Pastor Mara puts gun violence and polarization in conversation with the story of Paul and Silas not running from the jail after their chains were loosed. How might we, like Paul and Silas and the jailer, move from the rules of empire to the rules of the Kingdom of God?
Saul was on a mission to keep the peace among the Jews by killing Christians until God stopped him. Ananias lived in fear of Saul until God stopped him. Pastor Mara explores how the intersection of Saul’s and Ananias’ lives informs our response to police killing people of color while trying to keep the peace.
Centuries of shame have been piled upon Thomas because he asked for evidence before he would believe that Jesus rose from the dead. But Jesus doesn’t shame him. In fact, question-askers, doubters, and curious people have been a blessing to the church throughout the ages despite the institutional church’s efforts to silence them. Click the…
What might the central rule of improv comedy (Yes, And…) have to do with how we respond to the resurrection?
Have you ever noticed that the animal Jesus rode into Jerusalem was an adolescent donkey that had never been ridden? Yet the crowd acted like he rode a war horse. Pastor Mara ponders how our unexamined notions of salvation lead us to mistake what Jesus is actually about. Click the gray video icon in the…
Jesus longs to protect and nurture his people like a hen gathers her chicks under her wing, but the people are not willing. How does it change your life knowing that Jesus loves you like a mother? What might God want to do for you, or for the world, if only you/we were willing? We’ll…
What does it mean to give first fruits and what difference does it make? Click “read more” to watch the video of the sermon.
Moses wore a veil, and so do we. God invites us to take them off, to see and be seen face to face. Click “read more” to watch the video.
How does the meaning-making the Hebrew people did around their tragedies inform our own meaning-making work? Click “read more” to watch the video.
Pastor Mara explores what the huge catch of fish after a fish-less night and the call to “catch people” have to teach us about The Great Resignation.
