Sermon: “How to Succeed at Church Without Really Trying”, October 19, 2025 (1 Samuel 16:1-13)

It’s a widely recognized truth of human nature that, when given a choice, most of us will pursue success by following the path of least resistance. I don’t mean this as a criticism; it’s an entirely rational way to operate in the world. We maximize our chance of success (and minimize the cost of failure) when we make things as easy as possible for ourselves. So it makes sense for us to always be on the lookout for the simplest ways to get a leg up.

Liturgy: God Anoints David, 1 Samuel 16:1-13 (October 19, 2025)

  *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 #287, “Gracious Spirit, Heed Our Pleading” [vv. 1, 3, & 4]

Hymn GTG #303, “God the Spirit, Guide and Guardian” [vv. 1, 3, & 4]

Hymn GTG #700, “I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use Me”

Sermon: "Inadvertent Villainy", 1 Samuel 3:1-18 (October 12, 2025)

One of my favorite ways to engage scripture is to imagine yourself in the shoes of each character you encounter and seeing what new insights arise. It’s especially interesting in stories where there’s an obvious hero and villain dynamic at play. What do we find when we try to relate to Pharaoh instead of Moses? How does our understanding shift when we see ourselves as Goliath instead of David?  What can we learn when we adopt the perspective of Judas instead of Jesus? 

Liturgy: God Calls Samuel, 1 Samuel 3:1-18 (October 12, 2025)

  *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 #410, “God Is Calling through the Whisper”

Hymn GTG #421, “Have Mercy, God, upon My Life”

Hymn GTG #805, “Come Sing to God”

Sermon: “Momentary Saints”, 1 Samuel 3:1-10/Revelation 21:1-6 (November 7, 2021)

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In Christian circles, we talk about “God’s kindom” or “the kindom of heaven” all the time, but we tend to have a limited understanding of what it is, precisely, that we’re talking about. We know it’s really, really good, that it’s “already and not yet” here (whatever that means), and that it will mark Christ’s return. Other than that, we’re pretty clueless.

That’s where apocalyptic literature like Revelation comes in handy. Hopefully, you remember that, theologically speaking, an apocalypse isn’t actually defined as a catastrophic event. Our English word is derived from a Greek verb meaning “to uncover or reveal”. And in the context of scripture, apocalyptic literature refers to writings that uncover or reveal God’s kindom to us.