February 22, 2026 February 16, 2026 Ru-Lee Weller Passman February 22, 2026 - First Sunday in Lent Preacher: Rev. Anne J. Scalfaro Scriptures: John 2:1-11; Matthew 13:31-32 Title: “The Good News is…So Good it Catches Us by Surprise” First Sermon in the series: Tell Me Something Good: Grounding Ourselves in the Good News this Lent Sermon Direction: This week, we begin our Lenten series, Tell Me Something Good: Grounding Ourselves in the Good News this Lent. Following up on the Good News that we heard on Ash Wednesday that All are Invited, this week we turn to two familiar texts: Jesus turning water to wine during the Wedding at Cana (John 2) and the Parable of the Mustard Seed (Matthew 13). John’s Gospel doesn’t begin with a temptation story but instead opens Jesus’ ministry with a wedding miracle. It may feel a bit lavish to start the season of Lent with a wedding banquet, but the good news begins with joy. This week we focus on the subversive and playful nature of the good news. The kin-dom of heaven is so good it should catch us by surprise! Like a mustard seed, the good news can grow from the smallest seed into the tallest tree. Like an unruly weed, or fine wine saved for last, the good news is abundant and cannot be contained. As we sink into Jesus’ teachings throughout the season, we may not always be comfortable, but we can trust that these teachings are good, rooted in love, and worthy of celebration. Join us on Sunday to hear a reminder about the goodness of the good news, and be prepared to enjoy a fun moment in worship as we share with one another something good that happened in your life this week! Lent theme blurb: Calvary’s 2026 Lent theme comes from theologians and creatives at “A Sanctified Art"—Tell Me Something Good: Grounding Ourselves in the Good News this Lent. Lent was originally a season for new converts to learn and prepare for their baptism on Easter. During that time, they would study what was central to Christianity. This series focuses on what was central to Jesus’ life and ministry: radical welcome, love for neighbor, care for the vulnerable, nourishment for the hungry, nonviolence in the face of injustice. At the heart of Jesus’ teachings, we find liberation, love, mercy, and grace—all of which are meant to be very good news for us all. Jesus’ words are easily distorted and sanitized in our modern world. Following Jesus leads to a richer, more expansive life, but it’s not necessarily comfortable. Jesus’ ministry can be described as “radical” which comes from the Latin word “radicalis,” meaning “root” or “ground.” Therefore, the good news should bring us back to our roots. Emulating Jesus and embodying his teachings should ground us in who God created us to be. Can we be “good news” people in a world too often burdened by bad news? This Lent, let us remember that the good news really is good news. It is joyful—like fine wine saved for celebration. It grows like a mustard seed and smells like perfume poured from an alabaster jar. It tastes like bread passed endlessly through a hungry crowd. It sounds like laughter and feels like mercy. The good news is alive in the world. We hope this series will provide fertile ground for conversation and worship, rooting our hearts and lives in the expansive goodness of God. This Lent, let the teachings of Jesus lead us forward. May the good news inspire us to take action in a world desperate to hear, see, and taste what is good. Scripture Readings: John 2:1-11 1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to me and to you? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the person in charge of the banquet.” So they took it. 9 When the person in charge tasted the water that had become wine and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), that person called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee and revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him. Matthew 13:31-32 31 He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; 32 it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” One: For the word of God in Scripture, for the word of God among us, for the word of God within us, All: Thanks be to God.