After a glorious display of courage, Elijah is overcome with despair and flees to a cave. He prays that God would take his life, because he feels that his faithfulness is in vain. God tenderly and compassionately tends to his wounded heart with food, counsel, and a series of intense revelations – fire, wind, earthquake – that concludes with “the sound of…

In fear for their lives on the stormy sea, the disciples are shocked by a strange apparition walking on the waves that claims to be Jesus. Peter seeks to prove the identity of this unexpected visitor by getting out of the boat and walking on the waves to Jesus. For a moment, he is successful, but the sight of the winds proves…

Jacob’s life was characterized by deception and foolhardy ambition and he paid the price for it in having to flee his home out of fear for his life. Twenty years later when he returns, he encounters God in the form of a man who wrestles with him throughout the night. In the end, Jacob’s name (which means “deceiver”) is changed to Israel…

The conclusion of Romans 8 is considered by many Christians to be one of the greatest statements of assurance and comfort offered in the sacred writings. In the midst of a groaning creation riddled with struggles, anxieties, injustice, and fears, the Apostle boldly argues for the absolute triumph of God’s love, concluding that “nothing will be able to separate us from the…

In the middle of one of the most encouraging and inspiring chapters in the Bible, the Apostle Paul writes of a three-fold groaning, a “symphony of sighs” experienced by the world, ourselves, and God. It is in this hopeful groaning in a suffering world that we find ourselves, and it is precisely here where God is at work. Opening Hymn: Morning Has…

Jesus’s favorite method of teaching was telling stories — stories that have the possibility to disarm us, inspire us, and transform us if we are willing to “dig deep” into them. In today’s story, sometimes called “The Parable of the Four Soils,” sometimes called “The Parable of the Sower”, and sometimes called “The Parable of the Hundredfold Harvest”, we learn important truths…

In this message, we reflect upon one of Jesus’ most precious sayings, an invitation to the weak, weary, wounded, and burdened to “yoke up” with Jesus, so that he may both help in carrying the load as well as teach us how to learn the gentleness and humility to help others with their burdens. Opening Hymn: Oh, For a Thousand Tongues to…

What we do with our painful feelings, frustrations with circumstances, or disappointments with God? The people of Israel possessed a worship manual full of prayers and hymns – the book of Psalms – that guided them in embracing and expressing all of their feelings to God, both good and bad, despairing and hopeful, protesting and praising. The reason: It is impossible to…

In this story, believers behave badly and the collateral damage of their actions harms others. Yet, God remains committed to bless all – those within the Abrahamic covenant, and those outside of it. In this story, God blesses the outsider who is rejected by the believers, thus demonstrating God’s love for all. We may be recipients of God’s gracious covenant, but there…

In today’s lectionary reading, Jesus sends out the Twelve to expand his ministry. He gives them instructions that remain relevant for all of us who are “sent out” into the world to join the risen Christ in his mission. It is Jesus’s heart that drives the mission, for he looks upon the “harassed and helpless” crowds and refuses to condemn or berate,…