Blessed are the Powerless

 September 15, 2024 | Nicola Patton | Joshua 2 The story of Rahab teaches us that morality is often a luxury but that God provides for the powerless. God is the God of radical inclusion and a border-crossing God who looks to tear down walls for us to belong together, not so that we […]

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Belonging

 June 2, 2024 | Nicola Patton | Acts 2:41-47 NRSV After Pentecost comes ordinary life in community among the believers. And within that community, we find unity that celebrates diversity. The differences among believers are not prerequisites for belonging but unique aspects that contribute to the beloved community. The group had everything in common […]

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The Truth of Community

 January 21, 2024 | Nicola Patton | Psalm 133 It’s easy to get caught up in doing so much church that we forget about community. But God cares more about community than about church. We have been created in and for community by a communal God. It is part of our human nature to […]

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The Sound of Silence

 August 27, 2023 | Nicola Patton | 1 Kings 19:1-15 We won’t always be dazzled by the Spirit. Much of our lives are spent in mundane, even wilderness places. But the Spirit meets us in all those places and moments, creating space for us to be quiet and reflect. It’s in that silence we […]

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Listening as an Act of Worship

 July 30, 2023 In this service, we do not have a sermon. Instead, we embody the listening practices engaged in the month of July and have a communal time of reflection beginning with the lighting of Palo Santo until Communion. The stories are the sermon as we engage with art, wordless worship, palo santo, […]

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Honest Tension

December 11, 2022 | Nicola Patton | Luke 1:26-38 We easily rush through Advent to get to Christmas but it’s important to take the time to reflect on the pauses, to notice the piece in each story. Maybe it’s within the tension of hope and promises that God shows up. Maybe surrender is where we […]

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The Withness of God

April 10, 2022 | Nicola Patton | Gen. 39, 45; Matt. 21 The story of Joseph and the story of Jesus entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday are familiar to us. But they are not only stories about power. They are also stories about presence because before we need ruling, we need healing. The with-ness of […]

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