Sermons

For the third Sunday in Advent, Rev. Cari picked up right where she left off the week before. The text was Luke 3:7-18, and we’re still on the topic of John the Baptist and his message of “repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” This week, we get a bit more granular, as we actually get…

For the second Sunday in Advent, Rev. Cari preached on Luke 3:1-6, the introduction of John the Baptist. We meet him every Advent, and yet he is a “challenging” character for us, partly because of his message of “repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” In this sermon, Rev. Cari opens that message up, and compares…

For the first Sunday in Advent, we worshipped together as all ages, and Rev. Cari preached a short sermon on a short text: Jeremiah 33:14-16. Hope is feeling like a difficult thing for us to get a hold of right now. But hope is different from optimism… and our hope is grounded in the promise…

Today at Crossroads we focussed on the Ministry of First United Church Community Ministry Society. First is a United Church outreach ministry based in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. Rev. Cari preached on Isaiah 61:1-9, a text that is rooted in God’s vision of justice and peace for all. Rev. Cari told the story of…

For this Stewardship Dedication Sunday, Rev. Cari preached on the entire chapter of Romans 12. She also reflected on an article in The Christian Century (thanks to mentor Tony Robinson for drawing her attention to it) sharing research about the health benefits of attending public worship. Having spent a lot of time circling round the…

This morning, Rev. Cari preached on Revelation 21:1-6a, the vision of the new creation. This was the third Sunday in our stewardship season, and a day when we celebrated the gifts of many folks in the Crossroads faith community. We gave thanks for the witness of the “saints” in light — members of Crossroads who…

For our second Stewardship Sunday, Rev. Cari preached on II Corinthians 8:1-15, part of Paul’s “stewardship campaign” to the church in Corinth. She analyzes his stewardship methods, noting the places where Crossroads’ current practice lines up with Paul’s historic efforts (as well as the places where… not so much)! She also offers a robust introduction…

For the first Sunday in our four week series for Stewardship, Rev. Cari preached on Philippians 4:10-18, a text that reveals the antidote to the discontentment that plagues North American society. Today was also the UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, a day on which the United Church of Canada is encouraging folks…

For Thanksgiving Sunday, Crossroads worshipped as an all ages community, which means that there wasn’t a “sermon” as usual. Instead, Rev. Cari introduced the text for the day and then invited the congregation into prayers of thanks and intercession. The recording this week is her exploration with the congregation of the day’s Scripture text, which…