Stories & Sermons

We do a disservice to the dead when we hallow their memories in stained glass, pretending they were perfect.  Bruce Lee Abshire was anything but perfect, and wonderfully so.  Some of his most memorable imperfections included: doing laps around the sanctuary in a hotwired golf cart clutching a live chicken, bootlegging moonshine across the County line in...

Beginnings of Faith (Romans 14:1-12) Sermon by Father Mike, 9/16/20   There was a time in 2016 when I had just started seminary. Only one year before, I’d received a strange call—I was not a religious person, I didn’t know the stories of scripture, but I felt that God was calling me into church, and...

Working Class Sermon by Rev. Brian Combs, 9/9/2020 During the boom of the Industrial Revolution, workers weren’t guaranteed weekends off, lunch breaks, 8-hour shifts, access to fresh air, safe job sites, or sanitary facilities to relieve themselves. And starting at age 5, children were expected to follow their parents down into the mines.  Until 10,000...

In Gratitude Sermon by: Father Mike, 8/19/2020 Introduction: Over the past week, I was lucky to spend time resting and enjoying vacation. For part of my time, I decided to spend two days bikepacking in Pisgah National Forest. I knew that this would stretch my limits—the trip itinerary logged more miles than I’d usually ride...