2024-04-08 14:33
Psalm 133:1-3 A Song of Ascents How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity! 2 It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on t… Read More
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Getting Started | Exploring Faith, Ministry, And L Blog
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2024-03-26 16:40
So why is a pastor writing a post about money on a faith-related blog? Because I’ve seen too many people lately – friends, parishioners, community members, people I care about &n&hell…Read More
2024-03-26 15:27
14 The LORD is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation. 15 There are glad songs of victory in the tents of the righteous: “The right hand of the LORD does valiantly;… Read More
2024-03-20 22:05
The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their a… Read More
2024-03-11 20:19
From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; but the people became impatient on the way. 5 The people spoke against God and against Moses, &ldq&hell…Read More
2024-03-04 16:09
Then God spoke all these words: 2 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3 you shall have no other gods before me. 4 You sha… Read More
2024-02-27 15:44
“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. 2 And I will make my covenant betw… Read More
2024-02-19 00:28
“Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, 9 “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creatur… Read More
2024-02-05 22:21
“Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22 It is he who sits above the ci… Read More
2024-01-30 13:56
The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet. 16 This is what you requested of the LORD your God at Horeb on the… Read More
2024-01-24 16:46
The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2 “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah set o… Read More
2024-01-15 18:46
Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD under Eli. The word of the LORD was rare in those days; visions were not widespread. 2 At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to… Read More
2024-01-09 16:41
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the… Read More
2023-12-26 17:37
46 And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now… Read More
2023-12-18 16:36
The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives… Read More
2023-12-07 15:53
Psalm 80:1-7 To the leader: on Lilies, a Covenant. Of Asaph. A Psalm Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine fo… Read More
2023-11-27 21:58
“For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. 12 As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will… Read More
2023-10-29 17:15
Scripture Readings: Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the LORD showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan,&n&hell…Read More
2023-10-25 21:30
The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! 2 The LORD is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples. 3 Let them p… Read More
2023-10-15 18:16
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this M… Read More
2023-10-11 22:20
Then God spoke all these words: 2 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3 you shall have no other gods before me.&nb&hell…Read More
2023-10-11 20:51
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. … Read More
2023-09-29 14:52
“The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3 The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the LORD… Read More
2023-09-27 19:07
Giving thought today to how comforting cats can be, especially in times of trouble, and the thought occurred: I wonder if there was a cat at the foot of Jesus’ Cross? It appears I&rsqu&hell…Read More
2023-09-17 16:33
God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 26 Then God… Read More
2023-09-12 02:01
“The bosom of America is open to receive not only the Opulent and respected Stranger, but the oppressed and persecuted of all Nations and Religions; whom we shall welcome to a particip… Read More
2023-09-11 22:40
14 Although heaven and the heaven of heavens belong to the LORD your God, the earth with all that is in it, 15 yet the LORD set his heart in love on your ancestors alone and chose you… Read More
2023-09-03 18:25
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the sabbath; his disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 When the Pharisees saw it, they said to… Read More
2023-08-18 22:19
[Moses] said to them, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy sabbath to the LORD; bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to bo… Read More
2023-08-11 18:05
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2 And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the wo… Read More
2023-07-11 15:58
“He said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become wealthy; he has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and… Read More
2023-07-03 17:56
Announcing the South Hills Partnership of United Methodist Churches is sponsoring a Summer Book Club online, Tuesday nights at 7:00PM EST. Details are below — if you would like to join… Read More
2023-06-13 17:24
Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation, and I will… Read More
2023-05-29 17:06
Acts 2:1-21 – When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it fille… Read More
2023-05-29 13:40
Psalm 47 To the leader. Of the Korahites. A Psalm Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with loud songs of joy. 2 For the LORD, the Most High, is awesome, a great king o… Read More
2023-05-20 20:41
Back in 1776 when the United States became a nation, our founders wrote into law the separation of Church and State. That line of separation has held for over 200 years, and rightly so. Peop… Read More
2023-05-17 15:52
Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, “Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 23 For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the… Read More
2023-05-15 22:36
To the leader. A Psalm of David. In you, O LORD, I seek refuge; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me. 2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily. Be a… Read More
2023-04-25 00:20
Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14 and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. … Read More
2023-04-17 00:10
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and… Read More
2023-04-10 21:05
Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. &hell…Read More
2023-04-03 23:55
Psalm 118 1 O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever! 2 Let Israel say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” 3 Let the house of Aaron say, … Read More
2023-03-28 17:25
“As [Jesus] walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesu… Read More
2023-03-07 01:26
Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation, and I will… Read More
2023-02-27 01:06
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; … Read More
2023-02-20 15:00
The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there; and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instr… Read More
2023-02-14 23:00
“See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity. 16 If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I am commanding you today, by loving the LOR… Read More
2023-02-07 17:42
“Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! Announce to my people their rebellion, to the house of Jacob their sins. 2 Yet day after day they seek me and del… Read More
2023-01-23 17:05
But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorio… Read More
2023-01-11 17:16
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?… Read More
2022-12-05 17:57
“A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the… Read More
2022-11-21 17:06
A Sermon for the Sunday Before Christ the King Isaiah 65:17-25 17 For I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind. 18&nbs&hell…Read More
2022-10-31 00:41
The oracle that the prophet Habakkuk saw. 2 O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save? 3 Why do… Read More
2022-10-03 20:33
“How lonely sits the city that once was full of people! How like a widow she has become, she that was great among the nations! She that was a princess among the provinces has become a… Read More
2022-08-25 23:49
“Let me sing for my beloved my love-song concerning his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. 2 He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choi… Read More
2022-08-08 22:55
God speaks through the Prophet Hosea: When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. 2 The more I called them, the more they went from me; they kept sacrificin… Read More
2022-07-25 15:02
Inspiration Passages: “Alas for you who desire the day of the LORD! Why do you want the day of the LORD? It is darkness, not light; 19 as if someone fled from a lion, and was met… Read More
2022-06-07 14:40
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house w… Read More
2022-05-22 19:23
And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God… Read More
2022-05-18 14:47
Now the apostles and the believers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticiz… Read More
2022-05-09 21:51
A Psalm of David The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; 3 he restores my soul. He leads me in right… Read More
2022-05-05 18:39
Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for… Read More
2022-04-25 15:18
When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you… Read More
2022-04-19 15:46
“If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. 20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who ha… Read More
2022-04-11 00:06
“After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the d… Read More
2022-04-03 23:11
“When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then it was said among the natio… Read More
2022-03-27 17:59
“Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and… Read More
2022-03-22 22:33
“Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend your mon… Read More
2022-03-14 01:09
“At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, &ls&hell…Read More
2022-03-07 17:19
“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all d… Read More
2022-02-06 23:55
. “If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And i… Read More
2022-01-17 17:25
Sunday January 16 – Epiphany 2 – Martin Luther King Remembered For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusa… Read More
2022-01-06 15:22
“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. 2 For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will aris… Read More
2021-12-27 00:29
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness– on them light has s… Read More
2021-12-20 15:21
“But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule… Read More
2021-12-13 21:59
It’s the season for giving! And I want to encourage everyone’s generosity. I also want to make sure people’s gifts go where people intend them to go. During the holiday sea… Read More
2021-12-13 14:18
“Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! 15 The LORD has… Read More
2021-12-06 01:02
“I thank my God every time I remember you, 4 constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, 5 because of your s… Read More
2021-11-30 15:54
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? 10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see… Read More
2021-11-22 18:07
“Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness… Read More
2021-11-16 01:28
“There was a certain man of Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham son of Elihu son of Tohu son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He… Read More
2021-11-09 16:10
Psalm 24 Of David. A Psalm. 1 The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; 2 for he has founded it on the seas, and established it on… Read More
2021-11-02 16:16
In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and two sons. 2 The name… Read More
2021-10-25 15:49
Every high priest chosen from among mortals is put in charge of things pertaining to God on their behalf, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He is able to deal gently with the i… Read More
2021-10-05 14:07
Hebrews 1 Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, thr… Read More
2021-09-27 00:26
“Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. 14 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and h… Read More
2021-09-20 20:03
Psalm 1 1 Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; 2 but their delight is in the law of the LOR… Read More
2021-09-12 22:11
27 Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do peo… Read More
2021-09-06 20:51
“From there [Jesus] set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25 but a woman w… Read More
2021-08-30 22:11
Psalm 45 1 My heart overflows with a goodly theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe. 2 You are the most handsome of men; grace is poured upon you… Read More
2021-08-22 18:38
Psalm 84 To the leader: according to The Gittith. Of the Korahites. A Psalm. 1 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! 2 My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the LOR… Read More
2021-08-16 23:07
Psalm 111 1 Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. 2 Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who del… Read More
2021-08-11 20:52
Today I happened across an interview of a young Christian Dreamer whose parents brought her to the United States from Venezuela in early 2001 when she was four years old. She shared her test… Read More
2021-08-09 15:56
Psalm 130 A Song of Ascents 1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD. 2 Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications! 3 If you, O LORD, should mark iniqui… Read More
2021-08-05 17:11
This morning we’re starting a new summer mini-series on the Psalm of the Day, which today is Psalm 51 (full text at the bottom). I’ve been reading the Psalms a good bit this summ… Read More
2021-05-30 17:39
Today is Pentecost – the day we remember the fulfillment of the prophecy that John the Baptist spoke when he said: “I baptize you with water… but one who is more powerful… Read More
2021-04-11 17:17
(Scripture readings are included in full at the end of the message.) It’s kind of unusual to read all four lectionary readings in one go, but our four lectionary readings for today she… Read More
2021-04-04 12:09
“When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the… Read More
2021-03-25 14:16
It’s not often the description of the specs for building the Tabernacle in the book of Exodus make for inspiring reading. But God’s word has a way of being a blessing regardless… Read More
2020-12-27 23:10
The prophet Isaiah writes: “I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the r… Read More
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