Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 For a while there, I was an avid reader of the Harry Potter series. It was interesting, complex, adventuresome, AND it gave me a natural ‘in’ with my then young nephews. I can’t remember which book it was when I finally had to put it down. What I do remember is being …
Category: Lectionary
Finishing the Race…
2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18 “I have finished the race…” I am not a runner. I can jog a little. I love to walk, but hitting the pavement hard over and over again is something I’ve never done with joy and haven’t even really attempted in more than thirty years. The closest thing I know to …
A Disciple is Not Above the Teacher…
Matthew 10:24-39 “A disciple is not above the teacher…” It came to mind today as I was reading tender Father’s Day tributes on Facebook. It was as I was scrolling through the photographs that one had me standing still in memory. Perhaps it was no coincidence that I had remembered him out loud already once …
To Rest: Created in the Image of God
Genesis 1:1-2:4a “And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the word he had done in creation.” Genesis 2:2-3 …
The Power of the Holy Spirit
Acts 2:1-21 Having a few days off this week, I decided to tackle some big tasks. One of those was digging up the bushes in my back yard which didn’t survive the winter. Now they looked mostly dead, but they weren’t entirely. I expect this made job that much more difficult. First, I trimmed them …
“All Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine…”
John 17:1-11 There is a great deal before us in the words of Jesus’ prayer before us now. While there are a number of directions one could go, this section seems to be building t the same point as the following one: the unity of those who follow Jesus. Indeed, it seems to me this …
“I Will Not Leave You Orphaned…”
John 14:15-21 I took my car in to get the oil changed a couple of days ago. Things were a little slow at 8 a.m. on a Friday morning and Alex, the man who checked me in, was full of stories which he was eager to share. It was clear that this one in particular is one he …
In My Father’s House…
John 14:1-14 “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places…” John 14:2 A few years ago I saw an exhibit at the Minnesota History Museum. It was called “Open House: If these Walls could Talk.” It was fascinating to walk through the ‘history’ of one house in St. Paul — to hear about the …
The Gate for the Sheep
John 10:1-10 I closed myself in my office this afternoon, hoping to get some writing done. A few minutes before when I got home from running errands, I threw the windows wide open. I did so partly because this is one of the first warm days of spring for us here, and it just felt …
Home to Emmaus
Luke 24:13-35 This has long been one of my favorite pieces of Luke’s Gospel. Perhaps that is because I can just picture Cleopas and the other disciple walking with their heads down, trying to make sense of all that had been theirs to see and hear, especially in those last several days. We know …