The Passion reading from Matthew, almost two full chapters, provides a lot of material to draw our attention and to capture our thoughts as we ponder the Christ. Sometimes we pause with wonder and ask, “Why did Jesus have to die to save us?” The answer is complicated and the relationship cemented by that act […]
There were many threads that could have been pulled today: Ezekiel and the valley of the dry bones; the Psalmist waiting for the Lord; Paul reminding us that in Christ we are alive; and Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. Yet this morning, we were reminded in the collect that God brings order to our […]
In worship we looked at the changes in our lives and the change we are searching for in Lent. Between the story of the anointing of David in Samuel, to the evolving understanding of God by the psalmist in the 23rd Psalm, to the story of the man born blind having his sight restored by […]
It was a fitting day for us to say goodbye to Barbara Griggs. Much of the day is indicative of her life among us. It was bright and warm with a little breeze blowing. Today was the day we laid Barbara’s remains to rest and celebrated her life with worship and prayer. We remember God […]
We are at the midpoint for our Lenten journey, there are only 2 Sundays and Palm Sunday before Easter. Today’s gospel reading was a juxtaposition to last week’s: this week was the long story of the Samaritan woman at the well as counterpoint to the brief story of Niccodemus last week. The readings are often […]
In worship we heard the story of God’s call to Abram to go from Haran to the Promise Land. God promised to bless Abram; interesting because Abram, by most human standards, was blessed with family, things, and land. We also heard the pearl from John 3 and the interchange between Jesus and Niccodemus. Ultimately, Jesus […]
Our worship begins a reflective journey, touching the “old language” of Rite I; not because Rite II is especially more joyful but because the change makes us pay attention. Our lessons today begin by laying out the first sin of Adam and Eve – the knowledge of good and evil and how that leads to […]
Grace and peace at the beginning of your Lenten journey. I find it interesting that I’m led to a new place every Lent, into a journey looking for the place God is inviting me this year. The end goal is the same but the path seems to change every year, partly because I change every […]
As we bring a close to our Epiphany journey we see one of the biggest Epiphany moments in the New Testament – the Transfiguration. The story is told through the eyes of Matthew and the writer of the second letter from Peter – both reiterating the message of God is found in the relationships we […]
Today we heard three “vamps” on the phrase “be holy as I, the Lord, am holy…” (or perfect instead of holy). We wonder what it means to be holy, especially in a world where holiness isn’t always embraced. Our gospel today, a portion at the close of the Sermon on the Mount, is troubling and […]