Spirit-fed, Spirit-led!
Acts 2:41-47
June 7, 2009
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
Let loose the Spirit!
Let loose the joy!
Let loose the Spirit!
Let loose the joy!
With one another
Sister and brother
Let loose the Spirit!
Let loose the joy!
Spirit-filled, Spirit-sent!
Acts 2:1-8 & 11-18 (MSG)
May 31, 2009 - Pentecost
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
Who would have thought that in a year that saw the release of the movie version of The Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers, Star Wars Episode 2, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets that the top-grossing movie in
To Be Continued...
Acts 1:1-11
May 24, 2009
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
My husband Tom and I have become more or less regular viewers of several TV shows that have ongoing story lines. This year several of them began with a narrator's voice saying, "Previously on Grey's Anatomy or Ghost Whisperer..." These words were then followed with brief but significant snippets of previous episodes to get viewers ready for what was about to take place. The same is true for those oftentimes tense multi-part shows that leave you hanging in the last scene with those dreaded words "to be continued..."
Love In-Deed!
1 John 3:16-24 (MSG)
May 3, 2009
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
In his blog titled Think Personally a guy by the name of Brian Zopf writes the following: One of my favorite Peanuts cartoons by the late artist Charles Schulz is a simple 4-frame comic that has stuck with me since my youth. In the 1st frame Snoopy stands shivering next to his doghouse in the snow. In the second frame Charlie Brown and Linus come by, all bundled in their winter faire. Upon seeing Snoopy freezing, Linus leans down to pat his head and says: "Be of good cheer, Snoopy." To which Charlie responds: "Yes. Be of good cheer." They walk on together and the final frame shows Snoopy [a question mark above his head], still freezing, outside in the cold.
Surprised Again!
John 20:1-18
Easter Sunday April 12, 2009
10:30am worship
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
Coach Clark and his basketball team were used to winning. They worked so well together that they were almost unbeatable. That is until two of the starters had to be sidelined. Without them, the season looked bleak. New players moved into their positions, but it wasn't the same. They couldn't make themselves fit into the team's routine or rhythm. Over and over, Coach Clark tried to fix the problem, but nothing worked. Consequently, he feared that the team would be doomed to one tragic loss after another. It was a death of sorts. Both coach and players longed for what they had once had; what they feared they would never have again.
Surprised Again!
Mark 16:1-8
Easter Sunday April 12, 2009
8:00 am
Rev.
Three-year-old Nicole was as anxious for Easter to come as she had been for Christmas to arrive. A few weeks before Easter, her father, who happened to be a pastor, had taken Nicole shopping to find a new pair of shoes. As they were waiting for the salesperson to bring out shoes for Nicole to try on, the little girl said, "I love Easter, Daddy!
Fill My Cup, Lord...with Praise
April 5, 2009
Palm Sunday
Rev.
In 1983, in a small town in Iowa, the week before Palm Sunday was one folks would never forget. It was the end of March and the weather was getting warmer each day of the week. By Thursday it was unseasonably warm reaching nearly eighty degrees. People were enjoying the sunshine and started to break out their summer clothes.
Fill My Cup, Lord, with Trust!
Mark 6:30-44
March 29, 2009
Rev.
"Trust in the Lord," [Psalms 3:5] sings the psalmist in many and various ways. Trust -the deepest meaning of the words most frequently translated in the Bible as "faith." Trust -deeply and inextricably related to health and wholeness, abundance and joy. Trust -according to Eric Erickson- the foundation of all of the developmental tasks. Trust -the invitation we find buried in today's story from Mark's Gospel. With our cups and our hearts open and ready to be filled, let's look at what God might be saying to us about trust as we travel with Jesus and the disciples to a deserted place for a well deserved rest.
Fill My Cup, Lord, with Courage
Mark 5:21-43
March 21, 2009
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
The little country schoolhouse was heated by an old-fashioned, pot-bellied coal stove. Two brothers had the job of coming to school early each day to start the fire and warm the room before the teacher and their classmates arrived.
One morning when gasoline had been mistakenly delivered instead of kerosene there was a horrible explosion and the schoolhouse was engulfed in flames. One brother died and the other had major burns over the lower half of his body.
Fill My Cup, Lord...with Freedom!
Mark 2:1-12
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
What an amazing story -an eager crowd; a dynamic preacher sharing eternal truths with hungry hearts; a nameless man -unable to get to Jesus no matter how much his heart might long for the encounter; four determined seekers who worked together to overcome great obstacles so their friend could meet Jesus; and religious officials who could not see the new thing God was doing in their midst. This cast of characters each plays a role in the unfolding drama that marks the coming of the reign of God into our lives and our world. It is a powerful story of faith and forgiveness, of freedom and healing, of empowerment and grace. It is a troubling story that raises as many questions as it answers. Yet, it is a story that can fill the cup of our lives and set us free to be the community that God dreams we can become.
