Sermon: “Recipe for Repentance: Looking Forward”, Mark 11:1-11 (March 28, 2021--Palm Sunday)

(This is the sixth sermon in our Lenten series, "Recipe for Repentance". Previous sermons can be found here, here, here, and here, and the Ash Wednesday message can be found here.)

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It’s so good to be back worshiping with you again. I wasn’t in worship last Sunday because, as many of you know, I’d just gotten my second COVID vaccine on Saturday and, given all the horror stories I’d heard about side effects, Session and I decided that it made the most sense for me to stay home the next day. As it turned out, my side effects weren’t all that bad—a headache was the worst of it—so I took the opportunity to look ahead and work on our worship videos for Holy Week.

Sermon: “Recipe for Repentance: Reflection”, Exodus 20:1-17 (March 7, 2021)

(This is the third sermon in our Lenten series, "Recipe for Repentance". Previous sermons can be found here and here, and the Ash Wednesday message can be found here.)

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“That’s it; you’re in time-out!” How many of us have heard these words and experienced the pure panic of a child knowing that they’re in big trouble? Although we usually thought of it as a punishment in the moment, a time-out should more accurately be considered a “behavior modification strategy”. Unlike grounding, in which privileges are revoked as a method of negative reinforcement, a time-out is intended to remove a person from their normal environment and give them the opportunity to reflect on their bad behavior. After all, you can’t express remorse or make it right if you don’t understand what you’ve done wrong. In the words of parents since time immemorial, you’re put into time-out in order to “think about what you’ve done.”

Sermon: "Recipe for Repentance: Ashes and Crumbs", Psalm 51 (selected verses) (February 17, 2021--Ash Wednesday)

(This is the Ash Wednesday sermon for our Lenten Series, "Recipe for Repentance". The full worship service can be found here.)

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“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your faithful love! Wipe away my wrongdoings according to your great compassion! Wash me completely clean of my guilt; purify me from my sin! Because I know my wrongdoings, my sin is always right in front of me. Yes, you want truth in the most hidden places; you teach me wisdom in the most secret space.” (Psalm 51:1-3, 6) 

On Ash Wednesday, Christians all over the world take ashes onto our bodies in remembrance of our mortality and need for repentance. It’s a reminder that, no matter how clean we feel, no matter how much we think we’ve “got it all together,” we are always at God’s mercy. We’re always subject to the death and decay of our sin. While we can easily wipe away the ashes on our foreheads, our sin is far more difficult to remove. We need to repent before we can be at one with the Lord.

Sermon: “Finding a Way on the Road of Faith”, Isaiah 6:1-8/Luke 5:1-11 (February 10, 2019)

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Picture this: you’re driving from one end of the United States to the other. You’ve been driving for a while, so you’re a long way from where you started and everything around you is unfamiliar. Let’s imagine, too, that for some reason, you aren’t able to drive on the major highways, so you’re slowly making your way along backroads. It’s been hours and hours since you last saw a sign telling you where you are. You’ve stopped to get gas, and you’re wondering if it’s even worth the effort to keep going. It’s late; you’re tired, and you’re not even certain that you’re still on the right road. Maybe you should just give up.