Changed By God To Make A Difference For God

How do you read Scripture? Are you reading it for all its worth? Check out what our guest preacher, Daniel Semelsberger, has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Jeremiah 4:11–12, 22–28; Psalm 14; 1 Timothy 1.12-17; Luke 15.1-10.

In this week's sermon, Dcn Terry makes a prayerful confession through the Gospel text of Luke 14:25-33. What does the cost of discipleship begin to look like when we stop counting the assets of the Kingdom of God and start looking at the liabilities? It is important to understand before setting out to do the work Christ has called us to do to count the cost of doing so. May this confession be a help in your praying through the text this week. Lectionary texts for today are Jeremiah 18.1-11; Psalm 139.1-5, 12-18; Philemon 1-21; Luke 14.25-33.

What is "the church" and why should Christians (or anyone else for that matter) care? As the NT writers astonishingly claim, church is nothing less than God's Spirit-empowered people living out their faith in Jesus Christ, imperfect as that can be at times. Simply put, without the Church there can be no Christianity. What a remarkable challenge! Are we up for it? Check out what Fr. Maney has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today's parish dedication festival of St. Augustine's Anglican Church in Westerville, OH are 1 Chronicles 29.6-19; Psalm 122; Ephesians 2.19-22; John 2.13-22.

Jesus calls us to freedom, but what kind of freedom? What does that look like on the ground? What does being free mean for his body, the Church? Check out what Fr. Sang has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Jeremiah 1.4-10; Psalm 71.1-6; Hebrews 12.18-29; Luke 13.10-17.

Life is hard. There's no way of getting around the hard stuff and having it resolve without actually engaging it and going through the process of difficulty. But we don't have to do it alone. God, our brothers and sisters, the Church, are all with us as we persevere through in faith, armed with the hope of joy found in the resurrected life. There will always be struggles in this life, but through them we may find healing, hope, and a stronger faith as we celebrate overcoming in joy. Check out what Deacon Gatwood has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Isaiah 5.1-7; Psalm 80.1-2, 9-20; Hebrews 11.29-12.2; Luke 12.49-56.

What is the nature of biblical faith? Are we asked to believe in God blindly, to ignore facts and reality, to whistle through the graveyard? Or is it something quite different than any of this? Why, for example, does the NT consistently talk about hope, not as optimism, but as a sure and certain expectation of the current reality and things to come? These are important questions because without faith, we are simply not able to please God or have any real basis for hope. Check out what Fr. Maney has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Isaiah 1.1, 10-20; Psalm 50.1-8, 22-23; Hebrews 11.1-3, 8-16; Luke 12.32-40.

Who is the God you worship? This is more than just an interesting question or intellectual exercise because how we answer this question impacts how we interact with God, with others, and how we see ourselves. Sadly, many of us have constructed false and destructive gods in our own image that we worship, Christians included, so it is important that we get our thinking straight about this. Each of our lessons today have something to say about who God is. Check out what Fr. Maney has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Hosea 11.1-11; Psalm 107.1-9,43; Colossians 3.1-11; Luke 12.13-21.

Prayer is an essential part of a person's spiritual life. Without a regular prayer life a person becomes a dry well, or an arid desert. Spiritual life can little survive without the necessary prayer that brings to life our response to God's goodness and faithfulness, and our sharing with God our brokenness and hopes and wishes. Following the Lord's Prayer found in Luke, this sermon breaks apart some of the petitions of the prayer in order to show that everyone can pray as Jesus has taught us. Check out what Deacon Gatwood has to say and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Hosea 1.2-10; Psalm 85; Colossians 2.6-19; Luke 11.1-13.

When Paul talks about Christ being in us, the hope of glory, what does he have in mind? It's more than being just about Jesus and me, although that's part of it. Check out what Fr. Maney has to say about it all and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Amos 8.1-12; Psalm 52; Colossians 1.15-28; Luke 10.38-42.

What does obedience to God look like on the ground? Does it conjure up for you a list of interminable rules to follow that suck the joy out of living? For many, sadly this is the case. But as Fr. Sang explains, this is not the essence of obedience. How well we follow the rules really doesn't matter that much, important as rules can sometimes be. Check out what Fr. Sang has to say about this topic of obedience and see what you think. Lectionary texts for today are Amos 7.7.-17; Psalm 82; Colossians 1.1-14; Luke 10.25-37.