A few days ago I wrote about the saddest words in the Bible. Today let’s look at the happiest words. Many words could be called “happiest”: the salutation of the Angel Gabriel to Mary, the greeting between Elizabeth and Mary, the baby talk of Joseph and Mary on Christmas, the

Take the Precious Feet message to a higher level: If you have seen the episode from The Chosen in which Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, anoints the feet of Jesus, perhaps you felt with her the anxiety of all eyes upon you. You heard indignant whispers: “What a

If you have seen the episode from The Chosen in which Mary anoints the feet of Jesus, perhaps you felt with her the anxiety of all eyes upon you. You heard indignant whispers: “What a waste!” “Get her out of here.” “Doesn’t he know who touches him?” The love is

After a family member’s death, what do you do? Necessary phone calls, obituary, funeral preparations, the day of burial. Then what? Perhaps you walk around the house thinking there’s something to do but nothing feels right; or you stare out the window and feel there’s nothing out there or in

There are many good reasons to sing in church besides your mom or the pastor told you to. There are loads of benefits—both physical and spiritual. First, did you know that electric signals travel to many areas of the brain that work together so you can recognize the organist’s introduction

After the soldiers completed their objective to crucify Jesus, they sat down to keep watch. Having nothing to occupy them, they “took his garments and divided them four ways, one for each soldier” (Jn. 19:23). Grabbing Jesus’ tunic, they noticed it was seamless, probably worth money, so they decided to

The phrase “all hanging together” first said by Benjain Franklin” is still a powerful ideal. Most certainly it applies to families, congregations, schools, religious communities, nations, as “hanging out with” is a means of building strong bonds. The recent issue of America magazine spoke of Trump’s “Make America Isolated” policy.

The term “servant leadership” has become a popular phrase. As people realize that good leaders must also be servants, our perception of those in authority moves in that direction. Perhaps the idea of “servant leadership” led to choosing recent popes. Within the next couple weeks, it may be useful in

Two days before Ash Wednesday I finished reading THE ORPHAN COLLECTOR by Ellen Marie Wiseman, an historical novel situated in Pennsylvania during the flu epidemic at the end of the First World War. While the plot and characterization were engaging, there were times I wanted to put the book down.

The title of this blog could refer to time, meaning day after day the picture outside in Northwest Ohio is one of snow…and snow…and snow. But snow has many interpretations as does the manner in which we say “It’s snowing again.” Was that delight in your voice? Was that sarcasm