August 2025 sermon series: Faith & Journey
August 10: Part 2: The Prodigal Son
Luke 15: 11-24

Jacob Perez, preaching

Our sermon series for the month of August, "Faith & Journey," is an attempt to discuss the core elements of the Christian walk and way of worship and a perfect opportunity to invite friends who might be skeptical about belief or may have lost contact with church over a period of time. I look forward to this series and hope to see you there with a friend!

Faith isn't always a straight path. Sometimes we wander. Sometimes we walk away. And sometimes we are unsure if we can ever really return after wandering.

This week in worship, we'll explore Jesus' parable of the Prodigal Son, a story about grace. A young man demands his inheritance, leaves home, and loses everything. But the turning point comes not when he fixes his life, but when he remembers there's still a home he can return to!

And while he's still far off, his father sees him and runs to meet him. This is the heart of God: not waiting with judgment but rushing toward us with compassion. No told-you-so's, no conditions. Just embrace, welcome and joy.

The father in the parable doesn't just forgive, he restores. A robe for dignity. A ring for identity. A feast for belonging. It's not about earning love. It's about receiving what's already been given.

As we continue our series, Faith & Journey, this story reminds us that grace is not a reward, it's at the core of our relationship with God. It's one that invites us home no matter how far we've gone.

And in a world that tells us we must prove our worth, Jesus tells us: You are already worthy. Come home.

 Music this week:

• Because of Your Love

• Amazing Grace (Peaceful, Easy Feeling)

• Let the River Flow

• Sanctuary

• I Will Celebrate

• River of Mercy

August 2025 sermon series: Faith & Journey
August 3: Part 1: Grace through Faith
Romans 4: 13-25

Jacob Perez, preaching

This Sunday, we begin a new sermon series for the month of August entitled "Faith & Journey." It is an attempt to discuss the core elements of the Christian walk and way of worship and a perfect opportunity to invite friends who might be skeptical about belief or may have lost contact with church over a period of time. I look forward to this series and hope to see you there with a friend!

This Sunday, we start with the bedrock of the Christian experience: Grace! We'll discuss what grace is and how faith activates it. Our reading is from Romans 4:13-25, and in this powerful passage, Paul reminds us that Abraham's righteousness didn't come through perfection or adherence to some code of conduct, but rather through courageous, persistent trust in God's promise. Abraham believed even when the odds were against him. His devotion wasn't flawless, but it was faithful. What does that kind of trust look like in our own lives today?

Join us as we reflect on what it means to be people of faith... not because we have all the answers, but because we believe in a God who still calls new things into being. Whether you're full of hope, wrestling with doubt, or just trying to take the next faithful step, I hope this message will speak to the journey we're all on together. Come with expectancy for the presence of God!

 Music this week:

• A Song Must Rise

• With You

• Greater Grace

• Surely the Presence of the Lord

• Simple Life

• Grace Alone

July 27, 2025: Your Spiritual Landmarks
Joshua 4: 1-7

Rev. Dr. Paul Chimhungwe, preaching

Get ready for a powerful message this week as we explore the profound significance of spiritual landmarks. In a world constantly pushing us to look forward, we're taking a countercultural journey back — not in regret, but in sacred memory. Drawing wisdom from ancient African traditions and biblical narratives, we'll explore how identifying these divine encounters in your life can anchor your faith and shape your future.

What if those moments of disruption, loss or quiet revelation were actually God's hand at work, redirecting and remaking you? Join us as we uncover how the Israelites' "stones of memory," Jesus's ultimate landmark of the Resurrection, and Paul's Damascus Road experience illuminate the sacred momentsin your own journey. You'll be challenged to identify your personal "God was here" moments and discover the transformative power of sharing your story. Prepare to be inspired to make your memory your witness, because if God was there, God will be here again!

This week will be my last with you until November 2, 2025. As you know, one of the exciting parts of my sabbatical is participating in Disciples Women's Ministry's Woman to Woman Worldwide program in Kenya. Our guest preacher this week is Rev. Dr. Paul Chimhungwe, a Global Ministry partner serving in Botswana. Africa is a vast continent made up of fifty-four countries, each with its own distinct culture, language, and traditions. Botswana, located in Southern Africa, is landlocked and sits in the center of the region, bordered by Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The distance between Kenya and Botswana is about 1799 miles by air, while the driving distance is approximately 2,290 miles. After worship, Dr. Chimhungwe will speak about Kenya and our ministry partners in Africa. A Kenyan chef will provide lunch.

 Music this week:

• Wamkelekile

• I Have a Hope

• Open the Eyes of My Heart

• Lead Me, Guide Me

• Lord Reign in Me

• Start a Fire

July 20, 2025: BEYOND
Ephesians 3: 20-21

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

This scripture is the primary text for the General Assembly theme, "Beyond". Rev. Renae Earl, Min. Audrey Barton, and I gathered in Memphis, TN from July 11-15 with approximately 3,000 other Disciples from around the country to do the business of the church and offer praise "...to the one who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to the power that is at work within us, to them be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen!”

In the General Assembly Preaching resource, Rev. Shannon W. Dycus writes, "Amen! This passage finds us at the end of a powerful prayer highlighting power, glory, and abundance across generations — at work within us. We've been, and likely voiced, prayers just like this. Ephesians 3 is an early Sunday morning prayer spoken by folks who walk a bumpy road and know the steadiness of God. It speaks of a God that moves in and through us even when we waver along that bumpy road. There is trust in the receiver of this prayer, that what we knowingly and unknowingly need, across people and time, will be heard and held. This is a prayer of leaders who wake with the sun and are relying on God to shepherd them and people they love with grace and love. These are the final words of an intimate conversation, the kind where we open our teary eyes and recognize we have not been alone. So again, we say Amen!

How do we arise from a prayer we are certain we have prayed in the fullness of God? What if God has heeded the depth of our needs? What if we are indeed filled with a power at work in us that has abundance and imagination? What do we do after an answered prayer?

In all the significant and important words of this chapter, I cling to the first word of verse 20 as the most powerful. Now. In the concluding words of this unbounded conversation that has traveled through generations, we hear this clear and specific temporal marker. This one word adds an important pivot acknowledging a readiness to live the hope of this prayer.

Now draws us in from what God has done for our ancestors and calls us to our presence to God today. Now is a statement of faith and belief about the power that is actively living within us.

Now amplifies this benediction and affirms it as a clear call to action.

The beauty of this passage lies in this invitation to us — what if we acted like we have the power we pray for? Sometimes, the familiarity of our spiritual practices, both personally and as a congregation, makes our acts of faith routine and ordinary, and we miss the power in them. If we linger in this invitation, we give ourselves permission to see beyond our regular expectations and welcome sacred imagination into our belief and actions. Like the voice of prayer in our passage, we are invited to receive the presence of God that is far more than we ordinarily anticipate.

As we consider our practices of faith, I believe we often miss opportunities to embody our words and our hopes. Our logical and spirited words don't always get to be lived out through our physical beings. I wonder how we might invite our bodies to respond to an Amen that we believed had power in it. Raising our hands or standing in belief, expressing laughter of joy or releasing tears of burden — these actions connect our prayers and our belief in Now. How do we act, with our spirits and our bodies, like believers who pray bold and answered prayers?

 Music this week:

• Let Everything That Has Breath

• Unfailing Love

• Hungry (falling on my knees)

• How Majestic is Your Name

• To Love You

• Table of Love

Rethinking “Church”: Models of Belonging
1 Corinthians 1: 1-10

Rev, Steve Borgard, guest preaching

When people find out l am a pastor, they often immediately respond with a comment about how often they do or do not 'go to church.' So, the notion of 'going to church' has become people's primary understanding of what it means to be 'religious or to be a ‘Christian’. Also, there is an assumption that people know what ‘church' is, or what the word means.

I believe all of this is worth examining. So, on Sunday, I will ask us to 'rethink' what we mean by church as a means of exploring how our Christian faith can be relevant in our modern society.

As we prepare for Sunday, you might ponder the following questions:

• What comes to mind when you hear the word "church"? What memories, emotions, and thoughts arise?

• If you were to describe FCC Concord to a neighbor, how might you do so, without using the word "church"?

• What do you think is the primary purpose of church? How is this accomplished?

• How does God interact with the 'church'? Is it unique? Does God care whether you go to church or not?

• How might you respond to someone who says: "I don't go to church, I experience God in nature?"

Based on 1 Corinthians 1:1-10 

 Music this week:

• Remind Me Who I Am

• Build My Life

• Who Is My Mother, Who is My Brother?

• Give Thanks

• Get Together

• Come, Share the Lord

July 6, 2025: FruitFULL Faith
Galatians 5: 22-23

Our youth, preaching

Our youth spent a week at camp focused on the “Fruit of the Spirit.” Although there are many descriptive words, they are all fruits of the same Spirit. Imagine many different fruits growing from one tree. From God come all the flavors.

What does a community that lives by the Spirit look like? They choose to love without expecting anything in return. They find joy in one another and in God, regardless of the circumstances they face. They practice peace by working to restore brokenness and build a world that is whole and in harmony with God and itself. They understand the value of patience, enduring the challenges of the world and the offenses of others without seeking retribution.

They demonstrate kindness through both their words and actions, helping one another both within and outside the community. They act from a place of goodness by offering selfless care. They are faithful and dedicated to the Spirit’s work, and they can depend on each other. In gentleness, they don’t overreact but respond appropriately to the situation. Finally, the members and the group practice self-control by managing their emotions and actions, allowing the community to thrive. This is not a random wish list.

Paul intentionally begins with love and ends with self-control. Love must lead; it is given by the Spirit and sets the tone for the community. Self-control completes the list because living by love results in a community that looks very different from one driven by anger, disunity, idolatry, and other ways we live when left to our own desires. Our youth have returned home and will share the fruit they received at the Community of the Great Commission.

Music this week:

• We Come from the Spirit

• A Song Must Rise

• Create in Me a Clean Heart

• We’ve Come This Far by Faith

• Totally Available

• Grace Alone

June 29, 2025: The Way of the Innkeeper
Luke 10: 25-37

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

At different points in our lives, we each have been every character in the parable of the Good Samaritan. At times, we have been the injured one; other times we have been the one who passed by, and hopefully we also have been the surprising helper who stepped in to render aid. This week, we reflect on a fourth character, the innkeeper, who aided the one in need under the direction of the Samaritan. Are we like the innkeeper, ready to welcome those who come to us with injuries in need of care? Or are we too busy, too stretched, too apathetic, or too sure that we can't really make a difference? Let us challenge ourselves, trusting in God's grace and provision.

"Holy God, we dream of our church being a place to welcome weary travelers, but we are often overwhelmed. We are overwhelmed by all the needs of the world and by how much it takes to keep our little "inn" open. Remind us that we are not the only ones dreaming with you for a more just world. Assure us that no gift is too small to welcome a stranger in need. Amen."

Friends, with God's grace, we are enough. With all that God provides, we have enough. Be assured that in God's love, we are renewed to dream again. Amen.

Music this week:

• Every Move I Make

• Lord, I Give You My Heart

• You Are Merciful to Me

• Glory, Glory Lord

• Plowshare Prayer

• Come to Me, O Weary Traveler

June 22, 2025: The Sound of Silence
1 Kings 19: 1-15a

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

Elijah has fled to the wilderness for escape, but his "retreat" turns into a holy encounter. Sometimes, we need to "get away." However, we're not getting away from God — there's no such thing. In our retreat, we gain the strength, wisdom, or power to return to the work of loving the world.

None of this is Elijah's doing. It's all a gift. He receives food for strength; he receives a vision of God; he receives instructions. So often, when we're ready to quit, some angel says, "Here's what you need to go on."

God doesn't come to Elijah with dramatic special effects. God doesn't speak to us in that great, booming bass voice typical of movies, but in the quiet, in silence, "God's first language." If Elijah hears actual words, we aren't told of them — only a tiny, calm voice. God's “Word" is presence, not words.

The assurance that Elijah might seek — protection from the danger he's facing — is not provided; only instructions are offered. It seems that what matters is not our sense of security but rather our faithfulness to God's quiet whispers within us; God will manage our fate. We are consistently sent back into the world, into service.

Music this week::

• Step by Step

• You Are My Strength

• Eagle’s Wings

• I Will Change Your Name

• Blessed Be Your Name

• Take My Life

June 15, 2025: Contract and Covenant — Worth the Risk
Jeremiah 32: 6-15

Rev. Dr. LaTaunya Bynum, preaching

Retired Disciples pastor Douglas Skinner says about this text:

"Jeremiah is known as"the weeping prophet." "Oh, that my eyes were a fountain of tears; I would weep forever," he said, "I would sob day and night for... my people!" (9:1) Jeremiah's prophetic ministry was one of doom and gloom. He was God's prophet in the days of the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple, and the beginning of the long years of exile for the people of God. These were as dark and as difficult as any days God's first covenant people ever faced, and Jeremiah was their divine narrator. It was his job to tell God's people what was happening, and what it all meant. It wasn't an easy assignment that God gave Jeremiah.

“And then, out of nowhere, in chapter 32 in the book of his prophecies, God told Jeremiah to do a strange thing. God told Jeremiah to invest in some real estate, to buy a field from his cousin in a place called Anathoth, a wide spot in the road just about 3 miles north of Jerusalem. Jeremiah bought this field when the armies of Babylon were at Jerusalem's gates. Jeremiah bought the field in Anathoth knowing full well that he would probably never live on it, or ever get to work it, or even actually see it! God told Jeremiah to buy this field in Anathoth as a tangible way of showing God's beleaguered people that as difficult as things had become for them, God was not finished with them yet."

Music this week:

• There’s a Light

• Here I Am to Worship

• I Could Sing of Your Love, Forever

• Show Me Your Ways

• Home

• Bread for the Journey

Pentecost Sunday: Spirit of the Living God
Acts 2: 1-21

Jacob Perez, preaching

Pentecost Sunday! This Sunday, we reflect on the moment when the Holy Spirit descends upon the early followers of Jesus and sets in motion a radically inclusive and Spirit-empowered movement. Gathered together in one place, the disciples experience a sudden, divine interruption: a rush of wind and tongues of fire resting upon each of them. This is no private, mystical experience; immediately, they begin to speak in languages not their own, inviting people from every corner of the known world to hear the good news in their native tongue.

This moment disrupts the old divisions of ethnicity, language, gender, and status. The crowd is stunned at how this ragtag group of Galileans can speak so clearly to so many! Some are skeptical, but Peter, now emboldened by the Spirit, steps forward to explain: this is the fulfillment of the words of the prophet Joel. God's Spirit is not reserved for the elite or the righteous, but is poured out on all flesh. Dreams and visions are no longer the domain of a few, but the inheritance of all.

Join us this Sunday as we reflect on the power of the Holy Spirit, then AND now! Pentecost invites us to imagine a community where every voice is heard, every language honored, and every person empowered by the Spirit of God. Come with expectation, and bring a friend!

 Music this week:

• Let the River Flow

• Let Your Glory Fall

• Start a Fire

• They’ll Know We Are Christians (verses 1 and 4 only)

• Spirit of the Living God

• One Spirit of Love

June 1, 2025: The Sacred in the Seed
Matthew 13: 31-32

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

June will be a busy month for us at the church! On June 1, we will celebrate Bowen Tang's high school graduation! Bowen was the Valedictorian of his high school class. We will also celebrate the graduation of our own Dr. Heather Raymond, DVM! AND we will Commission Audrey Barton as a Community Chaplain! WOW! What a packed service!

I'll share a short message on the Parable of the Mustard Seed. Parables are stories used to teach lessons, usually about morals or spirituality. Jesus often used parables in the gospels to make complex ideas more relatable and understandable. In this parable, Jesus is inviting us to recognize there may be more to pay attention to than what one thinks from things seemingly small and ordinary, valuing what feels small or easy to overlook.

There's something interesting about asking ourselves who and what we might overlook in our communities because they don't seem that significant. Think about how society treats the children and elders around us. Their contributions are just as important. Seeing the sacred in the small stuff pushes us to remember that there's always potential, always something to learn, and always something to notice in everything. This mindset helps us celebrate and value those who are often unnoticed in our society.

The text also nudges us to ask, "What are we missing when we don't approach things with curiosity?" When we read the Bible, we should ask questions, both about the people in the stories and those around them. Imagine the uncertainty they felt knowing they had to nurture this tiny, different religion with care, curiosity, and faith. It makes us wonder what could happen if we were curious and generous with our belief in each other's gifts. What if we truly believed in the potential of everyone in our community?

When we recognize the gifts within this congregation, we have an opportunity to participate in God's Big Dream for our congregation. Remember, no gift is too small and no dream is too big.

Music this week:

• Every Day

• The Lord is Gracious and Compassionate

• Protector of My Soul

• Seek Ye First

• Dream Small

• Seed, Scattered and Sown

For The Healing of the Nations
Revelation 21: 10,22 - 22:5

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

I am grateful to Jacob Perez, who preached on a moment's notice last week when I could not speak due to laryngitis. His sermon inspired me to reflect deeply on what God is calling us to do and to be as we strive to begin the healing of the nations. God brings us together to serve the work of love and liberation. The ultimate power of this work within us cannot be destroyed, confined, or controlled by forces of evil. God will prevail. God does prevail.

And God is always working urgently through us to bring an end to suffering and oppression.

Every day that God's people suffer is one too many. Therefore, God helps us recognize that we need each other to heal, grow, and face with courage all that works against the possibilities of ending suffering. We cannot live faithfully with mindsets or practices of isolation. Living our faith is a collective pursuit. The invitation to "come and follow," to come and live in the ways of God, to come and be transformed by grace for the sake of our collective life is always extended to us.

My friend and colleague, Dr. Sharon R. Fennema, serves as the Join the Movement toward Racial Justice Curator with UCC National Ministries. She has written a book, Building Up a New World Liturgical Resources, and in the chapter "Healing Sustains Our Organizing," she writes about this passage:

"Healing is a journey of stitching back together what was fragmented by the suffering of trauma - in mind body, and spirit. It is mending the soul by way of learning how to be in healthy relationship with self and others...Social justice organizing is actually healing work. We are healing ourselves as we are healing the systems that harm...Integrated, layered healing in movement is an opportunity to receive and reciprocate healing as we heal these harmful systems, not just reaching for healing after we are specifically impacted and realize we need healing. We always need healing and healing should always be available" (119, 124, 127).

Music this week:

• I Love You Lord

• Holy is the Lord

• Open the Eyes of My Heart

• Sanctuary

• I Have a Hope

• I Surrender All

• Take My Life

What’s New?
Revelation 21: 1-6

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

(At least, she was planning to…you’ll see!)

Ever wished for a do-over? Revelation 21: 1-6 offers a grander vision: a radical renewal, not a replacement, of our world. As Eugene Boring says, God makes "all things new." This isn't escape but a shattering of barriers obscuring God's dream. John's "new earth" and "new heaven" depict a world where oppressive systems like Rome then or any injustice now, are finally gone, allowing creation's true potential to bloom.

Revelation's journey involves struggle, but its longing is for a future free of suffering, mourning, and tears, where everyone belongs. The ideologies of division will "pass away." The Divine is the source, yet God works through us — our hands, bodies, relationships, gifts. If we desire this just world, we must actively build it, trusting God's renewal through us.

Adrienne Maree Brown reminds us, "Dreams and imagination...are the way we make oppression temporary." John urges us beyond passive waiting or small fixes to broken systems. We must dare to dream God's big dream:

What would our local communities become if truly made new? What injustices dismantled what equity built?

What would our church look like, radically transformed into a "new earth" of inclusion, love, and justice?

This isn't about a distant future, but igniting our imagination now, envisioning God's dream and building it, act by act. What is God's big dream for you, for us, for the world? Let us begin to dream it together.

Based on Revelation 21: 1-6

Music this week:

• I Will Celebrate

• Number 40

• Be Thou My Vision

• Live in Charity

• Better is One Day

• Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

May 11, 2025: Telling Our Story
1 Corinthians 11: 23-26

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

Each Sunday, we gather, grounded in the heart of our shared journey, words echoing from 1 Corinthians 11: 23-26. In a final shared meal, the bread was taken, gratitude offered, the bread was broken and Jesus said: "Do this in remembrance of me." Likewise, the cup followed: "Do this, whenever you share it, in remembrance of me." By partaking of this bread and cup, we proclaim this profound act of love and liberation until its fullness arrives.

This sacred remembrance invites reflection on a dream realized — God's limitless love expressed through human experience for our wholeness. As that dream of liberation unfolded through humble means, so too can the Divine's expansive vision for our community be realized through each of us.

Our Stewardship theme for 2025, "Dreaming God's Big Dream: No Gift Too Small, No Dream Too Big," calls us to embrace this truth: no gift among us is insignificant, and no dream rooted in hope is too audacious for the Divine. Consider the shared bread, a simple offering that embodies profound connection. Every act of service, every heartfelt prayer, and every talent shared are vital threads in the sacred tapestry, proclaiming love and justice as surely as this shared meal.

The dreams stirring within you are not mere fantasies but potential pathways where the Divine's light — the very light revealed in that act of love and liberation — can shine through us into the world.

Let us dare to dream big, envisioning a future where the Divine's love, the love we remember in communion, transforms our community and beyond. Let us also cherish the small, consistent acts of faithfulness that lay the foundation for that future, remembering that even the simplest act of remembrance holds immense power.

In the Divine's expansive embrace, just as shared bread became a symbol of liberation, the smallest seed can blossom into a mighty tree, and the most audacious dream, nurtured by hope and remembrance, can become a glorious reality. Let us dream together, serve together, and build a world that reflects divine justice and love, proclaiming that love and liberation until their fullness is realized, knowing that with the Divine, all things are possible.

Based on 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

 Music this week:

• Forever Reign

• Hungry (falling on my knees)

• Open the Eyes of My Heart

• Holy Spirit Rain Down

• Come, Share the Lord

• In Remembrance of Me

May 4, 2025: Fear and Loving in Tiberias
John 21: 1-19

Audrey Barton, preaching

In this season of the church, we are looking at the experiences that the disciples had of Jesus after his resurrection, and the way they began their own resurrected lives — of new vitality, union with Christ, and a clear purpose of sharing all that they had received, as widely as possible.

Peter has often been used as a case study of monstrous failure and remarkably gracious restoration. God's restoration of us all is remarkably gracious. But this Sunday we'll be taking a more compassionate and nuanced look at Peter's experience of weakness and healing. 1-2-3, he moved deeper into denial of Christ and betrayal of himself. 1-2-3, he rose back to freedom from shame and self-recrimination.

I encourage you to read John 21:1-19 separately; we will read verses 1-17 in church. And you may read about Peter's denial in Mark 14:54, 66-72.

Based on John 21:1-19

Music this week: 

• The Lord is Gracious and Compassionate

• Abide

• Heart of Worship

• Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

• Remind Me Who I Am

• We See You God

Based on John 20:19-20 and 2 Corinthians 5:17

Rev. Dr. Erin Edwards, preaching

Music this week: 

• Gather Us In

• Holy is the Lord

• My Peace I Leave You (Taize)

• Give Thanks

• This is the Air I Breathe

• Take My Life

Easter Sunday
Apr 20, 2025: Wilderness and Wildflowers
John 20: 1-18

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

What do we do when we come out of the wilderness?

Do we return to the way things were? Or do we hold on to the hope that this transformation might last? That whatever we experienced in the wilderness might continue to change us?

It can be easier to preach, lead worship, and even simply practice our faith during the "special" seasons of the year. The anticipation of Advent, Christmas traditions, and Lenten disciplines guide us and keep us on track. However, we rarely celebrate the full fifty days of Easter and have nothing to center us during Ordinary Time. How can we maintain that energy instead of dropping off and returning to our "normal" lives?

Maybe it is as simple as continuing to show up. Wildflowers show up in the wilderness. They remind us of our capacity to be resilient, to bring life in unexpected places and to bloom where we are planted

This account of Jesus resurrection shows two different responses to the empty tomb. After the initial shock of fear, hope, and confusion that brought them all to the tomb in the first place, Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter, and the other disciple stood looking at the linen cloths abandoned in the tomb. But Mary Magdalene was the first to witness the resurrection because she was the one who stayed. Peter and the other disciple went home, back to business as usual for them. But Mary stayed. Whether it was from grief or hope, Mary Magdalene stayed by the tomb, weeping, and was the first to see Jesus. The first to undergo that transformation from grief to joy. Because she stayed.

Perhaps the way to hold on to what we have learned in these forty days is to continue to show up each day, hoping for a resurrection.

Blessings of Resurrection Hope!

Based on John 20:1-18

 Music this week:

• Christ the Lord is Risen Today

• Because of Your Love

• Create in Me a Clean Heart

• Let It Rise

• Lift Me Up

• Eat This Bread

Palm Sunday: Sixth Sunday of Lent
Apr 13, 2025: Walking Together in the Wilderness
Matthew 21: 1-11

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

One ancient tool of prayer is walking a labyrinth. Prayer labyrinths are winding, twisting paths — often set in stone in cathedrals or outside, shaped in grass-that people walk along as a form of embodied prayer. There is a labyrinth at the Community of the Great Commission. First Christian Church of Vallejo brought their labyrinth to the Annual Gathering when we hosted it in 2023 and 2024. Walking the labyrinth is a spiritual practice.

Unlike the dictionary definition of “labyrinth,” however, prayer labyrinths are not mazes — they contain one path leading to the center. That does not mean that walking a labyrinth is direct. There are timeswhen the path appears to be close to the center and then veers back to the outside of the circle. There are times when you are almost dizzy with how much the path turns. There are times when you feel far away from the center, but you are actually very close.

The wilderness road can feel like a labyrinth — twisting and turning — but the truth is that the path of Lent leads here, to this week, where all that has been set in motion finally unfolds. Like the labyrinth path, though, it still isn't a straight line. The disciples are sent on a strange and specific mission to find a donkey and a colt. Jesus' triumphant ride into Jerusalem subverts the expectations of what a Messiah should be, as the Son of God is carried, like his mother once was, on the back of a donkey. His methods are strange, but his direction is sure: he is heading closer and closer to the center. He is heading closer and closer to the story by which we order our lives. The forty days are almost over.

Based on Matthew 21:1-11

 Music this week:

• All Glory, Laud, and Honor

• Build My Life

• Come and Fill

• How Majestic is Your Name

• Empty Me Out

• Table of Love

Fifth Sunday of Lent
There’s Life in the Wilderness
John 11: 1-45

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

We don't expect life in the wilderness. It is easy to think of the wilderness as empty, barren, and dead. But the truth is: there is life in the wilderness, in the desert, in the arctic. In every place we dismiss as hopeless, there is life.

Just as the resurrection of Lazarus changed the perspective of those who witnessed it, this account of the miracle begins to introduce us to one of the central ideas of Christianity: death does not have the final word. Most of us have heard the story of Christ's resurrection our whole lives, and we run the risk of forgetting the miracle of it because it has become so ingrained in our lives. But this telling of the resurrection of Lazarus can bring us back to the wonder. The miracle is preceded by lengthy descriptions of Lazarus’ illness and death, conversations with those in mourning, and even a discussion about what will happen if you open the tomb that holds the body of a person who died four days prior. The details of Lazarus’ death are clear, and so is the message: there can be life even where you least expect it.

But part of the beauty of this story is that it does not erase our mourning. Sometimes we want to skip over grief — our own or the grief of others — to get to the promise of resurrection and new life. We use the promise of life to try to erase the pains of death, but this passage shows us that we can hold both at the same time. Through the whole story, Jesus has plans to resurrect Lazarus, but still weeps when he witnesses and experiences the pain of his friend's death. This reading holds the tension that life springs forth from unexpected places, and the pain of loss is still real — a tension many of us grapple with in our lives.

Based on John 11:1-45

 Music this week:

• All My Life

• Show Me Your Ways

• Breathe on Me, Breath of God

• Take My Gifts

• Give Thanks for Life

• Grace Alone

Fourth Sunday of Lent
Mar 30, 2025: In the Wilderness of Misunderstanding
John 9: 1-41

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

(Note: our apologies -- we had technical difficulties during the first part of the service; sound and video from the sanctuary starts during Signs of Life, and begins about 2:42 into the recording.)

This chapter can be divided into three sections: introduction to the healing (1-5), description of the healing (6-7), and reaction to the healing (8-41). Like in John 4, several characters are present: the man born with blindness, Jesus, the disciples, the Pharisees, and the parents of the man born with blindness. Bea, India, Lyla, and Siena will offer a creative reading of the text; you won't want to miss it!

While this passage is about a miraculous healing, it is also not about that healing at all. Confusion about the man born with blindness, how he was healed, and what power Jesus wields is central to this narrative, to the point where even reading it can be disorienting.

What is clear is that Jesus is disrupting the order that the community knows so well. Jesus' final words to the religious leaders, "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind," echoes the "first shall be last and the last shall be first" sentiment so common in Jesus' teachings.

Interestingly, only a man who is blind can see what the religious authorities do not. The chapter starts with a man born blind, assumed to be a sinner, and ends with some of the Pharisees who are declared sinners because they pretend to "see," which shows their unbelief.

As the chapter progresses "blindness" moves from a physical to a spiritual level. By the end, the man born with blindness not only sees in a physical way but also believes and receives spiritual light.

As the wilderness is known for disruption, metaphor, transformation, and even confusion, it is almost as if with the mud Jesus uses to heal, he brings the wilderness to the community, giving them a taste of what his kindom will truly be.

Based on John 9:1-41

 Music this week:

• There’s a Light

• Lord, I Give You My Heart

• You Are Merciful to Me

• Day and Night

• Amazing Grace (my chains are gone)

• I Am the Light of the World

Third Sunday of Lent
Mar 23, 2025: Unexpected Connections in the Wilderness
John 4: 5-42

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

Whatever the causes, we can be sure of this: this Samaritan woman has been through some very difficult things. Anyone who has experienced the loss of a spouse - by death or divorce - knows how difficult it is under even the best of circumstances. This - not once, not twice, but five times - and all under an oppressive gender economy that ties her worth and survival to her marital status. She has suffered so much. She has also survived so much. How much community does she have to hold her pain with her? Wilderness.

How many judgments are made upon her by friends and strangers alike? Is she seen for who she is or for how society defines her? Does she have people in her life who know what it's like to be in her shoes? Does she hear leaders in the community speaking of women in her circumstances - speaking against them or advocating for religious and societal change on their behalf?

Wilderness.

Then, in the heat of the day, she connects with Jesus in the wilderness. Jesus does not speak words of condemnation or offer easy answers. He validates her words and experience, saying "What you have said is quite true." Jesus sees her in the fullness of her experience as if he knows "everything that has ever happened to her." She need not even defend herself. This is why the text says she came to believe in the gospel.

It's no small thing to be met in that way. It's an embodiment of the good news - to bring to the surface that which is too often forced to stay hidden within us. When vulnerability unveils the things that are so difficult to share, Love affirms truth.

Jesus restored her to the community after too many days, years, and lifetimes of isolation, of coming to the well alone, of feeling too misunderstood, neglected, or forgotten. Jesus was her connection in the wilderness.

Based on John 4:5-42

 Music this week:

• Better is One Day

• Everyday

• Living Water

• Eagle’s Wings

• Fill My Cup, Lord

• River of Mercy

Second Sunday of Lent
Questions in the Wilderness
John 3: 1-17

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

How can you be born again?

I wonder how much do you have to grow, so that, like a child in a mother's womb, your place of nurture can no longer contain you?

How much do you have to grow so that you have to be propelled into a different reality? Not to do so means the very place that formed you might become the place of your death.

Lent offers us a challenge and an opportunity to explore new ways of being and thinking and to ask new questions of God, ourselves, and each other.

Lent is a time of reflection and, for many, a time of denial. What should I not take into myself so that I might move and grow my spirit?

What could I abstain from, what am I willing to withdraw from, that would position me for the new life that is possible?

Are we willing to withdraw from a particular world view?

Are we willing to abstain from being right in order to be more just?

Are we willing to suspend our disbelief so that a better world is possible, so that we can be different, so that we can really make a difference?

It can be particularly hard for those of us who think very concretely to let go and truly experience this wilderness where the Spirit has led us. Nicodemus is one such thinker, and he tries so hard to understand that he ends up missing the point. In this case, the metaphor becomes a tool to put words around what is impossible to comprehend.

Of course, these metaphors and abstract ideas are followed by one of the most well-known verses in Christianity: John 3:16. Often used to summarize the entire Gospel story, John 3:16 is a simple, direct, concrete verse in an otherwise esoteric chapter. Unfortunately, we tend to memorize John 3:16 without the important addition of John 3:17. John 3:16 is sometimes turned into a weapon against "unbelievers," but verse 17 offers the corrective that condemnation was not the point.

Based on John 3:1-17

 Music this week:

• A Song Must Rise

• Empty Me Out

• Water, River, Spirit, Grace

• Totally Available

• Welcome to This Circle

• All Belong Here (The Many)

First Sunday of Lent
Mar 9, 2025: What’s Waiting in the Wilderness
Matthew 4: 1-11

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

Jesus’ ministry begins in the wilderness.

Immediately after being baptized, claimed as God's own beloved child, Jesus is led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted. It is tempting for us to stay in the glow of baptism and move immediately into Christ's ministry, but the movement of the Spirit in this text is clear: Jesus must go to the wilderness. He must experience hunger, fear, scarcity, and loneliness. He must be brought to the point where the tempter's offers become more enticing. There is something for Jesus to experience in the wilderness.

This passage is central to our practice of the season of Lent. We observe this forty-day season to match Jesus' forty days in the wilderness — and like Jesus, we are led into this wilderness by the Spirit. Despite physical weakness, Jesus finds spiritual strength to hold fast to God. As the distractions of the world fade away, the things that are truly important come into focus, and the tempter's diverting words lose all power. Perhaps one of the gifts of the angels that dwell in this wilderness is the opportunity to discover how courageous, how steady, and how faithful we have the ability to be.

That does not mean that these forty days will be easy. That does not mean that we will not fall short or beg for an easy way out. But it does mean that here, at the beginning of our own forty days, we are reminded that both devils and angels are waiting for us in the wilderness.

 Music this week:

• I Have a Hope

• You Are My Strength

• O Lord Hear My Prayer

• Hungry (falling on my knees)

• Protector of My Soul

• Thy Word

On the Mountain to Pray
Luke 9: 28-43a

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

This is the last week of the Season of Epiphany; Lent begins next week. For Luke, the Transfiguration is in many ways the mother of all epiphany stories ("epiphany" means "showing forth") since it reveals Jesus as a prophet and, above all, as God's beloved child.

The Transfiguration is one of the quintessential mountaintop experiences in scripture: a glimpse of divine glory, a word from God, and an experience that changes all who are present.

This is one of many instances in Luke-Acts where prayer sets the stage for significant events, decisions, and ministry moments. Jesus, Peter, James, and John ascend the mountain to pray, and it is as "he was praying" that the Transfiguration took place.

The disciples are tempted to stay on the mountain, but Jesus reminds them there is ministry on the other side of the mountain — down in the valley — among the people. They come down to find a father with his only son, who is suffering from epilepsy. The disciples couldn't heal him, but Jesus did.

Epiphany concludes today: Jesus has "shown forth" as a healer and a liberator, a teacher and a shining prophet. Think of this passage itself as a high "mountain" in the midst of Luke's Gospel.

On one side, we climb up through stories of Jesus' healing, liberating ministry. And on the other side, we descend down to Jerusalem. Today, we arrive at a clearing on the mountaintop — and from here, we can survey both how far we've come and the 40-day Lenten journey ahead.

Based on Luke 9:28-43a)

 Music this week:

• We Come from the Spirit

• Lead Me, Guide Me

• Lord, Listen to Your Children Praying

• How Majestic Is Your Name

• Up to the Mountain (MLK Song)

• Take My Life

A Good Measure
Luke 6: 27-38

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

When it was time for the offering in my home church, the entire congregation would recite this verse with Rev. Hood: "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap, for the measure you give will be the measure you get back." At the time, I did not understand the context of what we were saying or why it was so important. I now understand a little better. It's about more than the offering- it is about a radical way of living and acting in the midst of a harsh reality.

When read in context, we see that Jesus is telling us to love as God loves — to treat one another the way we would want to be treated and to behave in ways that take the higher ground. Jesus guides us to do something radical, to love those who hate you, to comfort those who cause you pain, to pray for those who have mistreated you. These are difficult words to live by, but they are the way of resistance. This model of behavior, while commendable, also has self-serving ends: we get to live in the world we create. As Gandhi said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world." The law of love is distinctly anti-retaliatory. If everyone returns evil for evil, what room does good have to grow, flourish, and spread? When we follow Christ's guidance, we will be resisting hate, curses, abuse, theft, and judgment by responding to those things with love, mercy, nonviolence, generosity, and forgiveness.

Kindness is compassion embodied and the emotion of love translated in acts that prioritizes the other as well as the self. The challenge of Jesus remains clear: to create the world in which God desires we live. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that". This is not passive love. This is what it might mean to give in good measure.

What might it be like if the measure of life and interactions we give are the measure we get back?

Based on Luke 6:27-38

 Music this week:

• Every Move I Make

• Here I Am to Worship

• I Could Sing of Your Love, Forever

• Live in Charity

• Help Us Accept Each Other

• When I Think About the Lord

Down with Them
Luke 6: 17-26

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

Continuing in the Gospel of Luke, we read the “Sermon on the Plain.” This same sermon, found in the Gospel of Matthew, is known as the Sermon on the Mount. In Luke's version, Jesus comes down from a higher part of the hill or the mountain to stand on the same level as the crowd, including the disciples and a multitude of folks from throughout the region. Jesus situated himself among the people. In his longest speech so far, he shows present and potential disciples, and those who would lead them, what God's gracious mercy requires of all who would follow Jesus. God's mercy will wear a human face in their company.

Jesus is available, accessible, and touchable. His ministry encompasses all. The people came from Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon just as Jesus will instruct the disciples to witness to the good news “in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 18) Jesus coming down to the crowd reflects not only a heavenly descent on his part, it also models an approach to ministry that reaches the world through humility. In the kindom, the goal is not to go higher; it is to go where there is need so that all may be well.

Another distinction between the Lukan account and Matthew's version is the presence of a series of "woe" statements. Like Matthew, Luke reframes blessings and presents a countercultural perspective on faithful life. Through the litany of blessings and woes, Luke juxtaposes the condition of what may be described as the lower economic class or downtrodden with the upper economic class or privileged. These are not simply theological statements; they promise and proclaim God's justice among the people who have come seeking deliverance and healing.

Where do you imagine Jesus coming down today?

Where is God calling the church to go, and who will we meet there?

In what ways do you commit to come down?

Based on Luke 6:17-26

 Music this week:

• Blessed Be Your Name

• Heart of Worship

• Sanctuary

• Give Thanks

• Here I Am, Lord

• Create in Me a Clean Heart

• Jesus-Man

Into the Deep

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

The themes in this text, which revolve around trust, call, discipleship, abundance, discouragement, risk, and persistence, are always relevant but have particular resonance during this challenging time.

This text can be heard as an acknowledgment of a time of emptiness and bleakness, as an encouragement for discipleship, and as a recognition of Jesus as the source of hope and abundance.

As we learned in the previous chapter, this text does not tell us what Jesus said while teaching. However, after he has finished instruction, Jesus shifts the conversation to focus on Simon and his nets. Simon’s response acknowledges the reality of limits and scarcity and his willingness to listen and try again. Jesus’ mentioning of the “deep water” implies that there may be unexplored areas of potential beyond the perceived limits of resources, knowledge, and energy. The response to this willingness is immediate; suddenly, they have more fish than two boats can bear. How does Peter's initial response to Jesus' request resonate with you? Have you ever felt hesitant to trust God's direction?

Here are a few other questions for you to consider this week:

• What are some experiences in your life where you felt like you were 'fishing' - trying hard, but not seeing the results you hoped for?

• Have you ever hesitated to step outside your comfort zone, even when you sensed God might be calling you to do something different?

• What does it mean to 'launch out into the deep' in your own life? What might that look like for you today?

• How can we, as a church, 'launch out into the deep' in our ministry and service to the community?

• What is one area of your life where you feel God is calling you to 'launch out into the deep'?

• What fears or anxieties are holding you back from fully embracing God's call?

• How can you cultivate a deeper trust in God and a willingness to follow God’s direction?

Based on Luke 5:1-11

Music this week: 

• Let Us Go to the House of the Lord

• Day by Day

• Hide Me in the Shelter

• I Will Sing, Alleluia

• Called as Partners in Christ’s Service

• Thirsty

Through the Mist

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

Before I moved to California, I had experienced heavy fog but never tule fog! It was eerie driving at night when I could see nothing — only a dull glimmer of the car lights in front of me! Being in a mist or fog provides a glimpse of the experience of being in clouds while being planted on the earth.

I remember when one of the youths at a church I served mispronounced "midst" 'as "mist." That mistake created a lot of creative conversation among the youth while the adults in the room chuckled. As I pictured the text, I could see the crowd chasing him to the edge of a high cloud-covered cliff and Jesus vanishing like a magic genie — can't you?

While all that is fun to imagine, the text contains layers of meaning and significance without my dramatic imagination adding to the narrative.

This passage continues from last week, with verse 21 serving as the bridge. Jesus’ public ministry begins in Galilee at his hometown synagogue. He proclaims the reign of God, enacted with grace and liberation (healing, exorcism, acceptance, forgiveness). Empowered by the Spirit, Jesus’ ministry brings release to God's people and begins to press beyond Israel's boundaries As long as Jesus talked about "other people," his message was terrific. His popularity ended when he started talking about the people in the room.

We know now that moments of prophetic courage in public spaces are so rare. When we embrace the prophetic call as followers of Christ, we reclaim the gospel from those who would distort, diminish, and demonize it. Our call is to follow Jesus in word and deed. His example invites us to be firm when confronting powers and principalities at odds with the will and kindom of God. His ministry demonstrates a path for us to pursue justice, truth, righteousness, and abiding peace "in the midst" of despair, distraction, and division. Even when that means speaking the truth and then going through the "mist."

Based on Luke 4:21-30

 Music this week:

• You Are My Rock

• Every Day

• Eagle’s Wings

• Show Me Your Ways

• El Shaddai

• Bread for the Journey

Proclaim

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor, preaching

The passage for this week reminds us that Jesus was a faithful Jewish man. Jesus had already built a reputation for himself in his hometown and surrounding regions by the way he lived. To this point, everyone had only good things to say about him (Luke 4:14-15). He had not yet announced his ministry agenda. He had not yet leveled a critique in the synagogue against his own people. Jesus had attended the synagogue on a regular basis, but perhaps in previous visits, he only listened, watched, reflected, analyzed, and even read scripture, yet had not yet provided a contemporary critique or deconstructed the scriptures.

The words Jesus speaks in Nazareth are especially important because they are the first words we hear of his public ministry in Luke's Gospel. This is an inaugural address of sorts. What Jesus says here represents the heart of his message and mission. Of course, his message and mission do not come out of the blue but from the Scriptures. Hereads from the prophet Isaiah: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because [God| has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. (God| has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor" (a conflation of Isaiah 61:1-2a and 58:6, and a reference to Leviticus 25). Then Jesus gives a one-sentence interpretation: "Today, this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

At the very beginning of his ministry, Jesus clearly explains his mission. He boldly claims to fulfill the words of Isaiah, who speaks of the Spirit anointing him, sending him, and compelling him to bring good news to every one of God's children who are bound up, pressed down, broken in spirit, impoverished, imprisoned, and desperately hungry for good news.

How are you called to proclaim the good news? What are you called to proclaim? What is your prophetic message for this time?

Based on Luke 4:14-21

 Music this week:

• Amazing Grace (Peaceful, Easy Feeling)

• Lead Me to the Rock

• Build My Life

• Step by Step

• All Are Welcome

• Eat This Bread

Of all the miracles Jesus performed during his lifetime, turning water into wine may seem the most frivolous. After all, running out of wine may have led to some shame for the newly married couple's hosts and families, but there is no evidence that this condition would have threatened life or even livelihood. Later in John's gospel, Jesus would cast out demons and unclean spirits. He would alleviate the hemorrhaging of a woman who had been suffering for twelve years. Jesus would even raise Lazarus from his deathbed and a twelve year-old girl from her sick bed. Does running out of wine meet those standards?

Mary advises those working at the wedding to do what Jesus tells them to do. Jesus then follows that invitation with three directives: fill the containers, draw the water, and taste it. The entire passage is filled with symbolic images and actions, and these directives transcend the particulars of the miracle of Cana. Like the wedding guests, we are invited to experience God's goodness fully. Let us resist being satisfied or resigned to the emptiness that life offers and fill our lives' vessels with Living Water. By doing so, we will create reserves that we may draw from during times of trial, famine, grief, uncertainty, and despair. Jesus invites us to taste it — to test and verify what is good and true and available to us. When we fill, draw, and taste, we will find miracles. We may even become miracles.

On January 20, we will celebrate the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Like the miracle at the wedding at Cana, Dr. King's message to the world speaks of transformation, hope, and the realization of a new and better reality. Like Jesus in this passage, King sought to fill a void, draw out hidden potential, and offer a taste of a more abundant and just life for all. He brought the message of hope and transformation that is central to the Gospel.

Based on John 2:1-11

Music this week:

• Hallelujah (your love is amazing)

• Abide

• Holy Spirit Rain Down

• In the Light

• Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

• All Who Hunger, Gather Gladly