Granpres

"We have both an emotional need and a faith need, a spiritual need, to express our pain and sorrow, to lament." Rev. Wendy helps us understand Biblical Lament through the lens of Job; and why you should never say "Everything happens for a reason."

"The opening chapters of the book of Job invite us to consider what it means to love God, to worship God, to confess that we are blessed, when health and wealth elude us, when we have absolutely nothing to show for our faith, materially or otherwise. We may say all our blessings don’t matter to our faith, but the question is on the table."

Please join us for the third episode of a mini series called Blessed to be a blessing.

Please join us for the fourth episode of a mini series called Blessed to be a blessing.

Genesis 12:1-3 1 Peter 2:9-10 Matthew 5:13-16 "It doesn’t fit on a pillow, and it’s too long for a hashtag, but knowing we are blessed demands that we ask: so what? Or, more precisely, “for what?” From the very, very beginning, God’s people are blessed --- the Jews and Presbyterians like to say “chosen” – confess that we are blessed, we are chosen, for a reason."

Please join us for the first episode of a mini series called Blessed to be a blessing.

Isaiah 6:1-8 We talk about “going” to church and “attending” worship . . . what if we more consciously thought of doing worship, of our own participation as an essential performance? It changes our perspective. It calls on each of us to ask of ourselves, “Have I given my best to God in this hour of worship?” as opposed to, “how did I like what was offered here?”"

Mark 7:24-37 "Healing stories from the Bible are so challenging. Because we all know somebody – probably several somebodies – for whom no amount of prayer, no amount of faith in Jesus was enough. Despite fervent prayers for healing, despite being on every prayer chain imaginable, there was no cure." Rev. Wendy offers a new perspective on these challenging texts.

 Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 But it’s not just individual, personal advice. We who are the church need to ask those beyond our immediate circle --- we need to ask our guests and first-time visitors, we need to ask those who’ve never been here, those who only know us by perception, reputation, or drive-by. We need to ask them what they see, what they perceive. And we need to really, really listen. Tha...

 John 6:51-58 "When we think about the increasing number of Americans who identify religiously as ‘none of the above,’ I wonder: Are people less interested in joining us because Christianity looks like a challenging way to live, because following Jesus is a deep and complex journey without easy answers but with dedicated companions for the journey and the promise of realizing a full and abund...

Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 John 6:24-35 "And so we come. Like children trying to make sense of a mysterious shape under a sheet. Like those ancient Hebrew complainers. Like those confused and literalist followers of Jesus. We come like people desperate for their next meal and like people desperate for meaning in a world spinning out of control. We come not because we understand but because we are un...

 Isaiah 43:1-7 John 6:15-21 Rev. Wendy preaches on the storm at sea from John's gospel, as we further consider "Who is Jesus?" "On the waters of chaos in the dark. Consider the times when that has been the metaphor for your life, for your faith. Sometimes “the waters of chaos in the dark” is the best way to describe our lives, what it is to be human, what it is to be a Christian...

Rev. Wendy preaches on the familiar story of the feeding of the 5000. We also ask the question Who is Jesus?  2 Kings 4:42-44 John 6:1-15

Philippians 4:4-7 Kristin guest preaches on Anxiety and Joy, using some imagery from Pixar's Inside Out 2. "When Anxiety is at the controls for too long, it's time to access our Joy."

 John 3:1-10, 7:45-52, 19:38-42 n the words of Dr Anna Carter Florence: “Tradition has been kind to Nicodemus. He’s held up as an example of faith and a model of generosity; the Pharisee who eventually came around. But to be frank, it took a while. Which is exactly what John wants us to notice in Nicodemus’ story. Those of us with a lot to lose seem to take longer to come around. It’s not that we...

Leviticus 25:8-12 Galatians 5:1, 13-26 Rev. Wendy discusses freedom in Christ and what that has to do with freedom in our country. "May we be fed again on love of God and neighbor, on liberty throughout the land for every inhabitant. And may we go forth renewed to share Christ-like freedom"

Rev. Wendy takes us through an unfamiliar to many story of heroic midwives in Exodus 1:15-22 .

We continue our series on The Good Book with J is for Joseph, the familiar story found in Genesis Chapter 50:15-21.

Luke 2:40-52 "But thanks to them and likely to other relatives and friends whose names are long lost to history, Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and his fellow humans. Maybe it gives us pause to give thanks for those who have helped us attain whatever modicum of wisdom and stature we have. Maybe thinking about what it’s like to be 12, what it’s like to clash with your p...

Genesis 19:15-17, 24-26 Wendy invites us to open our imaginations to the questions that aren't answered in scripture.

"On this Pentecost day, I wonder where you find yourself in this story? More connected to church tasks than to the spirit? A little nervous about change because of where it might lead? Maybe outside the camp looking in, feeling led by the spirit but shut out by Joshua and the way things have always been? "  

Listen as Dryden Dickenson reads  Acts 1:6-11 and Wendy preaches about the Ascension of Christ. Wendy reminds us to not spend so much time looking up that we forget to look around also.

Rev. Wendy McCormick preaches on the Acts 10 passage and relates to the news from the United Methodist Church this past week. "If we believe God with Peter that our minds can be changed, if we believe that God shows no partiality and that God’s heart breaks at LGBTQ people being told their existence is a moral failure – or worse, then we need to get up and go to Joppa. In other words, stand u...

Wendy preaches on gardening, pruning, and where the best fruit grows. John 15:1-8

The first of two podcasts about the book "You Are Changing the World Whether You Like it or Not" by David LaMotte. We will conclude this series with a pub theology discussion at Trek Brewing Company on Thursday, May 2nd.