All Saints United Church

Lent 26: Sacred Struggle - The Struggle With Sorrow (Revd David J. Kleinhans)

Sacred Struggle with Sorrow Matthew 26:34–46 As we begin our Lenten journey, we step into the garden of Gethsemane and sit with Jesus in his sorrow. In Gospel of Matthew 26, we encounter a Christ who is “overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” In a culture that has discipled us into comfort, convenience, and constant distraction, Lent invites us to slow down and resist the instinct to avoid what hurts. Yet in the garden, Jesus shows us another way: to feel our grief honestly, to bring trusted companions close, and to wrestle with God without masks or clichés. Alongside Jesus’ anguish, we reflect on Psalm 88, the dark psalm that refuses to tidy up its pain with easy hope. Together, these texts give us permission to lament, to pray when God feels distant, and to admit that sometimes we are not okay. This sermon explores the spiritual cost of numbing our sorrow and the healing that can begin when we confront it. We consider what faithful presence looks like in community, why fewer words and longer hugs often matter most, and how prayer becomes not a way to fix our pain but a space to be honest within it. Your garden moments will come. The question is not whether we will face sorrow, but how. In Christ, we discover that the garden is not the place where God abandons us — it is often where he meets us most tenderly. May this Lent become your sacred struggle: a courageous wrestling with self, with grief, and with God, and, in that honesty, a deeper communion with the One who is not ashamed to sit with us in our sorrow.

Commitment Series - Redeeming Your Time (Revd David J. Kleinhans)

This week, we continued our Commitment series, which invites us to align both who we are and what we have with God’s purpose for our life and His Kingd0m. Our focus this week was on redeeming your talent, asking the honest question: Where are we giving our attention? Drawing from Luke 10:38–42, we explored the story of Martha and Mary and what it reveals about distraction, devotion, and choosing what truly matters. Martha’s tension becomes our own as we ask what it looks like to sit at Jesus’ feet in a distracted world.

Commitment Series - What Your Hands Reveal About You (Revd Allan Booth)

This week we kicked off the New Year with a sermon titled "What Your Hands Reveal About You and the Kingdom of God", and it might be more than you think...

Psst...God is Not Angry With You – What About the Cross? (Rev. Allan Booth)

This week we continued with Week 3 of our sermon series Psst…God is Not Angry With You. Rev. Allan Booth preached a powerful message titled What About the Cross?, reflecting on Luke 23:35–46. Rather than seeing the cross as a place where God pours out his wrath on Jesus instead of us, Allan invites us to reimagine the cross as the moment where Jesus most fully reveals God’s heart as Saviour, not in anger, but in love. If you’ve ever wrestled with questions around atonement or wondered what the cross says about God’s character, this message is a thoughtful and compassionate invitation to see the cross through the lens of grace. Enjoy.

Psst... God’s Not Angry With You – What About the Violence in the Old Testament? (Rev. Allan Booth)

This week we continued our series Psst... God’s Not Angry With You with a thought-provoking message from Rev. Allan Booth titled “What About the Violence in the Old Testament?” Drawing from Psalm 86, Allan helps us wrestle honestly with some of the harder passages of Scripture—reminding us that even in the midst of complexity, God’s character remains steadfast in mercy and love. Enjoy the conversation, and may it invite you deeper into the mystery and grace of God.