First Olympia Sermons

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our Epiphany series: Come And See by preaching on Isaiah 9: 1-4 & Matthew 4: 12-23. In her message, Pastor Heather explained our place in the lineage of Biblical prophets and invited us to speak truth in the modern age.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who continued our Epiphany series: Come And See by preaching on Isaiah 49: 1-7 & John 1: 29-42. In her message, Pastor Alexa mused on the saying "wherever you go, there you are" and how it connects to the theme of being chosen.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who began our new Epiphany series: Come And See by preaching on Isaiah 42: 1-9 & Matthew 3: 13-17. In her message, Pastor Heather reminded us that "Beloved" is where we begin and invited us to see baptism as a claiming of God's love rather than its source.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who transitioned out of our Advent series: Mother and Child into Epiphany by preaching on Matthew 2: 1-18. In her message, Pastor Alexa invited us to interpret the story of the wise one's gifts in the context of archetypal stories and to draw parallels to our present political context.

On this Holy Night of Christmas Eve, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our Advent series: Mother and Child by preaching on Isaiah 52: 7-10 & Matthew 1: 18-25. In her message, Pastor Heather reflected on the "imperfect" moments of parenting and how Mary's call to raise God's son and our call to follow him were never promises full of "unicorns and rainbows."

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who continued our Advent series: Mother and Child by preaching on Romans 8: 26-27, 31-39 & Luke 1: 46b-55. In her message, Pastor Alexa explained Mary's title as the "Undoer of Knots" and how she and her son can help us unravel the snares we find ourselves in today.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our Advent series: Mother and Child by preaching on Isaiah 40: 1-5 & Luke 1: 26-38. In her message, Pastor Heather explained how we're given a choice to either turn towards or away from God and reminded us that Mary's choice to give birth to Jesus brought great Joy to the World.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our new Advent series: Mother and Child by preaching on Isaiah 9: 1-6 and John 14: 23-29. In her message, Pastor Heather contemplated how "peace" is not a casual experience, but a conscious choice.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who began our new Advent series: Mother and Child by preaching on Revelation 12: 1 & 22:16. In her message, Pastor Alexa examined Mary’s title as “Stella Maris” and invited us to use her as our true North as we navigate the treacherous seas of life.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Kelly Dahlman-Oeth who joined us from Shelton UMC and concluded our stewardship series: Here Is The Church by preaching on Acts 8: 26-40. In his message, Pastor Kelly challenged us to go out into the “wilderness” of our faith to spread the good news.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our stewardship series: Here Is The Church by preaching on 1 Corinthians 3: 8-13. In her message, Pastor Heather considered how to return to the "basic" practices of prayer.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from BOTH Pastor Heather and Pastor Alexa who each continued our stewardship series: Here Is The Church by preaching their own unique (but harmonious) perspectives on 2 Corinthians 5: 16-21.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our stewardship series: Here Is The Church by preaching on 1 Corinthians 12: 12-26. In her message, Pastor Heather assured us that we are never alone when we remember the witness of saints who have led the church before us.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Eunice Lin-Sawyer who joined us from the Parish Collective to continue our stewardship series: Here Is The Church by preaching on Hebrews 10: 24-25 and how we can serve our neighborhood with open doors.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who continued our stewardship series: Here Is The Church by preaching on Ephesians 1: 20-23, Acts 2: 42-44, 1 Timothy 3: 1-13. In her message, Pastor Alexa explained how guidelines and rules in our infrastructure help our ministries flourish.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who concluded our fall worship series: Being United Methodist by preaching on Joshua 1:9 & Ephesians 6: 10-18. In her message, Pastor Alexa reminded us that the kingdom of God comes to us through the body of Christ, wearing the Armor of God.

If you missed Pastor Alexa's Message on Sunday, here it is again just for you. This week, she continued our fall worship series: Being United Methodist by preaching on Matthew 22:37-39 and John 13:34-35, proclaiming that Jesus' call to love our neighbors is in direct conflict with many of the influences in the world around us.

If you missed Pastor Heather's Message on Sunday, here it is again just for you. This week, she started off our fall worship series: Being United Methodist by preaching on Matthew 28:1-20, acknowledging we are 'People of the Dawn,' a people called to respond faithfully to the suffering around us.

This week, Pastor Heather finished our Summer worship series: Beach Reads by preaching on Acts 10, the reconciliation between Jew and Gentile, and the dismantling of every other barrier we put up between ourselves and others.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who continued our Summer worship series: Beach Reads by preaching on Matthew 14: 22-23. In her message, Pastor Alexa reflected on how Jesus inspired bravery in his disciples when he walked on water.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our Summer worship series: Beach Reads by preaching on Luke 5: 1-11. In her message, Pastor Heather reflected on the shoreline between Jesus and his "semi-disciples."

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who continued our Summer worship series: Beach Reads by preaching on Jonah 1-2. In her message, Pastor Alexa reminded us that, while proclaiming justice might turn our stomachs, it is the only way to topple empires.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our Summer worship series: Beach Reads by preaching on Exodus 15: 19-27. In her message, Pastor Heather reminded us that the God who liberates us will also lead us through the “bitter water” we find on the other side.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Alexa who began our Summer worship series: Beach Reads by preaching on Genesis 1 & Job 38: 8-11. In her message, Pastor Alexa defined what it means to worship at the shoreline and some of the ways we're torn across borders.

This Sunday, we heard a sermon from Pastor Heather who continued our Pentecost worship series: Hope Rising by preaching on Matthew 10: 24-39. In her message, Pastor Heather reflected on how the work of discipleship was never supposed to be easy… but we don’t do it alone.