First Unitarian Universalist Church of Austin

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on November 19, 2017. The job of preachers and prophets has often been described as "to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable." Elijah's story tracks his trials, tribulations and triumphs.

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on November 12, 2017. At times it all gets to be too much. How do we learn to rest rather than quitting?

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on November 5, 2017. We tend to think of ministers as answering a calling, but all of us are called in some way to make a difference in our world. How will we live out our mission next?

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on October 29, 2017. Using an Appalachian practice brought from Cornwall, we will have a cloutie tree. People will be able to breathe the names of their beloved departed into pieces of cloth and put them on a symbolic tree.

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on October 22, 2017. How does this part of our mission fit with the others? In preparation for our November congregational conversations about the mission, a few thoughts about justice and transformation.

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on October 15, 2017. We celebrate our impending renovation with a symbolic groundbreaking, and we talk about other life situations which are a paradox of the already and the not yet, the comforting and the discomforting, preparing the way for the new.

Rev. Meg Barnhouse and members of the UU leadership team's sermon delivered on October 8, 2017. How will you use your gifts? What if we were able to use our gifts to their full potential, and purposefully encourage others around us to do the same?

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on October 1, 2017. Often we must make decisions and face challenges with incomplete information and limited options. Sometimes if we move into these situations with an open mind and heart, doing so can be transformative.

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on September 24, 2017. We are in the middle of talking about our mission these days and part of our mission is to nourish souls. Rosh Hashanah is a time to celebrate the birthday of the world and a time of reflection. We discuss some of the ways we nourish our own soul and others'.

Rev. Meg Barnhouse's sermon delivered on September 17, 2017. As we welcome Rev. Meg Barnhouse back from her sabatical we begin an examination of our mission, with a question in our minds: "Do we need to change this mission, or does it still express who we want to be?"

Guest Speaker Laine Young's sermon delivered on September 10, 2017. We bring water to share from a place that is meaningful to us. Into this ritual we bring our love, hope, and courageous faith, and through it we seek to renew our covenantal commitments with one another. We remind ourselves of the church home we share.

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on September 3, 2017. As First UU Church of Austin lives into our values and mission, what is possible? What differences will we make in whose lives? How big can we dream, and what will it take us to get there?

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on August 27, 2017. When we encounter life's challenges and difficulties, the stories we construct about them can help us or hinder us from fully engaging in them and moving toward wholeness and healthiness. Drawing on the work of Glennon Doyle Melton and Brene Brown, we will look at all three acts they outline for our stories.

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on August 20, 2017. Our mission begins with "we gather in community." As we prepare to celebrate and participate in LGBTQ Pride week and activities, we examine how our common purpose begins with a concept of community that values all of us as our truest, full selves. This will be the first in a series of sermons on the elements of our miss...

Guest Speaker Erin Walter's sermon delivered on August 13, 2017. Sexism and misogyny go way back, and challenging those oppressions can be a source of personal and spiritual growth. Why are UUs called to address sexism in ourselves, our churches, and our wider world? What simple or creative ways can people of all genders rise against misogyny in our daily lives? This sermon won the UU Women's "Jus...

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on August 6, 2017. In our struggles for social justice - as well as in life itself - we all bring different gifts, and there are often more ways than one to move forward. We explore how respecting and encouraging these different gifts and means can maximize our creative potential for bringing about beneficial change.

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on July 30, 2017. For our annual intergenerational service after our summer Hogwarts Camp, Rev. Chris Jimmerson and Laine Young explore the magic we make happen here at the church and beyond.

Guest Speaker Andy Gerhart's sermon delivered on July 16, 2017. Many of us UUs find God language off-putting. Through a focus on Patty Griffin's music, we reflect on how both our theologies and atheologies arrest what is sacred to us. Can we cultivate an uncertain reverence? Annabeth Novitzki will be singing.

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on July 9, 2017. We all at some point will be unable to care for ourselves, or will need the help of other people in some way. Why do we struggle so much to ask for help when we need it?

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on July 2, 2017. Many, if not most of the world's religions have a sect that is mystical. We will examine why religious experience is so often to be found through mystery, awe and wonder.

Guest Speaker Andrew Young's sermon delivered on June 25, 2017. UUs and other religious progressives often talk about replacing discrimination and bigotry with unity and compassion. But actually creating such a community is more difficult than just talking about it. What can we do in our own lives to be the change we want to see in society?

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on June 18, 2017. Telling stories is central to how human beings make meaning and view our world. How do the stories we learn and tell ourselves affect our lives and our society?

Guest Minister Rev. Nell Newton's sermon delivered on June 11, 2017. How did you get into this mess? Whatever your particular mess might be, and we all have at least one. We reflect on the work of our community as growers of both roots and wings.

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on June 4, 2017. We are in challenging times, encountering much change within UUism and our church. We look at how stress can show up in our lives and steps to manage it.

Assistant Minister Rev. Chris Jimmerson's sermon delivered on May 28, 2017. For flower communion each person brings some flowers to church, and we enjoy them collected all together, recalling the beauty in our own diversity.