Sermons on Spiritual Life (Page 15)

“Wiser is Humbler” – Rev Mike Eggleston at St Benedict’s 

I Corinthians 1.18-25 Guidance from God can be found anywhere, because God is everywhere.  Me, I most often get insights from God either through nature or through scriptures and church tradition.  That’s good because those two, nature and torah, are the two forums of God which are praised in Psalm 19.  “The heavens are telling the glory of God, and the decrees of the Lord are sure, making wise the simple.”  But the start of this sermon comes from a…

Radical Acceptance

Mark 8:31-38 I admit it. I’m mortal. Just like all of us. And that of course is the reminder of Ash Wednesday, that we are entirely dependent on God for every breath we take. And just in case we missed it on Ash Wednesday with this year’s self-service ashes, the loss of our beloved sister Karin this week brought it home powerfully. We are mortal. We are not gods. We are humans.  And so it’s not surprising that we see…

Transfiguration – 2/14/21

Two weeks ago, I talked about Dimension 5+ and how we can no more imagine what it is like to live outside of the space/time continuum than a fish can imagine living out of water. Both mean death, death to life as we, or the fish, know it. But we get glimpses. We get glimpses of a different reality – a reality we call heaven where the reign of God is 100% realized. Today’s gospel reading shows Jesus and the…

Treated as a Person The Rev. Susan Plucker

5th Sunday After Epiphany February 7, 2021 Isaiah 40:21-31 Psalm 147: 1-12,  21c 1 Corinthians 9:16-23 Mark 1:29-39 Let us begin by hearing the voice of Mary Magdalene.   Seven demons possessed my soul Seven Marys lived inside of me One Mary was chaste, another carnal, A Mary elated, a Mary tormented, A frightened Mary, a lone one, And one that hated God.   I stood on the hill throughout the day. Watching the procession to Golgotha Seeing the crosses…

God Is Calling

1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20) John 1:43-51 When I was in my late teens and wondering what to do with my life I was told by lovely people that God’s will for me was clearly laid out in the Bible. I was frustrated by that because no matter which way I read the Bible it did not tell me the answer to my burning question: what was I to do with my life? We tend to think about Christian vocation as being…

Incarnation Now

This morning we gather to remember and celebrate the incarnation – the time when God became human. We remember the baby Jesus coming out of the womb, wet, bloody and probably yelling; and his young mother wrapping him tightly and placing him in the manger. Sometimes I realize that I’m thinking of Jesus the Christ as being a part of God that somehow got detached. Rather like when you take a snip of a geranium and plant it and it…

Obedience and Surrender

There are some glitches in the audio this week, sorry Romans 16:25-27 Luke 1:26-38 Have you ever wondered what would have happened if Mary had not been willing? If Mary had said “I’m sorry, I just can’t do that”? Or whether Mary was the first woman that Gabriel was sent to, or whether she was the last to be approached because she was the first to say yes? We will ever know the answer to those questions. We simply know…

A Voice in the Wilderness

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 John 1:6-8,19-28 When asked who he is, John the Baptizer quotes from Isaiah, I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ and these words have become so familiar to us that its easy to gloss right over them. But imagine that you live in a wilderness area – somewhere where its hard to live, you don’t see many people, but you just about get by. Perhaps you’re…

Goat Walking to Bethlehem

Isaiah 40:1-11 Mark 1:1-8 Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13 Prepare the way, O Zion Your Christ is coming near. Let every hill and valley a level way appear. Greet one who comes in glory, foretold in sacred story. O, blest is Christ that came in God’s most holy name.   Advent hymns dwell in my head this time of year And I diligently try to not let them Get pushed aside by Christmas Carols.   I think today’s readings are my favorite…