Each week during Lent features a theme reflecting on our walk toward the cross with Jesus.

1st Sunday — Relationships

2nd Sunday — Trust (no video)

3rd Sunday — Obedience

4th Sunday — Provision

5th Sunday — Wisdom

6th Sunday — Excuses

Lessons from the Ark

Feb. 11, 2024 — Packing Perserance — We wrap up our sermon series about lessons from the ark with some encouragement to pack perseverance for our lifelong journey through the storms we encounter.

Feb. 4, 2024 — Building the Ark of Purpose — As we continue to pack for our journey through life on our metaphorical ark, we consider the need to pack our purpose by asking ourselves an important question: Why are we here?

Jan. 28, 2024 — Building the Ark of Compassion — We continue our look at what traits we want to pack with us when we board our own metaphorical arks by considering compassion and encouragement.

Jan. 21, 2024 — Building the Ark of Spiritual Strength — We start boarding the ark by figuring out what we are packing for the trip. In this message, we talk about our preparation including spiritual strength. That requires commitment to Christ, to prayer and to the Bible.

Jan. 14, 2024 — Building the Ark in the Sunshine — On a dangerously cold day, we canceled in-person worship. But Pastor Todd stil started a sermon series on the ark and what Noah’s obedience and trust in God can teach us. To start, we learn the significance of Noah building the ark in the sunshine.

Jan. 7, 2023 — We tie together Epiphany and the Baptism of our Lord by exploring what it means to “deep clean” as part of our faith.

Dec. 31, 2023 — As we look toward a new year, we pause to recognize the gift of Jesus and the way he changed the world — both for us as individuals and for all humankind.

Christmas Eve

Dec. 24, 2023 – We use the sequel to the story of the Grinch — “How The Grinch Lost Christmas” — to examine what it means to belong, to learn what it means to forgive, and how the shepherds and wise men show us that God sent Jesus to all people.

Nov. 19, 2023 — The parable of the talents provides a challenge to our congregation — and maybe to yours. Which servant do we want to reflect? Do we want to be fruitful with the talents God gives us? Or are we comfortable with burying them out of sight of the world around us?

Nov. 12, 2023 — We start a short, two-sermon series on having an “Attitude of Gratitude.” Psalm 100 givds us direction and inspiration. Our memory card failed, so there is no video. But you can download a PDF of the sermon text.

Nov. 5, 2023 — On All Saints Sunday, we consider how life is like a maze, with many turns and choices. Like the hit song by The Byrds tells us — through Ecclesiastes 3 — there is a time to be born and a time to die.

Oct. 29, 2023 — What is our view from the mountaintop? And how do we share our vision for the world with our children and grandchildren? The story of Moses shows us a thing or two about legacy. NOTE: Our memory card failed, so follow the link to a PDF of the sermon notes.

Oct. 22, 2023 — Did you know some people can’t read or write cursive? That means they can’t understand what is right in front of them. We sometimes can be the same way regarding giving God what belongs to God.

Oct. 15, 2023 — We use the story of the golden calf to explore how we sometimes fall into idolatry by making other things priority over God.

Sept. 3, 2023 — We conclude our sermon series on asking “Why” with a more declarative statement. We can feel comfort in good times and bad because God’s love prevails.

Aug. 27, 2023 — We apologize, but our memory card failed, so we do not have the recording from our message about asking “Why doesn’t God share His wil for our lives?”

Aug. 20, 2023 — We continue our look at the times we ask God “Why?” by looking at how we pray and why our prayers may sometimes go unanswered.

Aug. 13, 2023 — We start a new sermon series centered on the question we often as of God: Why? In this opening sermon, we look at why bad things happen to innocent people.

You Are Wonderfully Made for Service — As we near the end of our “New Reality” series, we use the story of Jacob to show that God does great thing with people who make mistakes. They aren’t imposters but, like us, are wonderfully made for the task of serving for Christ.

Planting Seeds of Anti-Racism — July 23, 2023 — Using a trip to historic civil rights sites in Alabama, we talk about planting seeds and cultivating soils of faith that include speaking out against discrimination and acting to prevent racism.

Tell in the Light — July 2. 2023 — Using the Michael Jackson hit “Man in the Mirror,” we talk about the path of discipleship starts with a look in the mirror. Whether in ways big or small, are you ready to change your ways?

Is Anything Too Wonderful? — June 25, 2023 — We start our journey toward understanding how to be better disciples of Jesus Christ by exploring why we’re doing this in the first place. Two metaphors come to mind: Introducing people to the Good Shepherd and planting seeds for the Holy Spirit to harvest.

Trust the Unknown — June 18, 2023 — We start a summer of understanding what it takes to be a disciple of Jesus Christ with a lesson in learning to “Trust the Unknown.” Faith requires us to be brave — and maybe we even will need to be a little uncomfortable.

June 11, 2023 — Pastor Todd provided a slightly different version of this sermon for worship at Centenary UMC. This version is one he recorded as an option for pastors to use on June 11, 2023, the day after conclusion of the 2023 Great Plains Annual Conference session. He encourages people to move beyond lament over loss and to embrace the possibilities that come with our new normal as United Methodists.

June 4, 2023 — On Trinity Sunday, we talk about how some things really are difficult to understand — like rocket science! That’s where faith and trust come into play, such as our trust in God to guide us as we continue to try to learn about how the Trinity works.

May 28, 2023 — On Pentecost Sunday, we talk about the way the Holy Spirit has been present since the first day of the earth’s existence — and what that means for us as followers of Christ.

May 21, 2023 — Using Tools at Our Disposal — We conclude our sermon series on lessons from the book of Acts for the church today by studying how Paul used the tools at his disposal to share the message of good news through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

May 14, 2023 — Accepting All People — The story of Cornelius helps us understand that we are to be accepting of all people.

May 7, 2023 — Acts: Trusting God — Through the story of Saul’s conversion, we learn the importance of not just speaking our faith, but living it out and showing trust in God. Ananias provides us with a great example of doing both.

April 30, 2023 — Acts: Staying Curious — We experienced a problem with or camera recording. This link takes you to a special podcast featuring St. Paul School of Theology student Josh Seifert.

April 23, 2023 — Acts: Speak Boldly — We look at people through history — including Peter in Acts chapter 2 — to better understand how we can speak boldly about our faith.

April 16 — Acts: The Sequel — We start a sermon series on the book of Acts with a look at three lessons Jesus taught as he ascended to Heaven.

Lenten Sermon Series: the Gospel of Luke

Feb. 26 Lifting Up the Lowly — The central theme of Luke’s Gospel is evident: Jesus came to lift up the lowly. In this opening to the Lenten series on Luke, we explore how God chooses and uses the “very old” and young people to fulfill the mission on earth.

March 5 God Values Women — Luke shows us the way Jesus valued women, ministered with them, taught them, and lifted them up. It calls us to strive for equality for women today, and highlights how Jesus sees all of us as dearly loved children of God.

March 12 Parables of and for the Outcasts — Jesus used parables to teach lessons, especially about how we should repent, forgive, show mercy and provide kindness. That is especially true for how we should interact with the outcast and the outlaws of our society.

March 19 Journey to Jerusalem — This sermon introduces Jesus’s journey to Jerusalem, which highlights the way these stories increase the urgency of Jesus’s ministry and mission. They demonstrate an ongoing commitment to lifting up the lowly.

Advent Week 1: Hope — We start our Advent series on “Angels Among Us” with a look at how the priest Zechariah went from being visited by a messenger of God to becoming a messenger of God. May we all be messengers of hope for someone who needs such a message in the days and weeks ahead.

Advent Week 2: Peace — Using the story of the angel Gabriel visiting Mary, we continue our sermon series on the angel visits documented in the Christmas story by studying how Mary “Just said Yes!” to the call from God. How are you prepared to answer?

Advent Week 3: Joy — We continue our Advent series on angels in the Christmas story by looking at Joseph’s response — both to Mary before a visit from the angel and then after he was visited in a dream. He was willing to listen and then responded to what God asked of him.

Stories of Our Faith

In June 2022, we started a yearlong look at the amazing stories in the Bible and are discussing what the lessons within those stories have to teach us in the 21st century.

Aug. 21 — God’s Provision (Moses and manna)

Aug. 14 — No Excuses (Moses) — PDF of text because of camera failure)

Aug. 7 — Dare to Dream (Joseph)

July 31 — God Exists Outside Your Comfort Zone (guest preacher Joshua Seifert)

July 24 — Wrestling with God (Jacob)

July 17 — Comfort Zone (Abram Answering God’s Call)

July 10 — Unity Through Diversity (Tower of Babel)

July 3 — Something New (Noah’s Ark)

June 26 — Truth & Consequences (Sin and Death)

June 19 — The Voice of God (Creation)

On Pentecost, Pastor Todd challenged the congregation to do three things over the next two weeks: Pray that the Holy Spirit would envelope the people of Centenary UMC as it did for the early disciples, invite at least three people to worship, and live out our faith with such fervor that people will question whether we are drunk, as happened to the early disciples in Acts 2.

Songs of Faith

For this sermon series, the congregation was polled about their favorite hymns, so for the month of May, we are digging into the favorites they identified and exploring how those songs came to be and what they have to teach us. 

We start our series with the amazing story of Horatio Spafford. If ever a man of faith had a reason to doubt or to show anger at God, it was Spafford. But he teaches a lesson in belief in the almighty God and a humbleness that reminds us all that God is, indeed, in control. See how you, too, can respond “It is well with my soul.”

Please note that because of an issue with our video camea, this week’s sermon is provided as a podcast episode.

We continue our Songs of Faith sermon series with a look at racial justice, using the beloved hymn “Amazing Grace” and Micah 6:8 as our framework. The hymns writer, John Newton, was once a slave ship captain who eventually repented of his sin and spoke out against the evil institution he once supported. We once again had some camera problems. The stormy weather this day in Lawrence dimmed light in the sanctuary at times, but those images don’t last long in this recording.

We continue our Songs of Faith sermon series with a look at the beloved hymn “How Great Thou Art.” The lyrics praising God’s creation gives us a chance to celebrate mountains, oceans, deserts, forests, all of the animals on the planet, people — and even dinosaurs!

Poor Thomas was really no different than any of the other disciples. He needed to see the wounds on Jesus’ body before he believed. Using the story of Thomas and the creative tales from Robert Ripley — of “Ripley’s Believe it or Not” fame, we explore how we have seen the risen Christ in action in our lives and how we can help others see Jesus in the world today. Please note that a mishap with the camera’s memory card prompted the use of the podcast version for this link.

EASTER 2022 — Life can change in an instant, and we face many such instances throughout our lives. On this Resurrection Sunday, we explore two stories: One of an abandoned boy, and the story of Mary Magdalene at the tomb. Together they show us how live change in an instant — and how we can help change the lives of others.

Final Sayings from Christ on the Cross

Each Sunday during Lent, we will explore the words recorded as being said by Jesus as he agonized on the cross. Through His words, we can find wisdom from what He said in the first century and apply it to our complicated lives here in the 21st century.

We start our Lenten sermon series on the seven recorded sayings of Christ while he hung on the cross. First, Jesus says, “Father forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” Who do you need to forgive today? Relieve yourself of the yoke of bitterness by providing forgiveness.

In the second saying of Jesus from the cross, we hear, ” I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” We explore together the power of one criminal using the word “if” and the other using the word “when” to address Jesus.

As we continue our exploration of the final words of Jesus from the cross, we look at how Jesus’ cry of “My God, why have you forsaken me” may have been less a question and more a teaching moment from Psalm 22 and how God never truly leaves us, especially in our worst moments.

Our series on the final sayings of Christ from the cross continues with our guest preacher — the Rev. Maria Penrod of Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Wichita — sharing how Jesus showed his humanity even while completing his divine mission as he said, “I am thirst” and “It is finished.”

We conclude our Lenten journey toward the cross with the final words recorded from Jesus on the cross. He commits his spirit — his life — to God.

Due to an issue with our camera’s memory card, this link is to a PDF of the manuscript used for the message.

Jesus teaches us to turn the other cheek, not to judge unless we want to be judged, and to love our enemies. Together, we explore what those phrases mean as we strive to love all people — even people with whom we don’t agree.

In a sermon about spiritual gifts — and with the backdrop of a potential school closing in North Lawrence, Pastor Todd talks about spiritual gifts and the importance of building and preserving community. Just as spiritual gifts build the church, different pieces of the community work together to build a town.

Using the story of Jesus being thrown out of his hometown of Nazareth, we explore the concept of jealousy and how we instead need to share, especially the story of who Jesus is and the relationship anyone can have with the risen savior.

Using the Luke 5 text about Jesus telling his first disciples to cast into the deep water, we look at how we love independence, but we need to understand that we accomplish so much more when we open ourselves to letting Jesus lead the way.

On a day when worship was canceled due to ice and snow, Pastor Todd shares a sermon from his basement, reflecting on family. Specifically, he shares thoughts of how we, as followers of Christ, are adopted into God’s extended family through our belief in Jesus.

 Using the story of John the Baptist to remember our baptism, the message on this day talks about how we can pave the way for others to get to know Jesus Christ.

Older Sermons

To view sermons from prior to the 2021 Advent season, please view the Centenary United Methodist Church channel on YouTube by clicking here or on the icon.