(1 Samuel 8:4-11, 16-20) Mediation. For those who remember raising children or are now watching your grandchildren being raised, this can feel like it is the main task of parents. Even those with only one child, and I speak from experience, spend a lot of time in negotiations. So, I have great respect for all…
(1 Samuel 3:1-10; Psalm 29) [A portion of my faith story up until the Session Retreat in Pacific Palisades.] At the time, I would have said that I was puzzled. A truer word to describe my situation would have been: Awe. When a long-accepted explanation of how the world works breaks down or is shown…
(Acts 2:1-21) Tesla. Chevy. Nissan. Porsche. Audi. VW. A dozen major car-makers are now building electric vehicles, and the market is expected to grow. But there’s a problem: The charging ports are all over the cars. When you go to a gas station to fill up your gas-powered car, you can be pretty sure that…
(Acts 10:44-48) Jesus led His disciples to the town of Bethany and blessed them. Then He withdrew from them, says Luke, and “was taken up into heaven” (Luke 24:51). Christ went up into heaven like a rocket. You could call Him “Space X.” No, He did not ride in a Crew Dragon spacecraft on top…
(Acts 10:44-48) This is the last Sunday in our series “Belong, Believe, Become” – which is the opposite order in which outsiders have been traditionally incorporated into the community of faith. Typically we require people to believe and become (or behave) like us, and then they can belong; they become members and join in the…
(Acts 8:26-40) In today’s reading from Acts, we meet a couple of great characters, Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch. This is the third time Philip has made an appearance in the book of Acts. He was one of the Hellenist followers of Jesus in Acts 6, chosen to take over the distribution of food from…
(Psalm 23) Medical diagnoses and prescriptions tell us that on any given day, about 25 percent of us are struggling with situational, seasonal, or chronic depression. Twenty-five percent. And that is pre-pandemic. Evidence seems to indicate that there will be a significant jump in those numbers from 2020 through the next few years. And, of…
(Luke 24:36b-48) Here are the disciples, gathered together in a home in Jerusalem, trying to make sense of their world, which has been turned upside down. Jesus, their dear friend, Lord, and leader has been tried, publicly mocked, and brutally crucified. Because of their cowardice, they have watched Him die from a distance and now…
(John 20:19-31) I ended last week’s message with the confession that I do not fully understand the resurrection and I never will. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead defies all reason. No matter how hard we try, there is no logical explanation for what happened on that first Easter morning. I also boldly pronounced that you…
(John 20:1-18) This morning I want to ask you this: do you recall, do you remember the moment when you chose to be part of this church, First Presbyterian in Fairfield? Do you remember? I wonder what compelled you to chose this church – why did it seem like the right place for you and…