This morning, we continue to explore what DRIVES us… the momentum that Christ is trying to build in our life to help us keep following him. Today, our focus is on how we INVEST IN RELATIONSHIPS. How are we reaching out and building up those who will be the leaders of the future? How…
Ordinary Time
Near the Beginning… (NaBloPoMo)
This morning, let’s go back… to nearly the beginning of the story… and do some genealogy. Pastor Todd and I are going to start us off this morning with Matthew chapter 1, verses 1-6… from the Voice translation: 1 This is the family history, the genealogy, of Jesus the Anointed, the coming King. You will see…
Awaiting the Already: The Promise of a New Dawn
Have you ever sat and watched the sunrise? The hints of purple… turning pink… and then neon orange as the sun peeks over the horizon. What a profound thing to realize that each morning, as we wait for the sun to rise in our sky, it has already risen for our neighbors to the east……
Thankful Giving
In our gospel reading this morning, we meet Zacchaeus, that “wee-little man”, who was really a terrible, awful person. As Carol Howard Merritt describes him: he was “a man who collected taxes from his own people and gave it to the Roman government. And if that wasn’t nasty enough, Zacchaeus skimmed money off the top.…
Saving and Investing
I stand up here today exhausted, and yet filled with joy and satisfaction. The past two days, I have been at Ankeny First with a few others from here at the church learning about how to be a better church for our members and our neighbors struggling with addiction, incarceration, mental illness, racism, life in…
Daily Bread
My friends and family play this game called “Would You Rather…” It sets up silly and sometimes serious scenarios and you have to decide which of the two you would rather do. It’s good for parties… it’s good for car rides… And it’s good for getting to really know someone. Would you rather live in…
J&MES: Blessing & Cursing
Our tongues are muscles – and the strongest muscle in our body at that. In fact – a man once lifted a 24 lb. 3oz weight using ONLY his tongue. But for being such a strong muscle, it is also extremely flexible. And, the tongues is the only muscle in our entire human body that…
J&MES: Mercy & Judgment
I love to play games. Board games, video games, card games… One of my favorite ways to spend time with family is to grab a deck of cards and play all evening long. Pinochle and 500 in particular. In both, there is some luck involved in the hand you are dealt, but also a lot…