The Sin of Complaining 30 May 2017 Year A Numbers 16:41-50 Do you know that person who is always complaining? Whether it is about change, or a policy, or a political position, or a problem they are dealing with. They only wish to spew negativity out into the world. Here we see the Israelites complain because they blamed Moses and Aaron for the deaths of people who were disobedient to God. A rebellion had erupted over the legitimacy of Moses’... Read more
Remembering Memorial Day Memorial Day is a day that Americans take to remember those who have died in service to our country. Below I have listed a set of links from a variety of writers on Patheos. Feel free to check these out. Ponder Anew considers 11 Questions for Christians and Churches celebrating Memorial Day. He also warns against patriotic worship in our church services. Paul Metzger echoes the theme to honor the war dead and not religious propaganda. Cranach... Read more
Acts 1:1-11 The Holy Spirit Gives Me the Power to Share My Faith Acts 1:1-11 The Holy Spirit Gives Me the Power to Share My Faith is a sermon about Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a reminder of the costs of conflict. As a nation, we have spilt blood to retain our freedom. Our soldiers have represented American interests in these conflicts and wars. They have shared American ideals and American culture. Soldiers have fought to push back against opposing... Read more
The Power of the Holy Spirit in Evangelism May 25, 2017 Year A Acts 1:1-11 Jesus gave orders through the Holy Spirit to His disciples (Acts 1:2). “until the day He was taken up, after He had given orders through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen.” (Acts 1:2, HCSB) What were those orders? They were to preach the Gospel (Luke 24:44-48): “Then He told them, “These are My words that I spoke to you while I was... Read more
John 14:15-31 The Holy Spirit and Me As a person, we all have roles we fulfill when we are in relationship with other people. To some I am a son. With my wife, I am a husband, to four girls, I am a father. To my church, I am a pastor. With some people, I am friend, fellow worker, counselor, maybe some other role. You and I have roles we play depending upon the relationships we have. For the Christian,... Read more
God sets a weapon (His bow) in the sky like a modern hunter would set his bow back on the rack after the hunt. Read more
President Trump’s Most Difficult Week President Trump is having his most difficult week as he leaves for the Middle East. So this week, I wanted to share what many people around Patheos have said on the issue. I share this list of links for your further exploration. While I may not agree with everything stated in these posts, I do believe that they give commentary that might be useful to stay informed. Hemant Metah shares the analysis of Wayne Allen... Read more
Psalm 78:1-8 Parenting with Purpose A young man said to the psychiatrist, “I had a strange dream last night. I dreamed you were my mother. I woke up and couldn’t understand it. Why should I dream you were my mother?” The psychiatrist said, “Well, what did you do after having the dream?” “I had this appointment with you first thing in the morning, so I grabbed a cookie and a diet soda for breakfast and rushed out here.” The psychiatrist... Read more
Sex, God, and the Conservative Church by Dr. Tina Schermer Sellers, PhD In Chapter One, Sellers critiques the Evangelical church and its conservative approach to sexuality. She describes how purity rings, and abstinence campaigns help to develop a culture of sexual shame. She uses a simple illustration to describe this approach (73): “‘Imagine for a moment one of those huge lollipops, the kind that you buy at an amusement park candy store. Take off the wrapper, and pass it around... Read more
Enduring Pain in Light of Eternity May 15, 2017 Year A Psalm 102:1-17 My earthly pain is nothing compared to the eternal glory of God. The psalmist here shares a prayer that expresses his pain to God. He complains about his pain in a lament – a type of psalm where the writer expresses his sadness at (in this case) his pain. The psalmist cries out for help because he is in pain. “Lord, hear my prayer; let my cry... Read more
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In