Preacher's Note: Drawing inspiration from a liturgy we did at my internship congregation, this year for Christ the King Sunday we did a special liturgy in which we traced the liturgical year, season by season, in a pattern of hymn stanza-reading-reflection. What follows are my short reflections for each season, in order from Advent through …
Unity Lutheran Church + Cross of Life Campus10 November 2019 + Lectionary 32CLuke 20.27-38; 2 Thessalonians 2.1-5, 13-17Rev. Josh Evans, preaching If Train A leaves Milwaukee at 1:05pm traveling at an average speed of 90mph, and Train B leaves Chicago at 1:15pm traveling at an average speed of 80mph…how many passengers are in coach? That …
Unity Lutheran Church + Cross of Life Campus27 October 2019 + Reformation SundayJohn 8.31-36; Jeremiah 31.31-34Rev. Josh Evans, preaching When I was growing up, my dad so tried to get me into sports, bless his heart. But one piece of sports wisdom he shared that actually stuck with me: Root for your team, not against …
Lutheran Center Chapel, Chicago23 October 2019 + Lectionary 29CGenesis 32.22-31; Luke 18.1-8Rev. Josh Evans, preaching Over the past year, I have become deeply acquainted with the commute between Milwaukee and Chicago. I’ve seen I-94 through various stages of construction, but only recently, have I started to notice the signs that read “Stay In Your Lane.” …
Unity Lutheran Church + Christ the King Campus13 October 2019 + Lectionary 28CLuke 17.11-19Rev. Josh Evans, preaching For the past several weeks, I’ve been carrying one, single, “AA” battery with me in my bag. And not just any “AA” battery, but a dead “AA” battery. And you might ask, “Pastor Josh, why are you carrying …
Unity Lutheran Church + Christ the King Campus29 September 2019 + Michael and All AngelsRevelation 12.7-12; Luke 10.17-20Rev. Josh Evans, preaching Music videos can be pretty bizarre, and the music video for Amy Grant’s 1984 hit single “Angels” is no exception. Sure, the lyrics are pleasant enough, inspirational even: Angels watching over me,every move I …
Unity Lutheran Church + Christ the King Campus15 September 2019 + Lectionary 24CLuke 15.1-10; Exodus 32.7-14Rev. Josh Evans, preaching Get lost! Pretty forceful words: Get lost. Go away. Get out of here. No one likes to be told to get lost. And yet lostness is exactly where we find ourselves in our readings today. What …
Unity Lutheran Church + Cross of Life Campus1 September 2019 + Lectionary 22CLuke 14.1, 7-14Rev. Josh Evans, preaching “A place for everything, and everything in its place.” It’s so simple, so proverb-like, so beautiful of a sentiment. Words to live by. It’s no secret that I like things in order. In my office, books are …
Unity Lutheran Church + Christ the King Campus18 August 2019 + Lectionary 20CLuke 12.49-56Rev. Josh Evans, preaching When you’re from the Midwest, you might be used to a certain saying: If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes. In biblical studies, I think the same concept applies: If you don’t like the reading, wait …
Unity Lutheran Church + Cross of Life Campus11 August 2019 + Lectionary 19CLuke 12.32-40Rev. Josh Evans, preaching Raise your hand if you’ve heard of Elizabeth Platz. Earlean Miller? Ruth Frost? Phyllis Zillhart? Let’s try an easier one: Elizabeth Eaton? What all of these women share in common is that they’re ordained Lutheran pastors—a phenomenon which, …
Continue reading “Have No Fear”: A Sermon after Churchwide Assembly 2019
Pastor Josh Evans 