The “VID”, as we dis-affectionately call COVID-19 at our house, has changed so many things in your life and mine! It made a big change in one of my favorite pastoral activities of the year. As part of our Confirmation process we still have our kids go through a “Question Night.” That consists of having the students sit in front […]
I have been thinking about power this week. A lot of power has been wielded lately. Edicts have been handed out from the White House and state houses. Medical experts have made authoritative pronouncements that have determined what others can and cannot do. Assorted technological platforms have taken over parts of our lives in a fortnight. Individuals are increasingly resisting […]
By and large old sayings are true. That’s how they get to be old sayings; their truth endures through time. A stitch in time does save nine. Measuring twice makes the one cut more accurate. Money can buy lots of things but in fact it cannot buy happiness– for long. You can’t be too careful. Or can you? That is […]
I walk my dog with some intentional vigor. Early in the morning. There is a routine. Because I live in Michigan, I start with multiple layers of clothing depending on the weather. Shoes and socks, obviously. A hat, either a stocking cap or a baseball hat comes next. For lots of the year I use a reflective vest since my […]
As we make our way through this topsy-turvy virus crisis with all it ups and downs… deaths, tests, ventilators, layoffs, quarantines, wet markets, statistics… does your stomach ache? Did you know that motion sickness is caused by a confusion in your brain between your inner ears and eyes that ends up on your stomach? If you are traveling by car, […]
I am that guy. There may be a wire loose. I can’t help but speak a clever comment back whenever people say something. (Clever to me!) Whether it is at a meeting, in a conversation or at a chance meeting with a neighbor on the street, I not only have something to say, I have a clever comeback to whatever […]
There is a lot of crisis management happening. Hospitals. Governmental agencies. Businesses. Congregations. Families. Over the last thirty days all of us have made countless decisions, countless adjustments, countless changes. Where will we go? Where we will not go? What will we do? What will we not do? Cover? Gather? Withdraw? Test? Something is becoming clear in my decision making. […]
Danger. Pandemic. Economic chaos. Unemployment. Medical supplies. Government over-reach or is it under-reach? I saw some sidewalk chalk art on a driveway this week. Whatever kids lived there, I had never seen kids there, must have gotten bored with on-line education, playing video games or snap-chatting. And with no organized soccer games to go to, a working-from-home mom or dad […]
Talk about a week of great significance! I must have made about 100 different decisions to figure out how to move forward in congregational ministry given the impact of the virus crisis. (I refuse to use the scary name it has been given because that just drives fear.) One of the things that was clear right away was that we […]
Beginning this week on Fridays I plan to share something particularly significant from the week as it draws to a close. Shouldn’t be hard to find something this week!