Sermons

By Rev. Sarah Buteux                                             February 6, 2022 Epiphany 5, Year C Luke 5:1-11 (To watch this morning's service click here. The sermon begins at the 34 minute mark.) I know it says in Proverbs that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” but I sometimes wonder if “fear of the Lord,” isn’t where it all went wrong for religious people (1:7).   From Adam and Eve hiding from God in the garden to Jonah jumping ship to avoid both God and Nineveh, to the Israelites wiping out entire peoples like the Canaanites, the Amorites, or the Amalekites lest they be defiled by false religion and displease said God, on down through the ages, it would [...]

January 16, 2022 John 2:1-11 Epiphany 2, Year C To watch today's worship service click here. Sermon begins at the 9 minute mark. “Did you find everything you needed?,” asked the cashier at Trader Joes.   “Mmm, not really,” I said, as I looked over my list.  I wasn’t put out about it or anything, because I’ve honestly got bigger things to worry about right now. But I’ve been noticing the gaps in the supply chain more and more as I’ve been going to the grocery store these days as I’m sure you have too.  There was no plain whole milk yogurt. They were out of the chicken soup dumplings I like to make for lunch. I couldn’t find chives, grilled chicken, farro, or the chocolate milk that my kids love. But that’s just how it is these days. Stores [...]

In an effort to keep everyone safe we have made the decision to move our Christmas Eve Service of Lessons and Carols online. The service will include a combination of music and readers from last year and a newly recorded welcome and message from the Rev. Sarah Buteux. Click here to go directly to the service. The service will premier on our Facebook and Youtube pages at 7pm on December 24. Merry Christmas to you all.

Rev. Sarah Buteux December 12, 2021 Advent 3, C Philippians 4:4-7, Luke 3:7-18 To watch this morning's service click here   “To repent is to stop pushing love away.” - Steve Garnaas Holmes   By all accounts, my 7th grade French teacher was going to be amazing. Madame Donahue’s reputation preceded her. Rumor had it that she was both daring and charismatic.  With her thick mane of long dark hair, her gold hoop earrings, and long colorful skirts, she looked more like Esmerelda from the “Hunchback of Notre Dame” than say Coco Chanel, and she had the free spirit to match.  She showed her class uncensored French films - Ooh la, la, organized overnight trips to Quebec for her students, brought in French foods for them to savor, and told her prudish middle schoolers scandalous stories of her adventures in [...]

Rev. Sarah Buteux                           November 28, 2021 Advent 1, Year C Jeremiah 33:14-16, Luke 21: 25-36 And so it begins - Advent - the first and strangest season in the church year. Or maybe I should say, and so it ends, given that Advent always begins with the “Day of the Lord” fast approaching.  Outside of these doors people are rushing; rushing because there are only 26 shopping days left between now and Christmas. But in here we’re not rushing. We are waiting; waiting for the birth of a savior that has already come and the return of a savior who is also, somehow, already here.  Out there they speak of want: What do you want for Christmas? But in here we sing of longing, our longing for [...]

To watch this morning's service, click here. The sermon begins around the 25 minute mark. I am including the words of welcome here as well because they set the tone for the whole service. Words of Welcome Friends good morning and welcome to First Churches. Today is the culmination of the liturgical year. Today we celebrate “Christ the King” Sunday.  It is also the Sunday before Thanksgiving and so the readings and the music and the sermon, all of which were completed before Friday afternoon, will reflect that.  But given the verdict of not guilty that was handed down on Friday in the Rittenhouse trial, I fully understand that praise and thanksgiving might not be the first thing on everyone’s lips.  I have no doubt that for many of us grief, outrage, and despair, are in the mix as well.  [...]

Rev. Sarah Buteux November 14, 2021 Proper 28, Year B Mark 13:1-8 To watch this morning's service, click here. The sermon begins at the 22 minute mark.   You all know I’m a little type A.  Ok, you all know I’m a whole lot of type A, which means that I’m a planner. I like to take the long view, get all my ducks in a row, and make sure that everything is covered and done ahead of time so that if anything goes wrong - which it inevitably will - I will have the capacity to fix it.  Even my plan B’s have plan a) and b) subsections. Which, I admit, is a little over the top. But, on the whole, isn’t really a bad thing, because it typically means I’m someone you can count on to get the [...]