Last week, I came across one of those “re-posts” on my Facebook news feed. I wasn’t particularly happy when I saw it. It read: “REPOST IF U BEILIEVE IN GOD AND IN 2 MINUTES HE WILL DO YOU A HUGE FAVOR” Now first of all, yes, whoever first created this re-post misspelled believe. Second, there is an assumption seemingly made that God has a gender. … Continue reading Some thoughts on a re-post and the prosperity gospel
As has become custom on this blog, I am including a transcript of the sermon I preached this past Sunday (September 1st, 2013). The gospel passage that this centered from was the lectionary appointed one, Luke 14:1, 7-14. Without further adieu here it is: A Sermon for September 1, 2013 (Lectionary 22/Pentecost 15C); Gospel of Luke 14:1, 7-14 The past two Saturdays, Allison and I … Continue reading A Sermon on Luke 14
In my posts yesterday I hinted that there would be upcoming posts about recent changes in the ELCA (the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America). Today, I offer a guest post sharing some reflections from my brother Thomas who was a voting member at the ELCA’s Churchwide Assembly on behalf of the Southwestern Washington Synod. Thomas is in the midst of graduate studies in social work and … Continue reading Guest Post- Reflections on the ELCA Churchwide Assembly
First of all, I hope you are all having the chance to watch and follow some of the speeches and ceremonies going on today honoring, remembering, and continuing in the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, today, 50 years later. King’s vision and dream continues I believe today, because the vision and mission with which it is grounded and speaks … Continue reading Summer Links
This past month I have taken some time for myself. I spent a month away from my job in a congregation to do some personal discernment and reflection. I also took some time away from other things, like blogging. I did so to clear my head and to simply “just be.” I have to say that I learned a lot about myself, and remembered some … Continue reading Back from Sabbatical
“The Way We Think about Charity is Dead Wrong” Dan Pallotta recently gave a TED talk entitled, “The Way We Think about Charity is Dead Wrong.” Until today I hadn’t had a chance to sit and watch it in its entirety and think deeply about its implications. Obviously, he covers a lot of ground here in just over 18 minutes. One of the biggest critiques … Continue reading Provocative Thoughts on Social Sector Effectiveness
I had the opportunity to bring the message yesterday on the story of the sisters Martha and Mary. What follows are excerpts of that sermon. I have removed some of the more contextual pieces that would only really make sense for the congregation that this sermon was preached for. I titled the sermon, “Why do we do what we do?” It was preached on July … Continue reading “Why do we do what we do?” – Sermon on Luke 10:38-42
In doing my morning news reading and social media perusing, I came across a link on Facebook to a story about Irena Sendler. Sendler passed away in 2008, and the story is a story about her life that was published that year by the Daily Mail out of the United Kingdom. I have linked to the story here because I believe it describes the story of … Continue reading Irena Sendler- A person you should know about
Happy Canada Day to all Canadians! To the rest of you, Happy July! This post is the second post featuring a long list of different stories and links which I have not blogged individually about. I had originally planned to do this weekly or bi-weekly, but at least at this point, the rhythm of this is monthly. We’ll see if I can make this happen … Continue reading Lots of Links
While sitting in a conference room during work for the start-up organization of which I am a part, I took a moment and noticed the surrounding walls. On one wall there was nothing, just a blank grayish blue color. On the adjacent side, it was a wall with two windows and a brownish red, serving as the accent wall. The other two walls also had … Continue reading Human Potential for Growth
Timothy Siburg 