Zao MKE Church

Faith can seem so serious. But all our relationships - including with God - come alive when we play. How would your life (and faith!) feel different if you thought of God as your ever-present playmate?

How do you feel about the word "traditional"? It depends on the lineage of your traditions! Though empire claims that it's the only legitimate arbiter of "traditional" ideas, spirituality, and culture, we are actually called by God to foster and pass along alternative traditions. Let us keep alive the traditions that topple empires and bring liberation!

This week, Pastor Jonah and Pastor Cameron answer questions directly from the community about God, faith, and more! Find their podcast, Christian Queeries, on Spotify or Apple Podcasts .

Here we go again - a new year! Whether you're riding the highs of 2023 or still licking your wounds from a rough year, now is the time for a new start. God's given you everything you need to thrive this season.

Sermon from Zao's 2023 candlelight Christmas Eve service

How can our hope in the coming and present liberation of God's people fill us with joy here and now?   Come hear about Mary's fiery song of God's justice and love.

This time of year, we hear messages of peace in the midst of active war. If the promises of peace through violence have proven themselves bereft, can we hope for something different from the Prince of Peace?

So many of us are waiting for a word of hope, reassurance, or direction. This season leading up to Christmas, we're paying special attention to the divine messages surrounding Jesus's birth. The first angelic visit is surprising, confusing, and utterly unbelievable. Come find out why, and what it means for us this season.

In a world of scarcity, how do we embody a the revolutionary kingdom economy of generosity?

Guest sermon by Rev. Afi Dobbins-Mays Drawing on imagery of the night as the unknown, scripture calls us to be awake, alert, to be "children of the light." How can we find, follow, and amplify the goodness of God in the midst of the unknown?

Our imaginations are limited by the world we are in now. How can we dream beyond what is, so that those who come after us can imagine even greater things?

What can the impact of those who came before us teach about how to live our lives now?

What's in a reputation? Jesus said "this is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other," but also "woe to you when all speak well of you." He was called Messiah by some but Drunkard and Heretic by others. So what kind of reputation are we called to build as followers of Jesus?   How are you known?

Kinship is when we are seen as our truest selves, loved in our complexity, and recognized as family. What happens when our families of origin cannot be kin to us?   Luckily, we are able (and called!) to make family, choose family, and find family in the kinship of God.

Eternity can feel like, well.... ETERNITY. Our God is not slow to answer the promises of love, liberation, and redemption of all things. But Their timeline is much, much different than ours.   How do we hold the fire of our passion while cultivating the patience of eternity?

Whether you're loving the #sweaterweather, mourning the end of summer, or doomsday prepping for the coming Wisconsin winter, the change of seasons comes for us all. What does the shift of creation toward darkness this season have to offer our faith?

Whether you know it as the "Lord's Prayer" or the "Our Father", this one way to pray has gotten a lot of attention because it came directly from the teachings of Jesus. What's behind this prayer, and what can it teach us today?

Jesus calls us to love with all our hearts - but what if "heart" means something different in his context than ours?

Guest sermon by Cor Valentine-Christophe The messaging we hear around anger is complicated and confusing. We are told it is bad, something we should push away. As a result, we live life not knowing how to express anger in healthy non aggressive ways.   What if the messaging around anger looked different? Maybe we could discover transformative, sacred ways of experiencing and expressing anger.

When discussing the law with religious experts, Jesus said that it is love for God, neighbor, and self that is the most important. But who is our neighbor, and how are we to love them if we have internalized hatred about ourselves?

The struggle is real. But so is the promise of joy and new life on the other side of suffering. How can we trust in the promise of what's to come in the next life, all while tapping into the joy that's accessible to us right here and now?

God's love sustains and supports us. How can we tap in when we are feeling depleted?

Using the language of human power (king, master, lord, etc) has warped our understanding of God. We've recreated God and Jesus in the image of our own human rulers, despots, dictators, and villains. But if God isn't like earthly rulers, then what is the reign of God actually about?

Spoiler: Mary Magdalene was cool AF.   But like many badass women in the Bible, she's been maligned, ignored, and literally erased by scribes. Come hear how the "Apostle to the Apostles" played a huge role in the gospels, and what she can teach us here and now.

Whether you grew up evangelical, Catholic, or something else, your church might have given you the impression that there's only one true way to be faithful spiritual community. When those communities are also engaging in the harmful rhetoric we've talked about this series, it can be easy to feel trapped.   But there are many ways to do church. Join us for a conversation about what heathy church ca...