“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1).” Dear Friends, This is one of my favorite lines of scripture. God who created and sustains us, the Holy One who called all Creation “good,” made and continues to cultivate a good world. It is hard to see that good […]

“Give thanks to the Lord, for the Lord is good, and the Lord’s mercy endures for ever (Psalm 107:1).” Dear Friends, The opening verse of this week’s psalm suggests that gratitude is really the only response to God’s inherent goodness and mercy which is unending.  The past few weeks I have had the blessing of […]

“…whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:207-28).. Dear Friends, Monday this week, most of […]

Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home (Luke 10:38). Dear Friends, Here, at the end of Chapter 10 in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus enters a village and approaches a home. This chapter begins with Jesus sending out seventy (or seventy-two) in pairs, with no purse, no bag, no […]

Wanting to justify himself, the Lawyer asked Jesus… (Luke 10:29) Dear Friends, From Sunday’s reading in Luke’s Gospel, I found myself pondering justification. I was not concerned with Priests, Levites, or even Samaritans (good or otherwise).  My mind did not turn to the poor man in the ditch half-dead, or of the robbers who jumped […]

Therefore my heart sings to you without ceasing; O Lord my God, I will give you thanks for ever. (Psalm 30:13) Dear Friends, We are sliding down the backside of Hump Day. Thinking about this last line in this pslam of praise from Sunday, I thought of a poem by Mary Oliver and invite you to […]

Protect me, O God, for I take refuge in you; I have said to the LORD, “You are my Lord, my good above all other.” (Psalm 16:1) Dear Friends, Generally, we Episcopalians do not spend a lot of time with the psalms, this beautiful and lyrical collection of poetry.  In his book, Praying the Psalms, […]

“I beg you, do not….” “They begged him not….” “…the demons begged Jesus to….” “The man… begged that he might be with….” (excerpts from Luke 8:26-39).” Dear Friends, The Gospel reading from Luke just a few days ago is deeply layered. It is a healing story that is in each of the Synoptic Gospels (Mark, Matthew, […]

“ When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. (John 16:13).” Dear Friends,  This past Sunday was Trinity Sunday. Did you know that Trinity Sunday is […]

” All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine (Acts 2:12-13).” Dear Friends, Just a few days ago was the Day of Pentecost, one of the seven feast days of the Church (check them out in the Book of Common Prayer (BCP), p. […]