July 23, 2017 Romans 8:12-25 Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43   I do not like our gospel passage at all. I worry about what you think when you hear it.  I worry that it robs grace and love from your understanding of God.  I worry that it tilts the theological scales of your subconscious minds so that […]

June 4, 2017 Acts 2:1-21 Pentecost & Confirmation   Last week we heard Jesus’ “high priestly prayer,” a prayer that Jesus offers as he says farewell to his disciples and asks that the intimacy that he shares with his Father might also now be shared with his disciples. I asked us to imagine John the […]

May 28, 2017 Ephesians 1:15-23 John 17:1-11   My bible calls this passage from John, “Jesus’ high priestly prayer.”  I’m not sure what the prayer sounded like to you, or what kind of images a “high priestly prayer” might connote for you, but for me it’s not a great title.  When I think of “high […]

I can’t hear today’s gospel passage without wondering how you hear today’s gospel passage, in particular, verse 6.  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life,” says Jesus. “No one comes to the Father except through me.” Do those words sound like good news to you?  Do they encourage you?  Inspire you?  Or, […]

May 7, 2017 Acts 2:42-47   These are words from Dr. Ricard Selzer in a book that he authored called, “Moral Lessons: Notes on the Art of Surgery.” “I stand by the bed where the young woman lies, her face post-operative, her mouth twisted – palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of a facial nerve, the […]

April 30, 2017 John 20:19-31   You don’t have to think about what to say… You don’t have to think about what to do… You don’t have to plan dinner… You don’t have to worry about work… You don’t need to write your sermon, or create your agenda, or make sure you are ready for […]

April 16, 2017 John 20:1-18   “Is it possible that we are perpetually out of context?” A colleague of mine asked that question as we gathered to discuss our Easter passages.  Of course, that question makes no sense out of context, so I’ll explain. Some of you may remember my story about Dom the barber.  […]

March 26, 2017 John 9:1-41   I shared with you a few weeks ago part of the charge that I gave to my brother-in-law at his installation as the pastor at the Congregational Church in Madison. This morning I thought I would share another part, which I ripped off from Mother Theresa.  She says, People […]

March 19, 2017 John 4:5-42 Exodus 7:1-7   After having, in a way, fled from the Bishop in the United Methodist Church, it’s kind of ironic that I now serve on the committee in the Fairfield East Association that functions as the bishop. Among other things, we oversee matters of ordination and candidacy for authorization […]

March 12, 2017 John 3:1-17 Today we get to read what is perhaps the most famous passage in all of the Christian scriptures – John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” There are […]