The one whom Christians have waited for since the beginning of Advent 4 weeks ago, has come on Christmas day: Jesus, the Christ, the long-awaited Messiah of ancient Israel. I wonder if celebrating this event yearly dulls our senses to the outrageous and ridiculous nature of the claims that Christians make about Jesus of Nazareth,… Read More »
Dare to Imagine Revelation – 1 Samuel 1:20-28 & 2:18-21; Luke 2:22-40
The Messiah has come. Hallelujah! In Bethlehem, the city of David, Jesus was born to Mary and Joseph, a fulfillment of God’s promises. God’s unfailing love has carried the people of Israel this far as they struggle under the great empires of history. God has not and will never forsake or abandon us, human beings… Read More »
the Courier Meditation – Imagining Grief and Lament
After writing about joy last week, I would be dishonest if I didn’t mention that this holiday season can be more difficult for some because of loss, pain, abuse, injustice, and oppression. Grief may mark these days because of the loss of a close friend, spouse, or family member or because of the memories of… Read More »
the Courier Meditation – Joy
I didn’t start drinking coffee until I was out of high school. It took a few tries to get used to the flavor, but I persevered and overcame my initial aversion to it. I drink coffee every day now. It’s a part of my morning routine. I even have a coffee maker that keeps water… Read More »
the Courier Meditation – Risks of Imagining
When I was young, my little brother and I would play with miniature tractors on the dining room carpet. We would plant our corn and soybeans and then harvest them all in the course of a few minutes, much faster and more efficient than Dad could do it. We imagined that we were farmers. We… Read More »
the Courier Meditation – Dare to Imagine
In this season of Advent in the church calendar, we long for, anticipate, and hope in the arrival of God through the person Jesus of Nazareth, the long-promised and expected Messiah of Israel, the Christ. Each year, Christians enter into the story all over again of how the God of Israel came to earth to… Read More »
Dare to Imagine Joy – Isaiah 12 & Luke 1:39-55
Today is the third Sunday of our Advent journey. We have been doing the difficult work of imagination, considering how God might be inviting us to see beyond what is to begin seeing what could be. We have dared to imagine the possibilities of a god that comes as an infant into our world through… Read More »
Dare to Imagine Peace – Malachi 3:1-4 & Luke 1:67-79
When I was young, probably between 8 and 12 years old, I remember hearing stories from my parents about how I was a sleep-walker. I, of course, do not remember many of these experiences, but I do remember one in particular. I needed to go to the bathroom, so I got out of bed. But… Read More »
Dare to Imagine: Possibilities – Luke 1:26-38 & Jeremiah 33:10-16
We journey together into the season of Advent, a time of longing, yearning, anticipating, and hoping in the incarnation of the living God, the God of Israel in Jesus of Nazareth, the promised Messiah, the Christ. While we enter the story 2000 years ago when God first came as a human being to a family… Read More »
Knowing Your Story – Ruth 4:13-22
We have come to the end of our journey with Ruth, Boaz, and Naomi. The last 9 verses ring familiar to us as we remember the beginning of this story. After ten years in Moab and the death of her husband and two sons, Naomi returns to Bethlehem. The women of the village are talking… Read More »
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