St. Marks United Methodist Church

Sermon – January 29, 2012: What is Your Relationship Status?

St. Mark’s — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:07:35 +0000

Join us this Sunday for week 3 of our Extreme Makeover: Christian Edition sermon series. Last week we learned that a certain amount of work is a good and joyful thing but that we must also give time and energy to relationships, care of the body, and rest. The key is discerning a balance. This Sunday we will turn to an evaluation of the key relationships in our lives. We will read Ecclesiastes 4:7-12. We will study Jesus’ relationship status and ask What is Your Relationship Status? Just like we were made for work we were also made for relationship with others. If your relationship status is not modeled after the example of Christ and you need some relationship advice, come Sunday and let us learn from the master – Jesus Christ.

What is Your Relationship Status

Sermon – January 22, 2012: Knowing When to Say When – to WORK

St. Mark’s — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:33:21 +0000

This Sunday we will continue our series Extreme Makeover: Christian Edition. Last week was an introduction to the series. This Sunday we will focus in particular on WORK in all its forms (paid as well as unpaid). We will take a look at some statistics related to our general work habits and seek to determine if this area of our lives is in balance. For help we will study Luke’s account of Jesus’ visit to the home of Mary and Martha, Luke 10:38-42. If the numbers are correct, most if not all of us really struggle finding a healthily work/life balance. So come Sunday and learn When to Say When – to Work.

Knowing When to Say When – to WORK

Sermon – January 15, 2012: How Are Your Juggling Skills?

St. Mark’s — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:10:26 +0000

Each week the hit reality TV show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition features a home in desperate need of a radical transformation. Over the course of seven days and with the help of hundreds of volunteers a whole new home is designed and built. The makeover offers the selected family a whole new lease on life. What about your spiritual home – your body, your life – what kind of condition is it in at the start of this new year? Are you living a life that is holy, acceptable, and pleasing to God? Is your everyday, ordinary life (work, relationships, physical health, rest) in balance or are you juggling too much? If you feel like you have too many balls in the air, if you feel like your life is out of balance then come Sunday as we launch a new sermon series entitled, Extreme Makeover: Christian Edition. It is a series designed to help all of us find better balance in our lives and be transformed into more mature followers of Christ. We will begin with Romans 12:1-3 and ask, “How Are Your Juggling Skills?” If at the end of a long day, you’ve ever thought, “There must be a better way to live”, then this series is for you! So who’s ready for a makeover? Don’t forget to bring a friend.

How Are Your Juggling Skills

Sermon – January 8, 2012: Baptism: Not for the Faint of Heart

St. Mark’s — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:02:39 +0000

Have you ever stood on the shore and watched the waves lap against the beach? Water can be absolutely beautiful. And yet, it is also an extraordinarily mighty force. It has the power to bring new life but it also has the power to change life. The same is true for the waters of baptism. Through these waters, we are initiated in Christ’s holy church and we become part of God’s glorious and powerful work of redemption and love. Think about the many lives changed by the powerful flood waters of Katrina or the Tsunami in Indonesia. Years later you can still see the effects the water had on the land and the people. What long-term effect do the waters of baptism have on us? Join us for Baptism of the Lord Sunday as we read Psalm 29 and consider Baptism: Not for the Faint of Heart!

Baptism, Not for the Faint of Heart

Sermon – January 1, 2012: Festival of Lessons and Carols

St. Mark’s — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 20:03:14 +0000

Be sure to join us this Sunday at our regularly scheduled worship times, 8:30 am and 11 am, in the newly renovated sanctuary for a traditional service of Lessons and Carols.

First Lesson: Genesis 3:8-15
First Carol: “Good Christian Friends, Rejoice!”
Second Lesson: Isaiah 9:2-7
Second Carol: “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing”
Third Lesson: Luke 1:26-38
Third Carol: “What Child Is This?”
Fourth Lesson: Luke 2:1-20
Fourth Carol: “Angels From the Realms of Glory”
Fifth Lesson: Matthew 2:1-12
Fifth Carol: “We Three Kings”
Sixth Lesson: John 1:1-5, 9-14
Sixth Carol: “Once in Royal David’s City”
Seventh Lesson: Matthew 28:19-20
Seventh Carol: “Go, Tell it on the Mountain”

We will also celebrate Christ’s birth by coming to the table for Holy Communion. Let’s begin the new year with a renewed commitment to worshiping God.

Sermon – December 25, 2011: It is More Blessed to Re-gift

St. Mark’s — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:20:03 +0000

This year we are so blessed that Christmas Day falls on a Sunday. So come on Sunday morning at 10:30 am and help tell the world that our Savior, Christ the Lord, is born. Children are invited to bring 1 toy they received as a gift for Christmas with them for the Blessing of The Gifts. It is okay if the toy makes a little noise. After all some of the best toys make the most noise, right? Please just refrain from bringing anything violent like fake weapons, swords, or games that promote violence. During the service children will be invited to bring their gift forward for a special blessing from the pastor. We will also hear about the greatest gift ever given (John 1:1-14 ). We will sing some of the beloved carols and experience Holy Communion. Together we will find out that perhaps It is More Blessed to RE-GIFT!

It is More Blessed to Re-Gift

Sermon – December 24, 2011: Hunger No More

St. Mark’s — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:36:32 +0000

The 5 pm Christmas Eve Communion service will include A Message For The Children and A Message For Us All. Like all good gifts, on Christmas Eve the children’s message comes with the warning label ’some assembly required’. With the children’s help, at 5 pm, we will re-tell the Good News of Christmas (Luke 2:1-20 ) and attempt to assemble the stable. Both young and old alike will hear about where God’s creatures eat. But where do we – human beings – find that which will satisfy the hunger of our souls? Where can we find food that will last? Come Saturday night at 5 and find out! Don’t worry we will have plenty of glow sticks to go around. Or come at 11 pm and experience our Candlelight Communion Service. We will not reassemble the stable at 11 pm but we too will learn about where we can satisfy the hunger of our souls. Bring family, friends, and neighbors! Show them the great worship space God has gifted us with for proclaiming Good News! Come empty but leave Hungry No More!

Hunger No More

Sermon – December 18, 2011: This Changes Everything!

St. Mark’s — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 18:53:42 +0000

This Sunday we will journey with Mary and Joseph from Nazareth to Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-7 ). We will hear the news that God has revealed himself to the world through the birth of Christ our Lord. In response we will rejoice and give thanks but we will see that their journey is far from over – for Mary and Joseph the challenging and fulfilling work of parenting is just beginning. The same is true for us! This Sunday we will reveal to our community and God’s world the miracle God has done in this place. We too will rejoice and give thanks, but we will also learn that our journey is far from over. For us our call to serve our community and God’s world is just starting. This Changes Everything! Come and See!

Blessings,
Pastor Ben

This Changes Everything!

Sermon – December 11, 2011: A Song For All Time

St. Mark’s — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:43:34 +0000

How do you react to Good News? What is your response to being in Christ’s presence? This week we continue our Star Trek: Journey to Bethlehem and Beyond. We will journey with Mary from Nazareth to Ein Karem – to the home of her relatives Elizabeth and Zechariah (Luke 1:39-55 ). We will hear of Elizabeth’s reaction as well as the reaction of the child in her womb to encountering Christ. We will also listen for Mary’s response to being chosen to bear the Christ child and join in her Song For All Time. Come as we pack up our Ark of The Covenant and prepare to set out for newly renovated holy worship space. Come join in the joy!

A Song For All Time

Sermon – December 4, 2011: What to Do When Life Doesn’t Go As Planned

St. Mark’s — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 16:27:35 +0000

Most if not all of us have grand dreams and plans for our lives. We have a sense of how we would like, our lives to play out. Yet more often than we would like things don’t nececcarily go according to plan! This is certainly true for Joseph of Bethlehem. This Sunday we will explore his story Matthew 1:18-24 and seek to learn What To Do When Life Doesn’t Go According To Plan. Join us and bring a friend as we continue our Star Trek: The Journey to Bethlehem and Beyond.

What to Do When Life Doesn’t Go A