Much as I miss bourbon, espresso, and my skinny jeans (which i am hanging onto with great faith!), I am not complaining. I'm grateful for every moment of this. I'm just pointing out that, in creating new life, there is not much seperation between the body and spirit. Read more
I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. –Ecc.9:11 Call me crazy… but, I am going to Europe this summer. Why’s that crazy? you ask… Wait for it. When I go on this trip, I will... Read more
For how many of us do questions of who we are and what we do have ultimately the same answer? How many of us get to be who we are in the daily-ness of that which we do for a living? To put it another way…for how many of us is our vocation–our true calling–the same set of gifts for which we receive a paycheck? Some fields readily imply that one followed a calling and a set of gifts to find themselves there: doctors,... Read more
Did I forget to mention? He is risen! Like many pastors I know, the day after Easter is a very special day. While the week leading up to the holy day is a time for deep meditation, the day that follows is a time for deepest vegitation. This year I went above and beyond my usual post-holiday couch potato state, and went to another state entirely–Nevada. More specifically, Vegas. While there is a great deal to “Do” in Vegas (for... Read more
We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again…what’s possibly “Good” about this dark day? in the Christian tradition, this is the day on which we mark Jesus’ suffering death. We explore stations of the cross, or hear reflections on his last words. Silence, darkness, acts of God that shake the ground beneath our feet… however we mark the day, it’s difficult to find a goodness in it. I suppose I could google “Good Friday” and discover what tradition led to... Read more
I’m still on grace today. When Jesus intervened and prevented the angry mob from stoning the adulterous mary m, something in the universe shifted. Fear and judgement no longer won by default. Another voice hung in the air that day. We don’t know what it said, but we know it as a voice of mercy that meant to change us forever. What did Jesus write in the sand? As the temple officials accused him of not knowing the law, he knelt down... Read more
We love to sing the song. But do we get it? That grace could save “a wretch like me?” Truth is, most of the time, we really do not feel all that wretched. Let’s face it, most days we feel pretty proud of ourselves. Because no matter what we have done, we can always say, “at least I’m not like…” followed by a host of sin and sinners that make our small offenses pale in comparison. It’s a great song. Grace... Read more
Yikes. You know it’s been too long since you’ve blogged when you can’t remember your dadgum password. My profile does not remember me, either. The whole thing is moving slowly. For that matter, so am I. Discipline. What a gross word. Free association…go! I’m betting the first words that come into your head are things like spanking, grounding, cleaning, dread, worry, fear, denial, deprivation. Punishment. Not fun, any of it. For the parent or the child, the kid or the... Read more
Many would call it a sick fascination, this compulsion to watch round the clock coverage of other peoples' suffering. A twisted way of being grateful that we're not the ones living in such abject poverty that the very earth can shake us from itself. A primal urge, perhaps, to delight in the carnage. But that's not, I think, what we're after. Read more
However stressful, painful or joyful the year before has been, the coming months invite you to make a fresh start in how you order your life. It is a season of new beginnings. Where would you like to see the lines fall in the year ahead? Where do you hope to spend most of your time, energy, and resources? What sort of journey can you plot out on that blank page before you? Read more
Irreverin
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In