Matthew 18:21-25 (VOICE) South Presbyterian Church’s Fellowship of Faith – September 17, 2017 The Reverend Deborah Fae Swift  Scripture Reading                                                                             Mt. 18:21-35 (VOICE) Today we are reading scripture as a Readers’ Theater. You’ll have to pay attention for your cues to read your part when the time comes. Listen for the Word of God as found in Matthew 18:21-35 as we begin with Peter, talking to Jesus. Peter: 21 Lord, when someone has sinned against me, how many times ought I forgive him? Once? Twice? As many as seven times? Jesus: 22 You must forgive not seven times, but seventy times seven. Narrator: (Just as … Continue reading “Forgiveness 101”

Romans 13:11-15 (MSG) South Presbyterian Church’s Fellowship of Faith – September 10, 2017 The Reverend Deborah Fae Swift   Romans 13:11-14The Message (MSG) 11-14  … make sure that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! God is putting the finishing touches on the salvation work he began when we first believed. We can’t afford to waste a minute, must not … Continue reading “Dawn is About to Break”

During my vacation, the pulpit was filled by seminarian, Elder Laura Bachmann on August 20, 2017. My thanks to her for her energy and leadership. Here is her sermon: South Presbyterian Church                 The Sound of Silence                August 20, 2017   Matthew 15:21-28 21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” 23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she … Continue reading “The Sound of Silence”

While I was on vacation, the pulpit was filled by recent seminary graduate, Elder Summer Sattora. Here is her sermon from August 13, 2017. My thanks for her energy and leadership. How Soon is Now? Matthew 14:22-33 Preached at South Presbyterian Church Fellowship of Faith, August 13, 2017   I love movies. If you know me, this is not a surprising statement. I often speak in movie quotes or recall scenes from a favorite movie in everyday conversation. In fact, my mom and I are at The Cinema on Goodman and Clinton just about every week. I guess you could … Continue reading “How Soon is Now?”

While I was on vacation, the pulpit was filled by seminarian, Elder Laura Bachmann. My thanks to her for her energy and leadership. Here is her sermon from August 6, 2017. South Presbyterian Church                              Going to the Mat                     August 6, 2017 Genesis 32:22-31 The same night he got up and took his two wives, his two maids, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. He took them and sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man … Continue reading “Going to the Mat”

Ps. 139:7-12 (NIV) and 1 John 4:17 (MSG), 1 John 4: 7-10, 17-18 (MSG) John 13: 34-35 (MSG) South Presbyterian Church’s Fellowship of Faith – July 23, 2017 The Reverend Deborah Fae Swift  1 John 4:7-10The Message (MSG) God Is Love 7-10 My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for … Continue reading “Wave Generator”

Ps. 119:1-2 (MSG), Matthew 13:1-13, 16-17 (MSG) South Presbyterian Church’s Fellowship of Faith – July 16, 2017 The Reverend Deborah Fae Swift   Matthew 13:1-13, 16-17 (MSG) At about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach. In no time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline, forcing him to get into a boat. Using the boat as a pulpit, he addressed his congregation, telling stories. “What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it. Some fell in … Continue reading “Sitting on the Beach”