This call to worship is based on Jeremiah 1:4-10, with a touch of Psalm 71 thrown in for good measure. The word of God comes to us: “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.” The word of God comes to us: “I appointed you to speak my word.” We may believe we…
This is the time of year that I have a mild longing for my alternative life as a college professor. “No matter how obnoxious a student was, I always knew that I only had to put up with them for one semester. The church, though, doesn’t seem to work that way. The same people tend…
O.K. folks. I finally got tired of changing all the pronouns as we went through our morning prayer service every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. So I’m putting together new morning prayer liturgies. (Which may sound like a lot of work, but mostly I just plagiarize the Bible.) You can find the liturgies on my new…
If you have done any kind of work for justice in this world, you have likely heard something along these lines: “Why are you always so critical? Can’t you see the [insert people in appropriate power position] are trying? Why don’t you give credit where credit it due?” “Sure, he committed ‘non-consensual vaginal intercourse,’ but…
This post is excerpted from a sermon on Matthew 28:1-15, preached at Peace Mennonite Church on April 16, 2017. When we talk about witnesses to the resurrection, we almost always—and only—talk about the women. The faithful women were the ones who heard the angel message, saw the empty tomb, and went to tell people that…
Go over to Rev. Gal Blog Pals to see the rest of the tweets. For more meditative Holy Week reading, go to the blog index and scroll down to “Holy Week” and “Good Friday.” And a blessed Holy Week to you.
Holy One, Today, our hearts break for the people of Syria, and we fear for the state of our world. Assad tortures and kills his own people, desperately grasping at power with weapons, threats, force. Some Syrians join extremist groups, hoping guns and bombs will lead them to freedom and peace. Many Syrians flee. They…
Give thanks to the Lord, for God is good. God’s steadfast love endures forever. . . . Save us—Hosanna in Hebrew—Save us, we beseech you, O Lord! O Lord, we beseech you, give us success! Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. (Psalm 118) This is the hymn that…
This week I saw a vision of bones. Well, more of an image than a vision. One might call it a photograph. There was a long table with colorful cloths folded and placed along both sides. On each folded cloth was a human skull. These were skulls of Native Americans. Bones that had been collected…
This call to worship is based on Psalm 130: In the wilderness we cry out to our God. In the wilderness our souls wait. In the wilderness we hope in God’s word. In the wilderness we know God’s steadfast love. And so, in the wilderness we worship together.
This call to worship is based on Psalm 78:12-20, which echoes the week’s lectionary reading from Exodus (17:1-7) Can God spread a table in the wilderness? In the sight of our ancestors, God worked marvels. Can God spread a table in the wilderness? In the land of Egypt God divided the sea and let them…
Based on Psalm 121 In the wilderness, we will lift up our eyes. In the wilderness, our help comes from God: Our God who made the wilderness; Our God who inhabits the wilderness. God is our keeper; God is our shade and shelter. Let us praise God together. You may also be interested in this…
