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First Sunday after Christmas Day - C

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Emphasis Preaching Journal

Losing a child is every... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2006
Losing a child is every parent's worst nightmare. Most parents have experienced this at
Seated among the learned rabbis... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2006
Seated among the learned rabbis in the temple, the young Jesus displays a remarkable
On his visit to the... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2006
On his visit to the temple, Jesus amazed the Jewish teachers with his intelligent answers
The boy Samuel served... -- 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
The boy Samuel served a faithful apprenticeship at the shrine at Shiloh, without seeking perso
Part of the thrill... -- 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
Part of the thrill of competing in team sports is the honor of wearing the uniform.
Every mother or grandmother... -- 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
Every mother or grandmother who sews probably can tell a story of sewing a garment for a child
What's that? Debbie asked... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
"What's that?" Debbie asked as she watched her grandma at the kitchen counter preparing supper
In the 2000 film... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
In the 2000 film, Chocolat (among those nominated for Best Picture), a mysterious stran
In the early 1970s... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
In the early 1970s, a psychology professor at Stanford University named David L.
I remember the first... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
I remember the first tuxedo I ever wore (junior prom in high school), the most important day w
Seated among the learned... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
Seated among the learned rabbis in the temple, the young Jesus displays a remarkable awareness
Jesus' parents came to... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
Jesus' parents came to the rescue of the temple teachers just in time.
On his visit to... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
On his visit to the Temple, Jesus amazed the Jewish teachers with his intelligent answers, and
Losing a child is... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
Losing a child is every parent's worst nightmare.
There are many reasons... -- 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2003
There are many reasons why God shouldn't have called you. But don't worry.
After a panic-stricken three... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
After a panic-stricken three-day search for their twelve-
There are many father-son... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
There are many father-son relationships which catch our attention.
Police were investigating some suspicious... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
Police were investigating some suspicious activity in a parking garage in a suburb of New York City.
Our first parish was in... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
Our first parish was in the country, two hours from the closest city.
People magazine likes... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
People magazine likes to run photo columns on "The Worst Dressed" and "The Best Dressed" indi
This text speaks of the... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
This text speaks of the Church and its obligation to a life marked by love, forgiveness, and "Christ
Sometimes the adults say they... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
Sometimes the adults say they learn as much from the children's message as they do from the sermon.
Lewis Smedes is a professor... -- Colossians 3:12-17 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 2000
Lewis Smedes is a professor at Fuller Theological Seminary in California.
From the very beginning, Jesus... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 1997
From the very beginning, Jesus was teaching us to call God "Father." God wants us to call him "Dad.
Inspiration comes and goes mysteriously... -- Luke 2:41-52 -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C -- 1997
Inspiration comes and goes mysteriously.

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The Village Shepherd

Growing In Wisdom And Stature -- Luke 2:41-52 -- Janice B. Scott -- First Sunday after Christmas Day - C
There's a wonderful children's book by David McKee, called "Not Now, Bernard." (Published by Rando

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UPCOMING WEEKS
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Easter 4
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160+ – Illustrations / Stories
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34 – Commentary / Exegesis
5 – Pastor's Devotions
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New & Featured This Week

Emphasis Preaching Journal

David Kalas
In the sometimes-tiresome debate over science and scripture with respect to creation, it’s easy to become distracted. While the argument typically requires a focus on the how, we may lose sight of the what. And so, for just a moment, let me invite us to think for a moment about what God created.
Mark Ellingsen
Frank Ramirez
Bonnie Bates
Bill Thomas
Acts 8:26-40
As a local church pastor, I was often asked if I would baptize a child whose family were not members of the church. Some churches rebelled against this, but I remember this scripture — the hunger for understanding and inclusion of the Eunuch and Philp’s response — to teach and share and baptize in the name of our God. How could we turn anyone away from the rite of baptism?

StoryShare

Peter Andrew Smith
“Dad, I think you worked a miracle.” Rolf slowly walked around the tree. “After that windstorm, I assumed this tree was as good as gone.”

“We just needed to give the branches time to heal and come back,” Michael replied.

 “I know, but so many of them were battered and broken I figured that it couldn’t recover. Now though it looks just like it did before the storm.” Rolf paused. “Do you think it will bear any fruit this summer?”

CSSPlus

John Jamison
Object: A live plant that produces fruit, and a broken branch from that plant. I used a tomato plant from a local greenhouse. Ideally, find a plant with blossoms or small fruit already growing. If you use a different kind of fruit-producing plant, just change the script to fit.

* * *

Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Excellent!

The Immediate Word

Christopher Keating
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Mary Austin
Elena Delhagen
Dean Feldmeyer
Quantisha Mason-Doll
For April 28, 2024:
  • On The Way To Gaza by Chris Keating based on Acts 8:26-40. On the way to Gaza, Philip discovers the startling ways the Spirit of God moves across borders, boundaries, customs, and traditions.
  • Second Thoughts: Abiding by Katy Stenta based on John 15:1-8.
  • Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Tom Willadsen, Elena Delhagen, Dean Feldmeyer.

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Call to Worship:

Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. In our service today, let us absorb from the vine all the nourishment we need.

Invitation to Confession:

Jesus, sometimes our branches become cut off from the vine.
Lord, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes our branches are withered.
Christ, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes we fail to produce good fruit.
Lord, have mercy.

SermonStudio

Stan Purdum
We will meet Psalm 22 in its entirety on Good Friday, but here the lectionary designates just verses 23-31. The lectionary psalms generally illuminate the week's First Lesson, which in this case is about the covenant initiated by God with Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 17. The nine verses from this psalm, while not inappropriate, nonetheless leave us looking for an obvious connection with the First Lesson.

John S. Smylie
I think some people are natural-born gardeners. Our Lord grew up in a society that was familiar with agriculture. The images that he used to explain the ways of his Father in heaven are familiar to his audience. Growing up, my closest experience to agriculture was living in, "the Garden State." Most people, when they pass through New Jersey, are surprised to see that expression on the license plates of vehicles registered in New Jersey. Most folks traveling through New Jersey experience the megalopolis, the corridor between New York City and Washington DC.
Ron Lavin
A pastor in Indiana went to visit an 87-year-old man named Ermil, who was a hospital patient. A member of his church told the pastor about this old man who was an acquaintance. "He's not a believer, but he is really in need," the church member said. "I met him at the county home for the elderly. He's a lonely old man with no family and no money."

Paul E. Robinson
"Love is a many splendored thing...." Or so we heard Don Cornwall and the Four Aces sing time and again. Of course you or I might have other words to describe love, depending on our situation.

Love. "I love you." "I love to play golf." "I just love pistachio lush!" "It's tough to love some people." "Jesus loves me, this I know."

Love.

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