Tag Archives: children

Quick, quick, slow

A little Lenten story When my children were small, I didn’t forget their names – how could I? – yet as often as not my tongue would take two or three wrong turnings on its way to the beloved standing … Continue reading

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Leading cause

I saw the eagle twice today; once above the middle school pinned out against the sky, spread upon the wind, a standard flying; then again a vision hunched over the cemetery, image of an angel, ugly crying. __________________________ In 2020, … Continue reading

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Do good. Don’t stop.

The seventy returned to Jesus excited and amped up, saying, “You should see how we owned the forces of evil! How we slayed in the name of the Spirit! We are on fire!”
And Jesus said, “Yesss. Awesome. You are amazing. You are undefeatable. I know, I know that the way of love wins (because, ahem, I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life). I know that you have it in you to do great things. But, not to rain on your parade or anything, but … Do not become distracted, even by your own indisputable awesomeness, from the way of love.” Continue reading

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The great and the good

And now Jesus was stuck on the floor with a sleeping baby, his hands full, his feet with no feeling left in them, and the child’s mother had gone back to work. There was nothing for it but to continue to wait on the baby, serving it with patience and with love. … Continue reading

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David and Goliath

Jesus tells us several times that if we want to see God at work, we could do worse than to look to the children. “Let the little children come to me,” he said, “for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs;” and again, “Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” Continue reading

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Millstones

I preached a few weeks ago on the stumbling blocks that we set before our children: guns. Their prevalence and power have become stumbling blocks to our children, and blinders to keep us focused on fear. We hurtle headlong into … Continue reading

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Hollow trees

We went to the park where we used to play back in the day when we were small; we would run ahead of the parents and hide in the hollow trees that littered the way, brown and green side by … Continue reading

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Trinity

Trinity (in preparation for Sunday) When the children were little, and they wouldn’t listen, they wouldn’t play nicely, or tidy their toys, or eat their greens, or let go of the poor cat’s tender tail, I would say, “I’ll count … Continue reading

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Little ones

Last week, while some were celebrating “Gun Appreciation Day,” a six-year-old girl in Cleveland found her father’s gun, and she shot herself to death. (http://www.19actionnews.com/story/20631205/6-year-old-dead-after-severe-head-trauma) Later in the week, a four-year-old boy in Akron died in similar circumstances. (http://www.19actionnews.com/story/20678028/4-year-olds-death-ruled-a-homicide) In … Continue reading

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An anniversary

It is not lost on me that as I board the plane for our nation’s capital Sunday night, it will be on the first anniversary of its becoming “ours.” For me, this nation was “yours,” and I was categorized as … Continue reading

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