Sermon Recaps
Week 1 – Self: Strong & Broken
In our first sermon of the series, Self: Strong & Broken, we talked about paradoxes of the self – that we are strong and broken, that we are loved as we are and called to change. We focused on a central question – “why is it so hard to be who I want to be?” – in light of the Apostle Paul’s writing in Romans 7:15-25. Instead of trying to solve these contradictions or accepting false choices – like self-righteousness, shame, or grace without growth – we talked about embracing the paradoxes of the self. Here are four practices outlined to help live with the tension and embrace wholeness:
Prayer of Examen:
1. Center yourself & acknowledge God’s presence.
2. Pray sequentially through the previous day, asking God to make you aware of things you might not have noticed.
3. Pray into a moment of light: Where did I live from my God-given gifts, or strength, or power?
4. Pray into a moment of struggle: Where did I live from my shadow self or ego, or let fear or false choice guide my actions?
5. Finally, conclude by asking God to guide you and heighten your awareness moving forward.
Create a Mantra of Grace:
Come up with a catchphrase that reminds you to receive grace before trying to fix anything. It could sound like this: “God’s grace is already here.” “Thanks be to God, who is rescuing me from [name the pattern or situation].” Or – “I am already held.” Say this whenever it feels like the tension or false choices are gaining strength.
Practice Repentance is a Return to Relationship:
Instead of practicing repentance as punishment or transaction, remember it’s a return to relationship. Making the choice to turn away from disconnection and toward light and connection is a liberating way to participate in the holy work of God.
Participate in Authentic Community:
Show up fully and welcome others to do the same. It requires an intention to cultivate community that creates space for authenticity and tension. In order for St. Paul’s to be a community that embodies this, we need to practice sharing our strength and struggle, and receiving others with grace and gratitude when they do share honestly.
Week 2 – Agency: Responsible & Not in Control
In our second sermon of the series, Agency: Responsible & Not in Control, we focused on paradoxes of agency – notably, that we are responsible and not in control. We have a duty to act, and our faith provides shape to those actions – and yet we aren’t assured of outcomes. As we looked at Ecclesiastes 11:1-6, our central question was – “if my efforts aren’t changing things, do they even matter?” We focused on avoiding false choices in an effort to simplify the complexity and contradictions of the world – false choices like clenching to control, diminishing our power, or treating anxiety as virtue. Instead, we considered four practices that help us embrace this paradox and act wisely:
Clarify What Is Yours to Carry:
Part of the maturing process is figuring out what’s yours to carry – because no individual or single community can carry everything. To help in this discernment, you might turn to trusted voices in your life and ask for their input. Additionally, consider creating a list and filtering it through the following questions:
- PASSION: what really keeps me up at night?
- PROFICIENCY: what do my skills and experiences uniquely equip me to do?
- PROXIMITY: what things are in my reach or sphere of influence?
Act Small and Consistently:
Instead of trying to change everything at once, focus on small, measured, repeated acts of faithfulness. This hones our focus on the work, not the outcomes – and helps prevent burnout or frustration. Consider adopting one pattern of justice, one small change, one leap of generosity, or one practice of compassion each week or month. Then, continue those acts as you add in new ones over time.
Practice Sabbath as Resistance:
Sabbath is a refusal to believe that the world depends on me. It humbles us, honors God, increases our fruitfulness in the long run, and helps us realign with our Center. When we reframe rest as a declaration of trust, we resist prevalent narratives that label it as moral acquiescence. Instead of constantly focusing on productivity or activism, carve out time for delight, restoration, and joy.
Learn to Measure Faithfulness Differently:
Scriptures and faith call us to responsibility and action – but they don’t reduce their assessment of those things to outcomes or impact. Reframe the question away from results and toward showing up faithfully, authentically, with courage and love.
Week 3 – Faith: Doubt & Belief
In our third sermon of this series, Faith: Doubt & Belief, our focus was on paradoxes of faith – namely, that faith requires both doubt & belief. We focused on John 6, where Jesus feeds the multitude, walks on water, and shares one of his most challenging teachings. Our central question was, “How do we grow a faith resilient enough to withstand doubt?” After defining our terms for faith, doubt, and belief, we talked about ineffective ways to address paradoxes of faith – including confusing certainty for faith, thinking of doubt as failure, or construing doubt as the destination. And we talked about faith, instead, as fidelity to the journey that holds belief and doubt in tandem. Here are four practices outlined to help us live in the tension and embrace this paradox:
Give Voice to Your Questions:
Things that are unresolved make us uncomfortable; our best bet is to bring them into the light for further examination. Don’t rush to answer complex, nuanced questions; instead, let them linger as you journey with them. Pastor Kyle suggested writing down a big life question on a note card, speaking it aloud in prayer, and carrying it with you. Over time, listen deeply to the question and to your own responses to it; see what it awakens in you and invites out of you.
Stay in the Story:
Don’t let doubts or questions allow you to write yourself out of the story. Too many Christians think these things disqualify them from community – but the church is right where our questions belong. Remember that faith is fidelity to the story that God is writing in your life, at St. Paul’s, and in the world – so keep engaging, showing up, and participating – wholly and authentically.
Distinguish Certainty from Trust:
Certainty seeks control; trust accepts vulnerability. When something unresolved makes you want to withdraw, consider whether your response is a need for control. Ask two questions in tandem:
What am I trying to control right now?
What is mine to trust instead?
The goal is to think less about how I can be sure and more about how I can be faithful.
Practice Questions in Community:
Doubt in darkness leads to despair; doubt in community becomes discernment. Questions carried privately can become a burden; questions spoken in community create new possibilities. Seek out a small group that will hold space without rushing to resolution, prioritize curiosity, and value listening above fixing. One way to practice this at St. Paul’s would be through our upcoming Sunday morning conversation groups during Lent.
Week 4 – Community: Safe & Brave
In week four of this series, Community: Safe & Brave, we reflected on the doors to relationships that we open or close every day. Considering a series of hospitality stories with Abraham, Sarah, and Lot in Genesis chapters 18-20, the key question is “How can we build authentic community?” We can be tempted to stay inside for self-protection and comfort, or we can be so open that we no longer have a healthy space to invite people into, or we can try to be someone we’re not in an attempt to fit in. We are called to cultivate spaces in our lives, in our church, and in the public square that are simultaneously secure and courageous. Here are a few practices to try toward that end:
Comfort is Currency – so use it well!
The safer and more comfortable we are, the more we are called to bravely give up some of that comfort in order to make access more comfortable for others. What will you do with your insider privileges?
Cultivate Curiosity
Learn about the unique places people come from, going beyond a thin tolerance or an assumption that difference is a threat. In one sentence, where or who do you come from, and how did that shape you? Now ask for someone else’s answer to that same question.
Vulnerability is a Bridge
it takes courage to share more deeply, and we want to be a community where it is safe to do so. Try asking for help, try asking for prayer – your vulnerability can create space for someone else to be vulnerable.
Get Outside!
Try something new, or literally get into the outdoors! Pray, “God, what do you want me to notice?” Then see, hear, feel, smell, taste your way into what just might be a nudge from God worth following. We start to discern doors and bridges where before there were only walls and dead-ends.
5 – Life by Way of Death
Our final installment of The Promise of Paradox, Life by Way of Death, finds us wrestling with a contradiction at the heart of our Christian faith – that life comes by way of death. We experience this truth on the cosmic scale through the new life inaugurated in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. But we see this paradox take shape in small ways sprinkled throughout our lives. Our grounding scripture was Mark 8:31-38, and our central question was, “How do we open ourselves to the God who is already at work within death and darkness?” Instead of being tempted by false choices – like resurrection without crucifixion, fixation on loss, or strength as self-sufficiency – we considered the invitation to face grief and loss in order to experience new life on the other side. Here’s four practices that might help do that:
Name What is Ending:
Most of us rush to fixing or numbing challenges before we’ve named what’s truly broken. But we can’t identify resurrection if we haven’t defined the death. Give voice to grief. To help us with this, consider these questions:
- RESOLVE: what grief or loss do I need to face to move towards resurrection?
- RELEASE: what things might I be invited to release in this season?
- REDIRECT: what practices of my daily living are no longer bringing me life?
Practice Shame-Free Weakness:
Vulnerability is not failure; it’s often the frontier to true life. When we admit our limits, we create space for grace. Choose one area of your life to stop pretending you’ve got under control – and embrace the promise that you don’t have to. Then share this truth without feelings of guilt or inadequacy – with God, at least, but hopefully also with a trusted person or small group.
Linger in the Darkness:
Grief isn’t about rushing to resolution; avoid avoidance. Learn to face darkness and sit with it for a time; maturity looks like staying present with what is difficult without being consumed by it. Tending our wounds keeps them from festering and infecting the rest of ourselves. These may help with the tending:
- Carve out time daily to sit in silence and stillness; set a 5 min time to start. If grief or difficulty emerges, don’t push them away. Extend this daily time in the coming weeks.
- Fast from numbing habits, like doom scrolling, drunkenness, emotional eating, stress shopping, etc.
- Consider pairing this with a prayer of lament or confession
Trust the Promise You Cannot Yet See:
It’s a sheer act of faith to move with confidence into what our eyes can’t perceive. But resurrection is often recognized only in retrospect. Connect with community to help you navigate the unknown. In some seasons, you’ll be the supported, in others the supporter; that’s the beauty of community. Also consider this mantra prayer: “I trust God is already at work within this.” Pray these words not until you believe it, but until you’ve seen it.