Sweet Spots
Ideas and messages from Len Sweet.
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Be Square
Be SquareLectionary1 November 2019All Saints DayDaniel 7:1-3, 15-18Psalm 149Ephesians 1:11-23Luke 6:20-31Text to LifeWhat a week? We have enjoyed (or endured) the weirdness of Halloween costumes and All Hallows Even craziness. Halloween is fun. It is cloying. It is annoying. It is a billion-dollar business, not the #2 ranking in retail…
Trust Your Intuition
Trust Your Intuition Story Lectionary3 November 2019The Honoring of All SaintsThe Raising Up of a New Prophet Like Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-22)Psalm 2: The Son of GodPsalm 22: The Song of Deliverance and God’s VictoryPsalm 110: The Priest of MelchizedekGod Knows the Name of the Son (Proverbs 30:3-6)The Prophecy of Amos…
Signs –Preaching Tip for 2 November 2019
The scriptures are filled with signs. Many of them have underlying metaphors that will help you to illuminate them. Try making art of biblical signs and display them. Or use art or stained glass that you already have and point out the signs and how they point to Jesus’ as…
Pastor’s Prayer for All Saints 2 November 2019
O my God! I ask thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear, the grace to fulfill perfectly Thy Holy Will, to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life, so that we may one day be united together in Heaven for all Eternity. Amen.
–St. Therese
Restoration
20th Sunday After Pentecost
God is a God of restoration. He restores my soul for His namesake. He is in the
business of making all things new. We were a broken-down old house, but we are now a
million-dollar restoration. Jesus came to restore us back to a relationship with our Creator. Let
these songs of restoration cover you today.
“All Things New” by Steven Curtis Chapman
https://youtu.be/oKx_hx5itIM
“Here With Me” – MercyMe
https://youtu.be/74CNUExD4I8
Feasting on Leviathan
Feasting on LeviathanStory Lectionary27 October 2019God’s Feeding of Manna and Quail in the Wilderness Through Moses (Exodus 16)God’s Promise of Abundance and the Call for Faithfulness (Deuteronomy 8)Elisha’s Feeding of the Multitude of People with Bread from First Fruits (2 Kings 2:42-44)The Story of Ruth (The Barley Harvest)Psalm 23: God’s…
All Hallows Eve –Preaching Tip for 27 October 2019
Tell the old stories of All Hallows Eve to re-sanctify this holiday, which originally had a unique Christian flavor. Help people understand the power of repentance and prayer in order to prepare for All Saints Day. All Hallows Eve can be a powerful reminder of why we need God in…
Holy Spirit, powerful Consoler, sacred Bond of the Father and the Son, Hope of the afflicted, descend into my heart and establish in it your loving dominion. Enkindle in my tepid soul the fire of your Love so that I may be wholly subject to you. We believe that when you dwell in us, you also prepare a dwelling for the Father and the Son. Deign, therefore, to come to me, Consoler of abandoned souls, and Protector of the needy. Help the afflicted, strengthen the weak, and support the wavering. Come and purify me. Let no evil desire take possession of me. You love the humble and resist the proud. Come to me, glory of the living, and hope of the dying. Lead me by your grace that I may always be pleasing to you. Amen.
–St. Augustine
Memories
This last Sunday, I had the chance to go back to the church I attended as a teenager for a
Youth group reunion. For the first time in over 30 years, we were together again worshiping. The
immensity of the moment hit me as we sang the first hymn.
This was the place where I first learned about being a Christian. This place was my
foundation for everything that has happened since. I was Baptised there, I was called to the
ministry there, I got married there.
First Baptist Stone Mountain still echos in my mind. Though I am no longer a Baptist as
far as my Tribe goes, I am still connected. I will always hear the voices of my youth. I will
always remember the songs we sang. When I hear those songs of my youth, I am transported
back to that place and those people who still mean the world to me. They are part of who I am,
part of how I think, and part of my story.
There are two songs that come to mind as I write this article:
Alan Jackson – Precious Memories
Ed Sheeran – Castle On The Hill
One Thing I Know
One Thing I KnowLectionary27 October 201920th Sunday After PentecostJoel 2:23-32Psalm 652 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18Luke 18:9-14Text to LifeDon’t you just love those people who are always “right?” What would we do without the resident “know-it-alls?” It is such comfort to know that on every subject and on every issue, no matter…