Joe

Years ago I preached a Christmas Eve sermon titled, “Putting the X Back in Christmas.” The idea was to play with common Christian objection to abbreviating the holiday Xmas. Before the service, I built a large X out of 2x4s that stood on a stand off to the side of the stage. At a pivotal point in the sermon, I turned the X 45 degrees so, when combined with the stand, it formed a cross. The sermon concluded that this Child King came to die so we could be forgiven and spend eternity in heaven.

[Read more…] about A Christmas King or Kingdom?

Christmas is magical. We know this for children who eagerly anticipate waking up to see what Santa brought them (because nobody expects coal in their stocking). The same is true for those semi-annoying adults captivated by the season. But there is also a way it is true for those of us who often struggle during the season.

[Read more…] about When Christmas Doesn’t Feel Like Christmas

When Jesus turns toward Jerusalem, he does so daring to defy the convention of his day. Moreover, he calls on those who would follow him to also dare to defy convention. But what does this mean?

[Read more…] about Do You Dare to Defy Convention?

I got a nasty email this week. As I mentioned in my expanded newsletter for subscribers two weeks ago, I recently officiated the funeral of a 24-year-old who died while taking a drug laced with Fentanyl. The 69-year-old email sender found the service void of hope because I did not proclaim “Jesus saves,” never mind that the family requested an explicitly non-religious service.

[Read more…] about How To Live Today

Common knowledge would say that people are born, grow up, and then die. But it struck me while studying this week that, in many ways, our failure to grow up is killing us.

The realization formed through a combination of researching the Parable of the Rich Fool in Luke 12 (a parable I previously explored) and reading the early pages of Bill Plotkin’s, The Journey of Soul Initiation.

[Read more…] about Grow Up Or Die

In Luke 11, Jesus teaches his disciples what we call the Lord’s Prayer. While there are books about the prayer itself, Luke’s account follows the prayer with two teachings that center on God’s role in prayer.

[Read more…] about Prayer: Is Anybody Listening?