Galloway UMC ”Living the Word”

In this concluding sermon from the Book of Jonah, Pastor Raigan uses the musical concepts of consonance and dissonance to explore how Jonah's heart responded to God's grace being extended to his enemies, the Ninevites. Just as a dissonant chord creates tension that longs for resolution, Jonah experienced God's grace as beautiful when it was given to him, but as deeply offensive when it was offered to those he despised. The sermon reveals that Jonah's anger was not simply about Nineveh. It was a symptom of deeper idols: nationalism, comfort, and the desire to be right, all of which had grown larger in his heart than God's compassion.
 Pastor Raigan challenges listeners to examine their own 'Nineveh,' the person or group they secretly believe has gone too far for God's grace. The book of Jonah ends without resolution, leaving God's question hanging in the air for every reader: 'Should I not be concerned about them?' Pastor Raigan points to Jesus as the greater prophet whose cross became the place where every dissonant note of human sin finally found resolution. The resurrection is God's triumphant final chord, and the invitation is for every believer to allow their heart to come into harmony with God's boundless, pursuing grace.

This sermon, drawn from Jonah chapter 3, centers on the God of second chances. After Jonah's spectacular failure in chapters 1 and 2, God does not move on or lower His expectations. Instead, the word of the Lord comes to Jonah a second time with the same assignment: get up and go to Nineveh. Pastor Raigan uses the image of a pencil with an eraser to illustrate that mistakes are part of being human, but they do not have to be permanent. Grace, however, goes far beyond what any eraser can do. It reaches back into our past, covers our worst chapters, and restores our purpose.
When Jonah finally obeys and delivers what may be the shortest and least inspired sermon in history, something astonishing happens. The entire city of Nineveh, from the king on his throne to the animals in the field, repents before God. The sermon draws a contrast between Jonah, the reluctant prophet, and Jesus, who willingly carried a cross so that grace could be available to everyone. The central message is clear: no person, no situation, and no past failure is beyond the reach of God. Your story is not over, and God is still speaking.

This sermon continues a journey through the Book of Jonah, focusing on chapter two, where Jonah prays from inside the belly of a great fish. Pastor Raigan highlights how Jonah's downward spiral, running from God's call, leads Him to rock bottom before He finally cries out to God in desperation. The key insight is that the fish is not God's punishment but God's rescue, and that what feels like it is swallowing us may actually be what God is using to save us.
The sermon draws a powerful connection between Jonah and Jesus, showing how Jonah's story is a rough sketch that points toward the finished masterpiece of the gospel. Just as Jonah spent three days in the belly of the fish before being delivered, Jesus spent three days in the heart of the earth before rising in victory. Pastor Raigan concludes that Jonah is ultimately a comedy in the deepest sense: not because it is funny, but because joy wins, hope wins, and Jesus gets the final word.

his sermon opens a new series on the Book of Jonah, framing the story not primarily as a tale about a runaway prophet but as a revelation of a pursuing God whose grace is relentless. Using the analogy of a GPS that keeps recalculating no matter how many wrong turns we take, Pastor Raigan shows that God never gives up on us, even when we deliberately run in the opposite direction. Jonah is called to preach in Nineveh, the capital of the feared Assyrian Empire, a city that represented everything Israel hated and feared. Rather than obey, Jonah boards a ship headed for Tarshish, the farthest point in the known world, choosing isolation over obedience.
The sermon highlights the rich irony woven throughout Jonah chapter one. Pagan sailors pray while the prophet sleeps. Jonah's disobedience becomes the very crack through which the truth about God spills out to people who had never known Him. The sailors, moved by what they witness, end up worshiping Yahweh, turning a cargo ship into a place of genuine devotion. Pastor Raigan challenges each listener to identify their own personal Nineveh, the place, person, conversation, or act of obedience they have been avoiding, and to trust that no wrong turn is beyond the reach of God's recalculating grace.
 

Dr. John Howard - From Pilgrims to the Present: 400 Years of Church Music in America
 
This sermon explores the powerful role of sacred music in the life of faith, drawing from the Old Testament story of King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20, where God's people sent musicians ahead of their army into battle and experienced a miraculous victory without fighting. Dr. Howard uses this story as a launching point to argue that music is not merely an accessory to worship but a frontline spiritual weapon that helps believers connect to a God who is bigger than their fears, failures, and battles.
 
The sermon also traces the rich 400-year history of church music in America, from the metrical psalms of the Pilgrims and Puritans, through the singing schools of the 18th century, the spirituals of the revival era, the hymns of Lowell Mason, the gospel songs of the Moody era, and into the contemporary worship music of today. Throughout this history, the pastor highlights a consistent pattern: whenever people longed for God, music found a way to help them reach Him. The congregation is challenged to increase the role of sacred music in their personal and family lives as a means of spiritual growth and strength.

This Father's Day sermon draws from Colossians 2 to address the deep human longing for wholeness, acceptance, and belonging. Pastor Brandon acknowledges that Father's Day carries different emotions for different people, from celebration and gratitude to grief and pain, and reminds the congregation that our faith is ultimately rooted not in the quality of our earthly fathers but in the perfect love of our Heavenly Father.
Drawing on Paul's letter to the Colossians, the sermon challenges the lie that we need anything more than Christ to be complete. Just as false teachers in Colossae told believers they needed extra knowledge, experiences, or spiritual achievements, the world today tells us our worth is tied to performance and accomplishment. Paul's counter-message is clear: in Christ, we have already been brought to fullness. The greatest gift a Father can give is not perfection or success, but a life visibly rooted in Christ, growing not for acceptance but from acceptance, and living with eternity in view for those He loves.

Rev. Haven Boyd, Children's Minister, celebrated our VBS Children on Sunday, June 14.
In this sermon, Pastor Haven reflects on the story of Peter and John healing a man at the temple gate, drawing a powerful connection between physical healing and the deeper healing of belonging and inclusion. The man, who had been unable to walk since birth, was carried daily to the temple gates by his community but never brought inside. He was helped within the limits of social and religious norms, yet he remained an outsider. Peter and John responded not just by restoring his ability to walk, but by welcoming him fully into the community of faith.
 

Six part Sermon Series - ROOTS: Exploring the Methodist Movement and the great Awakening
 
Rev. Dr. Raigan Miskelly
This sermon explores John Wesley's spiritual journey before His famous Aldersgate experience, drawing a parallel between Wesley's exhausting pursuit of holiness and the image of a hamster running endlessly on a wheel. Pastor Raigan highlights how Wesley, despite his rigorous spiritual disciplines- fasting, prayer, and service to the poor- was trapped in a works-righteousness mentality, believing He had to earn God's love rather than simply receive it. His failed missionary trip to Georgia, a broken heart, and a terrifying storm at sea all served as the shaking that preceded his awakening. The turning point came on May 24, 1738, at Aldersgate, when Wesley finally experienced what the Moravian Christians on the ship already possessed: an assurance of God's grace that moved from his head to His heart. The sermon reminds us that God never wastes a storm, and that our failures and moments of desperation can become doorways to grace. The core message is rooted in Ephesians 2:8-9: salvation is a gift, not an achievement, and the deepest longing of the human soul is not conquest but communion with God. The invitation is simply to come home and rest in the love that has already been freely given.

Rev. Dr. Raigan Miskelly continues this 6-part sermon series.
 
This sermon, part of a series called 'Roots,' explores the Methodist movement's deep connection to the Trinity and the pursuit of holiness. Drawing on the life of John Wesley, the pastor traces how the Father's prevenient grace pursues us before we even know God's name, how Jesus models holiness in the flesh, and how the Holy Spirit produces holiness in surrendered lives. The Methodist revival was not about rules or religious performance, but about being drawn into a living relationship with the triune God. Central to the message is Wesley's challenge to move beyond being an 'almost Christian' to becoming an 'altogether Christian.' Pastor Raigan connects this to the danger of convenient Christianity, where faith fits comfortably into one's schedule without ever truly transforming the heart. True holiness, the sermon argues, is not achieved through human effort alone but is produced when the light of Christ shines through a life fully surrendered to God. The call is for believers to dedicate every thought, word, and action to the glory of God, just as Wesley resolved to do at age 23.

This sermon explores the Methodist movement and the Great Awakening, examining what transforms religious individuals into a movement and the precursors to revival. The pastor draws parallels between the first Pentecost and John Wesley's experience at Aldersgate, emphasizing that movements begin with fresh encounters of the Holy Spirit, create radical communities, multiply through ordinary people, and carry missions bigger than themselves. The message warns against churches that maintain religious activity while losing their spiritual fire, calling believers back to their first love and dependence on God's transforming power.