Fourth Sunday In Lent Join us ~ We Make a Place for Everyone! Less Grumbling, More Humbling Grumbling! The crowd around Jesus—the “in” crowd, that is—was grumbling. Grumbling because Jesus welcomed those who traditionally had been set apart: tax collectors and sinners. Who are those who cause us to grumble? Whose seemingly undeserved handout or [...]

Third Sunday in Lent Join us ~ We Make a Place for Everyone! Fertilized, Fruitful, and Free God’s word for us today is nutritious and wholesome, though hard to digest. The gospel reading seems oddly brutal alongside the abundance and comfort of the texts from Isaiah (“delight yourselves in rich food”) and Psalm 63 (“My spirit [...]

Second Sunday in Lent Join us ~ We Make a Place for Everyone! Purpose and Perseverance This week’s gospel text from Luke presents another temptation for Jesus. The Pharisees approach Jesus with a warning about his safety, telling him to “get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you” (Luke 13:31). Not only do [...]

First Sunday in Lent Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone An Identity on Which We Can Rely In Luke’s gospel, the story of Jesus’ temptation comes immediately after his baptism and a lengthy listing of his ancestors. Both help confirm the identity of Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. Now [...]

Transfiguration of Our Lord/Last Sunday after Epiphany Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone! Lifting the Veil The transfiguration is frustrating for disciples—past and present—who long for an unmediated experience of God. Jesus’ glory is revealed, and then, just as suddenly, a cloud descends and the vision fades. And even though Paul contrasts the [...]

Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone! Overview The promise and its fulfillment may not look at all alike, even though they are intimately connected. Paul speaks about seeds and plants as he tries to picture resurrection life. Joseph’s brothers never thought they would see him alive again, so how shocking he must have [...]

Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone Overview A fundamental decision is placed before us this day: Will we choose the way of blessing or the way of woe? The death and resurrection of Jesus is the pivot on which the decision turns. To be in Christ means that we get planted by streams [...]

Join Us! We Make A Place for Everyone! God’s Imperfect People “Go in peace, share the good news.” Week after week Christians gather together, hear the word proclaimed, share a meal, and are sent out to bear the good news of God in Christ Jesus to a hungry, needy world. Inside though, we wonder why [...]

Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone! Presentation of Our Lord Forty days after the birth of Christ we mark the day Mary and Joseph presented him in the temple in accordance with Jewish law. There a prophetess named Anna began to speak of the redemption of Israel when she saw the young child. [...]

Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone Celebrating RIC Sunday On January 26, PHLC will celebrate and reinforce our commitment to welcome, inclusion, and advocacy. This year's RIC theme is Resilient Community. We ask you to bring a small container of water to be used during a portion of the service where we will observe [...]

Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone Talk about Variety! Epiphanies don’t just happen in church—a sudden insight can lead to a “Eureka!” in scientific experiments, an “Aha!” in a detective’s casework, a “Checkmate!” in a fierce chess game, and even a self-satisfied “Yes!” in Sudoku, crosswords, or finding a set of lost keys. [...]

Join Us! We Make a Place for Everyone The Voice of God Are you longing to hear God’s voice? What would it be like to hear God call you by name? For many it seems that God spoke to people long ago and far away, but now in this time and place God’s voice is [...]