Still Speaking with Ivanhoe Church

Episode 1: Faithful Listeners

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Luke 10: 38-42, in which Martha, attending to hospitality for the many who have accompanied Jesus, complains to Jesus that Mary has prioritized caring for Jesus over the hospitality needs of the household. We hope that you will find a comfortable place to prepare your heart and mind for contemplation, …

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Episode 2: Soul Investment

Thu, 01 Aug 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Luke 12: 13-21, in which Jesus is asked to settle a dispute between brothers and instead illustrates, in a more encompassing story of the rich fool who desires to tear down and build larger barns, the ways we can bind our soul to material investment.

Episode 3: Faith Is…

Thu, 08 Aug 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley speak about the faith of our forebears, the reality of their hope, and what sustains us as we prepare for those who follow.

Episode 4: Restore

Thu, 29 Aug 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, we discuss Psalm 80. Pastor Kris and Shelley speak of this lament, about the power of reaching out to God to repair our broken hearts.

Episode 5: A New Identity

Thu, 05 Sep 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Host Shelley really get into the guts of the matter as they discuss how we are called to be compassionate through the letter from Paul to Philemon.

Episode 6: Growing in God’s Love

Thu, 19 Sep 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Host Shelley discuss 1 Timothy 1:12-17. The epistle speaks to the power of God’s grace that, by its overflowing abundance, allows everything to be made new. Where each new day is a gift, we have in every moment of every day an opportunity to start anew.

Episode 7: Surprising Investment

Thu, 26 Sep 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Host Shelley discuss Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15, and how Jeremiah’s investment in land, though knowing they will most certainly all be taken away into exile under Babylonian siege, is a symbol—a very material sign—of audacious hope. Pastor Kris brings us this quote from Walter Bruggemann: "The prophet is the one who dares to speak such a future that is out beyond all evidence."

Episode 8: Sincere Faith

Thu, 03 Oct 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Host Shelley speak about 2 Timothy 1:1–14, and particularly about our heirloom of faith, passed down through generations, and how we serve often because we have been served.

Episode 9: Ask Boldly; Live Justly

Thu, 17 Oct 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Luke 18: 1-8, and the value of a persistent spirit, remaining faithful to God and our neighbor when our culture makes it easier to serve our own interests.

Episode 10: Showing Up

Thu, 24 Oct 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley acknowledge highlights along the road to our tenth podcast and reflect on the value of 'just showing up.'

Episode 11: Just Worship

Thu, 24 Oct 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley continue their conversation on prayer, focusing on the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke 18: 9-14.

Episode 12: Transforming Love

Thu, 31 Oct 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Shelley review the story of Zacchaeus the tax collector, and the transformation taking place as Jesus calls on him to be his host. Join with us in conversation about who is transformed in this story.

Episode 13: Infinite Possibilities

Thu, 14 Nov 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Host Shelley discuss Isaiah 65, where, when we are at our most hopeless, the prophet offers us a magnificent vision God’s new heavens and earth.

Episode 14: Together in Christ

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the grace that provides the opportunity to begin again; how our faith, through Christmas and Easter, allow us a vision of God as the fully human and fully divine redeemer.

Episode 15: Loving Joy

Thu, 05 Dec 2019 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Shelley continue their discussion on the theme of joy, focusing on its independence from events our surroundings and how we can find joy amid chaos. Without joy, burdens become unbearable. But moving into a second naïveté through the practice of awe and reverence, we can uncover profound joy.

Episode 16: Justice and Joy

Thu, 12 Dec 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley continue in the theme of joy, discussing the eight pillars of joy as laid forth in The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World. This book of insights grew out of a meeting between The Most Reverend Desmond Tutu and His Holiness The Dalai Lama when they had a week-long conversation about joy. Pastor Kris and Shelley highlight practices we may use to deepen our faith.

Episode 17: Incarnate Joy

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley continue the theme of joy, discussing Isaiah 52: 7-10, where we find three messengers singing praises to God amidst ruin and exile. They proclaim that God is not remote, has heard the cries of the people, and is bringing them good news. With the Word born flesh, Emmanuel, God with us is a message we can all sing in joy this Christmas season.

Episode 18: Another Road

Thu, 02 Jan 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how, when assumptions are dashed, an epiphany can guide us to new beginnings. Relating Isaiah 60:1-6 to Matthew 2:1-12, they discuss how the Magi, expecting to find the holy in a palace, must reorient; undeterred, they find the Messiah in the lowest of shelters and go out by a different way, becoming people through whom others may encounter the Good News of the Bible.

Episode 19: All That We Are

Thu, 16 Jan 2020 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Host Shelley discuss John 1:29-42 and the ways we are called into being Christians. Shelley and Pastor Kris discuss faith words that will be touchstones for their Christian growth throughout this year. As you hear Shelley speak of ‘light,’ and Pastor Kris address ‘blessing,’ we hope you’ll contemplate a word you may reflect upon through the year, to guide your deepening faith.

Episode 20: Together

Thu, 23 Jan 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how Matthew describes Jesus beginning his ministry, calling disciples who dropped everything to follow Him. Perhaps we feel our calling in more subtle ways–for most, ours isn't an all-or-nothing call to drop our nets but to ﬁnd ways of putting that call into every step we take. Now, in the wake of Christmas expectation, this baptism reminds us to allow for renewal and change, to bind ourselves in community at those places where Gods kingdom is breaking into this world.

Episode 21: Salt and Light

Sat, 08 Feb 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley take the podcast recording live, inviting CTS seminarian Rob Routzhan to discuss the history of Christian mysticism. Rob shares that, rather than being hermetic, contemplative tradition is about action and engagement with the world and offers traditions that may open us to our Creator in new ways.

Episode 22: From the Heart

Thu, 13 Feb 2020 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus calls us to live our faith from the heart, challenging us to act in ways that surpass the simple letter of the law. Scripture provides instruction for faith, but Jesus illustrates how we cannot worship God with our whole heart when we hold a grudge against our neighbor. Jesus calls us into community, building one another up in faith through grace and forgiveness.

Episode 23: Dazzling Reign

Thu, 20 Feb 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how the transfiguration of Jesus resonates within our lives. Through Matthew 17:1–9, we see a dazzling radiance in Jesus as God spoke, This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him! Reacting just as we might to this riveting vision, Peter, James, and John want to stay on the mountaintop, to live in this glory. But, Jesus gently calls them down the mountain, making clear that this is a blessing for leaving, for carrying forward; may it be a blessing for your Lenten journey.

Episode 24: The Teaching: Risking Challenge

Thu, 12 Mar 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how the brilliance of Jesus's response to the Pharisees' challenge over whose likeness is on the coin can draw our attention from the other side of the coin - the other side of the cross - a remarkable foreshadowing, when he asks that we give to God all that belongs to God, of the sacrifice Jesus is soon to make. This message arrives in the middle of our Lenten journey, in the midst of a pandemic that is changing the ways of our routine. We are called to pause, to consider anew those things that are God's.

Episode 25: The First Dinner-Risking Rejection

Thu, 19 Mar 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Amidst the social isolation in the COVID-19 quarantine, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the anointing of Christ in the week before his crucifixion. As the contemporary story of business closings accelerates, this ancient story of radical grace is one that offers hope. We are called to be a community even in times of physical separation; especially now, we need to act with generosity, showing love for our family and community. This week, take a moment to be a Mary, woman from the city, offering extraordinary kindness to others.

Episode 26: Peace Be With You

Thu, 16 Apr 2020 18:00:00 -0600

In John 20: 19-3, Pastor Kris and Shelley find resonance in our sequestering with the story of Thomas and the disciples: even when we lock ourselves inside, Jesus finds us. As Thomas sought reassurance, the resurrection reveals a God that is still creating and re-creating. Sheltering at home has brought us new understandings even as it has separated us physically. As for Thomas, a loving Christ breathes the Holy Spirit into us, wherever we are.

Episode 27: Savoring Creation

Thu, 23 Apr 2020 18:00:00 -0600

In Pastor Kris and Shelley's discussion, we are invited along the walk to Emmaus. As these disciples were kept from recognizing him, Jesus seems to savor the walk, offering not only instruction but presence: we find a story not of doing but of being. Speaking to our time, Luke 24:13–35 describes how our pain and grief may prevent us from seeing the blessings we are granted. It is through an offer of presence, inviting this stranger into their community for dinner, that they find the risen Christ. May it be so with you.

Episode 28: Shelter

Thu, 30 Apr 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the beloved Psalm 23, eloquence for all times. Today, we are led through dark valleys in God’s shelter. In both visual arrangement and metaphorical significance, the center, the heart, of this poem is the phrase, “You are with me.” The Psalm reminds us that we always have and always will …

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Episode 29: Enduring Witness

Thu, 07 May 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss John 14:1-14, where, like Phillip, even as we have lived in God's presence, we miss the obvious. Jesus asks us to see beyond our presumptions: God is so much greater than our collective perspectives; there will be many rooms made ready. We have in Jesus a picture of loving God that guides us today and offers hope for tomorrow.

Episode 30: Pentecost

Thu, 28 May 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Pentecost, the birth of the church from Acts 2:1-2, whereby, as tongues of fire were distributed among all people, each was given understanding to hear God's message. This fire represents many things: deep passion, a way to bring light to an injustice, a clearing of the old to make way for the new. Pentecost is the empowerment of what we are born to do: to take up–with passion–Jesus's call to love everyone. Every one.

Episode 31: Water is Life

Thu, 04 Jun 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Ezekiel 31: 3-7 and how great nations thrived in this majestic tree's shade. Ezekiel's poetic call for hope recognizes that beauty is not merely a cultural element but a spiritual restorative. This week, let beauty re-awaken you, lift your dulled spirits, and refill your spiritual well so that you may nourish others.

Episode 32: Abyss Mystery and Wonder

Thu, 25 Jun 2020 18:00:00 -0600

This week, Pastor Kris and Shelley speak of our summer worship theme, Beguiled by Beauty, and how our spiritual life may be deepened when we set aside time for wonder and awe at God's creation.

Episode 33: The Beauty Of A World Without A Why

Thu, 09 Jul 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Song of Songs 4:1-7, which begins, "Look at you, so beautiful, my dearest." The beauty of this language is not only earthy sentiment but shows us the very way God loves us. It is our essential nature to be loved by the Creator who knits our souls together with the thread of beauty. It is a song repeated in the good news of the Gospel, that the God who so loved us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, calls each and every one of us, "Beautiful."

E34: From Beauty to Compassion and Justice

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Marking a year of podcasting, we conclude a six-week worship series that offered new opportunities to find beauty in our lives, refill our' spiritual tanks,' and explore what we are called to do next. Pastor Kris offers this from Howard Thurman: "Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Shelley offers one way to discern what makes you come alive is to think about what you loved as a five-year-old. Spend some time with us this week, nurturing your inner child!

Episode 35: Making the Simple Sacred

Thu, 30 Jul 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Genesis 32:22-31, in which Jacob finds himself alone, soon to spend the night in a pitched night wrestling match that will leave him with a limp and an extraordinary blessing. We live in a pandemic time of exceptional isolation, wrestling with many present concerns. In your quiet moments may you find God is with you, going forward with blessing.

Episode 36: Bold Moves

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the Genesis 45 story of Joseph's reunion with his brothers, the complex nature of mercy, and the boldness that it often requires. Comparing the Genesis story with a modern account of grace, Pastor Kris underlines how bold forgiveness can elevate us to find God's compelling unity for our humanity.

Episode 37: Living a Spirit-led life

Thu, 27 Aug 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Romans 12 and how this prescription for living a Spirit-filled life can offer hope in our times of significant stress and change. They pose how building these acts of love into your daily routine can be transformative.

Episode 38: Seventy Times Seven

Thu, 10 Sep 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Jesus’s entreaty on forgiveness in Matthew 18. If we ask what kind of community God desires us to be, Pastor Kris proposes we consider how failure to forgive one another can lead to disruption and degradation in our community. Forgiveness becomes a courageous act when Jesus upends the limit in Peter’s query.

Episode 39: What The World Needs Now

Thu, 24 Sep 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the love spoken of in 1 John 4, which calls us into community. When we read scripture, we can say with conviction and courage that all people are created in God’s image, and therefore they all have value, all matter, and are all beloved children of God. The scripture challenges us to embody God’s inclusive love with boldness.

Episode 40: Okay To Not Be Okay

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 18:00:00 -0600

In the seventh month of these difficult times, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Paul’s message to the Philippians affirming, thought the power of resurrection, that God’s love is more powerful than anything else, even death. As the scripture asks us to forget what lies behind and strain forward to the good that lies ahead and …

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Episode 41: Living Messages

Thu, 15 Oct 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Just when we feel we haven't done enough, we can be surprised by thanks. Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss 1 Thessalonians 1, a thank-you prayer for "your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." As the church is renewed in this pandemic moment of crisis, and we go with Christ in our hearts to reach people where they are. Even amidst worldly chaos, God is still speaking, the risen Christ's message ever more relevant.

Episode 42: Christ Centered

Thu, 29 Oct 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Today, Pastor Kris and Shelley talk about the grief we bear, the losses we have incurred, and how our deep rooting in faith allows us to bend but not break under this strain. This taproot of faith feeds our growth. May you find God's presence surrounding and nourishing, offering you space and grace for change.

Episode 43: Staying Connected

Thu, 05 Nov 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley speak of the lessons in following the way of Christ found in Hebrews 10:19-35. Jesus showed us a way of life perfectly committed to love for God and neighbor; through Jesus we hold fast to hope, that best anchor of the soul. We are called in this passage to inspire and encourage each other, together lifting our sight to find that certain good.

Episode 44: Compassionate Community

Thu, 19 Nov 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Dr. Alli Salituro joins our conversation on compassionate community. Absence and loss are intensified during this pandemic-estranged holiday season. Recognizing that we need witness and presence more than answers, we can practice open listening for our friends and neighbors, using rhetorical techniques like ‘yes, and,’ or ‘tell me more,’ to help them draw strength in …

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Episode 45: Messengers of Peace

Thu, 03 Dec 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the comfort spoken of in Isaiah 40:1-11, and how this dispossessed people were called to be messengers of hope. We may live in imperfect times but we are called to be the herald of good tidings because, not only is another world possible, it is on its way.

Episode 46: Enter the Light

Thu, 17 Dec 2020 18:00:00 -0600

Our church began 2020 by sharing slips of paper containing a word to spark a year's meditation. Shelley's was 'light,' and as we reflect on this very dark year of isolation, illness, and death , we enter advent with renewed appreciation for the unfolding story. The Light of the World is constantly being born in us, and amid our covid-fatigue, we are called to be lighters of candles that bring others welcome and peace.

Episode 47: The Word Matters

Thu, 07 Jan 2021 18:00:00 -0600

We believe in the power of the Word. Jesus, the Word born in flesh, is the way and the truth and the life—at its very genesis, our faith tells us that words and truth matter: words bring worlds into existence. Today, we wrestle with a Christian response to a national crisis of violence where it is expressly evident that what we say will encourage, engage, disengage, or enrage. As people of Advent, members in the body of Christ, we are called to do the will of God. Through our words of lament and hope, we can become a part of God's divine connectivity in a world that experiences adversity.

Episode 48: Come and See

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 18:00:00 -0600

As our nation remembers Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Shelly and Pastor Kriss speak about how people of faith may see how these early justice movements began with the church. Rooted in action by non-violent disciples of Christ willing to go to any length to restore God’s community, they call us yet toward a …

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Episode 49: Follow Me

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Led by Mark 1, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how we can know our calling. The Bible calls us to serve others, doing the difficult work of justice. So, do we listen for our call with foreboding? What if these fishermen dropped their nets so quickly out of an immediate, overwhelming sense of joy? Frederick Buechner notes that we find our calling where our greatest sense of gladness intersects with the world's needs. Can you find your calling in knowing Jesus, following Jesus, and sharing Jesus?

Episode 50: Thin Places

Thu, 11 Feb 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss 'thin places' in Celtic tradition where the veil between heaven and earth is most ethereal. Christ's transfiguration in Mark 9 is one of those places, a place we want to inhabit. Yet Lent is active: about our intention to draw closer to Christ. As you descend the mountain during Lent, God is blessing you, preparing you for your journey; you are a part of this dazzling blessing, sharing it with others, using your gifts to sustain others in their darkest moments.

Episode 51: The Gift of Uncertainty

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss 1 Corinthians 13:8-13. Assured that God's love for us never ends, can we accept the gift of life's uncertainty? In our Lenten journey, can we receive mystery as a gift, not a problem to be solved? Can we then fill the void of certainty with trust? In faith and gratitude, can we find the gifts of this dark wood?

Episode 52 : The Gift of Emptiness

Thu, 25 Feb 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Many of us quietly fear we are unworthy of God's love for who we "really" are. Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss gifts of emptiness as a place of accepting God's love in times of darkest mystery. The scripture highlights that it is within Jesus's forsaken cry from the cross that we find the gift of emptiness: not that Jesus found God but God found Jesus, remaking the story of humankind. Lenten emptying gives space for God, who loves us beyond our wildest imagination, to find us.

Episode 53: One Year Later

Thu, 11 Mar 2021 18:00:00 -0600

A year after the pandemic’s official declaration, Pastor Kris and Shelley Groh invite Dr. Allison Salituro to discuss the pandemic’s effects in the brightening light of hope. Amidst the distribution of vaccines, we confront what may be long-term effects. Things will be different. Notably, we may be surprised how mental health concerns linger on and …

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Episode 54: The Gift of Misfits

Sat, 27 Mar 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Today, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how the familiar story of Jesus's entry into Jerusalem at the festival of Passover compares with Pentecost as the birth of the church as a political body where Jesus's followers publicly rose to endorse Pax Christi over Pax Romana, setting in motion the events of two millennia.

Episode 55: Abiding In Love

Thu, 29 Apr 2021 18:00:00 -0600

God is love: 1 John 4 centers this discussion, where Pastor Kris uses the word abiding–an uncommon, peculiar word in an acquisitive, active world–to highlight the steadfast love that God reveals to us in Christ. The author of John winnows God's holy essence to love, abiding love. Love to be seen and shared in our kindness, compassion, care, and listening. May you find abiding joy in loving your brothers and sisters as you love God.

Episode 56 – The Joy of Friendship

Thu, 06 May 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley continue discussing John 15, the abiding bonds of friendship, and today, the joy God intends for us in community and friendship. Jesus, in pastoral care for his disciples, calls them friends. Jesus's command to love one another in friendship is central to our faith; our ministry is about relationships, and Jesus walks with us in expressing care, concern, and support of others.

Episode 57: Pentecost

Thu, 20 May 2021 18:00:00 -0600

This week Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Pentecost, a thanksgiving celebration fifty days after Passover, where the gift of the Spirit empowers understanding among diversity. As a church, we are foundationally called to value the diversity of voices. A year of pandemic separation informs this profoundly, calling us to celebrate in great joy, without reserve, our God-given differences.

Episode 58: The Will of God

Thu, 03 Jun 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Our prejudices affect our understanding of the world and, lamentably, our God. In Mark 3: 20-35, Jesus calls us family in its most inclusive meaning, challenging the limit of common understanding. If we set aside our prejudices and celebrate our different perspectives, we can better help each other and do the will of God.

Episode 59: Believing Is Seeing

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Galatians 3: 26-28, emphasizes that we are called to see all people as beloved. Paul says there is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, but all are our siblings in Christ. To bring all people into community is the fundamental work of Christ. As Christ revealed God’s love for us, we must see that racism is a sin that separates us not only from our brothers or sisters but from God.

Episode 60: Rooted In Love

Thu, 23 Sep 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Psalm 1, which teaches that people who delight in the teachings of the Lord are like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding fruit in season. Like a tree, we need good soil where our faith roots are nourished by interconnections and given strength.

Episode 61: Red Ribbon Week

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Drug overdoses tragically struck our community twice this year; Pastor Kris and Shelley share a faith-based conversation about how we approach problems by considering God’s love for us. We believe the church is a caring and healing community and God is calling us to put faith in action to end overdoses and the criminalization of people who use drugs. Through education and advocacy we aim to inspire hope and a commitment to a drug-free lifestyle.

Episode 62: How Then Shall We Give

Thu, 04 Nov 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss Mark 12, familiar as the Widows Mite. We come with different abilities, and, whether grand or tiny, our gifts create a ripple that makes God’s love in the world apparent. Fatih is love in action; sharing God’s love requires no treasure beyond hope and compassion. Even our mite empowers might through gratitude.

Podcast 63: A Place at the Table

Thu, 02 Dec 2021 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss the welcome Christ offers us and how we each have a place of peace at his table. We consider Philippians 1: 3-11 and of letting go of things, allowing Advent to refocus our attention on what truly matters: making decisions through the lens of this overflowing, enfolding love.

Episode 64: Epiphany

Sun, 02 Jan 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley consider how the story of the Maggi relates to our own. Are we searching in the right places for this Christ child? Have we missed a turn and need to lift our eyes to the distant star? Is it through our very restlessness that we find peace? Perhaps this year, the gift of the Maggi is to offer you another way home.

Episode 65: Good News-Good Ways

Thu, 20 Jan 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley consider how Luke 4 can be seen as a mission statement for the church, sharing the news of the Gospel and helping people find freedom and healing. This scripture’s verbs are about unbinding: bringing Good News, proclaiming release, offering recovery. May you find new and good ways forward, inviting others into community.

Episode 66: A Level Place

Thu, 10 Feb 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley consider how Luke’s version of the sermon to the multitude is set on level ground, metaphorically recognizing that, made in the image of God, we are intrinsically good and universally equals. In our blessings, we are called to be the conduit by which God’s love flows to others. Grace is not a mountain-top experience but an invitation to share our gifts with the vulnerable.

Episode 67: Holy Mystery

Thu, 24 Feb 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Discussing the transfiguration of Jesus in Like 29, Pastor Kris and Shelley suggest our Lenten focus be the ‘practice’ of our spiritual practice, expecting some discomfort in the course of growth. Seek micro-faith actions over mountaintop experiences, such as adding a moment of reflection or journaling to your morning coffee routine. In so doing may you find new practices that draw you closer to God.

Episode 68: Out of Our Control

Thu, 10 Mar 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley consider this second anniversary of a world transfigured by covid, and how our sense of control has been changed. Yet, grieving corporate and personal losses, the truth of the Good News is that through all turmoil, Christ gathers us underwing. The church has found new ways to remain connected and explore faith in absence. Online services engage new explorers and we are finding new devotional practices. Spirit-led, we find new ways to draw closer to God.

Episode 69: We Are Fragile

Thu, 31 Mar 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how Mary’s anointing of Jesus’s feet is challenged for its extravagance. In the freedom of Mary's gift, let us emulate her exemplary love just as we receive God’s extravagant love for us. Be gracious with yourself, be kind to others. Live in Christ's call to forgive yourself as you forgive others.

Episode 71: Highlights of Faith with Phyllis Warne

Thu, 07 Apr 2022 18:00:00 -0600

In this audio podcast, Phyllis Warne joins us in our podcast series, Faith Journeys. This is an audio podcast, excerpted from a video podcast that can be found on our YouTube Channel. As you experience stories of those who have discovered faith in God through their encounter with Jesus Christ, may you discover insights that …

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Episode 70: Forgive Often

Thu, 28 Apr 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss forgiveness, guided by reading the story of Saul’s transformation. Jesus came to embody God’s grace, calling into service the least among us. As with Paul, God’s forgiveness calls us into a new faith relationship and we are likewise called into transformative forgiveness of others. Even as a one-off response to an incident or action, forgiveness is one of the most difficult acts of faith. Yet our faith calls us to consider that, as Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. noted, forgiveness is not an occasional act but a constant attitude.

Episode 72: Faith Journeys with Mac Peat

Thu, 12 May 2022 18:00:00 -0600

In this audio podcast, Maclyn Peat, lovingly known as Mac, joins Pastor Kris and Shelley in our Faith Journeys series. We believe that every life offers a unique, invaluable story and that stories bind us in community. As you experience stories of those who have discovered faith in God through their encounter with Jesus Christ, may you discover insights that inform how you respond to God’s calling in your life. This podcast is avaibable in video our YouTube Channel, at ivanhoechurch.org/youtube.

Episode 73: Listening, Learning, and Living

Thu, 14 Jul 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley are joined by Barry, Ivanhoe’s podcast editor, as we reflect on the third anniversary of this journey. These conversations have enabled our growth through hearing different perspectives. These podcasts give us the opportunity to reflect again, often in greater detail, on the scripture of the week, where we can find meaning and put our faith into practice.

Episode 74: Shaped by Prayer

Thu, 21 Jul 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Today, Pastor Kris and Shelley take up the subject of prayer, drawing from Luke 1:11. Our prayer life shapes us and our outlook. Rather than the one-off request, we are called into prayer in its many forms with purpose and perseverance as a way of life.

Episode 75: On A Roll With God

Thu, 04 Aug 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley invite Sandra Dwire into a conversation about Vacation Bible School. One of the year's highlights is our Vacation Bible School, based this year on the Lord's Prayer and how we see God cares and provides for us. One of the most important things we do in ministry is to help youth form a relationship with God. This discussion highlights our being drawn together by God's spirit when we are engaged in intergenerational, creative, joyful expression.

Episode 76: Persevering in Faith

Thu, 11 Aug 2022 18:00:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley talk today about the correlation of perseverance in faith and marathons. Each requires training and fortitude, but no one succeeds alone. We draw our support from the cloud of saints, our community, and in the good word of a stranger along the journey. We are all—every one of us—given talents that we are called to use in both world and church.

Episode 77: See No Stranger

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 14:16:00 -0600

In pairing Psalm 35: 1-10 and Ephesians 6: 10-18, Pastor Kris and Shelley discuss how we can fight for those we love when they are suffering. Explore spiritual practices from “See No Stranger” by Valerie Kaur, they find parallels in the teachings of Jesus Christ. We choose Love, and that’s how we fight; our struggle is life-giving rather than destructive, taking on the armor of God for the sake of others.

Episode 78: A Faith Journey with Intentional Energy 3

Sat, 12 Nov 2022 03:59:00 -0600

In today’s Faith Journey episode, Pastor Kris discusses intentionality as the foundation for leadership, creativity, and faith with the partners of Intentional Energy 3, Henrieta Ribeiro and Maryanne Kyle-DiPietropaolo. Henrieta and Maryanne recently led a workshop at Ivanhoe, creating safe spaces for learning, growth, and change. We are confident you’ll see the action of the Holy Spirit in their work and faith journeys.

Episode 79: A Faith Journey with Liilian Mueller

Mon, 02 Jan 2023 08:37:00 -0600

Our Faith Journeys video series features ways the Holy Spirit has illuminated the lives of those who listen for God's Word. May you be uplifted through the story told through Lillian Mueller's faith. We pray that her story may resonate with yours and that the Holy Spirit may embrace you in hope, peace, and joy.

Episode 80: A Listening Journey

Mon, 27 Feb 2023 07:48:00 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley take up the subject of Lent, a forty-day journey of seeking: for clarity, for wisdom, for love that makes us whole. Seeking requires asking honest questions; our faith community creates space to wrestle with profound questions fearlessly. May you journey bravely and trust your ability to listen for new answers.

Episode 81: Chosen Journeys

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 11:47:22 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley talked today about welcoming and hospitality. Shelley muses that she welcomes others by meeting them at their level or engaging those on the sidelines. Similarly, Christ is calling us, offering us to take his yoke and find our burden lightened. From the many yokes we wear—career, search for financial security, family responsibility—we are offered rest, a cool drink of water, and a path to live in presence.

Episode 82: Lead Into Joy

Sat, 16 Mar 2024 12:02:14 -0600

In today's Still Speaking episode, roles are reversed, and Pastor Kris was invited to discuss the experience of Lent and the relevancy of our faith with the partners of Intentional Energy 3, Henrieta Ribeiro and Maryanne Kyle-DiPietropaolo. Henrieta and Maryanne have led workshops at Ivanhoe, creating safe spaces for learning, growth, and change. We pray that this discussion will illuminate the action of the Holy Spirit in your life. God is still speaking, and we are all listening to discern God's message for today and deepen our faith.

Episode 83: By the Firelight

Mon, 05 Aug 2024 19:41:56 -0600

Pastor Kris and Shelley draw the Still Speaking journey to a close as they celebrate Vacation Bible School and discuss Pastor Kris's new call. The VBS Camp Firelight theme is Psalm 56:3, 'Whenever I am afraid, I put my trust in you.' As Christians, we seek to provide a safe community that fosters trust and sparks joy; a place where, whenever you are afraid, you are encouraged to place your trust in God.