The Carry On Cast

Pastors Steve, Megan, and Brandon discuss John 4:1-26. Jesus openly reveals that he’s the Messiah and he does so to a Samaritan, a woman far outside his inner circle. It can be easy to turn this into a story about condemnation and acceptance. What if it’s about revealing and telling the truth? The truth of Jesus can be revealed through people we try to discount, like the woman at the well.

Pastors Megan, Steve, and Brandon discuss John 3:1-21. In these verses, Jesus is talking to a Pharisee named Nicodemus. He tries so hard to rationalize and discredit what Jesus says. But Jesus tells him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.” (Verse 5). What does new life in Jesus look like? Rebirth and new life can’t always be so neat...

Pastors Brandon, Megan, and Steve discuss John 2:13-25 and our new worship series “I Am.” Every story in this series tells us about who Jesus is. In this text, Jesus confronts and disrupts the sale of temple sacrifices. These sacrifices were an important and expected part of religious life for the people who travelled to visit the temple. Jesus’ act of hostility (flipping over tables and making a...

Pastors Brandon, Steve, and Megan discuss John 1:29-34. John the Baptist recognizes Jesus as the Son of God, the one who brings hope. He boldly proclaims Jesus as such. Through baptism, we’re promised that Jesus will be with us always. Whenever we see a baptism in worship, we make promises to those who are being baptized and remember the promises made to us at our own baptisms. Baptisms continuall...

Pastors Steve, Megan, and Brandon discuss John 1:19-28. John the Baptist describes himself as “…not the Messiah,” but the one who prepares the way. People were so eager for some answers, direction, and salvation. They wanted to turn John into something he wasn’t so they could know what to do and who to follow. In our rush to find something to give us hope, we might grab onto the wrong thing. It’s...

Pastors Megan and Brandon discuss Luke 2:1-20 and 2:25-40. The birth of Jesus shows God’s love and commitment to us. We tend to think of the story as something cute and sweet — like a Christmas Pageant. In reality, it was messy and scary. But it was also filled with praise, tenderness, and trust. Following a messy and scary year, how does the story restore hope to us this year?

Pastors Brandon, Steve, and Megan discuss John 1:1-18. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” We hear this passage a lot this time of year. It’s the fulfillment of God’s promises for life and hope. How does the promise o...

Pastors Steve, Megan and Brandon discuss Isaiah 55:1-13 using the Grow Guide. It’s a useful tool to get you thinking about the upcoming weekend’s text with helpful context and thought-provoking questions. Visit easter.org/growguide to see this and previous weekend’s Grow Guides.

Pastors Megan, Steve and Brandon discuss Jeremiah 29:1, 4-14. Advent is a time of waiting, watching and praying. The people in this reading are living in exile, but God tells them to build lives rather than long for a place and time that no longer exists. They’re encouraged to make the most of whatever situation they’re in. God promises to be with us no matter where we are or what life looks like.

Pastors Brandon, Megan and Steve discuss Isaiah 9:1-7. “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” The reading comes just before the exile — a time of incredible pain and suffering. At the time, it probably pointed toward the hope of a just political king. The way we...

Pastors Megan and Brandon discuss Genesis 50:15-24. Joseph has come into power in Egypt and his brothers come to depend on him for food. But he doesn’t hold a grudge or harm his brothers. Instead, Joseph says “Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today.” He has hope and faith in a God who sustains and cares. No...

Pastors Megan, Brandon and Steve discuss Genesis 39:20 – 40:8. Joseph (of 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat' fame) has been abandoned by his brothers, sold into slavery in Egypt, and thrown into jail for a crime he didn’t commit. And still, Joseph uses the gifts entrusted to him to help the people around him. God doesn’t remove all obstacles or make life perfect. We still trust that Go...

Pastors Steve, Megan and Brandon discuss Genesis 35:9-15. God appears to Jacob again and blesses him. God changes Jacob’s name to Israel and promises him “…a nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall spring from you. The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.” Then, Jacob sets up a pillar of stone,...

Pastors Brandon and Steve celebrate the 200th episode of the podcast and discuss Genesis 32:9-12, 32:22-33:4. Isaac’s son Jacob has cheated his brother Esau, run away, and fears for his life and the lives of his family. He put himself in a desperate place. God restores not only Jacob’s relationship with Esau, but Jacob’s sense of hope and identity. We see that God is a force of renewal and we’re i...

Pastors Megan, Steve and Brandon discuss Genesis 22:1-18. God tests Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son, Isaac. Abraham does what God asks and prepares an altar. Before he can sacrifice Isaac, God stops Abraham and says, “...for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” It’s impossible for us to truly understand what God is up to, which mak...

Pastors Brandon, Megan and Steve discuss Genesis 21:8-19. Abraham and Sarah discard Hagar and Ishmael in the desert. Even though Abraham and Sarah don’t love them, God shows special concern and love for them. We’re invited to be caring, compassionate, and kind not matter what we think about another person. How can share God’s love for all people?

Pastors Steve and Brandon discuss Genesis 17:1-7, 15-22. Abram tried to make God’s promises ("I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations.”) come true on his own. God’s vision for our lives is much longer-range than we’re willing to accept and we lose track of God’s faithfulness. God's promises keep expanding, even when we’re impatient.

Pastors Megan, Steve and Brandon discuss Genesis 12:1-5a, 10-20. In this story, God calls Abram (later known as Abraham) and promises to defend him. Shortly thereafter, Abram tries to save himself instead of trusting God’s promise, which has some unintended consequences. We are sometimes (frequently) forgetful, but God is always faithful.

Pastors Brandon, Megan and Steve discuss Genesis 6:13-22, 9:8-15. In the story of Noah, God’s decides humanity is worthless, but changes and feels bad about the flood. God recommits to Noah and humanity. God only desires a flourishing creation and a relationship with us. Because God can change, how will we make sure we are listening and following?

Pastors Steve and Brandon discuss Genesis 3:1-13, 22-24. We were created to be in relationship with God, with nature, and with each other. Our shame, blame, and pain disrupts our relationship with God. What are we called to do in the midst of this? Love God and love our neighbor. “When people look at the church, they should see people who know how to love enemies and love people who are different...

Pastors Megan, Brandon, and Steve kick off our new worship series, “God Is – We Are” with talk of sabbatical, meaning, order, separation, and filling. Because God has created all things, even rest, how should we live, serve, and worship? Reading: Genesis 1:1-5 and 1:26-2:3

Pastor Megan is joined by Pastor Liesl Spitz to discuss Sermons in our Renewing Worship Series with text from 1 Corinthians 1:17-25. What is a sermon for, and what is it meant to do? Sermons give the whole community a chance to hear more about what God might be up to and how they might be a part of it. A sermon isn’t necessarily teaching or public speaking, although it can do both. It is a faith e...

Pastors Megan and Steve discuss CREED and CONFESSION. Confess doesn’t mean admit (like in confessing to a crime), it means declare. When we confess faith, we state it publicly. The creed(s) we use are shared by the whole church. This connects us to believers beyond our own community. We practice it in worship so we can be bold in our confessions in public. How does a weekly confession of faith uni...

Pastors Megan and Steve discuss Psalm 71:15-24. Sharing witness or testimony in worship isn’t typically thought of as “Lutheran" behavior, but it can be. In our online worship services, we have Offering Moments. They’re a chance to share what the church is doing in people’s lives and what it means. We can practice telling our faith stories in worship, so that we’re comfortable telling them in our...

Pastors Megan and Steve discuss 1 John 1:5-10. When we confess together, we recognize that together we have individually and as a community fallen short of God’s vision for us. The good news is that God’s forgiveness is for us all!