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Verses to Avoid in Advent
As we head into the Advent season, my reading takes me, of all places, into Amos. If you have not ventured into that landmine yet, avoid it until after the holidays. You don’t want to get caught up in the pleasures of Black Friday shopping then come home and read diatribes from Amos! Very painful. The first two chapters are…
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The Best of Holidays
Thanksgiving is just a great holiday. Retail is trying like mad to make it as insignificant as possible, but Thanksgiving is still a great holiday. It is about food, fun, conversation, family, and friends. No gifts. No big music tied to the holiday. Just joy. Stop. Pause. Breathe. Take a nap. Enjoy the conversation. And give thanks. Our God is…
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Happy Thanksgiving from Madea
Madea says, “Happy Thanksgiving!”
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Living Dead Never Ends
I have made my way through the Live Dead Journal and know it’s not the end. My heart is challenged. All the way through I have been challenged with, “How do I live dead in the land of plenty?” How can I stretch myself is this place of comfort so that those who are called to these hard areas of the world…
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Sheep and Goats
Tackling the parable of the sheep and the goats hasn’t been easy. I still don’t have this one working very well in my mind. Yet, when I think of this passage with “the least of these” being Jesus’ disciples (the Sent Ones), I reflect on those who have gone before. I think of those who have laid down their lives…
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Letting Out the Song
This week seems to be a reflection on the quiet desperation people may have in their lives. The quote from Thoreau mentions the song we have in our hearts. I want the song within me to be sung. The song of the King needs to be released. It’s a joy when that happens. I love seeing it when the song…
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Not letting the song die in our hearts
The quote I reflected on yesterday from Thoreau was this: Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them. Are we going to the grave with a song still in our hearts? Are we going to the grave with a work of art still waiting to be formed? Is there a…
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Thoughts on Desperation
The story is sketchy. The details are sparse. The news only says a woman walked onto the freeway at the beginning of rush hour and lay down in the lane. Several vehicles hit her before anyone knew what was happening. This is what I know of the story to this point, but it is a story that has stayed with…
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The Discomfort of the Sheep and the Goats
The text for Sunday is Matthew 25:31-46, the parable of the sheep and the goats. As is typical for Jesus, there is something here to offend just about every theological stripe. For those who fear the words “works/righteousness”, there is some contorting of the text that needs to take place to feel comfortable once again that it is “faith alone”…
