Sermon: “Bathsheba’s Gift”, 2 Samuel 11:1-5, 14-18, 26-27; 12:15b-18a, 24-25 (December 22, 2024)

We’ve read some tough stories about the women in Jesus’ genealogy over the past three weeks. But while Tamar, Rahab, and Ruth all had to overcome significant odds, Bathsheba’s situation is on a whole different level. At least the other three women were able to exercise a certain level of agency, in spite of their patriarchal contexts. Bathsheba, on the other hand, almost seems trapped within her own story. In fact, although nothing in 2 Samuel 11 could have happened without her, Scripture depicts her almost as if she doesn’t even matter as a human being. For all intents and purposes, her humanity is erased entirely.

Liturgy: Advent IV, Selections from 2 Samuel 11 & 12 (December 22, 2024)

 This liturgy is based on our Advent Theme this year, "The Gifts of Women", based on the women in Matthew's account of Jesus' genealogy. 

          *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 #93, “Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates” 

Hymn GTG #324, “For All the Faithful Women" [v. 1 + New Verse:]

Remembering Bathsheba, we offer up a prayer,

For those whose lives and stories are neither good nor fair.

Although she was exploited, abused in every way,

Her strength and her resilience inspire our faith today.

Hymn GTG #87, “Comfort, Comfort Now My People” 

Sermon: “A Biblical Case of Affluenza”, 2 Samuel 7:1-17 (October 20,2024)

For many celebrities, one of the first things they do when they become famous is to buy a new house for their parents.[1] It’s a way to say “thank you” for the support they’ve received over the years, especially if they struggled for a while before making it big. Some, like Chris Hemsworth and Margot Robbie, pay off the mortgage for the house that their parents already own, while others, like Pete Davidson and Justin Bieber, gift their parents an entirely new home.

Others, however, don’t just buy houses for their parents; they buy mansions. Celebrities like Beyonce, Rihanna, and Leonardo DiCaprio each spent multiple millions of dollars to buy new living spaces for their parents. Obviously, these celebs can afford such lavish gifts, and there’s no reason to begrudge them their success, but it certainly puts their prosperity on obvious display, doesn’t it? And regardless of their actual intentions, it makes it absolutely clear to everyone who the family breadwinner is.

Liturgy: 2 Samuel 7:1-17 (October 20, 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 #404, “What Is This Place?”
Hymn GTG #60, “Your Endless Love, Your Mighty Acts” (verses 1, 2, & 5)

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

Sermon: “For the Briefest of Moments…”, 2 Samuel 5:1-5, 6:1-5 (October 22, 2023)

Now that we’re over halfway through the First Testament in this cycle of the Narrative Lectionary, it’s worth remembering where we’ve come from before we find out where we’re going next. We began this Lectionary Year with the second creation story in Genesis, considering what was dysfunctional about the relationship between Adam and Eve. Then, we skipped ahead to Abraham and Sarah’s communication problems, which were uncovered when they learned that they would have a son despite their age. Next, we spent a week with their grandson, Jacob, who would apparently prefer to wrestle with a stranger than have a conversation with him. After that, we picked up the story many years later with Moses and his excuses about why he shouldn’t have to free God’s people. We fast-forwarded past the plagues, the Exodus, and the Israelites wandering in the desert, and then we heard part of Moses’ final speech to the Hebrews, where he begged them to pretty please remember that there’s only one God and that it’s SO IMPORTANT to follow God’s commandments (spoiler alert: it doesn’t work). And finally, we spent last week with Ruth and Naomi in the time of the Judges, after the Israelites had settled into their new home and, as scripture puts it, “there was no king in Israel, [so] people did whatever they felt like doing.”[1]

Phew. That’s a lot of ground to cover in six weeks. Looking at the history of God’s people from a bird’s eye view like this, a theme begins to emerge – it turns out that human beings are really bad at living together. We just keep messing it up. Despite our best intentions and God’s best efforts, human beings are forgetful, selfish, combative, and divisive.

Liturgy: David Anointed King, 2 Samuel 5:1-5, 6:1-5 (October 22, 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.*

Hymns:

Hymn GTG #37, “Let All Things Now Living”

Hymn GTG #74, “When God Restored Our Common Life”
Hymn GTG #769, “For Everyone Born” (verses 1, 2, 3, & 5)

Sermon: “Imperfect Confession”, 2 Samuel 11:14-17, 26-27, 12:1-9/Psalm 51 (October 23, 2022)

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2 Timothy[1] tells us that “Every scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for showing mistakes, for correcting, and for training character, so that the person who belongs to God can be equipped to do everything that is good.” The idea is, of course, that all scripture has value, and we shouldn’t throw out any passages just because we don’t like them. But in certain contexts, a Bible story hits a little too close to home and becomes harmful to hear. Many people struggle with today’s reading because it elicits painful memories; hearing about David’s terrible choices retraumatizes them. I want to remind these people that just because a passage is useful for teaching doesn’t mean that we’re always in a position to receive its lesson. If this story is difficult for you to sit with, it’s okay to take care of yourself by stepping away from it. Its lesson will still be there if and when it’s not so painful for you to hear.

Sermon: "Biblical Gymnastics", 2 Samuel 11:26-12:9/Ephesians 4:1-6, 12-16 (August 1, 2021)

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I have to admit; I’ve never quite understood the appeal of watching sports. I guess I’m just not all that interested in who can make the ball go in the goal the most times. But even I get caught up in the excitement of the Olympic games. I’m not as interested in the superlative competitions regarding who can be “faster, stronger, closer, ” (the races, weightlifting, shooting events, and that sort of thing) as I am in the ones where competitors demonstrate the incredible ways that they can make their bodies move. As someone who considers herself fairly uncoordinated and is extremely out of touch with her own body, THESE are the sports that leave me in awe. The events like synchronized swimming, diving, and, of course, gymnastics.