What Do You Hear? John the Baptizer bellows in the wilderness, calling the people to preparation, and challenging the self-righteous to true repentance. As is always the case with prophetic words, how we hear them depends almost entirely on our perspective. Do we hear that we are being called to a liberated way of living, or do we only hear…
Waking Up As we begin this Advent season, we’ll gather for one combined worship service at 10:00. Advent is the season of preparation, but it is also a time of anticipation. We are waiting the arrival of the birth of Jesus, of course, but we are also anticipating the arrival of God’s Kingdom of Shalom. But what kind of waiting…
“The Images of Divine Love” What does love look like? What does divine love look like? What does it mean for us that Christ is “the image of the invisible God” as Paul writes? The artistic images we have of Jesus may be meaningful, but, of course they are culturally bound expressions. So what is it, in the end, that Christ looks…
Endurance and Hope Prophetic and apocalyptic imagery in the bible can sound scary – and indeed, it often names the terrible things that happen in our world. But prophetic and apocalyptic language, whether in the Gospels or in the Jewish prophets, is a message of hope – that in spite of the powerful forces we see doing real harm, those…
Small Questions About a Big God Is our theology important? Does it matter if we understand the Church’s teaching about God? Aren’t all these theological discussions just versions of “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” How do we know which theological questions matter, and which ones don’t? The livestream will be available at 9:00 on…
With Saints Like These All Saints and All Souls Days remind us that God’s eternal love carries us in life, in death and in life beyond death. But God’s eternal love also means that those who have gone on before us remain with us, inspiring us and illuminating the way forward. We’ll honor those of our congregation who now rest…
Not Our Table The table around which God draws the human family is not ours – we are guests at the banquet, not bouncers at the doorway. But we ARE called to invite others to the feast – not only through our words, but as we embody the heavenly banquet in all that we do. As a congregation, LOUMC has…
The Table of Possibilities There is a place in your home – the kitchen table for many of us – where you gathered with your family to discuss and make decisions. It could be a Big Deal – a career opportunity or a college choice. But often it’s just the day-to-day stuff – who is picking up the kids after…
“The Table of Wide Welcome” We love the idea of hospitality – to a point. We want to fling open our doors – to some. It seems to be the human condition to feel pulled between openness and caution, between curiosity and defensiveness. The Church is called to live with extravagant, world-shaping hospitality, because we ourselves have been welcomed to…
The Table of Grace World Communion Sunday is an invitation to remember the Church that lives in all places. It is an invitation to remember that we are part of a world-wide community that gathers at the same table of grace. The livestream will be available at 10:30 on Sunday, October 5, or any time after. Read Galatians 3:23-29 and Luke…
“The Church of Out There” We might think of “church” as a place we go to, or we might think of it as the thing that happens on Sunday mornings. But the Church is the people of God, following the Way of Jesus. And while it is true that we have a place, and we gather on Sundays, we are…
The Whole Peace of God We yearn for peace! In a world that seems bent on destruction, and captive to hate, we hope for a world freed from war, violence and hatred. It seems an impossible task. And so we might be tempted to retreat from the world and cultivate a peaceful personal life. But our faith in Christ will…