January 30, 2023 Mary Poppins is a prophet like Ezekiel, speaking into the Banks family and specifically to Mr. Banks. She breaks his heart of stone, giving him a heart for love alone.…
January 23, 2023 In Wicked, there is a difference between being changed for the “better” and changed for “good.” “Better” is the standards of the world, the expectations of the Wizard in this…
December 19, 2022 The incarnation brings peace into the world, in flesh and blood. Shalom isn’t a thought or an abstraction, it is an embodied, tangible reality in the world.
December 12, 2022 Shalom is a way of being more than a goal to achieve. Isaiah describes a way made in the wilderness, a way on which travelers are safe from harm. Mary…
November 28, 2022 The Peace of Christ is cutting edge. Both swords and plowshares are cutting edges. Swords cut in ways that do harm; plowshares cut in ways that bring life. The shalom…
November 21, 2022 When Christ reigns, we need not fear. We are safe, and no threat can move us. We are able to “be still and know” the sovereignty of God, which sets…
November 14, 2022 Why Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?: Questions of theodicy. There is no good answer, but we can talk about how the church understands evil to function in…
November 7, 2022 Is there a hell? Where is heaven? Where does God live? Why is it necessary to leave “here” when we die? When we read about “hell” in the Bible, at…
October 24, 2022 When does a faith journey begin? Is it bad if I don’t pray often? How do I get into the habit of spiritual disciplines? I do not think I feel…
October 17, 2022 How can there be such vastly different interpretations of scripture? How can two people, reading the same words, come to different conclusions? How do we discern parables and myths from…
October 10, 2022 Vader’s story is one of contrasts and ultimately of redemption. His mask keeps him alive, but it also hides who he truly is. His final act saves Luke’s life, and…
October 3, 2022 Obi-Wan allows Vader to strike him down, which is for him a transition from one part of his life to the next, mystical and powerful part of life - a…
September 26, 2022 Yoda warns the Jedi that fear has no place in their hearts. In Scripture, love eliminates fear - Christ calls his followers to love their neighbor, which makes it impossible…
September 19, 2022 In the Star Wars universe, “The Force” is similar to the Holy Spirit in Christian Theology - penetrating all and binding all together. We are connected to one another by…
September 12, 2022 The church is a diverse body made of many different parts, and as such those who are members of the body extend a welcome to all. MUMC makes this clear…
Manchester UMC is responding to the movement of the Holy Spirit, and sometimes it seems so unusual that others may question it. But it is a real response to what…
Welcome Home Series, The Prodigal Son story, but in this version the elder brother comes to the party too. This story of MUMC is a story of both the prodigal…
August 22, 2022 There is a big difference between “including” people and truly “celebrating” people. When it comes to LGBT+ people, just saying “we include you” is not enough (and not entirely true,…
August 15, 2022 Solomon asks for the ability to discern what is right for the people, for the common good. There are six passage of Scripture most often cited to condemn same-sex relationships,…
August 10, 2022 This sermon will set-up the possible outcomes of the pending General Conference. We confess the UMC has not always acted like Ephesians 4 tells us to, and hope that this…
August 1, 2022 Forgiveness can “close the loop” on unresolved tension or conflict. Joseph’s brothers, even a long time after their reunion, were worried that Joseph would hold a grudge against them. So…
July 25, 2022 After Jacob was so bad to Esau, taking everything away from him and destroying the family relationships, he had to forgive himself for doing that harm so that the two…
July 12, 2022 The forgiveness Jesus offers de-escalates the need for revenge, for retribution, for punishment. Jesus reverses the power dynamic in this story by pointing out the mob’s own need for forgiveness,…
July 5, 2022 The paralyzed man in this story doesn’t ask for forgiveness but he gets it anyway. When Jesus forgives him, the Pharisees react with disapproval and in response Jesus heals the…
June 20, 2022 One sometimes hears the phrase “unity for unity’s sake.” It is often used as a critique, to indicate that a group with irreconcilable differences need not stay together just for…
June 14, 2022 Listen to Ali Fields preach and ask "Zacchaeus stayed. Why did he stay? ... He can't shake this emptiness inside him, this feeling that he's doing it wrong ... He…
June 6, 2022 Working by human priorities, according to human agendas, will always result in a confusing, conflicted mess. Working by divine priorities, following the lead of the Holy Spirit, will always result…
May 31, 2022 Jesus promises that his disciples will be “clothed with power” to proclaim the good news to the world. The power of the Spirit was to come, and in the meantime…
May 26, 2022 Saul encounters the Risen Christ in a dramatic, extraordinary way, very unlike most of the other encounters we’ve looked at. In spite of Saul’s past acts of persecution, the light…
May 16, 2022 The risen Jesus was not a ghost, and to show his disciples that he was bodily present, he does a very basic human thing - he eats. In doing so…
May 9, 2022 The risen Jesus walks alongside the disciples in their grief and confusion, not trying to fix it. And then he stays present with them as they arrive at Emmaus and…
May 2, 2022 The risen Jesus introduces himself to the fishermen by giving them fishing advice, then cooking some of the fish they caught. This strikes us as a very ordinary thing, an…
April 25, 2022 Following his resurrection, the Bible teaches that Jesus appeared to his followers several times. Explore lessons from one of those encounters and discuss how it should guide the church today.
April 18, 2022 The risen Jesus introduces himself to Mary at the tomb by asking her why she is weeping. He approached her with empathy and a desire to know her, to share…
April 11, 2022 Palm Sunday is the celebration of a divine reign that is both here and not yet here. It is the fulfillment of a promise that has yet to be fully…
April 4, 2022 We might rather rush to Easter, getting through the self-reflection of Lent. Nobody wants to watch Jesus walk to Golgotha, carrying the cross; we do not want to deal with…
March 28, 2022 Nothing that we can do ourselves can “fix” the world; “we do not have the power within ourselves to abolish sinful systems.” It seems easier to remain a slave to…
It is not the job of the people with disabilities to explain disabilities to the able-bodied. It is the responsibility of the people of God to be “all-in” and to…
March 14, 2022 Sometimes we want a Gospel that avoids suffering. Jesus offers a rebuke to that kind of thinking, and reminds us that suffering is inherent to living.
March 7, 2022 The physical healing of the “healing stories” is not the point. People who are able bodied are temporarily able-bodied. Redemption has nothing to do with our physical ability - God’s…
Moana is Moses, called to go beyond the boundary of slavery, beyond the boundary of the reef, but uncertain as to her worthiness. She is called to lead the people…
We tend to forget ourselves, to forget who we are. Peter “forgets” who he is when he denies Jesus. When we remember our story, our ancestors, the saints of the…
February 15, 2022 Death makes us aware of how precious life is, even the most ordinary and mundane life. Joe’s reaction after playing his dream gig points out the vanity of wishing for…
February 7, 2022 We have to remember our story, to remember our ancestors. If we do not remember our ancestors our story will fade into non-existence. If we do not tell the story…
January 31, 2022 As a gentile, a woman, and a widow, the “Widow of Zarephath” would have been completely powerless in her context. Yet she is called by God to provide food for…
January 24, 2022 As Jesus begins his work, he claims an anointing by the Spirit, connected to the prophecy of Isaiah. To be anointed is to be sent by God, to be consecrated…
January 18, 2022 After baptism, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to prepare for public ministry. The Spirit prepares us for our work by giving each of us gifts “as…