Isaiah 40:1-5 It is very easy to over sentimentalize Christmas. And it is because we tend to over sentimentalize Christmas, that elements of today’s service may seem a bit odd, a bit out of place. Our reading for the lighting of the Advent Wreath came from Mark’s Gospel. Where is the Christmas story in that?…
Psalm 133 1 How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! This has such a pleasant ring to it, such a sweet sound. What a lovely psalm. Brothers loving each other, caring for each other. Brothers like Cain and Able. Oops! How about Jacob and Esau? Oops again. Joseph and his…
Psalm 132 Have you committed your life to Jesus Christ? How many times have you heard that question in church? How committed are you to God? Surely you have heard that question in a call to persevere in the faith. The hymn book has many songs that express our need to be committed to God….
Psalm 131 Who is the most admired man in the world? Who is the most envied man in the world? For most people, is the most admired and the most envied man the same person? Why do people admire Billy Graham the evangelist and Mother Teresa who cared for the poor in Calcutta but envy…
Psalm 129 In our series on the Psalms of Ascent, we come this morning to an unpleasant psalm. It is particularly jarring for me because of the preceding psalm, a psalm of blessing. “May you have a beautiful and faithful wife who bears many children for you and may you live in peace and see…