Kairos-Milwaukie UCC Selected Sermons Podcast

Our Turn, Our Time (June 12, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 10:11:28 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, June 12, 2011 "The one constant is that the work of the Holy Spirit, if you will, is to empower individuals and groups to become more fully themselves and to let go of that self-centered, separate, fearful mentality that keeps people so earthbound, that keeps people from self awareness, that keeps people from each other."

On A Path (June 5, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sun, 5 Jun 2011 21:00:37 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, June 5, 2011.

"Our task is to give ourselves to God in the moment that is right now and let the rest of creation react or respond or stay indifferent as it may. And then to do the same thing in the next momemt. And the one after that."

United or Untied? (May 29, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 4 Jun 2011 18:22:31 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, May 29, 2011.

"In our faith tradition, belonging is based on an understanding of a free heart and mind. A heart and a mind and a soul that is in possession of itself, and that can make real and powerful commitments nevertheless."

Not Business as Usual (May 22, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 4 Jun 2011 18:11:42 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, May 22, 2011.

"Resurrection is not simply something that happens in a linear time, a date that you mark on the calendar. Rather, resurrection is a reality that has existed in the world since the beginning of time."

A Whispered Word (May 1, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 7 May 2011 09:27:33 -0700

A sermon by the Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, May 1, 2011.

"I believe that the reason that the Resurrection is more than just an impossible story, which maybe took place 2000 years ago and then was over and done with, is because Christ also sees you and and I just as he saw the disciples."

Witness to the Resurrection (April 24, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sun, 1 May 2011 19:18:08 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, April 24, 2011.
"The thing that convinced the earlier friends and followers of Jesus that he had risen was not the absence of his corpse or stories about an empty tomb."

Blessing (April 17, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sun, 1 May 2011 19:15:39 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, April 17, 2011.
"We need to pause, and step back a bit and remember that God's presence can be known and trusted in every aspect of life, in every circumstance of life."

Breath of Hope (April 10, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sun, 1 May 2011 19:13:09 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, April 10, 2011.
"In my experience there are two ways to get drawn out of the depths. One is to live life attentive, mindful of the radiance and the love of God in any and all circumstances. But, the other is to give your life to something greater than yourself."

The Blind Side (April 3, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sun, 1 May 2011 19:09:57 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, April 3, 2011.
"What are the standards that we use, you and I, to judge what we see? What are the core truths that we depend upon?"

A Broken Hallelujah (March 27, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 11:04:30 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, March 27, 2011.

This recording includes the Leonard Cohen song, Hallelujah, sung by member Mary Boehme accompanied by Rick Skidmore on guitar.

"This I believe is one the tasks before us in this journey of Lent, this season of Lent, this journey that we make toward a deeper self-awareness and a kind of spiritual stock taking; we don't need to be at war with reality... Our human task here is to always be singing."

Border Crossing (March 20, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 11:32:00 -0700

A sermon by the Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, March 20, 2011.

"When it comes to the journey of faith you can look all you want before you leap. But it's no help really, no matter how earnest the gazing and the peering because you never know until you go."

Desire (March 13, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 05:05:24 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, March 13, 2011.

"Our hunger for the bread of life is real. Our thirst for living water is real. Our restlessness and dissatisfaction and longing is all too real and it should be proof, all the proof that we need, that God is reaching out for us, that God it calling out to us..."

Be Dazzled (March 6, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 15:55:29 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, March 6, 2011.

"Every once in a while the light of God burns through the mist, the fog of our lives, and something so touching and tender, so incandescent, transfigures us."

Expanding Boundaries (February 20, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 15:38:33 -0700

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, February 20, 2011.

"Jesus invites us to a new way of seeing and being together, compels us to act with compassion, and to love without discrimination, and to expand our boundaries from our own self concern into a more mature wholeness; to shatter the old, or at least open some well placed cracks in the old, so the new light can shine in and penetrate our lives."

Hearts and Minds (February 13, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 20:03:03 -0800

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, February 13, 2011.

"Increasingly it seems that this religious dispute over how to read and interpret the Bible is really at the heart of so many of the the social and political divisions that we're experiencing: abortion, environment, end of life choices, the sanctity of marriage."

Our New Selves (February 6, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 19:54:29 -0800

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, February 6, 2011.

"In every age, and in every circumstance, Jesus' followers are both mandated and empowered by Jesus to become our new selves, to build a new world where God's holy presence and reliable comfort and peace prevail in our lives."

The Measure of Success (January 30, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 19:37:39 -0800

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, January 30, 2011.

"The truth is that our finest moments in life are most likely to occur when we are feeling particularly uncomfortable, and unsettled, and unhappy, and unfulfilled, because in these moments we're propelled by our own discomfort, and so more likely to step out of old ruts, and old habits, and old patterns, and search for truer ways to live."

Fearlessly Human (January 23, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:31:56 -0800

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, January 23, 2011).

"We are called to see, no matter how ordinary life may seem to us as each of us live it, that life is extraordinarily rich, and abundant, and deep, and full of God."

Martin in Tuscon (January 16, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:22:01 -0800

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, January 16, 2011.

"We keep wanting to believe that Christianity is this kind of leisurely stroll through candy land. This effortless exercise, this kind of sloppy religious sentiment: you put on a smiley face; you be nice to everybody; you know that God would never do anything to disturb your comfort zone. But I don't see that matching anything Jesus taught."

In The New Beginning (January 2, 2011)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:12:27 -0800

A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, January 2, 2011.

"In the beginning and in the end, there is God. We can't prove that with science, or with objective verifiable facts... We can only know that, you and I, when we experience that."

Face to Face (December 19, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Wed, 5 Jan 2011 20:49:44 -0800

Face to Face
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, December 19, 2010
"According to the apostle Paul, the face of Christ is finally our own face, the face that we will all come to look like a little bit when the kingdom finally comes and at last we truly become ourselves, truly brothers and sisters, the children of God, which is a haunting thought."

Strength of Women - Heartbeat of Justice (December 12, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Wed, 5 Jan 2011 20:30:17 -0800

Strength of Women - Heartbeat of Justice
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, December 12, 2010.
"Advent is a time for prophets who come out of the wilderness speaking about world-shaking events, world-shaping events and exhorting us to turn our lives around in preparation, and in participation. And this week have, in a sense, four unlikely prophets gathered not from the wilderness but on the front porch..."

The New Normal (December 5, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Wed, 5 Jan 2011 20:12:52 -0800

The New Normal
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, December 5, 2010
"We've lived with the abnormal for so long that we've gotten used to thinking that it's normal."

Hard Times, Not End Times (November 14, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Wed, 5 Jan 2011 19:25:28 -0800

Hard Times, Not End Times
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, November 14, 2010.
"I've always been a kind of reluctant tourist when it comes to apocalyptic literature in the Bible. I'm happy to visit now and again, but there's no way I'm going to live there. And in the Gospels, Jesus doesn't seem to get much into it, if you look at the full sweep of his message and his ministry."

Fear No Evil (October 31, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 6 Nov 2010 15:21:46 -0700

Fear No Evil
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, October 31, 2010.

I want to talk a little bit about the pathology of our fears and what we can maybe do about it.

Handling Hubris (October 24, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 6 Nov 2010 15:13:36 -0700

Handling Hubris
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, October 24, 2010.

...and I haven't even begun with religious hubris, which I think is sort of threatening the entire planet. I mean, I'm talking about demonizing other faiths or groups that believe or act differently than we do. We come into this sanctuary each week to do what? To worship. And as we worship we are trying to step back from our lives from what we say and what we do and how we spend our time and money and where we put our attention to ask ourselves "am I living my life with authenticity? Am I living my life in harmony with those highest ideals that Jesus espoused? With the mandate of the gospel for justice and compassion and mercy and peace?"

Hip for a Blessing (October 17, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 6 Nov 2010 14:55:54 -0700

Hip for a Blessing
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, October 17, 2010.

There's a difference between prayers and prayer... Prayer is more like waking up to God's presence in any and all circumstances, wherever you are, whatever you're doing. It's being fully alert to whatever is right in front of you. To be electrically aware of the tremendous blessing of just being alive. I think when you do that, you're in prayer. You don't have to be using any words. Prayer is happening then and there. Just as God is happening, whether we notice or not.

Healing Encounters (October 10, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 6 Nov 2010 14:39:23 -0700

Healing Encounters
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, October 10, 2010.

The future, our future, the future of this planet depends on how we deal with these issues of identity and difference. We would do well to pay attention and to see with reverence those who are different from ourselves, who worship differently from us. To see them and to celebrate that the God who made others different from us is revealed in these others as well. This is undeniably the challenge of our times, to see God's image in the stranger.

Divine Possibilities (October 3, 2010)

rick@kairosucc.org (Rick Skidmore) — Sat, 6 Nov 2010 14:18:51 -0700

Divine Possibilities
A sermon by Rev. Rick Skidmore presented on Sunday, October 3, 2010.

I can't help but wonder, do we build houses for God so we can choose when to go see God? Do we build houses for God instead of having God come with us and stay with us? Plus what happens to the rest of the world when we build walls and a ceiling and designate that this is where God dwells? What happens to the people who never show up in houses like this, who wouldn't be caught dead in houses like this? What happens to them?