First Methodist Traditional

I Believe: “I Believe In Jesus… Who Was Crucified, Dead, and Buried” - Lance Richards

Today we get to the fulcrum on which all our faith pivots - the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. His cross opens up the way to eternal life. And we must pick up our crosses daily to follow him. Hebrews 2:10-18 fmhouston.com

I Believe: “I Believe In Jesus… Who Suffered Under Pontius Pilate” - Lance Richards

Today, Lance looks at Pontius Pilate, the only human mentioned in the Apostles’ Creed (other than Jesus), and reminds us that this is a real historical event. This really happened. Pilate knows that Jesus is innocent, and he keeps trying to keep Jesus from being killed. But Pilate could not save him, because Jesus was here to give himself away - so that everyone would have have a way to the Father. John 18:28-19:16 fmhouston.com

I Believe: “I Believe In Jesus… Who Was Conceived By The Holy Spirit, Born Of The Virgin Mary” - Lance Richards

In the heat of summer, we get to remember the gift of Christmas. In Jesus, we seen the beauty in life, what life was intended to be. And because of that, we can be truly alive, and can fully live. “The virgin will have a song and his name is God Is With Us” - the story of Christmas is a story we shouldn’t be thinking about just once a year. Colossians 1:15-20 fmhouston.com

I Believe: “I Believe In Jesus Christ, His Only Son, Our Lord” - Lance Richards

When Lance left the hospital with his first child, he couldn’t believe they were sending him out without an instruction manual. But in life, we are not without direction. God sent Jesus Christ to show us to be fully alive - for us, he IS the instruction manual. Jesus is the exemplar of what it means to be divine. He made the face of God known on this earth - one of sacrifice, and self-emptying love. And he taught us how to follow him. Philippians 2:5-11 fmhouston.com

I Believe: “Maker of Heaven and Earth” - Lance Richards

On our next step through the Apostles’ Creed, Lance covers “God as maker,” and how the very presence of creation around us reminds us that God is always with us. The stars in the sky above us show us that our God never leaves the one behind. Then, a trip to Homeboy Industries in California, where gang members find their way into the church. Isaiah 40:10-14, 18-31 fmhouston.com

I Believe: “I Believe in God the Father Almighty” - Lance Richards

As we begin a period of what the church calls “Ordinary Time” - though Lance thinks it should be called “Extraordinary Time” - we begin a series defining what we believe, guided by the Apostles Creed. We start with the story of the Prodigal Son, but it’s not a story about a son. It’s a story about a father. A father willing to run to his son and welcome him home during a time when no one could comprehend something like that. And it’s about a God that Jesus taught us to refer to as OUR Fathe...

Arise: “Live The Life Of Heaven Here” - Lance Richards

When Nicodemus came to visit Jesus, he was confused about how Jesus was asking him to be “born again” - wasn’t the first time enough? It wasn’t - but Lance reminds us that being born again is more than just a single moment, a story to look back to. What about the moments that are happening now? Our call to faith isn’t a one-time thing. We don’t have to look back and say “that was the moment!” What about the moments that are happening now? John 3:1-17 fmhouston.com

Pentecost Sunday - Lance Richards

Arise: “Make The Most Of Every Moment” - Lance Richards

On Senior Sunday, Lance tells the graduates - and all of us - to wait on God’s timing. As he ascended to heaven, Jesus called the disciples to intentionality. To pray, and believe, and wait for the Spirit. He calls for us to do the same. “My prayer for you is that you hunger and thirst for the Lord more than anything else in this world.” Acts 1:1-13 fmhouston.com

Arise: “The Gracious Work of Forgiveness“ - Lance Richards

Not long after Jesus returned, we see how the disciples have returned to their old life, despite Jesus having sent them off to spread the gospel to all the world. But there is no place that we can run, no place that we can hide, that our Savior will not find us. John 21:15-19 fmhouston.com

Arise: “Finding Jesus Wherever You Wander” - Lance Richards

In today’s story, we meet the disciples where they are fishing on the lake - they have returned to something familiar, some place they feel safe, in their grief. But Christ is coming to change all that, and give them a new spirit. We can be trapped in grief, in distraction, the endless scroll of life. But, “if we’ll only look up, if we’ll only look within - we will find Jesus there.” John 21:1-14 fmhouston.com

Arise: “Believe Where You Have Not Seen” - Lance Richards

When we meet the disciples in today’s scripture, they are behind locked doors on Easter evening. But as the disciples are about to be the first to realize, there is no locked door, no sealed tomb, that can keep our Lord contained. And that same spirit is about to be poured out upon us. “No matter where you find yourself locked in the darkness, there is nothing that can keep our Lord away from you.” John 20:19-31 fmhouston.com

Arise: “Proclaim Forgiveness” - Amanda Davis

When we meet the disciples in today’s story, they are still in the thickness of grief - and they remind Amanda a bit of toddlers being picked up after being preschool. But the Jesus who comes to them is simply WITH them, in their fear and their disbelief. Luke 24:36-48 fmhouston.com

Arise: “Look For Jesus Along The Way” - Eric Pugh

As we begin a new series on “living as Easter People,” Eric tells us the story of the road to Emmaus - which, as he pictures it, is a bit like an episode of ‘Undercover Boss.’ Luke 24:13-35 fmhouston.com

Easter Sunday: “Why Do You Look For the Dead?” - Lance Richards

We notice different things in different ways. Every time Lance returns to the Easter story, he finds a new perspective. The world prepares us to expect bad news. But when the women went to the tomb where Jesus was buried on Easter morning… if they had understood what Jesus had told them, they shouldn’t have been. Sometimes we are the same as the women in this story - we’ve heard the words, but we don’t believe it yet. It calls for a change in perspective. Luke 24:1-12 fmhouston.com

Good Friday: “He Saved Others, He Could Not Save Himself” - Lance Richards

As Lance reads through the Passion story, he is struck by the mockery that Jesus endures throughout. But as he notes, this was always the plan. Jesus could not save himself, and still save us. But evil does not have the final word. Love does. And remember: Sunday’s coming. Isaiah 52:13-15; 53:1-3, 7-12 fmhouston.com

Palm Sunday: “Follow Where Christ Is Leading” – Lance Richards

As Jesus came into Jerusalem, he was hailed as a hero. The problem was that Jesus continued to not be who they had expected him to be. Where was their conquering savior? Mark 15: 1-39 fmhouston.com

We Strive To Bless: “Seek God Daily” - Lance Richards

We reach the last tenet of our core values: seek God daily. What does this look like? Maybe not what you think. Seeking God isn’t just in the inward practices, it’s in the outward practices: justice, healing people, reformation. Mark 10:35-45 fmhouston.com

We Strive To Bless: “Serve Continually” - Lance Richards

One of Lance’s favorite Christmas movies is the Muppet Christmas Carol - and while it’s not an ideal time on the calendar to talk about Christmas movies, it’s an ideal text to illustrate today’s lesson. Look at the effects Jesus had on people like Matthew, or Zaccheus. His love and generosity led to an overflowing generosity from the people whose lives he changed. The goal and the vision is that we find a way to be like Jesus. That we find a way to serve, both inside the church and out. M...

We Strive To Bless: “Embody Christ” - Lance Richards

Lance wants this place to be the kind of church that hears the message that Jesus spoke and lives that message out. A church known for mercy, for grace, for compassion. Jesus is still resurrecting the dead, bringing life to those walking around who need to hear the message of grace and forgiveness. Let’s be the church that brings resurrection to the dead. Luke 7:18-23 fmhouston.com

We Strive To Bless: “Love All” - Lance Richards

Jesus told us to love all - and it’s important that, like Jesus, we don’t try to draw demarcations around what “all” means. This is the hallmark and cornerstone of Jesus’ whole ministry. Luke 6:27-38 fmhouston.com

We Strive To Bless: “Be Authentic” - Lance Richards

Lance introduces the church to our new core values, and what they’ll mean to our church as we try to put our mission statement into action. Luke 11:33-42; 12:1-3 fmhouston.com

Ash Wednesday: "What Must We Bury to Produce Fruit?" - Lance Richards

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, and as we ask "what should we give up for Lent this year," Lance asks a bigger question: "what do we need to bury for our lives to produce fruit?" Ash Wednesday is a time of penitence and repentance - from dust we came, and to dust we will return. But we need to also remember that God brings beautiful things out of the dust. John 12:23-26 fmhouston.com

Putting God’s Love Into Action: “Putting God’s Love Into Action” - Lance Richards

Lance comes to the end of his series on our new mission statement: “transforming lives and communities by putting God’s love into action.” He notes that this church has always been dedicated to making disciples. And how do we do this? By putting God’s love into action. 1 John 3:11, 16-24 fmhouston.com

Putting God’s Love Into Action: “God’s Love” - Lance Richards

As we continue to break down our new mission statement, Lance turns to 1 John to look at God’s love, and the way God calls us to give our lives to one another. The fruit reveals the plant. When we remain in the vine, the fruit of the spirit grows out of u 1 John 4:7-21 fmhouston.com

Putting God’s Love Into Action: “Transforming Communities” - Amanda Davis

In high school, Amanda went on her first Emmaus experience, and something stuck with her. “Do not anticipate, just participate,” they told her. The phrase has stuck with her. We have a mission statement. It’s time to take action. The biggest threat to our city not changing is us believing our city can’t change. Matthew 25:31-40 fmhouston.com

Putting God's Love Into Action: “Transforming Lives” - Lance Richards

What do we need to do to follow God? There are tough questions, and we discover the answers through community. We need community to grow, in order to leave worldly things behind. Colossians 1:3-14 fmhouston.com

Putting God’s Love Into Action: “Do Not Conform, Be Transformed!” - Lance Richards

Lance introduces the new mission statement for the church, and tells the story of how it was we got here. Transformation in Christ is a lifelong process. We are more like a butterfly than we realize - the change happens to us. It is not something we create ourselves. Romans 12:1-2 fmhouston.com

Unshakable Joy: “Joy Guides Us To Worship Jesus” - Lance Richards

Lance brought his family out to Brazos Bend State Park to look at the stars. But when he tried again at home, he discovered how difficult it can be to see the light. Maybe, just maybe, it’s our job to shine light into the darkness. So God can be made known to those who are seeking after him. Matthew 2:1-12 fmhouston.com

Christmas Eve: "Good News Causes Great Joy for All People!" - Lance Richards

“There is no better news than a birth announcement.” Lance remembers the joy that surrounded the announcement of his own child, and points out what was so different about the one on this first Christmas: this news wasn’t proclaimed to those in power, it was given to those with the least power. God chose this family to bless the entire world. fmhouston.com

Unshakable Joy: “Joy Rebuilds And Restores” - Lance Richards

Lance traveled to serve in Louisiana after Katrina with a group of youth. He’ll never forget the devastation, and how wherever they looked, there was no rebuilding taking place, just more tearing down. But God was there, even in the midst of destruction. The only way to rebuild is to rebuild the spirit, first and foremost. This is the mission of the church - rebuilding the spirit, bringing good news to the oppressed, binding up the brokenhearted. Isaiah 6:1-4, 8-11 fmhouston.com

Unshakable Joy: “Joy Heals and Transforms” - Lance Richards

Lance’s family has been working on puzzles this Advent, spreading the work out over the whole season to watch the picture come together slowly over Advent - so they can learn how to look for joy. That’s what Advent is. We’ve been given a glimpse of the beauty wants to do in the world by the gift of the Savior. Isaiah 35:1-10 fmhouston.com

Unshakable Joy: “Joy Drives Away our Fear” - Lance Richards

Instead of rushing to the nativity this year, we are spending a time with the prophets. Which isn’t exactly everyone’s favorite! They can be a downer. But the joy the prophets speak about is a hope that we can cling to in the darkness, in good times and in bad. A joy that is unshakable. Zephaniah 3:14-20 fmhouston.com

The Goodness Of God: “The Lord, Our King, Is Good to All” - Lance Richards

Lance finishes our series on The Goodness Of God - just in time for Thanksgiving - and explains what it means to praise the Lord “from prayer to prayer.” He wants us to ask ourselves, “how are you blessing the name of the Lord?” Praise is the work of God’s people. Psalm 145 fmhouston.com

The Goodness of God: “Taste And See That The Lord Is Good” - Lance Richards

Sometimes we wonder when we pray - does God hear us, does God see us? What does it mean to “taste and see that the Lord is good?” There’s a quote Lance has been considering: “In prayer we act like people, in praise we act like angels.” As he continues his series on the goodness of God, he dives deeper into the need to praise God’s name. Psalm 34 fmhouston.com

The Goodness Of God: “Dwelling In The House of the Lord Forever” - Lance Richards

The word “goodness” has been running through Lance’s mind this season, as the news turns grim. As we begin a new series, he walks through Psalm 23 and reminds us of the faithful promises of God. As we walk through the difficulties of daily life, Lance urges us to look closely at the paths we are led down. Where are you going? Who is shepherding you? Psalm 23 fmhouston.com

Multiply: “Commitment Sunday” - Lance Richards

Giving generously can cause anxiety - after all, we think, if we give away too freely, what if we don’t have enough? But in Corinthians, Paul is trying to tell us that the grace of God is more precious than any possession we can have. And when we give generously, we reflect the very nature of God. God doesn’t sow sparingly, he sows bountifully. That’s the very nature of God, to give abundantly. 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 fmhouston.com

Multiply: Excel in Generosity - Lance Richards

Multiply: “Entrusted As Stewards Of The Greatest Treasure” - Lance Richards

Lance looks into the Parable of the Talents, and asks the question - what was it that the third servant actually did wrong? When it comes to the Parable of the Talents, burying your talent isn’t just a failure to invest. It’s hiding your light under a bushel. Matthew 25:14-30 fmhouston.com

Multiply: “You Give Them Something To Eat” - Lance Richards

In the wake of Hurricane Harvey, the church Lance was serving in decided to open its doors to people needing shelter, despite not being in any way set up to take in people - because they felt that this was what God was leading them towards. In today’s Scripture, the story of the feeding of the five thousand, we find a similar expression of faith. “It is tempting to look at what we have as individuals and see scarcity.” Lance reminds us that even though we may not have enough by ourselves...

Multiply: “Trusting In God’s Generosity And Abundance” - Lance Richards

At the Wedding in Cana, Lance shows how Mary asked Jesus for help, and that the ask mattered. Throughout the gospels, ordinary gifts were brought to Jesus by ordinary people, and something miraculous happened as a result. John 2:1-11 fmhouston.com

All The Good We Can: “The Body of Christ, The Power of Community” - Kathrin Meier & Lance Richards

Kathrin Meier joins Lance on NIA Sunday to talk about the ministry Neighbors In Action is doing in Port Houston, the way that the people of Port Houston have made that ministry their own, and how we tend to dehumanize people on the other side of the tracks - in both directions. “We cannot have a relationship with Christ, the head of the body, if we do not have a relationship with the body himself.” fmhouston.com neighborsinaction.com

All The Good We Can: “Overcoming The Poverty of Stewardship” - Amanda Davis

Amanda looks at a passage from Romans to consider how we are perhaps not yet living in the fullness of Christ. She remembers a girl hassling her young daughter that made her go into Mama Bear mode - but the story ended up being something other than what she expected. How do we live with hope among all the groaning? It’s not just us. It is all of creation groaning under the weight of this brokenness. Romans 8:18-28 fmhouston.com

All The Good We Can: “Overcoming The Poverty of Being” - Lance Richards

In today’s message, Lance talks about the woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment so that she could be healed. But even though her physical ailment was cured, Jesus knew that there was more that needed healing. The woman was suffering from a “poverty of being.” And that was something that needed more than a physical change in order to cure. Mark 5:25-34 fmhouston.com

All The Good We Can: “God First” - Lance Richards

This month’s series comes from a book called When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty without Hurting the Poor… and Yourself. It’s a book about changing our whole mentality on missions, as we recognize the hurt we can do when we try to help in the wrong ways. We need to develop a new paradigm for missions - recognize that when we go into communities, we do not bring God with us. God is already there. Ephesians 3:14-21 fmhouston.com

World Upside Down: “ In All Things, Point To God” - Lance Richards

Acts 17 is one of Lance’s favorite chapters in Acts, and that’s because there’s a lot going on beneath the text. Paul’s heart is grieved for the world around him. 

What is breaking your heart in the world around us? The world is open to the Word of God, but who is going to teach them the resurrection if not us? Acts 17:16-34 fmhouston.com

World Upside Down: “Faith Multiplies By Example” - Lance Richards

Lance dives into Acts 16, where Paul and Silas are punished for having the faith to save a girl tormented by demon, and find themselves flogged and sent to prison, not that they let it get them down. “Sometimes the only way through it is a hallelujah.” To praise even in the face of punishment and torment - that’s difficult to do. But their faith had an impact. Can ours have the same? Acts 16:16-40 fmhouston.com

World Upside Down: “Entering Into The Messiness Of Mission And Ministry” - Lance Richards

As we look at the story of a Gentile church in crisis in Acts, Lance talks about the way political differences have divided the church in the wake of Covid. Lance is reminded of a church he served at, and how one fateful decision sealed the direction of the church. The choices we make drive us towards or away from relationship with our neighbors. Living in community requires choice. What is going to be the thing that holds us together in community? Acts 15:1-35 fmhouston.com

World Upside Down: “The Power of the Church at Prayer” - Lance Richards

Lance talks about a time he ended up in Vegas and made a tentative attempt at gambling at a slot machine, which ended poorly. But prayer, he reminds us, is not gambling. You aren’t just putting coins in a slot machine and hoping something good comes out. And the story today, of Peter being rescued from prison in the Book of Acts, is a clear example of the power of prayer. Acts 12:1-24 fmhouston.com

World Upside Down: “How Disciples Came To Be Called ‘Christian’” - Lance Richards

Lance takes a look at a church in Acts that where people were coming from everywhere and all walks of life - and asks what we can do to create the same movement. We are a missionary movement. There is still good to be done. Are you looking at the gifts that are all around us? There are so many people here we can lift up. God is weaving together a tapestry made out of all of us to make a beautiful church. Acts 11:19-30 fmhouston.com