Gathered and Sent

This is the final episode of Gathered and Sent. We are doing something a bit different. We will be discussing the podcast, how it got started, and some behind-the-scenes of the world of podcasting. Jack Palmer and Alex Fluegel join in on the conversation.

Final week of a six-week series called The Prophetic Word. In today’s episode we hear how the Word of God was made flesh and dwelled among us. At the heart of these words from the Gospel of John, we hear how the God of the universe cared so much for humanity that through his Son, Jesus, God become more like humans so that humanity might become more like God. We also hear how God engages the world with love. This is the heart of the incarnation, the birth, of Jesus, that God loved us so much...

Fifth week of a six-week series called The Prophetic Word. In today’s episode we hear again the words from the Prophet Isaiah. And again, the words from Isaiah are about trusting in the Lord and seeking the Lord. Isaiah tells the people of God that it is not information that we should seek from God, but God’s presence and God’s character, gifts that God longs to give us as humans. But, we humans want God’s gifts but we are always fearful of letting the Giver, God, into our lives. We are...

Fourth week of a six-week series on The Prophetic Word. In today's episode we discuss the Prophet Jeremiah. Even though these words from Jeremiah can be found on graduation cards and coffee mugs, the words of Jeremiah are not about God’s plans for our individualistic selves. They are words about restoration and redemption for the whole community. God’s activity was about giving the people new perspectives and new understandings. The words of Jeremiah offers us important instruction about...

Third week of a six-week series called The Prophetic Word. In today’s episode we discuss the Prophet Isaiah. Isaiah lived during the time when the Assyrians expanded their empire. The Syrians and the northern kingdom tried to pressure the southern kingdom of Judah to help them resist the Assyrians. As a sign of God’s faithfulness, Isaiah promised that a child would be born who would be called “Immanuel,” which means “God with us.” Isaiah told people not to fight because God would protect...

Second in a six-week series called The Prophetic Word. In today’s episode we discuss the Prophet Amos. Amos was the first of the written prophets, meaning his words were some of the first written down on paper. He lived around approximately 760 or 750 BC. He lived in Judah and was a sheep-breeder and grew sycamore trees. Although he came from the south, he prophesied in the northern kingdom, especially at the sanctuary at Bethel. He condemned Israel’s oppression of the poor. Amos is a...

First week of a six-week series called The Prophetic Word. In today’s episode we backtrack a bit in the Old Testament story. We travel to the time when King Solomon’s father, David was a boy and out in the fields taking care of the sheep as a shepherd. On this particular day, David is anointed by Samuel. Samuel was the son of Hannah who had long been barren. Hannah dedicated him to the Lord as a child and brought him to Eli the priest. When Samuel was a child, he heard the voice of the Lord...

Final week of a six-week series called Created, Chosen, Called. In today’s episode we move quickly through the Kings of Israel to the Prophet Elijah. The stories of Elijah can be found in 1 Kings 17-19 and 2 Kings 1-2. Elijah lives in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reigns of Kings Ahab and Ahaziah. Elijah’s name means “Yahweh is my God.” Elijah constantly reminded the people that Yahweh was their god and not to worship Baal. He is commemorated by Christians on July 20 and is...

Fifth week of a six-week series called Created, Chosen, Called. In today’s episode we jump ahead to the building and dedication of the Temple under King Solomon in First Kings. It is under Solomon’s leadership that the Temple was built and dedicated. The struggle is what does the building and dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem have to do with us today? In this episode, we explore that very question.

Week 4 of a six-week series called Created, Chosen, Called. In today’s episode we wander in the wilderness with the gathered people of God. Following the Hebrews fleeing from Egypt and the Pharoah, led by Moses and Aaron, they wander in the wilderness for forty years. But the freedom from oppression wasn’t everything that the people expected it to be. There were times of hardship. The people remembered their time of oppression with nostalgia because what they were currently going through was...

Third week of a six-week series called Created, Chosen and Called. In today’s episode we skip ahead to the story of Moses. It is the beginning of the story of Israel as the people of God. We have now moved into the second book of the Pentateuch or Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible or what Christians call the Old Testament. Here the people of God move from individuals to families to a nation, a gathered people. These stories are about their journey and how God continued to bless...

Second week of a six-week series Created, Chosen, Called. In today’s episode we skip ahead to the story of Jacob. Jacob is the grandson of Abraham and Sarah, and the son of Isaac and Rebekah. He is a twin to his brother Esau. There are a lot of complexities and dysfunctions in this family. And yet, God still blesses them. In fact, Jacob’s twelves sons and their descendants become known as the 12 Tribes of Israel. In this story we move from God blessing a particular individual, to blessing a...

First week in a six-week series Created, Chosen, Called. Most of us are familiar with the Creation Story found in the first chapter of the first book of the Hebrew and Christian Bible. In fact, the word “genesis” means “beginning.” Despite its familiarity, Genesis chapter 1 has become controversial in its interpretation. How was the world created and for what purpose? What does it mean when God says, “fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion”? We will explore these questions and more...

The final week of a six-week series called The End of All Things. In this episode, we explore Revelation 21 and 22. Jesus is always creating new. New doesn’t mean forgetting the past and wiping it all clean. There is something more happening here. And this is what we are going to explore in this podcast. What does it mean to see a new heaven and a new earth? What does that look like? And instead of destruction in the final chapters of Revelation, we feel and experience the hope found in the...

Fifth week of a six-week series called The End of All Things. In this episode we explore Revelation 13. The book of Revelation is filled with cycles of warnings and promises. As we enter chapter 13, the cycle of devasting plagues has ended and judgment has fallen on humanity. Christian readers are called to see how their own communities are called to bear witness to God’s truth in the face of social opposition and threat. In this episode we explore who are the beasts? How does the trinity of...

Fourth week in a six-week series called The End of All Things. This week we explore the Four Horsemen. There is a lot of brokenness in this world – hurricanes, earthquakes, wildfires, racial injustices, economic inequality, homelessness, violence and war. But there is also a lot of hope in this world too. And it is the hope in Jesus that we need to cling on to, trust in and share with all people that we encounter and those that we will never meet.

Third week in a six-week series called The End of All Things. In this episode, we explore Revelation 5. In worship, we sing, This is the feast of victory for our God. Alleluia. Worthy is Christ, the Lamb who was slain, whose blood set us free be people of God. Power, riches, wisdom and strength, and honor and blessing and glory are his. Sing with all the people of God and join in the hymn of all creation: Blessing, honor, glory and might be to God and the Lamb forever. Amen. For the Lamb who...

Second week of a six-week series called The End of All Things. In this episode we explore Revelation 4. Chapters 4 and 5 are the heart of the Book of Revelation. We hear again how God’s will is done through the crucified and risen Christ. The first visions that John describes are not of disaster but of worship. All creation joins in praise! The actions that occur in the heavenly throne room show that in the proper order of things, all creation is oriented toward its creator. Human beings are...

First week of a six-week series called The End of All Things. The book of Revelation is filled with mysteries and imagery that is complex and perplexing. Over the centuries there has been a lot of controversy surrounding this letter from an author named John. What does his letter filled with visions about horsemen, beasts, and other creatures mean for us today? In this episode, we begin to explore the Book of Revelation by discussing its history, why its in the Biblical cannon in the first...

Final week of a six-week series on the Letter to the Ephesians called Grace-Filled Way of Life. In this episode, we struggle with the language used in Ephesians chapter 6. We speak about how scripture and our faith affect us on a daily basis. You hear how we struggle, question doubt as well as find hope, love and grace. We are all on this journey together. Some of us are at different points along the path. And that’s okay. We are all trying to sort out the things of this world and understand...