service to others

November 2019

“Excel Also in Generosity”/II Corinthians 8:1-4, 7; II Corinthians 8:7-15/Rev. Rodger Allen/11.3.19

By Rev. Laurie Williams|2019-11-06T15:36:31-06:00November 6th, 2019|Sermons|

Our sermon today incorporates three other sources. I’ll be quoting a reflection on our second Scripture lesson, a reflection by Rev. Douglass Key, Pastor of Clover Presbyterian Church, in Clover, South Carolina. And an article on verse 7, from the Parish Publishing newsletter, “Christian Giving.” And a sermon by Rev. Sarah Bird, Pastor at First Presbyterian Church, Nashville, Tennessee, on our first Scripture lesson today. And I’ll be bouncing back and forth among all three sources and my own words, so I won’t be able to keep you up-to-date on which sentence comes from where; if you want to know exactly who said what, see me some time after the service and we’ll sort it out together. […]

September 2019

“Side Tracks”/Zechariah 7:1-10; Luke 20: 27-38/Rev. Rodger Allen/9.22-19

By Rev. Laurie Williams|2019-09-23T16:23:46-05:00September 23rd, 2019|Sermons|

At the back of our Old Testament is a collection of books often called “the minor prophets.” “Minor” not because the messages of those pages are any less important than the messages of the other pages of the Bible, but because they are short books. Compared to Isaiah’s sixty-six chapters or Jeremiah’s fifty-two, some of these books are only one or two chapters long. They have names like Obadiah, and Zephaniah, and Habakkuk, whom we looked at two Sundays ago. The Lectionary, that list of recommended Scripture passages for our worship services, only steers us to the minor prophets for one brief period in its three years’ worth of readings. That period is late Summer and early Fall, of “Year 3” – and that is now. So today we’re going to take advantage of this short Lectionary window of opportunity to look at part of the book by the minor prophet Zechariah. […]

June 2019

“Souls Full of Troubles”/Psalm 88:1-5, 8-13/Luke 8:26-39/Rev. Rodger Allen/6-23-19

By Rev. Laurie Williams|2019-06-25T12:37:44-05:00June 25th, 2019|Sermons|

The man in the tombs was, most likely, afflicted with a mental illness. After Jesus’ healing, we are told in verse 35, the man is found sitting at the feet of Jesus, “clothed and in his right mind” – while before he had been unclothed and not in his right mind. He had had a mental illness; his brain had been sick. To borrow a phrase from our Psalm this morning, he had had a “soul full of troubles” – a troubled soul. […]

“Living Generously Begins with Trust”/Matt. 6: 19-21, 24; I Tim. 6: 17b; I Cor. 8:1-7/Rev. Rodger Allen/6-2-19

By Rev. Laurie Williams|2019-06-10T13:13:08-05:00June 10th, 2019|Sermons|

As our Stewardship Committee has presented to you in the past, we have become convinced of the wisdom of a “year-round stewardship program,” as opposed to one or two Sundays in the Fall, talking about only pledge cards. Stewardship, of course, is about much more than pledge cards; it incorporates use of our talents, our time, our church building and other resources, care of creation . . . And we want to use all those responsibly throughout the year – so we don’t think about “stewardship,” here, only on each second Sunday of November. Our stewardship theme for this year, as readers of our church newsletter know, thanks to Steve Blair, is “Living Generously Begins with Trust”- yes, same as today’s sermon title. And the foundational Bible verse for this year is Second Corinthians 8:7: “But just as you excel in everything . . . in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us . . . see that you also excel in this grace of giving.” […]

January 2019

“More Holidays?!?”/Rev. Rodger Allen/1-6-19/Matthew 2: 1-5, 9-11; Matthew 3:1-6, 13-17

By Rev. Laurie Williams|2019-01-07T16:34:19-06:00January 7th, 2019|Sermons|

Well, it’s been quite a month of celebrations, hasn’t it? We’ve had all the festivities leading up to Christmas: Advent, decorating, shopping for Christmas presents, wrapping all those presents; an Advent choral service, a puppet Christmas musical, our party in the Assembly Room, caroling, a variety of mission and giving projects. We went to malls, and rehearsals, and grocery stores, to get ready. Maybe you went to “Holiday in the Park” at Twin Lakes to see the displays, to help you get in the “Christmas Spirit” – did you see those wonderful red doors and stained glass windows right near the entrance? Or maybe you drove around to find houses with elaborate Christmas displays – or maybe put an elaborate display on your own house! […]

241 W Court St, Paris Illinois | 217-465-5118

“Excel Also in Generosity”/II Corinthians 8:1-4, 7; II Corinthians 8:7-15/Rev. Rodger Allen/11.3.19

“Side Tracks”/Zechariah 7:1-10; Luke 20: 27-38/Rev. Rodger Allen/9.22-19

“Souls Full of Troubles”/Psalm 88:1-5, 8-13/Luke 8:26-39/Rev. Rodger Allen/6-23-19

“Living Generously Begins with Trust”/Matt. 6: 19-21, 24; I Tim. 6: 17b; I Cor. 8:1-7/Rev. Rodger Allen/6-2-19

“More Holidays?!?”/Rev. Rodger Allen/1-6-19/Matthew 2: 1-5, 9-11; Matthew 3:1-6, 13-17

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241 W Court St, Paris Illinois | 217-465-5118

November 2019

“Excel Also in Generosity”/II Corinthians 8:1-4, 7; II Corinthians 8:7-15/Rev. Rodger Allen/11.3.19

September 2019

“Side Tracks”/Zechariah 7:1-10; Luke 20: 27-38/Rev. Rodger Allen/9.22-19

June 2019

“Souls Full of Troubles”/Psalm 88:1-5, 8-13/Luke 8:26-39/Rev. Rodger Allen/6-23-19

“Living Generously Begins with Trust”/Matt. 6: 19-21, 24; I Tim. 6: 17b; I Cor. 8:1-7/Rev. Rodger Allen/6-2-19

January 2019

“More Holidays?!?”/Rev. Rodger Allen/1-6-19/Matthew 2: 1-5, 9-11; Matthew 3:1-6, 13-17

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