I'll Have The Curry.

A Sermon for the People of First Baptist Church of Austin December 31, 2023 from the collection "Book of Gospels" by Laura James "Patiently Waiting" Luke 2:22-40   Well, we’ve made it! We’ve made it to the last day of the year.  There is a buzz in the air. A buzz of excitement, of expectations, of champagne glasses and confetti.  Parties with old friends and parties with new ones. Parents letting their kids stay up to watch the ball drop, which they will end up regretting because it will be way too late. Parents forcing themselves to stay awake to watch the ball drop, which they will end up regretting because it will be way too late. Fireworks. Noise makers. Party hats. Those ill fitting 2-0-2-4 glasses that haven't quite looked right over our eyes since 2009.  Televised scenes of thousands of strangers standing shoulder to shoulder in the streets of new york city cheering for the inevitable new start a new year brings. A midnight kiss from a new love or from on

A Christmas Eve morning mediation for the People of First Baptist Church of Austin, Texas December 24, 2023 Written by Rev. Carrie Houston On this fourth Sunday of Advent, you’ve probably realized by now that the service is different than you’re used to. For starters, worship is a whole hour earlier! We are glad you made it a point to come a little earlier. I hope you grabbed a donut or taco and a cup of coffee, chatted with a beloved friend, and you look forward to what Christmas Eve holds.  This service is a special and unique one, one filled with church members who bring their gifts of music as an offering of love and worship this Christmas Eve morning. This service has been a long held tradition here at first Austin and we are glad you could share in it with us.   While the service has a different flow and feel than our traditional worship services, this is still a time of worship! Each artist is a worship leader this morning in their own unique gifts and talents. May we see God in

  A Sermon for the People of First Baptist Church of Austin August 27, 2023 I try not to watch the news too much these days, certainly not when my 6 year old daughter is present.  ?It is right to try to postpone her knowledge of the grim realities of the world? She still sees glimpses of the images of climate tragedies flashing on the screen before we think to change the channel - fires, floods, hurricanes, tornados, all things she is genuinely interested in learning about but quiet doesn’t understand the human contribution in these abnormal weather occurrences. What about the unjust and unnecessary violence in the streets, our schools, our public spaces, our places of worship broadcast on the evening news each night? How long can I shield her from knowing about the pain and suffering humans endure at the hands of other humans?  It’s all taken a toll on my soul….so much so that I’ve started to think there’s not much point to try to do anything to change it. I can’t do much to reverse t