Matthew 5:13-20 (Isaiah 58:1-12, Psalm 112) In the midst of all the excitement this past week—both in our nation and the world at large—I spent one morning doing something rather mundane. Facing a breakfast counter covered with paperwork—mortgage statements, receipts of medical expenses, annual reports of dividends and charitable gifts, Read more…
Luke 2:22-40 When I was a baby, one family member on my dad’s side especially would stop by the house. He was what you’d call a “shirt-tail” relative. If you’re unfamiliar with that term, what it means is that someone is part of an extended family, but somewhere down the Read more…
Matthew 4:12-23 The first congregation that called me as a pastor had a preschool. Being the first fulltime assistant minister that that church had ever had, I was soon asked to start telling Bible stories to the children. Some kind of visual aid—like a hand puppet—could be useful. So I Read more…
John 1:1-18 Last week, Deborah and I spent some time on the road—driving back from visiting family in Texas. It was a long trip. Fortunately, we were able to use a GPS app on her Smartphone, which helped us along the way. Now, in spite of the ability of Siri Read more…
Matthew 3:1-12; Isaiah 11:1-10 You may find this hard to believe, but as a young child I was talkative, in fact, sometimes too much. In elementary school—in order to get attention—I would horse around, dominating time in the classroom. Once came the kind of attention I didn’t expect or want. Read more…
One of the most revered saints in the Church is St. Benedict, who was born in 480 A.D. He is known as the Father of Western Monasticism, having founded a number of monasteries and written a “manual” for all aspects of life in them. During the Dark Ages, these communities Read more…
All Saints Sunday 2019 Ephesians 1:11-23 As always, on this Sunday of the church year we remember loved ones who have gone before us—whom we now regard as saints in heaven. Also—along with the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox—we sometimes recognize some of those who have made an Read more…
Luke 10:17-20 Last Sunday our guest preacher, Pastor Whitesel, based his sermon on Jesus commissioning seventy of his followers to go out into the villages in Galilee. He told each of them to take along few belongings, stay at one home, and then cure the sick and proclaim that the Read more…
Many years ago—for the first time—I accompanied catechetical students for a week of church camp. Located in North Carolina—near the Smokies—it was full of rugged terrain and thick forests. One day I decided to go exploring on my own, after a while leaving a well-worn path to hike in the Read more…
John 21:1-19 It’s that time of year again—when there seem to be going on even more activities than usual in our schools. For some young people, the most important event of all will be commencement—graduation from high school. For all of them, it’s been a long time coming. It’s been Read more…