hope
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Hard choices
We live on the horns of a dilemma. On one hand is the opportunity and responsibility to cultivate the best of the past and continue to harvest its rich blessings. On the other hand is the opportunity and responsibility of God’s invitation through the prophet Isaiah, “Do not remember the former things, or consider the Continue reading
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Are you hungry?
Earlier this year, many of you shared with me your greatest hope. One of you said it was to give the best of yourself to those in need. For another, it was that your daughters “live a happy life by following their hearts.” Someone’s hope was “release from injustices and abuse,” and for another it Continue reading
abundant life, banquet of heaven, calling the disciples, Christian minority, community, feeding the multitude, garden of Eden, good news, hope, Joseph Campbell, miracles of Jesus, New Jerusalem, Nicodemus, rapture of being alive, spiritual hunger, the gospel, The Great Dechurching, wedding at Cana, wedding feast -
Wind the clock, drive the truck
At the end of their long captivity in Babylon, God promised joy and blessings to the house of Israel and its descendants, descendants that include you and me (Isa. 66:10-14). But what if that house is built upon foundations that crumble? If the foundations are destroyed, what can the good do? The question is as Continue reading
after the storm, Babylon, chaos, dark passage, E.B. White, Exodus, faith, foundations, God's footprints, God's new thing, hope, letter of hope, life crisis, new beginning, O for a faith that will not shrink, old-time religion, rebuilding a life, rebuilding foundations, the beginning of the end, the future, tomorrow, trust, William Bathurst, wind the clock -
Plotting resurrection
“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen” (Luke 24:5). On the first day of the week some women came to the cemetery to find the body of Jesus. They did what any of us would have done. They came looking for him where they had Continue reading
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When the world falls apart
“When the world falls apart, what can the good hope to do” (Ps. 11:3 ICEL)? The psalmist’s question has been with us for maybe 3,000 years or longer, and today it’s as relevant and penetrating as ever. I’m not sure the world is falling apart – we’ve survived hard times before – but the news Continue reading
authentic relationship, commitment, community, covid-19, David Brooks, divisiveness, Emerson, environment, faith, family, finding God, good news, grief, hope, insurrection, let your life speak, Parker Palmer, philosophy, Rabbi Zusya, seeking God, terrorism, The Second Mountain, Thomas Merton, vocation -
The spiders remain
Sheryl and I have made a pilgrimage to Chautauqua Institution almost every summer since we’ve been married, staying a week or two on the grounds to soak in the arts and thoughts and imagination of the place and its people. We talk of going elsewhere some summer, but when the time comes to make reservations Continue reading
The Sauntering Pilgrim 