300 words a day

The disciples, when Jesus died, were heartbroken. The disciples, when Jesus appeared again, were overwhelmed with delight. The disciples, when Jesus disappeared and the Holy Spirit came, were determined in their work and invigorated in their expectation of seeing him again. For them, the thought of a future in the full presence of God kept […]

I’m not from a tradition of Advent. I’m from a tradition that looks at the words of Jesus in Matthew 24 and says, “We could disappear at any time, so don’t be doing things that you would want Jesus to catch you doing.” There is an element of truth, of course, but it’s not a […]

God. This is the first Sunday of Advent. Some of us call this Hope Sunday. We read about salvation being closer than ever. And we very much want that to be true. Because it doesn’t always feel that way. In truth, God, many of us are uncomfortable with expectations. We have expected good things and […]

I think I’ve mentioned that I’m teaching a course in Pastoral Care these days. I made the assignment for Thanksgiving week very simple. It’s a project from Jon Acuff, in new book, All it Takes is a Goal. And it’s very simple. 1. Write the words”best moments” somewhere, On a piece of paper. On a blank […]

I have mixed feelings about the holiday of Thanksgiving. It’s an introvert thing probably, and having struggles with trying to live up to the expectations people bring to holidays. I’ve written about that before. Like the time my mom discouraged me from having pie after the Thanksgiving Eve service: Store-bought chocolate cream pie And a […]