sermons – Eastman First United Methodist Church

Simply Happy | Thanksgiving Sermon | November 18, 2018

I love Thanksgiving. It’s my favorite holiday. The mixture of the season of the year, the cold air, the family warmth, the food, the nostalgia, all of it combines in…

Fearless Decisions | Sermon from 11/11/18

I have made some really dumb decisions in my lifetime. But the good thing about those: they make the best stories. One day, we took our dog Lily for a…

Dum Spiro Spero: While I Breathe, I Hope | Sermon for All Saints’ Sunday, 2018

What if the Axis powers had won World War II? That’s the question asked, and answered, by a TV drama I’m currently watching on Amazon. It’s called the Man in…

Green Eggs and Happiness | Sermon from 10/28/18

I love technology, especially apple products. In our household, we have multiple iPhones, iPads, apple tvs, AirPods, a MacBook and an iMac. And I’m probably leaving something out. When Apple…

The Fertile Soil of Doubt| Sermon from 10/21/18

21 Oct 201822 Oct 2018

It’s the question all teenagers dread as they come home. I certainly heard my fair share of it, especially before the advent of cell phones. If the bus got in…

On Being a Victim | Sermon from 10/14/18

Scripture: Job 23:1-17 The darkness settled in. All around, snow fell, in an increasingly heavy way. I had never experienced anything quite like this. The darkness was total. Ahead, only…

The Power of Empathy | Sermon from 9/30/18

I love James Madison University. For some of you, this will come as no shock at all. They’re my football team, they’re located in the beautiful Shenandoah valley, they’re absolutely…

Rooted | Sermon from September 23, 2018

Dana says I have a party trick. If we’re ever at a party and she needs an icebreaker or just for fun, she tells people “name any year in American…

More than mere words: The Power of Speech | September 16, 2018

16 Sep 201816 Sep 2018

In the midst of the regular news cycle this past week, we had cause to remember September 11. The fact that it fell on a Tuesday this year made it…

How to Lose an Argument | Sermon from 9/9/18

A family was eating dinner together, just the three of them. For once, even with a four year old, it didn’t involve trying to corral the child into staying at…

Seeing Jesus as Healer | Sermon from Healing Service August 26, 2018

Scripture: Mark 10:46-52 Between Avenue A and B, alongside East seventh and tenth streets, lies a beautiful little park. The park has a dog run and grass for spending time…

I wish you were the one that got away | Sermon from August 19, 2018

Scripture: Jeremiah 31:31-34 The one that got away. It’s a phrase uttered wistfully, wishing for something that didn’t end up being. She’s the one who got away. Or that’s the…

Solomon the fool | Sermon from August 5, 2018

Things didn’t end right. 1 Kings reports that God was angry. Very, very, angry. So much so that God says, “Since this has been your mind and you have not…

Generosity of Spirit | Sermon from 7/29/18

A couple had a dream: found their own restaurant. After laboring for quite a while, they found themselves ready. In their North Carolina town, they had a chance to live…

LGBT Inclusion and Other Divisive Topics | Sermon from July 22, 2018

All you need is love. Love covers over a multitude of sins. Love never fails. Let us love as God loves, for God loved us first. Love will win the…

Within our darkest night | Sermon from July 15, 2018

Stop Talking! Dana and I were having a pleasant conversation over coffee. Into the room ran Carter who, for some reason, had found our conversation offensive while playing with cars…

Be weird | Sermon from 7/8/18

8 Jul 20188 Jul 2018

Rejected. I had dreams of attending the University of Georgia for graduate school. There, I wanted to study higher education leadership. It was my first choice, with James Madison University…

Jesus asleep in the storm | Sermon from July 1, 2018

A storm was brewing, just off the coast. The British were coming; everyone knew that. The question was not one of if but one of when: when would they arrive,…