First Community Church

If You Want to Walk on Water, You Have to Get Out of the Boat This Sunday, I will present part 2 in our Measuring What Matters sermon series, "If You Want to Walk on Water, You Have to Get Out of the Boat." As you can no doubt guess, the sermon is inspired by the story of Jesus (and Peter!) walking on water found in Matthew 14: 22-32. It is an extraordinary tale, one we will take seriously, not li...

I'm excited to announce I will be leading a four-week review of the book, Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart by Brian McLaren. McLaren, a renowned theologian, provides insights on navigating challenging times, finding our way to hope. I'm really enjoying this book. You do not have to read it to attend these sessions as I will provide an overview each week of several topi...

The Spirituality Podcast presents Conversations with The Naked Pastor; David Hayward by First Community Church

New Sermon Series, Measuring What Matters This Sunday, I begin a new sermon series connected to our 2025 giving campaign, Measuring What Matters: Journey to Generosity. Part 1, "Imagine," is inspired by Jesus' concern for the crowds who are coming to hear his teaching. In his words, they are "harassed and helpless." They are desperate for good news, understanding, and someone who can point them to...

I'm excited to announce I will be leading a four-week review of the book, Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart by Brian McLaren. McLaren, a renowned theologian, provides insights on navigating challenging times, finding our way to hope. I'm really enjoying this book. You do not have to read it to attend these sessions as I will provide an overview each week of several topi...

My sermon, On Earth As It Is In Heaven, is inspired (as you probably guessed) by the Lord's Prayer and Revelation 21: 1-5a. Have you ever noticed when we pray the Lord's Prayer, we do not ask God to help us get into heaven? Instead, we ask for heaven to come down to earth so that God's will can be done today. And what is God's will? Seven hundred years before Jesus the prophet Micah described it q...

I'm really looking forward to sharing my sermon, Grace at Work, with you this Sunday. The sermon is inspired by a sermon by Rachel Held Evans, one of my favorite theologians, and by Jesus' teaching in Luke 17 on having "faith the size of a mustard seed." Jesus essentially says, "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed (and you do!), you'll be able to get through just about anything!" I've enj...

First Community Church 08.25.24 Mary Kate Buchanan -Sermon, Sticks and Stones by First Community Church

First Community Church 08.18.24 Akita Sunday Sarah Kientz -Sermon, Once Upon A Summer by First Community Church

This Sunday, I continue my sermon series, Speaking the Truth in Love, with Part 2 - "Watch What God Does," based on Ephesians 4: 25-5:2. The biblical text concludes with this clear instruction, "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love." I deeply appreciate it when the Bible is clear and direct with advice like this. Whether you are Presbyterian or Pentecostal, Disciple...

Part 1 "God Wants Us to Grow Up" I begin a new sermon series titled Speaking the Truth in Love: Growing in Grace. Our cultural climate seems to be dominated these days by vitriolic anger and attack-filled commentary. The culture of the early church was quite different from ours. They lived under the rule of the brutal Roman Empire, after all, but within the earliest congregations, it was easy for...

First Community Church 07.28.24 David Long Higgins -Sermon, Love Forms A Room by First Community Church

This Sunday in worship, I will deliver the sermon "Vulnerability is Not a Weakness," based on Mark 6:30-34, 53-56. In the biblical texts, Jesus shows deep compassion for the crowd of folks who are spiritually and physically hungry. He also demonstrates kindness toward his disciples who are overwhelmed by fear. Even though he must have been bone-tired from previous work, he found a way to teach and...

First Community Church 07.14.24 Rev. John Girard -Sermon Spices, Aquanet, and A Little More Time by First Community Church

This Sunday, Rev. Seth Stearns, Minister of Spiritual Life & Learning, will deliver the sermon, "Who Do Think You Are?" That's a fun title! His message is based on Mark 6: 1-13.

The sermon will be inspired by Elemental, which is a love story at its heart, but it is also a parable on learning to overcome bigotry to form community. The Bible talks about this idea a lot! In Deuteronomy, Moses reminds his people (and us) to 'love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt." More than 1,000 years later, Paul wrote to a church in Galatia (modern-day Turkey) decla...

This Sunday, I continue my sermon series, Reel Theology: Going to the Movies with God, with Part 3 - "Respect: Twas Grace." Have you seen the movie Respect, which is the story of Aretha Franklin's life? It is an excellent film, and the music is powerful. Jennifer Hudson plays Aretha. Her renditions of Aretha's biggest hits both honor the Queen of Soul's style and show off Hudson's incredible range...

This Sunday, I will continue my summer sermon series, Reel Theology: Going to the Movies with God, with part 2, "The Boys in the Boat: Harmony, Balance, and Rhythm." If you have not seen this movie, I highly recommend it! It is available on Amazon Prime Video. It is the stirring story of the University of Washington junior varsity rowing team that won the gold medal representing the USA at the 193...

First Community Church 06-09-24 Glen Miles -Sermon Reel Theology Star Wars - A New Hope by First Community Church

First Community Church 05.26.24 Mary Kate Buchanan -Sermon, Somethings Missing, It Matters by First Community Church

I'll conclude my sermon series, Somehow, Love Will Find a Way, with Part 3, "Courage is Fear that Has Said Its Prayers," based on 2 Timothy 1: 3-7. The scripture reading comes from a letter written by the Apostle Paul to a young pastor named Timothy. It is excellent advice on leading a church and living a Christ-like life. In Sunday's reading, Paul reminds Timothy and us that "God did not give us...

Author of Without Buddha I Could not be a Christian. Part 4 Making Peace and Being Peace

Part 2 in the Sermon Series Somehow Love Will Find a Way Love is Our Hope The sermon is also inspired by Paul's letter to the church in Thessalonica. He is very impressed by the Thessalonian Christians and their "work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in Jesus." Those three words, faith, hope, and love, are also found in Paul's other letters, most notably in 1 Corinthians 13. Th...

Author of Without Buddha I Could not be a Christian. Part 3 Prayer and Meditation

Part 1 Life Delivers the Unbelievable The first sermon in the series," Life Delivers the Unbelievable," is based on John 20: 19-31. The scripture tells the story of Thomas, a disciple of Jesus, who will not believe Jesus has been resurrected until he can touch the wounds in Jesus' hands. Thomas is like many of us who need proof before we can trust or believe. If we pay attention, Anne suggests tha...