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Holy Week Reflection: Frugality vs. Extravagance
Iâve spent much of Holy Week reflecting on the contrast between the ideas of frugality and extravagance. The themes are interwoven in some truly curious ways throughout the Biblical story, but in few places are they as evident as in Mark 14:3-9 (also John 12:1-8). Here we read: 3 While Jesus was in Bethany sitting at the table in the home of Simon the leper, a woman arrived with an alabaster jarâŚ
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Idolatry and the Pursuit of Perfection
The New Year is a time for new beginnings. If youâre anything like me, youâve spent some time reflecting on the last year and made some decisions regarding things youâd like to approach differently in the coming months. This type of âtaking stockâ is human nature. Though we tend to focus on it more intently as one year rolls into the next, we actually live most of our lives in this evaluativeâŚ
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The Mystery Box Effect
While most of my posts are intended for a general audience, this is an exact copy of a letter I sent to my congregation. Our goal: to encourage wholehearted financial investment in the future of the congregation.
Several months ago, I preached a sermon on the Presbyterian model of stewardship. If you were present, youâll remember that I talked about the way in which we often âput the cart before the horseâ â doing our annual stewardship drive prior to establishing our ministry budget for the year. While thereâs a lot to be said for a balanced budget (Iâm a big advocate for this both personally andâŚ
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Strategic Discernment: The Art of Questioning
Humans are innately curious creatures. I donât mean âcuriousâ in the sense that we are odd or unusual (though a solid argument could be made in defense of this definition), but âcuriousâ in the sense that every one of us seems to be born with an infinite capacity to question. In fact, as children, we question nearly everything we encounter: âWhy is the sky blue?â âWhy do ants have six legs?â âWhyâŚ
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How to Pray in a Time of Grief: A Reflection on the Nashville Shooting
I sat alone in the manse next door to a Presbyterian church (albeit of a different denomination), watching the village flag fly at half-mast. âWhat part of this is bothering you the most?â my sisterâs voice asked, echoing slightly in the tiny earbuds attached to my phone.  I paused, choking back the tears, then uttered, âThe pastorâs daughter.â The truth is that I sit and cry every timeâŚ
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A Self-Guided Interactive Walk Through the Stations of the Cross - Revised Common Lectionary Year A
The following was developed for use in a church setting and requires minimal set-up, but can easily be adapted for home use. It follows as closely as possible, the texts for the Revised Common Lectionary Year A and the story of Christâs final days as portrayed in Matthewâs Gospel. Station 1: Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane. Matthew 26:36-46 Supplies: ScriptureâŚ
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Is this 'Pastoral' Work?
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Love Your Neighbor
Last month, I shared my commitment to avoid preaching politics from the pulpit. For some of you this was exciting news â youâve had enough of ministers telling you how you ought to vote. For others, it was a bit confusing â isnât this what a good âprophetâ ought to be doing? In fact, to some it seems that this is exactly what Jesus was doing throughout most of his ministry! What could be moreâŚ
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Politics from the Pulpit: Why I Refrain
Politics from the Pulpit: Why IÂ Refrain
September has arrived and a new election season will soon be upon us. In the midst of turmoil both at home and abroad, tensions are running high. With this in mind, Iâd like to take a moment to share about my personal commitment to keeping politics out of the pulpit. Over the years, Iâve seen too many congregations torn apart by political differences to feel that preaching my own politics (evenâŚ
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Finding Strength in Christ: Why Context Matters
Finding Strength in Christ: Why Context Matters
           Published in 1871, Lewis Carolâs Through the Looking Glass was written as a sequel to his immensely successful 1865 work, Aliceâs Adventures in Wonderland. While the latter introduces us to the familiar characters of the Mad Hatter and the Cheshire Cat, it is in Through the Looking Glass that we first meet the Red Queen, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, and Humpty Dumpty â all of whom haveâŚ
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Reflections on Forgiveness
Iâve been thinking a lot lately about the topic of forgiveness. Itâs an appropriate subject for the Lenten season as we explore our personal need both to be forgiven (something accomplished by Christ on the cross) and to forgive others (accomplished by us as we imitate Christ). But to suggest that itâs an easy topic for discussion would be outright foolishness. To be honest (and as a pastor, IâŚ
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In Christ Alone: Is Reconciliation with God Possible Outside of the Christian Faith?
In Christ Alone: Is Reconciliation with God Possible Outside of the Christian Faith?
As a Presbyterian minister, I often find myself presented with opportunities to openly discuss questions of Christian faith and practice. While sometimes these opportunities take the form of simple statements concerning the doctrines passed down by tradition, other times, they lead to deeper, more illuminating discussion. Due to the habituality of my dialogue on these issues, it isnât uncommonâŚ
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Stewardship or Stinginess
October marks the beginning of the fourth quarter of the year and, as Summer turns to Fall, many of us find ourselves reflecting upon what we did and didnât accomplish during the previous nine months. Perhaps we are pleased with how we spent our time, money, and effort and feel motivated to begin planning for the next season of our lives. We feel excited, hopeful, invigorated, ready for the nextâŚ
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What do Presbyterians Believe About the Bible?
What do Presbyterians Believe About the Bible?
âWhat do Presbyterians believe about the Bible?â Believe it or not, this is a question I get asked with some regularity. What is the Bible? Why do we use it? Is it really relevant to our lives today?According to the Presbyterian Mission Agency: âThe Bible is a collection of 66 individual books that together tell the story of a group of people bound by a common faith in God. It is divided intoâŚ
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"Helping Hands" or "Why I Became a Presbyterian"
âHelping Handsâ or âWhy I Became a Presbyterianâ
âHow did you become a Presbyterian?â Itâs a question Iâm asked with some regularity, often with the assumption that I fall into one of two categories: I was born a Presbyterian, or I became a Presbyterian because theyâre the only ones who ordain women. (P.S. We arenât. There are Methodists, Lutherans, Anglicans, Episcopalians, and Baptists who also ordain women⌠just to name a few!) To correctâŚ
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Redeeming the Day
This last Saturday, I had the honor of officiating my first wedding. It was an unusual event in that the bride and groom chose to declare their love for one another on the 20th Anniversary of September 11th. For them, this was just another date theyâd memorized for grade school history exams, but for many of us gathered it still stung like an open wound. (I still remember every moment of the dayâŚ
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Wishing and Hoping
Iâve spent a lot of time this week thinking about the difference between âwishingâ and âhoping.â At first blush, the two seem nearly synonymous: both involve a desire (sometimes a very strong desire) for something one has not yet achieved or acquired. If any immediate difference stands out, itâs likely in the fact that wishing can happen in reverse â âI wish that hadnât happened that wayâŚâ YouâŚ
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