Scripture
July 21, Ordinary 16B (Mark 6:30–34, 53–56)
An exhausted Jesus responds to the crowd with compassion. I think that’s a miracle.
Grace and peace (Ephesians 1:3-14)
It’s hard to greet people with a blessing without sounding ostentatiously pious.
July 14, Ordinary 15B (Mark 6:14–29)
Who knows what took place in Herod’s guilty heart after John’s death?
July 7, Ordinary 14B (Mark 6:1–13)
The disciples want to know who Jesus is. The people from his hometown do not.
Reaching out (Mark 5:21-43)
The Gospel of Mark tells the story of a precarious moment.
Treasures of our ancestors
Rabbi Debra Robbins creates a spiritual practice around the seven psalms of the Jewish morning liturgy.
June 30, Ordinary 13B (2 Samuel 1:1, 17–27)
Maybe the Song of the Bow is an Iron Age propaganda drop. Or maybe it’s just a song.
Our very human pastors (2 Corinthians 6:1-13)
Paul comes to the Corinthians as he is and ministers among them from God’s grace dwelling in his distinct and dented life.
Hair like wool
Both Daniel and Revelation compare God’s hair to wool. White enslavers used to say the same thing about hair like mine.
Leading and lamenting with Nehemiah
Brenda Salter McNeil draws on her community organizing experience to find fresh lessons from the biblical rebuilder.
June 23, Ordinary 12B (1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4–11, 19–23), 32–49)
When David steps out to challenge Goliath, he shifts from the acted upon to the actor.
This particular soil (Mark 4:26-34)
Seeds do not grow without soil, and soil is a factor of place.
What is the rainbow in Genesis a reminder of?
This year during Pride month, God seems to have a lot of rainbow defenders online. But they aren’t getting the Bible story quite right.
My dad’s old Bible offers more questions than answers
What can I learn from what he underlined—or didn’t?
June 16, Ordinary 11B (2 Corinthians 5:6–10, (11–13), 14–17)
Paul has been wounded by the church, but he is driven to keep engaging.
On not losing heart (2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1)
Learning to trust in God requires an act of will.
June 9, Ordinary 10B (1 Samuel 8:4–20, [11:14–15])
Samuel is a good leader, until he isn’t.
Jesus’ very Jewish question about sabbath (Mark 2:23-3:6)
Jesus is in alignment with many rabbis when he asks, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath?”
A pulpit without a context
I asked ChatGPT for a sermon. What it wrote seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere.