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...]

Some of us this past week saw an outstanding TV program called, “The Amish.” I was born in Iowa near an Amish community called the Amana Colonies. From an early age I was fascinated by these men with the long beards and straw hats, the women with their long “pioneer” dresses and hats. It was always an event to see horse-drawn buggies on the roads of eastern Iowa. When young Amish people reach adulthood they decide whether or not to be baptized. For the Amish, being baptized means deciding to … [Read more...]