A Famine Not of Bread

"Christ Preaching at Capernaum" by Maurycy Gottlieb Click here to listen to this sermon. “They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath [Jesus] entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes” (Mark 1:22). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! When you mention the word “authority,” it’s likely you’ll have to qualify what you mean. Depending upon the audience’s background—and the current context—“authority” may have an extremely negative connotation. It may suggest oppression by a dictatorial governmental official, an overbearing boss, or an abusive parent. In that setting, an “authority” is a ruler—a ruler who uses you for his own advantage. And so, it’s no wonder that many of us have authority issues. But there are good authorities as well—ones who use their authority for the benefit of others instead of themselves. This use o...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “After John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the Gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel’” (Mark 1:14-15). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Sometimes the best way to learn something is to just start doing it. That’s the premise behind language immersion, a technique used in bilingual education. Unlike more traditional programs, where the language is taught simply as a subject to be learned, language immersion focuses more on the second language being a tool which is used to immerse the student completely within a variety of subjects. Research has shown that language immersion provides students with overall greater language comprehension and production of the second language in a native-like manner, with greater understanding of the underlying culture as well. It’s one thing to study a language for one class peri...

From conception to birth and beyond, all life is beautiful! This video includes visual imagery of sperm meeting egg, zygote, embryo, fetal development and babies doing amazing things during ultrasound including 2D 3D and 4D ultrasound up to birth. truly, #lifeisbeautiful Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Last week, Aimee and I stumbled across Look Who’s Talking , the 1989 romantic comedy, starring John Travolta and Kirstie Allie. Allie plays Mollie, a single woman living in New York City who becomes pregnant during a brief affair and decides to raise her baby as a single mother. Travolta is a cab driver who takes the pregnant woman to the hospital, ends up witnessing her son Mikey’s birth, and then becomes increasingly involved in their lives. Bruce Willis provides the voice-over for Mikey, Mollie’s son, who offers humorous commentary on life from his perspective beginning from conception and going through the f...

  "The Baptism of Christ" by Guido Reni Click here to listen to this sermon. The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty” (Psalm 29:3-4). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! A common theme of our Psalm, Old Testament reading, and Gospel for today, the Baptism of Our Lord, is the mention of the voice of the Lord over the waters. The creation event begins with the Holy Spirit hovering over the waters. In addition to creation, the Psalm speaks of the Flood where the powerful voice of the Lord was over the many waters He used to cleanse and recreate His world. In the Baptism of Jesus, we see the waters of the Jordan and the presence of the Spirit in the form of a dove as the voice of the Lord speaks well of His beloved Son. Together, our readings provide a beautiful picture of what God has done in restoring His crea...

 Click here to listen to this sermon. “ And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon Him. “Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when He was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing Him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for Him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for Him. After three days they found Him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers. And when His parents saw Him, they were astoni...