In this episode, Rev. Carla Jones Brown delivers a thought-provoking sermon titled "Real ID Required for Travel," inspired by Mark 8:27-38. Join us as Rev. Brown explores the profound question Jesus posed: "Who do you say that I am?" and how it challenges our understanding of Jesus' true identity. Rev. Brown delves into the implications of knowing Christ beyond titles, inviting us to consider what it means to follow a Messiah who chooses compassion over power and grace over grandeur.

Join The Rev. Matt Fitzgerald as he explores an intriguing moment in Jesus' ministry from Mark 7:24-37. This episode unpacks a surprising encounter between Christ and a gentile woman, shedding new light on faith, grace, and God's unpredictable ways. Rev. Fitzgerald offers fresh insights on how divine compassion shows up in unexpected places, inviting listeners to reconsider their ideas about faith. Tune in for a thought-provoking discussion that balances biblical depth with everyday relevance, and might just leave you seeing your spiritual journey in a new light.

On this episode of Day1, The Very Rev. Martin Fair of the Church of Scotland unpacks Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9 in his sermon, 'So That You May Live.' Martin's sermon explores how God transformed Moses’ doubts into confidence, revealing how we too can find strength in our weaknesses. His inspiring message encourages you to embrace God’s guidance. Tune in for this uplifting reminder that we are all called to live fully and faithfully.

The Rev. Dr. Eric Barreto, Weyerhaeuser Associate Professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary, delivers a powerful sermon, 'Looking for Home,' exploring God's promises in John 6:56-69. Barreto reflects on Jesus's challenging words about the bread of life, the followers' reactions, and how true home is found in Christ. He emphasizes that it is God's initiative to draw close to us that changes everything, making His abiding presence our true home.

The Rev. Scott Hoezee, director of the Center for Excellence in Preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, draws his sermon "Real Food," from the declaration of Jesus that he is the living bread from heaven found in John 6:51-58. Hoezee explores what would have been a shocking statement to those surrounding Jesus. “A lot of the time the sacrament has about all the wonder of making out a grocery list,” he says. “What we need is to be stretched, to be pushed out of our comfort zone, to be shaken out of our complacency so as to see again the radical nature of faith and of the union with Christ it makes possible by the grace of God.”

The Rev. Winnie Varghese, rector of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta, draws her sermon “Walk in Beauty” from the story of Elijah’s wilderness journey to Mount Horeb found in I Kings 19.4-18. Starving and exhausted, he asks to die, but is twice awakened from sleep to hot bread and water. “So let us watch for bread on hot stones. Seek out some pita or fry bread or a tortilla if you can. Especially on those days when you have nothing left. When even the miraculous power of God has somehow not won the day,” she says. “Food for the journey. From the people of the land. Enough.”

The Rev. Dr. Kimberly Wagner draws her sermon “Wilderness Memory” from Exodus 16:1-4, 9-15. This passage tells of the Israelites in the wilderness where water is scarce and they are hungry. Questioning the whole exodus plan, they ask if their leaders have brought them into the wilderness to die. Their memory of Egypt is distorted by their panic. “And we, too, like the exodus Israelites, may find ourselves inclined to distorted memory—to remembering a golden age that never was or a gilded recollection that is not quite true. How many times have you, like me, found yourself referring back to the good old days?” she says. “And, friends, the danger of such gilded or distorted memory is not only that it is untruthful or makes us feel like we have fallen further than we have. Most significantly, such false memory shuts us out from being attentive to God’s work in the present and closes down the possibility of any imagination for the future.”

The Rev. Dr. Joanna Adams sermon, “Miracles Reconsidered,” is based on the two miracles of Jesus in John 6. “Sometimes our modern minds have a hard time believing in the miraculous as it comes to us from the ancient texts of Scripture, which were written, after all, by and for people who had no trouble believing in the miraculous. We likely lean more in the direction of incredulity. We cook up rational explanations to explain them away. Maybe there was a big stash of fish and bread hidden behind a tree or a bush, which Jesus used to feed all those people,” she says. “Do you believe in miracles?”

The Rev. William E. Flippin, Jr., ecumenist, political activist, grassroots organizer, and pastor, is the featured preacher July 21st. He draws his sermon, “Counterfeit Clergy,” from Jeremiah 23:1-6, where he says, “Jeremiah’s warning to the kings of Judah should hit us present-day shepherds about six inches above the clerical collar whether we’re mega-church or mini-church shepherds.” In the interview with Rev. Dr. Katie Givens Kime that accompanies this sermon, Flippin Jr. also talks about how the game of chess informs his ministry, and what he would be excited to learn if he ever had the chance to play chess with Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

“Truth and Consequences,” Lundblad’s sermon for July 14, is based on Mark 6:14-29. This is the story of Herod’s banquet and the beheading of John the Baptist. Lundblad reminds us that John was beheaded because he told the truth and notes that others throughout history were truth tellers. It cost them dearly. “God calls you and me to tell the truth about whatever diminishes life and wholeness for any person,” she says. “We don't speak up because we want to be martyrs. We speak and act because we believe God's kingdom has come near and that makes all the difference.”

“Appreciated But Not Always Wanted,” Qualls’ sermon for July 7, is based on Mark 6:1-13, the account of Jesus’s teaching in the synagogue in his hometown. “I wonder how we wrestle with disbelief in our faith?” he says. “When a truth comes bursting into our lives whose timing is so bad, so inconvenient that we just don’t want it to be so . . . then we wrestle with our own disbelief.”