By Bob von Trebra
Happy Easter! Christ is risen! During the recently completed season of Lent, we have been invited to follow a devotional with the theme, “Everything in Between…”. The “betweenness” we were to reflect on for Easter Sunday was “Everything Between Grief and Hope.”
By Nancy Wade
During this season of Lent, sermon topics were focused on the Gospel of Luke, on the stories and parables that defined Jesus’ final chapter in ministry. As I listened to these sermons, I found comfort in the familiar words; they connected me to my childhood.
By Scott Allman
Zacchaeus was a wealthy and despised tax collector in ancient Jericho. The crowd who came for healing and wisdom was put off by Jesus associating with this unpopular social parasite. Jesus was over the top by making a house call and being his dinner guest. Zacchaeus changed and promised to give back what he had taken. God’s Grace transformed both Zacchaeus and this judgmental crowd.
By Chad Glang
The cobblestone square in Venice is surrounded by walls built during the 13th and 14th centuries. Though behind the facades are distinct buildings, what one sees from the square is an oddly graceful, hodge-podge continuity. Vivaldi composed his Four Seasons here, and behind me is a grand hall where I’ll hear it performed this evening.
By Carol Young
Jesus was totally nonviolent and calls us to practice and teach Gospel nonviolence and welcome God’s reign of peace and nonviolence, which means from now on, we work for the abolition of war, poverty, racism, gun violence, the death penalty, nuclear weapons, environmental destruction, and all violence.
By D. Kirk Nordstrom
When I write a scientific paper, it is nearly always something new and original. I have done a calculation not tried before or considered a new model or approach for a stubborn problem and there is an audience of people who respond favorably. This audience sees the implications and applications of my work and carry it further.
By Amy Ostwald
“How will you align intentions with your actions?” Mindy Sharp asks us in Everything in Between, A Lenten Devotional Guide. “Not easily,” is my answer to her. I confess that I am easily distracted; I allow all sorts of things to capture my attention and then I pounce on them with spontaneous energy — much like a dog in a yard with lots of squirrels.
By Chris Braudaway-Bauman
You are dust, and to dust you shall return. Genesis 3:19
We are made of stardust, the scientists say – the carbon in our muscles, the calcium in our bones, the iron in our blood. Every oxygen atom in our lungs was created inside a star before Earth was formed.
By Bob von Trebra
This coming Sunday is the last Sunday before the beginning of the season of Lent on Ash Wednesday, which will be March 5 this year. This Sunday is observed as “Transfiguration Sunday,” because the traditional gospel lesson on this Sunday is the story of Jesus going up a mountain with three of his disciples, and being “transfigured” or changed in appearance.
By Carolyn Gard
We were recently treated to a fascinating celestial event. Six planets – Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Venus, and Saturn – were in the planetary alignment with the moon. Not only could the astronomers tell us when this would happen, they told us when it will happen again. Like hundreds of others, I went outside and watched the event in real time. As I watched.
