Jesus’ powerful and authoritative encounter with a man possessed by an unclean spirit highlights the contrast between genuine spiritual engagement and complacency. This week’s Gospel text challenges Christians to question their commitment to Jesus and be open to his disruptive influence, aiming to stir them from spiritual apathy to vibrant faith. … More An Unclean Spirit and the Un-Spirited Clean
God’s Word to us doesn’t always have shiny wrapping and a big red bow attached. God’s Word isn’t always warm and fuzzy. God’s Word sometimes needs to hit us like a ton of bricks. When we open our Bibles we stumble into an old library full of stories of holy confrontations and sacred summons. … More The Word is Dynamite
LECTIONARY REFLECTION | Psalm 119:97-104 In 1983 a shaggy haired rock ’n roller John Cougar Mellencamp released a new ditty called “The Authority Song.” The song captures the rebellious spirit of a teenager railing against authority figures who, in his mind, love putting people in their place and sucking all the fun out of life. … More Boulevard of Broken Dreams
by Skye Jethani Jean Vanier, the founder of the L’Arche communities who died just a few weeks ago, often used a simple metaphor to explain his ministry with the mentally handicapped. With his hands cupped he would say, “Suppose I have a wounded bird in my hands. What would happen if I closed my hands … More The Space for Growth (Skye Jethani)
In the winter of 2000 my entire life was turned around, flipped upside down and spun inside out. I was a confused, well-intentioned, yet directionless 20 year-old sophomore at Bethel College decided to open up the Book of Acts in hopes of some general inspiration. Something remarkably simple yet profoundly powerful took place that evening … More A Powerful Collision: God, Bible, Authority & Narrative 1
Another excerpt from Will Willimon’s book “Pastor.” In this section, Willimon addresses a mindset common among Baby Boomers (and passed down to their children, I might add): “A few years ago, three sociologists, noting the huge decline in memberships being suffered by mainline (now fast becoming the old-line or sidelined) denominations, described what they termed … More Pastor 9 – Baby Boomers’ Bondage to Self
More highlights from my reading of Willimon’s book on pastoral ministry: “Reading Scripture in the context of modernity has proved to be particularly challenging for us pastors. The Bible is old; the newest parts of it were written about nineteen hundred years ago. Because modernity believes in the notion of progress, it tends to be … More Pastor 5 – Scripture & Modernity
Jeremy L. Berg 