A sermon preached at North Chevy Chase Christian Church on Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 Let me just start by saying, In fact, some of my pastor friends just can’t believe I’d be brave (or stupid enough) to pick it for my focus scripture this morning. (Did you read this text? Click on the link above before …
God
Getting Personal with God
Join me for a conversation with Psalm 63:1-8 . . . Several years ago a dear friend of mine called me one day to say that she was dating someone new. The longest dinner date, she told me, turned into a dinner date the next night and they’d really been inseparable. And things got serious fast …
How Do You Speak of God?
In my childhood church, when we prayed, we always prayed to our “Heavenly Father” and we called God “He.” I was taught God was male. Case closed. And because this was true, if you really wanted to be seen as extra holy, you’d be sure to capitalize in writing any pronoun reference for …
You are Beloved
Lessons from the First Family: You are Beloved A sermon preached on Genesis 1:26-27 at the Federated Church, Weatherford, OK I’ve had one of those weeks when my message to you could be summed up in one sentence. Let me explain there’s a story . . . In my tradition, ordination is a function of …
A Side of God We Often Do Not Want to See
A Side of God We Really Don’t Want to See: Exodus 33:12-23 a sermon preached at The Federated Church, Weatherford, OK In all human relationships– with our spouses, our children, our friends—there are ebbs and flows, aren’t there? There are days when we wonder why in the world we ever got married, had kids or …
Friendship with God
I grew up in the type of Christian community that would frequently say things like: “Work on your relationship with God above all else.” And, “If you let anything come between your relationship with Jesus, then your faith is off track.” For while the intention of such teaching was probably was something like, “Make your …
You’ve Always Got to be Open
Resurrection Unfolding: Openness Acts 11:1-18 Preached at Broadneck Baptist Church, Annapolis, MD I don’t know about you, but it is easy for me to think at certain points of my own story of faith that I have “arrived” at what is the right way. That I’ve finally had enough education, enough life experience, enough personal …
Redefining God as Parent
Our last in the series of “Sermons by Request” continued this morning. Finding out that this was the passage chosen made my head spin a little… I didn’t know what I’d make of such. But in the e d thankful for this week’s theological wrestlings. Romans 1:18-25 One of the most important questions of faith …
Praise the Lord!
Our sermons by request series continued this week with Psalm 150. I wondered what I was going to do with this text when I first read it (as I’ve never been very good at my attempts to preach on the Psalms), but in the end I was glad for the challenge. And what a FUN service …
Living in Lent
Lent is already half-way over and is anyone dragging like me? The days of self-reflection and self-discipline seem like too much at junctures like today when I’m ready to throw in the towel and just say, “What’s the point?” I haven’t been able to keep a Lenten discipline for several years now, but I’m hoping …