“And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” (Mark 1:35) You know that time of day when the sun is just getting ready to rise, and the reds and oranges fill the sky, giving a golden cast onto everything around …
Mark 4:35-41, Jesus Stills a Storm On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat …
Today is my wedding anniversary. My husband and I got married 18 years ago, on our kid’s first birthday. Which also means my kid is turning 19 today. Wow. So family, and the idea of family, is on my mind right now. There’s this story about Jesus and family that I always thought was kinda …
Today is Trinity Sunday; the day in the Western Christian calendar where we celebrate the three “persons” of God. Traditionally these are referred to as Father, Son, and Spirit (but I’d love to play around sometime with non-traditional representations of the Trinity). I have mentioned before the not-so-tongue-in-cheek descriptions of Trinity as “two White dudes …
We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not …
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s….the Holy Spirit? While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles, for they heard them speaking in tongues and …
Today we are fishing for people (Mark 1:14-20). This marks the beginning of Jesus’s ministry in Galilee, when he finds Simon and Andrew fishing and tells them to follow him, and he will make them fishers of people. This painting is by contemporary artist Victor Bregeda, whose art can be found in the homes of …
Today’s scripture includes two stories of a young Jesus in the temple. The first story is of his presentation as a baby. They also brought two turtle doves to offer as a sacrifice “according to what is stated in the law of the Lord” (Luke 2:24). Why a turtledove? We can find the answer to …
Happy Christ the King Sunday! This holiday has an interesting history. It was started by Pope Pius XI in 1925, in the aftermath of WWI. The holiday was meant to be a response to threats of secularism, communism, nationalism, and division that was rising at the time (sound familiar?). Christ the King Sunday is a …