Easter is the celebration of a community that found a new beginning. As Mary heads toward the tomb, she fully expected to encounter the body of Jesus, prone, covered by a cloth, shrouded in death. What she found that morning, was so shocking that she fled back to the companionship of the disciples. After herContinue reading “What about our community?”
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Gawkers, Gapers, and Rubberneckers: Wisdom for the Trail
Last Sunday, Willard gave us some considerations to take into account when hiking a trail. He talked about his motivation to hike the North Country Trail: one was to get to know Michigan at eye level, so to speak; the other to savor the earth “at the scale of the human footstep.” He talked aboutContinue reading “Gawkers, Gapers, and Rubberneckers: Wisdom for the Trail”
The Beloved Community
Once in a Hundred Years They only come around once in a hundred years They are cosmic, seismic, pandemic, epic in scale Floods, earthquakes, diseases— championships. Championships! Only one team will end up winning the last game of the year. The rest of the fans are left waiting with a tear in their beer. LovableContinue reading “The Beloved Community”
The Expansive Kin_dom of God
Scripture Texts: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16; Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26; Romans 16:25-27; Luke 1: 26-38 About two thousand years ago, the story goes that three wisemen from the east, possibly kings, followed an unusual star that appeared in the western sky. They followed the star to Bethlehem where they found a young child who had beenContinue reading “The Expansive Kin_dom of God”
“A Cry of ‘Freedom'”
Over the past eight months, we have been made aware just how social we are as human creatures. Because of the virus, many of the relationships we had taken for granted have been disrupted in some way. Simple tasks like shopping for groceries, going to work, fueling our vehicles, or getting together to enjoy aContinue reading ““A Cry of ‘Freedom’””
Numbering Our Days
Sunrise . . . sunset Dawn and dusk. Both are filled with awe and splendor, an array of color and dazzling light. One emerges into the brightness of a new day; the other fades into the darkness of the night. One is filled with hope, the other hope fulfilled. One is the beginning of theContinue reading “Numbering Our Days”
Standing in the Breach
The year of 2020 will be remembered by all who lived through it as a year like none other. While we may look back on this year as an anomaly, it may be we discover that it was the introduction to our new normal. While the whole world has needed to deal with the coronavirusContinue reading “Standing in the Breach”
“Let every girl live!”
In this week’s passage, we leave the story of the patriarchs of the Jewish nation behind and fast forward nearly four hundred years. Joseph had been sold into slavery by his own brothers. In a story of “climbing to the top,” Joseph is freed from prison and becomes the pharaoh’s chief advisor and administrator ofContinue reading ““Let every girl live!””
“I have seen God face to face”
The following meditation was given by Devon Miller for Florence Church of the Brethren Mennonite on August 2, 2020. The Face of Yahweh What does God look like? Would you recognize God if you were to meet this being that everyone seems to know so much about in the street? What form does God take?Continue reading ““I have seen God face to face””
The Economics of Race: Cotton, Land, and Labor
Text: Genesis 29:15-28; Psalm 105:1-11; Matthew 13;31-33, 44-52 The following meditation was given by Devon Miller for Florence Church of the Brethren Mennonite on July 26, 2020. This week in our scripture reading, we continue following the story of the formation of the Jewish nation as it seeks to establish itself in the land ofContinue reading “The Economics of Race: Cotton, Land, and Labor”