Title: The Pueblo of God Date: May 16, 2010 Texts: Exod 18:13-26, Ac 1:15-26 Author: Isaac S. Villegas It’s good to be back here at church with you. As most of you already know, these past two Sundays I was in Dallas, Texas, visiting a Mennonite congregation—Iglesia Menonita Luz del Evangelio, trans. Light of the […]
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Road trip
This summer Isaac will be visiting Mennonite congregations throughout the USA. He will be writing a column for The Mennonite Weekly Review about his visits. In his most recent column, Isaac explains his trips: This column will be a series of scenes from God’s mission among rural and urban congregations, wealthy and poor, young and […]
Mary Raber, March 2010
Our congregation financially supports Mary Raber’s work in the Ukraine. She is there with Mennonite Mission Network. Below is her recent letter. Read it to learn about her work and find out how to support her with our prayers as well. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]
Burst upon us
Title: Burst upon us Text: Acts 6:36-43 Date: April 25, 2010 Author: Catherine Thiel Lee Well, I sort of laughed to myself last week at Isaac’s sermon. He preached about the story of Jesus eating breakfast after his resurrection with his disciples, on how ordinary it all was, and on what it means for us […]
153
Title: 153 Date: April 14, 2010 Texts: John 21:1-14, Acts 9:1-6 Author: Isaac S. Villegas I love this story about Jesus, this story in John’s Gospel about his appearance to the disciples. I love it for the details, the strange details; the care John shows in getting the story right. Usually, the Gospel of John […]
Easter in us
Title: Easter in us Date: April 4, 2010 Texts: Isa 65:17-25; Ps 118:1-2, 14-24; Acts 10:34-43 Author: Isaac S. Villegas “Let him easter in us, be a dayspring to the dimness of us, be a crimson-cresseted east.” That’s one of the last lines from Gerard Manley Hopkins’ poem, “The Wreck of the Deutschland.” Let Christ […]
Bodies Matter, part 2
Title: Bodies Matter, part 2 Date: April 1, 2010 (Holy Thursday) Texts: John 13:1-17, 31b-35 Place: CHMF Author: Isaac Villegas This sermon is titled, “Bodies Matter, part 2,” because I preached “Bodies Matter, part 1” in Cary this morning. Some of us held a footwashing service at a detention center operated by the Immigration and […]
Bodies Matter, part 1
Title: Bodies Matter, part 1 Text: John 13:1-5 Date: April 1st, 2010 (Holy Thursday) Place: ICE Detention Center, Cary (NC) Author: Isaac Villegas (Note: this sermon was part of a footwashing worship service that was held at a hidden Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center; our footwashing protest received some media coverage: “Protesters hold demonstration” […]
In the world
Title: In the world Texts: Ps 118:1-2, 19-29; Phil 2:5-11 Date: March 28, 2010 Author: Isaac Villegas What does it mean to be Christians in the world? How are we supposed to live as witnesses to God’s love? Those are basic questions for us. But as a way to answer them, I thought I’d stir […]
Whispers of resurrection
Easter is an invitation to dwell in Christ’s resurrected life of love. Here is an except from an article Isaac wrote about this season of Easter: Resurrection is not a quick fix for our problems; tombs and crucifixions don’t end on Easter morning. The graveside account in John’s Gospel instead is a glimpse into the […]
An Anatomy of Sin
Title: An Anatomy of Sin Texts: Lk 15: 11-32 Date: March 14, 2010 Author: Isaac S. Villegas So far, during this season of Lent, we’ve talked a lot about repentance and forgiveness. Now I think it’s time we talked about sin. Why do we want to sin? We know it’s bad for us, or bad […]
The time is now
Title: The Time Is Now Date: March 7, 2010 (3rd Sunday of Lent) Texts: Isaiah 55:1-9, Luke 13:1-9 Author: Monica Schmucker The passages this week got me thinking, what is it that motivates people to change? What sparks repentance? It strikes me that Jesus issues a warning to repent and Isaiah an invitation to repent. […]
Fruit: dying into the future
Title: “Fruit” Text: John 15:1-5 Date: March 7, 2010 Event: Ervin Stutzman’s installation Author: Isaac S. Villegas A few years ago I started a vegetable garden in our front yard. I was thrilled to see the fruit growing from the long vines—grape tomato vines entangled with large slicing tomatoes, growing into one another, all mixed […]
Escape
Title: Escape Date: February 28, 2010 (Lent 2) Texts: Ps 27, Philip 3:17-4:1, Lk 13:31-35 Author: Isaac S. Villegas The Pharisees want what’s good for Jesus. They respect his ministry and want him to survive. These Pharisees may even consider Jesus a friend of their own ministry. So, according to Luke’s Gospel, “some Pharisees came […]
Lent as metaphor and reality
Title: Lent as metaphor and reality Texts: Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16; Luke 4:1-13 Date: Feb 21, 2010 Author: Tom Lehman Lent began four days ago on Ash Wednesday, as it always does. Lent is the least cheerful of the seasons in the Christian year. It is sometimes understood as a time to suspend earthly pleasures. Some […]
Wurstessen (Ash Wed)
Title: Wurstessen Date: February 17, 2010 Texts: Gen 3:19, Isaiah 58:1-12 Author: Isaac S. Villegas March 9th, 1522. Zurich, Switzerland. It was the middle of Lent. About twelve people got together at the house of Christopher Froschauer and had a feast of sausage. Eating sausage during Lent was strictly forbidden by the church, and back […]
Freedom for what?
Title: Freedom for what? Date: February 14, 2010 (St. Valentine’s Day) Texts: 2 Cor 3:12-4:2; Lk 9:28-36 Author: Isaac S. Villegas “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Cor 3:17)—that’s what Paul says in our passage from Second Corinthians. Freedom. What does it mean to be free? I want to give […]
Dirty pockets, lint balls, and love
Title: Dirty Pockets, Lint Balls, and Love Text: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 Date: February 7, 2010 Author: Meghan Florian I work part time as a Wedding Assistant at Duke Chapel, so most Saturday afternoons find me alternately scurrying around the chapel in uncomfortable shoes, or sitting in the back pew and listening to as many as […]
Mary Raber, Jan 2010
Our congregation financially supports Mary Raber’s work in the Ukraine. She is there with Mennonite Mission Network. Below is her recent letter. Read it to learn about her work and find out how to support her with our prayers as well. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]
The weakest member
Title: The weaker members Text: I Corinthians 12:12-31a, Luke 4:14-21 Date: January 24, 2010 Author: Isaac S. Villegas “The members of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary” (I Cor. 12:22). That’s what Paul says in our passage from I Corinthians—Ben mentioned this verse in his sermon last Sunday, and I’ve been thinking […]
A material Spirit
Title: A material Spirit Date: Jan 10, 2010 Texts: Acts 8:14-17 Author: Isaac S. Villegas “They can beg and they can plead / But they can’t see the light, that’s right / ‘Cause the boy with the cold hard cash / Is always Mister Right, ‘cause we are / Living in a material world / […]
A Faithful Remnant
Title: A faithful remnant; or, On being part of a faithful remnant when your girlfriend insists upon packing heat. Texts: Jeremiah 31:7-14 Date: January 3, 2010 Author: Chris Gooding Prayer: O LORD of hosts, we recognize that we have often not been very good at explaining your work among your people, Israel. Help us to […]
Christmas meditations
Title: Christmas meditations Date: Dec 27, 2009 Texts: Lk 2:1-20, 2 Cor 5:17-21 Author: Isaac Villegas First Meditation (Lk 2:1-14): “News is power” Knowledge is power. News is power. I think it was in the Economist that I read about how financial firms pay a lot for cutting edge communication technologies. The firm that gets […]
Untitled 1
Title: Untitled 1 Texts: Micah 5:2-5; Luke 1:39-55; Hebrews 10:5-10 Date: December 20, 2009 (Advent) Author: Matt A couple of weeks ago Celia preached on advent and the expectation that comes along with waiting. She likened waiting to pregnancy – 9 months of hopes and expectations building and building, climaxing in the arrival of new […]