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How Do Other People Hear Our Gospel Message?
It seems that, right now, in the United States, in the midst of the Charleston shooting, two years of national conversations about race, and arguing over the confederate flag, we have long ignored the most crucial part of communication. A Should’ve Asked Question When Jesus tells us to proclaim the gospel to all nations,…
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Why I Love the Call Stories
Most preachers love the psalms and parables. Me, I’ll take the call stories. The stories where Jesus collects followers like I collected baseball cards and comic books. Intentionally: with respect for big names and the common ones alike. Of course the other stories are sexier. The enduring parables like The Prodigal Son(s), the Good Samaritan, the…
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Manifesting in Story
Monday’s celebration of The Epiphany was unique in that it took place in the midst of a once-in-a-generation snow storm. That arctic vortex gave us sub-zero temperatures and heavy snowfall as we haven’t seen in the Midwest in a long time. Feeling the cold on my face in the minutes I was out shoveling…
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Sweating It Out: celebrating the Eucharist in a hoodie
I had trouble sleeping Saturday night. I was angry. Angry that George Zimmerman wouldn’t be punished, for the fear that has beset the African American community, for all the bullshit post-racism talk of my white neighbors. Mostly, I was angry that I was feeling powerless as a church leader to express myself. It frightened me…
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Why I’m preaching Easter 7 (and nothing else)
This week there are no doubt many preachers trying to figure out how to deal with Sunday. It is the Seventh Sunday of Easter. It also happens to be two other things: the Sunday after the Ascension and Mother’s Day. To the church, it is Easter 7. This isn’t to say that people in church…
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Why I Don’t Preach Daily Living Sermons
If you’ve been around the church, you know there are many different genres of sermons. With names like “biblical” and “narrative,” we are often asked to classify and name our preaching style. My own style falls into several categories, but I’m pretty sure there is one it does not: the “daily living” sermon. I’ve been…
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It’s That Time of Year…For Repentance?
Why do you hate Advent? Seriously. What did it ever do to you? It never tried to steal your lunch money. It never made up rumors about you and spread them around school. So what gives? Why are you talking about a holiday that isn’t even here while ignoring the season that is? It isn’t…
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Hypocrites
My reflection on today’s gospel: Matthew 23:1-12.