“The Women”

We continue our Lenten journey at the cross reflecting the witnesses’ stories at Jesus’ crucifixion.  Are you there?

Did you know that there were many named and unnamed women following Jesus from Galilee, and they had been with the mission the entire time? They were there when other male disciples fled. They were there. Some gospel writers do not even give these women a voice in their witnessing, but they were there.  They were there because they found in Jesus a new brother, a new son, a new father, and a new family.

Come, friends!  Let us hear these women’s witnesses.

“The Beloved Disciple”

My message for this week centers around the mysterious “Beloved Disciple” in the Gospel of John. I take it that this character represents every one of us. Let us be embraced by God-in-Christ at the depth of our being. What kind of love claims us?  Love that gets its hands dirty, gets involved, reaches out inclusively and experiences the essence of God. —Pastor Dale

“The Soldiers”

We continue our Lenten journey at the cross reflecting the witnesses’ stories at Jesus’ crucifixion.  These witnesses help us spend time with Jesus’ suffering on the cross.  This Sunday, we hear slightly different stories of the soldiers from each gospel.  What was their witness?  I wonder how their job impacted their lives.  One of the soldiers, Centurion, at the cross claims, “Truly, this was the Son of God!”

Hearing their witnesses and experience of Jesus’ crucifixion invite us not only to remember Jesus’ sacrificial love on the cross but invite us to pick up the stories ourselves and allow it to shape us into the future.  Come, friends, join us!  We invite you to be witness of the Cross.

“Winning by Losing”

This Sunday, Pastor Dale will preach on the theme “Winning by Losing.” He writes, “On the cross, God in Christ wins against all forms of domination and oppression. God wins by giving. God wins by forgiving. As the choir sings “God So Loved the World”, we will be guided in meditating on the victory of love.”

“Find Joy Purposefully!  It is the Water of Life”

“When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.”  – Rumi

When you were a child, you had unfettered access to wonder, curiosity, joy, and resilience.  You splashed in puddles, you danced and laughed loudly.  We need this joy, the joy to do the work of justice and love, to live a life in this beautiful, complicated, and hard world.

Siblings, what gives you joy? In The Book of Joy, the Dalai Lama says, “In fact, taking care of others, helping others, ultimately is the way to discover your own joy and to have a happy life.”

Come friends, let’s reflect on joy as one of the pillars to build God’s beloved community here in Oakland being held in God’s fierce love.

“Zaccheus at the IRS”

This Sunday, my sermon, “Zacchaeus at the IRS” will be a “first person” retelling of Luke’s account of the encounter of Jesus with a tax collector in Jericho.  I am looking forward to having a little fun in becoming this minor character and sharing with you the light that he sheds on the meaning and nature of this Jesus who keeps on reaching out to the most unlikely recipients of grace: people like you and me.  –Pastor Dale