A presidential election is approaching. But as I try to summon the energy and imagination to pray into it, my heart keeps taking me in another direction.
In thinking of Michael this week, I made an embarrassing realization. I never made an effort to see what Mike needed or if there was anything a Sunday school teacher could do to better engage with autistic children. I didn’t move to make myself more aware. Could I make my classroom more comfortable for him? Could I introduce activities that would serve his strengths and likes? Could I be more aware of his sensory triggers and the paths to restoring his peace?
August begins with our “Seekers in Sneakers” vacation Bible school and moves quickly toward the first days of school.
Late in June, I was teaching at a Vacation Bible School in Moon Township when I lost my wallet. I realized my loss—which included a debit card, multiple credit cards, two health insurance cards, and a driver’s license—as I walked into a Giant Eagle around 3 p.m. I panicked. I called the church. I searched the car. Nothing.
This is my favorite sunset prayer of the year. Let’s pray into summer.
Scripture doesn’t give us many details about David’s mother, but a single sentence in Psalm 86 reveals so much about her.
Am I? Are we? Changed? Was it really a declaration this year? I want it to be more than a lyric. I want it to be a truth, an action.
Can you remember being in high school, feeling invisible and ineffective, and hearing a teacher or a coach or a parent validate your work? I do. Encouraging words resonate.
We’re going to let our Sewickley UMC children cater our shared prayer this month, and they have provided an extraordinary menu.
I spent some Saturday evenings in a church where the final worship service of every year is an “open mic” event.
The shepherds were left in the dark. No instructions. No commandments. It was a write-your-own script moment.
I want these questions to be part of our prayer as we move toward Thanksgiving and Advent. Should we look different? Is there a way the world can see our joy?
I heard Pastor Hannah, in a late September message, remind us that “we are ambassadors of Christ.” I heard her say “Christ is making his appeal through us.”
I admit I often neglect the places where we spend 40 or more hours each week. I don’t often pray into our work lives and workplaces.
On August 6, as the sun sets at 8:30pm, from wherever you are, with whomever wants to join you, let’s pray together for our children, our youth, and their leaders.
How do we pray for our nation? What scripture can guide us through a time when our challenges seem so immense?
Let’s bend the rules this month. Let’s not wait until the first Sunday, as is our tradition, to lift our next sunset prayer.
As Jesus stops for the children, isn’t he answering the prayers of their parents? Isn’t he saying, “I know the challenges you’re facing, and I want to be part of your walk as a parent”?
When I heard Pastor Hannah was planning a Lenten series on humility, I shrugged. Honestly, where’s the electricity in humility?
A year ago, before we replaced the carpeting in the Sunday school rooms, I drew a chalk line across the classroom floor. I then shared the story of Jesus healing 10 men from Samaria.