Sunday was the day for reflecting on the baptism of Jesus. This year, the text was from Mark. Mark reports that John the Baptist was quoting old prophecies and speaking of a glorious future. John was pointing to a millennia-long story. We live in moments, and we often want answers in the moment. But the […]

God. We aren’t sure who to trust and who to fear. We aren’t sure we can trust those who say they speak for you. We shrink our sense of who you are to the descriptions we hear, to the outcomes we want. We confess that we don’t know you very well. We confess that we […]

As Mary and Joseph walked into the outer courts of the temple, a man came and took Jesus into his arms. His name was Simeon. Not a priest, not anyone special by title. But by reputation, he was righteous and devout. Simeon lived in Jerusalem. Simeon was living his life, aware of prophecies, building a […]

Mary and Joseph had an infant. They both had heard from angels, had seen shepherds. They had promises from God. Some people would say that they should have been amazed.  Some people would expect that they must have been floating or something. But the truth is, we don’t think about all the in-between times. What […]