As the Election Looms – God, Be Merciful to Us

This is a sermon that I preached this Sunday (10/23/16), at the Washington City Church of the Brethren. The scripture readings for this sermon were: Luke 18:9-14 and Jeremiah 14:7-10, 19-22. You can listen to the audio, or keeping scrolling to read my manuscript. (FYI, the spoken sermon is significantly different from the written text.) …

What Would You Do If ISIS Killed Your Child?

I recently read a blog post by a US Army chaplain, who talks about his struggle with Jesus’ call to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. In a military context, he regularly finds himself asked some version of the question: “If ISIS killed your child, would you pray for them?” His …

There is a Spirit which I Feel...

There is a Spirit which I Feel: The Cloud of Witnesses

This is a sermon that I preached this Sunday (8/14/16), at the Washington City Church of the Brethren. The scripture readings for this sermon were: Hebrews 11:29-12:2 and Luke 12:49-56 You can listen to the audio, or keeping scrolling to read my manuscript. (FYI, the spoken sermon deviates a fair amount from the written text.) Sermon Audio …

What Brexit Means for the Kingdom of God

What Brexit Means for the Kingdom of God

There is only one way to describe my feelings when I learned that the United Kingdom would be leaving the European Union: Astonishment. Disorientation. Shock. Could this really be happening? I didn’t expect to feel so emotionally invested in the outcome of the Brexit referendum. I had barely paid attention to it in the months leading …