The real four letter word in this Gospel is NICE. Jesus is telling us, don’t be nice. You’re going to get trampled.
Category: Sermons
Considering the Cost of the Gospel
Good morning. This morning’s Gospel is one of the pieces of scripture that we call “the hard sayings of Jesus.” And I really can’t complain. I’ve been preaching 25 years and this is the first time that I’ve had to preach on this particular scripture. So , I’m lucky. In the modern world, we have…
Be a Prophet for Our Times
August tends to be a month where people think about vacations, picnics and other really cool stuff. For people in ordained ministry though, June tends to be a month when many of us think about the nature of ministry because at least here in this Diocese and every diocese I know people tend to be…
Prayer: Let’s Get in Tune
Prayer isn’t for God…prayer is for us.
We Will Build What We Believe
When I look at the world at this moment in time, when I read the headlines, when I read the science, when I talk to people, it seems to me that we are being consumed by fear. We’re afraid that there’s not enough, that there’s not enough time, that there’s not enough money, that there’s…
A Holiday Trifecta: Mother’s Day, Hanukkah, & Easter
Yesterday, I went to the grocery store and could barely make it in the door because of the profusion of flower bouquets, potted plants, balloons, stuffed animals and chocolate covered strawberries that filled the front section of the store, waiting for those who wanted to celebrate their mothers to come and buy. As I was…
This is the Night
Alleluia! Tonight more than any night we know some deep truths. Life is stronger than death. Light is stronger than darkness. Love is stronger than hate. The hard part is that the world often has a warped view of love. We make it about words that aren’t followed with actions. We make it about how…
Roller Coaster People: Come to the Carousel
Palm Sunday has got to be my absolutely least favorite day in Holy Week. We start with a parade, like a circus, with people waving palms. We get miracles like Jesus being placed on the back of an unbroken colt and he was not bucked off. People are waving palms leaves and yelling, Hosanna, Hosanna…
Mary, Martha, Moses: Living an Analog Life in a Digital World
We seem to live in a world that makes everything a digital choice. Are you someone who works hard or plays hard? Are you a person of science or of faith? Are you a person of ideas or action? Worse, we are often tempted to apply this same kind of black and white thinking in…
Be the Hen in the Fox House
Recently, I’ve spent some time binge watching some of my television shows that I got behind on in recent weeks. I know that it’s Lent, and I should probably have considered giving up the time I spend watching television to do something more useful. However, I confess to you, my brothers and sisters, that…