Mark 12:38-44 – The Ministry of WidowsRev. Chase WhitmireI King 17:8-16, Psalm 146, Hebrews 9:24-28, Mark 12:38-44 I will never forget as a young teenager having the honor and privilege to have Elisabeth Elliot come to my church and tell the story of her family’s journey to Ecuador to share Christ with the Waorani Tribe.…
A World Re-ordered In ChristPentecost+7BKatie WhitmireAmos 7:7-15, Psalm 85, Ephesians 1:1-14, Mark 6:7-13 I am grateful for the opportunity to share my reflections with you again. Our scriptures this morning point to beautiful images of God’s restoration, the restoration of his kingdom to wholeness, unity, and love. However, we cannot look at this restoration without also…
Baptism of Our Lord 2020Rev. Doug FloydIsaiah 42:1-9, Psalm 82:1-29, Acts 10:34-38, Mark 1:7-11 The scenes from our Capital this week were heartbreaking. Our nation in turmoil. Violence in the halls of Congress. Confusion as to what lies ahead in a nation so divided. Before we have time to grieve or hardly pray, voices interpreting the events, judging the events, making plenty…
Pentecost +3Rev. Doug FloydJeremiah 20:7-13, Psalm 69:1-18, Romans 5:12-21, Matthew 10;16-33 Our lessons this week carry the weight of threat and even anguish. Jeremiah cries out to God after the priest Pashhur has him beaten and put in stocks for speaking the Word of the Lord the people. He has been warning the people of…
Pentecost 2020Rev. Doug FloydActs 2:1–11, Psalm 104:25-37, 1 Corinthians 12:4-13, John 20:19-23 In the Eastern Orthodox icon of Pentecost, there are twelve disciples seated in a semi-circle. They are waiting in the upper room for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Upon closer inspection, we might notice that the two disciples at the top of…
Pentecost +15Rev. Doug Floyd Amos 8:4-12, Psalm 138, 1 Timothy 2:1–7, Luke 16:1-13 Imagine if UT were throwing a big event to celebrate the Vols football program and they announced a list of honored guests of folks such as Nick Saban, Lane Kiffin, and of course Steve Spurrier. Reading the Gospel sometimes feels like Jesus is honoring all the wrong people: a…
Easter 3 2019Rev. Doug FloydRevelation 5:1-14 In the late 80s, I went to Mexico with a group of guys on a very unorganized mission trip. We went to Torreon. Three times on the trip we almost caused a riot. Once we were with a group of children who were laughing and clapping. In their excitement,…
Sabbath Shalom Rev. Doug Floyd Ezekiel 31:1-14, Psalm 92, 2 Corinthians 5:1-10, Mark 4:26-34 After traveling the world for over 20 years to document humans in their various contexts, Sebastio Salgado lost faith in humanity and was ready to give up photography forever. He had photographed several war zones, but the impact of photography the…
Living and moving by hope, our lamps are burning deep in the night, looking toward the faithfulness of God.