Romans 5:1-5 April 14, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott According to the apostle Paul, one of the characteristics of the Christian life is hope. Even when every indicator would lead the average person to hunker down in despair, Paul says, the Christian will remain a person of hope, and “and hope does not … More Why Have Hope?
Luke 14:25-30 April 7, 2019 Union University Church Laurie DeMott One of the most popular game shows in the history of T.V. is the show, “Who wants to be a millionaire?” Apparently from the ratings it has received, the answer to the question “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” is, “A whole lot of … More What Does it Mean to Be a Disciple?
James 1:22-27 March 24, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott An Arabian proverb says, “All sunny days make the Sahara desert.” The Arab who coined the proverb was not really foretelling the problems of climate change but was using the common knowledge that we all hold about the natural world to comment on the … More What Hurts Most?
Ephesians 2:4-22 March 17, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott My grandmother, who lived to be 93 years old, was one of five children — the only sister to four brothers — and at the end of her life if you had asked her how many siblings she had, she would have replied, “I … More What Matters Most (or What I Have Learned from Funerals)
Isaiah 61:1-3, 10-11 Mark 8:27-30 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott [Intro to scripture] During the weeks of Lent, I will be preaching a series on “Essential Questions,” looking at things such as “What Matters most?” “What about Suffering?” “Is There Hope?” In the interest of full disclosure, I want to acknowledge that I have … More Who is Jesus?
Matthew 5:1-12 March 3, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott One summer while I was vacationing at my family’s cottage, our lawn tractor broke down, and when the truck from the repair shop arrived to pick it up, I greeted the driver and we chatted for a few minutes as he loaded the tractor … More Seeing the World Through God Colored Glasses
Matthew 21:28-32 February 24, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott I come to you today as the Reverend Laurie DeMott, a graduate of Colgate Rochester Divinity School, and the pastor of this church since 1983, but if it weren’t for a decision I made in the fall of 1975, for one thing that I … More What We Have Left Undone
Leviticus 19:19 Matthew 13:31-32 Feb 17, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott Did you ever have an argument with your teenager and wished there was something in the Bible to help you? Perhaps you should have turned to chapter 19 of Leviticus and read this scripture to your rebellious child: God says, “You shall … More The Mustard Seed
Matthew 13:44-46 February 10, 2019 Union University Church Reverend Laurie DeMott I want you to imagine for a moment that you are on the game show, “Let’s Make a Deal.” The host has just called your name to “Come on down!” and so you run down the aisle and if you are in good ‘Let’s … More The Kingdom of God
Introduction: The past few weeks, I have been preaching not only on the words of the Bible but on the words of my great-niece Leona and here is the story again. On December 28th, my sister’s five year old granddaughter, Leona climbed into my sister’s bed and declared, “In three more days, it will be … More Still a Little Bit Silly
