Speaker: Rev. CJ Valenti

This Sunday we remember another covenant. We are connected to a wide family of faith, as numerous as the stars, through Abraham and Sarah. In the gospel reading, Jesus poses this famous invitation to the crowd and disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow…

In this first week of Lent, we hear the familiar story of promise with a rainbow and of wilderness. No matter what messiness we find ourselves in, this story reminds us we are not alone. While Satan may show up, there also promises to be wild beasts, angels and Jesus in the midst of it all. …

On Transfiguration Sunday, we get a glimpse of Jesus divine and it is both comforting and terrifying. In worship, we show up to encounter God in the water, in the word, at the table and in one another. May we wake up to God’s liberating light which shimmers in all people, places and beings.  Accompanying…

 In Isaiah God is the one who sits above the earth with its inhabitants as small as grasshoppers and also strengthens the powerless. So in Jesus’ healing work we see the hand of the creator God, lifting up the sick woman to health and service (diakonia). Like Simon’s mother-in-law, we are lifted up and healed…

In Deuteronomy God promises to raise up a prophet like Moses, who will speak for God; in Psalm 111 God shows the people the power of God’s works. For the church these are ways of pointing to the unique authority people sensed in Jesus’ actions and words. We encounter that authority in God’s word, around…

In the beginning of the gospel of Mark, Jesus is baptized by John the baptist in the River Jordan and this jumpstarts his ministry. For us, baptism reminds us that we too begin as children of God and are proclaimed beloved. Through water and holy spirit, God celebrates not for what we do but who…

Listen as Pastor CJ explores the familiar story of our Lord’s nativity in the context of today’s reality, as war rages in Jesus’ birthplace. In the midst of war and the daily stresses of our modern lives, Jesus comes. Accompanying Scripture:Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96

We can be weary in various ways. We can be weary because of our age. We can be weary because of our waiting. We can be weary because of the state of the world around us. We can be weary for various reasons, but must we stay weary? Listen as Pastor CJ explores how we…

This week the “fun” parables continue as we hear about three different people who take the wealth given to them and do different things. Two of them invest it and the third buries it. How can we take all God has entrusted to us with care and creativity?   Accompanying Scripture:Judges 4:1-7, Psalm 90:1-8, 12 and Matthew 25:14-30

This Sunday we celebrate the many ways stewardship is lived out in our congregation through our time, our finances and our hearts. In our scripture readings, we hear from the prophet Amos that as important as worship is, God’s heart calls for justice and righteousness to be what matters most. Jesus uses a parable to remind…