pastor || writer || speaker
This past weekend at Eastbrook, we continued our preaching series entitled "God's Grace for an Imperfect Church: 1 Corinthians." This week we arrived at one of the most well-known passages in the entire letter of 1 Corinthians, chapter 13. Hopefully you already know that these words were not written by Paul specifically about marriage, even …
Continue reading "“The Way of Love” – a message from 1 Corinthians 13"
St. Bernard of Clairvaux, a Cistercian monk in 12th century France, rose from relative obscurity to wide-ranging influence, shaping many aspects of church life during his time. Born within a family of the lower nobility, Bernard forsook all of that to enter a small monastic community in Cîteaux. Influential even at this stage of his …
Continue reading "Learning God’s Love with St. Bernard of Clairvaux"
This past weekend at Eastbrook, we began a new series entitled "Power in Prayer: Learning to Pray with St. Paul." This first weekend in the series, I took us inside of Ephesians 3:14-21, one of Paul's notable prayers from this circular letter sent to churches in Ephesus and the surrounding area. I structured the message …
Continue reading "Prayer as Living within God’s Power and Love (Ephesians 3:14-21)"
Jesus, how sweet is the very thought of you! You fill my heart with joy. The sweetness of your love surpasses the sweetness of honey. Nothing sweeter than you can be described; no words can express the joy of your love. Only those who have tasted your love for themselves can comprehend it. In you …
Let Your goodness, Lord, appear to us, that we, made in your image, conform ourselves to it. In our own strength we cannot imitate Your majesty, power, and wonder, nor is it fitting for us to try. But Your mercy reaches from the heavens through the clouds to the earth below. You have come to …
Continue reading "An Advent Prayer of St. Bernard of Clairvaux"
Matthew Erickson 