The Lake Forest Sermoncast

God is Smarter Than I Am! | Luke 22:39-42 | 5.17.26

What does it mean to trust that God's ways really our higher than our ways?  This week, Pastor Rick McIntee invites us to acknowledge that there are many different ways to be smart, and many different things we can believe. But knowledge doesn't become trust until we put it to work in the world.  Inspired by Christ's prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, let's remember that even when things look like they're at their worst, we serve a God who refuses to give up on us, and who can turn our worst days into our most beautiful.

Ancient Linguistics & the God Who Transcends | Acts 17:22-31| 5.10.26

What happens when the gospel walks into a room full of people who already have their own answers? In this Mother’s Day sermon from Acts 17, we explore Paul’s famous speech on Mars Hill — not primarily as a model for debate or apologetics, but as a masterclass in listening. Before Paul ever said a word to Athens, he wandered its streets, read its altars, and sat with its poets long enough to find the place where their longing and his gospel were reaching toward each other. Along the way, we meet the ancient Epicureans and Stoics — and discover that their questions feel surprisingly modern. We’re also invited to ask ourselves: when is the last time we read someone else’s poets? Not to dismantle what they believe, but to understand what longing it was trying to answer? In a divided, chronically-online world, Paul’s curious, generous engagement with Athens offers us more than a communication strategy — it offers us something closer to love.

What are We Doing Here? | 1 Peter 2:1-10 | 5.3.26

You wake up on an unfamiliar vessel. The floor is cold. Nothing looks familiar. And eventually, someone around the table asks the question out loud: What are we doing here? In this 5th Sunday of Eastertide sermon from 1 Peter 2:1-10, Pastor Chad traces the apostle’s surprising move — reaching deep into the Hebrew Bible to help a scattered, disoriented church remember who they are. Living stones. A royal priesthood. A tree growing so tall that every kind of bird can find a branch. This one’s for anyone who’s ever felt adrift, and needed to be reminded that being claimed by God was never meant to be kept to yourself.

Gimme a Break | Exod. 20:8-11; Deut. 5:12-15 | 4.19.26

Taking us from Tilda Swinton to toddler naps, Rev. Rachel Penmore leads us in a beautiful practice of Sabbath this week. Reflecting on the Sabbath commandments in both Exodus and Deuteronomy, we remember together that rest is not something we earn. It is fundamental to what it means to live as God’s beloved children. Let us remember and give thanks for the wisdom of rest.

The Spirit, Forgiveness, & Doubt | John 20:19-29 | 4.12.26

"My Lord and My God" — The Real Thomas | John 20:19-29 He's been called "doubting Thomas" for two thousand years. But what if we've had him wrong? In this sermon from the second Sunday of Easter, we'll take a fresh look at one of the most misunderstood figures in the New Testament — and discover that Thomas wasn't a cautionary tale. He was a witness. A follower willing to walk toward death when everyone else backed away. A man who sat with honest, unresolved faith for a full week and kept showing up anyway. And the one who, in the end, delivers the most theologically complete statement in all of John's Gospel. If your faith has felt more like a long Friday than a bright Sunday morning lately — if you've been sitting with questions you can't resolve, waiting on something you haven't seen yet — this one's for you. God can handle your questions. God is not threatened by your doubt. And the story isn't over yet.