May 23, 2010 Dear Mayor Bill Knight: Thank you for your service to Greensboro. In my church and my home, we pray for our public servants like you and the Greensboro City Council. I know serving as mayor of a city as large and complex as Greensboro is no easy task, and is often thankless. I am writing to express my disagreement over your decision to add prayer to city council meetings. I am a Christian minister, and I pray like I breathe. Yet I believe that this decision is divisive, exclusive, unnecessary, diminishing of prayer itself, and finally un-American. While I doubt my reasons will change your mind, I…

What We Can Learn From Mormons (and What They Can Learn From Us), Part Two Sermon by Michael Usey April 18, 2010 (Read Part One) Last week I talked with you about Mormonism. I shared with you that I believed Mormons were Christians, why I thought that, and talked about the reasons why we were partnering with them for the upcoming workday. This morning I was to share with you some things that we might learn from Mormons, and one thing they might learn from us. I’m going to accent the positives, but that doesn’t not mean I’m not aware of the negatives of both Mormon Christians and Baptist Christians.…

Sermon by Michael Usey April 11, 2010 I remember distinctly when I first knew Mormons were slightly different from me. I was in the fifth grade, living in the area of San Diego called Del Cerro, which means The Hills. I playing at my friend Matt Reed’s house; Matt was a part of a big LDS family, and his home was literally built in the side of a hill. We were playing army, and so were we were running all in his house and hiding. I was hiding in Matt’s kitchen when I opened the pantry door. It opened into what looked like an overstuffed 7-11. The pantry door was…

Lent Sermon Series on Death Sermon by Michael Usey February 21, 2010 Excuse us, but can you spare a moment? We’re taking a survey here and we’d like to ask you a question. It’ll only take a minute and we won’t even ask your name, okay? So here it is: Do you really think you’re going to die? Really and truly? Do you really think your life is going to come to an end some day? Take your time. No hurry to answer. Well, except for the fact that every moment that passes is one less moment in your lifetime. If you’re anything like me, you probably don’t totally believe…

(Love Lies Bleeding) Sermon by Michael Usey February 28, 2010 One of the oddest funerals I’ve ever been to took place in Abilene, Texas, in 1976. The man who died was a professor and a Mason, and I was just a freshman in college. We were graveside, when the Shrine Masons were walking around the open grave. It had been raining all week; this day was sunny, but the ground was still wet. The green fake grass carpet was everywhere, even under the coffin. Picture the scene: an open grave, over which the coffin of the professor was suspended; that fake green grass they use at graveside to cover up…

Sermon By Michael Usey May 31, 2009 In the scripture reading this morning, Jesus is there among his friends and disciples—notice his mother is there too. He’s about to leave—remember that we looked at his leaving last week–when he promises them that will be his witnesses. Now the Greek word for witness is martyr. They would his witnesses first in Jerusalem, then Judea, after that Samaria, then to the ends of the world. It’s a little outline for the rest of the book of Acts. Starting with chapter 2, they receive the Spirit—there is a mighty rushing wind, tongues of fire appear over their heads, people think they are a…

Jeremiah 18:1-12; Jeremiah 29:4-14 Sermon by Rev. Pam Strader, West Market St UMC October 26, 2008 Have you ever had a book that you bought in a bookstore, but when you got home it just sat on the shelf or the bedside table? You keep thinking, “I need to get around to reading that book,” but you just never quite do. That happened to me with a book I had bought on the prophet Jeremiah. What drew me to it was that it was written by Eugene Peterson, the Presbyterian who gave us The Message translation of the Bible. But you know what? I have discovered that sometimes God works…

Sermon by Michael Usey April 2008 Two weeks ago I wanted to test the deacons so I asked them a very simple question, what did they think was the most frequently asked questions to me as pastor? Being the diaconate of College Park, they responded with their usual wisdom. Their list included these questions that other people ask me: Where is the bathroom in this place anyway? I do get asked this often. How did you ever trick Ann into marrying you? A very good question indeed. Do you know Jesus? A few in Greensboro doubt that I know him. Who did you bribe to get this job? There is…

July 20, 2008 Good Morning my name is Roland Russoli Michael announced last week that I would be giving a sermon on our time in Africa. I am uncomfortable with the word sermon, to me it implies order, you know three points and a poem and these last three years have been anything but orderly. My first draft of this talk could have been called Hannibal Lector meets Marco Polo, but after considering the Baptist ( or as close as you get to Baptist ) crowd in this room I left all the scary people, dark alleys, and knife carrying stories out of this talk. College Park has changed a…

Sermon by K. Hollyn Hollman, General Counsel Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty April 27, 2008 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 (New International Version) It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. . . . You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor…

Sermon by Jeremy Fox December 30, 2007 I. Upon my arrival at Campbell University, the first thing I noticed was the many gorgeous females (this was all before I met Megan, who is above and beyond the females at Campbell). So immediately I came up with a plan to meet some of the females. I went and bought a huge golfing umbrella (enough room for 3 people) and waited for rainy days. Anytime it did rain, I would have my umbrella to escort a few women wherever they needed to go. To them, I was being a chivalrous religion major doing what was right. Little did they know that my…