28
Feb 2016
“Forget None of His Benefits” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines Third Sunday of Lent February 28, 2016 Readings: Exodus 3:1-15, Psalm 103:1-14 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 Luke 13:1-9 During Lent, we are to focus on the love of God given to us through Christ. We are not to exalt the suffering but embrace the love that goes with the suffering that we may be set free. For too long we have focused on fear and dying that we have missed understanding and embracing the love of God for us. Psalm 103 reminds us to......
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21
Feb 2016
“Being in a Relationship with the Lord” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines Second Sunday of Lent February 21, 2016 Readings: Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18; Psalm 27:7-14 Philippians 3:17-4:1 Luke 13:31-35 Lent is not meant to be a season of affliction but a time to pause from our busy lives to focus on God. The song we just sang, “Take Me to Calvary”, is a prayer for God to take us back to what He did for us – giving us His Son – to show us how much we mean to Him. “Lest I......
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14
Feb 2016
“Recognizing Our Need of God” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines First Sunday of Lent February 14, 2016 Readings: Deuteronomy 26:1-11, Psalm 91:9-15 Romans 10:8b-13 Luke 4:1-13 We begin with the Great Litany – a recognition of our dependence on God. We cry out to Him, of our need for Him. Lent helps us understand our humanity and our weaknesses. It encourages us to rise above our humanity when temptations come our way. Psalm 91 sets the course for our daily lives. “For you have made the Lord my refuge; even the Most High......
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07
Feb 2016
“The Need to Spend Time with God” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines Last Sunday of Epiphany February 7, 2016 Readings: Exodus 34:29-35, Psalm 99 1 Corinthians 12:27-13:13 Luke 9:28-36 This is the last Sunday of Epiphany. We are reminded that we are not alone in this journey through life. God is with us. His presence in our lives gives us hope and peace. The Psalm reading gives us an understanding of how great God is. He reigns! Sometimes when we are confronted with what’s happening in the world around us, we become fearful.......
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31
Jan 2016
“The Work of the Church: To Build and to Plant” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines Fourth Sunday of Epiphany January 31, 2016 Readings: Jeremiah 1:4-10, Psalm 71:1-6, 15-17 1 Corinthians 14:12-20 Luke 4:21-32 Today’s Gospel is a continuation of last week’s. Jesus was in His hometown, entered the temple, read from Isaiah and proclaimed to the people that, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing”. They were amazed at what He said, but wondered why He would say that because they knew Him only to be the son of Joseph. In......
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17
Jan 2016
“We are God’s Crowning Glory” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines Second Sunday of Epiphany January 17, 2016 Readings: Isaiah 62:1-5, Psalm 96:1-10 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 John 2: 1-11 We see and experience the greatness of God as He leads us thru the journeys of life, bringing us closer to His will. We begin our worship in the morning, gathering in obedience to His direction to mankind to start the day proclaiming Him as the Lord of our lives and looking to Him for guidance. In the psalm that we just read, we are......
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10
Jan 2016
“Being Transformed by the Baptism of Christ” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines The Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord Jesus Christ and First Sunday of Epiphany January 10, 2016 Readings: Isaiah 42:1-9, Psalm 89:20-29 Acts 10:34-38 Luke 3:15-16; 21-22 In many ways, our thoughts and commitment to God have been reduced to ceremonies. We are so caught up in ceremony that we don’t receive the fullness of what the ceremony is about. Jesus was about 30 years old when He was baptized. We don’t know much about his life before His baptism.......
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03
Jan 2016
“Living With the Joy of Christmas” Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines Second Sunday of Christmas January 3, 2016 Readings: Jeremiah 31:7-14, Psalm 84 Ephesians 1:3-6; 15-19a Matthew 2:13-15; 19-23 Merry Christmas! As I was preparing for this Sunday, I saw in my old notes something that I haven’t seen in years but speaks so loudly to us today. If we don’t know history, we won’t understand the present because everything is built on something that came before it. Sadly for most of us, we live without an understanding of what came before. We......
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