Access Covenant Church: Recent Episodes
Access Covenant Church
The Weekly Word at Access Covenant Church. We are a community that exists for the healing of Portland. We follow Jesus by creating connection, seeking racial justice, and learning to be family in SE PDX. Connect with us on social media, or visit us at accesscov.com.
The final verses of Matthew’s Gospel have been used to justify colonialism & genocide. But Jesus has a better way to share the Good News. What if our evangelism looked like inviting people to a way of life that didn’t crush others, and allowed people who make mistakes to get back up?
The birth of the Church at the miracle of Pentecost is not a brand new thing; it is a continuation of the work God was already doing around the world! Followers of Jesus today can be enriched by embracing the Jewish identity of our faith in ways that resist anti-Semitism honor the presence of our Jewish neighbors.
Contemporary Western spirituality has not prepared us to embrace the goodness of bodies. But the resurrection of Jesus tells us that bodies are good and they matter a great deal.
Fear asks “who’s in? Who’s out?” Love asks “who’s missing?” The Spirit Disrupts, the Spirit Joins, and the Spirit Includes so that people of profound difference can share a new identity as people who have been included in the family of God.
Christian Religion has been hijacked by oppression. But Jesus is bringing life and liberation to the Earth. When knowledge becomes love, words become action, and belief becomes obedience, we are on the way to life and liberation.
How do we liberate the traditional practice of Lent from the shackles of Western individualism? We lean further into the life of Jesus, Who calls us to receive our identity as God’s beloved.
When we are willing to weep, we are able to see. The Good News of Resurrection means we can face the reality of sin and death, and the sadness will not swallow us. Jesus comes to us to search our hearts, call us by name, and give us a voice. He is risen!
Liberation is a journey, not a destination. In Judges 4, Deborah takes the phrase “know your place” and turns it on its head. Part 3 of Women’s History Month 2021.
Toxic masculinity distorts the identity of men as much as it oppresses women. The life of Jesus interrogates our cultural assumptions about gender roles, and shows a way out of toxic masculinity that liberates all genders! The 4th and final sermon of Women’s History Month 2021.
God is continually revealing Himself through other people and languages. At Babel—and today—difference leads to hostility. But when the Holy Spirit moves at Pentecost—and today—differences lead to unity; we can have unity when we can see God in “the other.” Part 2 of Women’s History Month 2021.
Trauma has a way of causing us to question our gut. But regardless of the ways society has tried to silence you, respond in such a way that your voice becomes a wellspring of life. The first sermon of Women’s History Month 2021. Follow our Guest Speaker Tiona Cage on social media, and her YouTube devotional “Tenacity and Soul.”
How can the people of God, practice missional presence in a way that brings wholeness to we who are sent as well those to whom we are sent? Jesus sends us for our own healing and for the healing of the world.
God is not waiting to pounce and punish; God is waiting to be invited in. We can practice self-examination in the joyful confidence that God loves us even in the darkest parts of ourselves.
Sexuality is of profound importance to God because it is the intersection of two things that matter deeply to God: identity and relationship. The very good news about our sexuality is that God wants people of people of all genders, orientations, and relationship statuses to experience a life-giving, joyful sexuality.
Through His Death and Resurrection, Jesus makes real reconciliation possible. This is not through shallow calls for unity or trust in American exceptionalism, but rather by revealing our sin, restructuring our communities, and renewing our spirits.
Contemplative Spirituality is the practice of slowing down and paying attention to God so that we learn to see God in more times and more places. In the face of oppression, Contemplation becomes more important, not less. In contemplation, God reveals our security in Him, deconstructs oppressive orders, and shows us the power and love present in Creation.
When the world looks like death, God is about to do something unprecedented. In the darkness of suffering and injustice, God gives His people unprecedented authority, belonging, and hope.
Sometimes we are waiting on God to change our situation, when God is waiting on us to change our perspective. While we wait, God always waits with us.
From our combined gathering with Bread and Wine Church, Pastor Sharad Yadav reflects on what it means to place our hope in God.
In the face of darkness, what does it look like to put one foot in front of the other? In community we remind one another that Jesus is Lord, and we keep going—together.
The Church of Jesus Christ is called to be the Mother this world needs. See the characteristics of this mother in the life of Deborah, from Judges 4:1-8.
The division evident in this moment highlights the sense of homelessness many of us feel in the Church and in our nation. The words of Jesus remind us: it is OK to be sad. It is OK to be tired. It is OK to hope.
In this time of crisis, it’s easy to feel lost, mistaken and alone. But we can face this moment because of the witness of those of have come before; each one of them a witness to the One who comes first.
It is so easy to imagine those we have conflict with as somehow less than us, or even less than human. How does Jesus respond to conflict? A crucial Word in the face of a conflictual political season.
In response to hot button issues, Jesus pushes us to question our questions, our systems, and our identities—until we come to a place of belonging to Him.
Bring yourself to the Spirit and let the Spirit being you to community. Special guest Rev. Mary Putera reminds us that God’s redeeming activity is present with all people in all situations.
Liberation can feel disorienting. Nostalgia longs to return to “normal,” even though “normal” was oppressive. But God is doing something new.
This time, if we let it, will shape us from being performative in our Christianity to people who leave legacies of just and holy living. Guest speaker Brandi Miller.
The way that God has called us is the way that God has made us. An extended reflection on identity as well as our hopes for ministry in the upcoming year.
“The world’s not ending; just democracy.” How do we live when it really is that bad? Psalm 37:1-18.
The fragile egos of powerful men threaten to destroy individual lives and entire communities. But God interrupts evil when we tell the truth.