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Rian Adams
A few months ago I had the privilege to sit down for a Q&A interview with Dr. Dan Finley. Dan writes for Go! Magazine. This section is called Chat with a Pastor. Go! Magazine is a Christian publication that circulates along the emerald coast of Florida. Below is the interview! A Special thank you to Dr. Dan Finley, a man whom I consider a friend and a great example of a Christian who looks for ways to give back to the community and the world. I also know his students at Gulf Coast College appreciate his humor…
Proper 9, Year B. Sermon from 2 Cor. 12:2-10 Synopsis: Paul encountered some other “apostles” who tried to undermine his ministry citing grand spiritual visions. This reading is his response to them. In the 1750s there was a worldwide conflict known to us as The French Indian war. The British and French battled for Quebec. Admiral Phipps, commander of the British fleet, received orders to anchor outside Quebec and wait for the British land forces. His job was simple; provide protection while the troops came ashore. Admiral Phipps ran a well-oiled machine, his sailors…
Proper 10, Year B. July 11th, 2021. Mark 6:14-29. Herod Beheads John the Baptist Synopsis: Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, arrested John the Baptist for preaching that his marriage to his brother’s former wife was not right in God’s eyes. This caused Herod’s new wife, Herodias, to desire John’s death. At Herod’s birthday, when he was drunk, she finally had her chance, and John’s head wound up on a platter at the dinner table. Well… that Gospel reading isn’t a bedtime…
It’s Okay to Leave Your safety Net Sermon for the Third Sunday after Epiphany Simon Peter and his brother Andrew didn’t attend career day during their Sr. Year in High School. They never sat around a warm fire on a chilly evening and talked with their father about what they wanted to do when they grew up. There was only one option, they would be fishermen on the Sea of Galilee for their entire lives. Today, some children know they will take over their family business after they have completed college and then earned an MBA…
God Will Redeem the Difficulties I read an article recently from the British Broadcasting Network about a town in Nigeria celebrating their tiny village’s renaming. The name was “The village of idiots.” Some 70 years ago, the people settled too close to a river known as “The idiotic river.” One man from there said, “It was shameful telling people that I came from the “area of idiots.” So, the village elder decided to finally change the name. The area of idiots down by the idiotic river got a new…
Sermon Proper 24, Year A – Matthew 22:15-22 Are you familiar with the term internet troll? The Wikipedia definition is “A person who posts inflammatory messages to provoke an emotional response.” That sounds direct enough, but it’s too sterile. It doesn’t convey the emotional disdain caused by said group of people. Instead, let’s look at The Urban Dictionary—it will tell you what words really mean. This is slightly “edited.” An internet troll is an attention—“grabber”—who posts stupid comments on websites in an attempt to get a reaction towards themselves so that someone…