-
Panic settled upon me after hearing how driven the state of Kansas has become in its effort to lure, entice, kidnap the KC Chiefs across state lines. Wouldn’t that be a federal offense? The same sense of panic sat in when Jackson County failed to renew the tax for the KC Royals in April. Why panic? I
-
During the past few months, I have had the honor of officiating at two funerals, and yesterday I attended a third funeral. There is one resounding principle that keeps ringing in my ears: the greatest gift ever is love. Yesterday’s funeral was for a member of my church family of 28 years. I came to this community to
-
An exercise in stream of conscious writing When I woke up at 4:30 this morning, I could not help but remember how many times as a kid that 4:30 did not seem so early for Christmas morning. This time I did not run to the living room to see what Santa had brought. This time I laid
-
All the world seems excited to celebrate Christmas with family and friends, holiday traditions, and the excitement of Christmas, but for others the holiday season is a struggle. The reasons for feeling blue in the midst of all the holiday hype ranges from the loss of a spouse, family member, empty nest syndrome, health diagnosis,
-
Waking up this morning, I feel Christmas sneaking in on me. There are clouds and the possibility to see snowflakes in the air, and it is cold–24 degrees. And yet, I am in quarantine. Christmas has been central to my life forever. Growing up on the farm, Christmas was a time we developed all those traditions that seem
-
Typically we would begin sharing thoughts about all the positive outcomes of the year today, but the 2020 year has certainly challenged us to find positives to share. When we last visited, I did share that even through this COVID season, there are some positives developing. It is so important to use an optimistic a twist
-
The last seven months our comfortable American lifestyle has redefined itself. The daily routines have shifted, schools are in crisis, economy erratic, families rattled–the list grows. Yet, there is an irony to the entire situation, and I pray that there are some dramatic shifts for the positive in our lifestyle that are and have been desperately
-
The Literature in the Psalms Two years ago, I spent a summer with books. Notice I did not say I spent a summer with the psalms. For over 12 years, I had read almost nothing except seminary resources, followed the lectionary readings at least three times which is really nine years, and of course the Bible.
-
Growing up in the Methodist Church in Montgomery City, my world was expanded by the people with whom our family worshiped. I would like to introduce you to Burt and Beth. My mental picture of them is watching Burt open the car door outside the church, reach in for Beth as she stood up. He then walked her
-
How many times do we experience something in our lives and we cannot believe what just happened? Maybe it was a near accident, maybe it was a health issue, maybe it was a work achievement. Afterwards, we just walk away and marvel at the outcome. Maybe we are in the midst of another amazing experience. I know that
-
Today is Palm Sunday. And today I will sit in my living room and watch the service on Facebook. I will be watching the work of our tech team, our pastor, our music team, and myself. We worked this week, reporting to the sanctuary at different times, to video tape all the elements of the service to
Susandoodles
Love God, love life, love one another.
Susandoodles 