Sermon: O Worrier, Consider The Lillies
Date: January 18, 2026
Scripture: Matthew 6:25-34
Speaker: George Veith

We live in an age of worry. Studies from Statistics Canada tell us that 1 in 4 Canadians report to have moderate to severe anxiety. Gen Z and Millennial Canadians between 18 and 39 years old reported the highest levels of anxiety, loneliness, depression and stress of any age group (33.5 per cent for anxiety, 43.2 per cent for stress, 29.1 per cent for loneliness and 27.7 per cent for feelings of depression). We are in an epidemic of worry, anxiety, and stress. We face so many issues in day-to-day life that worry and anxiety are par for the course. To not worry seems to be something that only those who do not live in reality can do. What does it mean then to follow Christ’s teaching in this passage regarding worry? Jesus seems to think that we need to change our mindset about the value of worry (v27), change our relationship to possessions (v28), and to trust in the abundance of our Heavenly Father who “knows that you need all these things”(v32). We can abandon our scarcity mindsets because of the one who announces the abundance of God. Abundance, not scarcity, is the mark of God’s Kingdom. But that abundance must be made real through the lives of a people who have discovered that they can trust God and one another. Such trust is not an irrational gesture against the chaos of life, but rather a witness to the very character of God’s care of creation. So it is no wonder that Jesus directs our attention to the lilies to help us see how it is possible to live in joyful recognition that God has given us more than we need.

Desired Outcome: To name the reality of our age of worry — and receive the invitation of Jesus to an alternative way of living that trusts in the care of our Heavenly Father.

Sermon: Two Masters
Date: January 11
Scripture: Matthew 6:19-24
Speaker: Paul Walker

We who live in consumeristic cultures must remain aware that we live in a context that is perpetually trying to get us to be discontent with what we have. We are conditioned to chase after more. We are trained to get our value from money, possessions, and material gains. Jesus tells us that “You cannot serve both God and money (Mammon).”(v24) Historically, “mammon” is the name of a powerful deity who uses wealth to destroy people. It has the power to create hunger and discontentment in us, to get us to perpetually want more. Ultimately mammon competes with God for our heart’s devotion. So what does it mean for us to serve only one master? What are we giving ultimate allegiance to in our lives? Can we trust that Jesus is a better Lord than Mammon?

Desired Outcome: To explore the false messages of our consumeristic culture — and to challenge people to trust that Jesus offers us so much more.

Sermon: Prepare the Way
Date: January 4, 2026
Scripture: Matthew 3
Speaker: George Veith

In Matthew 3 we meet Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist. John the Baptist’s role was to prepare the way for Jesus. He was the embodiment of Isaiah’s vision of a “voice calling in the desert to prepare the way of the Lord”. (Is 40:3) John called the people of Israel to repentance and enacted this through baptism. The Church has a role that is similar to John’s. Just as he prepared the way for Christ 2000 years ago, we too are to prepare our lives to encounter Jesus, both now, and in expectation of his second coming. We are to live today as though Jesus is coming back at any time. We don’t live the way the world lives. We are a part of a revolution. We invest in the Kingdom. We revolt against the status quo. We work to bring about the Kingdom on Earth as it is in heaven. And as we do this, we hasten the Lord’s return. On this first Sunday of 2026, what might it mean to prepare the way of the Lord in our own lives?

Desired Outcome: To encourage folks to examine their lives as we head into 2026—and ask how they might prepare the way to encounter Jesus this year.

Sermon: Sing In Exaltation
Date: December 28
Scripture: Luke 2:8-20
Speaker: Paul Walker

Worship is not just something that happens at church. Worship is a state of your heart— which is expressed in our thoughts, words, and deeds. Look at the Christmas narrative and see how the central characters expressed their worship in a variety of ways: Mary was moved to sing a song of gratitude to God. Joseph obeyed and followed God’s plan. The shepherds stopped their work to go find and worship the Christ-child. Magi confronted anything that stood in the way of worshiping the one true God. Elizabeth opened her home in an act of hospitality. If we don’t begin the Advent season with a heart of worship, everything else will fall apart. The way we spend, give, and love will radically change when it comes from a place of true worship. This is not something you should do out of obligation. It is the opportunity to get back to the heart of the Christmas narrative. So what might it look like for us to fully enter into worship this advent season?

Desired Outcome: To encourage our people to worship fully this advent season in our thoughts, words, and deeds.

Christmas Eve Candle-light service
Sermon: Joy Of Every Longing Heart
Date: December 24
Scripture: Selected Scripture Passages from Luke 1-2
Speaker: Paul Walker

At the heart of the Christmas story is longing. Elizabeth and Zechariah long for a child in their old age (Lk 1:5-25). Mary longs to be the servant of the Lord (Lk 1:38) as she sings about her God and Saviour whose mercy extends “from generation to generation”(Lk 1:50). This God is present to the longings of the world. God has “helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful”(Lk 1:54), “because he has come to his people and redeemed them”(Lk 1:68). The shepherds long to “see the thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” (Lk 2:15) We too have longings. In a world filled with conflict, anxiety, loneliness, and suffering, so many of us long for peace—to be complete and whole. Jesus offers us personal wholeness and peace with God and his people through his first coming, and we now long for the ultimate eternal wholeness he will bring when he returns. Christmas reminds us that all our longings, hopes, and dreams are encountered in the God who came as a baby to be with us.

Desired Outcome: To preach the Good News that all our longings are met in Jesus — who invites us to receive his joy, peace, and love to replace our conflict, anxiety, loneliness, and suffering.

Blue Christmas Evening Service
Sermon: Far As The Curse Is Found
Date: December 21
Scripture: Matthew 2:13-23
Speaker: Paul Walker

The Magi do not return to Herod. The response from Herod is to eliminate any possible challenge to his power-hold over Israel. Herod commands that all male baby boys under two years old be put to death. It is a tragedy. Perhaps no event in the gospels challenges our sentimental depiction of Christmas than the slaughter of these innocents. Most North American Christians don’t like to sully their sentimental version of Christmas with the account of King Herod’s collateral damage. But Matthew gives a prophetic witness to truth that becomes good news for all those on the underside of empire and evil. God is not distant to the suffering of our world. God is like Jesus — born into a dark world of trouble, trial, violence, and fear. Jesus comes to shine his light far as the curse is found. Jesus comes to heal us of the curse and darkness that sin has wrought upon us.

Desired Outcome: To announce the good news that Jesus joins us in our world of pain and suffering.

Sermon: The Unexpected Worshipers
Date: December 14
Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12
Speaker: George Veith

We often picture the Magi as three Kings or three wise men who arrive alongside the shepherds in an epic Nativity evening of worship on an O Holy Night. The story that Scripture tells us is far more complicated. For starters, the Magi arrive on the scene after the birth of Jesus— likely years after the shepherds. (Mt 2:1) Secondly, the Magi were not kings, they were Persian astronomers, astrologers, magicians who discerned an auspicious sign in the stars and made a thousand mile journey to worship the Christ child in Bethlehem. In other words, the Magi are the last people you’d expect to show up in a story about the Jewish Messiah. And yet, the appearance of the Magi tells us that those on the outside and the fringes can find themselves at the centre of what God is doing. We learn in the story of the Magi that Jesus is calling all people to himself to worship and be transformed. And when we dare do this— we discover the journey home is by “another way”(2:12).

Desired Outcome: To discover the Good News that Jesus is calling all sorts of unexpected people to come follow Him and thus journey by “another way”(2:12)”.

Sermon: A Life Interrupted
Date: December 7
Scripture: Matthew 1:18-25
Speaker: Paul Walker

Joseph was pledged to be married to Mary. As was the Jewish custom during the betrothal period, Joseph was probably away building a home and preparing for his marriage to Mary. Joseph surely had plans and dreams about what his future would look like. However, God had other plans for Joseph. Joseph’s life turned upside-down. Mary became pregnant. The child was conceived by the Holy Spirit, but Joseph did not believe this story. His future wife was pregnant and the child was not his. This was considered very scandalous, and his reputation within the community was probably at stake. Joseph first thought about divorcing Mary quietly, but then the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him what to do. He could have not believed this, ignored the dream and said “no”. However, he listened and obeyed God, and the birth of the saviour of the world, Jesus, took place. In the same way that God spoke to Joseph, God is speaking to us. Jesus is looking for those who will listen to His voice and follow Him, even if that means giving up our own plans and dreams.

Desired Outcome: To encourage our people to listen to the voice of God— even when it is costly and inconvenient.