Author Archives: First Presbyterian Church

Everyone loves a good conversion story. That’s why you always end up perched on the edge of your seat whenever someone tells an inspiring tale of living a smoldering train wreck of a life, but then one day “finding Jesus” and rising from the ashes in triumphant victory over the mortal sins of a sordidContinue reading “A Bedtime Story”

Up until now, over the past few weeks, in our sharing of Bible stories that speak to God’s presence when human plans fall apart, God has been the One doing the unraveling. For always-good divine purposes, God has been the One tugging at loose threads in the fabric our lives and reweaving those stands intoContinue reading “What’s It Going to Take?”

When you mention the biblical name Zacchaeus, three descriptors of the character in Luke’s Gospel usually spring to mind: First, Zacchaeus is short – “a wee little man was he.” Second, he’s good at climbing trees – sycamores in particular. And third, nobody likes him. Most people neither welcome Zacchaeus nor want anything to doContinue reading “Unraveled Salvation”

God speaks to us this morning through an obscure Old Testament story of revenge and retribution. As the curtain rises on chapter 21 of 2 Samuel, the hunger pains of a three-year famine stir King David to ask God why there’s no food on the table. According to the Lord, the grain bins are empty,Continue reading “Can You See Her?”

When I was picking out Bible stories for this sermon series on the unraveling of our lives, I was torn over whether to include this morning’s lesson. It’s the story of Jesus successfully walking on water and Peter’s failed attempt to follow in Jesus’s watery footsteps. On one hand, the story works well. Getting caughtContinue reading “Step Into the Swell”

What happens when it feels like your world has come unglued and is falling apart? How do you press onward when your tightly knit plans unravel into a tangle of loose threads? What do you become when your identity feels threatened with undoing or the path you’re walking comes dangerously undone? Those questions weigh heavyContinue reading “Sarah Laughs”