Unwrapping Christmas

December 21, 2008 4th Sunday of Advent (B) Luke 1:26-38 In a Christmas sermon, Billy Strayhorn, wrote that modern technology was making it much more difficult to "unwrap" Christmas: "It has given us shrink wrap, which defies all attempts to tear it. We have fiber strapping that some knives won't cut. And we have adhesives that you can't get off with dynamite."

God’s Guidance

December 14, 2008 3rd Sunday of Advent (B) 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future'" (Jer. 29:11, NIV). All of us are seeking what God offers Jeremiah's listeners. Our desire is to follow God's guidance. Paul, writing centuries later to the church at Thessalonica, expresses that God's will-His holy guidance-should include an inner strength, an inner fire and an inner purity. These three basic ideas offer an overall picture of how God guides His people.

Stay Focused on the Promise

December 7, 2008 2nd Sunday of Advent (B) 2 Peter 3:8-15a I enjoy traveling to new places, experiencing different cultures and the peculiarities that distinguish cultures. I enjoy the different architectures and landscapes that distinguish one country from the next. And I enjoy the time away from my routine.

Amazed by Grace

November 30, 2008 1st Sunday of Advent (B) 1 Corinthians 1:3-9 Decorating the house, writing cards, shopping for gifts, Christmas tree hunting, grocery lists, preparations for guests or preparations for travel I know, a million things need to get done within only a limited number of days between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Busyness, lots of busyness, and all these things need our attention in addition to our already busy schedules.

True Enlightenment

November 23, 1008 Christ the King (A) Ephesians 1:15-23 When we hear the word enlightenment it conjures up all kinds of images-everything from a meditating, levitating contemplative to a pointy-eared, short, green sage offering young Skywalker wisdom in a formal, un-contracted and awkward grammar to a period in history characterized by reason as the primary source of authority and an optimistic view of human ability.

Is the Curtain Rising?

November 16, 2008 Proper 28 (A) 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 Suppose you attend a play in a great theater. Before the play begins, noise, bustle, confusion and movement can be heard from behind the curtains. In the orchestra pit the sounds of instruments warming up emanate. Ushers seat latecomers; friends greet each other; others find their seats and study the program. Then the lights flicker on and off. The time is at hand. How much longer? No one can say exactly. Before long, the house lights go down, a hush falls, the conductor lifts his baton, the overture begins and the curtains slowly rise.

Hope in the Face of Death

November 9, 2008 Proper 27 (A) 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Death is inevitable, a fact of life. The statistics on death are quite impressive: one out of one people dies. War does not increase death; traffic fatalities do not increase death; cancer and heart disease do not increase death; death is unavoidable and total in every generation. But death is not final. It is not the last hurrah. It is not the end.

Living Worthy of God’s Call

November 2, 2008 Proper 26 (A) 1 Thessalonians 2:9-13 As believers in Christ we have a responsibility to extend God's reputation in the world. People are watching us. How do we live lives worthy of the calling of God?