Andy Talks

We begin to see the power of kindness today. Boaz shows kindness to Ruth. Why? Well, first, he’s a good man. Second, he tells her that he and others have heard of the kindness that she has shown to her mother-in-law.  Ruth has left her people and has taken refuge under the wings of the God of Israel. We see kindness begin to weave its way into so many tales of redemption. Kindness is always reward...

In our Traditional message from Ephiphany, Andy shares with us from Matthew 2: 1-12. We see the story of the Wise Men, but more than this, we see the first impression of who Jesus is. We see the wideness of God's mercy. 

Ruth goes out to glean from the fields of harvest. Gleaning is a command that God gives His people regarding the harvest. They are not to take everything from the field. They are to leave room at the margins for the poor. It is one of God’s ways to force His people to remember (and see) the poor. And Ruth just so happens to find herself at Boaz’s field. God is work, causing us to remember the poor...

Naomi tells the people, do not call her by her name but now call her “Mara.”  This is the Hebrew word for bitter.  In the Bible, your name isn’t just what they call you; it’s who you are. Namio is telling the people she has changed. She is bitter.  We will all suffer. We will all have bad times. But don’t let grief change your name. Don’t let it change who you are. Stay rooted in what is good, not...

We’ll start today looking at the book of Ruth. This is a wonderful book, one of my very favorites, because it teaches us the power of redemptive kindness. We need some of that redemptive kindness in the world today, don’t we? We all hope the New Year will be better, but we look a few days in and realize everything is the same as it has always been. We will have hard times this year, as we do each...

In our Christmas Eve sermon, Andy shares with us from Luke 2: 1-20. Mary saw all that had happened that night and treasured it. May we watch what God is doing and treasure it as well.

In our Traditional message from December 22, 2024, Andy shares with us from Luke 1: 39-45. Mary needed safety and welcome. Where did she go? She went home. So can we. Come home. Come home to faith, to church and community, to Jesus. 

Jesus forgives Peter. He asked Peter three times if he loved Jesus. Each time, Peter responds yes, but the word “love” that Peter uses is not the word that Jesus uses.  Jesus eventually responds with the same “love” as Peter. Jesus meets Peter where He is. Jesus knows us; He loves us. He understands us. He also tells Peter not to worry about others and their journey. He is to follow Jesus. Don’t w...

We see Peter going fishing today. This doesn’t just mean he’s going back to an old hobby, but he’s going back to his old life. This whole Jesus stuff is over. He’s tried it, he failed, and he’s going back to what he knows. He’s going fishing. But even when he’s going back to the old, who finds him there?  Jesus.  Even when he wants to walk away, Jesus is there. Jesus didn’t give up on him. And He...

We see John tell us today why we have his Gospel and really all the rest of the Bible. It was given so that we may believe that Jesus is the Messiah and that we may have life through believing in Him. John, and all the Bible, was given to us not merely for information but for transformation. It was not given so that we could know more; it was given so that we could be transformed by the grace and...

I love Thomas. I always feel the need to defend him because we identify him by his worst moment, “Doubting Thomas.” We don’t think about the brave moments before today’s text or after today’s text. We only think about this moment. As someone who has struggled with doubt at times, I resonate with Thomas. But today, he experiences Jesus. And Jesus says, stop doubting and believe. Remember that exper...

After the resurrection, the disciples gather together behind locked doors. The text tells us that they do this because they are afraid. They lock their doors out of fear. Don’t we do the same? How often in our lives do we engage the world through fear instead of faith? It is easy to turn to fear over and over again, especially when we have had trials or pain. The disciples were scared. They had re...

Today, as Jesus is raised, He speaks with Mary Magdalene. What is interesting to me about this conversation is that she doesn’t recognize Him. They are talking, and she asks Him questions, but she doesn't recognize Him. It isn’t until He calls her name that she recognizes that Jesus is with her. Perhaps she cannot see Him because the tears she is crying hide Him from her. Today, don’t let you...

We see Peter and John, after a footrace, get to the tomb. When they get there, they see wondrous signs, and they know something has happened or something significant has taken place. They just don’t know what. John believes, even though he doesn’t understand. Sometimes, we have to sit and be comfortable in the mystery. We may not understand God, but we know Him, and we know that He is good. We can...

Today in Rooted, we see Nicodemus move from darkness to light. Jesus was not finished with his story. Just like He is not finished with our story either.

Sorry for being absent last week. But we are back! We’ll pick up where we left off with John 19. Today, we see the death of Jesus. He says it is finished. He has finished His task. It is complete. This task completes the process of salvation as well. All that is required for salvation has now been done. There is nothing more that needs to be done or added. It is finished. We also talk about the be...

In our Traditional message from December 8, 2024, Andy shares with us from Luke 3: 1-6. We can have hope because God is at work. We can have peace because God is in control.

In our Traditional message from the First Sudnay of Advent, Andy shares with us from Luke 21: 25-36. We see Jesus telling us to be prepared. Look up. In this world of gray, look for green. Keep your heads up. Hope is always coming! 

Waiting is hard. I don’t like it. You don’t like it. None of us like it. But we are entering into the season of Advent, which is a season of waiting. They waited long ago for Jesus’ birth. We wait now for His return. This may feel like wasted time. It may feel pointless. But that is not so. The waiting is not wasted. Waiting, as hard as it is, teaches us to trust. Remember what we wait for. Rememb...

We see Jesus crucified today, and there’s a lot that we can unpack. We see Jesus honoring His mother by providing for her care. We see how scripture is being fulfilled. But for me, I am fascinated by “the place of the skull.” What does that mean? What is important or significant about that? Today, we’ll look at why the place where Jesus was crucified means so very much to us. Shameless plug: here’...

In our Traditional message from November 24, 2024, Andy shares with us from John 18: 33-37. We see here that Pilate didn't know what to do with Jesus because Jesus knew His kingdom was not of this world. We live with hope because we have a great home. Jesus is king.  Rejoice!

The religious leaders of the day understood that the Romans believed Caesar was a god. That is why when the people came to the Temple, they had to “change” over their money. No pagan god could be in the Temple. Yet, what do they say today? We have no king but Caesar. They did not believe this. But they chanted it to make sure Jesus went to the cross. They lost themselves. Let us be careful that we...

Jesus stands before Pilate today and is asked, are you a king? Jesus takes that conversation in another direction. He talks to Pilate about truth, to which Pilate asks, what is truth? Now, we know the answer; Jesus tells us earlier He is truth. He is the way, the truth, and life. But here’s the problem. Pilate didn’t want truth. The religious leaders didn’t want truth. Jesus is truth and He would...

Today’s reading is a bit longer because we look at what is called a “sandwich.” We see these in the Gospels, in particular. What is happening is a story is broken up into two stories, with another story in between, a sandwich. This is done to show a contrast. Today, we see Peter’s denial of Jesus broken up into 2 seconds, with Jesus before the High Priest in the middle. We see Peter, not standing...

We see one of my favorite examples of who Jesus is today. When they come to arrest Jesus, Peter draws the sword and cuts off the ear. And, if we are going to be honest, we feel like Peter sometimes, don’t we? We want to lop off some ears sometimes. Sometimes, it even feels right to do that, doesn’t it? But look at what Jesus does. He puts away the sword. I want to follow Jesus in that way. In a wo...