One of my favorite hymns, of which there are many, that I haven’t been able to get out of my head this week is “Abide with Me.” It’s a haunting beautiful hymn, written by an Anglican priest in the early 1800s who was with his dying friend, and he kept repeating Jesus’ words toContinue reading “Abide With Us”
Knowing and Being Known
While on sabbatical two years ago, I found myself sick with COVID, canceled plans, and an extended stay in Porto, Portugal because I could not fly home. By the grace of God, the Air BnB that I had rented was the property of a lovely couple who took hospitality very seriously. They left me aContinue reading “Knowing and Being Known”
Kindling Our Faith
There are particular skills in this world that I just do not possess: I am not a good speller, I struggle with geographical awareness, and I can rarely put a USB port in the right way on the first try. But one of these skills that evades me that never ceases to baffle me isContinue reading “Kindling Our Faith”
Foolish Hope
In our weekly campus ministry night, one of our students shared a prayer that she found when she was a teenager and often read for her youth group. It covered a lot of ground as it asked God to give us discomfort with unhealthy relationships, to give anger at injustice and oppression, and to giveContinue reading “Foolish Hope”
Being Known by God
In 2010, Marina Abramovic, an experiential artist who creates exhibits that challenge and engage the viewer, had an exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art entitled “The Artist is Present.” In it she sat at a simple wooden table, across from which was an empty chair; the audience of this exhibit were invited to comeContinue reading “Being Known by God”
Darkness Will Not Overcome Us
Anytime I hear the words of John 1:1 read aloud, I am instantly taken back to the Sunday School classroom where a group of pre-teens were working on memorizing our weekly Bible verses. Like many perfectionist children, I loved being good at things, and John 1:1 was probably the one memory verses I got downContinue reading “Darkness Will Not Overcome Us”
Sacred Bonds
I am curious about practically everything I have ever learned. I love to know about the mundane pieces of our lives; it does not take much to amaze me when it comes to the intricacies of how anything in this world works: the water cycle, traffic patterns, Microsoft Excel – I love all of it,Continue reading “Sacred Bonds”
With Christ as King
One of the things I did while on sabbatical last year was to spend some time digging into my family’s genealogy. What I learned about myself through this family exploration is that very often, there are things deeply woven into our being that only take on language as we tell the story of where we’veContinue reading “With Christ as King”
Everybody up; let’s go!
Yesterday, after the business session of Diocesan Convention wrapped up, Father Steve, Deacon Kellie, and I were playfully arguing about the gospel parable that we hear read this morning. Parables tend to do this, they aren’t easy to understand and, honestly, they are meant to raise more questions than answers. Today’s parable certainly does this:Continue reading “Everybody up; let’s go!”
Loving What God Loves
In seminary, one of my classmates was pregnant with her first child, and at her baby shower, we decorated plain white onesies of a variety of sizes so that they could have a whole batch of simple clothes that could be changed out easily as is required by a newborn. I am a veryContinue reading “Loving What God Loves”