Holy Trinity Ankeny

As the nation observes the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence we are called to give thanks and to tell the truth. We are called to live into a vision established not by our own patriotism, but the vision of the reign of God revealed in Christ.

There is a kind of hope that makes everything worse. We have all offered it. Most of us have needed it. There is another kind. It doesn't promise the weight will lift. But it will not leave you alone in it.   Jeremiah 28:5–9 | Matthew 10:40–42

A core belief of our congregation is " God's love is not earned but is a free gift to broken people." The question is, does God's love revealed in Christ leave us broken? Paul says, "By no means!" To be baptized, to be a disciple of Jesus, is to leave the old life, the brokenness, behind and embrace a new life, even if it is hard to change.

We are remarkably committed to carrying things alone. Even when help is available. Even when the effort costs us more than accepting it. Somewhere in all that stubborn self-sufficiency, a belief settles in so quietly we don't notice it arriving: no one is coming.   Matthew 9:35–10:8 | Exodus 19:2-8a | Romans 5:1-8

The world is very good at speaking final words over us. And we have been carrying some of them for a long time. But there is someone who keeps showing up, past the booth, past the crowd, past the bedside, and he is not done speaking. That word has your name on it.   Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26

We have been gripping for a very long time. Managing the unformed places. Performing a certainty we do not have. Because somewhere underneath everything, we believe that chaos means God has already looked away. But that is not how this story begins.   Genesis 1:1-2:4a | 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 | Matthew 28:16-20

We have spent a long time on the bank. Watching. Admiring. Keeping ourselves dry and in control. But there is a current underneath all of it that has been moving the whole time, and it didn't ask our permission before it started. The question Pentecost keeps asking is the one we keep not answering.   John 7:37-39 | Acts 2:1-21 | 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13

We are waiting. We have been waiting. For the door to open, for things to resolve, for real life to finally start again. What if we've been wrong about which room we're in?   John 17:1-11 | Acts 1:6-14 | 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11

We are exhausted. Not tired. Exhausted. And we cannot stop. We have been building altars about it for a very long time. And none of them are working.   But there is another way.   Acts 17:22-31 | John 14:15-21 | 1 Peter 3:13-22

An arrest. A sermon. A challenge. A response. The stones didn't come from the faithless ones. Just ask Caiaphas.   Acts 7:55–60 |1 Peter 2:2–10 | John 14:1–14

There are a lot of voices. And most of them sound convincing.   But not every voice gives life.   John 10:1-10

When two of the disciples who followed Jesus left town after the crucifixion, they took the road to Emmaus. It was a road to nowhere. Their hopes for the Messiah were broken; Jesus' death brought grief and despair. The "powers that be" had one more crushed hope on the wheels of history. They could not even recognize Jesus when he began to walk with them on this dark road. Then, however, Jesus took...

The response to Jesus' death in John's gospel is grief, fear, and unbelief. His followers are stuck and unable to set themselves free. The appearance of the resurrected Jesus sets them free and puts them on a new path. We are people who know about being stuck in grief, fear, and unbelief. These are hallmarks of our world. How does the resurrection set us free?

Resurrection announces that we live not driven by wishful thinking of a world that somehow gets better on its own, but by a living hope rooted in God's constant action that brings hope from despair, joy from mourning, and life from death.

Four words. There they crucified him. John doesn't linger. Doesn't explain. Just moves on.   We do.   Because the man on that cross didn't stay there because of what he was against. He stayed because of what he was for.   John 18:1—19:42  

Jesus commands us to love as he loved us. But words sometimes get bent and even a word like "love" can become vague or disputed. So, instead of just words, Jesus washes feet. That action shows us love instead of telling us about it.

Palm Sunday is supposed to feel like triumph. Palms waving. Hosannas shouting. But Matthew says the whole city was troubled. Shaking. And nobody could quite answer the question. Who is this? That tension, the beauty and the ache mingled together, that is glittering sadness. And there is a king who rides straight into the middle of it.   Matthew 21:1-11 | Philippians 2:5-11

Emilie Bouvier from ELCA World Hunger shares stories and reflections on ELCA ministries and today's readings of breath, bones, and resurrection.

Jesus encounters a man born blind. He gives him his sight. That should be enough of a story to tell, enough to convince us Jesus is who he says he is – the light of the world. It is not. As the story unfolds, we find ourselves realizing that the blind can see and the sighted are blind. We see how our lack of compassion, fear, and insistence that we are right keep us from seeing the grace of God be...

She came to the well with a jar. She left without it. Not because it was filled, it never was. Because somewhere in that conversation she understood something that changed everything. Water in a jar is not living water. Readings: John 4:5-42 | Romans 5:1-11 | Exodus 17:1-7 

In a world dominated by markets, winners and losers, earning our keep, it seems like earning God's love would be our chief spiritual pursuit. This is true for many, if not the majority. That makes God's grace a product to be bought, bargained for, or earned. It means grace is for sale. But it's not. To think this way is to live by the law, which, as Paul says, can only bring wrath. So, how do we s...

The Grand Inquisitor looks at Jesus and says: I know exactly who you are. And we are going to have to kill you anyway. Not because he is confused. Not because he lacks evidence. Because he understands Jesus perfectly — and finds him unmanageable. This Lent, we are confronted with a question. Do we actually want the kind of Savior Jesus is? Matthew 4:1-11

The story of the Transfiguration of Jesus is a challenge. On the mountain, three disciples witness Jesus shing with the light of heaven. It is a deeply spiritual moment, full of mystery. Maybe that is why it is a challenge. We tend to be materialistic people. If something can't be touched, measured or possessed it is not real. Spiritual things are just wishful thinking. This story, however, declar...

We're exhausted. We pray, we give, we show up, and the world is still on fire. What if God isn't asking us to try harder? What if the light we're struggling to shine is already in us?   Matthew 5:13-20 | 1 Corinthians 2:1-12  | Isaiah 58:1-9a

The Beatitudes are among the most familiar teachings of Jesus. These verses proclaim blessedness - good news - to people we may not think are very blessed. That is good news for us.