Rev. Zach

2 Samuel 11:1-15     Psalm 14     Ephesians 3:14-21     John 6:1-21 It has been a long week in Lafayette.  Last Thursday, the city that was selected in 2014 as the happiest city in America was shaken and laid bare for the world to see.  John Russell Howser, a man with a deeply grieved soul, shot and killed 33-year-old entrepreneur, Jillian Johnson, and Mayci Breaux, a 21 year old woman beginning to make her way in the world.  Nine others were injured before he took his own life.  Our police, our medical system, even our local news stations acted professionally, compassionately, and faithfully.  As with other similar incidents in our nation, this has sparked conversation, arguments, and accusations between friends and enemies over gun control, mental illness, and the presence of evil in our midst.  I’ve heard it said that the shooter’s name should not be spoken, but instead let us only honor Jillian and Mayci.  There...

Sermon Delivered 11/11/12 Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 Psalm 127:1-5 Hebrews 9:24-28 Mark 12:38-44 Before we reflect on today’s scripture passages, I want to remind you of one of the rich moments in scripture that we were not able to attend to last Sunday. Last Sunday we heard the story of the healing of Lazerus, and there is a line in that story that is so intimidating that it often gets skipped over. Do you remember what Thomas said after Jesus told them that – now that Lazerus was dead – it was time to go to Jerusalem? He said, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” Thomas the doubter, Thomas the cynic, Thomas the realist; Thomas is the voice of raw, unmeasured faith and costly discipleship. We remember this little, easily forgotten, line today because of the story of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz. For in this story, Ruth is with her mother-in-law because Naomi’s husband and sons have all died. Naomi returned to her ancestral home, which had been in a famine when she left, and Ruth went ...