Hays Christian Church

Places in the Nativity (Part 3): Cities

The third of Pastor Cana’s 2024 Advent series, comes to us from Luke 2:1-5, where Mary travels with Joseph to his ancestral city of Bethlehem for government registration, just in time for Jesus’ birth on a not-so-silent night. God draws close to us amidst the noisy, busy journey of our human lives. Can you feel His presence?

Places in the Nativity (Part 2): Homes

The second of Pastor Cana’s 2024 Advent series, comes to us from Luke 1:39-45, where Mary in her early pregnancy with Jesus visits her cousin Elizabeth, whose own unborn child leaps for joy. God creates a welcoming home for Mary and for all of us. Do you feel God’s welcome? Let us also create a welcoming home for others.

Places in the Nativity (Part 1): Sanctuary

The first of Pastor Cana’s 2024 Advent series, presented by Jennie Straight, comes to us from Luke 1:5-23, where the angel Gabriel appears to Zachariah in the sanctuary of God to tell him that his wife Elizabeth will bear a son, despite her advanced age. God offers us sanctuary in His presence, where we can focus on Him and be attended to by Him. Take time to notice your place of sanctuary and seek to focus on God.

Gratitude and the Lepers: Luke 17:11-19

Pastor Cana reads into Luke 17:11-19, where He meets ten lepers that He sends to the priests, but they are healed along the way. However, only the Samaritan returns to praise God’s glory and thanked Jesus. For us, Christ restores us from our uncleanliness, separation, and exile, so our response should emulate the Samaritan’s: praise amidst our gratitude.

Saul, Anti-Anointed King: 1 Samuel 15: 10-11, 24-28

In 1 Samuel 15:10-11 and 24-28, Saul, the king that God anointed to lead the Israelites, loses the Spirit of God for ignoring God’s commands. Saul was the perfect king by every nation’s standard, doing what kings should do, but as Pastor Cana explains, God’s favor isn’t measured by expectations, declarations, or previous presence, but by obedience to God’s Spirit. We are free from being “good Christians”! Instead, attentiveness to God’s Spirit will guide us to live our faith.

Fruit of the Spirit (Part 9): Self-Control

The final fruit of the Spirit that Pastor Cana presents is the fruit of self-control, as described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, where his athletic metaphors apply to spiritual discipline. Prioritizing the Good News of God over ourselves teaches us self-control for our Christian witness.

All the Saints: Revelation 7:9-17

We look at Revelation 7:9-17 with Pastor Cana to find that the author describes the saints that gather in God’s throne room outside of time to worship Him. God draws, unites, and shepherds all the saints together, so we rejoice by remembering the saints of past, present, and future.

The Word of God: John 1:1-14

John 1:1-14 gives us a poem/song reflecting on Jesus’ significance of His coming. Pastor Cana shows us in the scripture that Jesus, not the Bible, is the Word of God. With this information, we can look at all scripture texts through the interpretive lens of the Word of God.

Meaning-less Life: Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

When we look into Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 with Pastor Cana, we are left with the wisdom that God’s good gifts, the simple things, help us be freed to enjoy our lives without worrying about their impact and weight. We can give our lives less weight and make them instead more meaningful.

Revealing Revelation (Part 2): Revelation 5

The author of Revelations 5 shares a vision for the Seven Churches of Asia. As Pastor Cana explains, for Revelation, God’s conquering and victory are about sacrifice, not slaughter. We are urged to worship a sacrificed Lamb as sacrificed people.

Revealing Revelation (Part 1): Revelation 2:1-11

The author of Revelations 2:1-11 writes to the churches of Ephesus and Smyrna. As Pastor Cana explains, Revelation’s specific context and message to specific people can offer us similar comfort t and hope. Let us appreciate the struggles the ancient and modern churches share in common.

Truth-Telling Friends and Smooth-Tongued Enemies: Proverbs 27:5-6

For this sermon, Pastor Cana takes to Proverbs 27:5-6, which advises the distinction between the harsh truths from our loved ones and the sweet lies our enemies tell us. Because God calls us to be righteous, we should be friends who receive and offer truth, even when it is painful.

Fruit of the Spirit (Part 8): Gentleness

The next Fruit of the Spirit in Pastor Cana’s sermon series is reflected in Proverbs 15:1, 4, and 16:24, which speaks of the consequences of righteousness and wickedness. Preparing for the fruit of gentleness in our hearts means mindfully considering our lives.

God’s Purposes Accomplished: Isaiah 55:8-13

Isaiah 55:8-13 is a rebuttal to the idea of overwork and offers a balance to value rest when needed. Pastor Cana presents us with the idea that the purposes of God are God’s to bring about. We are encouraged to rest and rejoice in God’s ability to accomplish His purpose.

Christ, Our Peacemaker: Matthew 26:47-53

Matthew 26:47-53 describes Jesus Christ’s arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane and His response. Pastor Cana makes the case that Christ is firstly a peacemaker, living in a non-violent way and mindset, and it should shape our language and actions. We are encouraged to resist the violent language and conquering outlook of the world and choose to follow Christ the Peacemaker.

The Narrow Gate: Matthew 7:13-14

Matthew 7:13-14 describes the narrow gate and hard road to eternal life. Pastor Cana explains that the gate to God is narrow not to test us, but because living like Jesus is a challenging road. Our place is on the way because we have chosen it, living with compassion in a hardened world.

Fruit of the Spirit (Part 7): Faithfulness

Returning to the Fruit of the Spirit, Pastor Cana opens to Genesis 15:6-18, where God makes a promise to Abram/Abraham that his descendants will suffer, but ultimately be rewarded. The fruit of faithfulness in Abraham is only possible because of God’s faithfulness. In us, God’s faithfulness will form our faithfulness during the long life of faith.

The House of God: Psalm 84

Pastor Cana opens to Psalm 84, which comes from the family of Korah, who well understand of the house and place of God. They knew that to be in the presence of God was better than being anywhere else. Our joy comes from the fact that God’s presence provides us a best place to be.

Christians Who Changed the World: Harriet Tubman

In tradition to highlight Christians of history, Joanne Tramel speaks of abolitionist Harriet Tubman (born in slavery as Araminta Ross in 1822). A traumatic brain injury sustained in her youth brought her visions from God. After escaping slavery, she was encouraged by God to help others find freedom through the Underground Railroad, then during the Civil War in the Union army. In every accomplishment, she gave God the credit, which we can apply to our own lives.

Transfiguration Sunday: 2 Peter 1:12-19

For Transfiguration Sunday, Pastor Cana opens to 2 Peter 1:12-19, which lays out the important final thoughts from the wise apostle Peter to those in need of guidance. Christ’s confirmed glory in His transfiguration is a light for us in a dark place that we can rely on as a centering point of our lives.

Prayer (Part 6): Abandoned

Pastor Cana concludes the summer sermon series on prayer with Jeremiah 32:16-25, in which the prophet Jeremiah prays after he and his people abandoned God and faced the consequences of their choice. Yet, God provided a promise. We, like Jeremiah, can pray in hope that even when we don’t keep faithful to God, we can rejoice that God’s faithfulness is greater than human abandonment.

Prayer (Part 5): Rescue

The next prayer of Pastor Cana’s focus comes from 2 Chronicles 20:5-12, where Jehoshaphat, King of Judah, while struggling to defend the nation against Moab, turns to God for rescue as their only hope. When we do not know what to do, Jehoshaphat’s prayer teaches us to look to God and trust Him when we are in impossible situations.

Fruit of the Spirit (Part 6): Goodness

Picking up in the Fruit of the Spirit series, Pastor Cana opens to Romans 12:9-21, where the author pushes the Christians of Rome to be servants to one another, to serve in their giftedness and not seek to be someone else, and reminding them that God’s will can be revealed in their work together for God’s kingdom. God gives us community in which the Spirit can grow the fruit of goodness.

Prayer (Part 4): Formal

For the fourth prayer in the sermon series, Pastor Cana goes to 1 Kings 8:22-30, where King Solomon prays publicly on behalf of Israel. Praying to God in a formal way as a community can draw us to a single focus and give us a chance to declare what we believe together.

Prayer (Part 3): Informal

For the third prayer in the sermon series, Pastor Cana goes to Exodus 3:11-14 and 4:10-15, which gives us the example of Moses speaking to God with honesty as he is given the task of leading the Israelites out of Egypt. Because God knows our hearts and minds, He hears our casual prayers just as well as any other prayer. We know that praying honestly can mean praying in our own voice and in genuine reflection of our hearts.

Tabitha/Dorcas (The Impact of One Life): Acts 9:36-42

A break from sermon series, Pastor Cana brings us to Acts 9:36-42, where Tabitha (Dorcas in Greek), is resurrected by God’s will that her community may learn from her life and imitate her as she imitates Christ. God can give our work and lives impact, even in small and quiet action. We are encouraged to live our one life for God’s impact.