Imagine an older man writing to a younger one. He’s giving advice, perhaps a little bit of exhortation. The younger man isn’t so young any more, at least not as young as when he first me the old man, his mentor. Back then the younger man listened to the old man because the young man…

Today I get to meet with FSU’s new president, Dr. Richard McCullough. The big question on my mind? Will we find favor with him?  The meeting is a meeting of the Interfaith Council, the gathered and specifically approved religious and faith-based groups at Florida State University. Thankfully we have been granted an audience with President…

Our family television has this feature that when we turn on the tv or back out of a streaming service, we see some pictures from my Google Photos account. Our family loves to see the pictures and comment on the growth and the memories. As a kid, I used to love to look back at…

This coming Sunday is Gaudete Sunday, which around University Lutheran is known as “Pink Candle Sunday.” So far I have succeeded in my liturgical reform concerning this Sunday by getting at least 50% of our worshipers to show up for this Sunday wearing pink (or something gaudy). I’m hoping for 75% this year. The notion…

This coming Sunday ends our “Done by Hope” annual focus year. It seems hard to believe that we started this church year off in the calendar year 2020. Over the past year we have engaged quite a bit in our hopes. The name “Done by Hope” came from a quote from Martin Luther. Luther said…

My three daughters have recently gotten into telling jokes – specifically “knock knock” jokes. It isn’t uncommon for them to say “knock knock” at dinner, have us say “who’s there?” and then respond with something…unintelligible. Same with the “why did the chicken…” jokes. There is something interesting about the knock knock joke. It gets you…

In March of 2020, just as the COVID pandemic was coming into our cultural realizations in the United States, Jeff Christopherson released a book with the odd title “Venal Dogmata”. Venal Dogmata is a short book, Christopherson even calls is a parable, about what might happen in the United States if the church were to…

In the 500’s BC, the city of Sardis was the capital of King Croesus. Sardis was a citadel that sat high above the surrounding countryside. Any attacking army would have to attempt to climb the elevated position of Sardis and then break through the high walls. Everyone thought this was impossible. Sardis was an impregnable…

Jezebel. The name probably means something to you even if you don’t remember everything about the Biblical figure. Jezebel was the wife of Ahab, the king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. She, herself though, was not an Israelite. She was a native of the nation of Tyre, modern day Lebanon. As such, she didn’t…

I won’t say that I have never written a newsletter article from a bathroom in Atlanta, but it’s definitely not a regular occurrence for me. For those of you who have not heard, my 6 year old daughter has been diagnosed with cancer behind her eye. We’re currently at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta trying…