Monday’s Moment
A moment of inspiration brought to you each Monday.
A Mother Sows…with a little help from her friends!
July 6, 2011 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. Matthew 13:19 “The Devil went down to Georgia, he was looking for a soul to steal”…do you know these words? Do you know this song? It’s a lively, catchy tune by Charlie Daniels that has evidently been ruminating in the mind of my seven year old son, Cory, for the last month or so. I only know this because several days ago he woke up early in the morning whimpering… Read more »
Learn from me…
Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. –Matthew 11:29 Recently, I attended a congregational meeting where the relatively small group gathered was taking their first vote on whether to leave or stay in the ELCA. At one point, one of those sitting at my table said with no small amount of disdain, “They had better vote to leave, or they will lose a lot of members!” Notice, he didn’t say, “We” had better vote to leave… but “They” had better vote to… Read more »
Remember, I am with you always
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit… –Matthew 28:19 This coming Sunday is Trinity Sunday, a day when our readings are chosen with great care to help us understand the doctrine of the Trinity: God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. A couple of years ago, the Approval Essay for our Senior Seminary Candidates focused on the Doctrine of the Trinity. Some of the students went into great detail about how the Doctrine came about and the traps that we… Read more »
Jesus is Lord
No one can say “Jesus is Lord”except by the Holy Spirit. –1 Corinthians 12:3b Who of us has never wrestled with the question, “Am I really a person of faith?” We know something about our doubts and fears. We know that we have thought and acted in ways that betray our baptismal calling as one who is marked with the cross of Christ forever. If that is the case, am I a hypocrite, a fraud, or worse? One of the earliest confessions of faith was “Jesus is Lord.” In the face of the emperor’s claim to be “Lord”, the one… Read more »
The Purpose of the Bible
Acts 2:14a, 22-32; 1 Peter 1:3-9; John 20:19-31 When I was a child, my friend’s mother would get furious about his misbehavior and scold, “You need Sunday! You need to read the Bible!” She obviously believed, as many do, that the purpose of the Bible and the Christian faith is to produce good morals and behavior. Others believe that the purpose of the Bible is to demonstrate the superiority of Christian over other religions. A very popular modern perspective is that the Bible is a compendium of the teachings of Jesus, a book of ethics, which informs our thinking about money, violence, and the… Read more »
People today are thirsty!
A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” –John 4:7 People today are thirsty! They are thirsting for something, but often don’t even know what they are craving. Despite all that people have today, something is missing. Despite all the conveniences, despite all the knowledge and technical know-how, despite all the stuff that fills our lives something is missing. Yes, people are thirsty and they want something that will energize them! And a quick jolt from a double shock, caffeine drink will only last a couple hours and then we find ourselves thirsty once again. But those… Read more »