Church of the Messiah UMC

Church of the Messiah UMC
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We are a United Methodist congregation serving Westerville, Ohio and beyond for over 200 years. At Church of the Messiah we KNOW CHRIST, GROW IN FAITH, and SERVE OTHERS.

  1. 2d ago

    'Open Hands' Sermon Series - Week 2 - "The Last Handful" & All Saints' Sunday

    What would it look like to give before you know what's left? In week two of our Open Hands stewardship series, Rev. Katy Wheat Borhauer explores 1 Kings 17:8–16, the story of the prophet Elijah and the widow of Zarephath, who bakes her last handful of flour into bread for a stranger with nothing to go on but God's promise. Beginning with a story about starting garden seeds (and the very human urge to keep checking the soil), Pastor Katy names how deeply we long for certainty in our money, our time, our relationships, and our future, and how open-handed living invites us to replace that need for certainty with trust in God. Preached on All Saints Sunday, this message reminds us that the God who parted the sea, sent manna in the desert, and kept the widow's jar from running empty still keeps promises today. Drawing on Corrie ten Boom, John Wesley, and Barbara Brown Taylor, Pastor Katy offers a hopeful word for anyone waiting on a phone call, a test result, a healing, or an answer: trust grows as we practice it, one small handful at a time. Watch, reflect, and join us for the rest of the Open Hands series at Church of the Messiah UMC in Westerville, Ohio. Learn more at messiahumc.net. 📖 Scripture: 1 Kings 17:8–16; Mark 12:41–44 🎤 Preacher: Rev. Katy Wheat Borhauer 📅 Sunday, November 1, 2026 #OpenHands #Stewardship #Generosity #TrustGod #1Kings17 #Elijah #WidowOfZarephath #AllSaintsSunday #UnitedMethodist #UMC #ChurchOfTheMessiah #WestervilleOhio #Sermon #Faith #ColumbusChurch

  2. Oct 25

    'Open Hands' Sermon Series - Week 1 - "Start Empty"

    Start Empty | Open Hands, Week 1 | Pastor Katy Wheat Borhauer | 1 Chronicles 29 What if the things you hold most tightly were never fully yours to begin with? In Week 1 of our new sermon series, Open Hands, Pastor Katy Wheat Borhauer explores King David's prayer in 1 Chronicles 29:9-18, where God's people give freely and joyfully to build the temple. Through stories of a fifth-grade class pet, a toddler's fistful of Cheerios, and C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, Katy unpacks the Bible's countercultural vision of stewardship: everything belongs to God, God gives first, and giving means giving back to God. Stewardship is about much more than money. It shapes how we care for our time, energy, kids, relationships, neighborhoods, and one another. This message invites you to loosen your grip, trust the God who gives first, and discover the freedom of holding life with open hands. Try this week's practice: write "My ___ is God's" somewhere you'll see it every day. Join us in person at Church of the Messiah UMC in Westerville, Ohio, at 8:15, 9:30, or 11:00 AM, or learn more at messiahumc.net. #Stewardship #Generosity #OpenHands #1Chronicles29 #ChurchOfTheMessiah #WestervilleOhio #UnitedMethodist #UMC #Sermon #Surrender #Faith #ChristianLiving

  3. Oct 18

    "The Shepherd Who Is Good" Sunday, October 18, 2026

    Do you follow Jesus this close? Pastor Katy Wheat Borhauer of Church of the Messiah UMC in Westerville, Ohio, takes a fresh look at Psalm 23, one of the most beloved passages in the Bible. Starting with a road-trip game of car bingo and a well-known bumper sticker, she invites us to hear the Shepherd's Psalm as a promise for our everyday lives here and now. Along the way, we learn why sheep are smarter (and stinkier) than we think, why we're more like them than we'd admit, and how Jesus fulfills the psalm as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep (John 10). Everyone follows someone or something: a news feed, a fear of not being enough, a schedule, a voice that promises to give us what we lack. This message asks whether the shepherd we're following is good, and speaks honestly about the dark valleys of anxiety, grief, and doubt. Psalm 23 doesn't promise certainty or control. It promises presence, provision, belonging, and a God whose goodness and mercy pursue us. Whether you're following Jesus for the first time or coming back again, you are invited to let him be your Good Shepherd.

  4. Oct 11

    'Faultlines' Sermon Series - Week 5 - "Lose Your Magnifying Glass"

    Lose Your Magnifying Glass | Faultlines Week 5 | Pastor Katy Wheat Borhauer | Church of the Messiah Why do we zoom in on one fault until it becomes the whole picture of a person? In the final week of our Faultlines sermon series, Pastor Katy Wheat Borhauer explores John 8:1-11, where a crowd brings a woman caught in adultery before Jesus, stones in hand. Jesus, the only one qualified to judge, chooses mercy instead. From Ohio's "world's largest" roadside attractions to a missed phone call that turns into a case file, this message names our universal habit of magnifying faults in our closest relationships and shows us the better way Jesus offers. Learn three practices for healthier relationships rooted in the way Jesus sees us: see rightly, restore gently, and invite transformation. Whether you're navigating tension in a marriage, family, friendship, or workplace, this sermon on judgment, mercy, grace, and forgiveness will help you set down the magnifying glass and see the whole person in front of you. Explore more in our Faultlines sermon series at messiahumc.net. #Faultlines #Sermon #John8 #Grace #Mercy #Forgiveness #Relationships #ChristianLiving #Judgment #ChurchOfTheMessiah #WestervilleOhio #UnitedMethodist #UMC

  5. Oct 4

    'Faultlines' Sermon Series - Week 4 - "When Being Right Becomes Wrong"

    When Being Right Becomes Wrong | Faultlines Week 4 | Pastor Don Wallick | Philippians 2:1-11 Why is it so hard to admit we're wrong? In Week 4 of our Faultlines series, Pastor Don Wallick explores how the need to always be right quietly creates fractures in our marriages, families, friendships, and workplaces. Beginning with a very relatable story about a torn lawn mower bag and a roll of duct tape, Pastor Don turns to Philippians 2:1-11, where Paul calls the church to "regard others as better than yourselves" and to share the mind of Christ, who emptied himself and chose humility. Drawing on relationship research from John and Julie Gottman, the wisdom of the desert monks, Julian of Norwich, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, this message invites us to focus on getting it right instead of being right. Biblical humility is a strength, grounded in knowing we are precious children of God. This week, try a simple practice: in one conversation where you've been fighting to be right, ask one real question before making your point, and pray the prayer Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, "Not my will, God, but yours." Church of the Messiah is a United Methodist congregation in Westerville, Ohio. Join us for worship Sundays at 8:15, 9:30, and 11:00 AM, or online anytime. 🎥 Explore more in our Faultlines sermon series at messiahumc.net #Faultlines #Philippians2 #Humility #ChristianRelationships #Sermon #ChurchOfTheMessiah #UnitedMethodist #WestervilleOhio #MindOfChrist #Faith

  6. Sep 27

    'Faultlines' Sermon Series - Week 3 - "The Weight of What We Won’t Release"

    Why is it so hard to let go of a grudge? In week three of our Faultlines series on relationships, Pastor Katy Wheat Borhauer explores one of the strangest scenes in the Gospel of Mark: a fruitless fig tree, an overturned temple, and Jesus' surprising teaching on faith, prayer, and forgiveness in Mark 11:20-25. Through a relatable story about kids who can't stop collecting rocks, she shows how grudges weigh us down mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, and why holding onto them rarely punishes, protects, or changes anyone. Forgiveness, as Jesus describes it, is an intentional release, like canceling a debt, that we can choose even before we feel ready. Pastor Katy offers a practical way to set down one grudge this week and invites us to trade the 40 conversations in our heads for one honest conversation with the person in front of us. Whether you're carrying one big betrayal or a pile of small, everyday hurts, this message is a hopeful reminder that in Christ you have already been forgiven and freed, and you can become a conduit of that grace for others. Join us in person or online at Church of the Messiah UMC in Westerville, Ohio.

  7. Sep 20

    'Faultlines' Sermon Series - Week 2 - "The Comparison Trap"

    We live in a culture built for comparison: social media, career ladders, parenting choices, possessions. We know it steals our joy, yet we can't seem to stop scanning the lane next to us. In week two of our Faultlines series, Pastor Katy Wheat-Borhauer explores Hebrews 12:1-2 and the parable of the vineyard workers in Matthew 20 to show how comparison distorts the way we see ourselves, each other, and God's generosity. Comparison isn't inherently sin. It becomes sin when it convinces us that value and worth are ours to decide, and that God's grace is a limited resource to be divided up instead of a gift freely given to all. This message invites you to notice where your eyes tend to drift, fix your gaze back on Jesus, pray for the person you're comparing yourself to, and run the race marked out specifically for you. Watch this week's message from Church of the Messiah UMC in Westerville, Ohio, and follow along all week with reflection questions, a practice to live out the message, and a Life Group guide built for individuals and small groups alike.

  8. Sep 13

    'Faultlines' Sermon Series - Week 1 - "A Look in the Mirror"

    This week, we begin a new series called Faultlines, five weeks naming the things that quietly erode the relationships we treasure most. In Week 1, "A Look in the Mirror," Pastor Katy Wheat-Borhauer starts in an unexpected place: the relationship we have with ourselves. Many of us give grace freely to everyone except the person in the mirror, and we can't offer others a grace we've never let ourselves receive. Drawing from 1 John 3:18-24, this message names the gap between how we see ourselves and how God sees us, and invites us into the freedom of a love that is louder than our own self-condemnation. Whether you're worshiping with us for the first time or you've called Church of the Messiah home for years, this message meets you exactly where you are. Watch to hear how grace, mercy, and the truth that "God is not finished with you yet" can reshape not only how you see yourself, but every relationship that flows from that place. Scripture: 1 John 3:18-24. Series: Faultlines, Week 1 of 5.

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About

We are a United Methodist congregation serving Westerville, Ohio and beyond for over 200 years. At Church of the Messiah we KNOW CHRIST, GROW IN FAITH, and SERVE OTHERS.

Information

  • Creator
    Church of the Messiah UMC
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    216
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2022
  • Show Website
    Church of the Messiah UMC