RoboPreacher

bu t  it is more challenging than we treat it ... I know for many of us the process to figuring out what we’re doing together feels like we’re constantly taking one step forward and two steps back. And it's frustrating, I know. We all want things finalized.   We don't like living with this uncertainty. I get that. But let me confess, I also worry we want a decision so we can get our own way; or make our exit if things don't go our way. And while I know there are many other reasons we want a decision, I worry two of our biggest aren’t particularly compelling or faithful... I know how hard living with this uncertainty is, it’s hard on me too! But the deal is; if we're going to make a decision, we need a good reason for making this decisions.   What I mean is, our reason will be the foundation we build on. We need our foundation to be strong. After all, if our foundation is weak, everything we build off of that will be weak too.   Did...

the joke was on me A sermon from Jeremiah's final lament : Jeremiah’s prayer is a bit of a scandal for us. Isn’t it? The fact that thoughts like these are in our Bible, much less read aloud in our public worship, shocks us a little. Doesn’t it? Because every week we gather here wearing out “Sunday Best,” acting as if we have no reason for being here. As if we have it all together. That we’re doing just fine on our own, thank you very much… But poor Jeremiah, couldn’t pretend otherwise.   Jeremiah’s life was lived, as we’d say, between “a rock and a hard place.” The rock, of course, was the Rock of the Ages; God . And the hard place was the people he’d been commissioned to speak to… From the first day God spoke to Jeremiah, God had been incessant . Constantly assaulting Jeremiah with messages to deliver. That alone would be hard enough, but the people Jeremiah was to deliver the message to, were stubborn and they refused to give him a hearing...

with the know-it-alls... A sermon from Jeremiah 32 : I just got back from a week at camp. And I always cherish that. Camp is such a great opportunity to for our youth to spend time getting closer to God. Honestly, for many of them, it's the first time in their lives when they've gotten to spend a a significant amount of time in prayer, worship and faith discussions. And not for just a day, either; but multiple times a day, for five full days. It's pretty powerful .   And , it doesn't hurt that their counselors are college students. The age our confirmation students figure is the pinnacle of life.   Plus, I really get to bond with our youth that week, too... In the development of faith, I have noticed the profound impact those days at camp make. So I always look forward to them. To the ways the faith of our youth will be deepened and strengthened. ...So imagine my surprise when on Tuesday morning, during the time set aside for st...

while  they're waiting on glory A sermon on Jeremiah 13 , of all  things... Jeremiah is instructed to buy a new pair of “linen shorts.” And by linen shorts , we mean what my grandmother always called “ unmentionables .” Jeremiah was a bachelor , he had no wife or children. But lest you think God is just giving the guy a lesson on when it’s time to replace his undergarments; God tells Jeremiah NOT to take the skivvies off. Not even to wash them, even! Then God sends Jeremiah off to Perath.   Now keep in mind, that trip was extremely long ! Like, months long! And , keep in mind, the traveling conditions: hot and dry. Okay, that should be about all the information you need to imagine the state of Jeremiah’s BVDs by the time he got to his destination. Not exactly fresh… Finally in Perath, Jeremiah is relieved. And boy, do I bet he was relieved , because there he finally got to take off those old Hanes. In Perath Jeremiah is   to...