We sing our last Alleluias before Lent. We leave behind the long green seasons after Pentecost and Epiphany—“ordinary time”—and reflect on why that ordinariness feels so appealing in days that are anything but ordinary.

This sermon explores how people of faith respond to disorderly times: through mystery, courage, and refusal to accept cruelty as normal. From biblical mountaintops wrapped in cloud to a modern story of a priest “outed” as a Christian, we see how encountering God makes us a little odd—and more alive.

We recall the struggle for immigrant justice in New Mexico, a reminder that sometimes the world must finally see injustice before change becomes possible.

As we turn toward Lent, we reflect on faith as consciousness, resistance, and trust in the dazzling darkness of God’s love. We may never return to ordinary time—and maybe that’s grace.

Rudy Nickens—renowned facilitator, equity leader, and storyteller—delivers a sharp, soulful call to confront injustice. Drawing on Niemöller’s warning and George Clinton’s liberating wisdom, he urges us to reject silence, free our minds, and continue the essential work of justice.

On this Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, the Rev. Mike Angell preaches and invites us to reflect on the heaviness so many of us are carrying. The heaviness of these days, when everyday choices feel overwhelming and the world feels loud, anxious, and divided.

The sermon reminds us that God’s blessing rests not on power or perfection, but on compassion, courage, and care for the vulnerable. It invites us to see the world through the lens of Jesus’ upside‑down wisdom, to become helpers and peacemakers, and to walk humbly, faithfully, and persistently even when the way forward is unclear. This sermon offers hope: you are blessed, you are not alone, and love is still the way.