Justice and Mercy

I’ve been reading through Leviticus for my personal devotional time. Not by choice. I’d prefer to spend my study time in Philippians or Romans but I’m currently working through a reading plan and it has Leviticus assigned for this month. Because I believe that all of Scripture is the inspired Word of God and that …

An Unprecedented Ash Wednesday

What a difference a week can make! As I write this, we are one week out from a historic storm and its aftermath. Our community continues to recover and rebuild and will be for some time. I’m truly grateful that our family was spared significant damage, but while I hope we never see that kind …

The Power of a Picture

A picture is worth a thousand words. And words, even written with photographs, can wound or heal. Take, for example, the one accompanying this post by famed photographer Gordon Parks. You have a nicely dressed middle-class African-American family in 1956 getting water from a fountain at an ice cream stand. It’s a Sunday afternoon in …

Under Renovation

3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. – Philippians …

(Not) Getting What I Deserve this Christmas

Tis the season for over-excitement and sugar, and consequently we have had some trouble recently getting our 8-year-old son to settle in for the night. We are throwing everything we have in our parenting playbook at the problem. Sticking to a routine – check. Limiting caffeine – check. Rewarding positive behavior – check. Resorting to …

Grapes of Wrath or Grace?

“Comfort, comfort, my people, says your God!” –Isaiah 40:1 I recently watched a documentary on Amazon titled “The Bikes of Wrath.” It’s a story about five men from Australia who, fascinated by John Steinbeck’s novel “The Grapes of Wrath,” decide to bike westward across America following the same route the fictional Joad family traveled to …

New or Renewed?

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training …

A Spirit of Risk

This past weekend I took a few days off to meet some friends from Atlanta in St. Louis to cycle the Katy Trail. It’s a 240 mile “rails to trails” project (www.railstotrails.org) that took a derelict railroad route and turned it into a gem of a gravel trail running parallel to the Missouri River. People …

Confessions of a “Glass Half- Empty” Optimist

Are you a “glass half-full” kind of person or a “glass half-empty” kind of person”? While I generally endeavor to view life from an optimistic perspective, I confess that I am finding that more difficult these days. Lately, I tend to focus on the empty space in that proverbial glass and on what is missing …

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Holy Week Services at Holy Cross Lutheran Church