It probably comes as no surprise that leaving my home of eight years in Antrim, New Hampshire has, to varying degrees, been emotionally painful. As a whole my mind is busy on other things, but when it is allowed to slow down (for instance, early in the morning or late in the evening) a certain…
Category: Pastoral
“Whose Damsel is This?”
The first time I visited a Half Price Books was last year in Arlington, Texas. Like Radio Shack, it's the kind of store I like to stop in whenever I see one, but generally I don't buy anything. It's not because there is nothing I'm interested in, quite the opposite. Instead, if I were to…
The Gospel for Hair Bands
I'm not entirely sure, but the first time I heard Europe's "Wish I Could Believe" was while listening to the Internet radio station XERS earlier this year. Having an ear for songs that speak to spiritual topics, this portion of the chorus caught my attention: Cause I, wish I could believe in God So I…
“I’m Sorry if I Offended You”
Although there are myriad other reasons to be aggravated with politicians and government leaders, perhaps one of the most annoying is how they apologize. First, they are unlikely to actually admit they did anything wrong—for instance, they don't say, "I'm sorry I said something really stupid." Instead, they proffer an equivocation like, "I'm sorry if…
Three Strikes You’re In
Growing up in Canaan, New Hampshire without a whole bunch of pocket change, baseball was something that entertained my friends and me because it didn't take more than a ball and a glove to enjoy it. Well, it generally was better if there were at least two gloves. 🙂 I suppose just like cricket in…
This Means War!
Has there ever been a time in your life where you woke up in the morning convinced you couldn't face the day? Perhaps a distressing situation at work that has gone on-and-on, and you can't take another minute of it? Perhaps the overwhelming grief of loss from the death of a person or of a…
3,000 Miles and the Tower of Babel
This past weekend I was able to successfully take my wife's Nissan Cube on a 3,000 mile road trip from New Hampshire to California. Even during the dead of winter, the landscapes visible from a northern route on American interstates was amazing. Perhaps more remarkable, however, was the fact that over 72 hours I was…
Friends
As I write this I have a track repeating over-and-over on iTunes. It is a reminder of many things, including the fact that I was once young. 🙂 The main voice is that of Michael W. Smith, and the other is of his good friend Amy Grant. If I remember a conversation with a more…
Don’t Let an Earthquake Stop You
Series Finales As I considered what I would talk about for my final sermon before the Antrim Church…well at least for now…never say never 🙂 As I considered what I would preach about I had multiple options. First, I could have just continued my “Dear Least Important Church…” series, and you could be listening now…
There is a Pony in There Somewhere
When I listen to my entire iTunes library in shuffle mode I never know what might suddenly come over the speakers. Rock, classical, children's, christian, rap, bagpipe, country, polka, heavy metal…well, the list could go on. I even have some Ronald Reagan clips with which I did not set to "Skip when shuffling," and this…
The Debt Collector is Calling (Colossians 2:6-15)
I’m going to throw off the normal flow of my sermons and we are going to immediately read this week’s passage from Colossians. No intro…well, other than the two sentences I just said. 🙂 Let’s turn to Colossians 2:6-15: 6 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up…
Mystery Theater (Colossians 1:24-2:5)
OTR How many here know what the acronym OTR stands for? Now…before I asked that question I figured I’d better do a Google search to make sure that there wasn’t some other meaning even more common than the one I’m used to…and visiting Wikipedia I found that…in part…it can also mean: Ótr, a dwarf in…
Fear or Friendship
In yesterday’s Bible reading this quote made me think a bit: Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we…
Occupy Sacrilege
Sometimes it seems more than coincidental that two stories show up at the same time…and although I know it’s just happenstance, today… “Occupy protesters use Bibles as weapons — literally” It quotes from a SFGate article: Police arrested four people in connection with the evening’s occupation of the empty Cathedral Hill Hotel at Van Ness…
The Invisible Materializing (Colossians 1:15-23)
Star Trek Perhaps others here today also spent too much time while growing up…perhaps even now…watching the original Star Trek series. Assuming you did, when someone mentions “Scotty,” what comes to mind? Do you remember him, after Captain Kirk ordered him to push their engines past their limits, saying something like, “I don’t know how…