Sunday, December 1, 2024, First Sunday of Advent – Luke 21:25-36, also Jeremiah 33:14-16, Psalm 25: 1-10, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13. Prior to the outbreak of World War I, psychiatrist Carl Jung had a series of visions that he later interpreted as foreshadowing the First World War. His visions included an image of a sea of […]
Sunday, November 24, 2024 – Mark 12:38-44, also 1 Kings 17:8-16, Psalm 34:1-8, Hebrews 9:24-28. Today is Christ the King Sunday. This feast day was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925 in response to the movement toward secularism and atheism. It’s the last Sunday in the Christian liturgical calendar, and our new year begins
Sunday, November 17, 2024 – Mark 12:38-44, also 1 Kings 17:8-16, Psalm 34:1-8, Hebrews 9:24-28. In talking about vulnerability and living on the edge, I shared last week about a time when I was financially insecure and followed an intuition. That Spirit nudge led me to an action and a connection that brought me grace
Sunday, November 10, 2024 – Mark 12:38-44, also 1 Kings 17:8-16, Psalm 34:1-8, Hebrews 9:24-28. Two of our readings today feature people who were living on the edge, people in a very vulnerable position because of their relationship status. They were widows with no husband to support them, no real security. Many women past middle
Sunday, November 3, 2024 – Mark 12:28-34, also Ruth 1:1-18, Psalm 146, Hebrews 9:11-14 It seems to me the world is made up of two different kinds of people: those who are kind even when it may not be expected, and those who aren’t. I’ve always thought it was a major red flag when I
Sunday, October 27, 2024 – Reformation Sunday The dialogue below has been adapted from “A Visit with Martin Luther,” written by Rev. Drue Warner of Good News Church in Suwanee, GA and “A Visit with Katie Luther,” written by Hilda Demuth-Lutze, author of Kingdom of the Birds. I delivered this by playing both parts. Today
I was recently asked what I thought being Lutheran was all about. Here’s my ever-evolving answer. Compassion for the Human Condition Lutherans understand humans as simultaneously saint and sinner, meaning that no one is perfect, no one can boast of being better than anyone else. Instead, we know that we are all complex, imperfect human
Sunday, September 29, 2024 – Mark 9:30-37 also Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29, Psalm 19:7-14, James 5:13-20 I first began to understand the connection between food and its effects on my physical and emotional health in the mid-1990s, when I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Not only did I experience physical pain and chronic fatigue, but also
Sunday, September 22, 2024 – Mark 9:30-37 also Jeremiah 11:18-20, Psalm 54, James 3:13—4:3, 7-8a Several years ago, when I left the corporate world to become a performing singer and songwriter, I was also doing some consulting work. I’d had a long career in marketing and communications, and so I used all of my skills
Sunday, September 15, 2024 – Mark 8:27-38 also Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 116:1-9, James 3:1-12 Our readings today – aside from the gospel – touch on the potential dangers of speaking and the value of listening. Both Isaiah and the Psalm mention our listening to God and God’s listening to us. And then James weighs in
