I was never someone who was really concerned about style growing up. I had some hand me down outfits from cousins, I wore a lot of t-shirts and jeans. I remember a pair or two of stirrup pants in there. Fashion wasn’t my thing. As an adult, however, I’m starting to lean into fashion. I…
Awaiting the Already: The Promise of a New Dawn
Have you ever sat and watched the sunrise? The hints of purple… turning pink… and then neon orange as the sun peeks over the horizon. What a profound thing to realize that each morning, as we wait for the sun to rise in our sky, it has already risen for our neighbors to the east……
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When I was in high school, my youth group went on an international mission trip to Peru. Forty youth plus chaperones set out from Cedar Rapids determined to make a difference in the lives of other people. We even made t-shirts. I remember the night that we came up with the slogan for the back…
Thankful Giving
In our gospel reading this morning, we meet Zacchaeus, that “wee-little man”, who was really a terrible, awful person. As Carol Howard Merritt describes him: he was “a man who collected taxes from his own people and gave it to the Roman government. And if that wasn’t nasty enough, Zacchaeus skimmed money off the top.…
Saving and Investing
I stand up here today exhausted, and yet filled with joy and satisfaction. The past two days, I have been at Ankeny First with a few others from here at the church learning about how to be a better church for our members and our neighbors struggling with addiction, incarceration, mental illness, racism, life in…
Daily Bread
My friends and family play this game called “Would You Rather…” It sets up silly and sometimes serious scenarios and you have to decide which of the two you would rather do. It’s good for parties… it’s good for car rides… And it’s good for getting to really know someone. Would you rather live in…
J&MES: Blessing & Cursing
Our tongues are muscles – and the strongest muscle in our body at that. In fact – a man once lifted a 24 lb. 3oz weight using ONLY his tongue. But for being such a strong muscle, it is also extremely flexible. And, the tongues is the only muscle in our entire human body that…
J&MES: Mercy & Judgment
I love to play games. Board games, video games, card games… One of my favorite ways to spend time with family is to grab a deck of cards and play all evening long. Pinochle and 500 in particular. In both, there is some luck involved in the hand you are dealt, but also a lot…