Sermons

Inch by Inch & Row by Row

Proper 10.A.2017
Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
The Rev. Melanie L. McCarley

David Mallet wrote a wonderful children’s ditty called “The Garden Song”. The refrain (and I’ll do us all a favor here and not sing) goes thusly: “Inch by inch, row by row/gonna make this garden grow./ All it takes is a rake and a hoe/ and a piece of fertile ground.” This morning, I’d like for us to give some thought to fertile ground. To put it bluntly, this is a sermon about dirt. And, the question I have for you today is this: What kind of dirt are you?

My Yoke is Easy & My Burden is Light

Proper 9.A.2017
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
The Rev. Melanie L. McCarley

I don’t know about you, but the image of oxen, yoked together and plodding through the fields doesn’t necessarily generate an image of comfort—particularly if you are asked to identify with the ox. Instead, it looks like work…hard work. Picture the oxen, their heads bowed, slowly pulling a great weight as they plod along. Row upon row they go….their toil, a rather uninspiring image of what our lives can become. I ask you. How can any of this possibly be good news?

To Sacrifice or Not?

Proper 8.A.2017
Genesis 22:1-14
The Rev. Melanie L. McCarley

I confess. The first thought that sprang to mind upon encountering the Old Testament lesson appointed for today was rather less than commendable. It was simply an overwhelming sense of relief that this reading didn’t land a few weeks earlier on Father’s Day.”

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