Glorious!

Published in March 28th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

It’s about the only thing in our yard that the deer haven’t eaten: the Lenten Rose plant that is blooming! It’s just glorious!

Wait minute. It’s still Lent. Can we call anything glorious before Easter?!
Actually — yes! — at least, according to that quirky gospel of John. Check out John 13:31. [...]

One Thing At A Time

Published in March 25th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Deep into Lent, with so many demands, we are trying to live according to this quote, by Gerald May:
Try a little consecrated Zen.
Do one thing at a time, with complete, immediate mindfulness.
Don’t do it to get it done so you can get on to the next thing.
Do it for love.
Do it fully, sensitively, openly.
Do it [...]

These Seem To Be Words of Wisdom

Published in March 24th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Yesterday, on the way into a meeting, a colleague and I were talking politics, and he said, “It seems to me that the only people talking are from either the right or left extremes, and they’re all lying.” I asked what he meant by “lying,” and he said, “They’ll say anything to advance their agenda.” [...]

Lenten Practice

Published in March 20th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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“’Part of what’s going on is a shift from a privatized piety to a relationship with God that includes all human beings,’ said the Rev. Mark Horak, the pastor of Holy Trinity. ‘That’s a major shift, but it’s fundamental to Scripture.’
“The trend, what one might call the rebranding of Lent, has no specific leader, no [...]

It Dudn’t Get Much Better Than This!

Published in March 19th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Ah! A 75-degree day. The sky is primary-color-blue. Not a cloud in the sky. A Miata. A meeting in Richmond, giving me an excuse to put the top down and drive on Rt. 5, my favorite roadstah road.*
It dudn’t get much better than this!
* Elsa Englert is the oldest member [...]

‘Tis A Cruel Thing …

Published in March 16th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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‘Tis a cruel, cruel thing to have done: to have made us move the clocks ahead an hour — so that (again) it is dark at 7:00 AM, so that (again) it is unsafe for me to riding my bicycle …

My Favorite Bookstore in the World

Published in March 15th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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One day my daughter, Emily, wrote on my Facebook page, “It’s been seven days since you last posted something on your blog. I’m just saying.”
But what if I don’t have anything to say? I’ve been told it’s a rule of blogging: I have to post something at least every few days, or people get out [...]

Maybe a Blog Would Help?

Published in March 13th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Reed Nester sent me this cartoon!

Spiritual Nourishment at a Council Meeting

Published in March 10th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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Faith formation is the aim of everything we do as a congregation — every worship service, every study group, every children’s class, even every meeting!
Yes, even meetings are sources of spiritual nourishment — when we’re attentive to God’s presence with us; aware that the work we are to be about is God’s work; discerning how [...]

Word Play

Published in March 10th, 2010

Posted by Pastor in St. Stephen Lutheran Church

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A.) Out on my early morning bike ride, I saw this saying on a car license plate:
Y Tax
Is this driver protesting all taxes, or just the personal property tax?
If I ever see that car in a parking lot, I think I’ll put this note under the windshield wiper:
Y tax?
2 repair the roads u drive ur [...]

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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

Glorious!

One Thing At A Time

These Seem To Be Words of Wisdom

Lenten Practice

It Dudn’t Get Much Better Than This!

‘Tis A Cruel Thing …

My Favorite Bookstore in the World

Maybe a Blog Would Help?

Spiritual Nourishment at a Council Meeting

Word Play

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