As well as being a joyous time, Christmas can be difficult for people touched by tragedy or loss in the past year. Grief is isolating. While the rest of the world seems to be celebrating, tragedies years and decades old resurface.
Meditations on Mark: Prepare the Way
June 7, 2023 by
This is the promise John the Baptist makes in the opening chapter of Mark’s Gospel. Mark doesn’t begin with the story of Jesus’ birth. Rather, he jumps into the middle of the story with Jesus already as an adult, ready to begin his ministry. This is the urgency in Mark: The Messiah has come.
Catching a Glimpse
December 27, 2022 by
The first Christmas comes and goes, and most people don’t notice. Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and a few others catch a glimpse of what is happening, but they’re just a handful.
Finding the Child for Ourselves
December 22, 2022 by
My nephew Connor was born nearly a month early. My husband and I had just visited the weekend before to help my brother and sister-in-law assemble the crib, wash onesies, and set up the changing station.
Pass the Parcel Nativity Story
December 20, 2022 by
I wanted a simple, interactive way of telling the Nativity story, as my Sunday group can be a bit lively, so I decided that we would use some of our leftover Christmas cards.
Crossroads: Love
December 19, 2022 by
In the book Love You Forever, both the mother and the son sing these words to each other at different times in their lives: “I’ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always, as long as I’m living my baby you’ll be.”
Formations 12.25.2022: Of Course, She Knew
December 18, 2022 by
If you grew up in a particular kind of Christian subculture, you can’t beat Mark Lowry for quirky humor and good old-fashioned Southern Gospel music.
Connections 12.25.2022: Pondering Traditions
December 18, 2022 by
The other day I saw a social media post aimed at newly married folks. It said, in effect, whatever you do, you do not question your spouse’s family’s Christmas traditions.
A View from the Pew: Dilemmas of Christmas on Sunday
December 14, 2022 by
Every five to 11 years, depending on leap years, Christmas Day falls on a Sunday, and church-going folks, especially those with small children, face tough decisions.
Crossroads: Joy
December 12, 2022 by
God takes the dustiness of our lives—the mistakes and the bad things that happen to us—and uses them to make diamonds. In order for coal to turn into diamonds, it must undergo a lot of pressure.
Formations 12.18.2022: The Blame Game
December 11, 2022 by
David used Bathsheba for his own gain, and Scripture doesn’t mince words about this. Most of the action verbs in 2 Samuel 11:1-4 are attributed to David: “David rose,” “sent,” and “lay.”
Connections 12.18.2022: What is Love?
December 11, 2022 by
In this final week of Advent, our wait for Christmas Day is in single digits. The winter solstice, the longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, is here.
We Need the Hope of Christmas Now
December 7, 2022 by
Simply and directly, our world is not what it should be. And the Advent and Christmas season offer the expectancy of what should be.
Waiting During Advent
December 6, 2022 by
In the Advent/Christmas season, let me encourage you to learn how to wait. I know we don’t want to do that.
Crossroads: Peace
December 5, 2022 by
When I was a teenager, my family and I went tubing down a river. Before we got in our rafts, the guide warned us to watch for bears. I knew that bears were dangerous and didn’t want to get close to one.
Formations 12.11.2022: The Idolatry of the Tribe
December 4, 2022 by
According to Deuteronomy 23:3, “No Ammonite or Moabite shall come into the assembly of the LORD even to the tenth generation. None of their descendants shall come into the assembly of the LORD forever.”
Connections 12.11.2022: Having Patience
December 4, 2022 by
We are often a backward-looking or forward-looking society. It’s hard to stay in the present. Many of us spend lots of time thinking about past decisions, memories, or events that we wish we could do over.
Facing Grief, at Christmas and Always
November 30, 2022 by
I am neither a nihilist nor a pessimist. For heaven’s sake, I am pastor of America’s home of Positive Thinking. I am, however, a realist. And as such, I have a theory about life. Here it is: Life is not the last five minutes of the movie.
Flame: Advent Prayer Bags
November 29, 2022 by
Lately, I’ve seen a variety of lovely ideas online for helping children and families to get involved with the Advent season. Drawing on some of the ideas I’ve seen, I’ve come up with a little bag of items that will take children through some of the main Advent themes.
Crossroads: Hope
November 28, 2022 by
When I was a kid, I loved reading about heaven. My mom would read the part in Revelation 21 that talked about heaven. I loved hearing about the pure gold of the New Jerusalem and the gems.
Connections 12.04.2022: Seeking Peace
November 27, 2022 by
There are several different ways to “name” the four traditional weeks of Advent as we move closer to the celebration of Jesus’s birth. The most familiar is probably the quartet of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love.
Connections 11.27.2022: Counting Down
November 20, 2022 by
When I was growing up in the Olden Days (you know, the 1980s), my family didn’t celebrate the church season of Advent. Once Thanksgiving was over and December 1 came, we went straight into red and green overload.
Crossroads: Mary’s Song
December 27, 2021 by
I loved talking about Jesus as a child and teenager. I tried to share Jesus with my friends. There was a time when a good friend of mine was having a hard time. Her parents were fighting a lot, and their family was struggling. So I shared God’s peace with her. I told her about difficult times that I had been through.
Christmas Card Boxes and Advent Calendar
December 22, 2021 by
I always keep my Nativity themed Christmas cards because the children, especially at our school, love to look at them and talk about the Nativity story.
Crossroads: Peace
December 13, 2021 by
Peace is a funny thing. We pray for peace in a world full of violence. We pray for peace in times of trouble. We pray for peace in times of stress. We pray for peace in times of worry. And at first glance, we think that peace means that our situation changes. The world puts down its weapons. Trouble ceases. Stress disappears.
Formations 12.19.2021: Angels from the Realms of Glory
December 12, 2021 by
Angels are everywhere. That’s not a theological statement; it’s just an observation of life in a modern, Western culture in December.
Connections 12.19.2021: A Friend in Pregnancy
December 12, 2021 by
Soon after I became pregnant with our first daughter in 2004, I learned that my best friend—already the mother of two—was pregnant as well.
As Slow as Christmas
December 8, 2021 by
It was late on Christmas Day; the sun had set and my parents and I were somewhere between Yatesville and Barnesville on our way back home after the day-long celebration of Christ’s birth through the eating of food and the exchanging of gifts.
Crossroads: My Hope is in the Lord
December 6, 2021 by
I am a worrier by nature. When things go wrong, I get anxious. When things have the possibility of going wrong, I get anxious then too. So it is comforting to know that the Lord who watches over us doesn’t sleep. God doesn’t get tired. God doesn’t get anxious.
Formations 12.12.2021: God Will Be Our Shepherd
December 5, 2021 by
I’ve met—and am related to—a bunch of farmers and others who live in rural communities. But I don’t think I’ve ever met a shepherd.
Connections 12.12.2021: How to Live
December 5, 2021 by
Who knows what people expect to hear when they go out to listen to John the Baptist preach. We do know what they hear.
Formations 12.05.2021: The Lord Looks on the Heart
November 28, 2021 by
What is God doing here? God has sent the prophet Samuel to anoint the new king of Israel. The king will be a son of Jesse from Bethlehem. When Samuel sees Jesse’s son Eliab, he’s ready to call off the search.
Connections 12.05.2021: Completed Love
November 28, 2021 by
Wouldn’t you have liked to be there on that long ago day when the Christians of Philippi gathered to hear the letter from Paul that they had just received?
A View from the Pew: Lighting the Advent Wreath
November 24, 2021 by
With the exception of that time one of the deacons set the church lawn on fire while trying to get rid of fire ants, I don’t remember much fire at church during my formative years.
DIY Nativity Advent Calendar
November 17, 2021 by
If you’ve ever thought of making your own Advent calendar but wondered if it would be too tricky, this is the post for you! Here you can make your own Nativity-themed calendar that can hold candy, small toys, or personalized daily Advent activities.
A View from the Pew: Pancho and the Christmas Play
December 22, 2020 by
If you’ve ever performed in a Christmas drama you know the truth of the old show business maxim attributed to W.C. Fields: “Never work with children or animals.”
Formations 12.27.2020: Blue Christmas
December 20, 2020 by
It’s always good to remember that the Christmas season isn’t always joyful for some of us. Those folks ringing the bells and collecting donations outside your favorite grocery store?
Connections 12.27.2020: The Blessings of the Old
December 20, 2020 by
My grandparents have played an enormous role in my life. My mother’s parents worked side by side for years in the tiny town of Woodland, Georgia.
Formations 12.20.2020: The Honor Christ Deserves
December 13, 2020 by
My wife and I got married over my school’s Thanksgiving break one year. I was a newly minted Ph.D., with little as of yet to show for it. We arrived at the hotel before our room was ready, so we gave them our luggage and went out to explore the French Quarter of New Orleans.
Connections 12.20.2020: Faithful to Send Jesus
December 13, 2020 by
I thought about opening with these words: “Put yourself in Mary’s place.” But then I realized that we can’t do that.
Formations 12.13.2020: Rejoice!
December 6, 2020 by
On January 1, the new year seemed fresh and exciting. Maybe the new decade would even become the twenty-first-century version of the Roaring Twenties! We could only hope. But March came.
Connections 12.13.2020: God Will Do This
December 6, 2020 by
By my count, Paul offers a list of fourteen instructions to the Christians in Thessalonica in verses 12-21 of this week’s lesson text.
Flame: Advent Wreath Craft
December 2, 2020 by
We’ve now entered Advent and I was thinking of how families could use the tradition of the Advent wreath at home in a craft and prayer activity. Of course it’s great to have the real candles to light, but here’s an alternative to make and do.
Connections 12.06.2020: The Waiting Time
November 29, 2020 by
Do you like roller coasters? I confess that I liked them better when I was a younger woman. After the most recent time I rode one, it took me a couple of hours to recover from motion sickness.
The Night Before Advent
November 25, 2020 by
The calendar gave us an early Thanksgiving this year and it seems like it has been an eon between turkey and Advent. But I am ready for Advent. I need Advent right now. I need it more than I need Christmas.
Connections 11.29.2020: Christian Holism
November 22, 2020 by
I recall a day when I was in fifth grade and it occurred to me that I had to go to school for seven more years before I could graduate from high school.
Connections 12.22.2019: A Righteous Man
December 15, 2019 by
Our lesson text says that Joseph was “a righteous man” (v. 19). We could use more righteous men these days. I say that as a man. I’m allowed to talk about my own kind.
A View from the Pew: ‘Tis the Season for Missionary Speakers
December 4, 2019 by
Missionary speakers at church are as much a Christmas tradition as Christmas trees, Advent wreaths, and Nativity scenes.