Dane Lewis

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So far Dane Lewis has created 625 blog entries.

Books in the Gap

Let’s start off with a quiz.  There are five questions.   Name five books that were written in the 19th century. (This one is easy. There are a ton of great books from the 1800’s. Do you have your five in mind?)  Here a handful that you could have chosen:  Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky  Frankenstein by Mary Shelley  The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and, last,  Les Misérables by Victor Hugo  All those books from the 19th century!   How about naming five great books from the 18th century? This is a little more difficult, but still very doable.  You could have listed. . . . Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe  Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift Tom Jones by Henry Fielding Candide by Voltaire The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge The

A People-First Culture

This sermon is based on Philemon 1:8-16. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: The old campground rule says it this way: “Please leave things better than you found them.” I like that. I even want to do that. Even if it is impossible and we can’t leave things “better,” we can at least try really hard not to leave them any worse. But for better or worse, for richer or poorer, before you can make things better, you need to be sure what you are doing won’t make them worse. And the only way you can do that is to know what its “best version” would look like. For instance, take the church. If we want to make our church better, we first need to know what a healthy church looks like. And then, with that as our target, we can strive

History in the Gap

Everyone needs a little history. And if the history you need is a bit wacky, then may I suggest you read any of Leland Gregory’s books on “Stupid History.” My favorite story that he includes in his first volume is the story of the famous Greek playwright, Aeschylus. Aeschylus lived a great life until he didn’t, but to understand his demise you have to understand the hunting practices of eagles. Apparently, eagles found tortoise meat a real delicacy. However, there was an obvious problem: that meat was covered by a hard shell. But eagles are incredibly smart. They figured out that if they dropped a tortoise on a rock from a sufficient enough height, it would crack open and provide a great feast for the working eagle. Now, eagles have great eyesight, but on one tragic day, an eagle mistook Aeschylus’ bald head for a shiny rock and dropped a

A Culture Committed to Doing Good

This sermon is based on Acts 10:34-38. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: The old campground rule says it this way: “Please leave things better than you found them.” I like that. I even want to do that. Even if it is impossible and we can’t leave things “better,” we can at least try really hard not to leave them any worse. But for better or worse, for richer or poorer, before you can make things better, you need to be sure what you are doing won’t make them worse. And the only way you can do that is to know what its “best version” would look like. For instance, take the church. If we want to make our church better, we first need to know what a healthy church looks like. And then, with that as our target, we can strive

Intro to the Gap

We love going to New York City. We go there for the US Open. We go there for Broadway plays. We go there for pizza (we absolutely go there for the pizza). And we go there for the people-watching (I’m not sure there is anywhere better). And we go there to ride the subway. That’s not completely true.  We don’t go to NYC for the subway, but when we are in New York, we take the subway everywhere.  And we love the subway. Sure, it is old and “well-used,” but it gets you there on tim, and you don’t have to pay for parking. However, if there is one thing I want from my subway, it is for that invisible conductor in the sky to warn me upon my departure to “mind the gap.” I’ll even settle for “watch out for the gap” or “don’t nap on the gap,” but

The Healthy Church

This sermon begins our new series and is based on Colossians 1:3-6. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: The old campground rule says it this way: “Please leave things better than you found them.” I like that. I even want to do that. Even if it is impossible and we can’t leave things “better,” we can at least try really hard not to leave them any worse. But for better or worse, for richer or poorer, before you can make things better, you need to be sure what you are doing won’t make them worse. And the only way you can do that is to know what its “best version” would look like. For instance, take the church. If we want to make our church better, we first need to know what a healthy church looks like. And then, with that as

Religion

This sermon is based on James 1:26-27. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They are

Fellowship

This sermon is based on Acts 2:42-47. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They are

Love

This sermon is based on 1 John 4:7-12. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They

Hope

This sermon is based on 1 Peter 1:3-5. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They

Peace

This sermon is based on John 14:25-27. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They are

Faith

This sermon is based on Galatians 5:6. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They are

Righteousness

This sermon is based on Matthew 6:28-34. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They are

Salvation, Part 2

This sermon is based on Titus 3:4-7. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here. See, words matter. They are

Salvation

This sermon begins our new series and is based on Titus 3:4-7. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: To have a favorite or not to have a favorite, that is the question. Okay, “Hamlet” is loaded with possible favorite quotes, and it is hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be when Polonius interrupts Hamlet in the library and asks, “What do you read, my lord?” And Hamlet replies, “Words, words, words.” Now, Polonius is an accomplice of the evil king and Hamlet is feigning insanity, so we can’t take everything that is said here at face value. In fact, we all know that something is rotten in the library. Besides, if Hamlet didn’t believe in the power of words, he would never have uttered a single soliloquy. No, methinks the lad doth protest too much here.

Allegiance to Christ’s Kingdom

This sermon is our annual consideration of the fact that our true citizenship is in Christ's Kingdom, even as we celebrate Independence Day as a country. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A  

Fathers and the Armor of God

This sermon is based on Ephesians 6:10-17. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: ____: If ___ ___ hear ____ ___ the ________, you're going to be  ___ ___ ___ ____ .  You ___ also ___ ___ feel ___ out. You ____ also ____ ____ aids.  I said: “Listen: If you only hear half of the conversation, you’re going to be at a real disadvantage.  You are also going to feel left out. You might also need hearing aids.” But that is what happens whenever we read the letters in the New Testament. We are only hearing half the conversation! And that is not good because you can then misread (mishear?) what the author is trying to communicate. Bottom line: Without knowing the background, you are going to be at a real disadvantage. You may even need reading aids! For instance, take the book of

What Do Superman and Artemis Have in Common?

Superman, without a doubt, is our best-known superhero, but here are some things you might not know about the Man of Steel. Superman had a thing for women with the initials L.L.  Of course, there was Lois Lane, but in high school, Clark’s heart belonged to Lana Lane. In university, Clark had his eyes on Lori Lemaris. And once, when visiting Krypton (via time-travel), he met Lyla Lerrol. The Supe just loves those LL’s!   Long before Lex Luther became Superman’s archnemesis, they were good friends. In fact, Lex was working on a potion to help Superman resist kryptonite. Unfortunately, there was an accident, and Lex’s lab became engulfed in flames. Superman blew it out, but there was severe collateral damage. Lex’s beautiful hair was burned off, leaving him forever bald. And that’s how archenemies are formed!   While we all know kryptonite is Superman’s true nemesis, it was not part of

Praying the Armor of God

This sermon is based on Ephesians 6:18. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: ____: If ___ ___ hear ____ ___ the ________, you're going to be  ___ ___ ___ ____ .  You ___ also ___ ___ feel ___ out. You ____ also ____ ____ aids.  I said: “Listen: If you only hear half of the conversation, you’re going to be at a real disadvantage.  You are also going to feel left out. You might also need hearing aids.” But that is what happens whenever we read the letters in the New Testament. We are only hearing half the conversation! And that is not good because you can then misread (mishear?) what the author is trying to communicate. Bottom line: Without knowing the background, you are going to be at a real disadvantage. You may even need reading aids! For instance, take the book of

Putting on the Armor of God in Ephesus

This sermon is based on Ephesians 6:10-20. You can also view each week's sermon/worship service on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5ncsq_QNvCv61bIwKUpP5A SERIES OVERVIEW: ____: If ___ ___ hear ____ ___ the ________, you're going to be  ___ ___ ___ ____ .  You ___ also ___ ___ feel ___ out. You ____ also ____ ____ aids.  I said: “Listen: If you only hear half of the conversation, you’re going to be at a real disadvantage.  You are also going to feel left out. You might also need hearing aids.” But that is what happens whenever we read the letters in the New Testament. We are only hearing half the conversation! And that is not good because you can then misread (mishear?) what the author is trying to communicate. Bottom line: Without knowing the background, you are going to be at a real disadvantage. You may even need reading aids! For instance, take the book of

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