Sunday, February 15, 2926, Transfiguration Sunday – Exodus 24:12-18, Psalm 2, Psalm 99, 2 Peter 1:16-21, Matthew 17:1-9 For the last week or so, I’ve been in the grips of a great spiritual struggle. I share this because I want you to know that even those of us who serve in ministry roles or who […]
Sunday, February 8, 2026 – Isaiah 58:1-9a [9b-12], Psalm 112:1-9 [10], 1 Corinthians 2:1-12 [13-16], Matthew 5:13-20 This is the gospel according to fifth chapter of Matthew beginning with the 13th verse as it appears in the Bible translation called The Message. 13 “Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning
Sunday, January 25, 2026 – Isaiah 9:1-4, Psalm 27:1, 4-9, 1 Corinthians 1:10-18, Matthew 4:12-23 Have you ever been in a place of complete darkness? Here in Bradenton, we’re surrounded by streetlights, building lights, and the constant glow of modern life. There’s so much light pollution that we rarely experience true darkness at all. Even
Sunday, November 2, 2025, All Saints Sunday – Isaiah 1:10-18, Psalm 32:1-7, 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12, Luke 19:1-10 Let’s be honest—we all know what it feels like to be lost, whether it’s losing our way in life, feeling out of place, or wondering if anyone truly notices us. Sometimes, we feel invisible in a crowd,
Sunday, October 19, 2025 – Genesis 32:22-31, Psalm 121, 2 Timothy 3:14—4:5, Luke 18:1-8 As we gather around today’s readings, a powerful thread emerges: persistence. In Genesis, we encounter Jacob at a crossroads—wrestling not just with a mysterious stranger, but with his past, his fears, and ultimately with God. Out of this struggle comes blessing
One of the things I love most about scripture is how, even thousands of years later, these ancient stories still have the power to surprise us, to challenge us, and to inspire us. Today, as we hear about the healing of Naaman, the Syrian general, and the ten lepers whom Jesus heals, we are reminded
Sunday, August 3, 2025 – Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23, Colossians 3:1-11, Luke 12:13-21 When I got my dog, Cotton, back in the north Georgia mountains, I developed a particular whistle I would use to call him. It was a way for my familiar “voice” to cut through the other noises of the environment, to reach
Sunday, July 6 – Galatians 6:[1-6] 7-16, Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 One of my first jobs after college was in sales. I worked for a company that sold Brittannica reading skills programs for young children and sets of the Compton’s Encyclopedia. It wasn’t easy and for my first six months, I couldn’t sell a thing. Someone
Sunday, June 29, 2025 – 1 Kings 19:15-16, 19-21, Psalm 16, Galatians 5:1, 13-25, Luke 9:51-62 Though there is a lot of rich material in all of our readings, today, I’d like to explore the idea of freedom. What does freedom mean to you? In the gospel of John, Jesus says If you abide in
Sunday, June 22, 2025 – Isaiah 65:1-9, Psalm 22:19-28, Galatians 3:23-29, Luke 8:26-39 I want to begin today with a question: Have you ever felt as though God is far away—perhaps hidden or silent just when you needed God most? One of those childhood games that never seems to go out of fashion is hide
