Living Faith

Things are happening every day. The world is a busy place, full of busy people. We bump into each other a lot. Sometimes we smile at one another, sometimes we ignore one another, and sometimes we get mad at each other. We are boats, bobbing along on the same ocean. The currents that connect us are more powerful than the spaces that seemingly divide us.

Faith can help us navigate crowded and choppy waters with grace, humility, and gratitude.

I believe that faith is a process. It begins when we discover that God has been calling us. When we heed that call, we enter into a beautiful life-giving and love-giving relationship with our Creator.

That relationship is deepened when we devote ourselves to God. God does not want to be just one more thing we add to our agendas. God does not want to be relegated to one hour a week. God wants to be the foundation upon which our entire lives are built. God wants to the the central nervous system of our very existence. We develop our faith by focusing on God. By spending time with God, conversing with God, we learn who God is and what God desires from us.

God desires that we change. While change can be hard, God wants us to be better. God calls us to become more like Jesus Christ, God enfleshed. Becoming more like Jesus is the ultimate goal of our faith. As his disciples, we learn from him, obeying his words and inviting others to discover God’s call so they, too, can join us in the journey of faith.

Here, I share some of what I am observing and learning as I sail along with all of you, the people to whom I am connected.

In Context

We, as Christians, bear the responsibility of taking great care in reading and understanding God’s Word, and an even greater responsibility in applying it in our choices, decisions, and actions.

On the Verge of a Miracle

Bungee jumping and following Jesus – both risky endeavors that involve taking one decisive step.
And it could be a step too far.

A Holy Week

While God’s victory over death is cause for every person to rejoice, Easter morning’s Hallelujahs ring a little more exuberantly and the empty tomb glows a little brighter when we have made the journey to the cross with Jesus and shared in the anguish of his first followers, for we need each of the seven days to make up our Holy Week.

White Lies

While we should always strive to tell the truth, at the very least we cannot deceive ourselves into thinking that any lie is okay.

And a child shall lead them…

One week ago my congregation gathered in the sanctuary as we began the season of Lent by receiving the imposition of the ashes. Only a few hours before the worship service, news of the horrible event in Parkland, FL started to reverberate in our hallways. Over the past several days, we have learned a lot […]

Marked: Ash Wednesday Homily, 2018

Like Jacob, who limped away from his encounter with God, we discover during the season of Lent that we bear the marks of sin, the marks of repentance, and the marks of forgiveness. As we are marked by ashes, we will hear once again that we finite and frail, destined to become again the dust from which we were formed. As we are marked by ashes, we will remember once again our Savior who bore our infirmities on the cross. As we are marked by ashes, we will affirm our hope in the promise of God’s grace and mercy that leads us to eternal life.

Are you afraid?

What scares you? That is the question I posed to 140 preschoolers one morning. For the 3, 4, and 5 year olds in the sanctuary, the answers were variable and expected: the dark, monsters, spiders, being alone, vegetables. Many adults might share a couple of those fears (I even know some who are scared of […]

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Holy Perfection

Our definition of perfection has become skewed. Perfection, as Jesus means it, is fully becoming the person God created you to be, something we can never give up trying to become.

The Greatest

Have you ever wondered what it must be like to have the distinction of being the greatest at something? Muhammed Ali claimed to be the greatest, period. Roger Federer and Serena Williams have been declared the greatest tennis players of all time. Many people consider William Shakespeare to be the greatest writer, Mozart to be […]

A Blessed Life

Jesus teaches his followers about those who are happy and blessed. We might not be so eager to follow in their footsteps, even if it is the only way to experience true joy.

3D Faith

Discovered / Devoted / Disciple