It’s Back to School season but there’s nothing normal to go “back” to this year. The pandemic’s effects are wearing on us all and the Fall is still full of unknowns. What do we do when we’re in a disorienting time when everything is changing and not much makes sense? We rely on our five senses to make sense of the world.
Our last summer Sermon Series will be based on five sensational stories of Jesus from the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus uses the five senses (taste, sight, smell, hearing, and touch) to reveal the Way of faith in a wilderness world. Each week will feature a story of Jesus and will also offer ways to bless our neighbors using those same senses in a time when in-person neighborliness is more important than ever.
September 20
Matthew 16:21-28
Take up your Cross
Ways to share God’s love with your neighbor:
- Reach out to a neighbor you’ve never met
- Help someone carry groceries to their car
- Say hello with an elbow or fist-bump!
September 13 – Hear Ye, Hear Ye
Matthew 16:13-20
Who do you say that I am?
Ways to share God’s love with your neighbor:
- Share some music
- Play music outside, share a CD or a playlist
- Call and just listen to how someone’s doing
September 6 – The Fragrance of Faith
Matthew 15:10-20
Things that Defile
Ways to share God’s love with your neighbor:
- Bake cookies and deliver them while still warm!
- Pick some fresh flowers and share
- Offer to deliver a hot, delicious-smelling meal to someone who may need it
August 30 – Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
Matthew 14:22-33 Walking on Water
Ways to share God’s love with your neighbor:
- Walk daily and count how many neighbors you see
- Introduce yourself
- Write a note for someone to find and read
August 23 – Taste and See that the Lord is Good
Matthew 14:13-21 Feeding the Five Thousand
Ways to share God’s love with your neighbor:
- Make them a meal
- Pick up some groceries
- Order them a pizza!
