A Quote for Reflection… and Maybe Some Action!

I am currently reading Eugene H Peterson’s book, Christ Plays In Ten Thousand Places: A Conversation in Spiritual Theology.
I have read Peterson for years. I want to be like him in many ways. Long tenured pastorate. Steady ministry. Clear and Biblical thinking. Pastorally rooted.
But I must be myself… yet it does not keep me from [...]

Get Your Feet Wet!

Scripture Passage – Matthew 14:29
Description – The Sixth and Final Sermon of the fall 2009 series ‘Get Your Feet Wet!’
(Slide 1) A trapeze artist once supposedly boasted that he could take a person seated in a wheelbarrow across a tightrope many hundreds of feet up between two tall buildings. “Who thinks I can do it?” [...]

I Promise!

Text: Genesis 9:11-13
Point: God’s promises are reliable.

It is said that when James Longstreet began his attack on the second day of battle at Gettysburg during the American Civil War without Pickett’s division present he exclaimed, “I feel like I’m going in with only one boot on.”
After last week’s sermon, I somewhat felt the [...]

Unfinished

Text: Genesis 11:1-9
Main point: What are we building our lives toward?
For several years, an unfinished building, which looked like it was to be a hotel, stood along Interstate 69 south of Fort Wayne, I believe at one of the Marion exits. I often wondered what happened to create this unfinished monument of someone’s hopes [...]

Move? At This Age?

Point: God has a plan!

Texts: Genesis 12:1-9, Proverbs 3:5-6

One of the currently circulating e-mails is the story of a wealthy man who every time he picks up a penny, stops and prays. When asked why he does this, he remarked, “On our money it says, “In God We Trust” and then points out [...]

Have I Got A Deal For You!

Texts: Genesis 15:1-18, Jeremiah 29:11

Point – What is the nature of God’s plan? Provision, hope, and a future.
Every weekday morning TV viewers are treated to an hour of high-energy television with the legendary game show “The Price Is Right.” We are constantly bombarded with offers for various things. It seems as if every TV [...]

The Laughter of Disbelief

Text: Genesis 18:1 – 15

Main point: Nothing is impossible with God.

This past week during some devotional reading, I read an excerpt from one of Fredrick Buechner’s books entitled, Peculiar Treasures: A Biblical Who’s Who and one of the passages that he addresses in the book is our main passage of this morning.
“Quantitatively [...]

Progress Not Perfection

Scripture Passage – Matthew 14:30-31
Description – The fifth in a six-part series ‘Get Your Feet Wet.’
This morning we begin with this quote from Max Lucado.

(Slide 1) Whether or not storms come, we cannot choose. But where we stare during a storm, that we can. (Source: Max Lucado via twitter.com/MaxLucado, October 12, 2009)
(I think that [...]

‘Is That Your Final Answer?’

Description – The fourth in a six-part series ‘Get Your Feet Wet.’
(Slide 1) You can probably tell by my sermon title how I am going to start this sermon this morning, right?
Here we go!
(Select one person to be the contestant they will answer 5 questions. They can ask the congregation for help, two times.)
(Slide 2) [...]

The Place of Faith

Hebrews 11:1-2 and John 20:19-29

Main point – What does it mean to have faith?

Last week I suggested that we place a great deal of faith in our ability to buy and operate our cars because faith is an important and essential part of our lives.  This past week I talked with several people [...]