ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 12, 2023Yesterday, I referenced the importance of keys, the focus of my sermon on October 1, and a central part of our Stewardship Campaign: “We Do This Work For The One Who Has Been Told…” Too often, people have been told outright or in more subtle ways that they are not smart enough to draw insight from the scriptures without “the educated” telling them what to
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 11, 2023My friend Michelle Beech posted the following quote yesterday, and it really resonated with me. “We are not what we know but what we are willing to learn.”~Mary Catherine Bateson I did not know the name Mary Catherine Bateson, but like so often happens, once I started reading about her, I was intrigued and realized she was probably a person I should have had
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 10, 2023I’ve been thinking a lot about my Etching from yesterday, a prayer about the holy affirmation we find, among other places, in the poetry, songs, and stories of scripture. Sadly, in the prayer, I had a slight spelling mishap. As I was preparing to open all four of the social media platforms that I use, I erased a section of the prayer. It was gone,
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 9, 2023Prayer for the Week:Your witness and purpose are disclosed in the poetry and songs and stories of scripture. Holy Mystery, Sacred Voice, give us strength so your loving affirmation of us is something we can embrace and affix within us. Whether it is the daily grind of life or a soul-devouring sadness that can appear so unexpectedly, we need to know you, trust you, and
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 8, 2023God is good! That is a very old and common statement made by people of faith, yet what does it mean for God, in Genesis 1, to declare human beings to be good? The word in ancient Hebrew is towb, and it is used in many different ways in different passages of the Old Testament. But what makes it sort of interesting is the word
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 7, 2023The Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi (not something most Protestants recognize in the same way our Catholic siblings do) was Wednesday, October 4. There are many exceptional quotes from St. Francis, including these: Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible. If you have people who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 6, 2023Tomorrow is a big day around Cypress Creek Christian Church. I believe it was nine years ago when I made a request for some folks who might help with a crazy idea that was brewing in my head. I wanted to do a Blessing of the Animals, and two of the very first people to step forward were Paul and Mary Hupman. They and others
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 5, 2023In Psalm 55:22, we read:Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you;he will never permit the righteous to be moved. A few weeks ago, I reflected on the notion of casting our burdens and what that exactly looks like. I don’t believe most of my burdens are something I can really grab with my hands and then toss as far as I
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 4, 2023The other day, a fellow pastor said, “I hate stewardship! I hate trying to raise money for the church budget.” Well, first, the word ‘hate’ is pretty harsh. Second, stewardship has never really been about raising money. I know it can feel that way as there is a budget at the church, and there are bills to pay, monetary outreach to be sent, and paychecks
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSOctober 3, 2023Yesterday was my day off, but it was one of those days off when there were projects to do. We did some major housecleaning, and one of the projects was to pull out the washer and dryer to clean underneath them. And of course, since the dryer was pulled out of the wall, I might as well do some cleaning of the dryer vent. And