If you love autumn and want to enjoy the loveliness of blazing colors, to settle into the coziness of coming in from the chill of the outdoors, feel content with life, then don’t open your Facebook account. If your feed is like mine, it is filled with some version of fear, despair, or anger. All three probably appear in the same post from one friend … Continue reading You and Francis Give Me Hope
I was staying in my hometown for a two-day retreat, and decided to do what we often do when we go home: visit the place. There is a wildlife sanctuary called Union Slough near the little town of Titonka. I had never explored it when it was only a few miles from the acreage where my father served a country church. With an afternoon of … Continue reading Sanctuaries
August is worth looking forward to every year, if only for the fresh tomatoes. I grow a couple of plants in my garden, but I have to go to the farmer’s market if I want to get enough to make a marinara sauce. At least I can harvest enough of those beauties to feed my most recent summer addiction: bacon/basil/tomato sandwiches. Someone put me onto … Continue reading Relax. Have a Tomato.
We were babysitting our two young grandchildren while their parents went to a wedding. Rydia, 3 ½, was recovering from a little stomach bug and maximizing the rare privilege of watching endless cartoons. Link was his usual energetic toddler self, alternating between pestering his sister, begging to be held, and investigating the kitchen drawers. I tried to get Link to eat something during the supper … Continue reading Bread
“Who is this who even forgives sins?” And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Lk 7.49b-50) It is no secret that congregations are being torn asunder these days by issues. Politics, sexuality, perceptions about race are among the hot buttons. It is no wonder that many outside the church want nothing to do with us. Nevertheless we are … Continue reading Elephantine Grace
Once I stayed overnight in Omaha, Nebraska, because my flight got in late, and I don’t trust myself to drive the three-hour trip home when I am tired. I decided to take my morning walk over the nearby Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge that connects Omaha with Council Bluffs, Iowa. It is a graceful structure that spans the muddy Missouri River as it meanders past the … Continue reading Baptismal River on Trinity Sunday
My favorite subject in high school was French. I lived in rural northern Iowa, where small schools dotted the landscape in the same way small farms did. Every school was required to offer a foreign language, regardless of how few students were actually interested in the subject. So I was one of a handful of students who counted ourselves lucky to learn such a beautiful … Continue reading Notre Dame on Pentecost
RUDYARD KIPLING Photo by Roger-Viollet / Rex Features ( 443052f ) When I wrote my credo as part of my preparation for pastoral ministry, I gave it the title, “The Power and Passion of God.” I took my theme from Psalm 62:11-12a, “Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord.” I … Continue reading Passion, and Passion
Here we go again. “God’s Not Dead 2” is soon to hit theaters. As a minister, some people expect me to eagerly expect its release, and to encourage people to see it. I might tell people to see it, but not for reasons you might think. I urge Christians to see it so that you will look at it from a different perspective than your … Continue reading If “God’s Not Dead,” Then Why are Christians Anxious?
Quick quiz: Who is called “a man after God’s own heart” in the Bible? Paul said it in a sermon in Antioch, on his first missionary journey. (Acts 13:22) He was talking about David. Is there any more beloved figure in the Old Testament than David? Yet David had feet of clay just like everyone else. As so often happens, his strength ended up being … Continue reading The Cure
saint sinner seeker 