Elevation Waterloo Sermons

Series: Nine Stories of Fear and Desire   One: A Desire to be Good The Enneagram is a model of nine distinct personality types that describes how understanding our basic fears and desires can aid our personal growth. In this series, we will use this model as a jumping-off point as we explore nine corresponding stories in the Bible that can help us understand how we move in the world and what...

Series: Christ and our Crises The Crisis of Disillusionment We all walk through life with a set of expectations about how the world ought to work. This can leave us sorely disappointed when the world fails to live up to its billing, as it’s bound to do. But the same can be said for ourselves—such high hopes! so much promise!—and then we find ourselves spinning when not even we can manage to keep t...

Series: Christ and our Crises The Crisis of Doubt What can we learn about doubt from the life of the apostle Thomas? When do our doubts become paralyzing rather than productive? John 20:24-29

Series: Christ and Our Crises The Crisis of Loss One of the common experiences we’re all having these days is an accumulation of loss. Whether it’s hugging loved ones, leaving home to go to work, or even watching sports on TV, all of the ‘little losses’ in our lives are building up. And that’s to say nothing of the more significant losses we face in life—but there, too, we can expect to encounter...

Series: Christ and our Crises The Crisis of Death What we believe about death tends to inform how we experience the death of people in our lives, how we face our own death, and how we live in the meantime. As we observe the way that Jesus responded in the face of his own approaching death, we’re reminded that Christ comes to us in all of our crises—even death. John 20:11-18

Series: At the Feet of Our Spiritual Mothers Mother Teresa While Christian faith certainly involves believing, at the end of the day it needs to be lived out. This month, we’ll consider how three women from different eras and different parts of the world applied the way of Jesus in the circumstances of their lives, raising important questions about how we will do the same in our own. 2 Corinthians...

Series: At the Feet of Our Spiritual Mothers   Harriet Tubman While Christian faith certainly involves believing, at the end of the day it needs to be lived out. This month, we’ll consider how three women from different eras and different parts of the world applied the way of Jesus in the circumstances of their lives, raising important questions about how we will do the same in our own. Phile...

Series: At the Feet of Our Spiritual Mothers Julian of Norwich While Christian faith certainly involves believing , at the end of the day it needs to be lived out . This month, we’ll consider how three women from different eras and different parts of the world applied the way of Jesus in the circumstances of their lives, raising important questions about how we will do the same in our own. Psalm 1...

Series: A Christian Vision for Healthy Relationships and Sexuality Expressing our Sexuality Our sexuality is an important part of who we are. It’s also something most of us prefer to avoid talking about, especially in church! But as we take the risk of exploring this spicy topic, we uncover a positive vision of sex that will help us honour our bodies and those of the people around us. [Note: This...

Forming Healthy Relationships We can experience true community in a variety of places, including families, friendships, and in committed relationships such as Christian marriage. It is in our life-giving relationships with one another that we most clearly reflect the image of God. Genesis 2:4-7, 15-22

Now What?  On the other side of Jesus’ resurrection, the disciples went from cowering behind locked doors to proclaiming good news in the streets! Something about their encounter with Jesus transformed their fear and catapulted them out into the world around them, and there’s a hint in Peter’s words that we should expect the same... John 20:19-22; Acts 2:14a, 22-24, 36-39

Easter Sunday - April 12, 2020 Jesus chose the local nobody, Mary, as the first witness to the resurrection, and followed that up by sending out his band of unbelieving disciples with the task of spreading the good news. Even if we can’t exactly “go out” ourselves these days, we can celebrate Jesus’ resurrection with joy and let that joy seep out through the cracks into a world in desperate need o...

Take a few minutes on this Holy Saturday, the day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday, to reflect on what it means to sit in the "in between". Christin Taylor will share a piece that she has written, as well as walk us through a Lectio Divina practice, and we will end with a song that invites us to reflect on what it means to hold on to hope, even when it feels like all hope has been buried in t...

Palm Sunday Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem was a sign to the crowds that God was with them and was at work redeeming their broken world. But it wasn’t only a sign for the people who first lined those streets with branches in their hands; it was a sign that God would one day respond to our prayers and come to us , as well. Mark 11:1-10

Series: Lent 2020 - Responding to the Good News Some Fell on Good Soil For all of the ways a seed can fail to take root, there is always the possibility that what’s lying dormant inside will explode into new life! When Jesus encounters a blind man at the side of the road, we witness a miraculous kind of new life that continues to be available to us today. Mark 10:46-52

Series: Lent 2020 - Responding to the Good News "Some Fell Among Thorns" As Jesus reminds us in the parable of the sower, and has his disciples exemplify in their clamouring for positions, a lot of weeds can come into our lives and choke out the good news that has been planted in us. During this time of lent, and season of isolation many of us will have to wrestle with new weeds, but hopefully can...

Series: Lent 2020 - Responding to the Good News Some Fell on Rocky Places One of life’s more challenging lessons is that not every good beginning has a happy ending. When the storms of life start crashing around us, it can be easy to lose our grip on the good news we’ve been given. This was every bit as true for the first followers of Jesus as it is for us today. Mark 4:35-41

Series: Lent 2020 - Responding to the Good News Some Fell Along the Path For some people, even the best news of all can be received in a negative way. This morning's reading features two instances where some incredibly good news resulted in religious bickering. Let's take a look at some of the 'birds' that threaten to steal away our joy.  Mark 2:1-17

Series: Lent 2020 - Responding to the Good News Scattering the Seed Jesus often used parables to help his audience grasp the deeper truths he wanted to share. On this First Sunday of Lent, we’ll be introduced to one of his classics - a parable that helps us grow in our understanding of the different ways people respond to the good news of Jesus. Mark 4:1-20

Series: Level Two Prayers Now, Add 1/4 Cup of Fasting At the core of a healthy life of faith is a relationship with God, who created us to love and be loved. In prayer, we make ourselves available to God and we invite God into the flow of our lives. But what happens if our prayers are growing stale or if they're disappearing altogether? Matthew 4:1-4; 9:14-15

Series: Level Two Prayers Prayer and Presence  At the core of a healthy life of faith is a relationship with God, who created us to love and be loved. In prayer, we make ourselves available to God and we invite God into the flow of our lives. But what happens if our prayers are growing stale or if they're disappearing altogether? Matthew 26:36-44

Series: Level Two Prayers Postures and Practices At the core of a healthy life of faith is a relationship with God, who created us to love and be loved. In prayer, we make ourselves available to God and we invite God into the flow of our lives. But what happens if our prayers are growing stale or if they're disappearing altogether? Matthew 6:5-13

Series: Level Two Prayers Beyond the Basics At the core of a healthy life of faith is a relationship with God, who created us to love and be loved. In prayer, we make ourselves available to God and we invite God into the flow of our lives. But what happens if our prayers are growing stale or if they're disappearing altogether?  2 Chronicles 7:11-16

Series: Here's What We See A Diverse Community At the start of a new year, Elevation's leadership would like to help paint a picture of what our community could look like down the road. We'll be unpacking four opportunities that, once embraced, will lead us into a season of healthy growth and maturity. While this isn't quite a "five-year plan," we definitely want to start building some five-year m...

Series: Here's What We See A Renewed Spiritual Vitality At the start of a new year, Elevation's leadership would like to help paint a picture of what our community could look like down the road. We'll be unpacking four opportunities that, once embraced, will lead us into a season of healthy growth and maturity. While this isn't quite a "five-year-plan," we definitely want to start building some fi...