March 2, 2025 | Inés Velásquez-McBryde | Mark 8:27-30 In this pivotal moment in Mark 8, Jesus begins to make his way to Jerusalem and to the cross by asking 2 questions: Who do people say that I am? Who do you say that I am? Jesus asks 309 questions in the gospels and is […]
February 23, 2025 | Armando David Scott-Canchola | Psalm 42 Pastor Mondo focuses on Psalm 42, delving into the deep lament expressed by the Psalmist as he struggles to make sense of life and faith in the midst of tragedy. He explores how lament serves as an honest and appropriate reaction to life’s challenges and […]
February 16, 2025 | Dr. Phil Allen, Jr. | Phil 2 Dr. Phil Allen preaches for our Black History Month celebration. Paul and Martin Luther King, Jr. both write love letters to the church. Paul applauds the church in Galatia for their witness, while King challenges, even rebukes the clergy in Birmingham, AL who criticized […]
January 26, 2025 | Inés Velásquez-McBryde | Acts 16:11-15 and Phil 1:1-9 As we do a soft launch into the book of Philippians, we dig into the origin story of the Philippian church. Lydia and a group of women found the river church, outside of the city gates, as there is no synagogue in Philippi. […]
January 5, 2025 | Inés Velásquez-McBryde Epiphany means revelation and the wise magi that followed the stars found revelation in the dark night sky. Their rhythms were simple: waking, watching, and walking. God spoke in a language that anyone could understand.
December 22, 2024 | Nicola Patton | Luke 2:22-38, Isaiah 45:3, Matt 19:13-15 As the world around us gives us little reason to find joy, we must be shrewd in actively looking for joy, becoming like children who find wonder in mundane things. Shrewd joy is a muscle we exercise, a means of healing and […]
December 15, 2024 | Armando David Scott-Canchola | Isaiah 11 / Luke 2:8-16 On this 3rd week of Advent, Pastor Armando tracings the wise roots of shrewd peace through the story of King David’s ancestral lineage. Isaiah the poet prophet gives us a vivid picture of how God provides us with a picture of audacious […]
December 8, 2024 | Inés Velásquez-McBryde | 1 Sam 2:1-10 Luke 1:46-55 Mother Hannah in 1 Samuel has a melody of hope that is harmonized by Mary’s Magnificat. Both matriarchs of the faith point to an ancient present hope as we are rooted in the promised Messiah to arrive. They give us the gift of […]
November 24, 2024 | Inés Velásquez-McBryde | Hebrews 12:1-3 The liturgy of the leaves teaches us something about letting go as a spiritual practice that nourishes our understanding of Hebrews 12 v1-3. In the fall, toxic waste is secreted in the leaves that fall. If the trees don’t let go of this waste, the leaves […]