Matthew 4:1-11 “And suddenly angels came…” I witnessed this this just yesterday…angels tending one of God’s beloved in the wilderness… But first, this: I took a few days off this last week to ‘reset’ a bit. It had been too long since I have had more than a couple of consecutive days away from work …
Month: February 2017
Simple White Crosses and Crosses of Ash
Psalm 51 I cut through campus the other day. I had decided to spend some quiet time in the library — reading and praying and pondering ahead to the holy season before us now. Although the fact that I had chosen a ‘window seat’ on the first floor meant I was distracted by the steady …
On the Mountaintop
Matthew 17:1-9 My congregation has been privileged this year to receive the gifts of an intern pastor. It has been a wonderful experience and surely one we hope to repeat again and again. It was as I was reflecting on how this has been so far that I was asked about my own experience as …
Being Perfect
Matthew 5:38-48 My 7th grade home economics teacher called me a ‘perfectionist.’ And while I do not remember her using whatever occasioned this remark as a teachable moment, it was clear that she did not mean it as a compliment. Indeed, while I will never be able to understand her intent when she spoke so …
Choosing Life…
Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Matthew 5:21-37 “We left violence and war behind us. We wanted to live a peaceful life.” (Daily Chronicle, February 4/5, 2017, p. 10) These words of Awni Alkarzon, director of international recruitment at Northern Illinois University, reflect the choices of countless people who have taken or would give anything to take the risk …