Mark 13:1-8 Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives andContinue reading “Faith Survives the Falling”
Category Archives: ordinary time
Walking in Love
Mark 12:28-34 What is love? We as the church tend to talk about love, sing about love, pray about love, and read about love a lot. But what is it, really? What does love look like? What does it feel like? What does it smell like, taste like, sound like? If love is so centralContinue reading “Walking in Love”
Brave Prayers
Mark 10:46-52 Most Wednesdays, at noon, I attend the midweek Eucharist at St John’s in Lynchburg. This is a practice I have brought with me from my time in seminary, where a very wise priest reminded me that I was baptized well before I was ordained and I should order my life with this truthContinue reading “Brave Prayers”
Unburdened
Mark 10:17-31 “Good teacher, what must I do?” Jesus has been interrupted yet again by a supplicant, this time not a religious leader or a disabled person or a parent of a demon-wracked child. This time, the one who questions him is just a man. In other tellings of this same story by the otherContinue reading “Unburdened”
Made for Each Other
Genesis 2:18-24 & Mark 10:2-16 I am indebted this week to a great number of resources, including Debie Thomas’s article , Barbara Kingsolver’s writing, and the commentaries in Robert Alter’s translation and commentary on the Hebrew Bible. I commend all of these to your personal study. There are people in my life who do notContinue reading “Made for Each Other”
Think Twice, Open.
Mark 7:24-37 Someone told me once that I should always think twice before speaking or acting. The reason, they said, is that our first thoughts are rarely even ours. So often, the first words on the tip of our tongue or the first thoughts that cross our mind do not belong to our deeply heldContinue reading “Think Twice, Open.”
The Mirror
James 1:17-27 These are trying times. Our hearts and our shoulders are heavy with the burdens of our personal lives and with the horrors covered in the news every day. Violence continues as we watch and pray for those who are desperate to escape Afghanistan and for those who will be left behind. Our veteransContinue reading “The Mirror”
Bread of Life, pt 4
John 6:56-69 This week, for a change of scenery as I continue to be unable to drive with my injured foot, I asked Ben to drop me off at a new local coffee shop that just opened in Lynchburg. Don’t worry, it wasn’t the coffee shop where said injury occurred! Although this weekend, just yesterdayContinue reading “Bread of Life, pt 4”
The Bread of Life, pt 3
John 6:51-58 The feeding of the five thousand with loaves and fishes. The seekers demanding satisfaction from Jesus. The town gossips scoffing at their neighbor’s son as he claims to be heaven-sent. Jesus has been preaching the same sermon against multiple backdrops, across multiple communities, and with every passing moment he dives deeper and unspoolsContinue reading “The Bread of Life, pt 3”
Bread of Life, pt 2
John 6:35, 41-51 I am indebted this month to the work of the reverend Lauren Winner in her book “Wearing God: Clothing, Laughter, Fire, and Other Ways of Meeting God,” specifically the chapter of her book about Bread which can be found online via the Image Journal. I commend to you her reflections on theContinue reading “Bread of Life, pt 2”
Mother A Writes 