Relationships and Community on Following

liturgy

Heavenly Father, please forgive us for

Author

Keywords

Heavenly Father, please forgive us for when we are not setting an example with our speech, with our faith, in our conduct, in our love, or in our purity. Too often we ignore your word and all that we’...

liturgy

Reflection on Psalm 89 and Jeremiah 23

Author

Scott B. Bullock

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 89:null, Jeremiah 23:null

Heavenly Father, You and Your Gifts are Perfect. We are not. You lead us with abundant mercy, justice, and grace. We are slow to follow. We abandon the straight and narrow path of life in which You di...

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Playing Second Fiddle

Author

Andy Cook

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 5:5, 1 Corinthians 12:25-26, John 3:30, Galatians 5:13, Ephesians 4:2-3, Mark 9:35, Romans 12:10

An Admirer once asked Leonard Bernstein, celebrated orchestra conductor, what was the hardest instrument to play. He replied without hesitation: “Second fiddle. I can always get plenty of first violin...

Quote

Author

Eugene H. Peterson

Keywords

To follow Jesus implies that we enter into a way of life that is given character and shape and direction by the one who calls us. To follow Jesus means picking up rhythms and ways of doing things that...

liturgy

False Following, Three Prayers Inspired by John 6.24-35

Author

Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

Keywords

Scripture

John 6:24-35

Jesus, forgive my false following my misplaced priorities my misuse of power my mistreatment of your good gifts Forgive me for believing destructive voices Forgive me for using you instead of loving ...

illustration

Following Jesus Requires Real Commitment

Author

Bradley Long

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 3:5-8, Matthew 22:37, Romans 12:1-2, Luke 14:26-27, Deuteronomy 6:5, Luke 16:13, Mark 12:30, John 14:15, Matthew 16:24-26, Luke 9:59-62, Matthew 6:24, Hebrews 11:13-16, Hebrews 10:38-39, Matthew 6:33-34, Matthew 10:37-39

What are you willing to do for love? An instructor for the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course shared with a class the major hang-up he had to get over before asking his wife to ma...

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Following the Good Shepherd’s Voice

Author

Kenneth E. Bailey

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 23:null, Revelation 7:17, 1 Peter 5:2-3, Hebrews 13:20-21, Luke 15:4-5, Ezekiel 34:15-16, Isaiah 40:11

In his excellent study of the famous Biblical passage on shepherds, ( The Good Shepherd: A Thousand Year Journey from Psalm 23 to the New Testament) , scholar Ken Bailey provides context to the 23rd...

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Experiencing Racism at a Bible College

Author

Bryan C. Loritts

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 1:26-27, Numbers 12:1-10, Isaiah 56:6-7 , Luke 10:25-37, Galatians 3:28, Psalm 34:18

While I was born much too late to be the legal property of a person in America, I have been the recipient of racism. When a classmate called me a racial epithet in my first year of college, I was deva...

Quote

Author

Hans Urs von Balthasar

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 8:9, Romans 6:4, John 12:24, Galatians 2:20, John 15:13

This total self-giving, to which the Son and the Spirit respond by an equal self-giving, is a kind of “death,” a first, radical “kenosis,” as one might say. It is a kind of “super-death” that is a com...

illustration

The Real Scandal of Jesus’s Ministry

Author

Hans Küng

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 25:35-40, John 8:1-11, Luke 19:1-10, John 4:1-26, John 8:10-11, Luke 19:10

In these acts of love Jesus created a scandal for devout, religious Palestinian Jews. The absolutely unpardonable thing was not his concern for the sick, the cripples, the lepers, the possessed . . . ...

Quote

Author

Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon

Keywords

We are not called to help people. We are called to follow Jesus, in whose service we learn who we are and how we are to help and be helped.

Quote

Author

Bob Goff

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 25:40, Genesis 1:27, James 2:8-9, 1 John 4:20, Galatians 6:2, Luke 10:25-37, Luke 19:1-10, John 13:12-15, Luke 17:11-19

What I’ve come to realize is if I really want to “meet Jesus,” then I have to get a lot closer to the people He created. All of them, not just some of them.

Quote

Author

Mark Batterson

Keywords

Success is handing the baton to those who come behind us and cheering them on as they run farther and faster than we did.

liturgy

Blessing College Students as They Leave for School

Author

Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

Keywords

Consider offering this blessing during worship the second Sunday in August. This is often the last Sunday college students are in worship before they return to school. This prayer could also be used d...

blog

Mission is Messy (Or, Why I Drank an Energy Drink at 7 in the Evening)

Author

Bradley Long

Keywords

I knew I'd pay for it later, but I drank it anyway. Have you had one of those energy drinks? The ones that have lots of caffeine and other ingredients meant to keep you awake? I don’t recommend t...

illustration

The Single Biggest Problem in Communication

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Communication is something we usually take for granted, it seems simple enough, after all. But one thing I’ve noticed (Stu) over time is that, especially in complex organizations, communication often ...

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Learning Peacemaking Through the Dishes

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 2:4, Matthew 5:9, Romans 12:18, Ephesians 2:14

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks tells a true story in one of his books about peacemaking in what is arguably one of the world's most difficult places to achieve it: the Middle East. One evening in the early ...

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The Kindest Family in America

Author

Mia Levetan

Keywords

Scripture

Micah 6:8 , 2 Kings 4:8–37 , Genesis 50:15–21 , Luke 6:35–36, Matthew 5:4, 7 , Psalm 34:18

In 2021, I heard a story on the radio about the “Kindest Family in America”. As far as I can see, this is the only year Parents magazine awarded such a prize. When I first heard this headline I rolled...

illustration

A Problem with the Maps

Author

Greg Gilbert

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 3:5–6, Jeremiah 17:9–10, Exodus 13:21–22, John 14:6, Psalm 119:105, 2 Timothy 3:16–17

ABC News ran a story about neighborhood roads that have literally become commercial thoroughfares because GPS systems are routing traffic there, rather than along larger highways. There are other prob...

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The Proclamation of Good News

Author

Peter Gomes

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 40:1-5, 2 Kings 7:3-9 , Isaiah 61:1-3 , Luke 4:16-21, John 20:11-18, Psalm 96:2-3

When I remember that the literal translation of the term gospel is “good news,” I recall a wonderful encounter with her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. In the summer of 2001, I f...

illustration

The United States is Like Samaria

Author

Phillip Yancey

Keywords

Scripture

Jeremiah 29:4-7 , 2 Kings 17:24-33, Isaiah 1:18-20, John 4:4-26, Acts 8:4-8, 14-17, Psalm 46:1-2

The United States retains a basic respect for religion though it may be following European trends: surveys show a steady rise in the “nones” (now one-third of those under the age of thirty), that is, ...

illustration

The Ultimatum

Author

Walter Isaacson

Keywords

Famed scientist Albert Einstein once delivered an ultimatum to his first wife, Mileva Maric. True to his scientific nature, Einstein expressed his demands without any trace of kindness or empathy, ins...

illustration

Rejoice for the Ship Returning

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

In a time where leader after leader's calls end in disgrace, it is helpful to remember that finishing, not starting, is what is most important. The following story illustrates this well: Two ship...

blog

Review: How to Know a Person

Author

Richard Herman

Keywords

There are there a few books that I come across now that I’m officially “retired” from the pastorate that I sincerely wish I had been able to read, digest and act on as a young pastor. David Brook’s la...

blog

No Body but Yours

Author

Andrew Arndt

Keywords

One of the Wonders of Ministry I love being a pastor for many reasons, not least because of how often I get a front-row seat to wonders. The following wonder happened on October 17, 2023. I share it...

lectionary

Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

Author

Charles Teixeira

Scripture

Mark 5:21-43, Mark 5:17-21, Leviticus 15:7

Intertwined Narratives Jesus’ encounters with Jairus’ daughter and the bleeding woman are sandwiched together with the intention that the two narratives would unlock and help to interpret the other....

blog

Four Years Later: Reflecting on Pandemic Ministry

Keywords

Lessons Learned in Quarantine and Beyond Do you remember that first Sunday when you stayed cloistered in your home with the immediate family, when you exchanged your dapper church clothes for a pair ...

blog

Don't Take Conflict Personally

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 3:8-11

Called to Pastor, Inclined to Argue When I was graduating from college in the mid-2000s, I was encouraged to take a career test to determine where my personality type would fit in the working world. ...

liturgy

In the days of the early church,

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 7:21, Matthew 11:28-30, Romans 10:9, Philippians 2:10-11, Acts 4:12, John 14:6

In the days of the early church, believers affirmed their faith by saying, “Jesus is Lord.” We give lip-service to that same affirmation, but find it difficult to surrender control of our lives. Inste...

liturgy

Lord, forgive us for the times when we

Author

Austin D. Hill

Keywords

Lord, forgive us for the times when we have chosen safety and comfort over fidelity to you. For the times when following you requires us to stretch, grow, and be challenged, give us courage. Renew our...

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