Today COA and Pastor Jessie welcome a wonderful guest preacher from a sister PCUSA church in Odenton, MD. Pastor Jenn was one of the co-leaders of last years Confirmation Co-op with Pastor Jessie,  a fellow member with her in Bay Area Disciples Presbyterian ministry group, and a personal friend.

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Her bio is below:

Rev. Jennifer Kubit McCullough joined Ark and Dove in August of 2023 as their Associate Pastor. Prior to Ark and Dove, she served as Creative Organizer of Youth Ministry at St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, CA. In this role, Jenn worked alongside the congregation, staff, and volunteers to show young people that the church is theirs and that they are called to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly. While in seminary, she also served as a Ministry Intern at Canyon Hills Presbyterian Church in Anaheim Hills, CA. Before deciding to pursue a call to ministry as a career, Jenn taught middle and high school Literature and Composition for 8 years at the Orange County School of the Arts.

Jenn received her B.A. in American Literature and Culture from the University of California, Los Angeles and received her teaching credential in English from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. In May 2022, she completed her Master of Divinity from Iliff School of Theology in Denver, Colorado through the school’s online/hybrid Journey program. Jenn and her husband Shane have three children and live in Annapolis, Maryland. Jenn loves music and musical theater, being outdoors, eating/trying new foods, exercising, and reading.

When God called Abraham to leave his homeland, there were no guarantees—no map, no timeline, no certainty about what waited ahead. All he had was a promise: that God’s possibilities were greater than the comfort of the familiar. In the same way, Jesus invites us not to settle for maintaining what is, but to step out in faith toward what could be. In John 14, when Philip asks to see the Father, Jesus reminds him that the fullness of God is already present among them—and that even greater works are still to come. God’s vision for our lives, our church, and our world always stretches beyond the boundaries of our imagination.

But stepping into that kind of faith means letting go of control. The status quo feels safe; it’s predictable, measurable, and familiar. Possibility is risky—it asks us to believe that God can still surprise us, that something new is being born even when the path feels uncertain. The story of Abraham and Jesus’ words to his disciples both remind us that the life of faith is not about preservation, but participation: joining in the new thing God is doing.

As we close our Greater Than series, this is our invitation—to trust that God’s future is greater than our fear, and that what God longs to do through us is more than we can ask or imagine. Possibility is not wishful thinking; it’s the heartbeat of faith. So let’s take the next step together, not because we know exactly where it leads, but because we believe the One who calls us forward is faithful.

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This week’s message in our Greater Than stewardship series focuses on…..

Abundance > Comfort — the idea that when we truly see everything we have as a gift from God, our hearts shift from guarding what is “ours” to sharing what is God’s. Too often, we live with a mindset of scarcity, believing that generosity threatens our comfort or security. But scripture reminds us that God’s abundance is not limited by our fears. When we trust that God provides more than enough, we are freed to give with open hands and joyful hearts.

Jesus’ conversation with the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:16–26 and God’s promise in Malachi 3:6–10 both challenge us to step beyond what feels safe. True discipleship means moving from comfort to courage — from holding tightly to what we have, to living in the flow of God’s generosity. Abundance is not about having more; it’s about trusting more. And when we do, our giving becomes an act of faith that multiplies blessings far beyond what we could ever keep for ourselves.

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STEWARDSHIP SERMON SERIES: GREATER THAN

One aspect of growing as a disciple of Christ means that we are committed to responding to God’s wonderful generosity. We grow in that generosity as part of our individual spirituality, we also grow in generosity within our faith community as the body of Christ. The disciples in the earliest Churches understood the power of community and growing together in discipleship. Together is greater than alone. Generosity is greater than storing up. And thriving is greater than survival.

Join us for this series as we consider all that God has shared with us and what it means to live a life that is Greater Than.

THIS WEEK…. WE > ME

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In a culture that prizes independence, God calls us to interdependence. When we live, give, and grow together, we go farther and thrive more deeply than we ever could alone.

The to-do list in our lives AND in creating a better world is never-ending. The
pace at which we tackle that to-do list has become ever more feverish in pitch. The
access to information has increased to such a degree that we often feel overwhelmed
just getting up in the morning. But “sabbath” is a commandment. God is a God of
“restoration.”

Something grossly overlooked in the creative process is the place of effortlessness and play. In the story of creation, God rested. And this was very “good” as well! Pushing through is non-sustainable, and creativity suffers if we constantly labor. God’s creativity is ongoing, so while the story said God was “finished” and then rested, really it was simply a pause to reflect, to observe, and to celebrate, and then God continued God’s creative work among us and with us.

Link to readable sermon PDF