A sermon for Hope Lutheran Church in Riverside, CA on July 1, 2018 Mark 5:21-43 The woman was on the brink of death.  Her cancer was winning. She said goodbye to her students and within weeks was bed-ridden.  Conversations turned to her last wishes. Life was miserable and clouded with pain and narcotics to ease…

Trinity Sunday Sermon Isaiah 6:1-8 Focal Point Today we hear the call story of Isaiah- and of Nicodemus. In fact, the call story of every person who hears the word of Christ. But not every one answers, “here I am Lord.” Woe the Unclean lips We have all had some variety of the dream- showing…

It has been growing- this message I am writing today. And this week, I have been bombarded by the Holy Spirit to finally preach it. Please pray for the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart as well as the hearts and spirits of those in addiction crisis. In John 15:9-17, Jesus…

Easter 4 B-April 22, 2018-Hope Lutheran Church, Riverside, CA I am the Door, the Gate, the Way Shepherds are a fertile image for the people who live close to the land, which of course, we rarely do in places like the greater Los Angeles Basin. They understood the metaphorical implications in ways we do not.…

Easter III Year B, Sermon I am witness.   While living in Florida, we were dirt poor.  Lance was a reservist and was working on his degree, but we had nearly no income.  We lived in government subsidized housing, or as some will know it, Housing Authority.  We were so grateful for a roof over…

Easter II- Year B Sermon   “We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.” The words of the Gospel of Christ and the new church were written for us-a gift from the past to sustain the future, our eternal one, but also equally important, the current one. John shares with us…