Soul Fights
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube link of the sermon<< In solitude, three ancient characters enter the dark night of their soul, pleading for release, for relief, for a blessing. These are our Soul Fights, those moments of solitude where transformation begins and we must choose to either risk the fight or miss the chance for transforming our lives. Rev. Gregory Pelley was called into Unitarian Universalist ministry out of this very congregation. He serves the Unitarian Universalist Society of Mill Creek in Newark, DE.
Dancing in Faith
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube link of the sermon<< Change is occurring at a more and more rapid pace. This reality makes the stable parts of our lives, like the church, even more precious. So how might we move into the risks and opportunities that even ministerial transition might invite? Sharing the pulpit with Mark this Sunday is the Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs, a life long Unitarian Universalist currently serving as senior co-minister of Unity Church-Unitarian in St. Paul. Janne has served as a Ministerial Settlement Representative for the UUA both on the west Coast and here on the Prairie and loves the opportunity to work with congregations in the midst of transition.
Lost & Found
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube link of the sermon.<< More of us are engaging in advocacy and social change in new ways, even as we feel overwhelmed and at times struggle with despair. We are simultaneously lost and found. As a people of risk, how can we sustain our stepping in while also living with the uncertainty of the outcomes we seek? How can we sustain engagement through our discomfort? How can we support one another in living at the intersection of lost and found?
Courting Life
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube link of the sermon.<< In keeping with this quote from T.S. Eliot—“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go”—a meditation on the adventures we choose in pursuit of lives worthy of our highest aspirations. We will also conclude and celebrate the success of this year’s “Continue Our Legacy” Stewardship Drive.
Outside our Comfort Zone
9:15 & 11:00 am; Celebrant: Rev. Mark Stringer Through personal sharing, music, and a community poem, members of our congregation’s YRUU (Young Religious Unitarian Universalists) group will invite us to reflect upon the risky adventure that is life itself. Come support and learn from our youth as we kick off a month of considering together “What does it mean to be a community of risk?”
Transgender Lessons in Strength
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube links of the sermon and celebrant reflection.<< Let us listen and learn from the transgender community about what it means to be a people of identity and authenticity and the sources of strength we can find therein.
The Nones, the Apatheists, and Us
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube links of the sermon and celebrant reflection.<< What does it mean to be a community of identity when we are gathered as a creedless religion? What do we want our identity as a congregation to be? What might our world need our identity to be?
We are First Unitarian
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube links of the sermon and celebrant reflection.<< A patchwork service of reflections from members on the significance of First Unitarian in their lives and why they generously support it. These “testimony” Sundays have historically offered some of the most touching and meaning-filled stories of our congregational life. Great for newcomers and long-timers alike!
Ours to Continue
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube links of the sermon and celebrant reflection.<< What did we inherit when we became a part of First Unitarian? What now is ours to continue? As we kick off our 2017 Stewardship Drive, a time when we are asked to thoughtfully consider a generous annual commitment of financial support to our congregation, Mark reflects on why it matters to us and to our community that we continue to grow our identity as generous stewards.
Remaining Open in Groundless Times
>>Click on the Sermon title to access YouTube links of the sermon and celebrant reflection.<< Though we may not notice it, change is always happening- change in our relationships, our bodies, our communities. We see it clearly now in our government and church. How can we remain open in the midst of the uncertainty and anxiety that comes with "groundlessness"?