This past Wednesday, I was standing at a local coffee shop waiting for my iced coffee. Over the loud speakers, turned up a little too loud, poured out the chorus of Bob Marley’s song Three Little Birds, and it was starting to grate on me: Don’t worry about a thing ‘Cause every little thing gonna […]
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From Glory to Glory
In the Eastern Orthodox tradition of iconography – supposedly one of the first icons that every monk-painter must paint at the start of their apprenticeship is the vision of the Christ, transfigured and shining on the mountaintop with Moses and Elijah, and the stunned disciples nearby. Of all the biblical scenes that could be chosen […]
Truth on Level Ground
I was going to begin this sermon with a reflection on how these words of blessing and woe, providence and warning, hit us all differently depending on where we sit or stand when we hear them. I was going to begin this sermon talking about the many different sorts of people from different places, socioeconomic […]
True Treasure
Have you ever reached a crossroads in life? I am sure you all have. Where you can metaphorically choose one path or another path in life. I think life presents many crossroads. And this is exactly what is placed before the disciples and the prophet Isaiah. The Triune God calls for them to follow in […]
When Good News Turns Bad
What brings you to church? Why are we all seated here on a Sunday evening, when there is sports to watch, movies and shows to stream, messy houses to clean up, homework to do? There are all sorts of great reasons to be a part of our church community… from chasing away the Sunday-evening scaries […]
Only One Sermon
I’ve heard it said that every preacher throughout their life really only has a handful of sermons that they preach over and over again. No matter how different the scripture text before them or the crisis confronting the community or the ordinariness of a moment – when a holy word is called for – in […]
I Will Not Keep Silent
This past Friday I attended the second of four training sessions at a local hopsice. The training is for churches to better offer care to individuals and families as they journey through illness, the end of life, and grief. The ice-breaker question that began our session was this prompt: “Before I die, I . . […]
Expecting the Spirit
I’ve noticed a change in the marketing algorithms targeting me in the last couple weeks as I scrolled the internet. At this start of the New Year – the product placements shifted away from Christmas deals and self-indulgence to an emphasis on self-improvement. New Year, New You type products. The ad that ironically got me to […]
Community is the Center of our Lives
There’s a great saying attributed to Dorothy Day, the great 20th century friend of the poor, anti-war and labor activist, and founder of the Catholic Worker movement. Dorothy is remembered as saying: “Everyone wants a revolution, but nobody wants to do the dishes.” After I graduated highschool I was a gangly seventeen year old, bored […]
Jesus is the Center of Our Faith
Last Sunday, on World Communion Sunday – in his sermon – Jonathan Larson offered us a necklace of stories, a string of tales from scripture, Anabaptist history, and his own life – all examples of moments when the whisper of beloved community was heard, that as Hebrews said – “Jesus is not ashamed to call […]
Why Being Mennonite Matters
Living God, by the power of your Spirit, help us to hear your holy word, that we may truly understand; that, understanding, we may believe; and believing, we may follow in faithfulness and obedience [and joy!], seeking your honor and glory in all that we do, through Jesus Christ. Amen. We just prayed the words of Ulrich Zwingli – […]
Doers of the Word
For the past few weeks I’ve been preaching from the book of Ephesians, exploring its encouraging words to Christians, newly baptized into the community of faith. We wrestled with how walking in God’s love enables us to do something useful with all of our emotions, even anger. We celebrated how God’s Spirit moves us to […]
The Armor of Peace
I feel a little extra brave whenever I’m wearing a backpack fit for the occasion. Whether it’s hiking those first miles of dusty trail wearing a pack full of food and gear for the week’s upcoming trek….or striding up into a school bus to travel to a sporting competition with your teammates all if you […]
Making Melody
Our short text from Ephesians today opens up with apocalyptic urgency: “Be careful how you’re living!” “The days are evil!” “Make the most of your life!” “Seize the day!” “Don’t get drunk – because that’s debauchery!” When you start hearing this passage you might think that you’re in for a whole long list of warnings […]
Doing Something Useful
Do any of you all ever get angry? Take a moment to think about a time when your blood was boiling, when the fiery rush of anger welled up in you… What did that feel like? Where in your body do you experience anger? Take a breath and remember what that felt like. Maybe the […]
Look for the Helpers
David, you are this man. David, God entrusted you with the care of God’s people, and you failed. David, your reign has turned rotten; instead of protecting the vulnerable you are now preying upon them. Instead of sacrificing your life for your people, you’ve demanded sacrifices laid at your feet. David, you’ve become a pharaoh. “David,” Nathan says, “why have you despised the word of the Lord?”
Looking Down
It’s hard to be a human. The growing pains of learning how to live in these bodies, the search for belonging and friendship, the daily need to provide food and shelter and a future for our loved ones, the questions of purpose and meaning that gnaw at us. Being a human is filled with all manner […]
Part of God’s Story
I’m often intrigued by the way stories with known endings continue to fascinate us. Our favourite books we reread over and over again; our favourite stories we tell again and again, even when everyone hearing them knows what will happen. Nowhere is this more apparent than in our reading of the Bible: we go to […]
Who is this king of glory?
When I heard the news of the assassination attempt at former president Trump’s rally I felt a pit in my stomach. I pray for him and his healing, for the other victims, and the shooter, and all of their families – and for all people in our neighborhoods, cities, country and world who live in […]
From a Human Point of View
Christians have always looked for barometers of faith. We want to know: what does a good Christian look like? How can we see if someone is sinning or saved or something else entirely? We see evidence of this debate happening in the early church in Paul’s letters, which often concern the right ways to live […]
“Is it You, Lord?”
Not everyone who calls you by name actually knows you. My inbox is full of emails that begin with lines like: “Hi Benjamin, Thanks for your recent order!” “Greetings Benjamin! The bill from your recent visit is now due.” “Benjamin, If you upgrade now, you can get free carry-on bags…” “Benjamin – It’s urgent that […]
Learning to Dance
The first and only time I’ve taken dance lessons was a month into marriage with Alli. We signed up for a partner ballroom dance class because we thought it would be fun and our friends were teaching the class. Each week we learned a new style – waltz and swing and foxtrot. And it turned […]
Spirit of the Living God
Spirit of the Living God – fall afresh on us. Melt us and mold us to hear your Word, to speak your Good News with boldness, and to follow your Way of Love. Amen. It’s Pentecost Sunday – when we celebrate the Spirit of Christ being poured out on the community of Jesus followers. Today […]
John 17:1-20
In today’s gospel reading from the Book of John, Jesus prays to God to protect his disciples, his dear friends: “I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours…And now I am no longer in the […]