by Steve Thomason | Aug 25, 2015 | Caricatures
We started watching Downton Abbey this week. I couldn’t resist drawing Carson. He has one of the best voices on TV. The first time I heard him speak I knew I recognized his voice, but I couldn’t place it. Then it hit me. He played the Ogre Nish in Elle...
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by Steve Thomason | Aug 21, 2015 | Theology
Be honest. What is the first thought or feeling that comes to you when you hear the word theology? Does it conjure up images of crusty old German men using big words? Does it evoke fear of condemnation from holier-than-thou Bible thumpers? If so, that is unfortunate....
by Steve Thomason | Aug 19, 2015 | sermons2015
This sermon is the first in a series called “Tough Questions.” We polled the congregation back in June and asked for questions upon which we could build a sermon series. The first question is the biggest question humans tend to ask. How can a good God...
by Steve Thomason | Aug 18, 2015 | Devos
The Gospel reading that we attached to the sermon this past weekend was from Luke 13:1-9. The truth is that the sermon was topical—addressing the question “Why does God allow suffering?”—so it wasn’t intended to expound upon any particular passage. We chose this text...
by Steve Thomason | Aug 14, 2015 | Theology
The new sermon series on Tough Questions begins this weekend. The congregation took the month of June to turn in questions that they would like to have addressed in a sermon. We compiled them and came up with four biggies. This weekend I will be wrestling with one of...
by Steve Thomason | Aug 10, 2015 | Books - Missional Church
Bouman, Stephen P. 2013. The Mission Table: Renewing Congregation and Community. (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress). Author Stephen P. Bouman is the Executive Director of Congregational and Synodical Mission in the ELCA Churchwide Office. [divider] My Thoughts...
by Steve Thomason | Aug 9, 2015 | postfoundational, Theology
Labels are a necessary evil. On the one hand, we need them. I am very thankful when a bottle is labeled “poison” for example. That label can save lives. Yet, labels are more often harmful when applied to people. Labels reduce people to abstract ideas and...
by Steve Thomason | Aug 6, 2015 | sermons2015
This is the final sermon in a series on the Apostles’ Creed. It pulls it all together and asks if the Trinity really makes any difference in our everyday lives. Narrative Lectionary texts: Deuteronomy 6:1-9; Matthew 28:16-20 listen to the sermon audio CLICK...
by Steve Thomason | Jul 31, 2015 | Spiritual Formation
How should we structure a ministry of spiritual formation for the local church? That is the big question for the leader of spiritual formation. This document is a preliminary presentation of my basic theology of spiritual formation and suggests some key pathways to...
by Steve Thomason | Jul 30, 2015 | sermons2015
[slideshare id=51111578&doc=ibelieveingodsermonslides-150730180818-lva1-app6891] Listen to sermon audio CLICK HERE. I didn’t write out a manuscript for this sermon, but put notes in the Powerpoint. Download I Believe in God...
