Harvard Avenue Christian Church

text : Jeremiah 33:14-16 theme verse : “In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.” (Jeremiah 33:15) // Do you ever feel like you’re tripping your way to the end of the year? In a […]

text : Psalm 63: 1 – 8 theme verse : “Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.” (Psalm 63:3) You spend three months without your usual responsibilities, you learn a few things. You see different things, and you see things differently. Sabbath, sabbatical, rest, renewal. What it means, what […]

text : Acts 20:17-24 theme verse : “I do not count my life of any value to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received form the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God’s grace.” (Acts 20:24) // We all know that shrilling sound called “feedback” […]

text : Proverbs 11:24-25 theme verse : “Some give freely, yet grow all the richer; others withhold what is due and only suffer want.” (Proverbs 11:24) // An old rap song from my youth included the line, ‘You better check yourself before your wreck yourself.’ While none of the other lines were memorable, that one […]

text : Luke 17:11-19 theme verse : “Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice.” (Luke 17:15) // Researchers have noted that positive emotions wear off quickly.  Dr. Robert Emmons suggests that our emotional systems like newness.  They like novelty.  They like change.  We […]

text : John 17:10-19 theme verse : “As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” (John 17:18) // Have you ever been confused in a conversation to the point you felt the person talking to you was speaking a foreign language? In John’s version of ‘The Lord’s […]

text : Matthew 13:24-30 theme verse : “…in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both grow together…” (Mt 13:29-30) // Franciscan Priest Richard Rohr points out that some Native Americans have a tradition of leaving a blemish in one corner of the rug they are weaving because they believe […]

text : 1 Peter 1:13-16 theme verse : “For it is written, ‘You shall be holy for I am holy.’” (1 Peter 1:16) // Holy Shmoly. Who can really be holy? At best we’re what Nadia Bolz Weber calls Accidental Saints, right? Who wants to be holier than thou anyway? It turns out that some […]

text : Luke 14:15-24 theme verse : “Sir, what you ordered has been done, and there is still room.” (Luke 14:22) // The invitation comes. You cross-check calendars. She can attend. He’s got an appointment. Everyone is exhausted. The RSVP card stares back at you thinking, “What do you say?” You check the box next […]

text : Job 12:7-10 theme verse : “But ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you…” (Job 12:7) // What if I told you that a man who preached to the birds also saved the church? Francis of Assisi did both these things by many […]

text : James 3:13-18 theme verse : “Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.” (James 3:13) // By any number of accounts, we see that our decisions and actions are having some detrimental effects on the world we call home. […]

text : Luke 8:22-25 theme verse : “Who then is this that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?” (Lk 8:25) // As if there weren’t already some context clues on their journey, the disciples really begin to wonder about who Jesus is when he dials in a new boating […]

text : Psalm 148 theme verse : “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded, and they were created.” (Ps 148:5) // When one stops to consider the immensity of God’s creation, it can truly change our perspective and our living, even our understanding of worship. Turns out, worshiping God is not a solo […]

Reader: Doc Shannon Preaching: Rev. Mark Briley

Job 23: 1 – 10 // Everyone asks, “Why?” As children, we ask that one-word question in response to everything. We’re just discovering the world and it’s full of wondrous questions. As we age, experience deepens our why questions. Why is there suffering? Why do bad things happen to good people? Why not me? What […]

Exodus 33: 7 – 16 // “Lord move, or move me,” goes the lyric sung by the group, Far From Home. We’ve all likely done our best to move God like a chess piece in the game of our lives; longing to control every aspect of our lives. To our dismay, we wonder if God’s […]

Reader: Todd Maxwell Preaching: Diana Booren

text : Hebrews 4: 14 – 16 Theme Verse: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses…” (Hebrews 4:15) // I Wonder as I Wander is typically a hymn we sing during Advent. The melody itself is very mysterious and spirit-provoking. Beyond one season a year, however, […]

Reader: Doc Shannon Preaching: Rev. Mark Briley

2 Corinthians 5: 16 – 21 // What would it take for a skeptical culture’s view of Christianity to see our faith as good? While we aren’t aiming to please an audience beyond God alone, Jesus practiced a faith more interested in reconciliation than keeping a list of the sins of others. What does that […]