Sunday Sermons from Trinity UMC Lincoln, Nebraska

What limits you? Is it your body— an old injury? Your mind? Your impulses?
Join us as we explore an interesting idea: Our limits are precisely where we meet God. Our weakness is where we find strength. Come give the limits of who you are to God, and watch how God transforms them— and you— into something beautiful!

Are you dreaming big enough?

Join us as we study the story of Abraham and Sarah, two people who laughed at God's promise, thinking it was impossible. We’ll learn that God promises a future with hope, and while we might grow impatient, God never backs down from a promise.

This is a special Sunday at Trinity: Suicide Prevention Week.

Join us as we learn about suicide prevention and how we can be a source of support to those around us. We’ll hear stories from the Bible of people who struggled themselves, and see how God helped them.

We’ll end in a profoundly HOPEFUL place!

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever been through?

Guess what? God was with you.

This is the deepest meaning of one of the best-known Bible stories: Noah’s Ark. Join us this morning at 9 and 10:30 as we dive deep in the meaning of it, including the animals two by two, yes, but real hope comes from the rainbow at the end. 

Shame and broken relationships.

They go together, don’t they? Sometimes shame breaks relationships, other times broken relationships cause shame.

The good news is that God provides a surprising cure: HEALTHY relationships have the power to transform our shame into new life!

Who are you really? Have you ever been treated like someone you’re not?
This morning we’ll sing, pray, and consider the untrue stories we collect about ourselves. The good news is that the only fully true story about us is the one that’s comes from God— a story of redemption and goodness.

We all have baggage we carry. But is there anything in your past that makes you hang your head whenever you remember it?
Shame is a part of life, but God helps us not only move past it, but to transform it into something that gives you life. Join us as we start a new series that aims to trade in our shame for something better!

Have you ever wanted to throw a video game controller across the room?

(Ok, ok……. ever actually done it?)

This Faith at the Movies week! We’re talking about The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Pastor Jeff is singling out an experience we’ve all had: failure. And more failure. And more failure. Until we finally catch on. It’s a concept for which there may be no better teacher than Peter in the Bible.

Fully alive. We say it every week, but what does it mean? We often sense that Trinity is a special place, but why?
Join us as Pastor Jeff shares a special sermon on what makes Trinity unique. We’ll study the scriptures that guide our leadership and we’ll be inspired to live it out more fully. It’s not complete unless you’re part of it!

Doesn’t it feel good to get outside sometimes? Good, as in, “right?”

Join us for the final week of the Sabbath series as God reminds us who we are, and just how connected we are to the earth.

But it goes beyond trees and grass… come be reminded of how God is making YOU into a NEW creation!

Do you ever feel like you’re just plugging a dam with your fingers?

There’s so much that needs done in our broken world, not to mention our broken lives, and it can feel like we have two choices: ignore it or despair about it. Sometimes we try to help and it feels like not even a drop in a very large bucket.

There’s an answer for that: Sabbath.

Join us this morning for the third— and perhaps most surprising— week in our series on why rest matters. It may not change the world, but it might change YOU!

Why are you here?
Yeah, I mean that in the biggest sense possible. Why are you here on this earth, in this life?
There is a way to be reminded of your purpose that is so simple we take it for granted: Sabbath. Join us as we continue our series exploring why it matters and how we can better practice it!

How good are you at resting? REALLY resting?
Be honest… do you know how to truly enjoy a moment with those you love and world around you? Or do you reach for your phone or some other distraction to fill the “gap?”
This week we start a new series, simply called “Sabbath,” exploring the art of true rest. Prepare yourself to appreciate life more deeply!

Join Pastor Tom for Sunday Worship in this last week of June.

Join Pastor Tom as we talk about Running the Race on Sunday June 18, 2023.

Join Pastor Tom as we revisit Christmas in June this Sunday, June 11, 2023.

Join Pastor Tom in his sermon "Trinity Sunday: The Face of God" from June 4, 2023

Pentecost is a holiday equal with Christmas and Easter in the church, but many don’t realize it’s significant. Come celebrate with us and learn how the presence of the Holy Spirit adds so much to life!

Jesus did all those miracles. But that kind of thing doesn’t happen any more. Right?
Don’t be so sure! Just because God’s work looks different than in Jesus’ day doesn’t mean it’s any less real. And even more interesting is HOW God’s work gets done.

Who does God care about? Everyone.

Why is it so hard for us to do the same?

Join us as we read a story of Peter in the Bible where God helped expand his circle of inclusion. Who do you have trouble loving? Maybe God will help you this week, too!

Ever wonder why some people stand taller than others in the face of struggle? This week we wrap up our series asking how we find God in the thick of things with one of the great passages of the Bible. You will leave standing tall because of God’s presence in whatever you may be facing!

Most of us would say we’d like to follow God’s plan for our life– but what is it? Truth is, most of us misunderstand what “God’s plan” even means. Yet, God calls us to play the starring role in writing the story of our lives, while walking along beside us in the beautiful work of co-creation. Join us as we learn to listen– and learn to follow– God’s very real presence in our lives!

We know God is good, but when illness and death rocks our world, it can be difficult to see. Sometimes, it even feels like unanswered prayer. Join us as we share our human struggles with God, asking for comfort, help, and healing. In the process, I think you’ll find that God is far more present in your struggle than you might think– and in ways you don’t expect.

Big question time: why is there so much evil and hate in the world? If God’s all powerful, why doesn’t God just stop it?
This week we start a new series called “Why?” that asks this question and others like it. There are no perfect answers, but there are better ones than you might think. And the journey of finding them is one that opens our eyes to the very heart of God.

Join us as we celebrate Easter– the moment when God gave us a sneak peek of the way everything is being made new.

Here’s where it all goes down. We’ve followed Jesus from his birth at Christmas, through his ministry and teaching, and we all know what’s coming next. But first… bread and wine. Family, around the table.

Join us as we shout “Hosannah!” Then, we delve into the most profound family meal in history, and we come to the table ourselves. There’s a seat with your name on it!

We all know there are big problems in the world. And we want to help! We even know Jesus is there when we do. But it’s so easy to overlook the small, everyday injustices that matter, too. Join us and learn how your kindness, no matter how small, can make a significant impact on the world!

AAAARGH! Ok, that wasn’t nice. But isn’t it true that life never goes how we expect? Yet somehow, when we look closely, God always brings good out of every twist and turn– even the negative ones. Join us as we hone our skills to notice the sacred good in WHATEVER comes next!

“The good life.” Sure. But what does that mean?

Jesus said it like this: “The Kingdom of Heaven.” He didn’t mean what happens when you die, he’s talking about living a full life in Christ NOW. But just because Jesus invites everyone doesn’t meant that everyone responds!

There’s no time like the present to accept the invitation to the life God made for YOU!

We often think of life as give-and-take, as earn-and-spend. But aren’t the best things in life more than that? For instance, don’t things like love or joy actually increase the more you give away? Join us as we do our best to live into “God’s economy.“ It’s a way of living where abundance and blessing always grow!

How’s your burden?

I don’t mean how much stuff you carry in your bag, I mean your heart. We have such a tendency to let the pain of the past weigh us down in the present.

Thankfully, Jesus gave us a process to help– he literally numbered the steps! Join us as we ask for God’s limitless grace to lighten our load!

Jesus knew things were going to get tough. He knew his disciples would need a powerful memory to hang on to. So he gave them one. Join us as we sit with one of the most amazing Jesus stories. It may be amazing, but it isn’t rare– by the time you leave, you may start seeing God everywhere!

Life is complex. Sometimes the good and the bad intertwine so much they can't be untangled. And we cannot overlook either. What are we to do? Jesus answered with a story– one that punches WAY above its weight. Join us as we wrestle with what to do with a morally complex world, and let Jesus guide us to a hopeful answer!

If I told you there was a religious teaching that has proven useful for at least 4,000 years— twice as far back as Jesus— would you listen? What if I told you Jesus gave it a super-subtle twist that makes it utterly world-changing? Join us as we dive in. Don’t wait for it to come to you— take the initiative!

How much stuff do you have? Does it make you happy?

Most of us— maybe even ALL of us— answered “too much” and “not really.” Fortunately, Jesus offers a better way to live. He even says it in a way that is impossible to forget.

Join us as we store up the RIGHT kind of treasure!

Ever try an unsalted french fry? This isn’t commentary on today’s snacks at church, but rather about Jesus’ phrase, that we are to be “salt for the world.” Salt was used for so many things in Jesus’ day— you won’t believe how much those four words show us. If your life ever feels bland and barren, like an unsalted french fry, you won’t want to miss it!

We all wrestle. Even Jesus wrestled.

Ever wonder WHAT Jesus wrestled with? Seeing what he struggled with is actually an interesting look into what he cares most about, what really matters to him.

(...what do YOU wrestle with?)

There are so many fresh starts in a new year, but who’s asking WHY? Who are you becoming? What are you called to in life? What are we trying to accomplish with all our fresh starts?

Join Eduardo Bousson for worship this Sunday

Merry Christmas! Christmas being on a Sunday gives us all the more reason to worship! We’ll sing a few carols and hear a Christmas story from Pastor Jeff.

Tonight we remember Jesus’ birth, the night God said, “My place is here, with you, in the muck and the mess, even in the cold and the snow.”

How many days until Christmas? Are we there yet?

Slow down! Take a deep breath and pause for a minute!

The simple truth is that God works on a different time horizon than you and I. But don't fall into the trap of thinking God isn't at work. And don't get lazy, either— Christmas is a reminder not only that God is in the world, but that it's our hands that help make the difference.

Listen to hear of the Servant Songs in the book of Isaiah in the Bible, written hundreds of years before Jesus was born, but that comes alive now that we know. Among other things, it shows us what really matters most, even today!

Isn't it funny how sometimes we think that things are fine, even when they are obviously NOT?

Join us as we hear one of the foundational stories of the Old Testament. Everything was NOT fine, but God's response was one of great hope— a sense that God will get us through, no matter what.

While voting is vital, at no other time are divisions more raw than when we put the words "win" and "lose" next to names. I don't think anyone feels 100% great about anything. But our faith teaches us a better way to be, a way that heals a broken world— and, dare I say it, makes the "civic soil" more healthy.

God gave us a voice. Join us as we simply tell the story of Esther and ask what it means to use OUR voice in such a time as this.

I need you.

And you need me. Oh, and you know THAT person— the one who makes your blood boil when you think about some of the things they say? You need them, too. And so do I.

This week we continue our series looking for a better way to be Christian in politics. This week we "tend the civic soil" by learning the importance of interdependence. We need each other more than we know— it's how God made us.

We've all seen examples where church and politics corrupt one another, and it is never pretty. But how should a person of faith hold themselves during election season? There must be a better way to follow Jesus in our civic life! This week we start a new series looking at that very issue. Here's the basic idea: our votes and our candidates can only be as good as the soil in which they are planted. Perhaps our best role is to "tend the civic soil" so that better crops can grow.

Peace and kindness. Who could disagree with that? (So long as we get our morning coffee, anyway!) But where do peace and kindness come from? And what can we do to encourage them, both in ourselves and in others? Join us as we look at these Fruits of the Spirit and strengthen them in ourselves.

Having God in your heart bears fruit. But what happens when your garden's full of weeds? Turns out there's a "fruit" for that, too!