Glimpses of Grace

Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, DMin In this week's Gospel, St. Paul asks us to examine our motivations. Where do we come from and what are our expectations? Regardless of your roots or what you expect to gain, the answer should be "to follow Christ". Following Christ doesn't bring prestige or status – it empties us, allowing us to become vessels for Spirit. Readings: Isaiah 5:1-7 Philippians 3:4b-14 Ma...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. Ezekiel and Jesus challenge us to notice the stories we tell about ourselves, about others, and about the world—and to recognize when those stories might be excuses, blinders, or barriers to God’s work. Rather than remaining trapped in blame, defensiveness, or our expectations of how things should be, we are invited to ask, “What is mine to do?” God calls us to turn...

Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, DMin Following the wisdom of Phillippians 2, we must empty ourselves and look past superficial narratives and our own projections. The foundations of our parish are incredibly strong, and that basic grounding supports us as we do the real spiritual work – Grown-up Church. How can we stay grounded in our complex world to do the work we’re called to do together? Readings: P...

The Thanksgiving Feed: Serving Community in Gainesville-Hall County In this episode, host Bruce Leyton sits down with Martha Randolph, local business owner and community organizer, and Angela Middleton, president of the North Georgia Black Business Alliance, at the historic Harper Smith House in Gainesville, Georgia — the only Black registered historic home in the Hall County area. They discuss th...

Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, DMin In Exodus, when the prophet Miriam helped lead the people across the Red Sea she was inspired to sing the song in her heart of praise. What is that song of our heart? What flows out of us in those unguarded, joyful, anxious, or fearful moments? In our private moments? To God be the glory! Readings: Exodus 15:1b-11,20-21 Matthew 18:21-35 For episode transcripts and mo...

I confess, I offer, I need. Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. and Sister Genevieve Lynn, OSB In this episode, we will consider types of prayer: penitence, oblation, intercession, and petition. Liturgy:  An of Order of Service for Noonday Available on bcponline.org's  Noonday Service page  or on  flippingbook.com . Psalm 119: 105-112 (BCP 103) Little Chapter: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 For episode trans...

I lift my heart to you, I praise you, I thank you. Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. and Sister Genevieve Lynn, OSB In this episode, we will consider types of prayer: adoration, praise, and thanksgiving. Liturgy:  An of Order of Service for Noonday Available on bcponline.org's  Noonday Service page  or on  flippingbook.com . Psalm 119: 105-112 (BCP 103) Little Chapter: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Fo...

Why the Psalms? Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. and Sister Genevieve Lynn, OSB In this episode, we will look at why the Psalms are included in prayer, worship, and the Daily Office. Liturgy:  An of Order of Service for Noonday Available on bcponline.org's  Noonday Service page  or on  flippingbook.com . Psalm 119: 105-112 (BCP 103) Little Chapter: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 For episode transcript...

Ordo and the Daily Office. Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. and Sister Genevieve Lynn, OSB In this episode, we will define Ordo and the Daily Office. Liturgy:  An of Order of Service for Noonday Available on bcponline.org's  Noonday Service page  or on  flippingbook.com . Psalm 119: 105-112 (BCP 103) Little Chapter: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 For episode transcripts and more about Grace Episcopal Chur...

Prayer and Worship. Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. and Sister Genevieve Lynn, OSB In this episode, we will explore prayer and worship. Liturgy:  An of Order of Service for Noonday Available on bcponline.org's  Noonday Service page  or on  flippingbook.com . Psalm 119: 105-112 (BCP 103) Little Chapter: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 For episode transcripts and more about Grace Episcopal Church, visit...

Need a moment to center and come back into your body with a midday reset? Midday will help you build those moments. Using the structure of Noonday prayer, this podcast will guide the listener in creating a deep pattern of prayer and meditation in the middle of a busy day. Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. and Sister Genevieve Lynn, OSB Liturgy: An of Order of Service for Noonday Available on bcponli...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. What if faith asks us not to expect a particular future, but to anticipate that God is still at work? In creation something is always happening—and Scripture invites us to pay attention with curiosity and wonder. Rather than deciding in advance what God should do, we are called to become people who can receive, notice, and participate in the new life God is bringing...

Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, DMin As Jesus likens the Kingdom of Heaven to a mustard seed, we are called to watch what is growing in our lives. What are we consciously planting and what grew while we weren't paying attention? How do we cultivate what we've inherited and how do we pass it on? Reading: Matthew 13:31–32 For episode transcripts and more about Grace Episcopal Church, visit online...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. When our lives break into pieces, our wounds can become the whole horizon, making it difficult to see the life and light still surrounding us. Scripture reminds us that we are not self-contained or alone: in Christ, all things hold together, and the fountain of life continues to flow. Becoming fully alive may have less to do with putting ourselves back together and...

The Measurable Power of Connection in Dementia Care Dementia care is often framed as a medical problem. Kila Acey argues the deeper crisis is isolation, and her work is showing communities how to turn connection into real quality of life for adults living with dementia. Bruce Leyton sits down with Kila Acey, founder of Ember and Grace LLC and director of Beyond Dementia Coalition's isolation r...

Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, DMin How do we engage the well-known parable of the Good Samaritan beyond our familiar moral categories? What if the wounded person lying in the ditch wasn't just a neighbor in need, but a deep wound within our own lives that we are challenged to attend to? What if we pause, de-center ourselves, get uncomfortable and face our own souls with honesty and authenticy, rat...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. What does it mean to remain yourself while everything around you—and within you—is changing? This sermon reflects on the mystery of becoming through childhood memory, the rhythms of creation, the parable of the fig tree, and God’s promise to make all things new. God’s order is not the stillness of a museum but the living abundance of a garden, where grace patiently...

Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, DMin In times of uncertainty, our human impulse is to grasp for control. Part of us yearns for a firmer grounding, yet there is also the Spirit's call to dive into the deep waters and be saturated by a grace that we can trust. How do we nurture a deeper awareness that learns from water's wisdom, a wisdom that reminds us of the promise of change, adaptation, and gr...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. We spend much of our lives becoming who we think the world needs us to be, often hiding the beloved self God delighted in from the beginning. Drawing on Solomon’s prayer for a listening heart and Jesus’ parables of the mustard seed and hidden treasure, this sermon explores healing as the work of remembering, recovering, and being made whole. How might the church be...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. Jacob wasn’t searching for God—he was running. Yet in an ordinary place in the desert, with nothing but a stone for a pillow, he awakened to an awesome truth that heaven was already near. This sermon invites us to see God’s kingdom not as a distant place, but as the gracious reality already present among us, waiting for us to simply wake up. For episode transcripts...

Rev. Andrea Corso Johnson, M.Div. Scripture texts from all of today’s readings proclaim an idea that great joy is beheld when the fullness of God’s goodness is brought forth unto flourishing throughout all creation. This sermon focuses on today’s Gospel text—The Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23)—and proclaims that such abundance can become a wonderful harvest in our lives, even when adv...

Bridging the Gap: How Gainesville's Unity Project Is Bridging the Gap Between Homelessness and Hope Unity Project is bridging the critical gap between the need for and - availability of - services for our unhoused neighbors in Gainesville. Michael Fisher of Ninth District Opportunity shares how this grassroots initiative brings life-saving medical care, mental health support, housing services,...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. As the United States marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, this sermon reflects on the stories we tell and the truths we often forget. Through Rebekah’s courageous “yes” and Jesus’ invitation to rest, it explores a freedom rooted not in certainty but in God’s promise. It is an invitation to give thanks for our country while placing ou...

Rev. David B. Powell Throughout scripture, figures like Abraham, Moses, Samuel, and Isaiah answered God's call with three simple words: "Here I am." A consideration of possibilities for which we might be present before God and how Christ might become present in us. For episode transcripts and more about Grace Episcopal Church, visit online at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ gracechurchgainesville.org⁠/podcas...

Rev. Brandon Nonnemaker, Ed. D. Looking at Hagar’s exile in the wilderness and Jesus’ difficult words of division, this sermon explores how God’s deeper work of belonging often begins when familiar structures of identity fall apart. Rather than preserving our false unities, God invites us into the abundant communion of the Trinity—a life of relationship where no one is disposable and no one is bey...