Elsewhere I've spoken of the need to save advent from Christmas. Here I want to help us think about Advent saving Christmas. We are presently two weeks into Advent. The first week the gospel reading was an apocalyptic passage from Luke 21, and this last Sunday had us hearing about John the Baptist. This Sunday doesn't let up, with a prickly message from John that doesn't really let us settle into the usual 'Christmas spirit.'...
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Did you know 2016 was pre-named 'The Year of Mercy'? I'm not sure who bestowed this title or what it inspired or even how we indeed review it. But a cursory glance at the news - local, nation or international you could easily conclude that nothing much has changed. The world is still tired and frayed at the edges. Good news still travels much slower than a sensational news headline. And peace for so much of the earth is still...
Read MoreRead MoreI confess I'd already had Simeon on my brain. I've been intrigued by the songs that are embedded in the New Testament - and Simeon gives us one of the earlier ones in Luke 2.Its the story of an old man who has held out to see God's salvation 'in the land of the living' (Psalm 27). He is drawn to the temple when Jesus is there to be presented as an 8 day old...
Read MoreRead MoreYesterday was the second Sunday of Advent, the day when we focus on the coming of Jesus as the coming of peace. I chose to speak on Mark 4:35-41 - Jesus calming the storm. I'm not completely sure why, but I was intrigued by the manner of the peace that Jesus brings. It struck me that this story could easily be called, 'Jesus unsettles the disciples.' By the end of the story, we get told that the disciples...
Read MoreRead MoreHere's the first part of a message I preached at Flagstaff Community Church on Sunday morning.Today is the first Sunday of Advent, the day when we remember that this season is about hope. However, I think hope is a little slippery. You see, I find myself hoping for all sorts of things. Whenever I see an ad for Big Wednesday, I find myself hoping that somehow I will win 27 million dollars, which is an...
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