All Sermons

The reflection below was written by the Rev. Roger Douglas as part of the introduction to his book An Audience of One. It expresses the spirit behind all of his preaching and offers a helpful way to approach the sermons preserved in this archive.

As you read these sermons, you may find they help you make sense of the world, or invite you into your own conversation with God. Roger often said that he sought meaning in a world of death and suffering, beginnings and retirements, successes and failures, sense and nonsense.

His experience as a preacher taught him that most sermons first speak back to the one who writes them; the real dialogue is between the preacher and God. If anyone in the congregation hears a word that touches them, it is because God has chosen to let them in on that conversation.

Roger believed that preaching is deeply personal work — a struggle to make sense of Scripture, an openness about doubts, and a willingness to share the journey. The more honestly he engaged that struggle, the better others were able to identify with it.

He described this kind of work as “confessional” preaching, not in the sense of offering anecdotes, but in speaking truthfully from within one’s own life while pointing people toward Jesus. It frees the preacher from having to solve every problem and reminds us that we are not steering the ship, but contributing our part to the dialogue.

May these sermons draw you into that same conversation of faith — one marked by mystery, humility, and the grace of God at work in all things.