We had some friends over for dinner on Monday night, and we sat down and I lifted my fork and took a bite. Our friends, who are not churchgoers, looked at me as though I had lost my mind. “Aren’t we going to say grace?” they asked. So Gregg said one of his wonderful Gregg … read
One of the interesting things about this text from Romans is that Paul never tells us what love is, what evil is, or what good is. There is either the assumption that we, like the letter-readers in Rome, already know what those things are, or the encouragement for us to figure that out for our … read
A theologian Mary Pellauer once said, “If there’s anything worth calling theology, it is listening to people’s stories, listening to them and cherishing them, and asking them to become even more brightly beautiful than they already are.” (God’s Fierce Whimsy) I find it interesting that as the writer of Hebrews talks about faith, he does … read
God and Laughter Genesis 18:1-15 The year before we moved to Portland, Gregg was working full time and I was doing little gigs here and there, my main work being parenting a young child. That meant that we could fully participate in the life of a congregation, one in our neighborhood and full of friends. … read
My dear friend Alison is one of the brightest and kindest and most thoughtful people you will ever know. She and her husband, Fred, are godparents to Sarah, and every day we wish they didn’t live on the other side of the country. A few years ago we spent our vacation with them in New … read
This morning I’d like to think and imagine with you a little, and explore the idea of God being a verb more than a noun, and what that might mean for us as we walk through our lives in faith. Talking about God is a tricky thing – and listening to a preacher talk about … read