Matthew 27:45-54 This morning Minjing and I drove to North Bend to hike Mt. Si. Mt. Si is one of the best training hikes for people who are planning to hike higher mountains. In fact, three months today I will be my ascent of Mt. Baker for the Climb to Fight Breast Cancer. It was a good day to be outside—not just to get in shape but because, as many of you know, today is Earth Day. Earth Day is an opportunity to recognize the beauty of the earth and our human responsibility for stewardship … [Read more...]

Matthew 26:14–25, 31–56, 69–75 51. Suddenly, one of those with Jesus put his hand on his sword, drew it, and struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear. 52. Then Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” This past Tuesday marked the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the American Civil War. It was a war that testified to the truth of Jesus’ words: All who take the sword will perish by the sword. 610,000 people … [Read more...]

1 Samuel 16:1-13; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 This past week I drove down to a Renton casino to get my food handler’s permit. The food handler’s permit is required in order to work at Luther’s Table. When I arrived at the testing site I sat through a 45-minute class covering the rules for food handling and preparation. Our instructor emphasized the importance of washing hands often—especially after going to the bathroom: Wash once before leaving the bathroom and then again … [Read more...]

Exodus 17:1-7; Psalm 95; Romans 5:1-11; John 4:5-42 Baseball season is just around the corner. Whether or not you’re a Mariners fan—or even a baseball fan!—you know at least some of the lingo. We use baseball terms every day without even thinking about it. If someone gives an answer that’s close to the best answer we say that she’s in the ballpark. If he answers several questions in a row and gets them all right, we say he’s batting 1000. If she makes it to the highest level of her profession … [Read more...]

Genesis 12:1-4a; Psalm 121; Romans 4:1-5,13-17, John 3:1-17 As the people of Japan respond to the continuing crisis in their nation one of the big questions for many Japanese has been: Stay or leave? Do I stay home and risk radiation poisoning or disease or hunger or cold—or, do I leave? Some have no choice. Their homes are destroyed. Or, the government has ordered them to evacuate. Thousands are now homeless. We hear stories of homeless people around the world. Like the people of eastern … [Read more...]

Genesis 2:15-17,3:1-7; Psalm 32; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11 It’s almost spring! Our “snowbirds” will be returning to Seattle within a couple of months. Snowbirds, of course, are those who spend summers here in the lush Northwest--winters in the warm desert. Spiritually speaking, it’s fair to say that we’re all snowbirds! We spend some of our lives in a beautiful garden: hopeful, confident, joyful. And, we spend some of our lives in the desert: sad, fearful, anxious, angry and … [Read more...]

Isaiah 58:1-12; Ps. 51:1-17; 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10; Matt. 6:1-6,16-21 If someone were to ask me what day this is I’d have two answers. One answer I could give is the reason we’re here this evening: Ash Wednesday. The other answer I might give: It’s my wife’s birthday! Trick question: If I were to ask you how old she is, what would you say? If you were here on Sunday you’d probably know to say “50.” And that’s true. But it’s not the whole truth. I’ll say more about that in a … [Read more...]