I have never claimed to be a poet or a good writer. I enjoy writing though, so thus I blog. A strange thing happened to me after attending a worship service yesterday though, I sat down and I started writing with a pencil on a scratch piece of paper. What came from that strange experience kind of looks like a poem (admittedly it doesn’t really … Continue reading Strange…
It struck me at Christmas, that I miss reading the latest books to learn and for the thrill of learning, which I had while a student. So, in an effort to do something about this, I am going to try and average reading at least one book per week this year. This isn’t a resolution, just a goal. We’ll see how I do, and I … Continue reading This Year’s Reading
This week has been a great week. This week has also been a hard week. Today was my final Sunday at the church I have served on staff for a little over the past 3 years. I started there as Music Ministry Coordinator and within a year was the Worship Coordinator. This was the fourth Advent and Christmas season I helped guide the congregation through. … Continue reading In Gratitude
One of the most discouraging things I have heard from different leaders in the past year is that “I don’t have enough time to read all of these things.” There is truth to this. Time is precious, and its a gift. That’s why it is important to prioritize what one does in their work and as a leader. Whether its reports, blogs, articles, publications, newest … Continue reading The Learning Leader
Merry Christmas! As we begin the actual “Twelve Days” of Christmas, we remember what it can mean for God to literally break into the world in new and unexpected ways. One of the best quotes that I have seen shared this year comes from Michael Spencer. He writes: “The incarnation is the complete refutation of every human system and institution that claims to control, possess … Continue reading And so this is Christmas…
About a month ago I wrote a post about leading in transition. I want to pick up that conversation today with some theological reflection, but because of the nature of this blog there will be plenty of leadership perspective in this as well. These are reflections about being a leader in the midst of personal transition. These are personal reflections, and not academic ones. I … Continue reading Leading in Transition
It’s Tuesday. That means its time for this weeks links. Unlike last week, they aren’t so extensive. That is to be expected though when the United States observed the Thanksgiving holiday for much of the second half of last week and weekend. That said, there has still been a great deal of good and thought provoking things shared in the past week that I now … Continue reading This Week’s Links
Tonight I provided the following reflections as part of the message in my congregation’s Thanksgiving Eve worship service. As is the custom on this blog, I include my sermons that I share. However, I remove most pieces that are dependent upon the context so what follows is fairly close to what I preached without some of the contextual particulars. This sermon was crafted based on … Continue reading An Abundance of Blessings (A Sermon of sorts for Thanksgiving Eve)
Yesterday we observed and celebrated “Christ the King Sunday.” It is the last Sunday of the church year, and the day the church honors Christ who reigns as King from the cross. The lectionary appointed texts yesterday were Jeremiah 23:1-6; Psalm 46; Colossians 1:11-20; and Luke 23:33-43. As has been a custom on this blog, I include the sermons I preach here as posts. So … Continue reading What Kind of King? (A Sermon for Christ the King Sunday)
Blogger’s Note: On this blog I occasionally offer brief reflections on particular days within the church year. Today’s post is one such reflection. Today in many churches across the world we observed All Saints Sunday. For some general context and background, All Saints Day is the day following All Hallows Eve. So November 1st is the proper time to celebrate All Saints, but in recent years … Continue reading All Saints Day
Timothy Siburg 