Come In! April 13, 2008 David Brubacher Text: John 10:1-10 Psalm 23 Introduction: There is a myth that suggests men do not like to ask for directions. Admittedly it might be more than a myth. In my carpentry work, installing doors and locksets is a specialty of mine. At one time I prided myself of not needing instructions to install a lockset. I argued that once I figured it out myself I would remember better for the next time.…
When our hearts burn April 6, 2008 David Brubacher Text: Luke 24:13-35 Psalm 116 Introduction: I sensed a burning in my heart. The young girl waiting on me in the local pharmacy looked familiar. The burning suggested I should know her. In the grocery store next door I remembered that I had done the finish carpentry in her family’s dream home. I was always intrigued by the way this girl and her younger siblings helped with odd jobs…
My Lord and My God March 30, 2008 Doug Johnson Hatlem Text: John 20:19-31 The Lord IS risen. Risen indeed. Jesus has emptied his tomb. His body revivified. Death conquered – death, that last enemy, which according to Paul, is now, and shall be, abolished. Here we are a week later. Christ is Risen! The regency of Israel’s Messiah is in its infancy. The world does not yet know that it has been conquered. Jesus has been lifted…
Resurrection Today March 23, 2008 David Brubacher Text: Matthew 28:1-10 Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 Introduction: If had been a chaotic week. Yet in the middle of everything, I experienced something profound. I think of it as the power of Jesus’ resurrection. It was the week my mother died. On a Saturday morning twenty-three months ago my mother was admitted to hospital with what seemed like routine gallbladder systems. On Monday she was diagnosed with inoperable pancreatic cancer. She died Saturday…
With Jesus into Jerusalem March 16, 2008 Jonathan Slater Text: Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 Matthew 21:1-11 Isaiah 50:4-9 Today we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem; we have seen a glimpse of what that day might have looked like from the perspective of a range of characters: There is Mary, Jesus’ Mother, worrying that her son has gone too far this time – That such a public, political statement, and in Jerusalem at the time of Passover, can bring…
Can Dead Bones Live? March 9, 2008 David Brubacher Text: Ezekiel 37:1-14 John 11:1-44 Introduction: A legend tells of a man who lived with his wife, two small children and his elderly parents in a small hut. The noise and crowded condition got to him. In desperation he consulted the village wise man. “Do you have a rooster?” asked the wise man. “Yes,” the man replied. “Keep the rooster in the hut with the family, and come see…
What do you see? March 2, 2008 Michele Rizoli Text: I Samuel 16:1-3 John 9:1-41 Take a moment to brainstorm with me about how many different ways we have of seeing things in today’s world. We can use corrective lenses, sunglasses, [from the congregation: telescopes, swimming goggles, binoculars, windows, lights, magnifying glasses, webcams, microscopes, fingertips, camera, television, the mind’s eye]. Electron microscopes can magnify up to 2 million times (I found that number amazing). We have telescopes to see…
In God’s Embrace February 24, 2008 David Brubacher Text: Exodus 17:1-7 John 4:5-12 Introduction: When I was in grade eight I was madly in love with a girl. At least I thought I was. Truth be told, I was not madly in love, it was probably more like St. Augustine says in his Confessions, “He was in love with the notion of being in love.” It was really nothing more than a school yard crush. Anyway, the story…
Embracing New Life February 17, 2008 David Brubacher Text: Genesis 12:1-4a John 3:1-17 Introduction: Learning to ride a bicycle was not easy for me. I was about eleven by the time I finally learned to ride and had my own bike. Part of the problem was that there were no bikes around our place other than the old one in the back of my grandfather’s shed that had not been ridden for years. Not having a bike, however,…
Embracing the Wilderness February 10, 2008 Aldred Neufeldt Text: Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7 Psalm 32 Romans 5:12-19 Matthew 4:1-11 Introduction Through much of my life I have had some discomfort with Lent. In this, I’ve discovered, I’m not alone. It seems this phenomenon is not peculiarly Mennonite, nor recent. It probably dates back to post-reformation times when newly emerging churches were anxious to get away from ‘high church’ liturgical worship. More recently, such antipathy no doubt has been reinforced by…