11/9/2022

Advent is a season to dwell in anticipation for the birth of the Christ child. Try as we might, we are reminded repeatedly that Christ will come no matter how prepared (or not!) we are. It is a paradoxical season in which we must anticipate the birth of Emmanuel even as we know, deep down in our hearts and very beings, that his arrival is inevitable.

10/20/2022

Thank you. Thank YOU. Thanks. Thanks so very much. Thank you again. Thanks for your generosity. We can never thank you enough: thank you.  

Wow. Just writing that sequence made me smile. Imagine being on the receiving side of imaginatively conceived and wholeheartedly conveyed lavishly generous thanks-giving.

10/20/2022

How does it feel “being back”? Back in the sanctuary for worship (even though there is still – and will probably always be – an on-line option). Back with classes and programs and missions and maybe even meals. Back to visiting people in hospitals and nursing homes. Many pastors and congregations have been moving through “being back” for a couple of months now.

9/23/2022

The Revised Common Lectionary readings in the month of October provide a great opportunity to reflect on gratitude and generosity which could facilitate a stewardship campaign.  As I was preparing this lectionary preview, I stumbled onto the lectionary reading for Canadian Thanksgiving Day, which falls on October 10, 2022. It provides one of my favorite expressions of our call to generosity in words attributed to Moses in Deuteronomy 26:1-12: 

9/23/2022

Money can be a tough topic. In the church, even a brief  discussion of money yields all kinds of different perspectives.

8/22/2022

A dear friend passed away in July. He was just 55 years old. Just writing that pricks my eyes with tears.

I could tell you that my heart sings when I think of Kevin meeting Jesus, and that I am overjoyed when I think of him in heaven.

But that’s not how I feel.

8/19/2022

As a culture we have no shortage of things to celebrate. We love to celebrate in these United States, and nothing has had an ability to damper our appetite for such activity. We celebrate everything: marriage, divorce, the birth of babies, graduations, holidays, made-up holidays, church anniversaries, pastors’ anniversaries, Reformation Sunday, and more. Did you know that September 4 is Eat an Extra Dessert Day? I think you get the point. We love to celebrate.

7/22/2022

There is a shirt I have seen many Black and brown folks wearing that says “I am my ancestors’ wildest dream.” Possibly based off this powerful Teen Vogue article (https://www.teenvogue.com/story/i-am-my-ancestors-wildest-dreams), the saying represents the idea of folks who have been historically marginalized declaring their own existence as the proof and product of the faith of their ancestors, a persistent, resistance-filled faith hoping in “things unseen” despite systemic oppression and hardship.

7/22/2022

This summer, I have spent time at the Presbyterian Association of Musicians Worship and Music Conference in Montreat and supported the General Assembly meeting both in-person and virtually. My kids attended church camp at Living River in Alabama and they attended the Montreat Middle School Conference at Maryville College. As I am reflecting on our summer, it strikes me that we as a church are so blessed by so many people who give graciously of their time and talents.

6/17/2022

For the season following Pentecost, the Revised Common Lectionary offers two different tracks of readings from the Hebrew Scriptures. The first track (the semicontinuous readings) provides an opportunity to sample from a selection of significant themes and memorable stories from 1 Kings and prophets Amos and Hosea. The second track (the complementary readings) connects imagery and themes across Hebrew and Christian Scriptures. This provides the preacher and congregation a chance to explore not only how the New and Old Testaments inform each other, but also to connect the teachings of Jesus to their Jewish roots and scriptural heritage.

6/15/2022

It is rafting season in Colorado. As the mountain snow begins to melt, the streams that provide our arid state with water quickly transform from little babbling brooks into muddy raging rivers. A few days ago I took a new friend down the river near my house. He hadn’t done a lot of white-water rafting, so I went over what we would need to do if the boat became stuck on a rock, or if one of us fell out.

5/19/2022

This familiar scripture teaches and reminds that there is literally “a time for everything” (Ecclesiastes 3:1), a time that God alone holds. While technological advancements have accomplished many things through the years, the essence of time still remains as one thing that we cannot change.