Anxiety is a crushing feeling. Philosopher and Eastern mystic Wein Wei made the astute observation that anxiety is “preoccupation with the future.” “Preoccupation” is an interesting word. When broken down you realize the peril the spiritual person, the Christian, is in when dealing with preoccupation. The prefix “pre” obviously means before. “Occupation” can mean duty … Continue reading Advent Devotional: Sunday, December 7
The Saint known as Nicholas was born in 270 in the city of Patara, a port city on the Mediterranean Sea in Asia Minor. Later in his life, he was ordained and appointed Bishop of Myra, which is part of modern-day Turkey. Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, and children. He … Continue reading Advent Devotional: Saturday, December 6: Commemoration of St. Nicholas
Faith. Aside from “God” or “Jesus,” “faith” is one of the most common words heard at church. But what does it mean? What is faith? What does it mean to have faith? As with most things, it seems, I think I have more questions than answers. When I was in junior high, I heard that, … Continue reading Advent Devotional: Thursday, December 4
Read Acts 2:17 I don’t wear glasses or contacts. I’ve never had to wear any kind of corrective lenses in my life. Most people would say that makes me lucky. I think that makes me unusual. Most people I know wear glasses, so I don’t know if I should be proud or ashamed that I … Continue reading Advent Devotional: Wednesday, December 3
The Salvadoran Civil War was a conflict between the military-led government of El Salvador and guerilla revolutionary groups that lasted for over 12 years, from 1979 until 1992. Among the over 75,000 lives lost in this extremely violent war were six Jesuit priests from the Universidad Centroamericana, along with their housekeeper and her 15 year-old … Continue reading Advent Devotional: Tuesday, December 2: The Martyrs of El Salvador
* a sermon preached at Luther Memorial Church of Chicago on November 16, 2014 * Text: A Story from Isaiah (based on Isaiah 36:1-3, 13-20; 37:1-7; and 2:1-4) The King of Assyria came to Judah and sent a messenger to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. The messenger called out to the people of Jerusalem, in their own language, … Continue reading Torn in Two
* a sermon preached at Luther Memorial Church of Chicago on October 19, 2014 * Text: 2 Samuel 12:1-9 Well, I’m sorry to say you’ve been duped again. Last week, we had a seemingly innocent story about heritage, which Pastor Tim turned into a sermon about stewardship; and I have to apologize because this week we … Continue reading Here’s To You!
Here's some background info on the book we'll be reading from on Sunday: In the books of 1st and 2nd Samuel, we see the shift of Israel from a nebulous, largely tribal group of people toward a more organized monarchy. The people of Israel demand a king, and although God, through Samuel, warns them that … Continue reading 1st and 2nd Samuel
the narrow way 