"Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me." ~ Mark 9:37 While we all want to find comfort and soothing words at the feet of Jesus, the reality there are times that he could make his disciples uncomfortable, and us along with them. Over the last two weeks, we have heard from the Gospel of Mark and Jesus’ frequent announcements of his impending torture, humiliation and death. Last week Peter had found it so … [Read more...]
For the sake of the Gospel – Sermon for September 12, 2021
“He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things." ~ Mark 8:32-33 This past summer my house was dominated by the Olympics. Morning and evening we would take our seats on the couch and take in whichever event happened to be on that day. As Canadians, we would obviously be rooting for our national … [Read more...]
Kingdom Breakthroughs – Sermon for September 5th
“Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go--the demon has left your daughter." Mark 7:29 One of the great paradoxes of parenting is this: On the one hand, to be a good, kind, patient and loving person getting enough sleep and being well-rested is essential and on the other hand children, especially young children are exhausting, often interrupting your sleep and developed periods of rest. It is a good thing that God created humanity with the biological imperative to love and care for … [Read more...]
Bread of Life – Sermon for August 15th 2021
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." John 6:51 The last two decades have seen the incredible rise of Comedy News shows – shows like the Daily Show and the Colbert Report have thrived the news-entertainment complex that has arisen. Although they are strictly for entertainment during the early 2000s people under 30 reported getting their news from these shows than … [Read more...]
Culture Shock – Sermon for August 8, 2021
“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:1-2 As the child of a foreign service officer, I travelled a lot. Before the age of 18, I had lived in 7 countries and visited countless more. One of the realities of travelling to different countries is navigating the vast cultural differences between those countries. Whether it is eating customs, or how one greets one … [Read more...]
Gifted Hands – Sermon for August 1, 2021
“The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” ~ Ephesians 4:11-12 Just before I entered grade 7 my family moved from Paris, France to Buffalo New York. As if the culture shock of that move wasn’t enough I got to go into a new school for Middle School as both a Canadian (hated by many Buffalonians) and a foreigner (I had developed a slight British … [Read more...]
The Church’s Calling Card – Sermon for Sunday July 25th
I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:18-19 A number of my friends have had babies through the pandemic. This means that my social media feeds are filled with all things baby. Which is lovely. Babies are wonderful, aren’t they? (especially when they’re keeping someone else up at … [Read more...]
Unity in Diversity – Sermon For July 18th 2021
“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility” ~ Ephesians 2:14 Although I know you’ll probably say I am starting to sound like a broken record, the world seems to be hurtling more and more towards division than in previous eras, but our epistle lesson for today from the Letter to the Ephesians brings the topic of division to centre stage once again and because of the severity, I think it is an essential … [Read more...]
Will You Come and Follow Me – Sermon for June 30th
Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." – Luke 9:58 When you are about to embark on some big life change, like getting married, or having your first child, or going to university, starting a new job or retiring from one – you will often be told by someone that your life will never be the same, it will change so tremendously that you’ll barely recognize it on the other side. People have a tendency to speak in … [Read more...]
God’s Peace on God’s Friday – April 19th, 2019
Harvey, Sandy, Katrina, Hugo, Carla, Ivan, Camille, Patricia. These are some of the most notable hurricanes in recent memory. These powerful and destructive tropical storms can have winds over 250 km/h, heavy rains, crashing waves and storm surges. As the hurricane arrives, the rain starts, the wind blows steady and strong. As we pass farther in, the wind builds, the seas become more dangerous, the rain more lashing. Near the centre, in the Eye Wall, the winds reach their peak speed, … [Read more...]
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