Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week!
I know I usually write about our Gospel text each week, but this week I just can’t help but comment on our Old Testament text, Jonah 3:1-5, 10. The book of Jonah is a comedy. It was intended to be a funny story for its day that had a very serious and hope-filled message to offer.
God, went to Jonah…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week!
Our Gospel story for this Sunday is John’s version of how Jesus called his first disciples (John 1:43-51). Actually, it is the second half of the story as the day before this Jesus had called Andrew and Andrew then went and called his brother Peter. Then we come to our story for Sunday in which we are…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week!
This coming Sunday, we will celebrate the baptism of Jesus (Mark 1:4-11). Now, according to Mark, as soon as Jesus was baptized, God said, "You are my Son” (Mark 1:11). To me, that is pretty clear. Jesus is truly the Son of God. But for me, the really interesting thing is not that God said, “You…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you had a blessed week and I wish you a Happy New Year!
As we bring the Season of Christmas to a close this Sunday, we are reminded in our Gospel text (John 1:1-18) that Jesus has always been present in creation. John tells us that “The Word became flesh and lived among us.” In Jesus, God became human and God chose to live among…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you had a blessed and Merry Christmas!
With all the presents opened, the fancy dinners cooked and eaten, and all the celebrations over, now is the time to remind ourselves of what this was all about.
Once again, we have been reminded that the greatest event in history has just happened! The promised one, the Messiah, was born.…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week.
This past Wednesday night, we gathered in our sanctuary for our last Advent mid-week service. It seems like Advent just began, and now here we are about to celebrate the fourth Sunday of Advent this Sunday, and by this time next week we will have already celebrated Christmas Day. Wow!
When we gathered…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week.
So have you started receiving all those Christmas cards, yet? I love getting cards and notes from friends and family this time of year. These cards are great reminders for me that it is a special time of year. It is that time of year when we really try to bring joy into the world as we Christians remind…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week.
For the next two Sundays, we will read two different versions of how John the Baptist, in the wilderness, proclaimed his baptism of repentance. This week, we will read Mark’s version (Mark 1:1-8) and next week we will read John’s version (John 1:6-8, 19-28). As we will hear, the key word in John’s preaching…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you had a blessed and thanks-filled Thanksgiving.
For many, Thanksgiving has become nothing more than a holiday to eat a lot of food and a day to gather with friends and family to watch football, but for me, I have discovered that it is so much more. It is truly a time to remember all the blessings I have in my life and to remember that…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you have had a blessed week.
Can you believe how fast this year is going? Next week is Thanksgiving! This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday, which, in the Church calendar, is the last Sunday of the church year. This year has certainly flown by.
You know, though, as I have been preparing for worship this Sunday, I have been wondering…