Today we gather to celebrate a new beginning—a homecoming. Rally Day! Our Fall Kickoff! Today is the start of a new season; the start of school and faith formation; the start of another year to live out God’s love! Today we embark on another journey together. Today we pause, remember, and give thanks to why […]
Two weeks ago, I spent a week of study leave at the Chautauqua Institute, an amazing summer vacation learning community that was started 150 years ago by a Methodist minister and a businessman to provide training for Sunday School teachers and other lay leaders. Still going strong, the community includes denominational houses like the Presbyterian […]
Last week, in a very helpful sermon, Taylor preached on three texts and reminded us all about what it means to follow the path of Jesus Christ, a path which is often so different from other paths in our world, especially in this election season. If you think of Taylor’s sermon in terms of Google […]
Almighty God, as we hear your gracious Word, make us hungry for Jesus, your holy manna, that we may feed on him, the bread of life. Amen. It is nearly impossible to ignore the volatile political landscape our nation finds itself in. I’m sure you know this; try as we might but it is nearly […]
When you step back and think about it, can you believe what we have just done? We have jut read words written probably about 2500 years go about a people who were traveling through the wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula over 3000 years ago. And now, we are going to say how what happened to […]
This morning, we’re going to do a little time traveling. The year was 1999. It was a hot summer day, much like this one, in a one-bedroom apartment in North Brunswick, NJ. To give you context, in the place where I grew up, we used to say that if you needed something fixed, the landlord […]
Good morning, everyone. Before we dive in, let’s take a moment to center ourselves. Take a deep breath and remember we are here together, united in Christ’s love. This summer Carter and I along with a few guest preachers decided not to preach a series but rather we are listening to the Spirit at work […]
Do you remember what it was like when you, or someone close to you, brought your new-born on or daughter home from the hospital? How many pictures or videos you took? How little they did – but how long you could just gaze on them, your heart bursting with love? I remember one of the […]
You have to feel for Paul in this section of Second Corinthians. More than in any other city, Paul’s ministry has come under attack in Corinth. And he is not there to defend himself. His attackers are rival apostles who want to supplant Paul. Their tactics are something any modern-day political advisor might agree with. […]
Ten years ago, when I was preparing a sermon for the funeral of my best friend, a colleague who had died suddenly in an auto accident, I came across this quote from Frederick Buechner, a Presbyterian writer of some renown. Buechner writes: “Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid.” […]
When it comes to this account of Jesus and his disciples in a boat in a storm, our attention is usually drawn to the almost comic image of Jesus asleep in the boat in the midst of the storm – and then his power to still that great storm. While we don’t want to skip […]
Good morning, Church family!! What a delight to be seeing you from this perspective. This morning I would like to talk with you about power structures. Power structures. We may not even be aware of the way power is used, or abused, or even just ignored in our lives. But it is there, determining events […]
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