The Branch Church

Our second Group Sundays (of three) begins with a sharing of our fundraising total and how it connects to our core values - especially that of Inclusivity.

February 16 was a "Group Sunday", meaning we began together with a time of reflection and prayer and then everyone moved into various groups for the remainder of the morning. The recording is of that reflection time. We consider our history with refugee resettlement, recent actions of the Trump administration, and action steps we can take to offer welcome and care.

Our second and final week (for now) in this series on resilience, we consider the gift of beauty. Beauty is not a nice add on but something we need. It invokes awe and wonder, which draws us together and helps connect us to those things that are bigger.

We take a couple of weeks in between series to consider tools we will need to access in order to live a life of love without burnout.  The first week leans into the gift of music - a powerful, often taken for granted tool that can draw us together, meeting us in every type of moment, offering us  strength for the journey ahead.

Our third week included time for practicing co-regulation exercises. We've edited the podcast, cutting out the larger portions of silence in which the congregation was practicing these exercises. We invite you to find someone to join you in these practices and hit pause at the appropriate moments.

Guest preacher: Bethany Ackley DeBlaay, licensed therapist (MA, LLP, SEP) Week 2 invites us to consider that we are distress managers, doing what we can (often unconsciously) to avoid what we perceive as uncomfortable, difficult or painful. As a result, when we grow up learning that certain emotions are bad (or worse, sinful), we will do what we can to ignore or surpress them. In order to integrat...

In the first week of a three week series, licensed therapist Bethany Ackley DeBlaay (MA, LLP, SEP) invites us to see our emotions as hardwired, autonomic responses to the world around us. If we are to  integrate our emotions, we first need to understand that they are automatically happening all the time, whether we are aware of them or not.

Epiphany brings the story of the Magi - a story reminding us that the way forward is rarely straight.

This week, Elliot reflects on John the Baptist's words, as well as research from the book, Tribal (written by Michael Morris) as we consider the good that is ours to do.

We Can't Go Alone Advent - Week 2 A look at Ruth 1 - a reminder that we meant to walk through this life together, which is a choice of both doggedly moving toward and graciously accepting mutuality.

Week 1: You are A Blessing Luke 1:26-38

We go back to a foundational truth to help remind us how to live in these unsettled days.

What does the Lord require of you? We look at the Old Testament book of Micah, and what it has to teach us about who we are to be today.

We use a familiar framework at The Branch as we process all of the things we might be feeling and thinking after the election.

With the election two days away, we are feeling the fraught-ness of it all. How do we traverse this week in a way that is hopeful, grounded and kind?

We look at four versions of the same story in order to ask the question: can we follow Jesus' lead, reject violence, and be people of sacrifice?

We look at two stories that demonstrate the different ways power can be viewed and used. What does it tell us about how we might use our power - and how might power be used in the political sphere?

Week 1: Fear Fear is often leveraged in politics. Campaigns try to play off of our fears and use our fears to pit us against each other. There is a better way

Teresa helps us consider the end product of a life of love -- a picture of who we could be and how we might move through the world if love is our primary aim.

Our third week in the series. We consider the often neglected and ignored command to love ourselves.

Everything -- everything -- hangs on love - including loving our neighbor. What might that look like today?

Everything important and consequential in this life hangs on love. And our capacity to express love is fundamentally tied to our willingness to receive it. Yes - we are called to love God, but equally, we are invited (and must heed that invitation) to receive and experience love. It sounds simple, but is not easy. What steps can we take to open ourselves up to the divine, endless love available to...

We end our summer series by looking at one of the few stories found in all four of the New Testament Gospels. It's typically called the feeding of the 5000, but the text tells us there were many more than that. What do we learn from this story about the way we approach life's problems and challenges?

Deb shares her story - including what it is like to navigate a life filled with many moves, loss, and belonging.

Three of our recent graduates share some of their spiritual journey - what it has been like to grow up in the church, what their personal journey's have been like and what they might hope for in the future as they move away from home and begin their adult lives.