Clik here to view.
Open.
By Dennis Sanders There’s an episode of the animated series The Simpsons, that shows the First Church of Springfield. The church sign usually has some witty saying on it in keeping with the series....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Open…and Affirming
First-St. Paul will discern becoming an Open and Affirming Congregation to LGBT persons. Sometime in July, I got a call from Mark Johnston who is the Executive Director of Gay and Lesbian Affirming...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Road to 2019
On September 13, members of First Christian-St. Paul gathered for a Long-Range Planning retreat. Tabitha Isner, an ordained Disciples of Christ minister, facilitated the discussion. Several exercises...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Wish You Were Here…
The following is an adapted letter that the pastor wrote to past members of First Christian Church over the summer. To the former members First Christian Church: Members of First Christian-St. Paul...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Because You Asked…
Dan Adolphson driving the First Christian-Minneapolis bus. It 10 years ago that I invited a friend of mine to come to church with me. Dan had a church background, so this wasn’t anything unfamiliar to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Cup of Cold Water
I assure you that everybody who gives even a cup of cold water to these little ones because they are my disciples will certainly be rewarded.” -Matthew 10:42 Every so often, I get the feeling that what...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Jesus of Suburbia
I’m a city kid that grew up with an antipathy towards the ‘burbs. So as my mentor Bob Brite has said, “the Holy Spirit, the practical joker that she is” has me preaching at a church in the suburbs. And...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Numbers Game
If you’re the pastor of a mainline Protestant congregation, one of the things that you do a lot of is obesess over numbers. We are always paying attention to the attendance on Sunday mornings during...
View ArticleClik here to view.
More to Life Than This
In the aftermath of Tuesday’s election, there are people who are very happy and others who are sad or angry. After months of endless campaigning, all the votes have been counted. There are winners....
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Great Halloween Debacle of 2014
We had the candy. We had the costumes. We had the cars. All we needed was the kids. With the exception of one child, that did not happen. On a cold Halloween evening, members from First Christian-St....
View ArticleClik here to view.
“For the Sake of the Call”
Jeremiah 1:4-10 and 7:1-11 This was going to be my sermon on Christ the King Sunday, November 23. I went in another direction. That said, I wanted to share it as a commentary on Sunday’s texts. It...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What’s Going On?
Lord, how long will I call for help and you not listen? I cry out to you, “Violence!” but you don’t deliver us. 3 Why do you show me injustice and look at anguish so that...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Ferguson and Everything After
The following was written on my personal blog in August, shortly after the shooting of Michael Brown. In light of the recent grand jury decisions in the shooting deaths of Brown and Eric Garner, it...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Christmas Eve at First-St. Paul
Our Christmas Eve worship service will take place at 7PM. The service will include the singing of hymns and the reading of Scriptures telling us of the arrival of Christ, our Good News. We are...
View ArticleA Change Is Gonna Come
“A Change is Gonna Come” | Isaiah 42:1-9 |Third Sunday of Advent | December 14, 2014 | Dennis Sanders, preaching Read the sermon text.
View ArticleClik here to view.
All Is Calm
This year marked a century since the start of the First World War. The four years of that war ended up shaping much of the 20th century mostly for ill. When the war ended in 1918, everyone hoped this...
View ArticleDo You Know the Way to San Juan?
Matthew 1:18-25 | Fourth Sunday in Advent | December 21, 2014 | Dennis Sanders, preaching Read the sermon text.
View ArticleAll Is Calm
Isaiah 52:7-10, Luke 2:1-20, John 1:1-18 | Christmas Eve | December 24, 2014 | Dennis Sanders,preaching “Christmas Eve of 1914 was a sign of God’s peace. No, it didn’t last long, but it showed what...
View ArticleClik here to view.
More to Life Than This
In the aftermath of Tuesday’s election, there are people who are very happy and others who are sad or angry. After months of endless campaigning, all the votes have been counted. There are winners....
View Article
