The Community is So Important!

Published in June 30th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

Here is a picture of the rising seniors who were in my small group last week at Kairos, the Virginia Synod’s annual spiritual formation event for high school youth:

At Kairos, the rising seniors are invited to give faith testimonies to the other 160 youth and adults gathered. Many of these youth talk about how [...]

Just Wondering…

Published in June 28th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Hmmm.
I don’t know, but do you think there might be a few stories more important than the death of Michael Jackson, and the investigation of his death?
Iran? Iraq? Afghanistan? Health care for all Americans? And about a hundred other issues?
Just wondering …

A Beautiful Wedding!

Published in June 26th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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We pray God’s blessings on Maria Happel and Clayton Traver, married June 20, 2009!
Maria and Clayton met while students at the College of William and Mary. Maria was an active member of the Lutheran Student Association.

At Kairos

Published in June 23rd, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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I’m at the Virginia Synod’s annual week-long spiritual formation event for high school youth, Kairos. I’m here with Robin Hudson, our Director of Family Ministries, and the youth we’ve brought are Erika, Zachary, Travis, Lorraine and Grant.
This really is a marvelous event. One hundred-sixty youth spend extended periods of time in the same small groups [...]

A Year Later

Published in June 20th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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A year ago June 22 I baptized this baby at the Lositete Parish of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania. It is a very poor parish in a Masai village. It was a festival service! Many babies were brought to be baptized. Young people were confirmed, several people who had been excommunicated due to poor [...]

How the Spirit has been working.

Published in June 19th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Tomorrow morning’s wedding at St. Stephen will be for Maria Happel and Clayton Traver. Here is what they write on their wedding website:
“St. Stephen Lutheran church has a great deal of meaning for both of us. Long ago, Maria was baptized at St. Stephen, and attended the church all through college as a member of [...]

Morning Prayer

Published in June 13th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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I find that Liquid Fence is 100% effective in repelling deer. One problem is rain, which washes the repellent off the plants, and we have had repeated rain in recent days. So –
In the kitchen this morning at 5:45, to turn on the coffee pot. A glance out the window: FOUR deer out in the [...]

Recovering Rhythm

Published in June 12th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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I’ve been more Benedictine the past few days, and I’m feeling better.
There has been much, much too much to do the past few weeks, and this pace will continue through June. In addition, I’m in the middle of a stretch of five weeks during which three weddings and the Synod Assembly are consuming my Fridays [...]

Christ is Risen!

Published in June 11th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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This is what the flower bed in front of the church building looks like this morning!
Since the easter lilies are reminding us, and since we celebrate Easter every time we gather, we can say, on this day of June 11: Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

A True Summer Day

Published in June 8th, 2009

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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It’s a true summer day, here in eastern Virginia. Very still; little breeze. Dripping-wet humid. “Hotter ‘n Hades,” as my Virginia-native, 89-year-old father-in-law would say.
I love it! It’s also the time for the most beauty in the garden, with the Easter lilies and day lilies, the daisies and sundrops.

Today is a recovery day, following the [...]

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- Where sermons come from July 20, 2010
  Here’s the way it works. Weeks earlier, I’ve gone through the lectionary, paying attention to which of the three passage catches my attention. I jot down a few ideas of why the passage seems important. Then, on the Monday of the week that the passage is going to be read, I do my work with the commentaries, [...] […]
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- Listening July 20, 2010
  For the second morning in a row, this morning, when the clock struck 4:00, I was instantly awake and alert. The verse that has come to mind is from 1 Samuel 3: “Speak, for your servant is listening.” I think it’s part of the discernment process in our search process for a new staff member. We’ve [...] […]
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- George Steinbrenner July 14, 2010
  How interesting to read all the nice things being said about George Steinbrenner, now that he’s died. (Come to think of it, I haven’t seen a “George Steinbrenner Ruined Baseball” T-Shirt in a good while, since his quieter son took over.) Since I think of life in terms of Christianity, I keep returning to Paul’s lists [...] […]
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- Under Judgment July 13, 2010
  It rained last night! The roads were too wet for me to ride my bike. (This is something that I did not realize until I was dressed, had filled a water bottle, had topped off the air in the tires, and had walked the bike down the driveway, and actually looked at the [...] […]
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- Well, we need the rain … July 10, 2010
  The alarm went off a few minutes before 6:00 this morning. I needed time to prepare, before leaving for a 54-mile bicycle ride in Sussex County beginning at 9:00 this morning. To get to the starting point of the ride, in Waverly, I would need to be on the 7:40 ferry across the James; the 8:00 [...] […]
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- We’re funny that way July 7, 2010
  So. Here in Virginia, June, 2010 was the second hottest June. Ever. And, June 2010 was the dryest June. Ever. Does that prove “global warming?” Nope. But isn’t it funny, that for weeks and weeks there hasn’t been a single letter or essay in the “Virginia Gazette” from those who think “global warming” is a hoax? (You [...] […]
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- How I Spent My Summer (afternoon) June 25, 2010
  Sitting with the husband of a young woman who is on a ventilator, in the ICU, being tended by the very same nurse who took care of me when I was in the same ICU on a ventilator. Yup. That’s how I spent this afternoon: being present and prayerful for those in need, while trying not to be [...] […]
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- Daily Centering June 23, 2010
  As the 5th century turned to the 6th, Christianity had been legal for nearly 200 years and many in the Church had become lazy. Many did not feel a sense of compelling mission from the Spirit. Resting on its comfortable position as an accepted institution in society, as the Roman empire crumbled in its own [...] […]
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- A Member of the Family June 16, 2010
  I have officated at 184 funerals and memorial services. I have journeyed with many of those families through the illnesses of their loved ones, sitting at bedsides, offering prayers as their loved ones have died. With others, I’ve responded to the news of tragic accidents, helping them to deal first with the shock that God [...] […]
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- Christian Community June 14, 2010
  What a significant congregational meeting we had yesterday. Big decisions on a $500,000 renovation project for our church building, including enlarging the narthex. A capital funds campaign for the next three years. Our leaders presented excellent information to give basis for the decisions. Some of us disagreed with the proposals. We shared honest opin […]
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St. Stephen Lutheran Church and Preschool

The Community is So Important!

Just Wondering…

A Beautiful Wedding!

At Kairos

A Year Later

How the Spirit has been working.

Morning Prayer

Recovering Rhythm

Christ is Risen!

A True Summer Day

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