RoboPreacher

(it takes a long, long time) A sermon on Isaiah's prophecy that came to pass in its speaking Try to remember when you were young . I know! That’s a long time ago for some of you . Isn’t it?!? But try anyway. Ok? Now, do you recall how long it took for Christmas to come? Growing up, we would make those paper chains to count down the days until Christmas. But when you’re little , a day can be an awfully long time! Can’t it? Honestly, I remember going to the same link of the chain multiple times a day ! When you’re a child , the days to Christmas seem to go on and on . It doesn’t stay that way for long, though. Does it? When you’re young, you can’t grow up fast enough. However, you don’t even have to grow up all that much to realize how quickly it passes ! It doesn’t take long to realize it’s really a gift when time lingers . Well, I don’t make paper chains to count down the days until Christmas anymore. But we do light candles. Don’t we? And today , Gaudete Sunday, we m...

suddenly, the Lord, descending / in his temple shall appear A sermon on the laying of the 2nd temple's cornerstone While the department stores are rotating a nearly endless loop of holly jolly Christmas muzak, today’s Scripture strikes an ambiguous note. Instead of all things merry and bright , the sound of glee is mixed with the howl of grief . When the temple’s cornerstone is laid, the song of praise is counterbalanced with that of pain . The hymns are mingled with heartache . …I confess this passage speaks to me. For one thing, all the forced happiness of the holidays wears me out. To be clear, I like Christmas. I’m no Scrooge. As a person prone to get down by the colder, darker days, a little Christmas cheer does me a lot of good. And that’s especially true when the weather isn’t even kind enough to give us a little snow ! The rub , though, is that weird pressure to be festive every blasted moment of the season! For starters, it’s a tall order. This month will...

and his gospel is love A sermon on the Christmas Gospel once more: Each one of us , in our own way, has intuited on some level that this night is a holy night indeed. One way or another, something insists to us that this is a holy night. Regardless of whether we were dragged here or if we did the dragging, the holiness of this night cannot be denied. As for the silence or calm , well, that’s another story. Isn’t it? Nonetheless , I pray you all will know a little of that bright calm and quiet that springs from the blessings Christ comes to bring tonight . And I especially pray this for all you blessed parents out there. But, regardless of whether “all was calm” as you got ready for church, and notwithstanding if tonight will be “silent” or not, either, having arrived , we cannot deny that there’s something particularly holy about this delicate sliver of time. Isn’t there? Now, let it be said holy does not mean magical . And neither does holy mean spiritual or supernatural...