Memorial Day…

Every gun that it made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.  This world in arms is not spending money alone.  It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its [...]

Notes from Donald Miller…

Donald Miller (Blue Like Jazz) spoke at a coffee house for emerging leaders after the worship session last evening.  His reflections centered around story.  Here are some notes.
Elements of a good story:
A character who wants something and is willing to overcome conflict to get it.
My life had become a series of random experiences.
I began to [...]

Ash Wednesday…

“The LORD knows how we were made; he remembers that we are dust.” Psalm 103:14
The Hebrew scriptures provide various examples of  “sackcloth and ashes” being a sign of grief and sorrow…repentance and humility.  I did not grow up in a tradition that practiced the imposition of ashes (or talked about Lent that much).  My experience [...]

For you, O God, have proved us…

Bless our God, you peoples;                                                   [...]

Time moves on…

…social reality (whatever in a worldview is construed as ‘the real world’) is not only the cause of the outlook or standpoint of those who inhabit it (thus culture creates outlooks); paradoxically, their social perception of reality is the cause of a people’s world or culture itself (thus outlooks create cultures).
–James McClendon citing the work [...]

What the American electorate is saying…

…there is not a liberal America and a conservative America — there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America — there’s the United States of America.
The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red [...]

A call for civil discourse (making room for the other)…

I received a telephone call this morning while working in the church office at Sunnyside Mennonite Church.  The caller indicated that he was concerned about the possible outcome of the upcoming presidential election.  He stated that he was calling local pastors to encourage them to listen to what James Dobson has to say tonight on [...]

Going where you do not wish to go…

With the permission of Ron Adams, I am posting here the text of the sermon he preached at my ordination service-October 12, 2008.  The scripture readings were from Ephesians 4:1-16 and John 18:15-18, 25-27; John 21:15-19.

They were still at the table when the prophetic word was spoken. Still reclining there, perhaps sipping a last cup [...]

Cool stuff…

My brother-in-law (Matt) just pointed me to Gmap pedometer. It’s very cool. I measured one of my regular running routes around Lancaster Host. 7.5 miles is close to what I always calculated for this course.
Another cool development is the groundbreaking for Butter Valley Harvest. This hydroponic vegetable venture is a partnership [...]

Wheat and weeds…

The gospel lesson for this past Sunday was the parable of weeds among the wheat.  In the story Jesus tells, the slaves of the householder see this unexpected circumstance–weeds among the wheat–as one that requires action.  “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?”  They offer to go and remedy the situation–to gather [...]