Last night at the Ash Wednesday service of the First Presbyterian Church in Champaign, I sat pondering these two questions that appeared on the screen at the front of the sanctuary ..."Do you have pure and sincere motives?""Are you who and what you appear to be?"This morning I realize that those two questions are inContinue reading "Who am I? … Letting God assess my motives during Lent"
It’s good to remember…
On Ash Wednesday young funeral director Caleb Wilde wrote: "It is good to remember that the works of our hands will not last forever. That our kingdoms will fail. That America will one day be no more. That our bodies will die. That our jobs, our business, our children, our name, our political ideals andContinue reading "It’s good to remember…"
Questions for an Ash Wednesday evening
This evening at an Ash Wednesday service at the First Presbyterian Church in Champaign, IL, I received ashes on my forehead from my friend Pastor Chuck Carlson. After receiving ashes I returned to my pew and sat quietly for 15 minutes, thinking about how ashes remind us of our own mortality and are a symbol ofContinue reading "Questions for an Ash Wednesday evening"
For Lent how about giving up having to have the last word!
"Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone." Romans 12:18 Have you ever met someone who used attack responses when they were more interested in winning a conflict than in preserving a relationship? -----Sometimes I want to have the last word. Period. Ever met someone like that? They are so fun to beContinue reading "For Lent how about giving up having to have the last word!"
A solemn Ash Wednesday “reading” from Coptic Bishop Angaelos
Make this sober statement by His Grace Bishop Angaelos on the murder of 21Coptic Christians -- 21 from his very own tribe -- part of your Ash Wednesday reading ...It is with deep feelings of sorrow and pain that we received confirmation earlier this evening of the brutal murder of Coptic Christians in Libya atContinue reading "A solemn Ash Wednesday “reading” from Coptic Bishop Angaelos"
One of the toughest questions to ask others…
Maybe the toughest question to ask someone, in the words of writer Ken Sande, is ...“How did you experience me?” Here's what I think this question is saying: “I'm a human. I'm practicing being transparent and vulnerable. I fear I may really have blown a few things when we talked. Please tell me how IContinue reading "One of the toughest questions to ask others…"
Would you quit worrying so much about what people think about you…
My Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette column today argues that it doesn't do you much good to worry very much about what people think about you.
Valentine’s Day is, well, maybe not exactly what you think
Two of my soul mates weigh in with their thoughts on Valentine's Day ...Sarah TheBarge gives a Double-Dog Valentine's Day Dare, especially, if, say, you are single. But the double-dog dare works, of course, if you are married or single.And Pastor John Pippo argues brilliantly and succinctly that God's solution to our "love problem" isContinue reading "Valentine’s Day is, well, maybe not exactly what you think"
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