I had a close friend in seminary that was going through some challenging times in her life shortly before entering seminary. In one year, she and her husband lost everything they had in a fire, her dad died, and she lost her job. Anybody experiencing what she did would have been more than a little … [Read more…]
When I was 10 years old, all my friends were getting braces except for me. I wanted to be just like my friends. I didn’t want to stand out in any way. I remember praying to God that I would get braces like my friends. I prayed that I could be just like them. I … [Read more…]
As a child, my father thought it imperative, that my brothers and I learned about nature. We would watch nature programs together as a family and my father taught us about food chains, the birth of animals, and the power of nature. We would observe how our cats would stalk birds, squirrels, chipmunks, and rabbits … [Read more…]
This morning, I would like to invite you to think about what makes a place inviting as I describe what I have experienced when it comes to an inviting place. When I was new to the Danbury area I was looking for a place to worship during Holy Week, as I did not yet have … [Read more…]
I am reading a fascinating book titled Savage Continent by Keith Lowe that focuses on the aftermath of World War II in Europe. It spends a long time outlining what life looked like for citizens and the masses of displaced peoples who had been imprisoned in work camps, concentration camps, and prison camps throughout Nazi … [Read more…]
The new preschool education standards focus on evaluating and teaching lessons in social emotional skills. This is something that was never present in preschool or public school educational goals in the past. Part of the social emotional educational goals is to teach empathy and conflict management skills. However, it has occurred to me that as … [Read more…]
I knew a woman who strongly believed that everyone was judging her, being purposefully unkind to her, and hated her. She lived day in and day out angry at all of her co-workers, wishing hardships on them, because they obviously disliked her and were harboring negativity towards her. Her anger increased by the day and … [Read more…]
This is the first Sunday in Lent. I think many people no longer know the purpose of Lent. Lent came into being as the Christian time of atonement. During this time, we are called to reflect upon the previous year, our relationships with one another, and how Christ died forgiving those in his life and … [Read more…]
Sometimes we live our lives for our own experiences, for our own purposes, and for our own convenience. This is what we are called to place aside when we come to faith. We are called to start putting the needs of others first and to fight against the injustices of the world. We are asked … [Read more…]
Today’s scriptures are all about God’s call in the lives of humanity. We all experience some kind of call or draw to God in our lives. So we all can relate to these accounts. I remember when I first became aware of my call. I was a young child of 12 years old. I remember … [Read more…]
