First Olympia Sermons

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Alexa, on Matthew 18: 21-35. In her message, we are invited to consider the nature of debt and to become ‘radical change-makers’ who can forgive and be forgiven. 

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Heather on Matthew 9:9-13. In her message, Pastor Heather invites us to see Jesus in unexpected places, and in unexpected people through the practice of faithful presence. If we did this, she thinks that the church would be transformed into what God intended it to be. 

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Heather on Matthew 4:1-11 & Matthew 16:21-28. In her message, Pastor Heather teaches that the first step to addressing injustice in our communities is naming them as such. After naming them, rather than feeling helpless, Pastor Heather calls us to remember that God stands with us against the powers of oppression.

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Alexa on Amos 5:21-24 and Matthew 3:13-17. In her message, Pastor Alexa invites us to see the injustices that get in the way of remembering that we are all beloved children of God. And that THIS is where we begin.

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Heather on Exodus 3:1-15, the story of God appearing to Moses in the Burning Bush. In her message, Pastor Heather invites us to consider our own burning bush experiences and to claim this story as our own.

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Alexa on Exodus 1:8-2:10 and the harrowing story surrounding the birth of Moses. In her message, Pastor Alexa invites us to consider how following the God of life leads us to  make bold and courageous decisions that bring life to others.

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Heather, interpreting the story of Joseph forgiving his brothers, who sold him into slavery. The story is recorded in Genesis 45:1-15. Pastor Heather invites us to consider a wider view of forgiveness; considering all who it frees.

This week, we participated in a pulpit swap with other United Methodist churches in the Sound Sound area and heard from Pastor Kellen from Tumwater UMC. Pastor Kellen explored the story of Joseph’s brothers selling him into slavery in Genesis 37 and themes of breaking intergenerational patterns.

This week’s sermon explores the story of Jacob wrestling with God in Genesis 32. Pastor Heather explores the nature of God’s blessings, claiming they’re hard fought and substantial. In our wrestling with God, we find our true identity, which empowers us to then bless the world in real, tangible ways.

This week’s sermon explores the story of Jacob’s Marriage to Leah and Rachel in Genesis 29. Pastor Heather preaches through a lens of feminism using the recently released Barbie movie as a key to enter into the story.

This week’s sermon explores the story of Jacob’s Dream in Genesis 28. This story is often known as the story of Jacob’s ladder because in Jacob’s dream he sees a ladder with angels ascending and descending from heaven.  In Pastor Heather's sermon, she asks the question: "What are our dreams for future generations and how can the blessings God has given to us be invested in a future where all peopl...

This week's sermon explores the story of Jacob and Esau in Genesis 25. There are many questions that this story raises; we seek to answer just one: why does the family of Isaac and Rebekah, with their children Jacob and Esau, function the way it does?

This week's sermon explores the story of the marriage between Isaac and Rebekah in Genesis 24. As a contemporary reader of this story, so much of the story is shocking at first glance. But we hope you'll also hear how we guide you through a process to reveal the grace we trust is there in our sacred text. Let’s listen in: 

This week, we continue a worship series we’re calling Generation to Generation. This series will follow the family narratives from Abraham to Moses. We hope that in exploring the many generations of the family that is central to three of the world’s major religions, we will find grace for any intergenerational strife we might find ourselves in, remember that our faith holds more complex stories th...

This week, we continue a worship series we’re calling Generation to Generation. This series will follow the family narratives from Abraham to Moses. We hope that in exploring the many generations of the family that is central to three of the world’s major religions, we will find grace for any intergenerational strife we might find ourselves in, remember that our faith holds more complex stories th...

This week, we started a worship series we’re calling Generation to Generation. This series will follow the family narratives from Abraham to Moses. We hope that in exploring the many generations of the family that is central to three of the world’s major religions, we will find grace for any intergenerational strife we might find ourselves in, remember that our faith holds more complex stories tha...

This week, we hear a sermon from Pastor Alexa who concluded our Eastertide worship series by preaching on the theme of Prophecy in Acts 2: 1-21. In her message, Pastor Alexa gave some historical context for the Pentecost festival and invited you to hear the prophets with us today—who speak a new world into existence when we won’t stand for this one any longer.