Shows
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsJames | Prayer That God Hears (Lynnita Weber)A life of faith is a life of prayer. It’s also a life lived with others. When we follow Jesus, we belong to Him and to one another as brothers and sisters. As a family, we care for one another in weakness, confess our sins to each other, and gently confront one another.2025-07-2126 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsJames | What Does Grace Do In A Believer? (Andrew Allison)James 4:6-10 - James knows that the heart of the Christian message is grace. God gives us good that we couldn’t ever deserve. The truth is that we earn and deserve justice and punishment. Thankfully, Jesus took both of those for us and gave us the good he deserved. As powerful as grace is, there is one thing that can resist it. Listen in to find the one thing that repels grace.2025-07-1415 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsJames | All Kinds Of Chaos (Andrew Allison)James 3:1-18 - James is at it again! He has a real concern for the words that Christians use on themselves, with each other and with the world. Our tongues (James' favourite image for our words) can cause such destruction, and they are nearly impossible to control. What’s the solution? Fortunately, Jesus gets to the root of the problem and to the fix that works.2025-07-0720 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsJames | Put Your Money Where Your Faith Is (Andrew Allison)James 2:14-26 - James continues to press deep into the muscles and tissues of our faith. Is your faith doing what it was designed to do? Just like you might go to the doctor for a physical check-up, James offers a self-administered faith check-up in this passage. Where do you see signs of life in your faith?2025-06-3023 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsJames | The Words That Work (Lynnita Weber)James 1:19-27 - James is direct: angry words, thoughtless words, and religious words don’t have a place in a life of faith. Our words don’t work … but God’s word does! Our job is simply to cooperate with his word.2025-06-2327 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsJames | How To Face The Hard Stuff (Andrew Allison)James 1:1-18 - James gets right down to business! For everyone not currently soaking in a hot tub, suffering is a first order of business. In just a few verses, James explains how trials can grow maturity, how wisdom helps the journey, and how to avoid wasting a suffering experience.2025-06-1627 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBaptism | Empowered (Andrew Allison)Acts 1:1-11 - Baptism is recognized throughout the Church as the beginning of a ‘God thing.’ John’s baptism was a visible demonstration of the start of a new life — clearing out the junk to prepare for what God was about to do. Jesus’ baptism reveals the true heart of baptism: God’s desire to bless and express His delight. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is the start of the Kingdom. Ordinary women and men were now filled with the Spirit of Jesus to continue on the ministry Jesus started.2025-06-0927 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBaptism | Beloved (Lynnita Weber)Luke 3:21-22 - At Jesus’ baptism, the Father said, “You’re my son. I love you. I’m proud of you.” As Christians, our baptism is a sign that we are in Christ, that what is true about him is true about us, and that the Father’s blessing now defines us.2025-06-0222 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBaptism | Repentence (Andrew Allison)Luke 3:1-20 - The first mention of baptism in the Bible begins with John. John was the cousin of Jesus and also His opening act. John called the people of his day to "Get Ready." The public sign of a life getting ready for God was, and still is, baptism. Get washed so God can do what God wants to do.2025-05-2626 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | How Does It All End? | Chapter 31 (Lynnita Weber)Revelation 21:1-8 - Jesus wins; Jesus has already won; stay faithful to Jesus! This is the message of John’s sometimes confusing book of Revelation. It is full of encouragement and hope for disciples. Jesus, the Lamb, is on the throne. And he is preparing a future for us that includes heaven and so much more!2025-05-1928 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | The Power Of YOUR Story | Chapter 30 (Andrew Allison)Acts 21:37-22:22- Acts 21 finds Paul in Jerusalem, at the Temple, getting beaten for his faith in Jesus. In a wild turn of events, Paul had the opportunity to talk to those who wanted to kill him. What do you say to people who want you dead? Paul told his story—a story of his own self-righteous zeal, of Jesus meeting him in an unmistakable way, and of a kind believer who stood with him. What a great testimony!2025-05-1231 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | The Power Of The Story (Andrew Allison)Acts 13:16-44 - Paul and Barnabas made their way through the known world, telling everyone they met about Jesus and the Resurrection. In one synagogue, Paul told the Jews their history, but he told it differently than they’d heard it before. He showed how God had often given Israel a second chance. He went on to explain that Jesus was their second, and final, chance. Some of their listeners believed; others hated the message. Nobody likes being told they’re wrong.2025-05-0521 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What Does a Real Christian Do? | Chapter 28 (Andrew Allison)Now what? The story of Acts is what happens after the death and resurrection of Jesus. God takes ordinary people, fills them with His Spirit, and sends them out into the world. It's a crazy idea! Peter and John transform an everyday visit to the Temple into a medical miracle and preach a compelling message to boot. Hundreds of people come to trust Jesus. Just another day of walking in the Spirit.2025-04-2726 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | I Love You This Much | Chapter 27 (Andrew Allison)John 20:20-29 - All through his ministry Jesus took time to speak with individuals. Even after the resurrection, he never changed course. John records an interaction with Thomas that speaks to doubt and the struggle it is for each of us to believe.2025-04-2025 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Why Am I Getting Nowhere In Life? | Chapter 25 (Andrew Allison)John 12:9-19 - When Jesus rode into Jerusalem to the shouts and cheers of the crowd, there was no mistaking what was happening: the King was back in his rightful place. There were several responses to this long-awaited event: some celebrated, some grumbled, and then… everyone went home. It may have looked anticlimactic, but Jesus wasn’t going anywhere. He had come to do what only the true King of Israel could do.2025-04-1424 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What Can I Do With My Anxiety (Andrew Allison)John’s biography of Jesus slows as he chronicles the week leading up to Jesus’ death. Jesus has a long, careful conversation with the disciples, and today, we listen to the beginning of that conversation. He begins with a strong command: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” He then reinforces it with three unshakable assurances: He is going ahead of them, He has cleared the way to the Father, and He will send supernatural power so they can continue His work.2025-04-0622 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Who's Your Father? | Chapter 25 (Andrew Allison)Jesus’ friend John was very careful to record the things that Jesus said about Himself. As an observant Jew, John knew that there is only one God. From time to time, God sent prophets, ordained priests, and crowned kings so that the people of God had someone to lead them to Him. Everyone knew that these leaders only ever pointed to God; they never claimed any status beyond being messengers. But when Jesus came, He was different. He claimed to be “the Light of the World,” “the Truth that sets you free,” and “the Resurrection and the Life”—all of them ridiculo...2025-03-2423 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Who Is Lost? | Chapter 24Jesus tells a story about a father with two lost sons. The rule-breaking younger son was lost in self-indulgence, and the rule-keeping older son was lost in self-righteousness. The father loved both generously and even recklessly. Both needed to be found. Were they?2025-03-1725 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | How Far Is too Far For God? | Chapter 23esus announced that the Kingdom of God had arrived and everyone wondered what that would look like. Would it mean swords and fighting or a political takeover? John records a couple of one-on-one conversations that Jesus had. What an interesting Kingdom! It turns out that each person matters in the Kingdom of God, each woman and each man matter eternally.2025-03-1028 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Why Was The World Made? | Chapter 22 (Andrew Allison)The story of the Bible is the Story of Jesus, God’s plan all along was to come as one of us to rescue us from sin and death and to reset us to live radically different lives. Today’s passage offers a different (still true!) beginning to the story of Jesus' life on earth.2025-03-0322 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Where Are You? | Chapter 20 (Lynnita Weber)The story of Esther is surprising—not once is God mentioned. Yet God’s silence is not the same as his absence. He works for good, even through ordinary events and with flawed people.2025-02-2323 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Could God Still Love Me? | Chapter 19 (Andrew Allison)Ezra 3:10-13 - The book of Ezra tells the story of the return of God’s people from exile. The account details the extra care that was taken by the returnees in doing their best to reproduce what they once had. Very quickly they got the old altar operational and began to rebuild the temple. Our story is about what they chose to do on the day the foundation of the new temple was in place. There was a party that didn’t feel like a party for everyone and that’s just honest!2025-02-1025 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Can Your God Rescue You? | Chapter 18 (Andrew Allison) The book of Daniel is all about the Sovereignty of God. The God of Israel proves himself sovereign even in faraway Babylon: boys receive foreign favour and are released from having to eat rich and potentially unkosher food. Young men are saved from a fiery furnace, and old man Daniel doesn’t get eaten by a den of hungry lions. God proves he’s not limited by international borders, arrogant kings or wild beasts. All of this points forward to Jesus, who demonstrated his sovereignty (he is God, after all!) in different ways.2025-02-0323 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Does God Ever Give Up on Us? | Chapter 17 (Lynnita Weber)Ezekiel 36:22-28 - The people of God deserved to be in exile in Babylon. They had betrayed their relationship with God by worshipping idols and committing horrible acts of violence. But instead of giving up on his people, God goes with them into exile. He shows up with a message of hope: he will bring them back, clean them up, and make them new. It was good news for the Israelites, and it’s good news for us today.2025-01-2724 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What Do I Do With Sin In My Life? (Andrew Allison)Chapter 16: Isaiah 6:1-10 - Most of Isaiah’s writings don’t have a timestamp on them, but one event does. The day that he had his most profound encounter with God was shortly after King Uzziah died. King Uzziah would have been on the throne long before Isaiah was born and would have been the only king that Isaiah knew. That’s a big loss. Sometimes, God is able to meet us best when we’re tender from loss or grief.2025-01-2023 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Who Am I Following? | Chapter 15 (Andrew Allison)1 Kings 18:16-39 - Elijah lived at odds with his culture. An evil king (and queen!) wanted him dead, so he went into hiding. After 3 years, God prompted him to set up a showdown: Yahweh vs. Ba’al, good vs. evil, and a battle to the death. Sadly, good’s triumph barely left a mark on the life of his country. Thankfully, there was another good vs evil showdown years later, and its impact is still being felt around the world.2025-01-1309 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Whose Advice Should I Take? | Andrew AllisonChapter 14: 1 Kings 12:1-16 - King Rehoboam continues the descent that has been the story of the kings since the throne was established. No one seems to be able to get it right. Leadership is tough. It requires listening to God and keen self-awareness. Rehoboam’s legacy is that he divided the people of God. May that never happen again.2025-01-0622 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What Does A Good Parent Do? (Andrew Allison)1 Kings 3:16-282024-12-3023 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsAdvent 2024 | When The King Comes | Does My Life Have Meaning? (Andrew Allison)Luke 1:26-38 - Mary was approached by the angel Gabriel and told she was the one to carry the “Son of the Most High”. She was curious and submissive, but she didn’t ‘feel the love’ until she walked 150 km to visit her relative Elizabeth. Together, they processed what was going on in their lives. That was the beginning of Christianity! Two believers getting honest and committing themselves to God and each other, no matter what.2024-12-2326 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsAdvent 2024 | When The King Comes | Where Can I Find Joy In Life? (Andrew Allison)Micah 5:1-5a - When the Wisemen arrived in Jerusalem looking for the ‘King of the Jews’, the scholars read our Micah passage and told them to go to Bethlehem. Bethlehem was the place of the king's birth. That prophecy had been given 700 years before Mary and Joseph trundled into sleepy Bethlehem. All of this: Micah’s prophecy, the difficulty of his time in history, translates into joy for us and potential joy for all the generations of the earth.2024-12-1623 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsAdvent 2024 | When The King Comes | How Do I Find Peace? (Lynnita Weber)The Israelites want peace without God as king. They have their own solution for national success: a new system of government. But there’s a flaw in their solution that will ultimately see them trapped by it … until the true king comes to rescue them.2024-12-0924 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsAdvent 2024 | When The King Comes | Is Life Supposed To Be Like This? (Andrew Allison)Genesis 1:31-2:3 This is the beginning of the Beginning! The Creation story lays out many bedrock truths, including our purpose and God's purpose. The 7th day of Creation reveals that God is the rightful King and we are part of a good Kingdom. These two truths alone are the foundation for life-giving hope.2024-12-0217 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What's The Worst Sin? | Chapter 12“David and Bathsheba” is synonymous with leadership failure. It’s heartbreaking to hear of a person who walks with God, “a man after God’s heart,” ruining lives through an impulsive act. The passage is clear that “God was not pleased with what David had done” and, amazingly, God didn’t throw the towel in on David. Even at his worst, perhaps especially at his worst, David experienced God’s redemption.2024-11-2529 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | How Do I Find Courage? | Chapter 11 (Lynnita Weber)The Israelites were afraid of the Philistine champion, Goliath. They needed a champion to rescue them, and at just the right time, God sent them a shepherd king who risked his life to defeat the enemy. The God who sent David to rescue the Israelites is the same God who came to us as the humble shepherd-king Jesus and gave his life to save us all.2024-11-1825 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Has Your Leader Failed? Chapter 10 (Andrew Allison)The first human king of Israel was a flop. Saul had loads of promise, but he never learned to keep his eyes on God. God was a duty to Saul, not a friend, which meant Saul was always thinking of himself, what people thought of him, and what he needed to look good. Expert fire inspectors can tell what started a fire even after it has been put out. They do the forensic work to prevent future fires. As we sort through the ashes of Saul’s life, stay alert to God’s cautions about your life and...2024-11-1525 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What Is Real Friendship Like? | Chapter 9 (Andrew Allison) The tiny book of Ruth in your Bible is all about friendship. The name Ruth actually means friendship. Two women lash themselves to each other, wondering what God might do for them during a bleak time in their lives. It’s the story of hard work, courage, and God coordinating the needed pieces behind the scenes. 2024-11-0423 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Why Is The World A Mess? | Chapter 8 (Andrew Allison)It doesn’t take too long in the Promised Land for the people of God to begin to behave very badly. All the dreams of being a model nation with God as their king went out the window in a hurry. There’s no greater evidence for this than the last story in the book of Judges. Sometimes the Bible has PG-13 content. Judges 19-21 is rated R.2024-10-2824 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Am I Good Enough For God? | Chapter 7 (Lynnita Weber)A Canaanite sex worker, Rahab seemed as far from God as a person could be. But Rahab trusted that God would save her, and he did. God rescued Rahab from shame and into a whole new life with a whole new family. That’s what he does for us, too.2024-10-2123 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Does God Ask Too Much? | Chapter 6 (Andrew Allison)This was Israel’s big day! Everything had been pointing towards this. Everyone was excited and when the moment came, they blew it! Totally dropped the ball. Trusted leaders turtled and turned the people of God against God’s good (and challenging) plan. God still got done what needed to be done—it just took 40 extra years and made for one long camping trip for an entire generation.2024-10-1622 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | What Does God Want? | Chapter 5 (Andrew Allison)The people of God were rescued from slavery - now what? God doesn't just free us from darkness, He frees us for a new life. In today's passage, we see the kind of people and nation God wants Israel to be!2024-10-0618 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Can I Say "No" To God? | Chapter 4 (Andrew Allison)As we continue journeying through the Story of God, you may find yourself encountering things you didn't expect. Bible ‘heroes’ who eat the forbidden fruit, get drunk, betray their brothers, and this week, one who does everything he can to avoid joining God in rescuing His people. There aren’t many Bible heroes, just a bunch of failing humans. God is not deterred. He has and will do everything He can to rescue people, even if it’s just by the skin of their teeth. It’s all quite marvellous and mysterious.2024-09-3025 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Where Is God When Bad Things Happen | Chapter 3 (Lynnita Weber)Joseph was Jacob’s favourite son with God-given dreams for the future. And then life went horribly wrong for him: his brothers betrayed him, he became a slave in Egypt, and ended up in prison. Where was God when all of this was going on? God was working everything together to save lives, save a family, and save Joseph himself.2024-09-2324 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Does God Have Any Use For Me? | Chapter 2 (Andrew Allison)The second chapter of The Story introduces us to Abram and Sarah, God's choice for the parents of His chosen people. Not only do we meet Abram and Sarah, but we also begin to see what God is truly like. He chooses a very old, childless couple to start a nation. What is God after? Is He a cruelbeing who delights in rubbing people's noses in their failures or taunting themwith the unattainable? Or is there something in this story that reveals God's heart for all of us?2024-09-1622 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsThe Story | Why Am I Here? | Chapter 1 (Andrew Allison)This is where it all begins! In Genesis 1, there's hovering, waiting, and anticipation—then God speaks order into the chaos, and the world bursts to life. Every detail is intentionally crafted: places to live and creatures to inhabit them. And then, the nearly unthinkable, God creates humanity, a species charged with the sacred task of tending to His creation. The angels must have gasped at this scene.2024-09-0826 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not To Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | Jonah 4 - What Matters Most To God? (Andrew Allison)After the most successful speaking event in the history of the world -where the entire city repented - Jonah was still despondent. He had hoped for God to punish his enemies, not forgive them. In response, God provided a comforting plant and then a tiny worm to challenge Jonah’s hard heart. We really don’t know how Jonah ultimately responded.2024-09-0319 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not To Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | John 21 (Dr. David Mensah) John 21 finds the disciples back at their old tricks! Back home and fishing. After witnessing the greatest event in history, the resurrection of Jesus, they were unsure of what to do next. So, they returned home and resumed fishing, their old profession. But surprisingly, despite being experienced fishermen, they got skunked—zero fish in the boat. Then Jesus appeared, and the beginnings of the early church began to take shape.2024-08-2541 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not To Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | Jonah 3 - What Is Repentance? (Andrew Allison)Jonah, the reluctant evangelist, gets a second chance! He heads to Nineveh, the wicked city, to proclaim God’s judgment: “Forty days and Nineveh will be overturned!” To everyone’s amazement, the people of Nineveh didn’t harm Jonah but instead humbled themselves and repented. And God, in His mercy, turned away from His fierce anger. What an incredible story of grace!2024-08-2025 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not To Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | Jonah 3 - What Is Repentance? (Andrew Allison)Jonah, the reluctant evangelist, gets a second chance! He heads to Nineveh, the wicked city, to proclaim God’s judgment: “Forty days, and Nineveh will be overturned!” To everyone’s amazement, the people of Nineveh didn’t harm Jonah but instead humbled themselves and repented. And God, in His mercy, turned away from His fierce anger. What an incredible story of grace!2024-08-2033 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not To Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | Jonah 2 - What Does God Want? (Andrew Allison)What do you do when you’re between a rock and a hard place? Jonah the prophet, did what most of us do—he prayed. Even though he was running from God and was prepared to die rather than obey what God had called him to do, when push came to shove, Jonah prayed. Prayer is a powerful thing to do when you want and need your life to change.2024-08-1223 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not To Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | Jonah 1 - Can You Outrun Grace? (Lynnita Weber)Jonah is an example of how not to take the good news of Jesus to people. His actions, heart, and focus were all wrong. But God won’t give up on this failed prophet—he goes after him in love.2024-08-0624 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsHow Not to Talk To Your Friends About Jesus | Isaiah 11:1-5 - Following Jesus (Jonathan Murray)How can we share the wonderful news of Jesus and all He has done for us? What power, perspective and pattern should we follow? Evangelism isn't about following a strict formula; it's about following Jesus. Let's stop viewing evangelism as that scary thing that we relegate to our "outgoing" Christian friends and recognize it as our opportunity to join Jesus in His mission of seeking and saving the lost!2024-07-2928 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsTemptation Pt. 3 | Matthew 4:1-11 - What's Wrong With Shortcuts? (Lynnita Weber)Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness happened at the hands of an enemy who wanted to derail him … and who now wants to destroy us. We need to be aware of this enemy’s presence, stay alert to his methods, and learn how to avoid them. 2024-07-2226 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsTemptation Pt. 2 | Matthew 4:1-11 - Is God Testing Me? (Andrew Allison)We’re halfway through our study of Jesus’ three temptations. One aspect that often goes unnoticed about this event is His incredible restraint. Such humility! In a situation that might suggest a dramatic "clash of the Titans" with lightning bolts and grandiose speeches, Jesus' response to Satan’s second temptation is remarkably succinct—just one line. Talk about understated! How might humility influence the way you resist temptation?2024-07-1524 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsTemptation Pt.1 | Matthew 4:1-11 - How Do I Combat The Devil? (Andrew Allison)Temptation is unavoidable. To be human is to be tempted. Jesus was tempted, which is reassuring. For the next three weeks, we’re looking at the story of Jesus's temptation. It is always interesting to notice which temptations the devil uses to try to hook different people. This Sunday, we look at the devil’s attempt to get Jesus to turn stones into bread.2024-07-0820 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBring Your Best | Revelation 5:1-14 - What Is Heaven Like? (Andrew Allison)Worship means more than singing but never less. The last book of the Bible, Revelation, reveals scenes in heaven filled with lots of singing! While Revelation isn’t all about singing and dancing, the creatures of heaven and earth sing because Jesus is King, and everything will be made well. It's clear that we are meant to worship and sing even when life is tough.2024-07-0222 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBring Your Best | Acts 2:36-47 - What Is Church Supposed To Look Like? (Andrew Allison)Acts 2 reminds us that while we can and do worship alone, the best worship happens when we’re together! The Bible offers no picture of the day when heaven comes to earth when we’ll be off on our own as individuals! We’ll stand, kneel, and bow with the millions who have called Jesus LORD. The church got off to such a start; 3,000 people were stirred to trust Jesus, worship together, and then opened their homes to each other! Watch what God does when people worship!2024-06-2326 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBring Your Best | 2 Sam. 6:11-23 - When God Shows Up (Andrew Allison)The Bible is often the story of how humans get things wrong. Thankfully, there are exceptions! David dancing before the ark of God is the story of the day—humans (mostly) got it right. This is a bright picture of worship. Worship is when God is honoured, and people come alive.2024-06-1729 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBring Your Best | Exodus 15:18-21 (Andrew Allison)The world misses out on so much worship! God does amazing things daily, yet we often shrug our shoulders, thank our ‘lucky stars,’ and keep our foot on the pedal. Not Miriam! Miriam understands that worship happens when people notice what God has done, find words (and tambourines), and get up and dance in celebration of God’s good gifts. 2024-06-0319 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsBring Your Best | Genesis 4:1-16 (Lynnita Weber)Is worship an optional activity for religious people? Why does worship matter? The truth is that we all worship—it’s just a question of who or what we worship. The story of Cain and Abel shows us that who we worship forms our hearts, guides our actions, and determines our lives. Worship really matters!2024-05-2725 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsTransformed By Grace | Ephesians 2:1-10 (Ryan Lamoureux)Paul's letter to the Ephesian church reminds them of how we are made alive in Christ, transformed by His grace into a new creation. We are able to live life with a new purpose and identity as a masterpiece of God's design. Outdoor Christian Educator and guest speaker Ryan Lamoureux will use the monarch butterfly from God's creation to illustrate this transformational process.2024-05-2030 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 16:1-16 - The List (Andrew Allison)Paul finishes his letter to the church in Rome with a list, not exactly best-seller material. His aim wasn't literary acclaim, although his work became influential; instead, he was interested in fostering and fortifying connections. Reflecting on Paul's list may have you thinking about your own list: the people God has used in your life to bring you closer to Him.2024-05-1328 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 15:1-13 - Unlikely Friends (Andrew Allison)Paul never recovered from God including the Gentiles in the salvation invitation. Like some of us, perhaps, he felt like some people should be excluded by virtue of where they were born or how badly they have behaved. More than included, Paul instructs that former ‘outsiders’ should be treated as precious insiders, treated even better than we would treat ourselves. What would it look like if love came to town?2024-05-0522 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 14:7-13 - Cheering For Each Other (Andrew Allison)Human beings need reminders about how to get along, and Christians are no exception. We especially need reminders about how to love each other while we disagree. Paul draws the believers' hearts and minds back to what Jesus has done, and that paves the way for loving each other well through conflict.2024-04-2824 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 13:8-14 - Love Others; Reject Darkness (Lynnita Weber)How do we live with Jesus in a society that opposes him? Paul tells us to wake up to our resurrection hope. When we do that, loving others and rejecting sin in our own lives makes sense.2024-04-2222 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 12 - His Body, Our Body (Andrew Allison)Romans 12 is the description of what happens when God’s mercy overflows in a church’s life. Lifelong attitudes change, love becomes genuine, mocking enemies are not met with equal and opposite force but, quite the opposite, with peace and gentleness. Be praying even now for how God will speak uniquely to your small group.2024-04-1427 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 11:25-36 - Israel And Us (Andrew Allison)All along, we’ve been saying that God’s heart is to see us INCLUDED. That’s why Jesus came, and that’s the subject of Paul’s letter to the Romans. At times, Christians forget God’s radical inclusion of them and go back to the old patterns of competing and comparing. Sadly, that was happening in the Roman Church. Paul has one powerful dose for that sickness.2024-04-0822 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsEaster | Do Not Be Afraid - Matt. 28:1-19 (Lynnita Weber)The resurrection changed everything! The story includes an invitation, a blessing, and a commission for the first witnesses … and for us today. 2024-03-3122 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 10:8-15 - Included Together (Andrew Allison)I love it when people have the gift of communicating clearly. Paul, following Moses in the second half of Deuteronomy 30, does exactly that: communicates clearly. Here’s what it means to become and be a Christian: it means believing the Resurrection and not keeping that good news to yourself! Clear, but not easy! This is something you’ll do for the rest of your life!2024-03-2523 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 9 - By God's Choice (Andrew Allison)The word “predestination” tends to get the hair on the back of people’s necks standing on end! Nobody likes the idea of God choosing who is ‘in’ and who is ‘out’. Paul doesn’t really mean to tackle that question in this passage but he does intend to talk about what God’s plan is for humanity and how we are included in carrying that plan.2024-03-1822 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 8:18-39 - Included in Suffering (Lynnita Weber)The world is broken and in pain, and so are we. All of us suffer, including (maybe especially) followers of Jesus. But Jesus gives us resources for walking through suffering: a perspective shaped by hope, prayer to process pain and grief, and the promise of his forever, unlimited love.2024-03-1027 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 8:1-17 - Children of God (Andrew Allison)One of the struggles with Christianity is knowing how it really works. We can feel shame because we do something wrong or we're not doing enough. We re-dedicate ourselves hoping the next time is a charm. Or we think the point of life is to ‘go to heaven and take as many people with us as possible’. Is that what Jesus intended? How can we know what Jesus intends? Romans 8 is a power-packed, super-condensed explanation of how Christianity works.2024-03-0326 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 7:14-25 - Following The Rules (Lynnita Weber)Paul is really getting to the heart of the matter! Many of us who read the Old Testament come away scratching our heads. Why didn’t these people, God’s Chosen People, do what they were told? Why are the early Scriptures so full of failure and frustration? They had everything going for them. God was on their side, yet they experienced failure after failure. Perhaps you identify! Paul looks into the reasons why this happened and the only solution for rescue.2024-02-1923 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 5:1-11 - Poured His Love (Andrew Allison)One of the modern struggles for those who trust Jesus is what to do with suffering? How can a loving God allow suffering? That question did not trouble Paul in the least. He knew that suffering, at least for now, is a universal human experience. The real question for Paul was: How does the cross of Christ redeem suffering? He dives into that, and, not surprisingly, it gives him one more reason to talk about the fantastic love of God expressed in the death of Jesus.2024-02-0523 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 4:18-25 - Against All Hope (Andrew Allison)What does it mean, and what does it look like to ’trust God’? It’s one thing to talk about theories or doctrine; it’s another to actually do it! Enter Abraham and Sarah, two people staring down the barrel of a hopeless situation. Faith may not look like what you think.2024-01-2827 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 3:21-31 - Included By Faith (Lynnita Weber)We have a problem: sin. It has us trapped. But God has an amazing solution! By grace, he justifies us, giving us what we could never earn. The good news of Jesus is that by faith, we are included in God’s rescue.2024-01-2224 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 1:18-2:1 - Dark Minds, Dark Lives (Andrew Allison)Paul explains the Christian faith by pointing out our sin and God’s wrath, not your typical pitch for someone trying to make a sale! Thankfully, Paul isn’t trying to make a sale; he’s playing for keeps and knows there’s only one right way to do that: “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” With much restraint, Paul gives a summary of how wrong things have gone with humans and how God has responded as a horrified parent. How are you supposed to respond when someone you love tells you to drop dead?2024-01-1528 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsIncluded | Romans 1:1-17 (Andrew Allison)Paul wrote to the small church in Rome even though he’d never met them. They were one church he hadn’t planted. In some ways the letter is him making friends. Good friends make us feel included; they let us know that we belong. It wasn’t something that Paul did that included the believers in Rome; it was what Jesus had done and was doing in them through his Spirit that allowed them to belong. The letter begins with Paul telling them just how ‘included’ they were!2024-01-0725 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGuess Who's Coming to Christmas | Matt. 2:13-18 - Herod (Andrew allison)The Christmas Story ends with a downer. Dead babies. Few of us know the story, and fewer of us talk about Herod’s killing of the innocents. The message is clear, though: Jesus is on a mission in a world that really knows how to hurt each other. There’s no candy-coated church person experience; we face all the same rotten stuff along with the world. Anyone who tells you differently hasn’t read their Bible. But there is hope. This Baby has something up his sleeve.2024-01-0126 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGuess Who's Coming to Christmas | Luke 2:1-18 - Shepherds (Lynnita Weber)The staggering Christian claim is that God became one of us, stooping so low as to be born and, more, born to a poor young woman. It all seems so “un-glorious”. How else could he fully enter our troubles and struggles? He gets us; better than that, he came to set everything right. Merry Christmas, indeed.2023-12-2519 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGuess Whos Coming to Christmas | Matthew 2:1-12 - Magi (Andrew Allison)Magi, or "the Wisemen” as they’ve come to be known, were invited to the first Christmas. They didn’t get an angel invitation like Mary and Joseph. They were studying and thinking and God was stirring their hearts as they studied. Scholars from far away sounds very mystical to us but the people of Israel weren’t that excited about ‘people from far away’. Foreigners were just more Gentiles. Amazing! Even at his birth God was showing his cards, showing us that the whole world was going to be invited into the Kingdom where Jesus is King.2023-12-1725 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGuess Who's Coming to Christmas | Matthew 1:1-17 - Women of Note (Lynnita Weber)Matthew introduces Jesus with a genealogy. At first glance, the long list of names seems unrelated to the good news of Jesus. But the people highlighted in this family tree show us that Jesus loves everyone. And that everyone needs Jesus.2023-12-1125 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGuess Who's Coming to Dinner | Matt. 1:18-25 — Joseph (Andrew Allison)The Bible doesn’t make a huge deal about Jesus’ birth. Mark skips the story all together, John goes poetic and Luke and Matthew tell very different (though not conflicting) stories. One of the interesting pieces is who got invited to the birth of Jesus. It’s a curious short list. This week we begin with Joseph, the man who played the role of Jesus’ earthly father. It was not a job he was looking for but he was God’s choice.2023-12-0427 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 28:30-31 - Unhindered (Andrew Allison)Throughout the Bible, God has consistently called his people to be wholehearted and single-minded. At St. Paul’s, we talk about being all-in. The image is of pushing all the poker chips to the middle of the table as if to say, “We’ve found something in Jesus, and we’re betting our whole lives on him!” All in! From time to time, we have to ask ourselves: Is it true? Are we all in? Or are we holding something back? Is something hindering us?2023-11-2723 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 28:23-31 - With All Boldness (Lynnita Weber)Paul is in chains, but he is still sharing his faith. He creates opportunities to share his faith, takes time for conversations, and is clear about a person's choice for or against Jesus. Then, the story ends abruptly with a single word of hope: unhindered.2023-11-2023 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 22:1-22 - Tell Your Story (Andrew Allison)The book of Acts tells us Paul’s testimony three times, which seems a little overcooked! As you read each one, you’ll see that while Paul doesn’t change facts, he does choose to emphasize certain parts of his story depending on who is in the audience. All Christians have a testimony; hearing Paul tell his helps us find words to explain what our LORD has done in our lives.2023-11-1331 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 17:16-34 - Speak Their Language (Andrew Allison)A fish out of water is a term we use to describe someone in unfamiliar and uncomfortable surroundings. That’s Paul in Athens. Paul was a Jewish scholar proficient in the Bible and monotheism. Athens was an idol and temple smorgasbord! In this passage, Paul has to figure out how to explain Jesus to a group of people who have never heard of Him before.2023-11-0627 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 16:22-34 - Songs In The Night (Lynnita Weber)Beaten and thrown in prison, Paul and Silas share their faith. They stay close to Jesus, love like Jesus, and are ready to talk about Jesus when the opportunity comes.2023-10-3024 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 13:4-12 - Against The Darkness (Andrew Allison)We’ve heard great stories of the Holy Spirit at work in exceptional ways. The church in Antioch felt the Spirit prompt them to do something intentional and put a plan together. The plan was to send out two of their number to let the wider world know of the good news of Jesus. Planning is important but executing the plan is at least as important. Having the strength and capacity to carry on with the plan, through thick and thin, is the story we now find ourselves in. Barnabas and Paul show us what it looks like when Ch...2023-10-2327 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 10:19-48 - The One You Least Expect (Andrew Allison)God was blowing Peter’s mind! Not only was lobster, shrimp, and bacon now ‘on the table’ for Jewish Christians, but Gentiles (non-Jewish persons) were also welcome to become Christians. Until this point, there had only been Jewish believers. The Holy Spirit made Peter re-process the message of Jesus and how He is for all people, every tribe, and every tongue - anyone who will trust Him. It turns out that this has been God’s plan all along.2023-10-1637 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 9:10-20 - Your Worst Enemy (Andrew Allison)Paul is Enemy Number One for the early church. One translation reads: “Saul was a wild man, going everywhere to devastate the believers, even entering private homes and dragging out men and women alike…” On his way to Damascus to wreak more devastation, Jesus met him. Jesus has a unique way of dealing with enemies. In our story, Jesus invites one of his followers to risk his own life and try His "Enemy Management 101”.2023-10-0830 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 7:39-60 - At Whatever Cost (Andrew Allison)As more and more people trusted Jesus, the religious authorities grew increasingly uncomfortable. They had been the ones who forced the Romans to crucify Jesus. The Christians didn’t want to punish the religious authorities but rather called them to repent. They weren’t keen to oblige. A young man named Stephen caught their attention, and when he also challenged them to repent and change their minds, they chose to throw rocks at his head.2023-10-0231 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 4:1-22 - Even With His Enemies (Andrew Allison)You would think that people with good news would only be celebrated and loved! “The ice cream truck is coming down the street!” “The burgers are ready!” “The Jays won!”. Christians have the best news to share, but it isn’t always celebrated, and we aren’t always loved. In today’s passage, Peter and John have to face the authorities who are pretty keen for this ‘Christian problem’ to go away. Peter and John have to figure out whom they will obey. Will it be threatened leaders or the God who died on the cross for them?2023-09-2534 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 2:14-41 - With His Power (Andrew Allison)Every person has a story. Humanity has a story, too, and it is best and most accurately recorded in the Bible. When Peter got the chance to share the good news, he used his people’s story to point to Jesus and call them into a healed and life-giving relationship with the God they thought they knew.2023-09-1734 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsGood News | Acts 8:26-40 - Wherever He Leads (Andrew Allison)Wrongly, some people believe that sharing your faith (evangelism) is what only gifted (or interested) Christians do. Not true. It’s basic to being a Christian. Along with ‘loving one another’, ‘go and make disciples’ is a one-two punch of being a Christian. We’re all still learning how to share our faith. Today, we start a series that tells stories about the time in the Church’s history when everyone was just learning to tell the world about Jesus.2023-09-1133 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsProverbs 27:1-10 | Who Are Your Friends (Andrew Allison)Friends and family have always been powerful forces for a person who wants to grow wiser. Sadly, friends and family can also be powerful in the disintegration of a life too. How do you know who to lean into and who to lean away from? What kind of friends have you put around yourself? What kind of friend are you?2023-09-0433 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsProverbs 12:13-25 | Sticks and Stones (Lynnita Weber)Our words are powerful! Our words can heal or wound, build up or tear down, bring life or carry death. That’s why Proverbs takes so much time to teach us how to use our words well. Good, life-giving words are honest, kind, fitting … and few.2023-08-2827 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsProverbs 11: 12-20 | Relationship Basics (Lynnita Weber)We need good relationships to thrive. The problem is that relationships tend to break down—they need regular maintenance and repair! In the book of Proverbs, we find some basic principles for keeping our relationships strong.2023-08-2126 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsProverbs 6:6-11 | The Best You Can Do (Andrew Allison)Solomon didn’t want his kids to be slugs! He told them to look really closely at God’s created world and see the way that the world is designed. Among the tiniest of creatures, the ants were a great picture of work without coercion. Without a boss, these littlest creatures get things done! Jesus picked up on that. If there were ever a person who could have been justified with being served and taking it easy, it would have been Jesus, God in a bod. But he lived differently than anyone expected.2023-08-1425 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsProverbs 5:15-23 | The Grass Isn't Greener (Andrew Allison)Solomon wants to talk to his boys about sex and how to enjoy it and avoid lifelong hurt and regret. Sex isn't the easiest thing to talk with your kids about! But Solomon steps up and talks to them as adults and counsels adult behaviour from them. The Bible isn’t shy about sex, nor is it flippant; instead, it's joyful and careful. Let’s do our best to follow suit.2023-08-0829 min
St. Paul's Leaskdale Weekly SermonsProverbs 3:1-12 | One Affection (Lynnita Weber & Ryan Snooks)Proverbs teaches us that the wisdom we need for life is found in a relationship with God. We give him our whole hearts, and he blesses us with his love. It’s amazing!2023-07-3129 min