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Lenten Prayer

Lord God, today is the first Sunday of Lent, a season of repentance, of self-examination, of silence and waiting for the leading of your Holy Spirit. Through your Spirit you lead us into the temptations of Jesus, forty days in the wilderness, where our lives are laid bare, and we come face to face [...]

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(below’s a recent sermon I preached.  for those interested the podcast & video are on my church’s website)

When my wife and I got married eight years ago we of course thought about using this passage as our text for the service.  And why not?  It’s all about love (though it doesn’t mention marriage, and actually [...]

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I just finished Bob Ekblad’s book, Reading the Bible with the Damned, and was inspired by his method of Bible study that he uses when leading groups with inmates, immigrants, and others on the margins of society.  What impresses me is the way he is able to weave together scholarly exegesis, facilitating a space for [...]

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For the college group I lead we’re reading in Ecclesiastes for the next few months.  Last week we talked about how such a skeptical, some would say heretical, book made it into the canon.  The dominant interpretation of Ecclesiastes is that it is framed by a narrator who brackets the beginning and end of the [...]

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Congregational Prayer
Text: Psalm 99
10.19.08

“The Lord reigns,” says Psalm 99. “Let the nations tremble; God sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake.”

Let the nations tremble… God, why should the nations tremble? They tremble, the Psalmist says, because you love justice. In a world of injustice, in a world where peace and forgiveness are scarce, [...]

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Congregational Prayer: 5.25.2008 (lectionary text: Isaiah 49:8-16Isaiah 49:8-16English: Contemporary English Version (1999) – CEVThe Lord Will Lead His People Home

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This prayer, by St. Francis, is one of my favorites because it gives such a vivid, full picture of God. I also like how he holds together several paradoxes (i.e. God is wisdom and humility, joy and justice, etc.).

You are strong.
You are great.
You [...]

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Prayer is a very important part of our worship services. Every week different people take turns praying for us and with us. At the beginning of the service we have a congregational prayer that reflects on our lectionary passages and the world around us. Later in the service we have a time for individuals to [...]

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I had a couple of other prayers in mind for today, but then I came across this one this morning and it seemed especially fitting for today, Martin Luther King Jr. day. I’ve thought about racism from the perspective of Ephesians 2:14-16Ephesians 2:14-16English: Contemporary English Version (1999) – CEV14 Christ has made peace between Jews and [...]

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I wrote a benediction for the Fourth Sunday of Advent. Please feel free to use it, adjust it, or tell me why it’s wrong.
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As the apostle Paul says in Philippians, “The Lord is near” (4:5). We are witnesses of the dawning of that great light come into the world—Immanuel, God with us. May we depart [...]

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