Fri Jul 10-A Throne Built to Last
I know it’s not Christmas…but I can’t help thinking of one of my favorite scenes from the movie Elf. Buddy confronts the department store Santa and blurts out: “You sit on a throne of lies!”
Devotional
Devotional
Tue Jun 24-Where Outsiders become Insiders
All of us have experienced the pain of being an “outsider” at some point in our lives. We move to a new job, or a new school, or a new neighborhood where we don’t have any connections. We’re unfamiliar with the “way things are done here.” Sometimes we break the rules without even knowing it!
Devotional
Tue Jun 10-What We’re Here For
Who are we to bring good news to the poor, or healing to the brokenhearted, or release to the captives? That was fine for Isaiah—or for Jesus—but what does it have to do with us?
Devotional
Fri Jun 6-In All Circumstances?
When I read this admonition from Paul, I don’t know that I feel inspired as much as I feel…frustrated and bewildered.
Devotional
Thu May 22-Bigger Barns?
How do we know when “enough” is “enough?” That’s the spiritual question behind Jesus’ story.
Devotional
Fri May 2-Change is the Enemy?
Change is the enemy. At least that’s how most of us live day-to-day. Which is certainly ironic, given that a human lifespan is something like 80 years, just a blink of an eye in the grand sweep of God’s time.
Devotional
Mon Apr 7-What Do You Believe About Yourself? About God?
One of the most powerful and moving moments of my life took place on the floor of the General Conference a year ago, after the vote was taken to remove the anti-LGBTQ language from the Book of Discipline. After the vote, delegates and visitors gathered and spontaneously began singing this song, written by Mark Miller, a musical legend of the UMC who, through the years, has also been my friend, seminary teacher and choir director.
Devotional
Fri Mar 20-Where Are You Trying to Grow?
I’ve always believed that anything worth doing is worth doing… better. It doesn’t take much effort to become decent at something. But to truly excel—to reach a place where skill becomes second nature—takes time, discipline, and experience.
Devotional
Wed Mar 12-Where In Your Life Would You Like to Say Yes?
I don’t think I was built for the age of social media. Though I stand up in the pulpit every week, the truth is that even after 20 years, I still don’t always feel super comfortable in front of people.
Devotional
Tue Feb 25-Caught by Contentment
Anxiety thrives on uncertainty—our need to control outcomes, to secure our future, to make sure everything turns out “just right.” Yet Jesus calls us to a different way of living. His way is marked by trust rather than fear. He calls us to rest in contentment now rather than continually chasing the thing that we perceive will lead to contentment tomorrow.
Devotional
Wed Feb 12-Living Into Christ’s Image
My father loved woodworking. Carpentry, furniture-making, cabinetry, carving – if it could be made from wood, he’d done it. You always knew when Dad had carved a piece, because they all had very distinct faces.
Devotional
Tue Jan 28-Take Your Ways to Heart
Most of us, even preachers, spend very little time with the prophet Haggai. So you wouldn’t be blamed if you need a little orientation to what’s happening in this passage. Haggai was a prophet who ministered in Jerusalem in the 6th century BC. At that time, the leaders and nobility of Judah returned to Israel’s capital after enduring several decades of exile in Babylon. They were able to come back after Babylon fell to the ascendant Persian Empire under Cyrus.
