One of the most amazing moments in worship this afternoon was to see bishops of our church gathered around the communion table in the center of the people and to hear them invoke the power of the holy spirit. I recite those words every week at our communion service. I say them once a month…
Kenotic Words
worship, sermons, lectionary
Scars
I have a couple of scars in my body. Right below my left knee the area is numb and without feeling and there is a small whitish mark. That scar is from the time I thought it was a good idea to do a cartwheel in the girl’s locker room and I ended up hiting…
Hosanna!
In my flower garden this spring, I have learned the difference between joy and happiness. You see, happiness is getting a bouquet of a dozen tulips from your spouse or from a friend and setting them on the counter for a few days. It warms your heart to be thought of, they are beautiful to…
Fueled and Aflame
(this was one of those outline sermons… so here are the notes) People everywhere… people here in this church, people in the community, other pastors, friends, family – are asking the question: How DO I live for Jesus? The song we just sang was simple enough. The words were easy. The sentiment was real. We…
You Are the Body
Description of my Christmas tree: White lights, built into the tree. Part of a strand wasn’t working. Had to go through and replace every single light down the row to find the right one that was loose or had burned out. Scratched face and arms. A lot of work! But when it is finished and…
Do Not Conform
Weekends in the fall seem to be a portrait of contrast in my life. I experience in those two short days each weekend my best moments and my worst ones. You see in my family… Saturdays in the fall are good for only one thing: Hawkeye football games (okay… you Cyclone fans can insert yourselves…
Going All In
…many of us are like this dimmer switch up here. We waver in how much light we let out into the world. Our lights are not off completely – but neither are they shining at 100%, 100% of the time.
Feasting, not fasting…
Mark’s gospel is known for its haste. Jesus is here and then there and everything is so urgent and busy. We spent four weeks in Epiphany just in chapter one because everything happens in such a short span of time. Life is all crammed in and there is no time for details. That could also…