The Crises We Must Solve The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things                                            John 14:12  The Message In the winter of 2021, when the shame of the January 6th attack on our capital hung heavy in the air, TIME magazine published a challenge for all of us.  Their writers made it clear that the deterioration of our   [Read More …]

A person’s words can be life-giving water. . .  Proverbs 18:4* It’s time. Time for us to become the kind and thoughtful people we are capable of being.  Maybe even past time for us to watch our tongues lest someone wash our mouths out with soap. For many days I sit with my thoughts for potential columns before I write a word.  I read, I pray, and I have silent arguments in   [Read More …]

“How much should I have? What is enough for me? What should you have? What is enough for you?” -- N. Gordon Cosby, from his sermon, "How Much Is Enough?"* Can you hear the echoes from that 1990 sermon (quoted above) bouncing off the walls of Congress, careening across the land, and whistling through every unemployment and food bank line? Much has changed for the worse since Cosby preached   [Read More …]

“Selfishness is the most destructive force in all the cosmos, and hate is only its symptom.”                      Bishop Michael Curry,  Love Is The Way As I write this Congress is debating, or should I say arguing about President Biden’s incentive bill to offset some of the most   [Read More …]

When I am afraid, I will pray. Who said that?  It doesn’t matter because today our nation needs for every one of us to be praying like we’ve never prayed before: Pray for a safe inauguration for President-elect Biden and Vice President- elect Harris and the wisdom for them to lead us through these difficult times . . .  Pray for safety for our Senators and Representatives and   [Read More …]

“Give them something to eat yourselves.”   Mark 6:37, The Jerusalem Bible Across the U.S.A. the pandemic has robbed people of their jobs.  Without an income it is hard to feed your family. Here’s a frightening statistic from Feeding America, the country’s largest food bank program:  “In the United States currently, 1 in 9 people struggle with hunger.”   Jesus   [Read More …]

“Let everyone give as his heart tells him, neither grudgingly nor under compulsion, for God loves the man who gives cheerfully.”                        [Read More …]

In the end, being generous is an affirmation of hope in the future.   Mark V. Ewert, The Generosity Path: Finding the Richness in Giving Is there a generosity gene? While some people are born generous, for most of us giving is an acquired trait.  Either we had parents who showed us by example the importance of helping others less fortunate, or we had to discover the joy of   [Read More …]

“The soul is dyed the color of its thoughts.”     Marcus Aurelius Thanksgiving may be very tough this year unless we make this holiday a time for truly Giving Thanks. As I sat down to write this I found myself thinking about a time in my life when giving thanks for anything was very difficult.  Our 16-year-old son was dying, his medical bills were fast approaching   [Read More …]

 Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Rainer Maria Rilke   How can all of us from every walk of life and every state in this great nation heal the great divide that is tearing us apart, and how can we learn to appreciate each other’s point of view and love each other despite our differences? When answers seem to be non-existent,   [Read More …]