The secret to letting people know we are not only a welcoming church but that we are ready to walk with them in their life of Spiritual Growth is to have at least one Small Group ready for them to join when we meet them. Read more →
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This may sound like a dream for the poor and the afflicted. It may be scoffed at by those who work day by day with the broken hearted and discouraged. But it’s true! Read more →
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It’s easy to miss the lonely and the isolated, even in a crowd. Are you and your congregation prepared to make friends with the lonely? Or are you distracted by all the busy-ness of the season? Read more →
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For a long time, my questions has been: "Why do we wait for something that is already here?" Is it an example of Christmas-time "parental control” to make us behave? Is it just Tradition? Read more →
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The Christmas staple of the Messiah is spectacular! The "Halleluiah Chorus" alone is often the sentimental "showstopper" in many Christmas concerts. But aside from its beauty and reference to the Christ-child, it's real intention and message is to link Christmas to Easter, (which is the reason for Christmas after all!). Read more →
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Are you addressing the widespread grief we are all carrying in your messages this season? Are you being open and honest about your own grief? Back when 9/11 happened, one response was full churches. Grief, along with anger, confusion and... Read more →
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What if we approached Christmas not as a memory to cherish, but a moment to take changing our lives seriously? We put a lot of hopes and dreams on our single candle. We often see ourselves warding off a windy darkness with a flickering flame. We cast ourselves as heroes of our own story, making our way with courage in a world of woe. But two thousand years of Christ says otherwise. “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” -John 1:5 Read more →
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Do you shy away from the passages that talk of destruction and death, wars and rumors of war, of stone falling away from stone and walls destroyed, of earthquakes and famine? Every year in November, we end the Lectionary year... Read more →
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With a little preparation, the covenant community of Christ, the church, can offer a safe and healing place, a place to start over again and incorporate important changes in our lives. It can a place where life can move closer to God’s dream for all of us if we can help it be that way. Read more →
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Let’s face it, Christmas has largely become a frenzied offering to the God of Consumerism. Shopping, wrapping, decorating, office parties, family parties, neighborhood parties with drinking and eating will all be offered up with a large dose of nostalgia, excess... Read more →
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In our current recession, with friends and family losing jobs and homes, with money running out and Christmas expectations always high, we need a deeper, more "grown-up" understanding of Christmas. Read more →
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