Luke 16:19-31 It seems to me that in the story before us now, the sin of the rich man begins here: He did not see Lazarus. Or at least he did not see him as more than an extension of himself and his own needs — particularly at the end. For if he had seen …
Yin Yoga and the Power of Parable
Luke 16:1-13 I tried out Yin Yoga this afternoon. Now many of you have heard me speak of my experience of yoga before. I am, perhaps, the most physically inflexible person you know. Yoga is always hard. It always hurts. Still, I keep returning to it because the stretching, the posing, the breathing, opens something …
Getting Lost and Getting Found: Joy in the Presence of the Angels!
Luke 15:1-10 I hate getting lost. For others it may be an adventure, I know, but I am one who is thrown into a state of panic when I do not recognize my surroundings. Or when I recognize my surroundings but know they are not where I am supposed to be. Indeed, I am profoundly …
Choosing Life: It All Costs
Deuteronomy 30:15-20Luke 14:25-33 It’s not often enough that I make the time to read fiction these days. This is so, in spite of the fact that a well crafted story — factually true or not — awakens my imagination and pushes me to measure my own life’s choices in ways little else does. And so …
Rewriting the Guest List
Luke 14:1, 7-14 I took her to lunch a few months ago. If you have worked in a church setting for any amount of time you may have come to know someone much like her. I first met her when she called the church office late one afternoon a year or so ago. She was …
Wondering: The Healing of the Bent Over Woman
Luke 13:10-17 It’s been more than four years since the name “Dancing with the Word” came to mind as a title for this blog. Although anything but a ‘dancer’ myself, I have always loved the interplay of words and ideas. This has been especially so as I have learned to exercise such a ‘light touch’ …
Running This Race…
Hebrews 11:29-12:2 It is an odd, random memory which surfaces at least every four years about now and it came to mind again this week as I watched the opening ceremonies of these 31st Olympic Games. Indeed, I find myself remembering the Summer Olympics when I was 15 years old. No, not anything specific about …
Where Your Treasure Is…
Luke 12:32-40 I am working these days on a funeral sermon for a 93 year old. Jesse was a ‘true original’ — one about whom everyone he encountered had a story. This is one of mine: It was Easter morning a couple several years ago. Nearly fifty of us were bundled up against the cold …
Lord, Teach us to Pray…With Whom Shall We Pray?
Luke 11:1-13 Most weeks, I have the ‘prayers of the people’ written by Wednesday. I always send them on to our assisting ministers by Thursday afternoon so they have a chance to look them over before worship on Sunday. (Yes this may seem early, but my normal day off is Friday and some weeks I …
The Lord Sent Them On Ahead in Pairs
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 “After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.” (Luke 10:1) I can think of no other time when I have been more grateful to have partners in mission and ministry than I am …