You may have heard me say that Kirk and I have been reading through the Bible since the beginning of January. We have been using a system that will get us through the entire Bible in a year. So, with half the year gone, by now we have read a whole lot of Bible stories. One thing I have been reminded of, from reading this much, is that whenever someone in the Bible makes a promise, they must stick to it. In fact, there have been a few stories where I start cringing as Kirk is reading it aloud, because I can tell that a person is making a promise that could come out very badly.
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'Expectations' (Trinity 1)
Expectations can get us into trouble. When I meet with couples to help them prepare to get married, the main topic of conversation is expectations. The reason is, people come to a marriage with a set of expectations about how marriage is supposed to work. Often the expectations are unspoken, sometimes they are even unconscious, but they are there nonetheless, and they can rear their ugly heads at the most unfortunate times.
Read More'Come, Holy Spirit' (Pentecost)
“Holy Spirit, truth divine,
dawn upon this soul of mine:
voice of God, and inward light,
wake my spirit, clear my sight.”
'Are You Ready?' (Easter 7, Year A)
I have a question for you: Are you ready? Ready for what?, you might ask. Ready for the lockdown to truly be over? Ready to return to church? Ready to go back to work or school? Ready to go to a pub? Ready to get on a plane and head off for some sunny realm and lie on the beach? So we might be ready for all sorts of things. But I’m asking for another reason today. I’ll tell you about it in a little while.
Read More'Cultivating the Life of the Spirit'
Even as we cultivate crops at this time of year, sowing and planting, we have also been in a time that has called on us to tend to another type of cultivation. We have been called to cultivate the life of the Spirit, the Spirit of God within us and among us. In the Gospel today, Jesus is talking to his disciples on the night before he is to die. He promises them that they will not be orphaned, but that God will send the Spirit to live within them and among them.
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