Episodes
Sunday Nov 29, 2020
Lectionary Readings for First Sunday of Advent, Year B
Sunday Nov 29, 2020
Sunday Nov 29, 2020
November 29, 2020
Old Testament: Isaiah 64:1-9
Psalter: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
Epistle Lesson: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Gospel Lesson: Mark 13:24-37
S.D.G.
Friday Nov 27, 2020
S6E27: God Is Good (Thanksgiving Eve Service)
Friday Nov 27, 2020
Friday Nov 27, 2020
This year (2018), the Ministerium of Penns Grove, Carneys Point and Pedricktown held what we hope to be an annual eccumenical Thanksgiving Eve service at St. Gabriel's Parrish in Carneys Point. As we were discussing the service at our monthly meeting, I made mention that I always write a Thanksgiving sermon just in case we ever have a Thanksgiving Eve service, something we did yearly at my home church in Pitman. And so I ended up giving the message, based on the lectionary text from Joel. Joel is one of those Old Testament prophets who brings a message of doom and gloom for an unfaithful nation. And yet, in the midst of their transgression, God delivers a promise of restoration, saying they will never even remember the bad times. God is good, all the time, and in the midst of our troubles, we always have that to be thankful for.
Text: Joel 2:21-27
Recorded at St. Gabriel's Parrish on November 21, 2018 (Originally published December 12, 2018)
S.D.G.
Wednesday Nov 25, 2020
S8E23: In Service to the King (Christ the King 2017)
Wednesday Nov 25, 2020
Wednesday Nov 25, 2020
The mark of a Christian is not that they claim to be Christian. The mark of a Christian is the outpouring of the love they have been given from God to others. In this Christ the King message preached in 2017, we look at Jesus' loving words for those who did acts of lovingkindness as a natural response to the grace they have been given - so natural, in fact, that they never even gave it any thought. But Jesus also has harsh words for those who have not responded to God's grace in outward love. It is a message that forces us to ask the question, who is Christ to me?
Matthew 25:31-46
Recorded at Hudson UMC on November 26, 2017 (Previously unpublished)
S.D.G.
Tuesday Nov 24, 2020
S2E29: The Coming Shepherd
Tuesday Nov 24, 2020
Tuesday Nov 24, 2020
A shepherd has a very particular relationship with his sheep. He gathers in the ones that wander away from the flock and he protects them from the wolves that seek to devour the strays. On this Christ the King Sunday, we see how God promises to his people Israel, through the prophet Ezekiel, to be the shepherd for his own people - a promise that he kept when he came to Earth as the man Jesus Christ. So grab your Bible, turn it to Ezekiel chapter 34, and join us as we welcome the coming shepherd.
Ezekiel 34:11-16,20-24
Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on November 23, 2014 (Originally published November 24, 2014)
S.D.G.
Monday Nov 16, 2020
S8E20: The Cry at Midnight ("There" Is NOW, pt. 1)
Monday Nov 16, 2020
Monday Nov 16, 2020
Last Advent (2019) we had a sermon series called "Are We There Yet?" And now, at the end of Lectionary Year A we declare: "There" Is NOW! Over the next three weeks we will be looking at Matthew 25, part of the Olivet Discourse where Jesus talks about end times and the Kingdom of Heaven, and what it is like. In this first of three parables, Jesus talks about wise and foolish virgins who prepare for a wedding banquet. Those who were foolish took no oil with them and were unprepared when the bridegroom returned with a shout at midnight. What can we, the church in 2020, learn about how to be prepared for Christ's return? And how can we heed the cry at midnight when it comes?
Matthew 25:1-13
Recorded at Hudson UMC on November 8, 2020
S.D.G.
Tuesday Nov 10, 2020
S2E25: Whom Do You Choose?
Tuesday Nov 10, 2020
Tuesday Nov 10, 2020
We all make choices, all the time, every single day. We might choose which shirt to wear for the day or what to eat for breakfast. Today as we begin to look at some old testament texts in the weeks leading up to Advent, we take a look at the choice that Joshua laid out to the people of Israel: choose to serve the Lord, or choose not to. It's a critical choice to make and one with eternal repercussions. So grab your Bible, turn it to Joshua chapter 24, and join us as we decide, "Whom do you choose?"
Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25
Recorded at Hudson UMC on November 9, 2014 (Originally published November 12, 2014)
S.D.G.