Tag: Loss
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Feeling Overwhelmed And Powerless? – A Holy Saturday Reflection
Overwhelmed and powerless. I’ve had days like that, you probably have too. What were they like for you? What happened? What were the conversations in your head? What feelings, memories, hopes did you carry in your heart? On those days I feel small and insignificant. Circumstances feel large and heavy. I feel pressed down and… Read more
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Life In The Gap – An Advent Sermon On Jeremiah 33:14-16 And Luke 21:25-36
Recently, someone said to me, “I’m ready to move on. I don’t like being in this in between place.” I know what he means and I’ll bet you do too. I sometimes think about it as life in the gap. It’s the gap between what was or is and what will be. It’s the gap… Read more
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When Our Great Buildings Fall – A Sermon On Mark 13:1-8
What do you do when the great buildings of your life fall, when not one stone is left upon another, and all has been thrown down? I think that’s the question Jesus is answering in today’s gospel (Mark 13:1-8). It’s a question we all come to at some point. It’s a question I’ve been asking… Read more
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And What About You, O God? – My Lament On The First Anniversary Of The Uvalde Shooting
Shortly after Easter I attended a retreat that focused on creativity and spirituality. In one of the workshops we were invited to write our own psalm. I knew that I would write about the mass shooting that occurred in Uvalde May 24, 2022, and the upcoming first anniversary of that tragedy. I was surprised by… Read more
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We Shall Overcome – A Sermon On Matthew 27:57-66 For Holy Saturday
“Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.” (Matthew 27:57-66) I know what that’s like and I’ll bet you do too. We’ve all had times in our life when we were “sitting opposite the tomb.” It’s a good description for this day we call Holy Saturday. Holy Saturday is the day… Read more
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Enlarging Life In Uvalde – A Sermon On Luke 8:26-39
It’s not too difficult to make some connections between the man in today’s gospel (Luke 8:26-29) and ourselves and what has happened in Uvalde. Though his circumstances may be different from ours, we’re not that different from him. The man used to live in a house in the city, now he lives outside the city… Read more
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Living The Unbearable In Uvalde – A Sermon On John 16:12-15
Jesus said to the disciples, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.” When I read today’s gospel (John 16:12-15) about the unbearable and began preparing this sermon I thought to myself, This gospel is exactly what we need to hear. We are living the unbearable. I also… Read more
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Uvalde Weeps – A Sermon On Jeremiah 31:15-17
Have you seen the front page of today’s newspaper? It’s the first issue since the shooting. When I saw the front page this morning I said to myself, “That’s what I feel like.” Look at it. There’s a date, May 24, 2022, and empty darkness. Nothing else. There are no consoling words, no explanations, no… Read more
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Nobody Wants To Come To Holy Saturday – A Sermon On Matthew 27:57-66
Nobody wants to come to Holy Saturday. Look around. Very few show up on this day, and most probably do not even know there is a liturgy for this day. I don’t blame them, I understand. Not much happens today. The liturgy is short, maybe twenty minutes. The church is empty and bare. There are… Read more