A current bestseller has got me to thinking about the issue of what is natural and what is not. Is it natural to be good or to be bad? To be selfish or generous? The book is called Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard by Douglas...
Luckily for my husband, I have never been a big fan of Valentine’s day. My philosophy is, if you love someone, you should show them EVERY day – not just on a particular, commercialized date. He, of course, is very supportive of my ideology on the matter....
Friends, We are about to re-set for Lent, assess our priorities, examine our lives, and prayerfully attempt to better align them with God’s will. It seems a bit redundant this year to talk about human finitude and mortality. Every day we see evidence of these truths,...
They say that music is a window into the soul. Music indeed is one of God’s greatest poetic gifts that offers expression of emotion, especially for those with the gift of song or playing instruments. Growing up in New Orleans, I was taught an appreciation for jazz...
Siblings in Christ, As we stand on the cusp of 400,000 deaths from COVID-19 in the United States, I want to take a moment and acknowledge the impact of this reality in our own congregation and community. At our staff meeting this morning several people shared that...
Well, friends, 2021 is off to quite a start, isn’t it? I am afraid to say we have nowhere to go but up. I’ve thought that too many times as of late only to be proven wrong. As I write this, I am worried about what will happen on January 20. I am worried about the...
My daughters are much more attuned to what is happening in our nation and world today than I ever was at ages 16 and 13. In the 1980s, I cared little for what was happening beyond my own little teenage bubble. But my teenagers have questions; they express fears; they...
My husband Grant, being a fan of all things over-the-top-Christmas, has a large collection of Christmas-themed ties, both secular and sacred. One of his favorites looks understated, what with its diagonal red and green stripes and block letters that repeat the...
Like so many children, my grandson Evan is fascinated with dinosaurs. My daughter Emily says he is obsessed. He watches dinosaur cartoons, looks at dinosaur picture books, and has memorized the names of dozens of dinosaurs. I think I knew three when I was his age....
Friends, I hope your Christmas was filled with joy and blessings. Certainly, Christmas 2020 is memorable. Many of our rituals, routines and rhythms got upended, like so much else, by the pandemic. I missed being in our beautiful sanctuary singing beloved Christmas...
