Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9 NRSV)This past year has been a year of immense transition for me, personally as well as professionally. It has been hard, to say the least. While I am aware that life is always changing and transition is a natural part of these changes, some are easier to take than others.At the end of last March, it became clear that it…
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:30-31)I love that our gospel last Sunday ended with this note to the readers. It’s a nicer way of saying, “You just had to be there, but we hope this is enough!”…
My child, do not forget my teaching,but let your heart keep my commandments;for length of days and years of lifeand abundant welfare they will give you.Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you;bind them round your neck,write them on the tablet of your heart.So you will find favour and good reputein the sight of God and of people.Trust in the Lord with all your heart,and do not rely on your own insight.In all your ways acknowledge him,and he will make straight your paths.Do…
O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to all the generations to come. Your power and your righteousness, O God, reach the high heavens. (Psalm 71:17-19) Who is the oldest person you know? Who is the youngest person you know? When is the last time you talked to them? What about? Our lives are full…
And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.” (Revelation 21:5-6a NRSV)It is the last week of 2022. Of course, it is hard not to think about the past year and what may be in store for the coming year. It’s a fun…
Tis the season to focus on gratitude and giving thanks. Much has been written about both and each are magnified in the month of November. I would be curious to see a study about how often the word gratitude is used in given year. I am sure its use is doubled, if not tripled, in this one month alone. Of course, this is a wonderful thing! Gratitude changes us. Countless studies show how gratitude is good for us. I only wish we could…
If you’ve been following along with the lectionary, you might be aware that a major theme of our recent gospel lessons has been prayer. It’s been a great opportunity to talk with our kids in the children’s message about the ways we pray and what happens when we pray. Far too often, we think of prayer as what we say to God. Far too often, prayer is described or used as a kind of wish list where we name all the ways we…
I'm sitting on a rocking chair overlooking lake Coeur d'Alene at Lutherhaven. The air is crisp and quiet with a sprinkle of birdsong and the sporadic rush of wind through pine. I am here for the Lutheran Outdoor Ministries Total Inclusion Symposium, representing Luther Heights Bible Camp as a board member. When you hear the phrase total inclusion what do you imagine? Do you nod, "Yes, Of course." and move on? Do you feel suspicions rise or irritation at some association the phrase…
“What you pay attention to grows.” - Adrienne Maree Brown Tweet Psalm 100 - A Psalm of thanksgiving.Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing.Know that the Lord is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures for ever, and his faithfulness to all generations.I have been beginning…
From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the…
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 (NRSV) Over 2,000 years ago, Greek philosopher Heraclitus stated, “The only constant in life is change.” Yet, we still grapple with this idea as though it is new. It seems as though the last few years have been full of unprecedented change and transition. Much has been said about this. However, it is one thing to talk about all the…
Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,your faithfulness to the skies.Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,your justice like the great deep.You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.They feast on the abundance of your house;you give them drink from your river of delights.For with you is the fountain of life;in your light we see light.Continue your love to those who know you,your righteousness to the upright in heart.Psalm…
The word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:‘Prepare the way of the Lord,make his paths straight.Every valley shall be filled,and every mountain and hill shall be made low,and the crooked shall be made straight,and the rough ways…
Pay attention to how you think about God. Are you putting God in a box? Are you thinking God is just one thing? This box will show you how God is so much more expansive and connected to so much more than we can imagine. (video Devotion)
When I was around 13 years old, I remember a friend from church saying something like, “You might be the only bible someone ever reads.” We were talking about how we live out our faith and how we reflect our beliefs in the world through the way we live. It stayed with me. It didn’t necessarily inspire me to read the Bible daily, or memorize a bunch of verses, but it did inspire me to take what I learned and read and live…
I’m struggling to find words to encapsulate all the thoughts and feelings I’ve had this week in a way that makes sense for a devotion. The world is overwhelming. There is so much outside of me that leaves me bewildered and exhausted. On top of that, there is just as much going on inside of me that keeps me similarly bewildered and exhausted. Answers are not easy to come by these days. The cry of “Why?” endures.Yet, I have found myself in prayer.…
I’ve been taking naps lately. I used to nap a lot when I was younger, but have since gotten out of the habit – until now. I think some of it has to do with the letdown that has come with the end of the-year-like-no-other. Some of it has to do with my recalibration to a more extroverted, scheduled life. At first, I struggled with allowing these naps. In a way, I didn’t think I deserved them. I thought something like, “I’ve had…
I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6 NRSV Motivation. It’s a big deal and I don’t think I’m alone in spending time thinking about it. I’ve often struggled with understanding the motivations of others or being able to tap into some sort of internal well of motivation within myself so I can get the thing done that I need to get done.…
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” - Matthew 22:37-40 NIVToday’s devotion is going to be something more than just a moment to pause and read. I invite you to give yourself twenty to thirty minutes to walk with me through a…
A few weeks ago I was taking an early morning walk. As I walked down the street, I noticed dark, ominous clouds ahead of me. It was windy. I found myself reflecting that it was going to be a gloomy day. It looked like the darkness wouldn’t end. “Just one of those days,” I grumbled to myself. Isn’t it strange how one day can be bright and warm, infused with the scent of spring and possibility, and the next day just, yuck? I…
We are the star of our own personal movie called Life, but everything we know is not ours alone, for us alone, or discovered all alone. Everything I know is bound up in the people who make up the We, the Us, of my life. I know what I know because of who they are, what they have modeled for me, what we have experienced together. I can reflect alone, but my reflection is always in conversation with the living world and people…
Last month I led my Young Disciples Ministry Team through a weekend workshop to give us time to remember who we are, the mission, goals, and purpose of our work together, and where God is leading us. In preparation, I sent each of them a single page reflection sheet. On this reflection sheet, I asked them to list one to three words they thought of when thinking of the different people on our team. I had a feeling this would be a cool…
And the Word became flesh and lived among us… full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)I am reading two books right now; The Body is not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor and My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem. These two powerful books are leading me to think deeply about what it means to be embodied. In body. I am thinking about my body in the world, my relationship with my body, others’ bodies, and the fact that we worship a God that…
Video - Hope prepares the way for the coming of the Christ child. Hope is the foundation from which our faith grows. Hope stirs our hearts toward shared purpose and the future Kingdom of God promised in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. When we hope, we share our faith with the world.
These days, you don’t have to wait long for night. It gets dark fast. We often talk about the shortened length of days this time of the year. However, the days aren’t actually shorter. We have the same hours to our day as ever, it just feels different. Days like these provide us with an opportunity to reacquaint ourselves with the dark. Things feel different, they look different, we have to do things differently because there’s less light, but that doesn’t take away…
Disney fairytales are well known for not only their animation, but their whimsical, catchy music as well. Knowing the Disney classics means knowing the popular songs found in Cinderella, Pinocchio, and Sleeping Beauty. We hear a common theme in these enduring lullabies, best represented in the lyrics sung by Cinderella to her animal friends,A dream is a wish your heart makesWhen you're fast asleepIn dreams you will lose your heartachesWhatever you wish for, you keepAnd this one sung by Jiminy Cricket to Pinocchio,When…
There are so many things I love about this time of year – the weather, the trees, the crisp days and scarves. I just love it all. One of the things I have been embracing this fall is my deep-rooted desire to organize. This organizing, structured side to myself is always around, but I don’t think I usually let it step up as much as it has lately. I am sure one big reason for this is that I realize it is a…
If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was…
I will both lie down and sleep in peace; for you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety. (Psalm 4:8 NRSV) Lately, I have found myself restless at night. All the things I didn’t get done or need to get done run through my mind. Worries and what ifs pop up to keep me unsettled. This is common for me at the end of summer and into early fall. I have to keep reminding myself that I go through this a…
awe[1] (noun) an emotion variously combining dread, veneration, and wonder that is inspired by authority or by the sacred or sublime. It is widely understood that the more common an experience or observation, the less special it feels. Somehow, simply by our daily awareness of something, it becomes regular. I have found myself wondering about this lately, as my understanding of “typical” has tipped upside down. It is now normal to discuss the “new normal.” Whatever that is. In fact, that phrase comes up so often I…
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