Tag: Disciples of Christ

Pastor’s Notes 4/17/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” –John 20:26b

Our Bible study was thoughtful this week, so much so, it is still with me. The main text on the table is our lesson for Sunday, John 20:24-29 and the story of Thomas encountering the resurrected Jesus for the first time.

We began as we often do, looking at the passage just prior, and in it we found the disciples behind locked doors: afraid, uncertain, trying to make sense of everything that had just happened. And honestly, we didn’t move past that moment too quickly. We lingered there. Because it feels familiar.

What must it have been like to live in that space between grief and hope? Between what you thought you knew and what you were being told might be true?

We found ourselves circling back repeatedly to Jesus’ words: “Peace be with you.” Not as a simple greeting, but as something deeper, as something offered right into fear, confusion, and even failure.

And then there was that startling moment: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you… Receive the Holy Spirit… If you forgive, they are forgiven…”

That’s a lot to carry. Peace. Calling. Forgiveness. The Spirit. All given to a group still trying to catch their breath. What an amazing sense of responsibility. And had they known this mission would befall them, chances are good they might have changed their mind when Jesus first asked them to follow.

This Sunday, we turn to Thomas, the one who couldn’t quite believe it yet. And maybe that’s where many of us find ourselves too. Not opposed to faith, not closed off, but needing something more. Something real, a tangible hope. Something we can trust.

I’ll be honest with you: I’m still listening for where this sermon wants to land. Maybe that’s part of the invitation. To resist rushing to easy answers. To honor the space between fear and faith. So, I hope you’ll join me Sunday in person or on YouTube, bringing your questions, your doubts, your hopes, and maybe even your locked doors. Because if the story tells us anything, it’s this: Christ meets us there.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes: 4/10/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles[a] from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. –Luke 24:13-14

This Sunday, we step into one of the most beloved resurrection stories in the Gospel from Luke 24:13–35.

Two disciples, weighed down by grief and confusion, walk a familiar road, trying to make sense of all that has happened. Along the way, they do what we so often do in uncertain moments and they tell the story. They revisit what they’ve seen, what they hoped for, and what they don’t yet understand.

And somewhere in the telling… Christ draws near.

They don’t recognize him at first. Not in their conversation. Not in their questions. Not even in their grief. But later, they will look back and say, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road?”

It’s a powerful reminder: sometimes we only recognize God’s presence in hindsight. When we pause to reflect, to remember, and to tell the story again it becomes easier for us to see that God has always been present.

Over the coming year, we will be leaning into the sacred practice of storytelling. We will trust that our lives, like scripture, are filled with moments where God has been present.

Each week, we’ll offer a simple prompt to help you reflect on your own story. You’ll be invited to write, to remember, and even record your story and become part of the living witness of this community.

The prompt question to think about this Sunday: “What is a story that seems to get told time and time again in your family?”

I look forward to worshipping with you in person or on YouTube.   

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 4/3/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” –Matthew 28:7

As we arrive at Easter Sunday, we come to the joyful culmination of our Lenten journey, Tell Me Something Good.

Together, we have remembered that good news is ours… and all are invited. We have seen how good news can catch us by surprise. We have named it as great love for God and neighbor, and discovered that together, the impossible becomes possible. We have recognized that good news looks like protection and care for the vulnerable, and that it is rooted deeply in justice, mercy, and faithfulness. Again and again, we have seen that the good news is not passive and it is inspiring us to act.

And now, on this Easter day of resurrection and God’s eternal promise, we celebrate this truth: the good news is alive in the world.

New life emerges. Small resurrections unfold every day. Even amid life’s struggles like grief, illness, uncertainty, and pain, God is present. There is still blessing. There is still goodness. Jesus’ life and death journey reminds us of this truth.

During worship, we will share the “good news” Post-It note reflections written by you throughout Lent. These simple words have become a powerful testimony: the Good News story is still being written throughout our lives.

The invitation to “tell something good” will continue beyond Easter. Throughout the coming year, we will keep listening, sharing, and bearing witness to the good news alive in our midst. Each week, you’ll be given a simple prompt… a chance to reflect and to name where you see life, hope, and resurrection.

This week’s prompt:
Tell about your Easter memories. Was there a tradition, an Easter outfit, or practice that comes to mind? Maybe a special occasion, a meaningful gift, or a memorable worship experience? What did your family always do?

I look forward to worshipping with you this Holy Weekend.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 3/27/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna!
    Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!       –Mark 11:9

This Sunday is Palm Sunday, and our theme is: “The Good News… is inspiring us to act.”Our scripture comes from Gospel of Mark 11:1–11. It is the familiar story of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.

In Bible study this week, we discussed the possibility that there may have been two processions entering Jerusalem around the same time.

New Testament scholars like Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan teach that from the west, the Roman governor Pontius Pilate would have entered the city with a show of imperial force by parading into Jerusalem behind the government’s finest soldiers, horses, armor, and banners. This was Rome’s way of reminding the people who was in charge, especially during Passover, a festival that celebrated liberation.

From the east, Jesus enters, on a borrowed colt, surrounded not by soldiers but by ordinary people. No weapons. No armor. Just cloaks on the road, branches in the air, and voices crying out.

The contrast is striking. One procession proclaims power through domination. The other embodies power through humility, peace, and justice.

As the crowd shouts “Hosanna,” they are not simply offering praise. As in translated from Psalm 118:25, the word “Hosanna” comes from the Hebrew phrase hoshi‘a na, meaning “save us.” It is both a prayer and a cry for deliverance rising from people who know what it is to live under the weight of empire.

And the crowd doesn’t just watch this parade, they participate. The good news is… the people act. They lay down their cloaks. They raise their voices. They dare to hope out loud.

This Sunday, we will wonder together: Where is the good news inspiring us to act?
What are the “Hosannas” of our time? And how might we join in Christ’s way of humble, courageous, hope-filled witness?

I look forward to worshiping with you in person or on YouTube as we enter this sacred week together.     

Pastor’s Notes 3/20/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 2:6-7

It is gut-wrenching to disappoint someone.

Disappointment can cut deeper than anger, frustration, or irritation. There is a trust that gets crossed when disappointment settles in, something unspoken but deeply felt. I wonder if that is part of what is happening in this week’s story.

In John 8:2–11, a woman is dragged into public view, her life reduced to an accusation, her dignity stripped away for the sake of a test. The religious leaders stand ready, not just to condemn her, but to trap Jesus. It is a moment thick with tension, judgment, and hypocrisy.

And what does Jesus do? He bends down and writes in the dust.

We will never know what he wrote. But perhaps that’s not the point. Maybe what matters most is that he looks away. He turns his gaze from both the accusers and the accused. There is something in that posture of Jesus that is quiet and unsettling. It isn’t condemnation or rage but a kind of holy grief.

It feels almost like disappointment.

Then Jesus speaks words that echo through time: “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.” And after that, he bends down again! He lets the silence do its work. He lets them sit with themselves. He does not argue, he does not chase, he does not force. He simply creates space for truth to rise.

One by one, they leave. And there, in the aftermath, we see the good news. On Sunday we will explore together what they see, the hope we too are left with. We will claim the mercy and kindness God expresses to all of us, even when we may feel unworthy to receive it.

The good news is… rooted in justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

I look forward to worshipping with you on YouTube or in person on Sunday.

“You give them something to eat.”

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” –Matthew 28:19-20

It is easy these days to run up against something that simply feels too big: Too many needs. Too few resources. Too many questions. Not enough answers.

If we are honest, most of us have had moments where we look at the situation in front of us and quietly think, “There’s no way.” That feeling shows up in our scripture readings this Sunday.

In Mark 6, the disciples look out at a crowd of thousands who have gathered to hear Jesus. Evening is approaching and the practical problem becomes clear: these people need something to eat. Jesus offers the disciples a solution: “You give them something to eat.”

At first it sounds impossible.

Then in Matthew 28, the disciples stand with the risen Christ on a mountain. The future of the movement seems uncertain. Jesus is leaving, and the world still feels vast and complicated. Yet Jesus entrusts them with a calling that must have seemed just as overwhelming: Go and make disciples of all nations.

Again, it sounds impossible. Unless… they are not doing it alone.

The good news in both stories is not that the disciples suddenly gain superhuman ability. The good news is that God’s work unfolds in community. What seems impossible for one person becomes possible when people gather, share what they have, and trust that God is already at work among them.

Five loaves and two fish do not look like much, until they are offered. A small group of uncertain disciples does not look like much, until they are sent together.

The church has always been a community that lives in this tension. We often begin with limited resources, imperfect plans, and ordinary people. Yet somehow, when we bring what we have and trust God with the rest, something more begins to happen.

Together, the impossible starts to look a little more possible, and that friends is good news! I will be out this Sunday but our very own elder, Rev. Chuck Babcock will preach the good news! Many blessings.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 3/6/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

“Then children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them,  but Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” And he laid his hands on them and went on his way.”  –Matt. 19:13-15

Tell me something good…

Have you noticed the century plant blooming in our prayer garden?

The century plant (agave) is extraordinary. For years or decades, it grows slowly and quietly, storing energy. And then, almost suddenly, it sends up a towering stalk that can rise ten to thirty feet into the air. It doesn’t bloom all at once. It unfolds in stages. And when it does, it becomes a feast for bees and birds and every pollinator nearby.

And then, after that magnificent bloom, the main plant dies. But the good new is that this isn’t the end of the story. Before it dies, the century plant sends up “pups” of small offshoots at its base. New life rising from the old.

I can’t help but see something holy in that rhythm.

Protection and care for the vulnerable is not accidental. Our texts for Sunday, Deuteronomy 24:17–22 and  Matthew 19:13–15 remind us of a need for intentionality . It is cultivated over time. It is rooted in memory… “Remember that you were slaves in Egypt,” Deuteronomy says. It grows quietly in the habits of a people who leave the edges of their fields unharvested. It blooms when a community refuses to push children aside. It feeds more than we realize.

And sometimes, the most beautiful acts of care create new life beyond us.

Like the agave sending up pups, protection of the vulnerable ensures that life continues. It says: there will be a next generation. There will be those who are sheltered, fed, welcomed, and blessed. There will be room at the edges.

I look forward to worshipping with you on Sunday for “The good news is… protection and care for the vulnerable.” 

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 2/27/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
–Luke 7:50

Our Lenten theme this year is Tell Me Something Good. This Sunday, “The good news is… Great love for God and neighbor.” We’ll be holding together two powerful texts: Luke 7:36–50 and Matthew 25:35–40.

In Luke’s Gospel, a woman enters a Pharisee’s house because she knew Jesus would be there. She brings an alabaster jar. She weeps. She kneels. She anoints Jesus’ feet with extravagant love. The host, Simon, evaluates. Judges. Calculates. Jesus then tells a story about two debtors and then gently exposes the gap between minimal hospitality and abundant love.

Rev. Dr. Brian Blount, in the A Sanctified Art curriculum, reminds us that this story is more than just forgiveness, it is about love that refuses to stay small. He notes that the woman’s actions are not polite, restrained, or respectable. They are excessive. And in that excess, we glimpse the wideness of God’s mercy.

Her love is called “great” not because it is flashy, but because it flows from the deep knowledge of grace.

And then we turn to Matthew 25, where Jesus says that loving him looks like feeding the hungry, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned. “Just as you did it to one of the least of these… you did it to me.” Love of God and love of neighbor are inseparable.

If this woman is to “go in peace,” it will require a community that practices Matthew 25 love: the kind of love that feeds, welcomes, and restores dignity. Peace is sustained when neighbors become participants in grace.

I look forward to worshiping with you Sunday on YouTube and in person as we explore what it means to love God and neighbor with a love that is generous, embodied, and brave.

Brett

Tell Me Something Good: Grounding ourselves in the good news of Lent

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

“Everyone else serves the best wine first, and after the guests have drunk a lot, he serves the ordinary wine. But you have kept the best wine until now!” Jesus performed this first miracle in Cana in Galilee; there he revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.”
–John 2:9b-11

Lent is upon us. Our theme for this season is: “Tell Me Something Good: Grounding ourselves in the good news of Lent.” Lenten devotional guides can be picked up in the Narthex on Sunday, and you will also find inspiration from the series on our Facebook page.

The curriculum is produced by A Sanctified Art, and their Creative Team of Rev. Lisle Gwynn Garrity, Rev. Sarah Speed, Hannah Garrity, Rev. Lauren Wright Pittman, Rev. Anna Strickland introduce us to the theme with these words:

Lent was originally a season for new converts to learn and prepare for their baptism on Easter. During that time, they would study what was central to Christianity. As we crafted this Lenten devotional, we studied what was central to Jesus’ life and ministry: radical welcome, love for neighbor, care for the vulnerable, nourishment for the hungry, nonviolence in the face of injustice.

At the heart of Jesus’ teachings, we find liberation, love, mercy, and grace—all of which are meant to be very good news for us all. Jesus’ ministry can be described as “radical” which comes from the Latin word “radicalis,” meaning “root” or “ground.” Therefore, the good news should bring us back to our roots. Emulating Jesus and embodying his teachings should ground us in who God created us to be. Can we be “good news” people in a world too often burdened by bad news?

This Lent, let us remember that the good news really is good news. It is joyful—like fine wine saved for celebration. It grows like a mustard seed and smells like perfume poured from an alabaster jar. It tastes like bread passed endlessly through a hungry crowd. It sounds like laughter and feels like mercy. The good news is alive in the world. This Lent, let the teachings of Jesus lead us forward. May the good news inspire us to take action in a world desperate to hear, see, and taste what is good.

This Sunday, the story of the Wedding at Cana will remind us that “The good news is… so good it catches us by surprise. Glenn Henriksen will grace us with special music throughout the service, and a potluck will be shared after worship. See you Sunday!

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 2/13/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

“Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.  And we speak of these things in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual things to those who are spiritual.”
– 1 Cor. 1:12,13

I recently had a Tootsie Pop, and it immediately took me back to that old commercial many of us remember. A child goes on a quest, asking various animals one important question: “How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pop?” Everyone guesses. Everyone speculates. Finally, the child finds the wise old owl. The owl takes the pop, licks it thoughtfully: “One… two… three…” crunch.

“Three,” the owl declares.

The joke, of course, is that the owl never really answers the question. Instead of patiently discovering the center, the owl breaks it open, using power rather than discernment.

That image feels surprisingly close to what Paul is addressing in 1 Corinthians 2:6–16. The Corinthians were eager for wisdom, clarity, and certainty. But Paul reminds them that God’s wisdom doesn’t bring quick and simple answers. It doesn’t name who speaks with the most authority or offer forceful conclusions. God’s wisdom is revealed by the Spirit, and  is discerned over time, together.

This Sunday, as we conclude our Called as Partners series, we’ll reflect on discerning our call as followers of Jesus. Spiritual maturity, Paul suggests, is not about who sounds the wisest or who speaks the loudest. It grows when discernment replaces control, when listening matters more than winning, and when the church learns to trust that God is at work among us.

I look forward to worshipping with you in person or on YouTube this Sunday as we practice wisdom that emerges when we seek the way of Jesus, together.  

Brett