Christ the King,
We rejoice and celebrate that on this Easter day, you came, despite our unfaithfulness to reconcile us to you. We celebrate the sacrifice that you have made on our behalf. We ask that you would transform us into a community of servants, that might see your glory and expand your kingdom through humbly serving the needs of this your city and thro ...

Daily Reading

Matthew 3:13-17

Reflection

John the Baptist was a prophet who prepared people for the coming Messiah. In the gospels, we see him baptizing people as well as sternly rebuking the religious authorities. Then something happens that takes him by surprise: Jesus approaches him for baptism. From John's response, it's ...

Daily Reading

Matthew 27:27-50; John 15:13

Reflection

What does it mean to lay down one's life for another? Maximillian Kolbe was a Franciscan Priest and Doctor of Theology who had dedicated his life to the study of Scripture and service. In 1941, the Gestapo a ...

Daily Reading

John 13:3-17

Reflection

It's tempting in our day to do everything to get to the top. It's been this way for millennia. Brothers kill each other for a throne. Lovers betray one another for a fleeting high. Those in power attempt to gain more control. But not Jesus. Jesus went low. He went for the feet. Whil ...

Daily Reading

Luke 4:16-21

Reflection

After performing miracles in Capernaum, Jesus returns to Nazareth to explain His mission and, by extension, our own. Using the prophetic words of Isaiah, he lays out the groundwork for what He came to accomplish: release the captives, heal the blind, free the oppressed, and proclaim the co ...

Daily Reading

Matthew 22:36-40

Reflection

What if we did not have to live our lives by our to-do lists? What if mission did not just take up another spot on the calendar, but instead we lived mission as a lifestyle? The invitation of Jesus in this passage is not simply to participate in more service days, or to perform ...

Daily Reading

Luke 10:29-37

Reflection

A teacher of the law asks Jesus an insincere question with an insincere agenda. Jesus responds with the concept of loving God with all your heart, soul and strength, and your neighbor as yourself. When the teacher gets defensive and asks who his neighbor is, Jesus tells the story of the Go ...

Good Shepherd,
We ask that you would watch over all of our neighbors who are without a home. We confess that we have often been consumed by our own material greed, and failed to recognize the needs of our neighbors. Help us to conform to the image of Christ, who saw every need and was moved with compassion. Amen.

Daily Worshi ...

Daily Reading

Luke 9:22

Reflection

Jesus called himself "the Son of Man," a title that was associated with the promised Messiah and also a phrase that means "truly human." In the case of Jesus, both are true—he is the Messiah and he is fully divine and fully human! God became fully human in order to fully heal humans.

Daily Reading

Psalm 22:1-2

Reflection

Deserted. Abandoned. Hopeless. A cry so guttural, so definitive, so deep. It is a cry that expresses betrayal. "Why O why have you forsaken me?" Who does the Psalmist accuse? God. Embedded within this cry is the perennial problem of theodicy: In the face of suffering, how do we rec ...

Daily Reading

Isaiah 52:13-53:12

Reflection

Isaiah speaks of the Messiah who will deliver God's people. His prophecy brings to mind Handle's Messiah; but under the majestic music is the reality of the Messiah's embrace of suffering. Isaiah's first audience is a people in exile, to whom he gives hope for God's ancient pro ...

Daily Reading

Romans 5:3-5

Reflection

One of the most difficult realities of the Christian life is that suffering is inevitable. In fact, throughout Church history, many Christians have sought opportunities to inconvenience themselves for the sake of the Kingdom, and to become more like the suffering servant, Jesus.

Daily Reading

II Corinthians 12:7-10

Reflection

In contrast to our culture which does anything to escape suffering, the Apostle Paul gives a different perspective on the experience of suffering. Referring to a thorn in his side, Paul sees suffering as a means of proclaiming God's glory and power. What an interesting reality t ...

Daily Reading

Romans 8:28

Reflection

It is easier to believe that God loves us when things are going well. But when things go against us, and life gets hard or scary, it is harder to believe. This text doesn't say that everything that happens in our lives is good or from God. It does promise that nothing can keep God from ...

Father God,
Help us to care for the children of San Francisco and the world. Strengthen and guide David Starfas, Dan Gannon, Wendi Digerness, Florence Nault, Children's Ministry volunteers, and all of those who seek to bring the children to you through worship on Sundays. We pray for our city. Make San Francisco a place that protects and provides for its childre ...