ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 20, 2021Those who have chosen to follow Jesus have only one task, and that is to love. The love of God put on display in Jesus, the love we are to use as our model, is not something we choose to emulate only when it is practical or easy. They say consistency is the best teaching tool, and Jesus was consistent when it came to love.
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 19, 2021This past Sunday, I talked about how loving your neighbor not only begins with loving yourself, but knowing yourself. In fact, it is hard to love yourself if you do not know yourself. In Galatians 5:14, the Apostle Paul echoed the teaching of Jesus when he wrote, “For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 18, 2021Prayer for the Week:God of All Creation –Source of all goodnessGiver of all Grace.Today, we give thanksFor a sustaining loveFor the breath of lifeFor the sustenance of the earthFor the welcome of your church.Our hearts are filled with gratitudeFor the beauty of creationFor the birds of the airFor the fish in the watersFor the animals upon the land.We give you all praise and honorWe give
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 17, 2021Many different people have said it many different ways, but let me say it this way: Do not live vicariously the blessings of others while ignoring your own. Today in worship, we will talk about envy. To have envy is to lose all excitement for what we have as we grow in excitement for what is not yet our own. We can still be happy
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 16, 2021On this day in 1984, Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. I had only been involved in the Anti-Apartheid movement for about six months at that point, but I knew the name Desmond Tutu. Six months after he received the award, I protested outside the South African Embassy in Washington, D.C. Less than ten years later, I met Desmond
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 15, 2021I would visit a friend’s office often, and on his wall was a beautifully framed poster which read: Happiness is experienced when you stop comparing yourself to others. Funny thing is that I envied my friend’s office. It had more square footage than my first apartment, a private bathroom and a door that lead to an outdoor prayer garden. It is one thing to read
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 14, 2021Though I have read the words from John 15 more times than I can count, I was struck differently in a recent reading. It says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 13, 2021Knowing who you are and what you believe is sort of essential if one wishes to live a full and joy-filled life. I’m sure it has been true for every generation, at least to some degree, but today I find a lot of folks claim to know who they are and what they believe based upon who they are not and what they do not
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 12, 2021No one likes to be judged, yet most of us know what it is like to be judged. Does God judge us? This is a tough question, especially when we speak of God’s unconditional love and ceaseless mercy. If that’s true, how does God judge? In Romans 2, Paul wrote some interesting words to a community he had never met before, yet he clearly understood
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGOctober 11, 2021Prayer for the Week:Where there are deep hurts Let us drink from your reservoir of loveWhere there is loneliness Let us fall into your receptive spiritWhere there is grief Let us be enveloped in your hopeWhere there is betrayal Let us learn of your amazing fidelityWhere there is hate Let us see your image in all peopleWhere there is deceit Let us discern your merciful