This summer at Montreat, I sat in the pottery center with three simple things: a spinning wheel, a piece of clay, and a dream. My dream was to transform that formless lump into a coffee mug glazed in “Montreat Blue.” Hypnotized by the steady spinning of the wheel, I soon imagined how amazing it would […]
Some Things I Learned While Trying to Hang a Banner
One Sunday morning I walked into the sanctuary and found two people arguing about a banner. They simply could not agree on whether or not the banner was straight. They asked for my help. And that’s how two ways to align a banner became three. The person holding the pole that held the banner’s string would […]
Do Not Fear: Some Thoughts on Easter Sunday
Joining with Christians around the world, the people of Massanutten Presbyterian Church gathered today to bear witness to God’s power to give life. Matthew’s version of the Easter story as told by some children from our congregation served as the scripture text for the sermon I preached. While this is a bit longer than my […]
Everything I Once Believed about Grief Is Wrong
I woke today to the thought that has greeted me every March 8th since 1990: “My sister would have been…” Fifty-five. That’s how the sentence ends this year. My sister would have been fifty-five. Twenty-four years removed from her death, I still live the truth of what Rick Lischer describes in his book Stations of […]
Release and Embrace: A Brief Lenten List | christopherjoiner
Release and Embrace: A Brief Lenten List | christopherjoiner. I found these thoughts from my friend, Chris Joiner, to be extremely encouraging to me as I continue my Lenten journey. I share his words in the hope that you will find them helpful as well. Blessings during Lent, John
Dust in Waiting
There’s nothing like a couple of bags of liturgical waste to clutter up a living space. I know, because I’ve had a huge bag of gently-used palm branches stashed behind my office door since Palm Sunday of last year. One just like it from Palm Sunday 2012 sits on a shelf in my garage. If […]