1 SAMUEL 2013-2014

heroes 09.15.2013
And we begin 1 Samuel.

they are? 09.22.2013
Quite a bit depends on how we answer it. Eli's sons give us one option. But there are others…

art and curses 09.29.2013
1 Samuel continues with some interesting stories. How are we supposed to read this stuff, again?

boxes 10.06.2013
And the gods who live in those boxes. 1 Samuel continues...

why a king? 10.13.2013
The story of 1 Samuel continues… with the people asking for a king. Poor Samuel.

is there a plan? 10.20.2013
We throw around "God's plan" all the time in different ways. "Give them a king" might help us re-think the idea.

a grace perspective 10.27.2013
It tends to change the story of Saul in 1 Samuel and the stories all around us today as well.

the mistake about mistakes 11.10.2013
Maybe it's Samuel who makes the first mistake - not Saul. Maybe we need to stop acting like Samuel.

honey 11.17.2013
No, Mariah Carey did not come and sing. But we did get another good story from 1 Samuel.

the thing 11.24.2013
Isn't sacrifice or religion… but…

what makes David, David? 01.12.2014
We begin 1 Samuel again - with a new main character. Before we get into David we talk a little about lions.

what are you so afraid of? 01.19.2014
Hate, shame, and Saul and David.

give it up for jonathan 01.26.2014
To Jonathan - because he deserves it.

from nothing to something 02.02.2014
What makes the story in 1 Samuel and stories today great.

mixed messages 02.09.2014
Are confusing and annoying. Especially related to faith and the Bible. What do we do?

the bad guys? 02.16.2014
David, Saul, the Taliban, and Norwegian prisons…

the medium 02.23.2014
Saul visits one and hears something that you may have heard… that isn't true…

what did we learn? 03.02.2014
A 1 Samuel recap, of sorts, to end the story.

PROVERBS 2013

proverbs: ways 05.26.2013
We start Proverbs for the summer and we start with some dialog with everyone about ways.

proverbs: her 06.02.2013
Two women: life and death.

proverbs: eyes 06.09.2013
The ways we look - or don't look - at the world.

proverbs: house 06.23.2013
The house of Branches. Some attributes.

proverbs: folly 07.07.2013
Folly, fools, sin… and what they do to our velocity.

proverbs: earth 07.21.2013
What does tremble mean? What makes the earth tremble?

proverbs: strife 08.04.2013
We invite some peace and quiet as we meditate on some of the ideas around strife, dissension and bitterness.

proverbs: wealth 08.11.2013
10 things about wealth.

proverbs: lips 08.18.2013
Closing and opening the gates of the heart and soul.

proverbs: Lord 08.25.2013
Is this God really about that?

proverbs: wisdom 09.01.2013
A conclusion and summary. Of proverbs and wisdom.

WORDS 2013

the word 04.14.2013
We begin a new series on words and try to redeem some of their meanings.

is it Christian? 04.21.2013
It might be a wrong, and a dangerous, question.

deeper 04.28.2013
Change, movement, growth, evolution and vectors.

saved 05.12.2013
From a tribe in the Amazon to a group of slaves in Egypt to a mom in Spokane.

worship 05.19.2013
We end the series on "words" with some emotion, some sacrifice, and some action.

ECCELSIASTES LENT 2013

everything is meaningless 02.17.2013
And Lent begins… along with Ecclesiastes…

the island 02.24.2013
The way Solomon sees things versus the way we often do.

time and chance 03.03.2013
and the pain that exists on the island.

alive aware awake. now. 03.10.2013
There is also life on the island. What is it? How do we find it?

fear God. 03.17.2013
Sounds great. What does it mean though?

a marinade of mystery 08.02.2013
more contemplative, meditative end to Ecclesiastes, and celebration of Palm Sunday.

WHAT JESUS DOESN’T TALK ABOUT 2012

should I move to Denver? 05.13.2012
Maybe. But, you probably won't find Jesus giving you an answer in the Bible.

Jesus doesn't talk about… sex. 06.10.2012
Why? What can we learn from that? What if we acted like Jesus?

god bless america? 07.01.2012
Part three of "things Jesus doesn't talk about"…

homosexuality... 08.05.2012
The last installment of "things Jesus doesn't talk about". We talk and we discuss. Note: first minute or so did not record.

JOHN 2012-2013

word and flesh. life and light. 01.08.2012
As we enter into 2012, we begin John… Word and meaning. Caves and snorkeling. Humanity and flesh. And a story about Scott Harrison.

recognize. 01.15.2012
What makes us recognize someone? In a painting? In a photo? What makes us recognize Jesus? What happens when we do?

dangerous questions? 01.22.2012
And a story about superhero prophets, messiahs, and an all around pivotal moment in time.

wine. tables. hmm. 01.29.2012
The rabbi says follow me. And it doesn't take long for the stories to start rolling in. We look at two and think about some things that make you go hmmm...

born again 02.05.2012
The phrase caught on. We re-enact the conversation that might have happened when Jesus used it, and we wonder what it actually means.

believe 02.12.2012
Of course, it's never as simple as it seems… which means neither is John 3:16.

eternal life: the baby 02.19.2012
We've been talking about giving birth and the pain of delivery. What are we giving birth to? And is it worth it? Why? Really?

idiots weddings and wrath 02.26.2012
The 3 part ending to John chapter 3. with about five minutes on Lent first...

will you give me a drink? 03.04.2012
And the conversation that comes from it… a conversation that according to all the rules of the day should never even have had a chance.

apple 03.18.2012
If Apple were a religion, and we judged a religion on passion, reputation, and devout followers… it might beat Christianity. Why? The second half of the woman at the well might have some answers…

tears, donkeys, and leaders 04.01.2012
We have a conversation about Palm Sunday. And find out maybe Palm Sunday isn't the Sunday to rejoice… just yet…

why? 04.08.2012
Joy. Excitement. Peace. Confidence. Relief. On Easter morning. Why?

signs 04.15.2012
Two stories. Two outcomes. We discuss them.

a man and his mat 04.22.2012
A story about an invalid, a race, a mat, religion, and Jesus…

vulnerability 05.20.2012
Does it all come down to this?

whoa 06.17.2012
That feeling you get… or do we? And a little recap of a recent trip…

in secret 07.08.2012
Jesus goes in secret. Where? Why?

what if it's me? 07.15.2012
What if it's me who is wrong? Jesus talks publicly at the festival.

water 07.22.2012
There's nothing quite like it.

temple guards 07.29.2012
Their story.

where are they? 08.12.2012
God, accusers, shame, and us. All in a story about a woman and Jesus.

dark. light. 08.19.2012
Follow. Six questions and some discussion around the ideas.

confirmation bias 09.02.2012
and Jesus' words about it.

the merge sign 09.23.2012
and Jesus healing a blind man.

obsession 09.30.2012
The story of a blind man being healed becomes a different kind of story about a different kind of blindness...

sheep and stuff 10.07.2012
Some acting, some audience participation and some thoughts…

a cost 10.14.2012
Everything in life has one… right?

storytime 10.21.2012
The funny, tragic, beautiful story of Lazarus.

desire, fear and politics 11.04.2012
along with a super storm...

who am I 11.11.2012
Mary and Judas: work, pretending, and being present.

judgment, prince, and all 11.18.2012
Apologies but the mic goes out for about 2 minutes in the recording…

planes 11.25.2012
Jesus seemed to live on a higher plane of life. Can we? 5 star reviews and 1 star reviews have something do with it.

greater things. 01.06.2013 08:31
The way. The trust. The help.

remain 01.20.2013
And the paradox of branches producing fruit.

as one 02.03.2013
Jesus prayed that we would be one. What does that mean? We talk about weddings, pastors, muslims, and a lot more as we try to figure it out.

breakfast 04.07.2013
Some fishing, a nice breakfast on the beach… some ideas of what rise looks like…

PHARISEES 2011

soundtracks 09.18.2011
A new series on the Pharisees and talk about contrasting soundtracks, sin, and letting go.

sexuality 09.25.2011
A discussion on pharisees, sexuality, and what Jesus had to say.

puffy vests and ski jackets 10.09.2011
We wear layers. Jesus said to go and learn… I desire mercy, not sacrifice.

water, camels, and human rules 10.16.2011
Clean and unclean, life and death. Jesus had some things to say about it.

burdens, tassels, and baboons. 10.30.2011
We end the series on the Pharisees with three words to describe them… and us.

HABAKKUK 2011

why? what? where? God? 08.07.2011
God answers. Sorta. And we begin Habakkuk.

why? evil? God? 08.14.2011
Part two of Habakkuk… questions and confusion, shame, and relief.

eventually? 08.21.2011
Episode Three of Habakkuk.

woe 08.28.2011
and the cycles of humanity. Episode four of Habakkuk.

wonder and wait 09.04.2011
The series finale of Habakkuk.

REST 2011

a rest. 07.03.2011
It's the start of the second half of the year and the beginning of our rest series. So we rest on a Sunday with some reminders of what we are trying to be about.

the creator stops. 07.10.2011
As part of the creative process, God rests.

a serious rhythm. 07.17.2011
Week three on rest. It's pretty serious. Ratios, control, and us.

rest 07.31.2011
For our last week on rest, we talk about it as a community.

FIRE 2011

God is fire. 06.05.2011
And so "fire" begins...

what are you doing here? 06.12.2011
After a showdown of the gods we have some wind, an earthquake, lots of fire and a whisper asking a question.

hades 06.26.2011
The story of a rich man in Hades. We discuss...

WINE 2011

what i've learned from wine 05.15.2011
...about faith: Variety. Tasting. Connoisseurs.

new wine 05.22.2011
What does it mean today? What does it mean for the future?

water into wine 05.29.2011
We end the wine series with a quick look, and great discussion, on the story of Jesus turning water into wine.

PARABLES 2011

new wine 01.30.2011
A discussion about new wine and old wineskins with some great people in the community.

workers in the vineyard 02.27.2011
The Kingdom of God is like... some hard workers and some slackers who all get paid the same amount? We discuss it.

wheat and weeds 03.27.2011
The Kingdom of God is like... some kids holding green construction paper and some kids holding yellow construction paper... and another great discussion...

a withered fig tree 04.17.2011
Fig trees, fruit, temples, Palm Sunday, disciples... and us. We talk about all of it.

1 CORINTHIANS 2011

the cafeteria 01.09.2011
As we begin the letter of Corinthians we talk about cafeterias... and church.

plant and water 01.16.2011
and a conversation with a farmer...

krino 02.06.2011
From fog and fireworks to planks, yeast, and festivals... a look at the fun topic of judging from 1 Corinthians 5.

chocolates and bodies 02.13.2011
A tremendous potential for good and evil, healing and destruction, light and dark. It's all in the human body and it's often related to sex.

static transformation 02.20.2011
Paul says to remain. Stay. What happened to transform and grow?

giving up... 03.13.2011
The First Sunday of Lent and 1 Corinthians 9 have some common threads... giving up... but not always the obvious things...

stories of old 03.20.2011
Paul says an old story about pillars of cloud, rocks that produce water, and golden cows is an example to us. It also raises some big questions about what idols are and what kind of "converts" we are producing.

spirit. body. 04.03.2011
Gifts: a spirit gives them in order to have a body.

love. period. 04.10.2011
Can we stop living "love, but..." and start living "love."?

GENESIS 2010

in the beginning... 09.12.2010
In the beginning... it was good.

we lost our story 09.19.2010
You know... that talking snake thing...

cain and abel 09.26.2010
On our first "branch out" Sunday we have a conversation about the disturbing.beautiful story of Cain and Abel.

arky arky 10.03.2010
Most of the world drowns in a flood and we sing some cute songs about it. What's the real story here?

scattered 10.10.2010
Bricks. Towers. Names. They can all be dangerous. The Babel story teaches us there might be something else to worry about.

ladders and wrestlers 10.24.2010
On a quick drive-through of the story of Jacob, we stop the car and get out and stretch at two spots: ladders and wrestlers.

words 11.28.2010
The end of Genesis. We take a look back at the variety of powerful words that make up the story. We end by looking at the words Jacob spoke to his sons and remembering words that have been written to us, because words can be so powerful

ADVENT SEASONS  2010-2017

matthew's jesus 12.05.2010
A long list of names who knew we could have so much fun with that and a sentence.

mark's jesus 12.12.2010
John the Baptist, confession... and sitting on a couch

hope: reconciliation 08.02.2013
We begin the season of Advent looking at reconciliation through the lens of hope.

hope: mystery 12.11.2011
We talk about a glass jar. And wind, and God, and Advent and hope.

fear 12.02.2012
On the first Sunday of Advent there is a little about sharks, terrorism, storms, demons, sickness, malaria, and love. We give away some money too.

shame 12.16.2012
On the third Sunday of Advent, we take a trip with our shame: to a garden, a barn, and a street.

hate 12.23.2012
On the last Sunday of Advent, we take a look at hate, its pleasures, and darkness and light.

advent empire 12.04.2016
Empire, resistance, printers, chlorine, angst, and joy. Sometimes it just comes out…

advent fear 12.19.2016
Peace, fear, and filaments. Some perspectives to resist fear.

live that story. 12.03.2017
Week 1 of Advent. Remember it's a story too. Bon Jovi and Taylor Swift help us.

more magi 12.10.2017
Magi from the East. Yeah, we all need more Magi in our lives, even if we don't know it.

god concepts 12.17.2017
Looking at the Advent story, some ways we can better be aware of the Divine.

EASTER(S) 2011-2017

more to the story 04.24.2011
Easter is way bigger and bolder... who, what, and why.

why? 04.08.2012
Joy. Excitement. Peace. Confidence. Relief. On Easter morning. Why?

rise 03.31.2013
The easter story should be more inspiring than Batman... shouldn't it?

those parts of the Easter story 04.20.2014
the ones we may not hear, the ones we may easily forget.

open the shades 04.05.2015
easter. new.

the myth of easter. 03.27.2016

the danger of easter 04.16.2017
It's a beautiful day. And also a dangerous one. Maybe the most dangerous

SELECTED RANDOM(S)  2010-2017

the other lung 01.05.2014
East and West, reason and contemplation… what we might be missing when it comes to seeing God.

why church? 04.03.2016

it had to change. 11.19.2017
Music has changed, grown, evolved and moved with culture and technology - in massive amounts the last 150 years. It has been necessary. Will the church change too? Branches will be going through some big changes of its own with Ryan's announcement of his change to pursue that answer