September 13, 2026 Proper 19 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Exodus 14:19-31 19 The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them. 20 It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night. 21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over t

A Note from Pastor Ryan Apparently my essay last week was long. Some of you read it, some did not. to fix that, here's a short one. This coming Sunday we will be reading the rest of Matthew 18 (21-31), which I referenced last week. It is the story of the unmerciful servant. This story is one for which the face value is enough. We are told to "forgive your brother or sister from your heart.." We could extend that to simply say, "be merciful to one another." Jesus expects t

September 6, 2026 Proper 18 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Exodus 12:1-14 12:1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. 4 If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in

A Note from Pastor Ryan Accountability might be one of the more difficult tasks for the contemporary church. Our world has discipled us against correction. People would rather leave a community than be held to standards. However, the gospel passage for this coming Sunday makes it clear that we are to hold one another accountable. In Matthew 18:15 Jesus tells the apostles that if they are sinned against they must approach their sibling. This is difficult for a variety of reaso

August 30, 2026 Proper 17 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Exodus 3:1-15 3 Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness and came to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. 3 Then Moses said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight and see why the bush

A Note from Pastor Ryan As you likely know, I spend time each week writing a quick reflection on one of the passages for this upcoming Sunday. Today I thought I would include the passage and then comment at the end Romans 12:9-21 in the CEB "Love should be shown without pretending. Hate evil, and hold on to what is good. Love each other like the members of your family. Be the best at showing honor to each other. Don’t hesitate to be enthusiastic—be on fire in the Spirit a

August 23, 2026 Proper 16 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Exodus 1:8-2:10 8 Now a new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph. 9 He said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. 10 Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” 11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. The

A Note from Pastor Ryan Matthew 16:13-20 Years ago, I noticed that Peter comes to know who Jesus is through an apocalypse. Yes, I used the word apocalypse because that's what the Greek says. Many of you have heard me say that Apocalypse has taken on a whole lot of meaning not present in the original Greek. People will describe things as apocalyptic when they mean destructive. A google image search shows death destruction and dystopias. But the Greek word Apocalypse is trans

August 16, 2026 Proper 15 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 67 1 May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah 2 that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations. 3 Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. 4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Selah 5 Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the

A Note from Pastor Ryan The Gospel lesson for this coming Sunday comes to us from Matthew 15:21-28. Some contemporary readers take offense at this story because it seems as tho Jesus is calling a Cannanite woman a dog. There are a variety of explanations for why Jesus might have called her a dog. The scriptures cannot reveal tone, so some suggest that Jesus said this tongue in cheek. He already knows of her great faith, and therefore is willing to press her. Some suggest that

August 9, 2026 Proper 14 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 85:8-13 8 Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts. 9 Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land. 10 Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other.11 Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness w

A Note from Pastor Ryan "After he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone"- This comes from Matthew 14 which we will be reading on Sunday. The passage is about walking on water, however it begins with Jesus spending time alone with the Father. I know that the walking on water is impressive, truly it is. BUt I think we ought to remember that is only possible because Jesus and the Father were united. Jesus spen

August 2, 2026 Proper 13 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21 14 The Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down.15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.16 You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.17 The Lord is just in all his ways and kind in all his doings.18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.19 He fulfills the desire of al

A Note from Pastor Ryan Some weeks I wish I could preach a sermon for each of the scripture readings. This coming Sunday we will be reading from Matthew 14:13-21- the feeding of the 5,000. While that passage has many messages one of the central ideas is that what we have is enough. Sometimes we may think that what we have to offer is of little value. Jesus commanded his disciples to feed the crowd and they tried to escape his commands citing scarcity. "We only have five loave

July 26, 2026 Proper 12 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 119: 129-136 129 Your decrees are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them.130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.131 With open mouth I pant, because I long for your commandments.132 Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom toward those who love your name.133 Keep my steps steady according to your promise, and never let iniquity have

A Note from Pastor Ryan This morning the Book of Common prayer readings carried a common theme of praise. See here Zephania calls for shouts of joy and singing. The psalm calls for praise. 2 Corinthians calls for praise. I thought about a long essay on the importance of praise. Instead, let me simply ask, do you have reason to praise God? Have you praised God today? Praising God is a good thing to do every day. If you have not yet offered up praise to God, what's stopping

July 19, 2026 Proper 11 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 86:11-17 11 Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart to revere your name.12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.13 For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol. 14 O God, the insolent rise up against me; a band of ruffians seeks my life, and they do n

Community Dinner Tonight: TACOS!!! Fellowship Feast: If you did not yet hear, Lori Schriver injured herself quite severly last Saturday. She is still putting together this week's potluck, but she has asked for extra help. On facebook, she posted: "Who would like to help me decorate Saturday evening? Help get things set out on Sunday and assist with cleanup after? It is Pastor John's 40th so let's make it special for him!! Please bring a dish to share to celebrate Pastor John!

July 12, 2026 Proper 10 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 65:(1-8), 9-13 1 Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion, and to you shall vows be performed, 2 O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come. 3 When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions. 4 Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple. 5 By awesome deeds you answer us with del

July 5, 2026 Proper 9 Announcements Invocation Scripture: Psalm 145:8-14 8 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.9 The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made. 10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your faithful shall bless you.11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power,12 to make known to all people your mighty deeds and the glorious splendor of