Author: Michael K. Marsh

Sermon, John 3:14-21, Numbers 21:4-9, Contradictions, Lent 4B
Lent, Sermon

Lifting Up Our Contradictions – A Sermon On John 3:14-21

Some of the funniest and most terrifying aspects of my life are my self-contradictions – the contradictions with which I live, the contradictions that live within me. My wife would probably say they are more aggravating and frustrating than funny.

Most days my life is a living contradiction between what I say and what I do, what I think and what I say, the values I claim to hold in my life and the way I live my life.

My guess is that you have contradictions in your life too. I don’t think they’re unique to me.

What if every contradiction is a messenger telling us about a deeper truth? Continue reading Lifting Up Our Contradictions – A Sermon On John 3:14-21

Michael K. Marsh13 Comments
Sermon, Lent, Lent 3B, John 2:13-22, Cleanising the Temple, Dvid Whyte
Lent, Sermon

Cleaning Out And Enlarging Life – A Sermon On John 2:13-22

I think business as usual is the issue. The animals and money changers are not the problem. They are the symptom that something else is going on.

I think Jesus went to the temple that day for one purpose and with one intention; to throw out and overturn business as usual. There are times when we need the tables of our life overturned and the animals thrown out. It’s just so easy to fall into the trap of business as usual. Continue reading Cleaning Out And Enlarging Life – A Sermon On John 2:13-22

Michael K. Marsh9 Comments
Lent, Lent 1B, Mark 1:9-15, Sermon, Life, Wilderness,
Lent, Sermon

The Most Important Day Of Your Life – A Sermon On Mark 1:9-15

In some ways the past year has felt like a long never ending season of Lent. It has been a time of fasting, self-denial, and giving up; a time when people and things have been lost or taken from us; a time that is continually pointing to our mortality and the fragility of life.

What are you doing with all that? And what is all that doing with you?

Unless we face our own mortality we can never claim the fullness of life. Unless we recognize the fragility of life we will never discover its true value. Continue reading The Most Important Day Of Your Life – A Sermon On Mark 1:9-15

Michael K. Marsh7 Comments
Sermon, Mark 1:29-39, Wilderness, Deserted Place, Good News
Desert Spirituality, Saints

Life In The Deserted Place – A Sermon On Mark 1:29-39

Jesus got up early, while it was still very dark, and left the security of the house to go to this deserted place, this wilderness place.

My guess is that nobody wants to go to that place and yet we’ve all been there.

I wonder what your deserted place is today. What parts of your life are dry, barren, empty, and desolate? Continue reading Life In The Deserted Place – A Sermon On Mark 1:29-39

Michael K. Marsh5 Comments
Sermon, Epiphany 3B, Mark 1:14-20, Letting go, Follow me, Detachment
Sermon

What Needs To Be Left Behind? – A Sermon On Mark 1:14-20

“Follow me,” isn’t only about going somewhere, it’s also about leaving behind. That’s the hard part for most of us. We’re pretty good at accumulating and clinging but not so good at letting go. More often than not our spiritual growth involves some kind of letting go. We accept Jesus’ invitation to follow, not by packing up, but by letting go.

We can never get to a new place in life unless we are willing to leave where we are. We can never hold anything new or different unless we’re willing to drop what’s already in our hands. That means letting go of our nets, getting out of our boats, and walking away from old man Zebedee. Continue reading What Needs To Be Left Behind? – A Sermon On Mark 1:14-20

Michael K. Marsh6 Comments
Parish Life, Future, Truth, Jeremiah 29:1-14, COVID-19, Reflection
Parish Life, Reflection

Remembering The Future – A Reflection On 2020

Twenty-twenty. When I say those two words I’m not sure if I intend them as a statement or a question. A lot of things could be said about 2020.

It feels like we have been exiled from our homeland, from the way things used to be, from what was familiar and comfortable, and maybe even taken for granted. It feels like we are living in a foreign land, waiting and wanting to go home.

I don’t know when we’ll get to go home. I hope and pray that with the vaccines and continued use of masks and social distancing we can return sooner than later. But I don’t know. So what do we do in the meantime? Continue reading Remembering The Future – A Reflection On 2020

Michael K. Marsh10 Comments
Heart, Listening, Truth, Sermon, John 1:43-51, 1 Samuel 3:1-20
Sermon

Deep Listening – A Sermon On John 1:43-51

If 2020 showed us anything it revealed how necessary that kind of deep and intentional listening is, and how difficult it is to sort through all the voices we hear, both within and outside ourselves, and discern a truthful way forward. I don’t expect that kind of listening to be any less necessary or difficult in 2021.

Who are you listening to these days? Who are you not listening to? What are you listening for? What do you want to hear and what do you not want to hear?
Continue reading Deep Listening – A Sermon On John 1:43-51

Michael K. Marsh5 Comments
Sermon, Mark 1:4-11, Acts 19:1-7, Social Justice, Baptism, Baptism of Jesus, Responsibility
Sermon

All Are Responsible – A Sermon On Mark 1:4-11 And Acts 19:1-7

Last week, some of you may remember, I ended my sermon by asking this question: Will we, in 2021, be different from and better than how we were in 2020?

There’s not much about the first ten days of 2021 that suggests we will. I think it’s still an open question and, I hope, still a possibility. But after the events of last Wednesday and the assault on our nation’s capitol I’m just not so sure we will be.

As I reflect on the events of last Wednesday I keep going back to words from Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, “Few are guilty, but all are responsible.” Continue reading All Are Responsible – A Sermon On Mark 1:4-11 And Acts 19:1-7

Michael K. Marsh6 Comments
Henry Van Dyke, The Story of the Other Wise Man, The Fourth Wise Man, Artaban, Epiphany, Magi
Epiphany

Do You Know The Story Of The Fourth Wise Man?

As you know, the Feast of the Epiphany commemorates the magi or wise men visiting Jesus in Bethlehem and bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh (Matthew 2:1-12). Holy scripture does not tell us their names or how many there were. No one knows for sure. Eastern Orthodoxy says there were twelve but our tradition says there were three, probably because there were three gifts, and names them Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. But what about the fourth wise man? Continue reading Do You Know The Story Of The Fourth Wise Man?

Michael K. Marsh6 Comments
Epiphany, House Blessing With Chalk
Epiphany, Liturgical Feasts and Fasts

Epiphany 2021 House Blessing With Chalk

The Church has a custom of blessing homes on the Feast of the Epiphany (January 6) and the weeks following. Family and friends gather to ask God’s blessing on their homes and those who live in or visit the home. It is an invitation for Jesus to be a daily guest in our home, our comings and goings, our conversations, our work and play, our … Continue reading Epiphany 2021 House Blessing With Chalk

Michael K. Marsh5 Comments