The NorthWord
NorthWord is a daily Christian podcast from St. John's Fort Smith in collaboration with the Anglican Family. Hosted by Father Aaron from Fort Smith, Northwest Territories.
Here's how it works: Every Sunday we release the full sermon preached that morning. Then Monday through Saturday, you get 3-5 minute daily reflections based on that sermon - one thought you can actually use each day. Every Wednesday we explore the rhythm of Jesus' life and how his followers have lived it out for 2,000 years.
Whether you're Pentecostal, Orthodox, Baptist, Catholic, or just curious about faith - this is for you. Ancient faith. Real life. No fluff.
The Word. The North. Your Week.
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The NorthWord
Come As You Are | Valley of Fear
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Tomorrow we gather. This week we walked through the Valley of Fear — the wounds, the walls, the blindness we defend. Here's what to bring with you when you walk through that door on Sunday morning.
Good morning. This is Northworth. Tomorrow we gather. Today, I want to prepare. Good morning, this is Northword, the Word, the North, your week, a daily podcast from St. John's Fort Smith in collaboration with the Anglican family. I'm your host, Father Aaron. We have spent this whole week in the Valley of Fear. On Sunday, we looked at the man born blind in John 9, how Jesus met him in the dirt before the man even knew who was standing in front of him. We looked at how the corruption of the world hands us wounds we didn't choose, and how our sinful nature keeps feeding those wounds long after the original situation is gone. We looked at the Pharisees, who were so invested in being seen as the ones who could see that they couldn't admit what they were missing. And we came back again and again to the one line that I think holds the whole passage together. Jesus doesn't heal the blindness you deny, he heals the blindness you bring him. So tomorrow, when you walk through the door, don't bring the cleaned up version of yourself. Don't perform, don't pretend the week was fine if it wasn't. Don't show up as the person you think you're supposed to be in church. Bring your honest blindness, bring the fear you've been sitting with, bring the wound you finally named this week, or the one you still can't quite bring yourself to name. We are now in the fifth week of Lent. Holy week is close. The cross is coming into view, and the cross is the ultimate picture of what we've been talking about all week. Jesus not requiring you to get yourself together first. Jesus descending, Jesus in the valley, Jesus in the dirt. He was there before you arrived. He'll be there when you walk through the door on Sunday morning. Come as you are. This has been Northword, the word, the North, your week, a daily podcast from St. John's Fort Smith in collaboration with the Anglican family. Follow us, share this with someone, and invite them to worship tomorrow, and reach us anytime through the text us link in the description. I hope to see you tomorrow. And until then, God be with you. In the name of Fower, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.