Sermons On-the-Sound

This week, The Rev. Susan Cushinotto reflects on Luke 18:9–14, where Jesus contrasts the proud Pharisee and the humble tax collector. She reminds us that the Christian life is rooted in honesty and humility before God — not in perfection, but in our willingness to seek mercy and live with compassion.

This week, The Rev. Michael Singer offers a children’s homily on Luke 18:1-8, reminding us that God loves to hear from us — again and again. Just as the persistent widow kept calling out to the judge, we are invited to be persistent in prayer, bringing our joys, worries, and thanks to God every day.

Sermons On-the-Sound: The Gift of Life
In this week’s message, The Rev. Michael Singer reminds us that stewardship begins not with obligation, but with joy — the joy of receiving God’s gifts and responding with gratitude.Drawing from Luke 17:11-19, the story of the healed lepers, we are invited to see stewardship as a thankful response to God’s grace and the sacred question of every life: What will you do with the life God has given you?
Reflect & Respond
What are the gifts in your life that fill you with gratitude?
How might you offer your life — your time, talents, and love — as a response to God’s generosity?
What does it mean for you to say, “My life belongs to God”?

The Rev. Michael Singer invites us to rekindle the spiritual fire within us, just as Paul encouraged Timothy to do. Drawing from 2 Timothy, this sermon reminds us that each of us has been given gifts by God to serve in the world — not with fear, but with power, love, and purpose. As our hands are blessed to do God’s work, we are called to use them as Christ’s hands in acts of compassion, justice, and service.

In this sermon for the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, the Rev. Michael Singer reflects on Jesus’ parable of Lazarus and the rich man. He explores the reality of death as the great equalizer, the danger of clinging to worldly wealth, and the call to come before God with humility and open hands. The message challenges us to share God’s grace with those who are “lost” so that they too may know the hope of Christ.
Preached at St. Andrew’s On-the-Sound Episcopal Church in Wilmington, North Carolina.

In this week’s sermon, the Rev. Susan Cushinotto reflects on the parable of the dishonest manager, one of Jesus’ most challenging teachings. Instead of focusing on the dishonesty itself, Susan invites us to consider how the manager never lost sight of his goal. By contrast, we as children of God often become distracted by wealth, fear, and the messages of the world. We are reminded that everything we have is a gift from God, given in abundance, and that our true calling is to share God’s love generously with one another.

On this Holy Cross Day, Rev. Michael Singer invites us to reflect on the meaning of the cross, not only as the place where Jesus died, but as the living sign of God’s unending love.
The cross holds both comfort and challenge. It reminds us of a mercy “as wide as the sea,” a love that does not end even when we fail, fall short, or condemn ourselves. In the cross, we discover the God who is with us in every sorrow and every joy, who knows our tears and shares in our gladness.
But the cross also calls us to embody that same mercy. As people forgiven, we are summoned to become forgiving; as people loved without limit, we are invited to learn, day by day, how to extend that love to others.
The way of the cross is not easy, yet it is the way that leads to life.