January 16, 2022 – We’ve got a plan, we’re working hard, and we’re doing our best to be the hands, heart, and voice of Christ (as our mission statement says). What do we need the Bible for, anyway? What’s up with this weird book?
Scripture: 2 Kings 22:8–13; 23:1–3
January 9, 2022 – On this Epiphany Sunday, we kick off a sermon series on spiritual practices. What are spiritual practices? Are they important? Why do we do them? Attention to spiritual practices may have been the difference between life and death for the magi on their politically disruptive pilgrimage.
Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12
January 2, 2022 – The message comes from Joanne Gallardo, conference minister of Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference of Mennonite Church USA in Goshen, Indiana. Originally from northwest Ohio, Joanne is a graduate of Goshen College and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Indiana.
Scripture: Jeremiah 31:7-14
December 26, 2021 – What’s in a name? Why the name “Jesus”? What’s this “Emmanuel” curve ball from left field? Jesus Emmanuel is born… let’s explore and celebrate the significance of that name together!
Scripture: Matthew 1:18–25
December 19, 2021 – The author of Colossians probably wasn’t a fashion designer, but they’ve sure got a heavenly design sense. Set that Christmas sweater aside this year, and dare to imagine God’s robe! What does it look like to dress like Christ?
Scripture: Colossians 3:12–17
December 12, 2021 – We continue our Advent theme by daring to imagine God’s song. Against a backdrop of pride, idolatry, and injustice, the prophet Zephaniah dares to imagine a world that rings with God’s song of peace, justice, and love. As we anticipate Jesus’s birth, God invites us to sing along!
Scripture: Zephaniah 3:14-20
December 5, 2021 – Today’s Advent theme is Dare to Imagine God’s Embrace. Four members of our Care Team— Donna Haines, Melanie Schmucker, Kevin Rosner, and Mary Liechty—share stories on the theme.
Scripture: Luke 3:1-6
November 28, 2021 – While the Babylonian armies besiege Jerusalem with no end in sight, the prophet Jeremiah is being detained for prophesying doom and gloom in Jerusalem’s immediate future. Yet despite the atrocities of war and his dismal situation, Jeremiah holds onto hope as he dares to imagine God’s goodness: eventual, holistic restoration through Jesus!
Scripture: Jeremiah 33:1–2, 10–16
November 21, 2021 – This week as we eavesdrop on the author of James, we walk into the middle of a full-blown diatribe seeking to correct a distorted relationship between faith and works. Can we comb through the forceful language to uncover the author’s nuanced intent?
Scripture: James 2:14–20, 26
November 14, 2021 – For millennia, people have turned to the Psalms to put words to their experiences. We continue in our month of celebration with a psalm of gratitude for God’s faithfulness in bringing the psalmist through difficult, even harrowing, times to a place of celebration. What echoes or resonances of this psalm do you hear in your individual and collective lives?
Scripture: Psalm 30
