Month: July 2015
Loving Our Communities: A Heroin Epidemic Prayer Vigil by Roz Picardo
July 30, 2015
Testimonies were shared of life transformation by folks in recovery who moved from a life of brokenness to blessing. The evening culminated with the group going outside in the parking lot, clasping hands, sharing names of lives personally affected by heroin, and praying in unison the Lord’s Prayer.
I Pledge Allegiance to… Jesus Christ, His Only Begotten Son, Our Lord by Tom Fuerst
July 29, 2015
By claiming that the church is “one,” we announce that the church throughout time and space (that is, geographic location…i.e. nations) is united, not by some abstracted idea of freedom, but by the Holy Spirit who liberates us from the claims of human structures and governments.
Why You Don’t Have To Be Anxious by Andy Stoddard
July 27, 2015
I mentioned in my sermon here at St. Matthew’s that I really love the book of Psalms. They are honest, they are beautiful and…
The Dismembered Body of Christ by Elizabeth Glass Turner
July 25, 2015
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living…
Infant Baptism and Beyond by Ken Loyer
July 23, 2015
Another factor in baptism pertains to ongoing spiritual instruction and development after the actual baptism. While not limited to infant baptisms—since post-baptismal nurture is important for any person regardless of that person’s age at the time of baptism—this factor has particular significance in the case of infants who are baptized.
The Power of Thanksgiving by Jean Watson
July 22, 2015
Though I didn’t understand at the time, out of reluctant obedience, I began to thank God instead of complaining. Each day, I determined to find something to be thankful for rather than complaining. I even started to thank God for the things I didn’t like in my life like the snow and cold! As I chose to give thanks regardless of my feelings, a miracle happened inside my heart. I discovered that the place I had resented was becoming a place where my desires were fulfilled. The land where I did not want to be was becoming the land of my blessing.
Secular And Sacred by Harley Scalf
July 20, 2015
Jesus does not divide the sacred from the secular. Instead, He takes the secular and redeems it, thus making it sacred. There is no divide as we understand it, because Jesus stands in the gap reaching with one nail-pierced hand to each side, uniting all of creation into one holy Kingdom.
How To Be A Blessing by Mark Trotter
July 18, 2015
Jesus did not come to give us answers. He came to give us himself. And Bonhoeffer says that that’s what it means to live in the penultimate as a Christian, to live in it the way Jesus did. It means that we are to join others in their suffering, to try and understand what other people have to put up with in their lives.
Love In Pen & Ink: The Weight Of Words by Carrie Carter
July 16, 2015
Recently, I’ve somewhat been on a purging binge (note that I love a good oxymoron) and going through the many…
The Gospel According To Some Really Good Artists: Seeing The Unseen God by Philip Tallon
July 15, 2015
John of Damascus grounds the making of image in the incarnation (the “taking on flesh”) of Jesus Christ, who “married” heaven and earth through the union of God and man. If the God-Man Jesus is the “express image” of God, as Hebrews 1:3 says, then the artist is free to express himself creatively, using the material of the world to faithfully image God in Christ.