23rd Sunday after Pentecost Luke 21:5-19, Malachi 4:1-2a, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 What is it about end-of-the-world stories that is so captivating to us? Whether it is the children’s story, Chicken Little, where a chicken runs through the kingdom yelling “the sky is falling, the sky is falling!” or the more… Continue reading
Reflection on Exodus 33:12-23 (October 22, 2017) I was invited to share a reflection with a Spanish-speaking congregation. This was my reflection, which was translated and shared with those who attended. When Moses was praying to the Lord on behalf of his people, there was a separation between people and… Continue reading
I was setting up my nativity characters for chapel this week, and was reminded about a preschool chapel last year that became the central illustration in a sermon I preached on Dec. 20, 2015. The sermon was in the context of a ‘Traveler’s Christmas,’ a Christmas Eve service for those… Continue reading
In pondering the sermon for this Sunday, I discovered that I actually had two sermons. This is the one that won’t get preached. Text: Matthew 5:13-16 In the movie Lion King, Simba is born into greatness. A descendant of the king, he is told from a young age that he… Continue reading
A sermon about challenging the system, lifting up young adults, intergenerational faith formation, new and emerging languages of faith, the Holy Spirit and LeBron James. Sermon manuscript from June 7 Audio version of sermon
This past Sunday I preached. People have been encouraging me to preach without a manuscript, but I couldn’t quite do it. Prep time. Confidence in what I was saying. Overall enthusiasm. Yeah…I needed the manuscript.
I have found that often when I am preparing a sermon, I end up convicted by the very thoughts I am forming into a sermon. I was not expecting to preach on Christmas Eve, but at the last minute I was given the notes of a sermon the pastor was… Continue reading