 of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians - “Now faith, hope, and love remain - these three things - and the greatest of these is love”  - but between the noun, verb, and adjective forms of the word, agape is mentioned as many as 136 times throughout the epistles. Paul clearly considers it foundational to the gospel’s message. 

Liturgy: Paul's Greeting to the Philippians, Philippians 1:1-18 (May 10, 2026)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know that you have either used or adapted it.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #366, “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling”

Hymn GTG #693, “Though I May Speak”

Hymn GTG #546, “Lord, Dismiss Us with Your Blessing”

Liturgy: 9th Sunday After Pentecost, 1 John 5:1-5 (July 21, 2024)

    *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #110, “Love Has Come”
Hymn GTG #137, “He Came Down”
Hymn GTG #372, “O for a World”

Hymn GTG #720, “Jesus Calls Us”

Liturgy: 7th Sunday After Pentecost, 1 John 3:16-24 (July 7, 2024)

   *You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

Hymns

Hymn GTG #308, “O God in Whom All Life Begins”
Hymn GTG #328, “Praise God, All You Nations”
Hymn GTG #757, “Today We All Are Called to Be Disciples”

Sermon: "The Menace", 2 Peter 2:1-2, 10b-22 (July 9, 2023)

Today’s reading is unusually long, but after establishing 2 Peter’s tone last week, I really wanted to give you a sense of why Pretend Peter has the reputation he does. Also, to be completely honest, I couldn’t pick anything to cut. There’s just so much in here, and it’s all FASCINATING. Name calling! Hypocrisy! Unruly parties! A talking donkey! Pretend Peter pulls out all the stops to make a lasting impression on his readers. Let’s take some time up front to really take it all in.

Liturgy: Sixth Sunday after Pentecost - 2 Peter 2 (July 7, 2023)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

*Call to Worship (based on Matthew 22:36-40)

Leader: What is the greatest commandment?
People: We must love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind.

Sermon: "The Impression That I Get", 2 Peter 1:1-11 (July 2, 2023)

Now that we’ve finished with Isaiah, the next mini sermon series that the Narrative lectionary suggests for the summer is on 2 Peter. It’s an unusual choice – preachers tend to avoid this epistle, for reasons that we may uncover shortly. 2 Peter isn’t the shortest book of the Bible, but it’s definitely a quick read at just three chapters long. Like many other biblical texts, the authorship of 2 Peter is uncertain – scholars believe that neither 1 not 2 Peter were actually written by the Apostle. In fact, evidence suggests that they were written by two different individuals at least a generation after Peter’s death.

Liturgy: Fifth Sunday after Pentecost - 2 Peter 1:1-11 (July 2, 2023)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

*Call to Worship (based on 2 Peter 1:3-4)

Leader: The Lord has given us everything we need to live a righteous life.
People: Through God’s honor and glory, we have been gifted much!

Liturgy: Pentecost - Acts 2:1-8/Romans 8:26-30, 38-39 (May 28, 2023)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

*Call to Worship (based on Acts 2:1-3)

Leader: When Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together in one place.
People: Gather us in as your people, O God!

Liturgy: Hope of Resurrection - Romans 6:1-14 (May 21, 2023)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

*Call to Worship (based on Romans 6:3-4)

Leader: Christ did not die to quell the wrath of a vengeful God.
People: Christ died to reconcile humanity with a God of abundant love.

Sermon: “Love’s Prerogative”, 1 Corinthians 8 (January 31, 2021)

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Whether you realize it or not, you’re already quite familiar with Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians—at least one particular part of it. “Love is patient; love is kind; Love never ends…Now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is Love.” These words are from 1 Corinthians 13 (five chapters after today’s reading). Odds are that you’ve heard this passage preached at a wedding or seen it on inspirational wall art. Many Christians embrace it as their favorite passages because, like John 3:16, 1 Corinthians 13 seems to encompass the essence of our faith succinctly, memorably, and poetically.

Sermon: "What Really Divides Us", Romans 14:1-6/Galatians 2:11-14 (September 13, 2020)

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As some of you know, I performed my first wedding here as the pastor of Boone Memorial Presbyterian Church yesterday. It was a joyful occasion, of course, and I was reminded once again of the blessing that this calling to ministry can be, even in the midst of a pandemic. I’ve been meeting with the newlyweds over the past several months in order to plan the ceremony and talk about their future life together, plus my own third wedding anniversary is in less than a month, so I’ve spent a lot of time recently reflecting on about the experience of joining two lives to one another. I’ve also been puzzling over how on earth anyone makes it work.