Prince Of Peace

(Natalia Terfa) This is a well-known story, thanks to children’s Bibles, and also to Charlton Heston and the Hollywood rendering of the story of Moses. But more than some fantastical story of burning bushes and voices on the mountains, this is, at its heart, a call story. And we can learn a lot about how to find our own burning bushes and holy ground through this particular one. Scripture: Exodus 3:1-15 Song: Into The Blue by Luwaks Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) How do you feel about your reputation? What are people saying about you out there? How does following Jesus affect what people think about you? For that matter, what does Jesus have to say about you? Scripture: Matthew 16:13-20 Song: Bad for Me by Alder Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) Today’s story is hard to hear. Jesus seems very human and not very divine in his interactions with this Canaanite woman. Why would any writer include this strange encounter in a hero story about Jesus? Scripture: Matthew 15:21-28 Song: Come 2gether by Ooyy Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) A storm at sea rages through the night and things are not looking good for the disciples. When Jesus shows up they are even more afraid. That’s when Peter asks for the craziest thing ever! In these times of fear and anxiety, maybe we are asking the wrong questions. Maybe we have been called to something more meaningful than safety. Scripture: Matthew 14:22-23 Song: Billie Eilish - Ocean Eyes (Instrumental Remix by Guanaco) Music provided by Cosmos Network Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) So often, when we hear this feeding miracle, we focus on the amounts. The starting point, the ending point, the scarcity, and the abundance. But what if this miracle began long before they were gathering the five loaves and two fish? Scripture: Isaiah 55:1-5, Matthew 14:13-21 Song: Lux by Lofive Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Amy Koopman) Jesus gives us the parables of the mustard seed and yeast and pearls and leaves us to wonder what God might be trying to tell us about the kingdom of God through these little but powerful examples. Scripture: Romans 8:26-39, Matthew 13:31-33, 42-52 Song: Kauko by Twelwe Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) Both of the texts in front of us today are about waiting, but not just any kind of waiting, but the waiting in the midst of evil, hardship, and struggle. Well. That feels… right. So what are we to do while we wait, and what are we waiting for exactly? Scripture: Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 Song: Distant Echo by Jakob Ahlbom Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) The church is currently in “Ordinary time” but that feels more than a little out of step with the rest of the world. Social unrest and racial tensions run high. A worldwide pandemic rages on. Maybe ordinary time for the church is supposed to be out of step. Maybe this old parable about the sower was always meant to disrupt ordinary life to make room for something extraordinary. Scripture: Isaiah 55:10-13, Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 Song: Your Peace Will Make Us One cover by Paul & Amy Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) When the world feels chaotic and unsteady, where do we look? In the Bible, prophets were sent into the midst of just these times, and their words were not always hopeful. Even Jesus, who preached words of love and care for others, didn’t always have his words received with welcome. What message might God be sending us through today’s Gospel, and how are we going to receive it? Scripture: Jeremiah 28:5-9, Matthew 10:40-42 Song: No Outsiders cover by Paul Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) Paul says that in baptism we are united with Christ in a “death like His”. That is a phrase that should stop us in our tracks. What does it mean to be united with Jesus in a death like his? How can that death set us free to live a new life? Scripture: Romans 6:1-11 Song: Worry cover by Paul & Amy Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) Last week we heard the Great Commission, the call to go and share the good news of what God is doing. Today we are reminded of this same great commission - that we too are called disciples and that name asks something of us. We are sent to DO something. But what? Scripture: Matthew 9:35-10:8 Song: Burn Like A Star cover by Paul Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke & Natalia Terfa) Pentecost. It's a day where we celebrate the start of the church with breath and fire. It's hard to not make the connections from that first Pentecost to what is happening today. As preachers, we are charged with holding the Gospel in one hand and the newspaper in the other and that's what we did. Say his name. George Floyd. Scripture: Acts 2:1-21 Song: Orpheus cover by Paul & Amy Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) In this reading from Acts, Paul takes the church on the road. He decides to take the gospel right into the belly of the beast where he knows there will be resistance, if not outright mocking and rejection. Here we have a master class in sharing your faith in a distracted and skeptical world. Scripture: Acts 17:22-31 Song: Your Peace Will Make Us One cover by Paul & Amy Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) This is a very familiar and well-known set of verses, most often heard at funeral services. But what does it mean that Jesus is preparing a place for us? And what kind of house does God have? And why does it even matter? Scripture: John 14:1-14 Song: Beauty Lives in Me by Johannes Bornlöf Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) Thinking of Jesus as the “good shepherd” has been comforting for generations of Christians. Today we will revisit these beloved passages to see what they might have to say about living through a worldwide pandemic. Scripture: Psalm 23 Song: Aoraki by Ooyy Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) When you think of Jesus - where is he found? As a young girl growing up in the Catholic church, Jesus was always on the cross. For some Jesus is always in the manger, but today’s Gospel finds Jesus where I think he most wants to meet us - around the table. Scripture: Luke 24:13-35 Song: Midnight Walk by Twelwe Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke & Natalia Terfa) As we do from time to time, we put the usual preaching schedule on hold while we explore public theology together. We will again field questions from the congregation around the theme of things that cause us to doubt or to question. Scripture: John 20:19-31 Song: The King Has Fallen by Rippled Stone Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Chad Brekke) Everything you see may be telling you to be doubtful and afraid but the messenger of the Lord says it is going to be ok, God is with you, God is keeping the promise… do not be afraid. Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10 Song: Angel From Montgomery covered by Amy & Paul Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa & Chad Brekke) Scripture: Matthew 26:14-27:66 Song: 7 Magnets by Luwaks Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website

(Natalia Terfa) We often hear to “love our neighbor as ourselves” but how do we really love ourselves? What does it mean to be unique and to be a person with gifts and flaws, and how can we see others that same way? Mr. Rogers often uses the language “Just as you are” to describe how we are loved. What might it look like to see ourselves as loved, just as we are, and also see others as loved just as THEY are? Mr. Rogers Video Scripture: Mark 12:28-31 Song: Broken Vessels cover by Paul & Amy Koopman Support our podcast here Watch the Livestream Follow us on Instagram Visit our Website