2nd Sunday after Christmas — January 2, 2022
Second Sunday after Christmas John 1:1-18 Preachers say they don’t like preaching the Gospel of John for the same reasons people say..
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1st Sunday after Christmas — December 26, 2021
Colossians 3:12-17 Christmas 1C This will be the first Christmas in 23 years that I won’t lead worship. I always worked extra..
Q&A with veterans
Teri McDowell Ott interviews veterans Eric Hanson, John Kennealy, Jared R. Worley and Ryan Bronaugh.
4th Sunday of Advent — December 19, 2021
Luke 1:39-45 (46-55) Advent 4C My husband and I met some of our best friends, Nancy and Mark, in our hospital’s birthing..
Order of worship — December 19, 2021
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation. It is free for..
Prayer in response to devastating tornadoes
God, you are our refuge and strength, our present help in times of trouble. We pray for the people of Kentucky, Tennessee,..
Order of worship — December 12, 2021
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation. It is free for..
3rd Sunday of Advent — Dec. 12, 2021
Isaiah 12:2-6 Advent 3C Many of us distrust our physical selves, focusing too much on our minds, too much on our ability..
Tech watch: Obsidian app
A note-taking app that I’ve just started using is Obsidian. I use Obsidian to capture notes and ideas as I’m reading. I’ve..
A prayer in response to the verdict in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial
“I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. But let justice roll down like waters,..
In honor of Veterans Day: Telling too much
“May God bless us with the courage to face these darker truths, so we can work side by side with our veterans to heal the wounds war leaves, striving for a world that embraces the path of peace.”
Tech watch: Ulysses
An app I use every day is Ulysses for writers. Some writers swear by Scrivener, but I like how easy Ulysses is..
25th Sunday after Pentecost — Nov. 14, 2021
Mark 13:1-8 Ordinary 25B; Proper 28 “We are in an imagination battle,” writes adrienne maree brown in her book “Emergent Strategy: Shaping..
Order of worship — November 14, 2021
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation. It is free for..
Change as catalyst for growth
New seminary graduates serving their first calls often exclaim, “Seminary didn’t prepare me for this!” When I first entered ministry, my things-I-wasn’t-prepared-for..
Order of worship — November 7, 2021
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation. It is free for..
24th Sunday after Pentecost — November 7, 2021
Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 Ordinary 24B; Proper 27 “I put myself back in the narrative” sings Eliza in the closing song of the..
Tech watch: Apps that scan
Evernote Scannable and Evernote: I use the Scannable app to scan receipts, business cards, documents and even my kids’ artwork that I..
Showing up for each other
This was what I was trained for in seminary and clinical pastoral education, but I was young and inexperienced and my life..
18th Sunday after Pentecost — September 26, 2021
Numbers: 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29 Ordinary 18B; Proper 21 “The rabble among them had a strong craving; and the Israelites also wept.” What..
The blessing of play
Maddie loves the water. My family met Maddie, a husky mix, on a recent camping trip to Northern Wisconsin. We were swimming..
Order of worship — September 26, 2021
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation. It is free for..
17th Sunday after Pentecost — September 19, 2021
Mark 9:30-37 Pentecost 17B; Proper 20 Who was this child lingering around Jesus and his disciples? What was he doing in the..
Beyond walls
“Do not pick up hitchhikers.” For six years I read this highway sign as I drove by the barbed-wire-topped fencing, the sniper..
Order of worship — September 19, 2021
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation. It is free for..