Presby-Musings

For my last foray into some "hot-button" issues within our current culture, aimed at finding ways to have civil discourse about them, I'd like to spend some time reflecting on Christian nationalism and why Christians should think more critically about it.   First, let me say this:  You can love your country and still resist the lure of Christian nationalism.  In fact, for those of us who follow Jesus, resisting it might be the most patriotic thing we can do.  I love my country.  I still get chills when I'm at a sporting event, standing, removing my cap, putting my hand on my heart, and singing the National Anthem. I love watching the Olympics and hearing chants of "U-S-A!" coming from the stands when our athletes prevail.   I've visited some of our nation's most sacred and hallowed grounds, monuments, and buildings, and choked back tears of pride.   But in the end, I also know that my love of country is superseded by my devotion and duty...

In keeping with my goal this week to try to demonstrate better ways to think and converse about some of the hot-button issues in our current, contentious culture (good alliteration, right?), I'm going to steer us toward the topic of immigration.  Inside the Statue of Liberty, there is a bronze plaque with the words of a poem by Emma Lazarus that reads:  "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"  In the waning days of the 19th century, my great-grandfather saw that statue from the deck of a tiny cargo ship crammed with over two thousand refugees from Europe.  He was from Austria, spoke little English, had little money, and yet clung to a dream of a better life.   I exist because Josef Bloder made an exodus to a new world.  And the beauty of America is that we all "come from away," as it is a...

I've decided to practice what I preach a bit for the next few Devos by taking on some hot-button issues that have been incredibly divisive. My hope is to demonstrate that there are nuanced and more moderate ways to approach them as followers of Jesus.   I know.  I'm taking my life in my own hands by doing this, but there you go.  I figured I'd start with the most divisive issue, one that has Christians of all stripes divided in all kinds of ways: the debate over abortion rights.   Before you stop reading, hear me out.  We need to find better ways to disagree with one another in our current culture and to see each other better.  Even when it comes to hot-button issues, we can (if we work at it) find common ground to stand on.   With that in mind, I want to share some sage words from author Caitlin Moran on what it means to be "pro-life," and how those words should have an impact on Jesus-followers:  “I cannot understand anti-abortio...

We live in a culture where demonizing those who disagree with us has become a national pastime.  And we can do it in so many ways now, which takes things to a whole new level.  If you want to see humanity at its worst, all you have to do is scroll through Twitter/X for a few minutes, and you'll want to move to a remote part of Montana where there aren't as many people, and where your internet is spotty.   I've come to believe that our culture of animosity has bled into our relationships with friends and loved ones, too.  The divisions that exist between us have been widened, and we are finding it harder to love people who choose to highlight those divisions over any other bonds we might have with them.   If there is going to be any transformation in our fractured society, it is going to have to begin with us.  If we say that we follow Jesus, we need to learn what it means to forgive, to show grace, and to forego the prideful responses our ego is d...

I've been in a state of limbo for a year now as I've been waiting for my house to sell.  And now I've fallen even deeper into limbo as I'm waiting to relist it in hopes of a fresh start on the market.  Until now, I didn't know that there were layers to limbo.  There are, just so you know.   Over the past year, I've learned more about patience and trusting in God than I have in my entire life.  It hasn't always been pretty.  I've had plenty of days when I felt lower than low and filled with desperation.   But what I've learned is that I don't have to spend my waiting days curled up on the couch, ordering DoorDash, and feeling sorry for myself.   Patience, as it turns out, is an active kind of thing.  Practicing it doesn't mean you have to sit still, although sometimes being still might be what is required.  We can be active in our patience while we are waiting during times of uncertainty.   Recently, I stumbled ac...

Yup, It’s Still the Season of Pentecost We are teaching through a sermon series in October, entitled “A New Way.”  As we continue our journey through the season of Pentecost, we are reminded that Jesus’ teachings were designed to inspire his followers to live their lives differently.  The early Christians were known as followers of “The Way,” which referred to a new way of living based on Jesus’ teaching and example.  This “new way” is something we need to keep learning to follow, and this series will help us do that.  Today, we’re going to read a story about ten people that Jesus healed from a debiliating disease that made them outcasts, and how only one of them said thank you.   Strangers In A Strange Land - What it means to be a foreigner.  Being a foreigner is humbling, tenuous, and scary.  If you have ever had the opportunity to travel abroad to countries where you may not speak the language or understand the customs, how to dress, or how to ...

One of the many beautiful things that I get to do as a pastor is baptize people.  I grew up in the Baptist tradition, which (if you didn't infer by the name) holds the sacrament of baptism in high regard.   Some of that regard stuck with me even as I have served for the past twenty-plus years as a Presbyterian minister.  Now, I don't believe that baptizing children is a bad idea, and I also completely affirm my denomination's stance on recognizing baptism from other churches and Christian traditions.   But I do love a good baptism.  I've sprinkled scores of babies and kids, and more than a few adults, over the years.  But I've also baptized people by immersion in portable baptisteries, lakes, rivers, swimming pools, and the Atlantic Ocean.  Presbyterians do it all kinds of ways, y'all.   In the end, it isn't I who is doing the baptism, though.  It's the Spirit of God.  And baptism isn't a one-time experience either.  ...