This Week at New Spirit: Love Shows Up

This Week at New Spirit June 30-July 6, 2026 Pastor’s Reflection This week’s message stayed with the simple and challenging truth that love does not stop with words. We were reminded that grace always comes first, and that grace changes us into people who show up for the neighbor in need. Love shows up. This
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Love Shows Up: Faith in Action

30-Second Sermon Summary Jesus does not separate faith from visible love. In Isaiah, 1 John, and Matthew 25, God calls people to show up for the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the sick, and the imprisoned. Grace always comes first; we do not earn God’s love by serving others. But grace changes us. Faith turns
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This Week at New Spirit: God Is Not Done With You

This Week at New Spirit: God is Not Done With You June 24-30, 2026 Pastor’s Reflection This week’s sermon reminded us that faith changes us by helping us step back and make room for God. We live in a world that pushes us to make life about achievement, recognition, and personal preference. But grace gives
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Faith Changes Us: God Is Not Done With You

Faith Changes Us: Getting Out of the Way So God Can Work Sermon Thread: God is not done with you. 30-Second Sermon Summary: Faith changes us by teaching us to step back, loosen our grip on ego, and make room for God to work. In a culture that celebrates individual achievement, Jesus calls us toward
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Jesus Says You Can Sit Here: Why Belonging Matters in Faith

In today’s world we see more and more division and exclusion. On Sunday, June 7th we explored our next core value: Belonging Matters. Throughout the gospels Jesus chooses mercy over religious rule-keeping. The church must do the same! Jesus says you can sit here! 30-Second Sermon Summary In Matthew 12, Jesus meets hungry disciples and
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This Week at New Spirit: The Spirit Creates Belonging

This Week at New Spirit 1. Pastor’s Reflection One of the most important things we named on Pentecost Sunday is this: The Holy Spirit creates belonging before demanding conformity. That means you do not have to pretend here. You do not have to have all the answers. None of us have to earn grace. You
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This Week at New Spirit – April 14, 2026

Pastor’s Reflection This article is a little longer, because I am so excited by what is happening. I don’t know if you can feel it, but this time of year always carries a different kind of energy. Maybe it’s the lingering glow of Easter—the reminder that new life is real and that, in the end,
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This Week at New Spirit – March 24, 2026

This Week at New Spirit Lutheran Church | March 24, 2026 This coming Saturday, people across the country will gather to raise their voices—and I know some from New Spirit will be among them as part of our commitment to public witness. The timing, on the eve of Palm/Passion Sunday, is hard to ignore. When
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This Week at New Spirit – March 17, 2026

This Week at New Spirit Lutheran Church | March 17, 2026 This is the first “This Week at New Spirit” post we are putting online. This weekly email will replace the monthly newsletter. In these posts you will find a brief weekly reflection from me, a quote or summary from the previous Sunday’s sermon, upcoming
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