Receiving Your Inheritance – Flat on your face
Appointed readings in the Revised Common Lectionary for this week are: Appointed readings in the Revised Common Lectionary for this week are: 2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27 Psalm 130 or Wisdom of Solomon 1:13-15; 2:23-24 Lamentations 3:21-33 or Psalm 30 2 Corinthians 8:7-15 Mark 5:21-43 Often, the best place to receive your in heritance is flat […]
Receiving Your Inheritance – “I’m Tired.”
Isaiah 65:17-25 or Malachi 4:1-2a, Isaiah 12 or Psalm 98, II Thessalonians 3:6-13, Luke 21:5-19 Today I’m tired. I don’t want to write the truth about Receiving Your Inheritance. I want to write something that sounds like truth, but that isn’t so challenging. I’m tired today of the Gospel. My wife and I just moved […]
Week Fourteen
Hearing the Father’s Pleasure in You Isaiah 1:1, 10-20 or Genesis 15:1-6, Psalm 50:1-8, 22-23 or Psalm 33:12-22, Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16, Luke 12:32-40 When you read this Gospel passage, which phrase continues to ring in your ears as you walk away from it? “But know this: if the owner of the house had known at […]
Week Thirteen
Hearing the Truth in Love Hosea 11:1-11 or Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23, Psalm 107:1-9, 43 or Psalm 49:1-12, Colossians 3:1-11, Luke 12:13-21 “You fool!” Can you think of something you’d hate to hear more from the mouth of your Father in Heaven? Of course, you and I would cover over His pain and compassion as […]
Week Twelve
Hearing the Lord’s Prayer Anew Hosea 1:2-10 or Genesis 18:20-32, Psalm 85 or Psalm 138, Colossians 2:6-15, (16-19), Luke 11:1-13 When I pray nowadays, I sometimes begin with something like the disciples’ request from this Gospel text. “Lord, teach me to pray.” In doing this, I surrender even my prayer, my prayer language, to Him […]
Week Eleven
Choosing “One Thing” Amos 8:1-12 or Genesis 18:1-10a, Psalm 52 or Psalm 15, Colossians 1:15-28, Luke 10:38-42 I remember what it was like, before He opened my ears to His voice, before I could know His presence through His gentle words to me. I remember, and I don’t like it at all. When I didn’t […]
Week Ten
Hearing the Father’s Heart for Us Amos 7:7-17 or Deuteronomy 30:9-14, Psalm 82 or Psalm 25:1-10, Colossians 1:1-14, Luke 10:25-37 Moses said to the people of Israel, “The LORD your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all your undertakings, in the fruit of your body, in the fruit of your livestock, and in the […]
Week Nine
Courage to Hear the Hard Stuff II Kings 5:1-14 or Isaiah 66:10-14, Psalm 30 or Psalm 66:1-9, Galatians 6:(1-6), 7-16, Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 Sometimes I grieve for our church. I grieve because we have decided that some things that the Father has to say to us aren’t worth our attention. I understand that way of […]
Week Eight
No Going Back II Kings 2:1-2, 6-14 or I Kings 19:15-16, 19-21 Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20 or Psalm 16, Galatians 5:1, 13-25, Luke 9:51-62 “The one who puts his hand to the plow and then turns back is not fit for the kingdom of God.” Harsh. Uncompromising. There is no shared ground between the Kingdom of […]
Week Seven
Learning Not to Fear Fear I Kings 19:1-4, (5-7), 8-15a or Isaiah 65:1-9, Psalm 42 and 43 or Psalm 22:19-28, Galatians 3:23-29, Luke 8:26-39 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15) Because we will […]
Divergence on the Lectionary – Proper 16, Year C (track one)
First Reading Jeremiah 1:4–10 Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for […]
Week Six
Jesus, Bring the Rain Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31, Psalm 8, Romans 5:1-5, John 16:12-15 One of the Christian bands I like to listen to is called “Mercy Me.” You may know them for their most famous song, “I can only imagine.” In a more recent album, they have a song called “Bring the Rain.” Here are […]
Week Five
Testing What You Hear Against Jesus’ Prayer Acts 16:16-34, Psalm 97, Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21, John 17:20-26 In the last few writings, I’ve been talking about how we might come to hear the Father’s voice better and, in one piece, some of the wonderful reasons why we might want to. This time, I’d like to […]
Week Four
Loving from a Heart Bigger Than Mine Acts 16:9-15, Acts 16:9-15, Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5, John 14:23-29, John 5:1-9 I had a hard time with this group of readings, deciding which text to write about, which one to allow to speak to us about the Father’s voice. As with the first reflection, there is such a […]
How to Read the Bible
A number of years ago, I was a regular contributor to the life of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew. I wrote a weekly meditation on the Scriptures, I attended the the national meetings as one of the few clergy present, and I did my best to support our vice-president and then president, Bob Dennis. Because […]
Divergence on the Lectionary – Proper 15, Year C (track one)
For a more easily printed version PDF version of this week’s Diversion CLICK HERE. First Reading Isaiah 5:1–7 Let me sing for my beloved my love song concerning his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he […]
