it's still a surprise A sermon on the time Jesus turned a tough night into a new day Well, I hate to say it, but while all of you were freezing your tuchuses off in the polar vortex, I was sporting short sleeves in sunny California. But I don’t bring this up to brag . I mention it because I wasn’t just in sunny California. No, I was in the land of affluence . Southern California is a place of conspicuous consumption. Before I even made it to the hotel room, I saw a Porsche . And you know what? Sports cars like that were a regular sight out there. Now, I was in there for work . I was there as a facilitator for the Iowa Preachers Project. And one of my jobs was to shuttle the participants from location to location. But the car we rented was a large SUV. I have to admit, when I found myself idling behind one of those sports cars, I was sorely tempted . As a good boy from the Midwest , I felt it was my job to poke my finger in that kind of opulence. And I knew al...
i got a girl in the war The Holy Gospel according toSt. Luke the 18th Chapter! It's interesting, I was thinking of using the song Hal played today (We Shall Overcome) as a kind of meditation, but eventually I decided to use this great poem by Langston Hughes; Lorraine Hansberry used it as inspiration for her brilliant play, "Raisin in the Sun." The poem goes like this: What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up / like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore / and then run? Does it stink like rotten meat, Or crust and sugar over / like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags / Like a heavy load. Or does it explode... This poem, and its final wondering in the dark, have served many as they sought to navigate their way through pain, through trials. And truthfully this poem can still be of service, and can serve as a kind of meditation upon today's gospel. Because truthfully, Jesus just has this way of breaking our hearts, of ...
when the man comes 'round Sixth Sermon from the book of Revelation: passages from chapters 17 & 19 Today’s scripture isn’t THE End , but it’s pretty darn close. This is the Final battle. The battle that ushers in The End. The battle where Good and Evil have it out. The battle that determines what The End will look like. And honestly, it doesn’t go down the way we were expecting. First of all, it’s no actual battling in this battle. There’s no fighting! Jesus just shows up. The only weapon he wields is his presence, his word. And it’s enough!!! Because secondly, the battle is over before it even begins! Jesus simply arrives, and his mere presence is enough to subdue the enemies of God. This Final Battle does not go the way we would expect. Without any fighting, concluding before it can even begin. Of all the surprises, though, the biggest is something of a detail , so let me read the passage to you: “(Jesus, the Rider of the wh...
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