Søren Kierkegaard, 19th-century Danish philosopher and theologian, would not be impressed with our busyness today. “Of all ridiculous things the most ridiculous seems to me to be busy—to be a man who is brisk about his food and his work . . . What, I wonder, do these busy folks get done?” Stephen Evans, Baylor University philosopher, says Kierkegaard saw busyness as a distraction from the really important questions of life, such as who we are and what life is for (Quartz, April 16). … [Read more...]
Gospel Hospitality
6 Easter C—5/1/16 Acts 16:9-15; Psalm 67; Revelation 21:10,22-22:5; John 14:23-29 Pr. Scott Kramer Each year our bishop invites the rostered leaders of our synod to spend two days on retreat. This year’s event took place earlier this past week. At the end of each retreat day, the bishop invites us to what he calls a “hospitality room,” a place of conversation where there is beer, wine, sodas, snacks and other refreshments. What do you think of when you think of hospitality? Maybe something … [Read more...]
Pete, and Repeat!
5 Easter C—4/2416 Acts 11:1-18; Psalm 148; Revelation 21:1-6; John 13:31-35 Pr. Scott Kramer “How many times do I have to tell you…!?” What child has not heard that question? “How many times do I have to tell you…to take out the trash…to not hit your sister…to do your homework…to turn down the music?" If you were a model child, maybe you didn’t experience this. The rest of us did! “How many times do I have to tell you? Parents ask the question out of exasperation. No doubt our heavenly … [Read more...]
Goodness and Mercy
4 Easter C—4/17/16 Acts 9:36-43; Psalm 23; Revelation 7:9-17; John 10:22-30 Pr. Scott Kramer When I go to the gym I like to listen to audiobooks while I’m working out. One book this past week was about a famous person you might recognize [play audio]. Yes, it’s My Brief History, a short autobiography of Stephen Hawking, the famous cosmologist. As you may know, when Hawking was a young man he developed ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Confined to a wheelchair and unable to speak for most of his … [Read more...]
Fail…safe
3 Easter C—4/10/16 Acts 9:1-20; Psalm 30; Revelation 5:11-14; John 21:1-19 Pr. Scott Kramer This past Thursday Elon Musk announced that after only one week over 325,000 pre-orders had been made for the much-anticipated Model 3. Elon Musk is CEO of American electric carmaker Tesla Motors, and the Model 3 is the company’s first vehicle priced under $40,000. Elon Musk was co-founder of Paypal and SolarCity and is currently CEO of SpaceX, the company that a couple of days ago successfully landed a … [Read more...]
Room for You
Easter C16 Acts 10:34-43; Psalm 118; 1 Corinthians 15:19-26; Luke 24:1-12 Pr. Scott Kramer Years ago on a trip to Israel my wife and I planned to visit some of the places that were important parts of Jesus’ life. One of these was the traditional place of his birth in Bethlehem. It’s a small, cramped space, with room for only a few people, beneath the floor of a church that was built above it. The traditional place of Jesus’ birth is not a shelter for animals, such as we find in the Bible. It’s … [Read more...]
Through the Cross
Palm Sunday—3/20/16 Luke 19:28-40; Isaiah 50:4-9a; Psalm 31:9-16; Phil. 2:5-11; Luke 23:1-49 Pr. Scott Kramer The whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully… “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven.” If it weren’t Palm Sunday you might think it’s Christmas. Remember what the angels sang on the eve of Jesus’ birth? Something similar: "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he … [Read more...]
Winter Into Spring
5 Lent C—3/13/16 Isaiah 43:16-21; Psalm 126; Philippians 3:4b-14; John 12:1-18 Pr. Scott Kramer Imagine yourself taking a walk this afternoon with a friend. After worship, you set out through the neighborhood. Looking around you, you say, “Wow! Look at the magnolias, the azaleas, the daffodils, the camellias, the cherry trees, the plum trees, the hyacinths, the forsythias—all in bloom! Look at the color! And oh, the fragrance! Not only that, but as of today we have an extra hour of daylight. … [Read more...]
The Father’s Love
4 Lent C—3/6/16 Joshua 5:9-12; Psalm 32; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3,11b-32 Pr. Scott Kramer Our bank statement came in the mail a few days ago. This month, just like every other month, we need to check to see if the bank’s figures and our checkbook figures agree. You do this, too. We call it reconciling the checkbook. The word “reconcile” shows up in some form no fewer than five times in today’s short reading from 2 Corinthians. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: … [Read more...]
Saved to Save
3 Lent C—2/28/16 Isaiah 55:1-9; Psalm 63:1-8; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9 Pr. Scott Kramer Three weeks ago yesterday, on February 6th, at 4:00 in the morning, my wife and I were awakened by windows rattling and the building shaking. I looked at her and she said, “Earthquake”, and…we both fell back asleep! Maybe not the safest response to an earthquake (!) but the next morning we heard news that she was right. It was an earthquake—the same one you read about in the news--on the … [Read more...]
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