I've always particularly enjoyed writing prayers for specific occasions--our annual Longest Night service, a close friend's wedding, an interfaith meal, a funeral. There is a beautiful intimacy in being able to weave the words, stories, and imageries of a single family or seasonal theme or group of people into our conversation with God. Most Sunday prayers are fairly general, praying for the … [Read more...]

While I am on vacation this week, I'd like to share this powerful reflection from my colleague in ministry, the Reverend Julie Gruber Delezenne of First Presbyterian Church in Warren, MI. She has also graciously offered to stream their Wednesday evening prayer service to our page this week (it is an immense blessing to be able to have a network of peers who have been so quick to offer help, … [Read more...]

I have always loved princess stories. One of my favorite gifts that I've ever received was a copy of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" that my grandfather gave when I was small. There were not one, but TWELVE princesses on almost every single page, and twelve sets of gowns and shoes to boot. It's not my favorite princess story--I was always sad that the princesses lost their freedom and … [Read more...]

In many ways, our daily lives look different this summer than they did a few months ago, and mine is no exception. Here are a few scenes of your pastor in action over the past couple weeks: Location: couch. The pastor holds up a small piece of fabric to the face of a stuffed mouse to see how much she needs to sew it a mask. 30 Rock is playing on her laptop. Location: church, exterior. With … [Read more...]

In the first two months of isolation, I think I managed to read one book. Anyone who knows me knows that this behavior change was very out of character for me. I'm always reading something, often more than one at a time. I mean, there are the sorts of books one reads to relax before bedtime, but there are also the sorts of books one reads to learn something new, or the sorts of books one reads … [Read more...]

Some of you may know that I keep a file of "sermon outtakes." Sometimes I pull out a joke that didn't fit the tone, or an extra illustration. Sometimes I end up going in a different direction and so I take out a section that was leading up to a different point. Sometimes I remove entire paragraphs for length. Theoretically, any of these outtakes could make their way into another sermon, so I … [Read more...]

"But let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." Amos 5:24 has been flooding through my mind a lot lately, an immortal line of scripture that has been a favorite among many preachers over the millennia, including Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. We often think of water as something peaceful, like the still waters of Psalm 23, or gently rolling waves, or a … [Read more...]