I know I was not the only preacher who mentioned that we are close to the four year anniversary of the beginning of the Big Lockdown. That, along with the scripture passage, got me thinking about befores and afters. ______________________ Before and after. The two words are often used together to describe a change or…
making stock the air was as cold as it was grey today and the forecast of rain sent me stacking the stock pot on the stove pulling poultry bones from the freezer as well as a couple of bags of celery butts and carrot ends garlic fresh parsley and a sliced lemon its been simmering…
I am writing on Friday night, but most of you will read this on Saturday or later, which means this wa the night to write about daylight savings. saving time some time in the night we will be robbed of an hour of sleep in order that we might save daylight the thieves will leave…
rain on me today was a rainy day to which the rain never fully committed the mist loitered without purpose the showers were scattered unfocused rather than pelting me as i walked the moisture wafted like a parachutist blown off course putting the whether in weather in it all I found companions in the raindrops…
spiritual practice start with intent make a promise show up and then miss the next day live with failure then deal with grace you did not write everyday this lent easter will come good friday too the season does not ride on you faithfulness and perfection are not synonyms saints miss the mark write down…
On evening this week, I rewatched Serendipity, one of our favorite movies. At one point, Jeremy Piven’s character encourages John Cusack’s character to be a jackass—to be willing to be foolish for love. Today’s sermon centered around 1 Corinthians 1:18-25, a pasasage in which Paul admonishes the struggling church in a similar fashion: to embrace…
specifically, the time . . . you left a note you drove me home you called to check on me you paid my bill you dropped by to say hi you answered the phone and listened you called me out you came to Dad’s funeral you laughed at my jokes you said you loved me…
We are two weeks into Lent and I am finally getting to my Lenten Journal, my spiritual practice for the season. If you follow my newsletter, you know part of the reason is our little Lizzy! had to have her eyes removed to alleviate the pain caused by the glaucoma that blinded her. We are…
In churches that follow the lectionary cycle, this past Sunday was Transfiguration Sunday, which coincides with the last Sunday in the season of Epiphany before Lent begins. (Did you get all that?) It comes around every year and it is never an easy Sunday to preach for me because, one, it comes around every year…
This week we had a crisis at our house related to Lizzy!, our little dancing extrovert of a Schnoodle who went blind suddenly, or at least so we thought. That story is still unfolding, but in the process of things, she made it into my sermon, which draws from Isaiah 40 and Mark 1. ______________________…