Arley K. Fadness is a retired ELCA pastor who has served numerous Lutheran parishes in South Dakota and Minnesota. He is currently a member of Custer Lutheran Fellowship in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota. Pastor Fadness is a congregational consultant who coaches churches in visioning processes, and he also conducts leadership retreats and workshops on “Finding Your True Flair.” A graduate of Augustana College, Luther Theological Seminary, and McCormick Theological Seminary, Fadness is the author of several CSS titles, including Blueprints For Advent and Christmas, Blueprints for Lent, Six Spiritual Needs in America Today, Holy Moses, Hey Joseph!, and Where’s Noah? He is also a contributing author to Sermons on the First Readings (Series I, Cycle A).
UPCOMING WEEKS
In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
Epiphany 2 (OT 2)
28 – Sermons
110+ – Illustrations / Stories
32 – Children's Sermons / Resources
25 – Worship Resources
31 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
110+ – Illustrations / Stories
32 – Children's Sermons / Resources
25 – Worship Resources
31 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Epiphany 3 (OT 3)
20 – Sermons
110+ – Illustrations / Stories
26 – Children's Sermons / Resources
21 – Worship Resources
33 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
110+ – Illustrations / Stories
26 – Children's Sermons / Resources
21 – Worship Resources
33 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Epiphany 4 (OT 4)
34 – Sermons
120+ – Illustrations / Stories
35 – Children's Sermons / Resources
23 – Worship Resources
29 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
120+ – Illustrations / Stories
35 – Children's Sermons / Resources
23 – Worship Resources
29 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Epiphany 5 (OT 5)
34 – Sermons
100+ – Illustrations / Stories
30 – Children's Sermons / Resources
26 – Worship Resources
27 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
100+ – Illustrations / Stories
30 – Children's Sermons / Resources
26 – Worship Resources
27 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Plus thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
New & Featured This Week
SermonStudio
H. Burnham Kirkland
We come to your house this day, our Father, to open our hearts to you, to thank you for your loving-kindness, and to acknowledge our deep dependence upon you. We confess that we have not always loved you with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind. We have made the little concerns of this earthly life so important that we have neglected your will for us. We have concentrated so intensely on schemes to get our own way, that we have forgotten your ways. We have allowed desire to lead us where we should have been led only by you.
Gennifer Benjamin Brooks
(This liturgy is written intentionally for use in an interfaith setting.)
HYMN OF CELEBRATION
Lift Every Voice And Sing
GREETING
We have come together on this special day, to witness to the love of God in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a martyr to the faith, in the cause of justice. We come from different cultures, different religions, but all committed to the right for which Dr. King fought, of freedom for all people.
HYMN OF CELEBRATION
Lift Every Voice And Sing
GREETING
We have come together on this special day, to witness to the love of God in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a martyr to the faith, in the cause of justice. We come from different cultures, different religions, but all committed to the right for which Dr. King fought, of freedom for all people.
Mariann Edgar Budde
And he said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified." But I said, "I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my cause is with the Lord, and my reward with my God." And now the Lord says, who formed me in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him, and that Israel might be gathered to him ...
Robert J. Elder
Well, good, old Nathaniel. In a way, he's the mystery disciple of the New Testament. His name doesn't even rate a mention in Matthew, Mark, or Luke. Only in John's gospel do we hear about the disciple with the parochial ideas about Galilean towns.
William J. Carl, III
Having trouble sleeping through the night? You're not alone. Samuel did, too. Sometimes you hear a haunting phrase that sticks with you years later. I heard one like that from Gardner Taylor, that great African-American preacher who once held forth in the pulpit of Concord Baptist Church in Brooklyn. I don't even remember the sermon, which is all right -- we're not supposed to remember sermons anymore than we should remember meals; we're supposed to be fed and challenged by them at the moment. I don't remember what Gardner Taylor was preaching that night.
Wayne Brouwer
I had lunch with a pastor of another congregation who wanted to welcome me to the community. We were old friends and had a great time together, reminiscing and catching up. That night, when we were talking together as a family about the things we'd done during the day, Brenda asked me how I knew him. Where had we crossed paths before?
"Well," I said, "his sister was my first girlfriend."
Of course, that got the attention of a few ears! "Daddy," said one of our daughters, "did you think a lot about girls when you were a teenager?" I had to admit that I did.
"Well," I said, "his sister was my first girlfriend."
Of course, that got the attention of a few ears! "Daddy," said one of our daughters, "did you think a lot about girls when you were a teenager?" I had to admit that I did.
Recently, Rosa Parks was again in the news. You might remember her as the quiet, unassuming, middle-aged black woman with tired feet whose gentle protest on a bus in 1955 helped spark the Civil Rights Movement. This nationally-known figure had been living alone, in poor health, in near poverty, in inner-city Detroit. At age 82, a crack addict broke into her apartment. Rosa Parks was beaten and robbed.
The Immediate Word
Dean Feldmeyer
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Mary Austin
Christopher Keating
George Reed
Bethany Peerbolte
For January 17, 2021:
- There’s Bad News and There’s Good News by Dean Feldmeyer — Just because we believe in the “Good News” doesn’t mean we are immune to bad news; a well-considered theology prepares us to receive both.
- Second Thoughts: Telling the Truth by Katy Stenta.
- Sermon illustrations by Tom Willadsen, Mary Austin and Bethany Peerbolte.
Emphasis Preaching Journal
David Coffin
What can we reasonably expect from the church during troubling times such as pandemics, economic downturns and racial tension in many communities? Charles Taylor’s book entitled A Secular Age, as been oft quoted to suggest that since most western hemisphere people have lost a sense of the enchanted, supernatural or transcendent nature of any God, organized religion has outlived its usefulness. Among Taylor’s many claims, is most common action in society does not need an act of God or great chain of extraordinary events (192).
Mark Ellingsen
Frank Ramirez
Bill Thomas
Bonnie Bates
1 Samuel 3:1-10, (11-20)
StoryShare
Keith Hewitt
C. David Mckirachan
Contents
“Prom Night” by Keith Hewitt
“The Heavy Lifting” by C. David McKirachan
Prom Night
by Keith Hewitt
1 Corinthians 6:1-20
Mark Randall, lost in the wailing guitar of Layla, almost missed the knock at his door. “C’mon in,” he said automatically, and reached for the volume on his record player, cranked it down a couple of notches. John Randall entered, hesitated, then closed the door behind himself and stood for a moment or two, head cocked slightly. “Is that that Clayton guy?”
“Prom Night” by Keith Hewitt
“The Heavy Lifting” by C. David McKirachan
Prom Night
by Keith Hewitt
1 Corinthians 6:1-20
Mark Randall, lost in the wailing guitar of Layla, almost missed the knock at his door. “C’mon in,” he said automatically, and reached for the volume on his record player, cranked it down a couple of notches. John Randall entered, hesitated, then closed the door behind himself and stood for a moment or two, head cocked slightly. “Is that that Clayton guy?”
CSSPlus
John Jamison
And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him.
The Village Shepherd
Janice B. Scott
I used to be quite good at identifying people I'd met previously. There was a time when I could boast that I never forgot a face. But as time has gone on, that skill has diminished to the point of non-existence. I now often fail to recognise people I've met before, or worse, I sometimes identify a complete stranger as someone I know. Naming someone correctly is even more difficult. I may recognise the face or know the person quite well, but be unable to remember their name.
Of course, the better I know someone, the more able I am to recognise them and
Of course, the better I know someone, the more able I am to recognise them and
