Matthew 14:13-21 I have not been able to get away from this all week — my wondering at what this must have been for Jesus. To have received the terrible, terrifying news of John’s gruesome death. To have stepped away from it all by himself, tending his own grief, no doubt, his own fear at …
Tag: Matthew
On Mustard Seeds and a Pastor’s Tears…
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 There is so much richness in Jesus’ teaching today and so many directions one could pursue as we seek to come to a deeper understanding of the Kingdom, the Reign of God. There are mustard seeds and yeast, discovered treasure and a pearl of great value and yes, there are fish of …
Sorting the Wheat from the Weeds: Now or Later?
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 I went out and did some weeding yesterday. Having been away for a couple of weeks, I found that the tomatoes and the peppers, the cucumbers and the butternut squash were getting a bit crowded out by the weeds which threaten to overtake my vegetable gardens every year at about this time. …
We Played the Flute for You … Revisited
I am on vacation for the next couple of weeks. While I am away I intend to take a mini Sabbath from writing. And so I offer below a reflection I offered three years ago on this week’s Gospel. I hope these words are a blessing to you as you “Dance with the Word” this …
A Cup of Cold Water Revisited
As you open this post, I am in the midst of a long needed vacation. I pray that these summer months also provide you such a time apart for rest and renewal. These are challenging times we live and serve in and God’s gift of sabbath can be a great gift for us as we …
Thinking About Sparrows Today…
Matthew 10:24-39 “So do not be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows.” Matthew 10: 31 I am thinking about sparrows today. About how many of them there are and yet how little I notice them until they stop for a meal at one of my feeders and I find myself wishing they …
8 Minutes, 46 Seconds: No Justice, No Peace
Matthew 9:35-10:23 “As you enter the house, greet it. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you…” (Matthew 10:13) These words from Matthew’s Gospel do not speak precisely to where my heart is today, but they come close. For throughout …
There You Will See Jesus…
Matthew 28:1-10 It has long been my Easter custom to gather with others early morning in the cemetery to sing together of the Resurrection, to share in the bread and the wine, and to shout to one another the Good News of Easter: Alleluia ! Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia! This year …
A Holy Week Like No Other…
Matthew 21:1-11 I found myself scrolling through old pictures until I found this one, this image of a Palm Sunday a few seasons back. Before I got to the image I was looking for though, I flipped past hundreds of others — photographs of children leaning in close to bless a newborn child or an …
Forty Days and Forty Nights… First Thoughts
Matthew 4:1-11 There is a great deal that can be said about our Gospel reading this First Sunday in Lent — about this so familiar story which ‘launches’ Lent for us every year in one version or another. Indeed, in many seasons I have gone deep into one or another of the ways Jesus is …