Rev. Timothy J. Ensworth
What about you? (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Mark 8:27-30
September 13, 2015
Hope is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all
(Emily Dickinson)
The wings of hope carry us, soaring high above the driving winds of life.
(Ana Jacob)
Meanwhile, these three remain: faith, hope, and love.… Continue reading ...
Let go (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Mark 10:13-16
October 4, 2015
Jesus was angry. His disciples were turning people away. They were turning people away and scolding them for trying to bring their children to Jesus to bless them, and that made Jesus mad!
Jesus was angry! Hear him! It’s not (gentle voice):
Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.… Continue reading ...
You don’t know what you are asking for (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Mark 10:32-45
October 18, 2015
Trust in the promise …
When you don’t, you need security fences, safety nets, back-up plans, reinforcements.
When you don’t, you need to build walls. high and thick, and you need to keep a close eye on your enemies and carefully screen your friends.… Continue reading ...
Look (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Revelation 1:4-8
November 22, 2015
Look! What do you see?
You see a choir loft, filled with choir members, and over their heads the gleaming pipes of our pipe organ and you see tables covered with soft black cushions for our bells and bell players, emblems of the importance of music to us, to our ears and to our hearts.… Continue reading ...
Seeing is believing (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
John 1:1-18
January 3, 2016
Seeing is believing. But what if you can’t see?
Doubt, fear, depression, despair, anger, boredom overshadow our spirits. We are in the dark and we can’t see. And because we can’t see, we do not believe, and because we do not believe, we are not saved. … Continue reading ...
Familiarity breeds contempt (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Luke 4:20-30
January 31, 2016
I can talk about fear, because I have been afraid. I can talk about doubt, because I have doubted. I can talk about depression, because I have been depressed and know what it feels like from the inside. I understand depression. And even though I have not known despair, I can talk about despair because I think I understand it. … Continue reading ...
If (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Luke 4:1-13
February 14, 2016
Jesus returned from the Jordan …
What had happened there, while Jesus was at the Jordan River? Jesus was baptized by John. Before Jesus began any of his work, before he began bringing good news to the poor and healing the sick and welcoming outcasts and setting slaves free, he was baptized by John.… Continue reading ...
He comes (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Luke 13:31-35
February 21, 2016
sermons.believersjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/darsane(1).mov
What do you think? What do you think of a Jesus with long flowing black hair? What do you think of a Jesus with long slender fingers and smooth ochre skin? What do you think of a Jesus with ankle bracelets and arm bracelets and a golden necklace? … Continue reading ...
Tender (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Luke 13:6-9
February 28, 2016
It is a tender embrace …
Jesus’ left hand gently cradles the back of Peter’s head, comforting him, drawing him close. His right hand reaches for Peter’s waist, ready to steady him, ready to support him, reaching out to touch him.
It is an intimate embrace …
The colors of the two figures are mottled and muted, not sharp and distinct. … Continue reading ...
Welcome home (Click on the sermon title for a .pdf copy)
Luke 15
March 6, 2016
“The United States of America.” It is a name we speak with pride, a name that reflects our sense of history and identity as the union of distinct and distinctive states, diverse in ethnic and religious origins, diverse in culture and in economic life, but united for a common purpose, united by a common set of values, united for the good of the whole.… Continue reading ...