I am happy to report I finished a book today. After I wrote my Morning Pages, I turned to the past page of How Not to Be Afraid and read the last chapter and epilogue, as well as the blessings Gareth Higgins uses to close the book, in good Irish fashion. I read with a…
I went to the grocery store on my lunch hour because we were out of milk, which meant my mother-in-law couldn’t drink her coffee. I circled through The Fresh Market and picked up some chicken and ground turkey, a can of great northern beans, and some green beans, paid for my groceries and got all…
Because our church was built in the early 1800s and is full of windows that open, we have had some kind of in person worship for about a year. We have limited the number attending, kept all the windows open (regardless of temperature), done contact tracing, made sure everyone was masked and distanced, and done…
The last of my summer preaching gigs happens today–at United Churches of Durham, Connecticut once again. The passage is Mark 7:24-37, which tells two stories that have to do with hearing–something that stays on my mind. Here is what I am saying to them today. ______________________________________ I remember the first day I got my hearing…
I am preaching again this week and still hope to drive up the road to Durham, Connecticut to be with the good people at United Churches. Because Hurricane Henri appears to have his eyes set on us, I recorded the service just in case, so you have video to watch if you so choose, along…
Once again, I am preaching at North Madison Congregational Church UCC this morning. The passage is from Ephesians 5:15-21. I included the verses because of the way J. B. Phillips’ translation spoke to me. Live life, then, with a due sense of responsibility, not as people who do not know the meaning and purpose of…
I preached remotely for the good folks as North Madison Congregational Church this week. The passage was I Kings” 19: 4-8–about Elijah falling, exhausted, under the broom tree and the angel offering food and rest. Even though I preached, it was a word I needed to hear. ___________________________ I don’t know what drives you. I…
August 3 marks eight years since my father died. These are the words that found me as I stack up the stones once again. namesake the name was used when you gave it to me accompanied by a number I was the third though we were only two and you already knew the grief of…
I am preaching this morning at North Madison Congregational Church UCC, a congregation in the town next to us whom I have gotten to know over the years. The passage this morning is John 6:24-35, where Jesus describes himself as the Bread of Life. _____________________________ I did something in July I had not done in…
I have made this pie several times over the years, but when I made it most recently while we were in Durham, a friend asked for the recipe. I am slow in finally posting it, but here it is. The crust is versatile. You can use if for most any slab pie. And there are…