3rd  Sunday in Lent Exodus 17: 1-7; Psalm 95; John 4: 5-42 Pearl: The quenching and satisfaction that Christ provides. Function: To provide relief to mass anxiety and low level depression among worshippers, partly due to Covid-19 pandemic, by emphasizing the clear, pure, and high quality nourishment that God in Christ provides. The “Rule of Threes” for average human survival: 1) three minutes without air; 2) three hours in extreme cold; 3) possibly three weeks without food; 4) … [Read more...]

2nd Sunday in Lent Genesis 12: 1-4a; Psalm 121; Romans 4: 1-5, 13-17; John 3: 1-17 Pearl: Deeper seeing leads to deeper faith which leads to deeper service. Function: To champion the deeper look at life, at the world, at people, and especially at God so that faith is generated within: faith that changes us into followers of Christ who serve him (Nicodemus, the Pharisee, became a servant of Christ). When you come to understand something you often say, “I see.” We put together the … [Read more...]

1st Lent in Lent ~ Communion Psalm 32; Matthew 4: 1-11 Pearl: The spiritual benefits of testing/temptation/trial. Function: To encourage worshippers to persevere through testing/trial/temptation to gain strength for the journey. The saying goes, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Kelly Clarkson has a hit song “Stronger” which endorses that notion. A similar corollary to that idea is “no pain, no gain.” So, I guess that in general we agree that some level of struggle and … [Read more...]

Transfiguration Sunday                                                                                   02/23/20—Highland—Meute Exodus 24: 12-18; II Peter 1: 16-21; Matthew 17: 1-9 Pearl: Losing ourselves in worship and also being grounded in the present. Function: To celebrate the great prospect of encountering our awesome Lord Jesus Christ in the … [Read more...]

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                                                                                                 02/02/2020—Highland—Meute Micah 6:1-8; I Corinthians 1: 18-31; Matthew 5:1-12 Pearl: The kingdom among us can and should be experienced by all. Function: To champion the goodness of the Good News of the Kingdom of Heaven Among Us and how it is truly good news for everyone, including the average, weak, powerless, indeed all of the “hopeless blessables” (D. Willard, The Divine … [Read more...]

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Baptism of the Lord                                                                            … [Read more...]

01/05/20—Highland—Meute “Keep the Stars in Your Eyes” Psalm 147: 12-20; John 1: 10-18; Ephesians 1: 3-14 Pearl: Keeping focused on the North Star: Jesus the Christ. Function: To lead worshippers to live with the Bright Morning Star in their eyes: Jesus the Christ, and to select their new “Star Word” for 2020. God made you from star dust so you have “stars in your eyes.” You do not have an atom in your bodies that is not the product of some dead star.God made us from the ‘dust … [Read more...]

World Communion                                                                             … [Read more...]