Improvising

Preaching is hard. Especially now. Some of us are sharing our post-election sermons to inspire and/or help each other with this work. Here's mine from 11/10/2024. Thanks for noticing.

A sermon preached at United Presbyterian Church of Peoria, IL on November 10, 2024. You can watch the worship service if you prefer. The music was really lovely and we baptized a child and received new members, too! Preaching Texts: 1 Kings 17:8-16 and Mark 12:38:44 Preaching can be very hard – trying to listen to the Spirit, choose the right path among the dozen or more that present…

CONTENT WARNING: Health news accompanied by some really bad jokes and probably some cussing. I've tried to put the funny bits in parentheses and am asterisking the cuss words.

CONTENT WARNING: Health news accompanied by some really bad jokes and probably some cussing. I’ve tried to put the funny bits in parentheses and am asterisking the cuss words in case you’re not into that or you think a pastor shouldn’t cuss and want to skip over those parts.On Sunday, I told my congregation that I need to step away from my work and step into a time of focusing on care for myself…

This week to begin our 2023 Black History Month focus, we celebrate Dr. Sara B. Cordery, educator and former Moderator of Presbyterian Women.

2023 Black History Month Sermon Series Lifting Up the Lives of Black Presbyteriansat United Presbyterian Church, Peoria, IL on February 5, 2023 Scripture: Isaiah 58:1-12 and Matthew 5:7-20 In this worship service we will celebrate the life of Dr. Sara B. Cordery, Ed.D who was a Presbyterian elder and lifelong educator. She served as Moderator of Presbyterian Women from 1991-1994 Love requires…

On Week 4 of our Black History Month celebration in 2022, we celebrated the life and work of Rev. Gayraud Wilmore and the beginning of our Matthew 25 Initiative Journey with Guest Preacher, the Rev. Dr. Diane Givens Moffett.

2022 Black History Month Sermon Series Lifting Up the Lives of Black PresbyteriansGuest Preacher: The Rev. Dr. Diane Givens Moffat, President and Executive Director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency of the PCUSAat United Presbyterian Church, Peoria, IL Scripture: Micah 6:8 and Matthew 25:31-46  In this worship service we committed our congregation to the path of the Matthew 25 Initiative of…

This is Week 3 of our 2022 Black History Month worship celebration. Our focus was on Rev. Henry Highland Garnet

2022 Black History Month Sermon Series Lifting Up the Lives of Black PresbyteriansPreached February 13, 2022United Presbyterian Church, Peoria, IL Scripture: Psalm 37:1-11 and Luke 7:27-38 Download BulletinWatch Video of the Service The text before us today provides a lot of contrasting material…John is the greatest AND he’s the leastJohn is more than a prophet AND he’s only a prophet, not the…

Some have asked to see what we did at UPC for Black History Month last year. This was Week 2: A celebration of Ruling Elder Katherine Johnson.

2022 Black History Month Sermon Series Lifting Up the Lives of Black PresbyteriansPreached February 13, 2022United Presbyterian Church, Peoria, IL Scripture: Jeremiah 17:5-10 and Luke 6:17-26Download BulletinWatch Video of the Service For our Time With Young Disciples we introduced Katherine Johnson to the congregation by reading the children’s book One Step Further: My Story of Math, the Moon,…

Revisiting our 2022 celebration of Black Presbyterians for Black History Month.

2022 Black History Month Sermon Series Lifting Up the Lives of Black PresbyteriansPreached February 6, 2022United Presbyterian Church, Peoria, IL Scripture: Isa. 6:1-13 and Luke 5:1-11Download BulletinWatch Video of the Service Today we celebrate the life and ministry of Rev. John Chavis, said to be the first Black minister ordained by the Presbyterian Church in the early days of the United…

This morning's thinking is inspired by an article written by Rev. Melech Thomas who asks some hard questions and proposes that the answer to all of them is authentic love. Please read his article first, then journey back here for some of my thoughts.

This morning’s thinking is inspired by an article written by Rev. Melech Thomas who asks some hard questions and proposes that the answer to all of them is authentic love. Please read his article first, then journey back here for some thoughts that it inspired in…

Provide for us this Day as thou has hitherto daily done...

Read John 6:1-14 In Scripture, big signs mean big things. John’s gospel doesn’t have a lot of miracles, but the few he chose to include in this version of Christ’s ministry are big in both size and impact. As we consider what daily bread means for our lives, it is the the scope of God’s generosity that should inspire us. Reflect: What kind of impact of do you think Jesus’ daily bread miracle…

What happens when we resist? What about when we stop?

Read Jonah 4 This is a story with many moving pieces. From the beginning, Jonah shows his resistance to God’s will by running away. At this point, he has flopped down under a shrub and given up. In many ways, Jonah’s story is not that far off from our own. When we’re face to face with God’s will, we need to learn to recognize that we have choices to make. But this is more than just figuring out…

Why are we changing the Lord's Prayer? A nerd's eye view...

During Lent, we’re exploring the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer in worship. Each sermon takes up the implications of each section and we’ve created worship around that. As part of this exploration, we have begun to use a newer version of the prayer as part of our regular liturgy. This has created a lot of curiosity around the history of the prayer and why we would be changing what we’ve…

How can we get comfortable being direct with God?

Read Jonah 4 It’s not until the death of the shrub that provided shade for him that Jonah finally says what’s really on his mind. Even in that moment, when Jonah’s not at his best, God is reliably direct, firm and, as always, gracious. Reflect: Why do we wait to speak our minds with God? What does it take for you to be “up front” with God? Pray: Bind us into one circle of love for our wounded…

Listen Silence HOW?

Read Jonah 4 This is a story with many moving pieces. From the beginning, Jonah shows his resistance to God’s will by running away. By the time we catch up to him in chapter 4, he has flopped down under a shrub. Isn’t it funny that clarity only comes to him when he stops for a bit (even if he is throwing a not-so-quiet tantrum)? Reflect: How often to you pause to watch for or listen for or…

How do we listen for God's will when we'd rather not?

Read Jonah 4 Here at the close of the day, look back to see if you notice where God was at work in and around you. It’s not often that we get to hear God’s own voice speaking to someone. Usually the divine voice is mediated by someone else’s interpretation. But in this text, God gives it to Jonah straight. Reflect: What does it feel like to hear God’s response to Jonah? Can you think of a time…

We have so much in common with Jonah.

Read Jonah 4 Listen for Jonah’s frustration. He knows it is God’s will to save, to forgive. This should be good news for Jonah – just as good as it is for the people of Nineveh. Yet Jonah shows nothing but resistance and even irritation about saving people he never wanted to consider kin. Reflect: Why do you think Jonah is irritated? Where do you find common ground with Jonah? Pray: Bind us…

Our focus for week 2 of our Lenten journey: What is a kin-dom? How is it different from the way we tend to live?

Read: Jonah 4 Jesus made radical claims that placed God in front of Caesar. It’s one thing to say: THY kingdom come, THY will be done. It’s quite another thing to live out those words. Our Lenten journey continues this second Sunday with a turn toward how we manifest our relationship, our kin-ship, with God and with each other. We will take up the end of Jonah’s story and struggle together with…