Pastor Efraín Sermons, www.yuma1st.org
579 episodes - English - Latest episode: 3 months ago - ★★★★ - 3 ratingsHonest, down-to-earth messages that help us find meaning for our daily lives!
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Episodes
Seeing Ourselves for Who We Are
October 24, 2022 19:00 - 14 minutes - 8.7 MBHeroes play a valuable role in our lives. They serve as models for our most important ideals, but they are also relatable. In some ways they have superior traits we envy, yet they, like us, usually have some issue they are dealing with, which allows us to relate to them. There is always some weakness or fault that allows us to say, “I can’t do everything they can do, but there’s a part of me that’s just like them.” In some ways, this gives us permission to consider ways we are like our heroe...
I Need You
October 17, 2022 19:00 - 4 minutes - 2.48 MBSpecial music for October 16, 2022 by the chancel choir.
Seeking Justice
October 17, 2022 19:00 - 14 minutes - 8.78 MBLife isn’t fair sometimes. As patronizing as that phrase may sound, it’s an accurate assessment of frustrating situations that pervade our thoughts as we work through the injustices we encounter. These injustices may be related to socio-economic issues such as racial or gender biases, or they may be related to events in our lives. Tragedies that we encounter, such as the unexpected death of a seemingly healthy mother giving birth or the sudden loss of a loved one due to cancer, are unjust fr...
Old Time Religion Medley
October 10, 2022 19:00 - 4 minutes - 2.98 MBSpecial music by the chancel choir.
Ungrateful
October 10, 2022 18:00 - 4 minutes - 2.98 MBThis Sunday, we are blessed to hear a message from Marilyn Hohnstein, Certified Lay Minister from Gila Mountain United Methodist Church. Marilyn will be speaking on Jesus' healing of ten men suffering from a skin condition, drastically changing their lives and standing in society. Of the ten that were healed, only one took time to return to Jesus and thank him for this healing. We look forward to sharing time together on Sunday morning as we explore this scripture passage together!
What Are We Doing?
October 03, 2022 19:00 - 21 minutes - 12.6 MBAs we come to worship this coming Sunday, we (most of Christianity) recognize this day as World Communion Sunday. Isn’t that exciting? What’s it all about? Does that mean that everyone takes communion at the same time and in the same way? Maybe that would be good but even if we did that it wouldn’t be what I think Jesus was talking about when He first shared communion with His disciples. 1 Corinthians 11:17-26 tells us what Jesus wanted and we’re going to spend the morning focusing on what e...
Cultivating Joy
September 26, 2022 21:00 - 14 minutes - 9.28 MBThis week we will continue our discussion on building wealth in the kingdom of God with a reflection on the story of Lazarus given to us in the Gospel of Luke and advice offered by the apostle Paul to one of his protégés in his first letter to Timothy. Last week, we talked about using the resources at our disposal in this world as well as the gift of forgiveness that we can offer our neighbor so that we might facilitate better relationships with God and those around us. These actions help b...
Holy Spirit, Living Breath of Life
September 19, 2022 18:00 - 4 minutes - 2.96 MBSpecial music by the chancel choir.
True Value
September 19, 2022 18:00 - 13 minutes - 9.43 MBThe concept of money is very interesting. At one time, dollars were directly tied to other materials considered valuable, such as gold. It was assumed that a country would not print more dollar bills than they could back up with a reserve of gold, but that is not the case today. In today’s economy countries print money based on economic conditions and the perception of each country’s economic strength in the world. The value of a dollar is not based on gold, but on several other factors that...
The Father's Love for His Two Sons
September 12, 2022 19:00 - 23 minutes - 12 MBA message on the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15) by Rev. Sandra Jimenez, pastor of Spanish- language new church start (United Methodist), Yuma, AZ.
Being Shaped by God
September 07, 2022 00:00 - 15 minutes - 9.06 MBWhen tragedy strikes, a common question asked is “Why did God do this?” Today’s news reports are filled with stories of violence and tragedy that make some wonder whether God is really in control, or, if so, why God would allow terrible things to happen to good people. Scripture tells us God can cause disaster and provide relief, which leads some to conclude that tragedy only strikes when God intends to inflict punishment. This week, we will reflect on the writings of the prophet Jeremiah w...
In Remembrance of Me
September 07, 2022 00:00 - 3 minutes - 2.41 MBSpecial music by the chancel choir.
Growing in Wisdom
August 29, 2022 18:00 - 13 minutes - 7.78 MBLearning how to live a good life is sometimes difficult to grasp. We learn much of it in school while growing up, sometimes more in the lunchroom and on the playground rather than in the classroom. In these more uncontrolled circumstances, which lent themselves to unscripted scenarios, we had to figure out principles of behavior that would lead us into the kind of relationships we hoped to achieve. But these lessons were often hard, especially when the outcome was the opposite of what we wer...
Following the Rules
August 22, 2022 04:00 - 14 minutes - 8.66 MBFollowing rules is important, but we all know that common sense is needed as well. If we all suddenly decided to obey traffic lights only part of the time, the streets would be much more dangerous. Or if we decided to only pay some of our utility bills, the power companies wouldn’t be able to pay their employees, and we would probably be without power for much longer the next time there was an outage. But sometimes, in a moment of crisis, blind compliance can be much worse than breaking the ...
The Peace of Christ
August 15, 2022 17:00 - 15 minutes - 9.14 MBA common prayer request we have is for peace. We seek peace in our lives and pray for peace in the lives of others, especially those who are enduring the tragedies of war like the Ukrainians. But there is more to the concept of peace than just experiencing serenity. The Ukrainians are suffering the tragedies of war because Russia is trying to forcibly annex them, and they refuse to have their culture and way of life erased. Yes, there may be fewer deaths if they simply acquiesced to the Russ...
It Is Well with My Soul
August 15, 2022 16:00 - 4 minutes - 2.93 MBSpecial music by Jon and Sylvia Flint.
Winning
August 08, 2022 18:00 - 11 minutes - 6.74 MBFriendly competition is a lot of fun. Whether it’s board games, video games, or sports, I’ve always enjoyed getting together with friends and family to play games. Even when we get a bit competitive, we can have a lot of fun playing games. One common strategy that I’ve seen used in nearly every kind of competitive game is to distract your opponent so that they focus on something other than the true goal of the game. As the distraction takes root, the confused player wastes time achieving irr...
God's Economy
August 01, 2022 17:00 - 21 minutes - 12.6 MBSome of you may have watched the TV drama “Succession”. It’s the story of the multi billionaire Roy family who own a multimedia conglomerate. * Congregation is invited to stand as they are able. The four adult Roy children all vie to be “the one” named as dad’s successor as CEO. Sibling rivalries, shifting alliances and both personal and corporate greed are on full display. Our Scripture today starts out with someone in the crowd asking Jesus to side with him in an inheritance dispute. We qu...
What's That Aroma?!
July 25, 2022 20:00 - 24 minutes - 14.9 MBNear the beginning of the Book of 2 Corinthians, Paul defends his Christian theology to the church in Corinth that he helped found. Since leaving there, others succeeded him who had different theological ideas and congregational leaders wrote him requesting him to make corrections for their faltering congregation. So, Paul prefaces any direct arrival by writing this letter. Where we are in the early chapters, he expresses his need to provide his credentials. But what he says is not what one ...
Focusing on the Better Part
July 17, 2022 20:00 - 11 minutes - 6.36 MBIn one of our recent “First Devotion” emails, a comment made by the economist John Maynard Keynes in 1930 was referenced: “What will we do with all our spare time?” Based on the rate of progress Keynes had observed at the time, he predicted that his future grandchildren would only need to work 15 hours a week. Everything was being automated so well that people would have little need to work. Of course, this prediction was clearly wrong as we have come to realize that greater automation often...
Prayers of the People for Sunday, July 10, 2022
July 11, 2022 18:00 - 3 minutes - 2.27 MBPrayers of the People by Avery West.
Being Guided by Compassion
July 11, 2022 18:00 - 16 minutes - 10 MBA common perception shared by many people is that human behavior is always guided by self-interest. This implies that everything we do (or decide not to do) is based on what we expect to gain from some action (or to save if we refrain from it). This perspective can quickly lead to a cynical attitude that robs us of our ability to recognize sincere altruism when it surfaces in our daily lives and diminishes the hope we might have for the future of our communities. In this week’s passage, w...
Prayers of the People for Sunday, July 3, 2022
July 05, 2022 17:00 - 3 minutes - 2.16 MBPrayers of the People by Rev. Katie Fuchs.
The Power of Simplicity
July 05, 2022 17:00 - 15 minutes - 8.87 MBIt’s often assumed that the solution to difficult problems must also be difficult. When the big problems we are encountering in life can be fixed with a simple adjustment to our lifestyle or a short phone call, it often feels like we had been making a big deal out of nothing. But this is not necessarily the case; sometimes the best solution to big problems can be simple. This is the case for the Aramean commander named Naaman who came to the prophet Elisha asking to be cured of his leprosy....
In the Garden - Medley
June 27, 2022 17:00 - 4 minutes - 2.79 MBSpecial music by Jon and Sylvia Flint.
Crystal Ball Not Included
June 27, 2022 17:00 - 24 minutes - 14.3 MBSometimes people seem surprised that although I am a member of two church staff teams, I don't always know everything about either congregation or building. No, I didn't know Mrs. X was going to have surgery. Oh, the back porch lightbulb has been burned out for a month? The most fun is when it involves somehow knowing a future event - why didn't I plan on the hallway flooding and have a bunch of extra mops available, or call the plumber last week? (These are generalizations, not specific inc...
Prayers of the People for Sunday, June 26, 2022
June 27, 2022 17:00 - 5 minutes - 2.85 MBPrayers of the People by Rev. Mike Wilkerson.
Peace in the Midst of Turmoil
June 20, 2022 18:00 - 16 minutes - 9.27 MBThis Sunday, we have a couple of significant celebrations to look forward to. One of them is Juneteenth, the day we commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. On June 19th of 1865 General Gordon Granger of the Union Army declared all enslaved people were free in the state of Texas, the last state of the confederacy to abolish institutional slavery. This was the culmination of a long effort by President Abraham Lincoln to end slavery in America, his primary campaign issue in the ...
Prayers of the People for Sunday, June 19, 2022
June 20, 2022 18:00 - 8 minutes - 4.74 MBPrayers of the People by Brandon Coz.
How Would You Build the Lord's House?
June 13, 2022 17:00 - 23 minutes - 10.8 MBAt least two examples of building the Lord's House: the first, as written, were instructions from God to Moses during the wandering. The next Temple was built by Solomon. Each were built to fill the purpose of a particular time and circumstances. Moses' House of the Lord was a tent; Solomon’s was a stone structure. God gave Moses the blueprint; Solomon’s seemingly followed tradition. Both were elaborate. One had to be disassembled frequently and moved; the other was designed to be perma...
Prayers of the People for Sunday, June 12, 2022
June 13, 2022 16:00 - 5 minutes - 2.24 MBPrayers of the People by Pastor Jon Flint.
Prayers of the People for Sunday, June 5, 2022
June 06, 2022 18:00 - 4 minutes - 2.45 MBPrayers of the People by Debbie Pallack.
Celebrating the Gift of the Church
June 06, 2022 18:00 - 11 minutes - 6.93 MBBirthdays can be a lot of fun. Granted, some may not want to be reminded of the many years that have already passed, but they give us an opportunity to celebrate the gift of having that person in our lives. This week, we celebrate the birthday of the church. This is a time when we give thanks for the gift of the Holy Spirit that was experienced by the disciples in Jerusalem marking the milestone of the birth of the Christian church. And we are more and more grateful as the years go by. In t...
Discovering Freedom Through Christ
May 31, 2022 17:00 - 15 minutes - 8.59 MBOne year, my kids gave me a session in an escape room for my birthday. If you like puzzles, escape rooms are a lot of fun. You and your guests are led into a small room filled with puzzles and riddles, and then you are locked in the room with your “team.” In order to escape the room, you have to solve the puzzles that direct you to a hidden key that lets you pass through a side door. In the room I went to, we solved the puzzles in the room only to discover that the door we unlocked opene...
Prayers of the People for Sunday, May 29, 2022
May 31, 2022 17:00 - 8 minutes - 4.82 MBPrayers of the People by Brandon Coz.
There is a Balm in Gilead
May 31, 2022 17:00 - 3 minutes - 2.05 MBSpecial music by the chancel choir.