St. Philip Lutheran Church2 October 2022 + Lect. 27c (Pentecost 17)Habakkuk 1.1-4; 2.1-4Rev. Josh Evans “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that …
St. Philip Lutheran Church25 September 2022 + Lect. 26c (Pentecost 16)Luke 16.19-31Rev. Josh Evans Very few things will get me out of bed at 4:30 in the morning: A fire alarm.A sudden crash of thunder as intense as though lightning struck my own roof.My cats knocking something over in the next room. This past Monday, …
Continue reading A Sermon about the Reign of God (and Queen Elizabeth)
St. Philip Lutheran Church18 September 2022 + Lect. 25c (Pentecost 15)Luke 16.1-13Rev. Josh Evans After a money laundering scheme for a Mexican drug cartel goes wrong, the Byrde family suddenly finds their lives uprooted – as they relocate from their comfortable home in Chicago to a new life in the Lake of the Ozarks. By …
St. Philip Lutheran Church11 September 2022 + Lect. 24c (Pentecost 14)Luke 15.1-10Rev. Josh Evans They weren’t lost. I knew perfectly well where they were. Just seconds before, as I was innocently walking back to my apartment one morning on my day off, Dunkin’ iced coffee in hand, one of my worst nightmares (probably one of …
St. Philip Lutheran Church4 September 2022 + Lect. 23c (Pentecost 13)Luke 14.25-33Rev. Josh Evans Having a bumper sticker with the name of my congregation and the statement that “Love > Hate” has gone a long way to keep my road rage in check these last couple of years. But no more! According to Jesus, hate …
St. Philip Lutheran Church28 August 2022 + Lect. 22c (Pentecost 12)Luke 14.1, 7-14Rev. Josh Evans “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 sorted by category …
St. Philip Lutheran Church7 August 2022 + Lect. 19c (Pentecost 9)Isaiah 1.1, 10-20; Luke 12.32-40Rev. Josh Evans Some YouTube videos just speak to you, you know? One of my favorites – aptly titled “[Stuff] Pastors Say (When Writing Sermons)” – hits particularly close to home. As the video opens to the preacher sitting in front …
St. Philip Lutheran Church31 July 2022 + Lect. 18c (Pentecost 8)Hosea 11.1-11Rev. Josh Evans Who among us isn’t guilty of looking back at the past with a certain sentimental nostalgia? Usually those moments come during especially difficult times in the present. When the going gets tough, we open up the mental scrapbooks and reminisce about …
St. Philip Lutheran Church24 July 2022 + Lect. 17c (Pentecost 7)Hosea 1.2-10Rev. Josh Evans “What I love about Nicole,” the letter begins. “She makes people feel comfortable about even embarrassing things. She really listens when someone is talking… She always knows the right thing to do when it comes to difficult family [stuff]… She is …
St. Philip Lutheran Church17 July 2022 + Lect. 16c (Pentecost 6)Amos 8.1-12; Luke 10.38-42Rev. Josh Evans It’s hard to say no: to that second piece of cake, to “just one more” episode of your latest Netflix binge before bed, to taking on another volunteer role when you have been so kindly asked. It’s especially hard …
Pastor Josh Evans 