I’ve seen a lot of unusual things, people and events in airports. It takes something special to get a reaction from me. Recently, I saw something that stopped me in my tracks. In fact, I took a photo of the…
Discerning a sign from God
I must admit being a little leery of persons who see signs of divine intervention at every turn. Whether it be an open parking space, a favorite team’s victory, or finding the last toy on the shelf (the perfect gift…
My Christmas prayer
We were standing at the airport in Havana, Cuba, preparing to depart for our return home when our translator, Vladimir, turned to me and asked, “What is a ‘grinch’?” His look of confusion was understandable given he could find no…
An Advent prayer
O God of Advent, You are with us, Emmanuel, near as breath, present as Spirit, guiding us as Lord. You hear our sighs and groans and speak their language. When we are in chaos, you make sense of our wildest…
‘Be subject,’ but be careful
¨Let every person be subject to the governing authorities for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist…
Life, love and Elmer’s glue
I’ll confess, I didn’t hear the Christmas tree come crashing down in the middle of the night. I vaguely remember my husband asking me if I heard dishes shattering. Just another bizarre dream, I thought. No thief in the night…
In America today, who gets to use possessive pronouns?
The crowds trudged through the rain from the main square in order to block the street in front of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department headquarters. “Whose streets? Our streets!” they shouted, in defiance of the long history of Charlotte. Here, streets and…
Finding a place to ask the tough questions
Early in my pastoral work I found myself in the middle of an intense season of transformation and conflict at my church. I wasn’t prepared for the dynamics I faced then; really, nobody at church knew quite what to do…
Fake news and fake gospels
See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:8, NRSV) For the time is coming when…
If you’re not outraged …
Several years ago, a bumper sticker popped up here and there that said, “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention.” We need to print up some more of those for times like these. Love him or hate him, you’ve…
Jesus’ family’s values
This past Thanksgiving, my wife and I had both of our families gather together as we celebrated our first holiday as a married couple. It was a really special time where we had amazing food, fun, and fellowship. As we…
A Christmas wish list to enact social justice
’Tis the season for giving, or, at least, that is what we say. The conclusion of the year 2016 comes as a relief of many of us. Not only was this year riddled with the deaths of Alan Rickman, David…