The Palace of Versailles was built to keep everyone asking one question: where do I stand? We may laugh at blue coats and red heels, but Silicon Valley has its own ladder. It just has closer rungs.

In this sermon, David McGaw looks at Paul's letter to the church in Philippi, a Roman colony of army veterans where life was organized around rank and privilege. Paul calls the church to regard one another as better than themselves and to take on the mind of Christ, who emptied himself (kenosis) and came down to serve.

Drawing on N.T. Wright's translation and Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Life Together, this message asks what humility looks like when something feels scarce, especially our time. Bonhoeffer's answer starts with listening and with letting God interrupt our plans through the people around us. Christ stepped down from the ladder, and he invites us to step off it too.

In this episode:

• Why status-seeking survives even in "egalitarian" cultures like ours
• Humility in abundance versus humility in scarcity
• Listening as the first service we owe one another
• The hymn of Philippians 2 as a model to follow, not just a theological artifact

Scripture (Proper 21, Year A): Ezekiel 18:1–4, 25–32; Philippians 2:1–13; Matthew 21:23–32 Preached Sunday, September 27, 2026

Holy Trinity Silicon Valley is an Anglican church in the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others (C4SO). We serve Palo Alto, Mountain View, and the wider Stanford and Silicon Valley community. We're rooted in ancient liturgy and practice, and we gather to worship, listen, and serve together. Learn more at holytrinitysv.org.

What does it actually mean to be spiritually mature? Drawing on years of hospital chaplaincy with people facing the end of life, Deacon Cindy Miller reflects on Paul's letter to the Philippians and the difference between achieving success and pressing on toward Christ.

In a place where it is easy to measure our lives by money, status, and who we know, Paul offers a countercultural vision: maturity isn't a status we reach, but a daily, humble reliance on God. Cindy explores how we can keep turning back when we drift, why this life isn't meant to be lived alone, and why we don't have to wait until the end to reorder what matters most.

Scripture: Philippians 3; Isaiah 5:1–7; Matthew 21:33–46 Preacher: Deacon Cindy Miller Recorded: Sunday, October 4, 2026

Holy Trinity Silicon Valley is an Anglican church (ACNA / C4SO) gathering in the heart of Silicon Valley. Learn more and join us on Sunday: https://holytrinitysv.org

How do you stop worrying in an age of anxiety? In the final sermon of our Philippians series, Rector John Gorin preaches on Philippians 4:4–7: “Do not be anxious about anything.”

Paul wrote this letter of joy while under house arrest in Rome, and in it he gives a simple pattern for anxious people:

1. Give your worries to God, through prayer, specific petition, and thanksgiving.
2. Receive God’s peace in return, the peace that “transcends all understanding” and guards your heart and mind like a detachment of soldiers.
3. Leave it in God’s hands, without picking it back up or putting God on a timer.

Along the way, Fr. John speaks to the anxieties of life in Silicon Valley right now: uncertainty about AI, a tense news cycle, and the private worries we carry about family, health, and friends. He also shares how Holy Trinity’s lease renewal came through after a season of prayer when a move seemed likely.

Scripture: Philippians 4:4–7; Matthew 6:25–34; John 11

Holy Trinity Silicon Valley is an Anglican church in Palo Alto (ACNA, Diocese of C4SO). We are a liturgical community at 3373 Middlefield Road, serving Palo Alto, Stanford, Mountain View, Menlo Park, and the wider Bay Area. Visitors are always welcome.

🌐 holytrinitysv.org 📍 3373 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, CA 94306