Rev. Zach

Acts 8:26-39 I have a confession to make. On Thursdays, I’ve been taking improv classes. Now, don’t worry, I don’t intend to turn my sermons into improv skits – although you never know how the Spirit may move – no, I’m more interested in exercising my brain. I’m more interested in coming up with new ways to teach and lead in a variety of other contexts, and I’m learning what it means to work on creative solutions to unforeseen circumstances. Life is like that, you know. No matter how well thought or planned your life may be, there will always be unforeseen circumstances that require creative thinking and cooperation. That can require some heavy lifting – mentally and emotionally – and Dramatic Improvisation is a way to build the “muscles” that are needed to do that work. What I love about improv is that it forces me to think in ways that not only create solutions but also create opportunities for others. It’s not enough for me to offer the answer. I have to create space for others to s...

Acts 7:2a, 44-60 Today, in the story of the stoning of Stephen, we have received what is arguably either the best or the worst sermon ever recorded. It is the best in the sense that he spoke truth to power and in that his words moved people to action. It is the worst in that the actions they were moved to had nothing to do with the truth he proclaimed! Of course, Jesus met with the same reaction in Luke 4 when he told those in Nazareth that God had a pretty solid track record of helping those who were outside of the covenant. You may recall that they moved pretty quickly from calling him the hometown hero to trying to throw him off a cliff. It’s understandable that Jesus slipped away because it was not time yet. He had just begun his ministry and his death would’ve been pretty meaningless if it was from being shoved off a cliff by bullies. What about Stephen, then? Why do we keep this story, and why do we tell this story? Sure, he was the first Christian Martyr on record, but there we...

Luke 24:13-35 As I began to study today’s passage I could not shake the feeling that this could make a great one-act play! You could call it, “Two Travelers and a Stranger Jesus,” or “What was in that Bread?” or maybe even “Hope Came Back.” We could, of course, just stick with “The Road to Emmaus,” but what kind of title is that? Plus, we want to grab people’s attention with this play, and with a title like that most people who are familiar with the story are going to think they already know what it’s all about. Now, I realize that this play would technically only have two scenes – on the road and in the house – but I think we could probably broaden that out a bit with some creative lighting and dramatic blocking (for you non-theater types, blocking is essentially the choreography of people on the stage). I think it could look something like this: Scene 1 (vv. 13-18): This one would be all narration. The disciples are joined by a stranger on a dark and mysterious night. The stranger is...

Luke 24:1-12 “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” he said. “He is not here, but has risen.” As far back as I can remember, at least in my adult life, part of my Easter celebration has always been to call my mom and say, “He is Risen!” and hear her respond, “He is risen indeed!” That’s how we greet each other, without even saying hello! Likewise, many of us have that tradition at church – even before the service begins – and I love being able to say that together as God’s people! It’s such a great feeling to proclaim the resurrection of Christ. As good as it feels to say that, and as basic as it is to our proclamation about God, I seem to hear from more people these days that the thing they just can’t fathom about Christianity is believing in the resurrection of Jesus. Perhaps it has become “an idle tale” for so many because of advances in science that make us want to claim a greater understanding of the mysteries of the universe than we might actually have. Scientific curio...